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 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF ILLINOIS 
 
 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 COUNTY, IUINOIS, 
 
 CO IVT AITfllX Cr 
 
 Full Page Portraits and Biographical Sketches of Prominent 
 and Representative Citizens of the County, 
 
 ^OGr ETHER. WITH- 
 
 PORTRAITS AND BIOGRAPHIES OF ALL THE GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS AND 
 OF THE PRESIDENTS OF THE .UNITED STATES. 
 
 Also Containing A History of the Connty, from its Earliest Settlement 
 
 tip to the Present Time. 
 
 CHICAGO : 
 CHAPMAN BROTHERS, 
 
 1886. 
 
 I- 
 

HAVE completed our labors in writing and compiling the PORTRAIT AND Bio- 
 iGRAPHiCAL ALBUM of this county, and wish, in presenting it to our patrons, to speak 
 briefly of the importance of local works of this nature. It is certainly the duty 
 of the present to commemorate the past, to perpetuatethe names of the pioneers, 
 to furnish a record of their early settlement, and to relate the story of their progress. 
 . The civilization of our day, the enlightenment of the age, and this solemn duty which 
 men of the present time owe to their ancestors, to themselves and to their posterity, 
 demand that a record of their lives and deeds should be made. In local history is found a power 
 to instruct man by precedent, to enliven the mental faculties, and to waft down the river of time a safe 
 vessel in which the names and actions of the people who contributed to raise this region from its 
 primitive state may be preserved. Surely and rapidly the noble men, who in their vigor and prime 
 came early to the county and claimed the virgin soil as their heritage, are passing to their 
 graves. The number remaining who can relate the history of the first days of settlement is 
 becoming small indeed, so that an actual necessity exists for the collection and preservation of his- 
 torical matter without delay, before the settlers of the wilderness are cut down by time. Not only 
 is it of the greatest importance to render history of pioneer times full and accurate, but it is also essen- 
 tial that the history of the county, from its settlement to the present day, should be treated through its various 
 phases, so that a record, complete and impartial, may be handed down to the future. The present the age 
 of progress, is reviewed, standing out in bold relief over the quiet, unostentatious olden times; it is abrilliant 
 record, which is destined to live in the future; the good works of men, their magnificent enterprises, theii 
 lives, whether commercial or military, do not sink into oblivion, but, on the contrary, grow brighter with age, 
 and contribute to build up a record which carries with it precedents and principles that will 1 e advanced and 
 observed when the acts of soulless men will be forgotten and their very names hidden in obscurity. 
 
 In the preparation of the personal sketches contained in this volume, unusual care and pains were 
 taken to have them accurate, even in the smallest detail. Indeed, nothing was passed lightly over or treated 
 indifferently ; and we flatter ourselves that it is one of the most accurate works of its nature ever published. 
 As one of the most interesting features of this work, we present the portraits of numerous represent- 
 ative citizens. It has been our aim to have the prominent men of to-day, as well as the pioneers, represented 
 in this department; and we congratulate ourselves on the uniformly high character of the gentlemen whose 
 portraits we present. They are in the strictest sense representative men, and are selected from all the call- 
 ings and professions worthy to be given. There are others, it is true, who claim equal prominence with 
 those given ; but of course it was impossible for us to give portraits of all the leading men and pioneers 
 of the county. We are under great obligation to many of the noble and generous people of this county 
 for kindly and material assistance in the preparation of this ALBUM. 
 
 CHICAGO, March, 1886. 
 
 CHAPMAN BROTHERS. 
 
OF THE 
 
 AND OF THE 
 
 OF THE 
 
* 
 
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FIRST PRESIDENT. 
 
 lEOH! 
 
 ft 
 
 HE Father of our Country was 
 born in Westmorland Co., Var, 
 Feb. 22, 1732. His parents 
 were Augustine and Mary 
 (Ball) Washington. The family 
 to which he belonged has not 
 been satisfactorily traced in 
 England. His great-grand- 
 father, John Washington, em- 
 igrated to Virginia about 1657, 
 and became a prosperous 
 planter. He had two sons, 
 Lawrence and John. The 
 former married Mildred Warner 
 and had three children, John, 
 Augustine and Mildred. Augus- 
 tine, the father of George, first 
 married Jane Butler, who bore 
 him four children, two of whom, 
 Lawrence and Augustine, reached 
 maturity. Of six children by his 
 second marriage, George was the 
 eldest, the others being Betty, 
 Samuel, John Augustine, Charles 
 and Mildred. 
 
 Augustine Washington, the father of George, died 
 in 1743, leaving a large landed property. To his 
 eldest son, Lawrence, he bequeathed an estate on 
 the Patomac, afterwards known as Mount Vernon, 
 and to George he left the parental residence. George 
 received only such education as the neighborhood 
 schools afforded, save for a short time after he left 
 school, when he received private instruction in 
 mathematics. His spelling was rather defective. 
 
 Remarkable stories are told of his great physical 
 strength and development at an early age. He was 
 an acknowledged leader among his companions, and 
 was early noted for that nobleness of character, fair- 
 ness and veracity which characterized his whole life. 
 
 When George was 1 4 years old he had a desire to go to 
 sea, and a midshipman's warrant was secured for him, 
 but through the opposition of his mother the idea was 
 abandoned. Two years later he was appointed 
 surveyor to the immense estate of Lord Fairfax. In 
 this business he spent three years in a rough frontier 
 life, gaining experience which afterwards proved very 
 essential to him. In 1751, though only 19 years of 
 age, he was appointed adjutant with the rank of 
 major in the Virginia militia, then being trained for 
 active service against the French and Indians. Soon 
 after this he sailed to the West Indies with his brother 
 Lawrence, who went there to restore his health. They 
 soon returned, and in the summer of 1752 Lawrence 
 died, leaving a large fortune to an infant daughter 
 who did not long survive him. On her demise the 
 estate of Mount Vernon was given to George. 
 
 Upon the arrival of Robert Dinwiddie, as Lieuten- 
 ant-Governor of Virginia, in 1752, the militia was 
 reorganized, and the province divided into four mili- 
 tary districts, of which the northern was assigned to 
 Washington as adjutant general. Shortly after this 
 a very perilous mission was assigned him and ac- 
 cepted, which others had refused. This was to pro- 
 ceed to the French post near Lake Erie in North- 
 western Pennsylvania. The distance to be traversed 
 was between 500 and 600 miles. Winter was at hand, 
 and the journey was to be made without military 
 escort, through a territory occupied by Indians. The 
 
 
 
 r 
 
GEORGE WASHINGTON. 
 
 trip was a perilous one, and several times he came near 
 losing his life, yet he returned in safety and furnished 
 a full and useful report of his expedition. A regiment 
 of 300 men was raised in Virginia and put in com- 
 mand of Col. Joshua Fry, and Major Washington was 
 commissioned lieutenant-colonel. Active war was 
 then begun against the French and Indians, in which 
 Washington took a most important part. In the 
 memorable event of July 9, 1755, known as Brad- 
 dock's defeat, Washington was almost the only officer 
 of distinction who escaped from the calamities of the 
 day with life and honor. The other aids of Braddock 
 were disabled early in the action, and Washington 
 alone was left in that capacity on the field. In a letter 
 to his brother he says: "I had four bullets through 
 my coat, and two horses shot under me, yet I escaped 
 unhurt, though death was leveling my companions 
 on every side." An Indian sharpshooter said he was 
 not born to be killed by a bullet, for he had taken 
 direct aim at him seventeen times, and failed to hit 
 him. 
 
 After having been five years in the military service, 
 and vainly sought promotion in the royal army, he 
 took advantage of the fall of Fort Duquesne and the 
 expulsion of the French from the valley of the Ohio, 
 to resign his commission. Soon after he entered the 
 Legislature, where, although not a leader, he took an 
 active and important part. January 17, 1759, he 
 married Mrs. Martha (Dandridge) Custis, the wealthy 
 widow of John Parke Custis. 
 
 When the British Parliament had closed the port 
 of Boston, the cry went up throughout the provinces 
 that "The cause of Boston is the cause of us all." 
 It was then, at the suggestion of Virginia, that a Con- 
 gress of all the colonies was called to meet at Phila- 
 delphia,Sept. 5, 1774, to secure their common liberties, 
 peaceably if possible. To this Congress Col. Wash- 
 ington was sent as a delegate. On May 10, 1775, the 
 Congress re-assembled, when the hostile intentions of 
 England were plainly apparent. The battles of Con- 
 cord and Lexington had been fought. Among the 
 first acts of this Congress was the election of a com- 
 mander-in-chief of the colonial forces. This high and 
 responsible office was conferred upon Washington, 
 who was still a member of the Congress. He accepted 
 it on June 19, but upon the express condition that he 
 receive no salary. He would keep an exact account 
 of expenses and expect Congress to pay them and 
 nothing more. It is not the object of this sketch to 
 trace the military acts of Washington, to whom the 
 fortunes and liberties of the people of this country 
 were so long confided. The war was conducted by 
 him under ever}' possible disadvantage, and while his 
 forces often met with reverses, yet he overcaine every 
 obstacle, and after seven years of heroic devotion 
 and matchless skill he gained liberty for the greatest 
 nation of earth. On Dec. 23, 1783, Washington, in 
 a parting address of surpassing beauty, resigned his 
 
 commission as Commander-in-chief of the army to 
 to the Continental Congress sitting at Annapolis. He 
 retired immediately to Mount Vernon and resumed 
 his occupation as a farmer and planter, shunning all 
 connection with public life. 
 
 In February, 1 7 89, Washington was unanimously 
 elected President. In his presidential career he was 
 subject to the peculiar trials incidental to a new 
 government ; trials from lack of confidence on the part 
 of other governments; trials from want of harmony 
 between the different sections of our own country ; 
 trials from the impoverished condition of the country, 
 owing to the war and want of credit; trials from the 
 beginnings of party strife. He was no partisan. His 
 clear judgment could discern the golden mean ; and 
 while perhaps this alone kept our government from 
 sinking at the very outset, it left him exposed to 
 attacks from both sides, which were often bitter and 
 very annoying. 
 
 At the expiration of his first term he was unani- 
 mously re-elected. At the end of this term many 
 were anxious that he be re-elected, but he absolutely 
 refused a third nomination. On the fourth of March, 
 1797, at the expiraton of his second term as Presi- 
 dent, he returned to his home, hoping to pass there 
 his few remaining years free from the annoyances of 
 public life. Later in the year, however, his repose 
 seemed likely to be interrupted by war with France. 
 At the prospect of such a war he was again urged to 
 take command of the armies. He chose his sub- 
 ordinate officers and left to them the charge of mat- 
 ters in the field, which he superintended from his 
 home. In accepting the command he made the 
 reservation that he was not to be in the field until 
 it was necessary. In the midst of these preparations 
 his life was suddenly cut off. December i 2, he took 
 a seveie cold from a ride in the rain, which, settling 
 in his throat, produced inflammation, and terminated 
 fatally on the night of the fourteenth. On the eigh- 
 teenth his body was borne with military honors to its 
 final resting place, and interred in the family vault at 
 Mount Vernon. 
 
 Of the character of Washington it is impossible to 
 speak but in terms of the highest respect and ad- 
 miration. The more we see of the operations of 
 our government, and the m6re deeply we feel the 
 difficulty of uniting all opinions in a common interest, 
 the more highly we must estimate the force of his tal- 
 ent and character, which have been able to challenge 
 the reverence of all parties, and principles, and na- 
 tions, and to win a fame as extended as the limits 
 of the globe, and which we cannot but believe will 
 be as lasting as the existence of man. 
 
 The person of Washington was unusally tall, erect 
 and well proportioned. His muscular strength was 
 great. His features were of a beautiful symmetry. 
 He commanded respect without any appearance of 
 haughtiness, and ever serious without being dull. 
 
rtl 
 
SECOND PRESIDENT. 
 
 2 3 
 
 .M^.4.A.t w t^^ 
 
 I 
 
 OHN ADAMS, the second 
 President and the first Vice- 
 President of the United States, 
 was born in Braintree ( now 
 Quincy ),Mass., and about ten 
 miles from Boston, Oct. 19, 
 a, 1735. His great-grandfather, Henry 
 Adams, emigrated from England 
 about 1640, with a family of eight 
 sons, and settled at Braintree. The 
 parents of John were John and 
 Susannah (Boylston) Adams. His 
 father was a farmer of limited 
 means, to which he added the bus- 
 iness of shoemaking. He gave his 
 eldest son, John, a classical educa- 
 tion at Harvard College. John 
 graduated in 1755, and at once took charge of the 
 school in Worcester, Mass. This he found but a 
 "school of affliction," from which he endeavored to 
 gain relief by devoting himself, in addition, to the 
 study of law. For this purpose he placed himself 
 under the tuition of the only lawyer in the town. He 
 had thought seriously of the clerical profession 
 but seems to have been turned from this by what he 
 termed " the frightful engines of ecclesiastical coun- 
 cils, of diabolical malice, and Calvanistic good nature,'' 
 of the operations of which he had been a witness in 
 his native town. He was well fitted for the legal 
 profession, possessing a clear, sonorous voice, being 
 ready and fluent of speech, and having quick percep- 
 tive powers. He gradually gained practice, and in 
 1764 married Abigail Smith, a daughter of a minister, 
 and a lady of superior intelligence. Shortly after his 
 marriage, (1765), the attempt of Parliamentary taxa- 
 tion turned him from law to politics. He took initial 
 steps toward holding a town meeting, and the resolu- 
 
 tions he offered on the subject became very popular 
 throughout the Province, and were adopted word for 
 word by over forty different towns. He moved to Bos- 
 ton in 1768, and became one of the most courageous 
 and prominent advocates of the popular cause, and 
 was chosen a member of the General Court (the Leg- 
 lislature) in 1770. 
 
 Mr. Adams was chosen one of the first delegates 
 from Massachusetts to the first Continental Congress, 
 which met in 1774. Here he distinguished himself 
 by his capacity for business and for debate, and ad- 
 vocated the movement for independence against the 
 majority of the members. In May, 1776, he moved 
 and carried a resolution in Congress that the Colonies 
 should assume the duties of self-government. He 
 was a prominent member of the committee of five 
 appointed June n, to prepare a declaration of inde- 
 pendence. This article was drawn by Jefferson, but 
 on Adams devolved the task of battling it through 
 Congress in a three days debate. 
 
 On the day after the Declaration of Independence 
 was passed, while his soul was yet warm with the 
 glow of excited feeling, he wrote a letter to his wife, 
 which, as we read it now, seems to have been dictated 
 by the spirit of prophecy. "Yesterday," he says, "the 
 greatest question was decided that ever was debated 
 in America; and greater, perhaps, never was or will 
 be decided among men. A resolution was passed 
 without one dissenting colony, ' that these United 
 States are, and of right ought to be, free and inde- 
 pendent states.' The day is passed. The fourth of 
 July, 1776, will be a memorable epoch in the history 
 of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated 
 by succeeding generations, as the great anniversary 
 festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of 
 deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to Almighty- 
 God. It ought to be solemnized with pomp, shows, 
 
 , 
 
 A 
 
JOHN ADAMS. 
 
 games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations 
 from one end of the continent to the other, from this 
 time forward for ever. You will think me transported 
 with enthusiasm, but I am not. I am well aware of 
 the toil, and blood and treasure, that it will cost to 
 maintain this declaration, and support and defend 
 these States; yet, through all the gloom, I can see the 
 rays of light and glory. I can see that the end is 
 worth more than all the means; and that posterity 
 will triumph, although you and I may rae, which I 
 hope we shall not." 
 
 In November, 1777, Mr. Adams was appointed a 
 delegate to France and to co-operate with Bemjamin 
 Franklin and Arthur Lee, who were then in Paris, in 
 the endeavor to obtain assistance in arms .and money 
 from the French Government. This was a severe trial 
 to his patriotism, as it separated him from his home, 
 compelled him to cross the ocean in winter, and ex- 
 posed him to great peril of capture by the British cruis- 
 ers, who were seeking him. He left France June 17, 
 -1779. In September of the same year he was again 
 chosen to go to Paris, and there hold himself in readi- 
 ness to negotiate a treaty of peace and of commerce 
 with Great Britian, as soon as the British Cabinet 
 [ might be found willing to listen to such proposels. He 
 sailed for France in November, from there he went to 
 \ Holland, where he negotiated important loans and 
 V formed important commercial treaties 
 
 Finally a treaty of peace with England was signed 
 Jan. 21, 1783. The re-action from the excitement, 
 toil and anxiety through which Mr. Adams had passed 
 threw him into a fevei. After suffering from a con- 
 tinued fever and becoming feeble and emaciated he 
 was advised to go to England to drink the waters of 
 Bath. While in England, still drooping anddespond- 
 ing, he received dispatches from his own government 
 urging the necessity of his going to Amsterdam to 
 negotiate another loan. It was winter, his health was 
 delicate, yet he immediately set out, and through 
 storm, on sea, on horseback and foot,hemade the trip. 
 
 February 24, 1785, Congress appointed Mr. Adams 
 envoy to the Court of St. James. Here he met face 
 to face the King of England, who had so long re- 
 garded him as a traitor. As England did not 
 condescend to appoint a minister to the United 
 States, and as Mr. Adams felt that he was accom- 
 plishing but little, he sought permission to return to 
 his own country, where he arrived in June, 1788. 
 
 When Washington was first chosen President, John 
 Adams, rendered illustiious by his signal services at 
 home and abroad, was chosen Vice President/ Again 
 at the second election of Washington as President, 
 Adams was chosen Vice President. In 1796, Wash- 
 ington retired from public life, and Mr. Adams was 
 elected President,though not without much opposition. 
 Serving in this office four years,he was succeeded by 
 Mr. Jefferson, his opponent in politics. 
 
 While Mr. Adams was Vice President the great 
 
 French Revolution shook the continent of Europe, 
 and it was upon this point which he was at issue with 
 the majority of his countrymen led by Mr. Jefferson. 
 Mr. Adams felt no sympathy with the French people 
 in their struggle, for he had no confidence, in their 
 power of self-government, and he utterly abhored the 
 class of atheist philosophers who he claimed caused it. 
 On the other hand Jefferson's sympathies were strongly 
 enlisted in behalf of the French people. Hence or- 
 iginated the alienation between these distinguished 
 men, and two powerful parties were thus soon organ- 
 ized, Adams at the head of the one whose sympathies 
 were with England and Jefferson led the other in 
 sympathy with France. 
 
 The world has seldom seen a spectacle of more 
 moral beauty and grandeur, than was presented by the 
 old age of Mr. Adams. The violence of party feeling 
 had died away, and he had begun to receive that just 
 appreciation which, to most men, is not accorded till 
 after death. No one could look upon his venerable 
 form, and think of what he had done and suffered, 
 and how he had given up all the prime and strength 
 of his life to the public good, without the deepest 
 emotion of gratitude and respect. It was his peculiar 
 good fortune to witness the complete success of the 
 institution which he had been so active in creating and 
 supporting. In 1824, his cup of happiness was filled 
 to the brim, by seeing his son elevated to the highest 
 station in the gift of the people. 
 
 The fourth of July, 1826, which completed the half 
 century since the signing of the Declaration of Inde- 
 pendence, arrived, and there were but three of the 
 signers of that immortal instrument left upon the 
 enrth to hail its morning light. And, as it is 
 well known, on that day two of these finished their 
 earthly pilgrimage, a coincidence so remarkable as 
 to seem miraculous. For a few days before Mr. 
 Adams had been rapidly failing, and on the morning 
 of the fourth he found himself too weak to rise from 
 his bed. On being requested to name a toast for the 
 customary celebration of the day, he exclaimed " IN- 
 DEPENDENCE FOREVER." When the day was ushered 
 in, by the ringing of bells and the firing of cannons, 
 he was asked by one of his attendants if he knew 
 what day it was? He replied, "O yes; it is the glor- 
 ious fourth of Tuly God bless it God bless you all." 
 In the course of the day he said, "It is a great and 
 glorious day." The last words he uttered were, 
 "Jefferson survives." But he had, at one o'clock, re- 
 signed his spirit into the hands of his God. 
 
 The personal appearance and manners of Mr. 
 Adams were not particularly prepossessing. His face, 
 as his portrait manifests.was intellectual ard expres- 
 sive, but his figure was low and ungraceful, and his 
 manners were frequently abrupt and uncourteous. 
 He had neither the lofty dignity of Washington, nor 
 the engaging elegance and gracefulness which marked 
 the manners and address of Jefferson. 
 
*\\ 
 
 
1 - . Y. . J "~ 
 THIRD PRESIDENT. 
 
 27 
 
 THOMAS JEPPEBSOIS. 
 
 i 
 
 HOMAS JEFFERSON was 
 born April 2, 1743, at Shad- 
 well, Albermarle county, Va. 
 His parents were Peter and 
 Jane ( Randolph) Jefferson, 
 the former a native of Wales, 
 and the latter born in Lon- 
 don. To them were born six 
 daughters and two sons, of 
 whom Thomas was the elder. 
 When 14 years of age his 
 father died. He received a 
 most liberal education, hav- 
 ing been kept diligently at school 
 from the time he was five years of 
 age. In 1760 he entered William 
 and Mary College. Williamsburg was then the seat 
 of the Colonial Court, and it was the obode of fashion 
 and splendor. Young Jeffersqn, who was then 17 
 years old, lived somewhat expensively, keeping fine 
 horses, and much caressed by gay society, yet lie 
 was earnestly devoted to his studies, and irreproacha- 
 able in his morals. It is strange, however, under 
 such influences,that he was not ruined. In the sec- 
 ond year of his college course, moved by some un- 
 explained inward impulse, he discarded his horses, 
 society, and even his favorite violin, to which he had 
 previously given much time. He often devoted fifteen 
 hours a day to haid study, allowing himself for ex- 
 ercise only a run in the evening twilight of a mile out 
 of the city and back again. He thus attained very 
 high intellectual culture, alike excellence in philoso- 
 phy and the languages. The most difficult Latin and 
 Greek authors he read with facility. A more finished 
 scholar has seldom gone forth from college halls ; and 
 
 
 there was not to be found, perhaps, in all Virginia, a 
 more pureminded, upright, gentlemanly young man. 
 
 Immediately upon leaving college he began the 
 study of law. For the short time he continued in the 
 practice of his profession he rose rapidly and distin- 
 guished himself by his energy and accuteness as a 
 lawyer. But the times called for greater action. 
 The policy of England had awakened the spirit of 
 resistance of the American Colonies, and the enlarged 
 views which Jefferson had ever entertained, soon led *< 
 him into active political life. In 1769 he was chosen 
 a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses. In 
 1772)16 married Mrs. Martha Skelton, a very beauti- 
 ful, wealthy and highly accomplished young widow. 
 
 Upon Mr. Jefferson's large estate at Shad well, there 
 was a majestic swell of land, called Monticello, which 
 commanded a prospect of wonderful extent and 
 beauty. This spot Mr. Jefferson selected for his new 
 home; and here he reared a mansion of modest yet 
 elegant architecture, which, next to Mount Vernon, 
 became the most distinguished resort in our land. 
 
 In 1775 he was sent to the Cclonial Congress, 
 where, though a silent member, his abilities as a 
 writer and a reasoner soon become known, and he 
 was placed upon a number of important committees, 
 and was chairman of the one appointed for the draw- 
 ing up of a declaration of independence. This com- 
 mittee consisted of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, 
 Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman and Robert R. 
 Livingston. Jefferson, as chairman, was appointed 
 to draw up the paper. Franklin and Adams suggested 
 a few verbal changes before it was submitted to Con- 
 gress. On June 28, a few slight changes were made 
 in it by Congress, and it was passed and signed July 
 4, 1776. What must have been the feelings of that 
 
T 
 
 THOMAS JEFFERSON. 
 
 man what the emotions that swelled his breast 
 who was charged with the preparation of that Dec- 
 laration, which, while it made known the wrongs of 
 America, was also to publish her to the world, free, 
 soverign and independent. It is one of the most re- 
 markable papers ever written ; and did no other effort 
 of the mind of its author exist, that alone would be 
 sufficient to stamp his name with immortality. 
 
 In 1779 Mr. Jefferson was elected successor to 
 Patrick Henry, as Governor of Virginia. At one time 
 the British officer, Tarleton, sent a secret expedition to 
 Monlicello, to capture the Governor. Scarcely five 
 minutes elapsed after the hurried escape of Mr. Jef- 
 ferson and his family, ere his mansion was in posses- 
 sion of the British troops. His wife's health, never 
 very good, was much injured by this excitement, and 
 in the summer of 1782 she died. 
 
 Mr. Jefferson was elected to Congress in 1783. 
 Two years later he was appointed Minister Plenipo- 
 tentiary to France. Returning to the United States 
 in September, 1789, he became Secretary of State 
 in Washington's cabinet. This position he resigned 
 Jan. i, 1794. In 1797, he was chosen Vice Presi- 
 dent, and four years later was elected President over 
 Mr. Adams, with Aaron Burr as Vice President. In 
 1804 he was re-elected with wonderful unanimity, 
 and George Clinton, Vice President. 
 
 The early part of Mr. Jefferson's second adminstra- 
 tion was disturbed by an event which threatened the 
 tranquility and peace of the Union ; this was the con- 
 spiracy of Aaron Burr. Defeated in the late election 
 to the Vice Presidency, and led on by an unprincipled 
 . ambition, this extraordinary man formed the plan of a 
 military expedition into the Spanish territories on our 
 southwestern frontier, for the purpose of forming there 
 a new republic. This has been generally supposed 
 was a mere pretext ; and although it has not been 
 generally known what his real plans were, there is no 
 doubt that they were of a far more dangerous 
 character. 
 
 In 1809, at the expiration of the second term for 
 which Mr. Jefferson had been elected, he determined 
 to retire from political life. For a period of nearly 
 forty years, he had been continually before the pub- 
 lic, and all that time had been employed in offices of 
 the greatest trust and responsibility. Having thus de- 
 voted the best part of his life to the service of his 
 country, he now felt desirous of that rest which his 
 declining years required, and upon the organization of 
 the new administration, in March, 1809, he bid fare- 
 well forever to public life, and retired to Monticello. 
 
 Mr. Jefferson was profuse in his hospitality. Whole 
 families came in their coaches with their horses, 
 fathers and mothers, boys and girls, babies and 
 nurses, and remained three and even six months. 
 Life at Monticello, for years, resembled that at a 
 fashionable watering-place. 
 
 The fourth of July, 1826, being the fiftieth anniver- 
 
 sary of the Declaration of American Independence, 
 great preparations were made in every part of the 
 Union for its celebration, as the nation's jubilee, and 
 fhe citizens of Washington, to add to the solemnity 
 of the occasion, invited Mr. Jefferson, as the framer, 
 and one of the few surviving signers of the Declara- 
 tion, to participate in their festivities. But an ill- 
 ness, which had been of several weeks duration, and 
 had been continually increasing, compelled him to 
 decline the invitation. 
 
 On the second of July, the disease under which 
 he was laboring left him, but in such a reduced 
 state that his medical attendants, entertained no 
 hope of his recovery. From this time he was perfectly 
 sensible that his last hour was at hand. On the next 
 day, which was Monday, he asked of those around 
 him, the day of the month, and on being told it was 
 the third of July, he expressed the earnest wish that 
 he might be permitted to breathe the air of the fiftieth 
 anniversary. His prayer was heard that day, whose 
 dawn was hailed with such rapture through our land, 
 burst upon his eyes, and then they were closed for- 
 ever. And what a noble consummation of a noble 
 life ! To die on that day, the birthday of a nation,- - 
 the day which his own name and his own act had 
 rendered glorious; to die amidst the rejoicings and 
 festivities of a whole nation, who looked up to him, _ 
 as the author, under God, of their greatest blessings, 
 was all that was wanting to fill up the record his life. \ 
 
 Almost at the same hour of his death, the kin- 
 dred spirit of the venerable Adams, as if to bear 
 him company, left the scene of his earthly honors. ' 
 Hand in hand they had stood forth, the champions of 
 freedom; hand in hand, during the dark and desper- 
 ate struggle of the Revolution, they had cheered and 
 animated their desponding countrymen; for half a 
 century they had labored together for tne good of 
 the country; and now hand in hand they depart. 
 In their lives they had been united in the same great 
 cause of liberty, and" in their deaths they were not 
 divided. 
 
 In person Mr. Jefferson was tall and thin, rather 
 above six feet in height, but well formed; his eyes 
 were light, his hair originally red, in after life became 
 white and silvery; his complexion was fair, his fore- 
 head broad, and his whole, countenance intelligent and 
 thoughtful. He possessed great fortitude of mind as 
 well as personal courage ; and his command of tem- 
 per was such that his oldest and most intimate friends 
 never recollected to have seen him in a passion. 
 His manners, though dignified, were simple and un- 
 affected, and his hospitality was so unbounded that 
 all found at his house a ready welcome. In conver- 
 sation he was fluent, eloquent and enthusiastic; and 
 his language was remarkably pure and correct. He 
 was a finished classical scholar, and in his writings is 
 discernable the care with which he formed his style 
 upon the best models of antiquity. 
 

f 
 
 
 FOURTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 
 AMES MADISON, "Father 
 of the Constitution," and fourth 
 President of the United States, 
 was born March 16, 1757, and 
 died at his home in Virginia, 
 June 28, 1836. The name of 
 James Madison is inseparably con- 
 nected with most of the important 
 events in that heroic period of our 
 country during which the founda- 
 tions of this great republic were 
 laid. He was the last of the founders 
 of the Constitution of the United 
 States to be called to his eternal 
 reward. 
 
 The Madison family were among 
 the early emigrants to the New World', 
 landing upon the shores of the Chesa- 
 peake but 15 years after the settle- 
 ment of Jamestown. The father of 
 James Madison was an opulent 
 planter, residing upon a very fine es- 
 tate called "Montpelier," Orange Co., 
 Va. The mansion was situated in 
 the midst of scenery highly pictur- 
 esque and romantic, on the west side 
 of South-west Mountain, at the foot of 
 Blue Ridge. It was but 25 miles from the home of 
 Jefferson at Monticello. The closest personal and 
 political attachment existed between these illustrious 
 men, from their early youth until death. 
 
 The early education of Mr. Madison was conducted 
 mostly at home under a private tutor. At the age of 
 1 8 he was sent to Princeton College, in New Jersey. 
 Here he applied himself to study with the most i*" 
 
 prudent zeal ; allowing himself, for months, but three 
 hours' sleep out of the 24. His health thus became so 
 seriously impaired that he never recovered any vigor 
 of constitution. He graduated in 1771, with a feeble 
 body, with a character of utmost purity, and with a 
 mind highly disciplined and richly stored with learning 
 which embellished and gave proficiency to his subsf 
 quent career. 
 
 Returning to Virginia, he commenced the study of 
 law and a course of extensive and systematic reading. -' 
 This educational course, the spirit of the times in 
 which he lived, and the society with which he asso- 
 ciated, all combined to inspire him with a strong 
 love of liberty, and to train him for his life-work of 
 a statesman. Being naturally of a religious turn of 
 mind, and his frail health leading him to think that 
 his life was not to be long, he directed especial atten- 
 tion to theological studies. Endowed with a mind 
 singularly free from passion and prejudice, and with 
 almost unequalled powers of reasoning, he weighed 
 all the arguments for and against revealed religion, 
 until his faith became so established as never to 
 be shaken. 
 
 In the spring of 1776, when 26 years of age, he 
 was elected a member of the Virginia Convention, to 
 frame the constitution of the State. The next year 
 (1777), he was a candidate for the General Assembly. 
 He refused to treat the whisky-lovir.g voters, and 
 consequently lost his election ; but those who had 
 witnessed the talent, energy and public spirit of the 
 modest young man, enlisted themselves in his behalf, 
 and he was appointed to the Executive Council. 
 
 Both Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson were 
 Governors of Virginia while Mr. Madison remained 
 member of the Council ; and their appreciation of his 
 
 
3 2 
 
 /AMES MADISON'. 
 
 intellectual, social and moral worth, contributed not 
 a little to his subsequent eminence. In the year 
 1780, he was elected a member of the Continental 
 Congress. Here he met the most illustrious men in 
 our land, and he was immediately assigned to one of 
 the most conspicuous positions among them. 
 
 For three years Mr. Madison continued in Con- 
 gress, one of its most active and influential members. 
 In the year 1784, his term having expired, he was 
 elected a. member of the Virginia Legislature. 
 
 No man felt more deeply than Mr. Madison the 
 utter inefficiency of the old confederacy, with no na- 
 tional government, with no power to form treaties 
 which would be binding, or to enforce law. There 
 was not any State more prominent than Virginia in 
 the declaration, that an efficient national government 
 must be formed. In January, 1786, Mr. Madison 
 carried a resolution through the General Assembly of 
 Virginia, inviting the other States to appoint commis- 
 sioners to meet in convention at Annapolis to discuss 
 this subject. Five States only were represented. The 
 convention, however, issued another call, drawn up 
 by Mr. Madison, urging all the States to send their 
 delegates to Philadelphia, in May, 1787, to draft 
 a Constitution for the United -States, to take the place 
 of that Confederate League. The delegates met at 
 the time appointed. Every State but Rhode Island 
 was represented. George Washington was chosen 
 president of the convention; and the present Consti- 
 tution of the United States was then and there formed. 
 There was, perhaps, no mind and no pen more ac- 
 tive in framing this immortal document than the mind 
 and the pen of James Madison. 
 
 The Constitution, adopted by a vote 81 to 79, was 
 to be presented to the several States for acceptance. 
 But grave solicitude was felt. Should it be rejected 
 we should be left but a conglomeration of independent 
 States, with but little power at home and little respect 
 abroad. Mr. Madison was selected by the conven- 
 tion to draw up an address to the people of the United 
 States, expounding the principles of the Constitution, 
 and urging its adoption. There was great opposition 
 to it at first, but it at length triumphed over all, and 
 went into effect in 1789. 
 
 Mr. Madison was elected to the House of Repre- 
 sentatives in the first Congress, and soon became the 
 avowed leader of the Republican party. While in 
 New York attending Congress, he met Mrs. Todd, a 
 young widow of remarkable power of fascination, 
 whom he married. She was in person and character 
 queenly, and probably no lady has thus far occupied 
 so prominent a position in the very peculiar society 
 which has constituted our republican court as Mrs. 
 Madison. 
 
 Mr. Madison served as Secretary of State under 
 Jefferson, and at the close of his administration 
 was chosen President. At this time the encroach- 
 ments of England had brought us to the verge of war. 
 
 British orders in council destroyed our commerce, and 
 our flag was exposed to constant insult. Mr. Madison 
 was a man of peace. Scholarly in his taste, retiring 
 in his disposition, war had no charms for him. But the 
 meekest spirit can be roused. It makes one's blood 
 boil, even now, to think of an American ship brought 
 to, upon the ocean, by the guns of an English cruiser. 
 A young lieutenant steps on board and orders the 
 crew to be paraded before him. With great nonchal- 
 ance he selects any number whom he may please to 
 designate as British subjects ; orders them down the 
 ship's side into his boat; and places them on the gun- 
 deck of his man-of-war, to fight, by compulsion, the 
 battles of England. This right of search and im- 
 pressment, no efforts of our Government could induce 
 the British cabinet to relinquish. 
 
 On the 1 8th of June, 1812, President Madison gave 
 his approval to an act of Congress declaring war 
 against Great Britain. Notwithstanding the bitter 
 hostility of the Federal party to the war, the country 
 in general approved; and Mr. Madison, on the 4th 
 of March, 1813, was re-elected by a large majority, 
 and entered upon his second term of office. This is 
 not the place to describe the various adventures of 
 this war on the land and on the water. Our infant 
 navy then laid the foundations of its renown in grap- 
 pling with the most formidable power which ever 
 swept the seas. The contest commenced in earnest 
 by the appearance of a British fleet, early in February, 
 1813, in Chesa[>eake Bay, declaring nearly the whole 
 coast of the United States under blockade. 
 
 The Emperor of Russia offered his services as me 
 dilator. America accepted ; England refused. A Brit- 
 ish force of five thousand men landed on the banks 
 of the Patuxet River, near its entrance into Chesa- 
 peake Bay, and marched rapidly, by way of Bladens- 
 burg, upon Washington. 
 
 The straggling little city of Washington was thrown 
 into consternation. The cannon of the brief conflict 
 at Bladensburg echoed through the streets of the 
 metropolis. The whole population fled from the city. 
 The President, leaving Mrs. Madison in the White 
 House, with her carriage drawn up at the door to 
 await his speedy return, hurried to meet the officers 
 in a council of war. He met our troops utterly routed, 
 and he could not go back without danger of being 
 captured. But few hours elapsed ere the Presidential 
 Mansion, the Capitol, and all the public buildings in 
 Washington were in flames. 
 
 The war closed after two years of fighting, and on 
 Feb. 13, 1815, the treaty of peace was sigrjed atGhent. 
 
 On the 4th of March, 1817, his second term of 
 office expired, and he resigned the Presidential chair 
 to his friend, James Monroe. He retired to his beau- 
 tiful home at Montpelier, and there passed the re- 
 mainder of his days. On June 28, 1836, then at the 
 age of 85 years, he fell asleep in death. Mrs. Madi- 
 son died July 12, 1849. 
 
 * 
 

FIFTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 35 
 
 ' 
 
 AMES MONROE, the fifth 
 Presidentof The United States, 
 was born in Westmoreland Co., 
 Va., April 28, 1758. His early 
 life was passed at the place of 
 nativity. His ancestors had for 
 many years resided in the prov- 
 ince in which he was born. When, 
 at 17 years of age, in the process 
 of completing his education at 
 William and Mary College, the Co- 
 lonial Congress assembled at Phila- 
 delphia to deliberate upon the un- 
 just and manifold oppressions of 
 Great Britian, declared the separa- 
 tion of the Colonies, and promul- 
 gated the Declaration of Indepen- 
 dence. Had he been born ten years before it is highly 
 probable that he would have been one of the signers 
 of that celebrated instrument. At this time he left 
 school and enlisted among the patriots. 
 
 He joined the army when everything looked hope- 
 less and gloomy. The number of deserters increased 
 from day to day. The invading armies came pouring 
 in; and the lories not only favored the cause of the 
 mother country, but disheartened the new recruits, 
 who were sufficiently terrified at the prospect of con- 
 tending with an enemy whom they had been taught 
 to deem invincible. To such brave spirits as James 
 Monroe, who went right onward, undismayed through 
 difficulty and danger, the United States owe their 
 political emancipation. The young cadet joined the 
 ranks, and espoused the cause of his injured country, 
 with a firm determination to live or die with her strife 
 
 for liberty. Firmly yet sadly he shared in the mel- 
 ancholy retreat from Harleam Heights and White 
 Plains, and accompanied the dispirited army as it fled 
 before its foes through New Jersey. In four months 
 after the Declaration of Independence, the patriots 
 had been beaten in seven battles. At the battle of 
 Trenton he led the vanguard, and, in the act of charg- 
 ing upon the enemy he received a wound in the left 
 shoulder. 
 
 As a reward for his bravery, Mr. Monroe was pro- 
 moted a captain of infantry; and, having recovered 
 from his wound, he rejoined the army. He, however, 
 receded from the line of promotion, by becoming an 
 officer in the staff of Lord Sterling. During the cam- 
 paigns of 1777 and 1778, in the actions of Brandy- 
 wine, Germantown and Monmouth, he continued 
 aid-de-camp; but becoming desirous to regain his 
 position in the army, he exerted himself to collect a 
 regiment for the Virginia line. This scheme failed 
 owing to the exhausted condition of the State. Upon 
 this failure he entered the office of Mr. Jefferson, at 
 that period Governor, and pursued, with considerable 
 ardor, the study of common law. He did not, however, 
 entirely lay aside the knapsack for the green bag; 
 but on the invasions of the enemy, served as a volun- 
 teer, during the two years of his legal pursuits. 
 
 In 1782, he was elected from King George county, 
 a member of the Leglislature of Virginia, and by that 
 body he was elevated to a seat in the Executive 
 Council. He was thus honored with the confidence 
 of his fellow citizens at 23 years of age ; and having 
 at this early period displayed some of that ability 
 and aptitude for legislation, which were afterwards 
 employed with unremitting energy for the public good, 
 
JAMES MONROE. 
 
 he was in the succeeding year chosen a member of 
 the Congress of the United States. 
 
 Deeplyas Mr. Monroefelt the imperfections of the old 
 Confederacy, he was opposed to the new Constitution, 
 thinking, with many others of the Republican party, 
 that it gave too much power to the Central Government, 
 and not enough to the individual States. Still he re- 
 tained the esteem of his friends who were its warm 
 supporters, and who, notwithstanding his opposition 
 secured its adoption. In 1789, he became a member 
 of the United States Senate; which office he held for 
 four years. Every month the line of distinction be- 
 tween the two great parties which divided the nation, 
 the Federal and the Republican, was growing more 
 distinct. The two prominent ideas which now sep- 
 arated them were, that the Republican party was in 
 sympathy with France, and also in favor of such a 
 strict construction of the Constitution as to give the 
 Central Government as little power, and the State 
 Governments as much power, as the Constitution would 
 warrant. The Federalists sympathized with England, 
 and were in favor of a liberal construction of the Con- 
 stitution, which would give as much power to the 
 Central Government as that document could possibly 
 authorize. 
 
 The leading Federalists and Republicans were 
 alike noble men, consecrating all their energies to the 
 good of the nation. Two more honest men or more 
 pure patriots than John Adams the Federalist, and 
 James Monroe the Republican, never breathed. In 
 building up this majestic nation, which is destined 
 to eclipse all Grecian and Assyrian greatness, the com- 
 bination of their antagonism was needed to create the 
 light equilibrium. And yet each in his day was de- 
 nounced as almost a demon. 
 
 Washington was then President. England had es- 
 poused the cause of the Bourbons against the princi- 
 ples of the French Revolution. All Europe was drawn 
 into the conflict. We were feeble and far away. 
 Washington issued a proclamation of neutrality be- 
 tween these contending powers. France had helped 
 us in the struggle for our liberties. All the despotisms 
 of Europe were now combined to prevent the French 
 from escaping from a tyranny a thousand-fold worse 
 than that which we had endured Col. Monroe, more 
 magnanimous than prudent, was anxious that, at 
 whatever hazard, we should help our old allies in 
 their extremity. It was the impulse of a generous 
 and noble nature. He violently opposed the Pres- 
 ident's proclamation as ungrateful and wanting in 
 magnanimity. 
 
 Washington, who could appreciate such a character, 
 developed his calm, serene, almost divine greatness, 
 by appointing that very James Monroe, who was de- 
 nouncing the policy of the Government, as the minister 
 of that Government to the Republic of France. Mr. 
 Monroe was welcomed by the National Convention 
 in France with the most enthusiastic demonstrations. 
 
 Shortly after his return to this country, Mr. Mon- 
 roe was elected Governor of Virginia, and held the 
 office for three yeais. He was again sent to France to 
 co-operate with Chancellor Livingston in obtaining 
 the vast territory then known as the Province of 
 Louisiana, which France had but shortly before ob- 
 tained from Spain. Tneir united efforts were suc- 
 cessful. For the comparatively small sum of fifteen 
 millions of dollars, the entire territory of Orleans and 
 district of Louisiana were added to the United States. 
 This was probably the largest transfer of real estate 
 which was ever made in all the history of the world. 
 
 From France Mr. Monroe went to England to ob- 
 tain from that country some recognition of our" 
 rights as neutrals, and to remonstrate against those 
 odious impressments of our seamen. But Eng- 
 land was unrelenting. He again returned to Eng- 
 land on the same mission, but could receive no 
 redress. He returned to his home and was again 
 chosen Governor of Virginia. This he soon resigned 
 to accept the position of Secretary of State under 
 Madison. While in this office war with England was 
 declared, the Secretary of War resigned, and during 
 these trying times, the duties of the War Department 
 were also put upon him. He was truly the armor- 
 bearer of President Madison, and the most efficient 
 business man in his cabinet. Upon the return of 
 peace he resigned the Department of War, but con- 
 tinued in the office of Secretary of State until the ex- 
 piration of Mr. Madison's adminstration. At the elec- 
 tion held the previous autumn Mr. Monroe himself had 
 been chosen President with but little opposition, and 
 upon March 4, 1817, was inaugurated. Four years 
 later he was elected for a second term. * 
 
 Among the important measures of his Presidency- 
 were the cession of Florida to the United States ; the 
 Missouri Compromise, and the " Monroe doctrine.'* 
 
 This famous doctrine, since known as the " Monroe 
 doctrine," was enunciated by him in 1823. At that 
 time the United States had recognized the independ- 
 ence of the South American states, and did not wish 
 to have European powers longer attempting to sub- 
 due portions of the American Continent. The doctrine 
 is as follows: "That we should consider any attempt 
 on the part of European powers to extend their sys- 
 tem to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous 
 to our peace and safety," and "that we could not 
 view any interposition for the pur|X>se of oppressing 
 or controlling American governments or provinces in 
 any other light than as a manifestation by European 
 I>owers of an unfriendly disposition toward the United 
 States." This doctrine immediately affected the course 
 of foreign governments, and has become the approved 
 sentiment of the United States. 
 
 At the end of his second term Mr. Monroe retired 
 to his home in Virginia, where he lived until 1830, 
 when he went to New York to live with his son-in- 
 law. In that city he died,on the 4th of July, 1831. 
 
 V 
 
f 
 
SIXTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 39 
 
 
 OHN QUINCY ADAMS, the 
 sixth President of the United 
 States, was born in the rural 
 home of his honored father, 
 John Adams, in Quincy, Mass., 
 on the 1 1 th of July, 1767. His 
 mother, a woman of exalted 
 worth, watched over his childhood 
 during the almost constant ab- 
 sence of his father. When but 
 eight years of age, he stood with 
 his mother on an eminence, listen- 
 ing to the booming of the great bat- 
 tle on Bunker's Hill, and gazing on 
 upon the smoke and flames billow- 
 ing up from the conflagration of 
 Charlestown. 
 
 When but eleven years old he 
 took a tearful adieu of his mother, 
 to sail with his father for Europe, 
 through a fleet of hostile British cruisers. The bright, 
 animated boy spent a year and a half in Paris, where 
 his father was associated with Franklin and Lee as 
 minister plenipotentiary. His intelligence attracted 
 the notice of these distinguished men, and he received 
 from them flattering marks of attention. 
 
 Mr. John Adams had scarcely returned to this 
 country, in 1779, ere he was again sent abroad. Again 
 John Quincy accompanied his father. At Paris he 
 applied himself with great diligence, for six months, 
 to study; then accompained his father to Holland, 
 where he entered, first a school in Amsterdam, then 
 the University at Leyden. About a year from this 
 time, in 1781, when the manly boy was but fourteen 
 years of age, he was selected by Mr. Dana, our min- 
 ister to the Russian court, as his private secretary. 
 
 In this school of incessant labor and of enobling 
 culture he spent fourteen months, and then returned 
 to Holland through Sweden, Denmark, Hamburg and 
 Bremen. This long journey he took alone, in the 
 winter, when in his sixteenth year. Again he resumed 
 his studies, under a private tutor, at Hague. Thence, 
 
 in the spring of 1782, he accompanied his father to 
 Paris, traveling leisurely, and forming acquaintance 
 with the most distinguished men on the Continent; 
 examining architectural remains, galleries of paintings, 
 and all renowned works of art. At Paris he again 
 became associated with the most illustrious men of 
 all lands in the contemplations of the loftiest temporal 
 themes which can engross the human mind. After 
 a short visit to England he returned to Paris, and 
 consecrated all his energies to study until May, 1785, 
 when he returned to America. To a brilliant young 
 man of eighteen, who had seen much of the world, 
 and who was familiar with the etiquette of courts, a 
 residence with his father in London, under such cir- 
 cumstances, must have been extremely attractive; 
 but with judgment very rare in one of his age, he pre- 
 ferred to return to America to complete his education 
 in an American college. He wished then to study 
 law, that with an honorable profession, he might be 
 able to obtain an independent support. 
 
 Upon leaving Harvard College, at the age of twenty, 
 he studied law for three years. In June, 1794, be- 
 ing then but twenty-seven years of age, he was ap- 
 pointed by Washington, resident minister at the 
 Netherlands. Sailing from Boston in July, he reached 
 London in October, where he was immediately admit- 
 ted to the deliberations of Messrs. Jay and Pinckney, 
 assisting them in negotiating a commercial treaty with 
 Gieat Brilian. After thus spending a fortnight in 
 London, he proceeded to the Hague. 
 
 In July, 1797, he left the Hague to go to Portugal as 
 minister plenipotentiary. On his way to Portugal, 
 upon arriving in London, he met with despatches 
 directing him to the court of Berlin, but requesting 
 him to remain in London until he should receive his 
 instructions. While waiting he was married to an 
 American lady to whom he had been previously en- 
 gaged, Miss Louisa Catherine Johnson, daughter 
 of Mr. Joshua Johnson, American consul in London ; 
 a lady endownd with that beauty and those accom- 
 plishment which eminently fitted her to move in the 
 elevated sphere for which she was destined. 
 
 
 
40 
 
 
 JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 
 
 He reached Berlin with his wife in November, 1797 ; 
 where he remained until July, 1799, when, having ful- 
 filled all the purposes of his mission, he solicited his 
 recall. 
 
 Soon after his return, in 1802, he was chosen to 
 the Senate of Massachusetts, from Boston, and then 
 was elected Senator of the United States for six years, 
 from the 4th of March, 1804. His reputation, his 
 ability and his experience, placed him immediately 
 among the most prominent and influential members 
 of that body. Especially did he sustain the Govern- 
 ment in its measures of resistance to the encroach- 
 ments of England, destroying our commerce and in- 
 sulting our flag. There was no man in America more 
 familiar with the arrogance of the British court upon 
 these points, and no one more resolved to present 
 a firm resistance. 
 
 In 1809, Madison succeeded Jefferson in the Pres- 
 idential chair, and he immediately nominated John 
 Quincy Adams minister to St. Petersburg. Resign- 
 ing his professorship in Harvard College, he embarked 
 at Boston, in August, 1809. 
 
 While in Russia, Mr. Adams was an intense stu- 
 dent. He devoted his attention to the language and 
 history of Russia; to the Chinese trade; to the 
 European system of weights, measures, and coins ; to 
 the climate and astronomical observations; while he 
 kept up a familiar acquaintance with the Greek and 
 Latin classics. In all the universities of Europe, a 
 more accomplished scholar could scarcely be found. 
 All through life the Bible constituted an important 
 part of his studies. It was his rule to read five 
 chapters every day. 
 
 On the 4th of March, 1817, Mr. Monroe took the 
 Presidential chair, and immediately appointed Mr. 
 Adams Secretary of State. Taking leave of his num- 
 erous friends in public and private life in Europe, he 
 sailed in June, 1819, for the United States. On the 
 i8th of August, he again crossed the threshold of his 
 home in Quincy. During the eight years of Mr. Mon- 
 roe's administration, Mr. Adams continued Secretary 
 of State. 
 
 Some time before the close of Mr. Monroe's second 
 term of office, new candidates began to be presented 
 for the Presidency. The friends of Mr. Adams brought 
 forward his name. It was an exciting campaign. 
 Party spirit was never more bitter. Two hundred and 
 sixty electoral votes were cast. Andrew Jackson re- 
 ceived ninety nine; John Quincy Adams, eighty-four; 
 William H. Crawford, forty -one; Henry Clay, thirty- 
 seven. As there was no choice by the people, the 
 question went to the House of Representatives. Mr. 
 Clay gave the vote of Kentucky to Mr. Adams, and 
 he was elected. 
 
 The friends of all the disappointed candidates now 
 combined in a venomous and persistent assault upon 
 Mr. Adams. There is nothing more disgraceful in 
 the past history of our country than the abuse which 
 
 was poured in one uninterrupted stream, upon this 
 high-minded, upright, patriotic man. There never was 
 an administration more pure in principles, more con- 
 scientiously devoted to the best interests of the coun- 
 try, than that of John Quincy Adams ; and never, per- 
 haps, was there an administration more unscrupu- 
 lously and outrageously assailed. 
 
 Mr. Adams was, to a very remarkable degree, ab- 
 stemious and temperate in his habits; always rising 
 early, and taking much exercise. When at his home in 
 Quincy, he has been known to walk, before breakfast, 
 seven miles to Boston. In Washington, it was said 
 that he was the first man up in the city, lighting his 
 own fire and applying himself to work in his library 
 often long before dawn. 
 
 On the 4th of March, 1829, Mr. Adams retired 
 from the Presidency, and was succeeded by Andrew 
 Jackson. John C. Calhoun was elected Vice Presi- 
 dent. The slavery question now began to assume 
 portentous magnitude. Mr. Adams returned to 
 Quincy and to his studies, which he pursued with un- 
 abated zeal. But he was not long permitted to re- 
 main in retirement. In November, 1830, he was 
 elected representative to Congress. For seventeen 
 years, until his death, he occupied the post as repre- 
 sentative, towering above all his peers, ever ready to 
 do brave battle' for freedom, and winning the title of 
 "the old man eloquent." Upon taking his seat in 
 the House, he announced that he should hold him- 
 self bound to no party. Probably there never was a 
 member more devoted to his duties. He was usually 
 the first in his place in the morning, and the last to 
 leave his seat in the evening. Not a measure could 
 be brought forward and escape his scrutiny. The 
 battle which Mr. Adams fought, almost singly, against 
 the proslavery party in the Government, was sublime 
 in its moral daring and heroism. For persisting in 
 presenting petitions for the abolition of slavery, he 
 was threatened with indictment by the grand jury, 
 with expulsion from the House, with assassination: 
 but no threats could intimidate him, and his final 
 triumph was complete. 
 
 It has been said of President Adams, that when his 
 body was bent and his hair silvered by the lapse of 
 fourscore years, yielding to the simple faith of a little 
 child, he was accustomed to repeat every night, before 
 he slept, the prajer which his mother taught him in 
 his infant years. 
 
 On the 2istof February, 1848, he rose on the floor 
 of Congress, with a paper in his hand, to address the 
 speaker. Suddenly he fell, again stricken by paraly- 
 sis, and was caught in the arms of .those around him. 
 For a time he was senseless, as he was conveyed to 
 the sofa in the rotunda. With reviving conscious- 
 ness, he opened his eyes, looked calmly around and 
 said " This is the end of earth /'then after a moment's 
 pause he added, "I am content" These were the 
 last words of the grand " Old Man Eloquent." 
 
 ' 
 
* 
 

ffc 
 
 _;, y"" "_^ _"_ 
 
 SEVENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 NDREW JACKSON, the 
 seventh President of the 
 United States, was born in 
 VVaxhaw settlement, N. 0., 
 March 15, 1767, a few days 
 after his father's death. His 
 parents were poor emigrants 
 from Ireland, and took up 
 their abode in Waxhaw set- 
 tlement, where they lived in 
 deepest poverty. 
 Andrew, or Andy, as he was 
 universally called, grew up a very 
 rough, rude, turbulent boy. His 
 features were coarse, his form un- 
 gainly; and there was but very 
 little in his character, made visible, which was at- 
 tractive. 
 
 When only thirteen years old he joined the volun- 
 teers of Carolina against the British invasion. In 
 1781, he and his brother Robert were captured and 
 imprisoned for a time at Camden. A British officer 
 ordered him to brush his mud-spattered boots. " I am 
 a prisoner of war, not your servant," was the reply of 
 the dauntless boy. 
 
 The brute drew his sword, and aimed a desperate 
 blow at the head of the helpless young prisoner. 
 Andrew raised his hand, and thus received two fear- 
 ful gashes, one on. the hand and the other upon the 
 head. The officer then turned to his brother Robert 
 with the same demand. He also refused, and re- 
 ceived a blow from the keen-edged sabre, which quite 
 diiabled him, and which probably soon after caused 
 his death. They suffered much other ill-treatment, and 
 were finally stricken with the small-pox. Their 
 mother was successful in obtaining their exchange, 
 
 and took her sick boys home. After a long illness 
 Andrew recovered, and the death of his mother soon 
 left him entirely friendless. 
 
 Andrew supported himself in various ways, such as 
 working at the saddler's trade, teaching school and 
 clerking in a general store, until 1784, when he 
 entered a law office at Salisbury, N. C. He, however, 
 gave more attention to the wild amusements of the 
 times than to his studies. In 1788, he was appointed 
 solicitor for the western district of North Carolina, of 
 which Tennessee was then a part. This involved 
 many long and tedious journeys amid dangers of 
 every kind, but Andrew Jackson never knew fear, 
 and the Indians had no desire to repeat a skirmish 
 with the Sharp Knife. 
 
 In 1791, Mr. Jackson was married to a woman who 
 supposed herself divorced from her former husband. 
 Great was the surprise of both parties, two years later, 
 to find that the conditions of the divorce had just been 
 definitely settled by the first husband. The marriage 
 ceremony was performed a second time, but the occur- 
 rence was often used by his enemies to bring Mr. 
 Jackson into disfavor. 
 
 During these years he worked hard at his profes- 
 sion, and frequently had one or more duels on hand, 
 one of which, when he killed Dickenson, was espec- 
 ially disgraceful. 
 
 In January, 1796, the Territory of Tennessee then 
 containing nearly eighty thousand inhabitants, the 
 people met in convention at Knoxville to frame a con- 
 stitution. Five were sent from, each of the eleven 
 counties. Andrew Jackson was one of the delegates. 
 The new State was entitled to but one member in 
 the National House of Representatives. Andrew Jack- 
 son was chosen that member. Mounting his horse he 
 rode to Philedelphia, where Congress then held its 
 
44 
 
 ANDRE W JACKSON. 
 
 1 
 
 sessions, a distance of about eight hundred miles. 
 
 Jackson was an earnest advocate of the Demo- 
 cratic party. Jefferson was his idol. He admired 
 Bonaparte, loved France and hated England. As Mr. 
 Jackson took his seat, Gen. Washington, whose 
 second term of office was then expiring, delivered his 
 last speech to Congress. A committee drew up a 
 complimentary address in reply. Andrew Jackson 
 did not approve of the address, and was one of the 
 twelve who voted against it. He was not willing to 
 say that Gen. Washington's adminstration had been 
 " wise, firm and patriotic." 
 
 Mr. Jackson was elected to the United States 
 Senate in 1797, but soon resigned and returned home. 
 Soon after lie was chosen Judge of the Supreme Court 
 of his State, which position he held for six years. 
 
 When the war of 1812 with Great Britian com- 
 menced, Madison occupied the Presidential chair. 
 Aaron Burr sent word to the President that there was 
 an unknown man in the West, Andrew Jackson, who 
 would do credit to a commission if one were con- 
 ferred upon him. Just at that time Gen. Jackson 
 offered his services and those of twenty-five hundred 
 volunteers. His offer was accepted, and the troops 
 were assembled at Nashville. 
 
 As the British were hourly expected to make an at- 
 tack upon New Orleans, where Gen. Wilkinson was 
 in command, he was ordered to descend the river 
 with fifteen hundred troops to aid Wilkinson. The 
 expedition reached Natchez; and after a delay of sev- 
 eral weeks there, without accomplishing anything, 
 the men were ordered back to their homes. But the 
 energy Gen. Jackson had displayed, and his entire 
 devotion to the comrfort of his soldiers, won him 
 golden opinions ; and he became the most popular 
 man in the State. It was in this expedition that his 
 toughness gave him the nickname of " Old Hickory." 
 
 Soon after this, while attempting to horsewhip Col. 
 Thomas H. Benton, for a remark that gentleman 
 made about his taking a part as second in a. duel, in 
 which a younger brother of Ben ton's was engaged, 
 he received two severe pistol wounds. While he was 
 lingering u[)on a bed of suffering news came that the 
 Indians, who had combined under Tecumseh from 
 Florida to the Lakes, to exterminate the white set- 
 tlers, were committing the most awful ravages. De- 
 cisive action became necessary. Gen. Jackson, with 
 his fractured bone just beginning to heal, his arm in 
 a sling, and unable to mount his horse without assis- 
 tance, gave his amazing energies to the raising of an 
 army to rendezvous at Fayettesville, Alabama. 
 
 The Creek Indians had established a strong fort on 
 one of the bendsof the Tallapoosa River, near the cen- 
 ter of Alabama, about fifty miles below Fort Strother. 
 With an army of two thousand men, Gen. Jackson 
 traversed the pathless wilderness in a march of eleven 
 days. He reached their fort, called Tohopeka or 
 Horse-shoe, on the 27th of March. 1814. The bend 
 
 of the river enclosed nearly one hundred acres of 
 tangled forest and wild ravine. Across the narrow 
 neck the Indians had constructed a formidable breast- 
 work of logs and brush. Here nine hundred warriors, 
 with an ample suplyof arms were assembled. 
 
 The fort was stormed. The fight was utterly des- 
 perate. Not an Indian would accept of quarter. When 
 bleeding and dying, they would fight those who en- 
 deavored to spare their lives. From ten in the morn- 
 ing until dark, the battle raged. The carnage was 
 awful and revolting. Some threw themselves into the 
 river; but the unerring bullet struck their heads as 
 they swam. Nearly everyone of the nine hundred war- 
 rios were killed A few probably, in the night, swam 
 the river and escaped. This ended the war. The 
 [XDwer of the Creeks was broken forever. This bold 
 plunge into the wilderness, with its terriffic slaughter, 
 so appalled the savages, that the haggard remnants 
 of the bands came to the camp, begging for peace. 
 
 This closing of the Creek war enabled us to con- 
 centrate all our militia upon the British, who were the 
 allies of the Indians No man of less resolute will 
 than Gen. Jackson could have conducted this Indian 
 campaign to so successful an issue Immediately he 
 was appointed major-general. 
 
 Late in August, with an army of two thousand 
 men, on a rushing march, Gen. Jackson came to " 
 Mobile. A British fleet came from Pensacola, landed J 
 a force upon the beach, anchored near the little fort, 
 and from both ship and shore commenced a furious 
 assault The battle was long and doubtful. At length 
 one of the ships was blown up and the rest retired. 
 
 Garrisoning Mobile, where he had taken his little 
 army, he moved his troops to New Orleans, 
 And the battle of New Orleans which soon ensued, 
 was in reality a very arduous campaign. This won 
 for Gen. Jackson an imperishable name. Here his 
 troops, which numbered about four thousand men, 
 won a signal victory over the British army of about 
 nine thousand. His loss was but thirteen, while the 
 loss of the British was two thousand six hundred. 
 
 The name of Gen. Jackson soon began to be men- 
 tioned in connection with the Presidency, but, in 1824, 
 he was defeated by Mr. Adams. He was, however, 
 successful in the election of 1828, and was re-elected 
 for a second term in 1832. In 1829, just before he 
 assumed the reins of the government, he met with 
 the most terrible affliction of his life in the death of 
 his wife, whom he had loved with a devotion which has 
 perhaps never been surpassed. From the shock of 
 her death he never recovered. 
 
 His administration was one of the most memorable 
 in the annals of our country; applauded by one party, 
 condemned by the other. No man had more bitter 
 enemies or warmer friends. At the expiration of his 
 two terms of office he retired to the Hermitage, where 
 he died June 8, 1845. The last years of Mr. Jack- 
 son's life wete that of a devoted Christian man. 
 
 
 
f > 
 
 EIGHTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 47 
 
 : 
 
 
 ARTIN VAN BUREN, the 
 eighth President of the 
 United States, was born at 
 Kinderhook, N. Y., Dec. 5, 
 1782. He died at the same 
 place, July 24, 1862. His 
 body rests in the cemetery 
 at Kinderhook. Above it is 
 plain granite shaft fifteen feet 
 high, bearing a simple inscription 
 about half way up on one face. 
 The lot is unfenced, unbordered 
 or unbounded by shrub or flower. 
 
 There is but little in the life of Martin Van Buren 
 of romantic interest. He fought no battles, engaged 
 in no wild adventures. Though his life was stormy in 
 political and intellectual conflicts, and he gained many 
 signal victories, his days passed uneventful in those 
 incidents which give zest to biography. His an- 
 cestors, as his name indicates, were of Dutch origin, 
 and were among the earliest emigrants from Holland 
 to the banks of the Hudson. His father was a farmer, 
 residing in the old town of Kinderhook. His mother, 
 also of Dutch lineage, was a woman of superior intel- 
 ligence and exemplary piety. 
 
 He was decidedly a precocious boy, developing un- 
 usual activity, vigor and strength of mind. At the 
 age of fourteen, he had finished his academic studies 
 in his native village, and commenced the study of 
 law. As he had not a collegiate education, seven 
 years of study in a law-office were required of him 
 before he could be admitted to the bar. Inspired with 
 a lofty ambition, and conscious of his powers, he pur- 
 sued his studies with indefatigable industry. After 
 spending six years in an office in his native village, 
 
 he went to the city of New York, and prosecuted his 
 studies for the seventh year. 
 
 In 1803, Mr. Van Buren, then twenty-one years of 
 age, commenced the practice of law in his native vil- 
 lage. The great conflict between the Federal and 
 Republican party was then at its height. Mr. Van 
 Buren was from the beginning a politician. He had, 
 perhaps, imbibed that spirit while listening to the 
 many discussions which had been carried on in his 
 father's hotel. He was in cordial sympathy with 
 Jefferson, and earnestly and eloquently espoused the 
 cause of State Rights ; though at that time the Fed- 
 eral party held the supremacy both in his town 
 and State. 
 
 His success and increasing ruputation led him, 
 after six years of practice, to remove to Hudson, the 
 county seat of his county. Here he spent seven years, 
 constantly gaining strength by contending in the 
 courts with some of the ablest men who have adorned 
 the bar of his State. 
 
 Just before leaving Kinderhook for Hudson, Mr. 
 Van Buren married a lady alike distinguished for 
 beauty and accomplishments. After twelve short 
 years she sank into the grave, the victim of consump- 
 tion, leaving her husband and four sons to weep over 
 her loss. For twenty-five years, Mr. Van Buren was 
 an earnest, successful, assiduous lawyer. The record 
 of those years is barren in items of public interest. 
 In 1812, when thirty years of age, he was chosen to 
 the State Senate, and gave his strenuous support to 
 Mr. Madison's adminstration. In 1815, he was ap- 
 pointed Attorney-General, and the next year moved 
 to Albany, the capital of the State. 
 
 While he was acknowledged as one of the most 
 prominent leaders of the Democratic party, he had 
 
4 8 
 
 MARTIN VAN BUREN. 
 
 
 the moral courage to avow that true democracy did 
 not require that " universal suffrage " which admits 
 the vile, the degraded, the ignorant, to the right of 
 governing the State. In true consistency with his 
 democratic principles, he contended that, while the 
 path leading to the privilege of voting should be open 
 to every man without distinction, no one should be 
 invested with that sacred prerogative, unless he were 
 in some degree qualified for it by intelligence, virtue 
 and some property interests in the welfare of the 
 State. 
 
 In 1821 he was elected a member of the United 
 States Senate; and in the same year, he took a seat 
 in the convention to revise the constitution of his 
 native State. His course in this convention secured 
 the approval of men of all parties. No one could 
 doubt the singleness of his endeavors to promote the 
 interests of all classes in the community. In the 
 Senate of the United States, he rose at once to a 
 conspicuous position as an active and useful legislator. 
 
 In 1827, John Quincy Adams being then in the 
 Presidential chair, Mr. Van Buren was re-elected to 
 the Senate. He had been from the beginning a de- 
 termined opposer of the Administration, adopting the 
 "State Rights" view in opposition to what was 
 deemed the Federal proclivities of Mr. Adams. 
 
 Soon after this, in 1828, he was chosen Governorof 
 the State of New York, and accordingly resigned his 
 seat in the Senate. Probably no one in the United 
 States contributed so much towards ejecting John Q. 
 Adams from the Presidential chair, and placing in it 
 Andrew Jackson, as did Martin Van Buren. Whether 
 entitled to the reputation or not, he certainly was re- 
 garded throughout the United States as one of the 
 most skillful, sagacious and cunning of politicians. 
 It was supposed that no one knew so well as he how 
 to touch the secret springs of action; how to pull all 
 the wires to put his machinery in motion ; and how to 
 organize a political army which would, secretly and 
 stealthily accomplish the most gigantic results. By 
 these powers it is said that he outwitted Mr. Adams, 
 Mr. Clay, Mr. Webster, and secured results which 
 few thought then could be accomplished. 
 
 When Andrew Jackson was elected President he 
 appointed Mr. Van Buren Secretary of State. This 
 position he resigned in 1831, and was immediately 
 appointed Minister to England, where he went the 
 same autumn. The Senate, however, when it met, 
 refused to ratify the nomination, and he returned 
 
 home, apparently untroubled ; was nominated Vice 
 President in the place of Calhoun, at the re-election 
 of President Jackson; and with smiles for all and 
 frowns for none, he took his place at the head of that 
 Senate which had refused to confirm his nomination 
 as ambassador. 
 
 His rejection by the Senate roused all the zeal of 
 President Jackson in behalf of his repudiated favor- 
 ite ; and this, probably more than any other cause, 
 secured his elevation to the chair of the Chief Execu- 
 tive. On the 2oth of May, 1836, Mr. Van Buren re- 
 ceived the Democratic nomination to succeed Gen. 
 Jackson as President of the United States. He was 
 elected by a handsome majority, to the delight of the 
 retiring President. " Leaving New York out of the 
 canvass," says Mr. Parton, "the election of Mr. Van 
 Buren to the Presidency was as much the act of Gen. 
 Jackson as though the Constitution had conferred 
 upon him the power to appoint a successor." 
 
 His administration was filled with exciting events. 
 The insurrection in Canada, which threatened to in- 
 volve this country in war with England, the agitation 
 of the slavery question, and finally the great commer- 
 cial panic which spread over the country, all were 
 trials to his wisdom. The financial distress was at- 
 tributed to the management of the Democratic party, 
 and brought the President into such disfavor that he 
 failed of re-election. 
 
 With the exception of being nominated for the 
 Presidency by the "Free Soil" Democrats, in 1848, 
 Mr. Van Buren lived quietly upon his estate until 
 his death. 
 
 He had ever been a prudent man, of frugal habits, 
 and living within his income, had now fortunately a 
 competence for his declining years. His unblemished 
 character, his commanding abilities, his unquestioned 
 patriotism, and the distinguished positions which he 
 had occupied in the government of our country, se- 
 cured to him not only the homage of his party, but 
 the respect ot the whole community. It was on the 
 4th of March, 1841, that Mr. Van Buren retired from 
 the presidency. From his fine estate at Lindenwald 
 he still exerted a powerful influence upon the politics 
 of the country. From this time until his death, on 
 the 24th of July, 1862, at the age of eighty years, he 
 resided at Lindenwald, a gentleman of leisure, of 
 culture and of wealth; enjoying in a healthy old 
 age, probably far more happiness than he had before 
 experienced amid the stormy scenes of his active life. 
 
 
Jttel II i 
 

NINTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 
 WILL14M 
 
 4t 
 
 
 ILLIAM HENRY HARRI- 
 SON, the ninth President of 
 the United States, was born 
 at Berkeley, Va., Feb. 9, 1773. 
 His father, Benjamin Harri- 
 son, was in comparatively op- 
 ulent circumstances, and was 
 one of the most distinguished 
 men of his day. He was an 
 intimate friend of George 
 Washington, was early elected 
 a member of the Continental 
 Congress, and was conspicuous 
 among the patriots of Virginia in 
 resisting the encroachments of the 
 British crown. In the celebrated 
 Congress of 1775, Benjamin Har- 
 rison and John Hancock were 
 both candidates for the office of 
 speaker. 
 
 Mr Harrison was subsequently 
 chosen Governor of Virginia, and 
 was twice re-elected. His son, 
 ! William Henry, of course enjoyed 
 
 in childhood all the advantages which wealth and 
 intellectual and cultivated society could give. Hav- 
 ing received a thorough common-school education, he 
 entered Hampden Sidney College, where he graduated 
 with honor soon after the death of his father. He 
 then repaired to Philadelphia to study medicine under 
 the instructions of Dr. Rush and the guardianship of 
 Robert Morris, both of whom were, with his father, 
 signers of the Declaration of Independence. 
 
 Upon the outbreak of the Indian troubles, and not- 
 withstanding the remonstrances of his friends, he 
 abandoned his medical studies and entered the army, 
 having obtained a commission of Ensign from Presi- 
 
 dent Washington. He was then but 19 years old. 
 From that time he passed gradually upward in rank 
 until he became aid to General Wayne, after whose 
 death he resigned his commission. He was then ap- 
 pointed Secretary of the North-western Territory. This 
 Territory was then entitled to but one member in 
 Congress and Capt. Harrison was chosen to fill that 
 position. 
 
 In the spring of 1800 the North-western Territory 
 was divided by Congress into two portions. The 
 eastern portion, comprising the region now embraced 
 in the State of Ohio, was called '' The Territory 
 north-west of the Ohio." The western portion, which 
 included what is now called Indiana, Illinois and 
 Wisconsin, was called the "Indiana Territory." Wil- 
 liam Henry Harrison, then 27 years of age, was ap- 
 pointed by John Adams, Governor of the Indiana 
 Territory, and immediately after, also Governor of 
 Upper Louisiana. He was thus ruler over almost as 
 extensive a realm as any sovereign upon the globe. He 
 was Superintendent of Indian Affairs, and was in- 
 vested with powers nearly dictatorial over the now 
 rapidly increasing white population. The ability and 
 fidelity with which he discharged these responsible 
 duties may be inferred from the fact that he was four 
 times appointed to this office first by John Adams, 
 twice by Thomas Jefferson and afterwards by Presi- 
 dent Madison. 
 
 When he began his adminstration there were but 
 three white settlements in that almost boundless region, 
 now crowded with cities and resounding with all the 
 tumult of wealth and traffic. Oneof these settlements 
 was on the Ohio, nearly opposite Louisville; one at 
 Vincennes, on the Wabash, and the third a French 
 settlement. 
 
 The vast wilderness over which Gov. Harrison 
 reigned was filled with many tribes of Indians. About 
 
f > 
 
 5- 
 
 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 the year 1806, two extraordinary men, twin brothers, 
 of the Shawnese tribe, rose among them. One of 
 these was called Tecumseh, or " The Crouching 
 Panther;" the other, Olliwacheca, or "The Prophet." 
 Tecumseh was not only an Indian warrior, but a man 
 (if great sagacity, far-reaching foresight and indomit- 
 able perseverance in any enterprise in which he might 
 engage. He was inspired with the highest enthusiasm, 
 and had long regarded with dread and with hatred 
 the encroachment of the whites upon the hunting- 
 grounds of his fathers. His brother, the Prophet, was 
 an orator, who could sway the feelings of the untutored 
 Indian as the gale tossed the tree-tops beneath which 
 they dwelt. 
 
 But the Prophet was not merely an orator : he was, 
 in the superstitious minds of the Indians, invested 
 with the superhuman dignity of a medicine-man or a 
 magician. With an enthusiasm unsurpassed by Peter 
 the Hermit rousing Europe to the crusades, he went 
 from tribe to tribe, assuming that he was specially sent 
 by the Great Spirit. 
 
 Gov. Harrison made many attempts to conciliate 
 the Indians, but at last the war came, and at Tippe- 
 canoe the Indians were routed with great slaughter. 
 October 28, 1812, his army began its inarch. When 
 near the Prophet's town three Indians of rank made 
 their appearance and inquired why Gov. Harrison was 
 approaching them in so hostile an attitude. After a 
 short conference, arrangements were made fora meet- 
 ing the next day, to agree upon terms of peace. 
 
 But Gov. Harrison was too well acquainted with 
 the Indian character to be deceived by such protes- 
 tations. Selecting a favorable spot for his night's en- 
 campment, he took every precaution against surprise. 
 His troops were posted in a hollow square, and slept 
 upon their arms. 
 
 The troops threw themselves upon the ground for 
 rest; but every man had his accourtrements on, his 
 loaded musket by his side, and his bayonet fixed. The 
 wakeful Governor, between three and four o'clock in 
 the morning, had risen, and was sitting in conversa- 
 tion with his aids by the embers of a waning fire. It 
 was a chill, cloudy morning with a drizzling rain. In 
 the darkness, the Indians had crept as near as possi- 
 ble, and just then, with a savage yell, rushed, with all 
 the desperation which superstition and passion most 
 highly inflamed could give, upon the left flank of the 
 little army. The savages had been amply provided 
 with guns and ammunition by the English. Their 
 war-whoop was accompained by a shower of bullets. 
 
 The camp-tires were instantly extinguished, as the 
 light aided the Indians in their aim. With hide- 
 ous yells, the Indian bands rushed on, not doubting a 
 speedy and an entire victory. But Gen. Harrison's 
 troops stood as immovable as the rocks around them 
 until day dawned : they then made a simultaneous 
 charge with the bayonet, and swept every thing be- 
 fore them, and completely routing the foe. 
 
 Gov. Harrison now had all his energies tasked 
 to the utmost. The British descending from the Can - 
 adas, were of themselves a very formidable force ; but 
 with their savage allies, rushing like wolves from the 
 forest, searching out every remote farm-house, burn- 
 ing, plundering, scalping, torturing, the wide frontier 
 was plunged into a state of consternation which even 
 the most vivid imagination can but faintly conceive. 
 The war-whoop was resounding everywhere in the 
 forest. The horizon was illuminated with the conflagra- 
 tion of the cabins of the settlers. Gen Hull had made 
 the ignominious surrender of his forces at Detroit. 
 Under these despairing circumstances, Gov. Harrison 
 was appointed by President Madison commander-in- 
 chief of the North-western army, with orders to retake 
 Detroit, and to protect the frontiers. 
 
 It would be difficult to place a man in a situation 
 demanding more energy, sagacity and courage; but 
 General Harrison was found equal to the position, 
 and nobly and triumphantly did he meet all the re- 
 sponsibilities. 
 
 He won the love of his soldiers by always sharing 
 with them their fatigue. His whole baggage, while 
 pursuing the foe up the Thames, was carried in a 
 valise; and his bedding consisted of a single blanket 
 lashed over his saddle. Thirty-five British officers, 
 his prisoners of war, supped with him after the battle. 
 The only fare he could give them was beef roasted 
 
 before the (ire. without bread or salt. 
 
 t 
 
 In 1816, Gen. Harrison was chosen a member ofi j 
 the National House of Representatives, to represent I 
 the District of Ohio. In Congress he proved anj 
 active member; and whenever he spoke, it was with 
 force of reason and power of eloquence, which arrested 
 the attention of all the members. 
 
 In 1819, Harrison was elected to the Senate of 
 Ohio; and in 1824, as one of the presidential electors 
 of that State, he gave his vote for Henry Clay. The 
 same year he was chosen to the United States Senate. 
 
 In 1836, the friends of Gen. Harrison brought him 
 forward as a candidate for the Presidency against 
 Van Buren, but he was defeated. At the close of 
 Mr. Van Buren's term, he was re -nominated by his 
 party, and Mr. Harrison was unanimously nominated 
 by the Whigs, with John Tyler for the Vice Presidency. 
 The contest was very animated. Gen Jackson gave 
 all his influence to prevent Harrison's election ; but 
 his triumph was signal. 
 
 The cabinet which he formed, with Daniel Webster 
 at its head as Secretary of State, was one of the most 
 brilliant with which any President had ever been 
 surrounded. Never were the prospects of an admin- 
 istration more flattering, or the hopes of the country 
 more sanguine. In the midst of these bright and 
 joyous prospects, Gen. Harrison was seized by a 
 pleurisy-fever and after a few days of violent sick- 
 ness, died on the 4th of April; just one month after 
 his inauguration as President of the United States. 
 
ry. 
 
 TENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 55 
 
 OHN TYLER, the tenth 
 Presidentof the United States. 
 He was born in Charles-city 
 Co., Va., March 29, 1790. He 
 was the favored child of af- 
 fluence and high social po- 
 sition. At the early age of 
 twelve, John entered William 
 and Mary College and grad- 
 uated with much honor when 
 but seventeen years old. After 
 graduating, he devoted him- 
 self with, great assiduity to the 
 study of law, partly with his 
 father and partly with Edmund 
 Randolph, one of the most distin- 
 guished lawyers of Virginia. 
 
 At nineteen years of age, lie 
 commenced the practice of law. 
 His success was rapid and aston- 
 ishing. It is said that three 
 months had not elapsed ere there 
 was scarcely a case on the dock- 
 et of the court in which he was 
 not retained. When but twenty-one years of age, he 
 was almost unanimously elected to a seat in the State 
 Legislature. He connected himself with the Demo- 
 cratic party, and warmly advocated the measures of 
 Jefferson and Madison. For five successive years he 
 was elected to the Legislature, receiving nearly the 
 unanimous vote or his county. 
 
 When but twenty-six yeais of age, he was elected 
 a member of Congress. Here he acted earnestly and 
 ably with the Democratic party, opposing a national 
 bank, internal improvements by the General Govern- 
 
 ment, a protective tariff, and advocating a strict con- 
 struction of the Constitution, and the most careful 
 vigilance over State rights. His labors in Congress 
 were so arduous that before the close of his second 
 term he found it necessary to resign and retire to his 
 estate in Charles-city Co., to recruit his health. He, 
 however, soon after consented to take his seat in the 
 State Legislature, where his influence was powerful 
 in promoting public works of great utility. With a 
 reputation thus canstantly increasing, he was chosen 
 by a very large majority of votes, Governor of his 
 native State. His administration was signally a suc- 
 cessful one. His popularity secured his re-election. 
 
 John Randolph, a brilliant, erratic, half-crazed 
 man, then represented Virginia in the Senate of the 
 United States. A portion of the Democratic party 
 was displeased with Mr. Randolph's wayward course, 
 and brought forward John Tyler as his opponent, 
 considering him the only man in Virginia of sufficient 
 popularity to succeed against the renowned orator of 
 Roanoke. Mr. Tyler was the victor. 
 
 In accordance with his professions, upon taking his 
 seat in the Senate, he joined the ranks of the opposi- 
 tion. He opposed the tariff; he spoke against and 
 voted against the bank as unconstitutional ; he stren- 
 uously opposed all restrictions upon slavery, resist- 
 ing all projects of internal improvements by the Gen- 
 eral Government, and avowed his sympathy with Mr. 
 Calhoun's view of nullification ; he declared that Gen. 
 Jackson, by his opposition to the nullifiers, had 
 abandoned the principles of the Democratic party. 
 Such was Mr. Tyler's record in Congress,- a record 
 in perfect accordance with the principles which he 
 had always avowed. 
 
 Returning to Virginia, he resumed the practice of 
 his profession. There was a split in the Democratic 
 
 4 t 
 
JOHN TYLER. 
 
 party. His friends still regarded him as a true Jef- 
 fersonian, gave him a dinner, and showered compli- 
 ments upon him. He had now attained the age of 
 forty-six. His career had been very brilliant. In con- 
 sequence of his devotion to public business, his pri- 
 vate affairs had fallen into some disorder; audit was 
 not without satisfaction that he resumed the practice 
 of law, and devoted himself to the culture of his plan- 
 tation. Soon after this he removed to Williamsburg, 
 for the better education of his children ; and he again 
 took his seat in the Legislature of Virginia. 
 
 By the Southern Whigs, he was sent to the national 
 convention at Harrisburg to nominate a President in 
 1839. The majority of votes were given to Gen. Har- 
 rison, a genuine Whig, much to the disappointment of 
 the South, who wished for Henry Clay. To concili- 
 ate the Southern Whigs and to secure their vote, the 
 convention then nominated John Tyler f or Vice Pres- 
 ident. It was well known that he was not in sympa- 
 thy with the Whig party in the Noith : but the Vice 
 President has but very little power in the Govern- 
 ment, his main and almost only duty being to pre- 
 side over the meetings of the Senate. Thus it hap- 
 f pened that a Whig President, and, in reality, a 
 Democratic Vice President were chosen. 
 
 In 1841, Mr. Tyler was inaugurated Vice Presi- 
 dent of the United States. In one short month from 
 that time, President Harrison died, and Mr. Tyler 
 thus found himself, to his own surprise and that of 
 the whole Nation, an occupant of the Presidential 
 chair. This was a new test of the stability of our 
 institutions, as it was the first time in the history of our 
 country that such an event had occured. Mr. Tyler 
 was at home in Williamsburg when he received the 
 unexpected tidings of the death of President Harri- 
 son. He hastened to Washington, and on the 6th of 
 April was inaugurated to the high and responsible 
 office. He was placed in a position of exceeding 
 delicacy and difficulty. All his longlife he had been 
 opposed to the main principles of the party which had 
 brought him into power. He had ever been a con- 
 sistent, honest man, with an unblemished record. 
 Gen. Harrison had selected a Whig cabinet. Should 
 he retain them, and thus surround himself with coun- 
 sellors whose views were antagonistic to his own? or, 
 on the other hand, should he turn against the party 
 which had elected him and select a cabinet in har- 
 mony with himself, and which would oppose all those 
 views which the Whigs deemed essential to the pub- 
 lic welfare? This was his fearful dilemma. He in- 
 vited the cabinet which President Harrison had 
 selected to retain their seats. He reccomiTK'nded a 
 day of fasting and prayer, that God would guide and 
 bless us. 
 
 The Whigs carried through Congress a bill for the 
 incorporation of a fiscal bank of the United States. 
 The President, after ten days' delay, returned it with 
 his veto. He suggested, however, that he would 
 
 approve of a bill drawn up upon such a plan as he 
 proposed. Such a bill was accordingly prepared, and 
 privately submitted to him. He gave it his approval. 
 It was passed without alteration, and he sent it back 
 with his veto. Here commenced the open rupture. 
 It is said that Mr. Tyler was provoked to this meas- 
 ure by a published letter from the Hon. John M. 
 Botts, a distinguished Virginia Whig, who severely 
 touched the pride of the President. 
 
 The opposition now exultingly received the Presi- 
 dent into their arms. The party which elected him 
 denounced him bitterly. All the members of his 
 cabinet, excepting Mr. Webster, resigned. The Whigs 
 of Congress, both the Senate and the House, held a 
 meeting and issued an address to the people of the 
 United States, proclaiming that all political alliance 
 between the Whigs and President Tyler were at 
 an end. 
 
 Still the President attempted to conciliate. He 
 appointed a new cabinet of distinguished Whigs and 
 Conservatives, carefully leaving out all strong party 
 men. Mr. Webster soon found it necessary to resign, 
 forced out by the pressure of his Whig friends. Thus 
 the four years of Mr. Tyler's unfortunate administra- 
 tion passed sadly away. No one was satisfied. The ' 
 land was filled with murmurs and vituperation. Whigs 
 and Democrats alike assailed him. More and more, 
 however, he brought himself into sympathy with his \ 
 old friends, the Democrats, until at the close of his term, 
 he gave his whole influence to the support of Mr. 
 Polk, the Democratic candidate for his successor. 
 
 On the 4th of March, 1845, he retired from the 
 harassments of office, tothe regret of neither party, and 
 probably to his own unspeakable iclief. His first wife, 
 Miss Letitia Christian, died in Washington, in 1842; 
 and in June, r844, President Tyler was again married, 
 at New York, to Miss Julia Gardiner, a young lady of 
 many personal and intellectual accomplishments. 
 
 The remainder of his days Mr. Tyler passed mainly 
 in retirement at his beautiful home, Sherwood For- 
 est, Charles-city Co., Va. A polished gentleman in 
 his manners, richly furnished with information from 
 books and experience in the world, and possessing 
 brilliant powers of conversation, his family circle was 
 the scene of unusual attractions. With sufficient 
 means for the exercise of a generous hospitality, he 
 might have enjoyed a serene old age with the few 
 friends who gathered around him, were it not for the 
 storms of civil war which his own principles and 
 policy had helped to introduce. 
 
 When the great Rebellion rose, which the State- 
 rights and nullifying doctrines of Mr. John C. Cal- 
 houn had inaugurated, President Tyler renounced his 
 allegiance to the United States, and joined the Confed- 
 erates. He was chosen a member of their Congress; 
 and while engaged in active measures to deslroy, by 
 force of arms, the Government over which he had 
 once presided, he was taken sick and soon died. 
 
tit 
 
EB 
 
 y 
 
 
ELEVENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 59 
 
 AMES K. POLK, the eleventh 
 President of the United States, 
 was born in Mecklenburg Co., 
 N. C., Nov. 2, 1795. His par- 
 ents were Samuel and Jane 
 (Knox) Polk, the former a son 
 
 of Col. Thomas Polk, who located 
 
 at the above place, as one of the 
 
 first pioneers, in 1735. 
 
 In the year 1806, with his wife 
 
 and children, ar.d soon after fol- 
 
 
 lowed by most of the members of 
 the Polk farnly, Samuel Polk emi- 
 grated some two or three hundred 
 miles farther west, to the rich valley 
 of the Duck River. Here in the 
 midst of the wilderness, in a region 
 which was subsequently called Mau- 
 ry Co., they reared their log huts, 
 and established their homes. In the 
 hard toil of a new farm in the wil- 
 derness, James K. Polk spent the 
 early years of his childhood and 
 youth. His father, adding the pur- 
 suit of a surveyor to that of a farmer, 
 gradually increased in wealth until 
 he became one of the leading men of the region. His 
 mother was a superior woman, of strong common 
 sense and earnest piety. 
 
 Very early in life, James developed a taste for 
 reading and expressed the strongest desire to obtain 
 a liberal education. His mother's training had made 
 him methodical in his habits, had taught him punct- 
 uality and industry, and had inspired him with lofty 
 principles of morality. His health was frail ; and his 
 father, fearing that he might not be able to endure a 
 
 sedentary life, got a situation for him behind the_ 
 counter, hoping to fit him for commercial pursuits. 
 
 This was to James a bitter disappointment. He 
 had no taste for these duties, and his daily tasks 
 were irksome in the extreme. He remained in this 
 uncongenial occupation but a few weeks, when at his 
 earnest solicitation his father removed him, and made 
 arrangements for him to prosecute his studies. Soon 
 after he sent him to Murfreesboro Academy. With 
 ardor which could scarcely be surpassed, he pressed - 
 forward in his studies, and in less than two and a half 
 years, in the autumn of 1815, entered the sophomore 
 class in the University of North Carolina, at Chapel 
 Hill. Here he was one of the most exemplary of 
 scholars, punctual in every exercise, never allowing 
 himself to be absent from a recitation or a religious 
 service. 
 
 He graduated in 1818, with the highest honors, be- 
 ing deemed the best scholar of his class, both in 
 mathematics and the classics. He was then twenty- 
 three years of age. Mr. Folk's health was at this 
 time much impaired by the assiduity with which he 
 had prosecuted his studies. After a short season of 
 relaxation he went to Nashville, and entered the 
 office of Felix Grundy, to study law. Here Mr. Polk 
 renewed his acquaintance with Andrew Jackson, who 
 resided on his plantation, the Hermitage, but a few 
 miles from Nashville. They had probably been 
 slightly acquainted before. 
 
 Mr. Folk's father was a JefTersonian Republican, 
 and James K. Polk ever adhered to the same politi- 
 cal faith. He was a popular public speaker, and was 
 constantly called upon to address the meetings of his 
 party friends. His skill as a speaker was such that 
 he was popularly called the Napoleon of the stump. 
 He was a man of unblemished morals, genial and 
 
JAMES K. POLK. 
 
 courteous in his bearing, and with that sympathetic 
 nature in the jo> s and griefs of others which ever gave 
 him troops of friends. In 1823, Mr. Polk was elected 
 to the Legislature of Tennessee. Here he gave his 
 strong influence towards the election of his friend, 
 Mr. Jackson, to the Presidency of the United States. 
 
 In January, 1824, Mr. Polk married Miss Sarah 
 Childress, of Rutherford Co., Tenn. His bride was 
 altogether worthy of him, a lady of beauty and cul- 
 ture. In the fall of 1825, Mr. Polk was chosen a 
 member of Congress. The satisfaction which he gave 
 to his constituents may be inferred from the fact, that 
 for fourteen successive years, until 1839, he was con- 
 tinued in that office. He then voluntarily withdrew, 
 only that he might accept the Gubernatorial chair 
 of Tennessee. In Congress he was a laborious 
 member, a frequent and a popular speaker. He was 
 always in his seat, always courteous; and whenever 
 he spoke it was always to the point, and without any 
 ambitious rhetorical display. 
 
 During five sessions of Congress, Mr. Polk was 
 Speaker of the House Strong passions were roused, 
 and stormy scenes were witnessed ; but Mr. Polk per- 
 formed his arduous duties to a very general satisfac- 
 tion, and a unanimous vote of thanks to him was 
 passed by the House as he withdrew on the 4th of 
 March, 1839. 
 
 In accordance with Southern usage, Mr. Polk, as a 
 candidate for Governor, canvasse'd the State. He was 
 elected by a large majority, and on the 141)1 of Octo- 
 ber, 1839, took the oath of office at Nashville. In 1841, 
 his term of office expired, and he was again the can- 
 didate of the Democratic party, but was defeated. 
 
 On the 4th of March, 1845, Mr. Polk was inaugur- 
 ated President of the United States. The verdict of 
 the countryin favor of the annexation of Texas, exerted 
 its influence upon Congress ; and the last act of the 
 administration of President Tyler was to affix his sig- 
 nature to a joint resolution of Congress, passed on the 
 3d of March, approving of the annexation of Texas to 
 the American Union. As Mexico still claimed Texas 
 as one of her provinces, the Mexican minister, 
 Almonte, immediately demanded his passports and 
 left the country, declaring the act of the annexation 
 to be an act hostile to Mexico. 
 
 In his first message, President Polk urged that 
 Texas should immediately, by act of Congress, be re- 
 ceived into the Union on the same footing with the 
 other States. In the meantime, Gen. Taylor was sent 
 
 with an army into Texas to hold the country. He was 
 sent first to Nueces, which the Mexicans said was the 
 western boundary of Texas. Then he was sent nearly 
 two hundred miles further west, to the Rio Grande, 
 where he erected batteries which commanded the 
 Mexican city of Matamoras, which was situated on 
 the western banks. 
 
 The anticipated collision soon took place, and war 
 was declared against Mexico by President Polk. The 
 war was pushed forward by Mr. Polk's administration 
 with great vigor. Gen. Taylor, whose army was first 
 called one of "observation," then of "occupation," 
 then of " invasion, "was sent forward to Monterey. The 
 feeble Mexicans, in every encounter, were hopelessly 
 and awfully slaughtered. The day of judgement 
 alone can reveal the misery which this war caused. 
 It was by the ingenuity of Mr. Polk's administration 
 that the war was brought on. 
 
 'To the victors belong the spoils." Mexico was 
 prostrate before us. Her capital was in our hands. 
 We now consented to peace upon the condition that 
 Mexico should surrender to us, in addition to Texas, 
 all of New Mexico, and all of Upper and Lower Cal- 
 ifornia. This new demand embraced, exclusive of 
 Texas, eight hundred thousand square miles. This 
 was an extent of territory equal to nine States of the 
 size of New York. Thus slavery was securing eighteen 
 majestic States to be added to the Union. There were 
 some Americans who thought it all right : there were 
 others who thought it all wrong. In the prosecution 
 of this war, we expended twenty thousand lives and 
 more than a hundred million of dollars. Of this 
 money fifteen millions were paid to Mexico. 
 
 On the 3d of March, 1849, Mr. Polk retired from 
 office, having served one term. The next day was 
 Sunday. On the 5th, Gen. Taylor was inaugurated 
 as his successor. Mr Polk rode to the Capitol in the 
 same carriage with Gen. Taylor; and the same even- 
 ing, with Mrs. Polk, he commenced his return to 
 Tennessee. He was then but fifty-four years of age. 
 He had ever been strictly temperate in all his habits, 
 and his health was good. With an ample fortune, 
 a choice library, a cultivated mind, and domestic ties 
 of the dearest nature, it seemed as though long years 
 of tranquility and happiness were before him. But the 
 cholera that fearful scourge was then sweeping up 
 the Valley of the Mississippi. This he contracted, 
 and died on the 15111 of June, 1849, in the fifty-fourth 
 year of his age, greatly mourned by his countrymen. 
 
1 I': 
 
TWELFTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 ACHARY TAYLOR, twelfth 
 President of the United States, 
 was born on the 241)1 of Nov., 
 1784, in Orange Co., Va. His 
 father, Colonel Taylor, was 
 a Virginian of note, and a dis- 
 tinguished patriot and soldier of 
 the Revolution. When Zachary 
 was an infant, his father wirh his 
 wife and two children, emigrated 
 to Kentucky, where he settled in 
 the pathless wilderness, a few 
 miles from Louisville. Inthisfront- 
 iw ier home, away from civilization and 
 all its refinements, young Zachary 
 could enjoy but few social and educational advan- 
 tages. When six years of age he attended a common 
 school, and was then regarded as a bright, active boy, 
 rather remarkable for bluntness and decision of char- 
 acter He was strong, feailess and self-reliant, and 
 manifested a strong desire to enter the army to fight 
 the Indians who were ravaging the frontiers. There 
 is little to be recorded of the uneventful years of his 
 childhood on his father's large but lonely plantation. 
 In 1808, his father succeeded in obtaining for him 
 the commission of lieutenant in the United States 
 army ; and he joined the troops which were stationed 
 at New Orleans under Gen. Wilkinson. Soon after 
 this he married Miss Margaret Smith, a young lady 
 from one of the first families of Maryland. 
 
 Immediately after the declaration of war with Eng- 
 land, in 1812, Capt. Taylor (for he had then been 
 promoted to that rank) was put in command of Fort 
 Harrison, on the Wabash, about fifty miles above 
 Vincennes. This fort had been built in the wilder- 
 ness by Gen. Harrison.on his march to Tippecanoe. 
 It was one of the first points of attack by the Indians, 
 led by Tecumseh. Its garrison consisted of a broken 
 
 company of infantry numbering fifty men, many of 
 whom were sick. 
 
 Early in the autumn of 1812, the Indians, stealthily, 
 and in large numbers, moved upon the fort. Their 
 approach was first indicated by the murder of two 
 soldiers just outside of the stockade. Capt. Taylor 
 made every possible preparation to meet the antici- 
 pated assault. On the 4th of September, a band of 
 forty painted and plumed savages came to the fort, 
 waving a white flag, and informed Capt. Taylor that 
 in the morning their chief would come to have a talk 
 with him. It was evident that their object was merely 
 to ascertain the state of things at the fort, and Capt. 
 Taylor, well versed in the wiles of the savages, kept 
 them at a distance. 
 
 The sun went down ; the savages disappeared, the 
 garrison slept upon their arms. One hour before 
 midnight the war whoop burst from a thousand lips 
 in the forest around, followed by the discharge of 
 musketry, and the rush of the foe. Every man, sick 
 and well, sprang to his post. Every man knew that 
 defeat was not merely death, but in the case of cap- 
 ture, death by the most agonizing and prolonged tor- 
 ture. No pen can describe, no immagination can 
 conceive the scenes which ensued. The savages suc- 
 ceeded in setting fire to one of the block-houses- 
 Until six o'clock in the morning, this awful conflict 
 continued. The savages then, baffled at every point, 
 and gnashing their teeth with rage, retired. Capt. 
 Taylor, for this gallant defence, was promoted to the 
 rank of major by brevet. 
 
 Until the close of the war, Major Taylor was placed 
 in such situations that he saw but little more of active 
 service. He was sent far away into the depths of the 
 wilderness, to Fort Crawford, on Fox River, which 
 empties into Green Bay. Here there was but little 
 to be done but to wear away the tedious hours as one 
 best could. There were no books, no society, no in- 
 
6 4 
 
 ZACHARY TAYLOR. 
 
 tellectual stimulus. Thus with him the uneventful 
 years rolled on Gradually he rose to the rank of 
 colonel. In the Black Hawk war, which resulted in 
 the capture of that renowned chieftain, Col Taylor 
 took a subordinate but a brave and efficient part. 
 
 For twenty-four years Col. Taylor was engaged in 
 the defence of the frontiers, in scenes so remote, and in 
 employments so obscure, that his name was unknown 
 beyond the limits of his own immediate acquaintance. 
 In the year 1836, he was sent to Florida to compel 
 the Seminole Indians to vacate that region and re- 
 tire beyond the Mississippi, as their chiefs by treaty, 
 had promised they should do. The services rendered 
 here secured for Col. Taylor the high appreciation of 
 the Government; and as a reward, he was elevated 
 to the rank of brigadier-general by brevet ; and soon 
 after, in May, 1838, was appointed to the chief com- 
 mand of the United States troops in Florida. 
 
 After two years of such wearisome employment 
 amidst the everglades of the peninsula, Gen. Taylor 
 obtained, at his own request, a change of command, 
 and was stationed over the Department of the South- 
 west. This field embraced Louisiana, Mississippi, 
 Alabama and Georgia. Establishing his headquarters 
 at Fort Jessup, in Louisiana, he removed his family 
 to a plantation which he purchased, near Baton Rogue. 
 Here he remained for five years, buried, as it were, 
 , from the world, but faithfully discharging every duty 
 u imposed upon him. 
 
 In 1846, Gen. Taylor was sent to guard the land 
 between the Nueces and Rio Grande, the latter river 
 < being the boundary of Texas, which was then claimed 
 by the United States. Soon the war with Mexico 
 was brought on, and at Palo Alto and Resaca de la 
 Palma, Gen. Taylor won brilliant victories over the 
 Mexicans. The rank of major-general by brevet 
 was then conferred upon Gen. Taylor, and his name 
 was received with enthusiasm almost everywhere in 
 the Nation. Then came the battles of Monterey and 
 Buena Vista in which he won signal victories over 
 forces much larger than he commanded. 
 
 His careless habits of dress and his unaffected 
 simplicity, secured for Gen. Taylor among his troops, 
 the sobriquet of "Old Rough and Ready.' 
 
 The tidings of the brilliant victory of Buena Vista 
 spread the wildest enthusiasm over the country. The 
 name of Gen. Taylor was on every one's lips. The 
 Whig party decided to take advantage of this wonder- 
 ful popularity in bringing forward the unpolished, un- 
 lettered, honest soldier as their candidate for the 
 Presidency. Gen. Taylor was astonished at the an- 
 nouncement, and for a time would not listen toil; de- 
 claring that he was not at all qualified for such an 
 office. So little interest had he taken in politics that, 
 for forty years, he had not cast a vote. It was not 
 without chagrin that several distinguished statesmen 
 who had been long years in the public service found 
 their claims set aside in behalf of one whose name 
 
 had never been heard of, save in connection with Palo 
 Alto, Resaca de la Palma, Monterey and Buena 
 Vista. It is said that Daniel Webster, in his haste re- 
 marked, " It is a nomination not fit to be made." 
 
 Gen. Taylor was not an eloquent speaker nor a fine 
 writer His friends took possession of him, and pre- 
 pared such few communications as it was needful 
 should be presented to the public. The popularity of 
 the successful warrior swept the land. He was tri- 
 umphantly elected over two opposing candidates, 
 Gen. Cass and Ex-President Martin Van Buren. 
 Though he selected an excellent cabinet, -the good 
 old man found himself in a very uncongenial position, 
 and was, at times, sorely perplexed and harassed. 
 His mental sufferings were very severe, and probably 
 tended to hasten his death. The pro-slavery party 
 was pushing its claims with tireless energy , expedi- 
 tions were fitting out to capture Cuba ; California was 
 pleading for admission to the Union, while slavery 
 stood at the door to bar her out. Gen. Taylor found 
 the political conflicts in Washington to be far more 
 trying to the nerves than battles with Mexicans or 
 Indians. 
 
 In the midst of all these troubles, Gen. Taylor, 
 after he had occupied the Presidential chair but little 
 over a year, took cold, and after a brief sickness of 
 but little over five days, died on the gth of July, 1 85 o. 
 His last words were, " I am not afraid to die. I am 
 ready. I have endeavored to do my duty." He died 
 universally respected and beloved. An honest, un- 
 pretending man, he had been steadily growing in the 
 affections of the people ; and the Nation bitterly la- 
 mented his death. 
 
 Gen. Scott, who was thoroughly acquainted with 
 Gen. Taylor, gave the following graphic and truthful 
 description of his character: " With a good store of 
 common sense, Gen. Taylor's mind had not been en- 
 larged and refreshed by reading, or much converse 
 with the world. Rigidity of ideas was the conse- 
 quence. The frontiers and small military posts had 
 been his home. Hence he was quite ignorant for his 
 rank, and quite bigoted in his ignorance. His sim- 
 plicity was child-like, and with innumerable preju- 
 dices, amusing and incorrigible, well suited to the 
 tender age. Thus, if a man, however respectable, 
 chanced to wear a coat of an unusual color, or his hat 
 a little on one side of his head; or an officer to leave 
 a corner of his handkerchief dangling from an out- 
 side pocket, in any such case, this critic held the 
 offender to be a coxcomb (perhaps something worse), 
 whom he would not, to use his oft repeated phrase, 
 ' touch with a pair of tongs.' 
 
 "Any allusion to literature beyond good old Dil- 
 worth's spelling-book, on the part of one wearing a 
 sword, was evidence, with the same judge, of utter 
 unfitness for heavy marchings and combats. In short, 
 few men have ever had a more comfortable, labor- 
 saving contempt for learning of every kind." 
 
M ttfc 
 

 
of 
 
 THIRTEENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 FILLfflIIHE,<4 
 
 ILLARD FILLMORE, thir- 
 teenth President of the United 
 States, was born at Summer 
 Hill, Cayuga Co., N. Y ., on 
 the yth of January, 1800. His 
 father was a farmer, and ow- 
 ing to misfortune, in humble cir- 
 cumstances. Of his mother, the 
 daughter of Dr. Abiathar Millard, 
 of Pittsfield, Mass., it has been 
 said that she possessed an intellect 
 of very high order, united with much 
 personal loveliness, sweetness of dis- 
 position, graceful manners and ex- 
 quisite sensibilities. She died in 
 1831 ; having lived to see her son a 
 young man of distinguished prom- 
 ise, though she was not permitted to witness the high 
 dignity which he finally attained. 
 
 In consequence of the secluded home and limited 
 means of his father, Millard enjoyed but slender ad- 
 vantages for education in his early years. The com- 
 mon schools, which he occasionally attended were 
 very imperfect institutions; and books were scarce 
 and expensive. There was nothing then in his char- 
 acter to indicate the brilliant career upon which he 
 was about to enter. He was a plain farmer's boy ; 
 intelligent, good-tooking, kind-hearted. The sacred 
 influences of home had taught him to revere the Bible, 
 and had laid the foundations of an upright character. 
 When fourteen years of age, his father sent him 
 some hundred miles from home, to the then wilds of 
 Livingston County, to learn the trade of a clothier. 
 Near the mill there was a small villiage, where some 
 
 enterprising man had commenced the collection of a 
 village library. This proved an inestimable blessing 
 to young Fillmore. His evenings were spent in read- 
 ing. Soon every leisure moment was occupied with 
 books. His thirst for knowledge became insatiate; 
 and the selections which he made were continually ^ 
 more elevating and instructive. He read history, 
 biography, oratory; and thus gradually there was en-j 
 kindled in his heart a desire to be something more-< 
 than a mere worker with his hands; and he was be- 
 coming, almost unknown to himself, a well-informed, 
 educated man. 
 
 The young clothier had now attained the age of 
 nineteen years, and was of fine personal appearance 
 and of gentlemanly demeanor. It so happened that 
 there was a gentleman in the neighborhood of ample 
 pecuniary means and of benevolence, Judge Walter 
 Wood, who was struck with the prepossessing ap- 
 pearance of young Fillmore. He made his acquaint- 
 ance, and was so much impressed with his ability and 
 attainments that he advised him to abandon his 
 trade and devote himself to the study of the law. The 
 young man replied, that he had no means of his own, 
 no friends to help him and that his previous educa- 
 tion had been very imperfect. But Judge Wood had 
 so much confidence in him that he kindly offered to 
 take him into his own office, and to loan him such 
 money as he needed. Most gratefully the generous 
 offer was accepted. 
 
 There is in many minds a strange delusion about 
 a collegiate education. A young man is supposed to 
 be liberally educated if he has graduated at some col- 
 lege. But many a boy loiters through university halls 
 and then enters a law office, who is by no means as 
 
68 
 
 MILLARD FILLMORE. 
 
 well prepared to prosecute his legal studies as was 
 Millard Fillmore when he graduated at the clothing- 
 mill at the end of four years of manual labor, during 
 which every leisure moment had been devoted to in- 
 tense mental culture. 
 
 In 1823, when twenty-three years of age, he was 
 admitted to the Court of Common Pleas. He then 
 went to the village of Aurora, and commenced the 
 practice of law. In this secluded, peaceful region, 
 his practice of course was limited, and there was no 
 opportunity for a sudden rise in fortune or in fame. 
 Here, in the year 1826, he married a lady of great 
 moral worth, and one capable of adorning any station 
 she might be called to fill, Miss Abigail Powers. 
 
 His elevation of character, his untiring industry, 
 his legal acquirements, and his skill as an advocate, 
 gradually attracted attention ; and he was invited to 
 enter into partnership under highly advantageous 
 circumstances, with an elder member of the bar in 
 Buffalo. Just before removing to Buffalo, in 1829, 
 he took his seat in the House of Assembly, of the 
 State of New York, as a representative from Erie 
 County. Though he had never taken a very active 
 part in politics, his vote and his sympathies were with 
 the Whig party. The State was then Democratic, 
 and he found himself in a helpless minority in the 
 Legislature , still the testimony comes from all parties, 
 that his courtesy, ability and integrity, won, to a very 
 unusual degn e the respect of his associates. 
 
 In the autumn of 1832, he was elected to a seat in 
 the United States Congress He entered that troubled 
 arena in some of the most tumultuous hours of our 
 national history. The great conflict respecting the 
 national bank and the removal of the deposits, was 
 then raging. 
 
 His term of two years closed ; and he returned to 
 his profession, which he pursued with increasing rep- 
 utation and success. After a lapse of two years 
 he again became a candidate for Congress ; was re- 
 elected, and took his seat in 1837. His past expe- 
 rience as a representative gave him strength and 
 confidence. The first term of service in Congress to 
 any man can be but little more than an introduction. 
 He was now prepared for active duty. All his ener- 
 gies were brought to bear upon the public good. Every 
 measure received his impress. 
 
 Mr. Fillmore was now a man of wide repute, and 
 his popularity filled the State, and in the year 1847, 
 he was elected Comptroller of the State. 
 
 Mr. Fillmore had attained the age of forty-seven 
 years. His labors at the bar, in the Legislature, in 
 Congress and as Comptroller, had given him very con- 
 siderable fame. The Whigs were casting about to 
 find suitable candidates for President and Vice-Presi- 
 dent at the approaching election. Far away, on the 
 waters of the Rio Grande, there was a rough old 
 soldier, who had fought one or two successful battles 
 with the Mexicans, which had caused his name to be 
 proclaimed in trumpet-tones all over the land. But 
 it was necessary to associate with him on the same 
 ticket some man of reputation as a statesman. 
 
 Under the influence of these considerations, the 
 namesof Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore became 
 the rallying-cry of the Whigs, as their candidates for 
 President and Vice-Peesident. The Whig ticket was 
 signally triumphant. On the 4th of March, ^49, 
 Gen. Taylor was inaugurated President, and Millard 
 Fillmore Vice-President, of the United States. 
 
 On the gth of July, 1850, President Taylor, but 
 about one year and four months after his inaugura- 
 tion, was suddenly taken sick and died. By the Con- 
 stitution, Vice-President Fillmore thus became Presi- 
 dent. He appointed a very able cabinet, of which 
 the illustrious Daniel Webster was Secretary of State. 
 
 Mr. Fillniore had very serious difficulties to contend 
 with, since the opposition had a majority in both 
 Houses. 'He did everything in his power to conciliate 
 the South ; but the pro-slavery party in the South felt 
 the inadequacyof all measuresof transient conciliation. 
 The population of the free States was so rapidly in- 
 creasing over that of the slave States that it was in- 
 evitable that the power of the Government should 
 soon pass into the hands of the free States. The 
 famous compromise measures were adopted under Mr. 
 Fillmcre's adminstration, and the Japan Expedition 
 was sent out. On the 4th of March, 1853, Mr. Fill- 
 more, having served one term, retired. 
 
 In 1856, Mr. Fillmore was nominated for the Pres- 
 idency by the " Know Nothing " party, but was beaten 
 by Mr. Buchanan. After that Mr. Fillmore lived in 
 retirement. During the terrible conflict of civil war, 
 he was mostly silent. It was generally supposed that 
 his sympathies were rather with those who were en- 
 deavoring to overthrow our institutions. President 
 Fillmore kept aloof from the conflict, without any 
 cordial words of cheer to the one party or the other. 
 He was thus forgotten by both. He lived to a ripe 
 old age, and died in Buffalo. N. Y., March 8, 1874, 
 


 
FOURTEENTH PRESIDENT, 
 
 
 RANKLIN PIERCE, the 
 fourteenth President of the 
 United States, was born in 
 Hillsborongh, N. H., Nov. 
 2$, 1804. His father was a 
 Revolutionary soldier, who, 
 with his own strong arm, 
 hewed out a home in the 
 wilderness. He was a man 
 of inflexible integrity; of 
 strong, though uncultivated 
 mind, and an uncompromis- 
 ing Democrat. The mother of 
 Franklin Pierce was all that a son 
 could desire, an intelligent, pru- 
 dent, affectionate, Christian wom- 
 an. Franklin was the sixth of eight children. 
 
 Franklin was a very bright and handsome boy, gen- 
 erous, warm-hearted and brave. He won alike the 
 love of old and young. The boys on the play ground 
 loved him. His teachers loved him. The neighbors 
 looked upon him with pride and affection. He was 
 by instinct a gentleman ; always speaking kind words, 
 doing kind deeds, with a peculiar unstudied tact 
 which taught him what was agreeable. Without de- 
 veloping any precocity of genius, or any unnatural 
 devotion to books, he was a good scholar ; in body, 
 in mind, in affections, a finely-developed boy. 
 
 When sixteen years of age, in the year 1820, he 
 entered Bowdoin College, at Brunswick, Me He was 
 one of the most popular young men in the college. 
 The purity of his moral character, the unvarying 
 courtesy of his demeanor, his rank as a scholar, and 
 
 genial nature, rendered him. a universal favorite. 
 There was something very peculiarly winning in his 
 address, and it was evidently not in the slightest de- 
 gree studied : it was the simple outgushing of his 
 own magnanimous and loving nature. 
 
 Upon graduating, in the year 1824, Franklin Pierce 
 commenced the study of law in the office of Judge 
 Woodbury, one of the most distinguished lawyers of 
 the State, and a man of great private worth. The 
 eminent social qualities of the young lawyer, his 
 father's prominence as a public man, and the brilliant 
 political career into which Judge Woodbury was en- 
 tering, all tended to entice Mr. Pierce into the faci- 
 nating yet perilous path of political life. With all 
 the ardor of his nature he espoused the cause of Gen. 
 Jackson for the Presidency. He commenced the 
 practice of law in Hillsborough, and was soon elected 
 to represent the town in the State Legislature. Here 
 he served for four yeais. The last two years he was 
 chosen speaker of the house by a very large vote. 
 
 In 1833, at the age of twenty-nine, he was elected 
 a member of Congress. Without taking an active 
 part in debates, he was faithful and laborious in duty, 
 and ever rising in the estimation of those with whom 
 he was associatad. 
 
 In 1837, being then but thirty-three years of age, 
 he was elected to the Senate of the United States; 
 taking his seat just as Mr. Van Buren commenced 
 his administration. He was the youngest member in 
 the Senate. In the year 1834, he married Miss Jane 
 Means Appleton, a lady of rare beauty and accom- 
 plishments, and one admirably fitted to adorn every 
 station with which her husband was honoied. Of the 
 
7 2 
 
 FRANKLIN PIERCE. 
 
 three sons who were born to them, all now sleep with 
 their parents in the grave. 
 
 In the year 1838, Mr. Pierce, with growing fame 
 and increasing business as a lawyer, took up his 
 residence in Concord, the capital of New Hampshire. 
 President Polk, upon his accession to office, appointed 
 Mr. Pierce attorney-general of the United States; but 
 the offer was declined, in consequence of numerous- 
 professional engagements at home, and the precariuos 
 state of Mrs. Pierce's health. He also, about the 
 same time declined the nomination for governor by the 
 Democratic party. The war with Mexico called Mr. 
 Pierce in the army. Receiving the appointment of 
 brigadier-general, he embarked, with a portion of his 
 troops, at Newport, R. I., on the 27th of May, 1847. 
 He took an important part in this war, proving him- 
 self a brave and true soldier. 
 
 When Gen. Pierce reached his home in his native 
 State, he was received enthusiastically by the advo- 
 cates of the Mexican war, and coldly by his oppo- 
 nents. He resumed the practice of his profession, 
 verj frequently taking an active part in political ques- 
 tions, giving his cordial support to the pro-slavery 
 wing of the Democratic party. The compromise 
 measures met cordially with his approval; and he 
 strenuously advocated the enforcement of the infa- 
 mous fugitive-slave law, which so shocked the religious 
 sensibilities of the North. He thus became distin- 
 guished as a " Northern man with Southern principles.'' 
 The strong partisans of slavery in the South conse- 
 quently regarded him as a man whom they could 
 safely trust in office to carry out their plans. 
 
 On the i2th of June, 1852, the Democratic conven- 
 tion met in Baltimore to nominate a candidate for the 
 Presidency. For four days they continued in session, 
 and in thirty-five ballotings no one had obtained a 
 two-thirds vote. Not a vote thus far had been thrown 
 for Gen. Pierce. Then the Virginia delegation 
 brought forward his name. There were fourteen 
 more ballotings, during which Gen. Pierce constantly 
 gained strength, until, at the forty-ninth ballot, he 
 received two hundred and eighty-two votes, and all 
 other candidates eleven. Gen. Winfield Scott was 
 the Whig candidate. Gen. Pierce was chosen with 
 great unanimity. Only four States Vermont, Mas- 
 sachusetts, Kentucky and Tennessee cast their 
 electoral votes against him Gen. Franklin Pierce 
 was therefore inaugurated President of the United 
 States on the 4th of March, 1853. 
 
 His administration proved one of the most stormy our 
 country had ever experienced. The controversy be- 
 tween slavery and freedom was then approaching its 
 culminating point. It became evident that there was 
 an " irrepressible conflict " between them, and that 
 this Nation could not long exist " half slave and half 
 free." President Pierce, during the whole of his ad- 
 ministration, did every thing he could to conciliate 
 the South ; but it was all in vain. The conflict every 
 year grew more violent, and threats of the dissolution 
 of the Union were borne to the North on every South- 
 ern breeze. 
 
 Such was the condition of affairs when President 
 Pierce approached the close of his four-years' term 
 of office. The North had become thoroughly alien- 
 ated from him. The anti-slavery sentiment, goaded 
 by great outrages, had been rapidly increasing; all 
 the intellectual ability and social worth of President 
 Pierce were forgotten in deep reprehension, of his ad- 
 ministrative acts. The slaveholders of the South, also, 
 unmindful of the fidelity with which he had advo- 
 cated those measures of Government which they ap- 
 proved, and perhaps, also, feeling that he had 
 rendered himself so unpopular as no longer to be 
 able acceptably to serve them, ungratefully dropped 
 him, and nominated James Buchanan to succeed him. 
 
 On the 4th of March, 1857, President Pierce re- 
 tired to his home in Concord. Of three children, two 
 had died, and his only surviving child had been 
 killed before his eyes by a railroad accident ; and his 
 wife, one of the most estimable and accomplished of 
 ladies, was rapidly sinking in consumption. The 
 hour of dreadful gloom soon came, and he was left 
 alone in the world, without wife or child. 
 
 When the terrible Rebellion burst forth, which di- 
 vided our country into two parties, and two only, Mr. 
 Pierce remained steadfast in the principles which he 
 had always cherished, and gave his sympathies to 
 that pro-slaver)' party with which he had ever been 
 allied. He declined to do anything, either by voice 
 or pen, to strengthen the hand of the National Gov- 
 ernment. He continued to reside in Concord until 
 the time of his death, which occurred in October, 
 1869. He was one of the most genial and social of 
 men, an honored communicant of the Episcopal 
 Church, and one of the kindest of neighbors. Gen- 
 erous to a fault, he contributed liberally for the al- 
 leviation of suffering and want, and many of his towns- 
 people were often gladened by his material bounty. 
 
L'tiVfclRM 
 
fIFTEENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
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 -*- 
 
 AMES BUCHANAN, the fif- 
 teenth President of the United 
 States, was born in a small 
 frontier town, at the foot of the 
 eastern ridge of the Allegha- 
 nies, in Franklin Co., Penn., on 
 the 23d of April, 1791. The place 
 where the humble cabin of his 
 father stood .was called Stony 
 > Batter. It was a wild and ro- 
 mantic spot in a gorge of the moun- 
 tains, with towering summits rising 
 grandly all around. His father 
 was a native of the north of Ireland ; 
 n poor man, who had emigrated" in 
 1783, with little property save his 
 own strong arms. Five years afterwards he married 
 Elizabeth Spear, the daughter of a respectable farmer, 
 and, with his young bride, plunged into the wilder- 
 ness, staked his claim, reared his log-hut, opened a 
 clearing with his axe, and settled down there to per- 
 form his obscure part in the drama of life. In this se- 
 cluded home, where James was born, he remained 
 for eight years, enjoying but few social or intellectual 
 advantage. When James was eight years of age, his 
 father removed to the village of Mercersburg, where 
 his son was placed at school, and commenced a 
 course of study in English, Latin and Greek. His 
 progress was rapid, and at the age of fourteen, he 
 entered Dickinson College, at Carlisle. Here he de- 
 veloped remarkable talent, and took his stand among 
 the first scholars in the institution. His application 
 to study was intense, and yet his native powers en- 
 
 abled him to master the most abstruse subjects with 
 facility. 
 
 In the year 1809, he graduated with the highest 
 honors of his class. He was then eighteen years of 
 age; tall and graceful, vigorous in health, fond of 
 athletic sport, an unerring shot, and enlivened with 
 an exuberant flow of animal spirits. He immediately 
 commenced the study of law in the city of Lancaster, 
 and was admitted to the bar in 1812, when he was 
 but twenty-one years of age. Very rapidly he rose 
 in his profession, and at once took undisputed stand 
 with the ablest lawyers of the State. When but 
 twenty-six years of age, unaided by counsel, he suc- 
 cessfully defended before the State Senate 01 e of the 
 judges of the State, who was tried upon articles of 
 impeachment. At the age of thirty it was generally 
 admitted that he stood at the head of the bar; and 
 there was no lawyer in the State who had a more lu- 
 crative practice. 
 
 In 1820, he reluctantly consented to run as a 
 candidate for Congress. He was elected, and for 
 len years he remained a member of the Lower House. 
 During the vacations of Congress, he occasionally 
 tried some important case. In 1831, he retired 
 altogether from the toils of his profession, having ac- 
 quired an ample fortune. 
 
 Gen. Jackson, upon his eleVation to ihe Presidency, 
 appointed Mr. Buchanan minister to Russia. The 
 duties of his mission he performed with ability, which 
 gave satisfaction to all parties. Upon his return, in 
 1833, he was elected to a seat in the United States 
 Senate. He there met, as his associates, Webster, 
 Clay, Wright and Culhoun. He advocated the meas- 
 ures proposed by President Jackson, of making repri- 
 
 L_ 
 
7 6 
 
 JAMES BUCHANAN. 
 
 sals against France, to enforce the payment of our 
 claims against that country; and defended the course 
 of the President in his unprecedented and wholesale 
 removal from office of those who were not the sup- 
 porters of his administration. Upon this question he 
 was brought into direct collision with Henry Clay. 
 He also, with voice and vote, advocated expunging 
 from the journal of the Senate the vote of censure 
 against Gen. Jackson for removing the deposits. 
 Earnestly he opposed the abolition of slavery in the 
 District of Columbia, and urged the prohibition of the 
 circulation of anti-slavery documents by the United 
 States mails. 
 
 As to petitions on the subject of slavery, he advo- 
 cated that they should be respectfully received; and 
 that the reply should be returned, that Congress had 
 no power to legislate upon the subject. " Congress," 
 said he, " might as well undertake to interfere with 
 slavery under a foreign government as in any of the 
 States where it now exists." 
 
 Upon Mr. Folk's accession to the Presidency, Mr. 
 Buchanan became Secretary of State, and as such, 
 took his share of the responsibility in the conduct of 
 the Mexican War. Mr. Polk assumed that crossing 
 the Nueces by the American troops into the disputed 
 territory was not wrong, but for the Mexicans to cross 
 the Rio Grande into that territory was a declaration 
 of war. No candid man can read with pleasure the 
 account of the course our Government pursued in that 
 movement. 
 
 Mr. Buchanan identified himself thoroughly with 
 the party devoted to the perpetuation and extension 
 of slavery, and brought all the energies of his mind 
 to bear against the Wilmot Proviso. He gave his 
 cordial approval to the compromise measures of 1850, 
 which included the fugitive-slave law. Mr. Pierce, 
 upon his election to the Presidency, honored Mr. 
 Buchanan with the mission to England. 
 
 In the year 1856, a national Democratic conven- 
 tion nominated Mr. Buchanan for the Presidency. The 
 political conflict was one of the most severe in which 
 our country has ever engaged. All the friends of 
 slavery were on one side; all the advocates of its re- 
 striction and final abolition, on the other. Mr. Fre- 
 mont, the candidate of the enemies of slavery, re- 
 ceived 1 14 electoral votes. Mr. Buchanan received 
 174, and was elected. The popular vote stood 
 1,340,618, for Fremont, 1,224,750 for Buchanan. On 
 March 4th, 1857, Mr. Buchanan was inaugurated. 
 
 Mr. Buchanan was far advanced in life. Only four 
 years were wanting to fill up his threescore years and 
 ten. His own friends, those with whom he had been 
 allied in political principles and action for years, were 
 seeking the destruction of the Government, that they 
 might rear upon the ruins of our free institutions a 
 nation whose corner-stone should be human slavery. 
 In this emergency, Mr. Buchanan was hopelessly be- 
 wildered. He could not, with his long-avowed prin- 
 
 ciples, consistently oppose the State-rights party in 
 their assumptions. As President of the United States, 
 bound by his oath faithfully to administer the laws, 
 he could not, without perjury of the grossest kind, 
 unite with those endeavoring to overthrow the repub- 
 lic. He therefore did nothing. 
 
 The opponents of Mr. Buchanan's administration 
 nominated Abraham Lincoln as their standard bearer 
 in the next Presidential canvass. The pro-slavery 
 party declared, that if he were elected, and the con- 
 trol of the Government were thus taken from their 
 hands, they would secede from the Union, taking 
 with them, as they retired, the National Capitol at 
 Washington, and the lion's share of the territory of 
 the United States. 
 
 Mr. Buchanan's sympathy with the pro-slavery 
 party was such, that he had been willing to offer them 
 far.more than they had ventured to claim. All the 
 South had professed to ask of the North was non- 
 intervention upon the subject of slavery. Mr. Bu- 
 chanan had been ready to offer them the active co- 
 operation of the Government to defend and extend 
 the institution. 
 
 As the storm increased in violence, the slaveholders 
 claiming the right to secede, and Mr. Buchanan avow-' 
 ing that Congress had no power to prevent it, one of 
 the most pitiable exhibitions of governmental im-^ 
 becility was exhibited the world has ever seen. 
 declared that Congress had no power to enforce its 
 laws in any State which had withdrawn, or which 
 was attempting to withdraw from the Union. This 
 was not the doctrine of Andrew Jackson, when, with- 
 his hand upon his sword hilt, he exclaimed, " The 
 Union must and shall be preserved!" 
 
 South Carolina seceded in December, 1860; nearly 
 three months before the inauguration of President 
 Lincoln. Mr. Buchanan looked on in listless despair. 
 The rebel flag was raised in Charleston: Fort Sampler 
 was besieged ; our forts, navy-yards and arsenals 
 were seized ; our depots of military stores were plun- 
 dered ; and our custom-houses and post-offices were 
 appropriated by the rebels. 
 
 The energy of the rebels, and the imbecility of our 
 Executive, were alike marvelous. The Nation looktd 
 on in agony, waiting for the slow weeks to glide away, 
 and close the administration, so terrible in its weak- 
 ness At length the long-looked-for hour of deliver- 
 ance came, when Abraham Lincoln was to receive the 
 scepter. 
 
 The administration of President Buchanan was 
 certainly the most calamitous our country has ex- 
 perienced. His best friends cannot recall it with 
 pleasure. And still more deplorable it is for his fame, 
 that in that dreadful conflict which rolled its billows 
 of flame and blood over our whole land, no word came 
 from his lips to indicate his wish that our country's 
 banner should triumph over the flag of the rebellion. 
 He died at his Wheatland retreat, June i, 1868. 
 
i IM 
 
V 
 
SIXTEENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 79 
 
 - ABRAHAM 
 
 BRAHAM LINCOLN, the 
 sixteenth President of the 
 United States, was born in 
 Hardin Co., Ky., Feb. 12, 
 1 809. About the year 1 7 80, a 
 man by the name of Abraham 
 Lincoln left Virginia with his 
 family and moved into the then 
 wilds of Kentucky. Only two years 
 after this emigration, still a young 
 man, while working one day in a 
 field, was stealthily approached by 
 an Indian and shot dead. His widow 
 was left in extreme poverty with five 
 little children, three boys and two 
 girls. Thomas, the youngest of the 
 boys, was four years of age at his 
 father's death. This Thomas was 
 the father of Abraham Lincoln, the 
 President of the United States 
 whose name must henceforth forever be enrolled 
 with the most prominent in the annals of our world. 
 Of course no record has been kept of the life 
 of one so lowly as Thomas Lincoln. He was among 
 the poorest of the poor. His home was a wretched 
 log-cabin; his food the coarsest and the meanest. 
 Education he had none; he could never either read 
 or write. As soon as he was able to do anything for 
 himself, he was compelled to leave the cabin of his 
 starving mother, and push out into the world, a friend- 
 less, wandering boy, seeking work. He hired him- 
 self out, and thus spent the whole of his youth as a 
 laborer in the fields of others. 
 
 When twenty-eight years of age he buill a log- 
 cabin of his own, and married Nancy Hanks, the 
 daughter of another family of poor Kentucky emi- 
 grants, who had also come from Virginia. Their 
 second child was Abraham Lincoln, the subject of 
 this sketch. The mother of Abraham was a noble 
 woman, gentle, loving, pensive, created to adorn 
 a palace, doomed to toil and pine, and die in a hovel. 
 "All that I am, or hope to be," exclaims the grate- 
 ful son " I owe to my angel-mother . " 
 
 When he was eight years of age, his father sold his 
 
 cabin and small farm, and moved to Indiana. Where 
 two years later his mother died. 
 
 Abraham soon became the scribe of the uneducated 
 community around him. He could not have had a 
 better school than this to teach him to put thoughts 
 into words. He also became an eager reader. The 
 books he could obtain were few ; but these he read 
 and re-read until they were almost committed to 
 memory. 
 
 As the years rolled on, the lot of this lowly family 
 was the usual lot of humanity. There were joys and 
 griefs, weddings and funerals. Abraham's sister 
 Sarah, to whom he was tenderly attached, was mar- 
 ried when a child of but fourteen years of age, and 
 soon died. The family was gradually scattered. Mr. 
 Thomas Lincoln sold out his squatter's claim in 1830, 
 and emigrated to Macon Co., 111. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln was then twenty-one years of age. 
 With vigorous hands he aided his father in rearing 
 another log-cabin. Abraham worked diligently at this 
 until he saw the family comfortably settled, and their 
 small lot of enclosed prairie planted with corn, when 
 he announced to his father his intention to leave 
 home, and to go out into the world and seek his for- 
 tune. Little did he or his friends imagine how bril- 
 liant that fortune was to be. He saw the value of 
 education, and was intensely earnest to improve his 
 mind to the utmost of his power. He saw the ruin 
 which ardent spirits were causing, and became 
 strictly temperate ; refusing to allow a drop of intoxi- 
 cating liquor to pass his lips. And he had read in 
 God's word, " Thou shalt not take the name of the 
 Lord thy God in vain ;" and a profane expression he 
 was never heard to utter. Religion he revered. His 
 morals were pure, and he was uncontaminated by a 
 single vice. 
 
 Young Abraham worked for a time as a hired laborer 
 among the farmers. Then he went to Springfield, 
 where he was employed in building a large flat-boat. 
 ,In this he took a herd of swine, floated them down 
 the Sangamon to the Illinois, and thence by the Mis- 
 sissippi to New Orleans. Whatever Abraham Lin- 
 coln undertook, he performed so faithfully as to give 
 great satisfaction to his employers. In this adven- 
 
8o 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 ture his employers were so well pleased, that upon 
 his return tney placed a store and mill under his care. 
 
 In 1832, at the outbreak of the Black Hawk war, he 
 enlisted and was chosen captain of a company. He 
 returned to Sangamon County, and although only 23 
 years of age, vTas a candidate for the Legislature, but 
 was defeated. He soon after received from Andrew 
 Jackson the appointment of Postmaster of New Salem, 
 His only post-office was his hat. All the letters he 
 received he carried there ready to deliver to those 
 he chanced to meet. He studied surveying, and soon 
 made this his business. In 1834 he again became a 
 candidate for the Legislature, and was elected Mr. 
 Stuart, of Springfield, advised him to study law. He 
 walked from New Salem to Springfield, borrowed of 
 Mr. Stuart a load of books, carried them back and 
 began his legal studies. When the Legislature as- 
 sembled he trudged on foot with his pack on his back 
 one hundred miles to Vandalia, then the capital. In 
 1836 he was re-elected to the Legislature. Here it 
 was he first met Stephen A. Douglas. In 1839 he re- 
 moved to Springfield and began the practice of law. 
 His success with the jury was so great that he was 
 soon engaged in almost every noted case in the circuit. 
 
 In 1854 the great discussion began between Mr. 
 Lincoln and Mr. Douglas, on the slavery question. 
 In the organization of the Republican party in Illinois, 
 in 1856, he took an active part, and at once became 
 one of the leaders in that party. Mr. Lincoln's 
 speeches in opposition to Senator Douglas in the con- 
 test in 1858 for a seat in the Senate, form a most 
 notable part of his history. The issue was on the 
 slavery question, and he took the broad ground of 
 ;he Declaration of Independence, that all men are 
 created equal. Mr. Lincoln was defeated in this con- 
 test, but won a far higher prize. 
 
 The great Republican Convention met at Chicago 
 on the i6th ot June, 1860. The delegates and 
 strangers who crowded the city amounted to twenty- 
 five thousand. An immense building called " The 
 Wigwam," was reared to accommodate the Conven- 
 tion. There were eleven candidates for whom votes 
 were thrown. William H. Seward, a man whose fame 
 as a statesman had long filled the land, was the most 
 orominent. It was generally supposed he would be 
 the nominee. Abraham Lincoln, however, received 
 the nomination on the third ballot. Little did he then 
 dream of the weary years of toil and care, and the 
 bloody death, to which that nomination doomed him: 
 and as little did he dream that he was to render services 
 to his country, which would fix upon him the eyes of 
 the whole civilized world, and which would give him 
 a place in the affections of his countrymen, second 
 only, if second, to that of Washington. 
 
 Election day came and Mr. Lincoln received 180 
 electoral votes out of 203 cast, and was, therefore, 
 constitutionally elected President of the United States. 
 The tirade of abuse that was poured upon this good 
 
 and merciful man, especially by the slaveholders, was 
 greater than upon any other man ever elected to this 
 high position. In February, 1861, Mr. Lincoln 'started 
 for Washington, stopping in all the large cities on his 
 way making speeches. The whole journey was frought 
 with much danger. Many of the Southern States had 
 already seceded, and several attempts at assassination 
 were afterwards brought to light. A gang in Balti- 
 more had arranged, upon his arrival to "get up a row," 
 and in the confusion to make sure of his death with 
 revolvers and hand-grenades. A detective unravelled 
 the plot. A secret and special train was provided to 
 take him from Harrisburg, through Baltimore, at an 
 unexpected hour of the night. The train started at 
 half-past ten ; and to prevent any possible communi- 
 cation on the part ot the Secessionists with their Con- 
 federate gang in Baltimore, as soon as the train had 
 started the telegraph-wires were cut. Mr. Lincoln 
 reached Washington in safety and was inaugurated, 
 although great anxiety was felt by all loyal people. 
 
 In the selection of his cabinet Mr. Lincoln gave 
 to Mr. Seward the Department of State, and to other 
 prominent opponents before the convention he gave 
 important positions. 
 
 During no other administration have the duties 
 devolving upon the President been so manifold, and 
 the responsibilities so great, as those which fell to 
 the lot of President Lincoln. Knowing this, and 
 feeling his own weakness and inability to meet, and in 
 his own strength to cope with, the difficulties, he 
 learned early to seek Divine wisdom and guidance in 
 determining his plans, and Divine comfort in all his 
 trials, both personal and national. Contrary to his 
 own estimate of himself, Mr. Lincoln was one of the 
 most courageous of men. He went directly into the 
 rebel capital just as the retreating foe was leaving, 
 with no guard but a few sailors. From the time he 
 had left Springfield, in 1861, however, plans had been 
 made for his assassination, and he at last fell a victim 
 to one of them. April 14, 1865, he, with Gen. Grant, 
 was urgently invited to attend Fords' Theater. It 
 was announced that they would be present. Gen. 
 Grant, however, left the city. President Lincoln, feel- 
 ing, witli his characteristic kindliness of heart, that 
 it would be a disappointment if he should fail them, 
 very reluctantly consented to go. While listening to 
 the play an actor by the name of John Wilkes Booth 
 entered the box where the President and family were 
 seated, and fired a bullet into his brains. He died the 
 next morning at seven o'clock. 
 Never before, in the history of the world was a nation 
 plunged into such deep grief by the death of its ruler. 
 Strong men met in the streets and wept in speechless 
 anguish. It is not too much to say that a nation was 
 in tears. His was a life which will fitly become a 
 model. His name as the savior of his country will 
 live with that of Washington's, its father; his country- 
 men being unable to decide which is the greater. 
 
 - 
 
tt**, 
 I"' 
 
 nt 
 
 ' It., 
 
SEVENTEENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 NDREW JOHNSON, seven- 
 teenth President of the United 
 States. The early life of 
 Andrew Johnson contains but 
 the record of poverty, destitu- 
 tion and friendlessness. He 
 was born December 29, 1808, 
 in Raleigh, N. C. His parents, 
 belonging to the class of the 
 "poor whites " of the South, were 
 in such circumstances, that they 
 could not confer even the slight- 
 est advantages of education upon 
 their child. When Andrew was five 
 years of age, his father accidentally 
 lost his life while herorically endeavoring to save a 
 friend from drowning. Until ten years of age, Andrew 
 was a ragged boy about the streets, supported by the 
 labor of his mother, who obtained her living with 
 her own hands. 
 
 He then, having never attended a school one day, 
 and being unable either to read or write, was ap- 
 prenticed to a tailor in his native town. A gentleman 
 was in the habit of going to the tailor's shop occasion- 
 ally, and reading to the boys at work there. He often 
 read from the speeches of distinguished British states- 
 men. Andrew, who was endowed with a mind of more 
 than ordinary native ability, became much interested 
 in these speeches ; his ambition was roused, and he 
 was inspired with a strong desire to learn to read. 
 
 He accordingly applied himself to the alphabet, and 
 with the assistance of some of his fellow-workmen, 
 learned his letters. He then called upon the gentle- 
 man to borrow the book of speeches. The owner, 
 
 pleased with his zeal, not only gave him the book, 
 but assisted him in learning to combine the letters 
 into words. Under such difficulties he pressed on- 
 ward laboriously, spending usually ten or twelve hours 
 at work in the shop, and then robbing himself of rest 
 and recreation to devote such time as he could to 
 reading. 
 
 He went to Tennessee in 1826, and located at 
 Greenville, where he married a young lady who pos- 
 sessed some education. Under her instructions he 
 learned to write and cipher. He became prominent 
 in the village debating society, and a favorite with 
 the students of Greenville College. In 1828, he or- 
 ganized a working man's party, which elected him 
 alderman, and in 1830 elected him mayor, which 
 position he held three years. 
 
 He now began to take a lively interest in political 
 affairs ; identifying himself with the working-classes, 
 to which he belonged. In 1835, he was elected a 
 member of the House of Representatives of Tennes- 
 see. He was then just twenty-seven years of age. 
 He became a very active member of the legislature, 
 gave his adhesion to the Democratic party, and in 
 1840 " stumped the State," advocating Martin Van 
 Buren's claims to the Presidency, in opposition to those 
 of Gen. Harrison. In this campaign he acquired much 
 readiness as a speaker, and extended and increased 
 his reputation. 
 
 In 1841, he was elected State Senator; 111/1843, he 
 was elected a member of Congress, and by successive 
 elections, held that important post for ten years. In 
 1853, he was elected Governor of Tennessee, and 
 was re-elected in 1855. In all these responsible posi- 
 tions, he discharged his duties with distinguished abil- 
 
8 4 
 
 ANDRR W JOHNSON. 
 
 ity, and proved himself the warm friend of the work- 
 ing classes. In 1857, Mr. Johnson was elected 
 United States Senator. 
 
 Years before, in 1845, he had warmly advocated 
 the annexation of Texas, stating however, as his 
 reason, that he thought this annexation would prob- 
 ably prove " to be the gateway out of which the sable 
 sons of Africa are to pass from bondage to freedom, 
 and become merged in a population congenial to 
 themselves." In 1850, he also supported the com- 
 promise measures, the two essential features of which 
 were, that the white people of the Territories should 
 be permitted to decide for themselves whether they 
 would enslave the colored people or not, and that 
 the free States of the North should return to the 
 South persons who attempted to escape from slavery. 
 
 Mr. Johnson was never ashamed of his lowly origin: 
 on the contrary, he often took pride in avowing that 
 he owed his distinction to his own exertions. "Sir,"' 
 said he on the floor of the Senate, " I do not forget 
 that I am a mechanic ; neither do I forget that Adam 
 was a tailor and sewed fig-leaves, and that our Sav- 
 ior was the son of a carpenter." 
 
 In the Charleston- Baltimore convention of 1860, he 
 was the choice of the Tennessee Democrats for the 
 [ Presidency. In 1861, when the purpose of the South- 
 ern Democracy became apparent, he took a decided 
 stand in favor of the Union, and held that " slavery 
 must be held subordinate to the Union at whatever 
 cost." He returned to Tennessee, and repeatedly 
 imperiled his own life to protect the Unionists of 
 Tennesee. Tennessee having seceded from the 
 Union, President Lincoln, on March 4th, 1862, ap- 
 pointed him Military Governor of the State, and he 
 established the most stringent military rule. His 
 numerous proclamations attracted wide attention. In 
 
 1864, he was elected Vice-President of the United 
 States, and upon the death of Mr. Lincoln, April 15, 
 
 1865, became President. In a speech two days later 
 he said, " The American people must be taught, if 
 they do not already feel, that treason is a crime and 
 must be punished ; that the Government will not 
 always bear with its enemies ; that it is strong not 
 only to protect, but to punish. * * The people 
 must understand that it (treason) is the blackest of 
 crimes, and will surely be punished." Yet his whole 
 administration, the history of which is so well known, 
 was in utter inconsistency with, and the most violent 
 
 opposition to, the principles laid down in that speech. 
 
 In his loose policy of reconstruction and general 
 amnesty, he was opposed by Congress ; and he char- 
 acterized Congress as a new rebellion, and lawlessly 
 defied it, in everything possible, to the utmost. In 
 the beginning of 1868, on account of "high crimes 
 and misdemeanors," the principal of which was the 
 removal of Secretary Stanton, in violation of the Ten- 
 ure of Office Act, articles of impeachment were pre- 
 ferred against him, and the trial began March 23. 
 
 It was very tedious, continuing for nearly three 
 months. A test article of the impeachment was at 
 length submitted to the court for its action. It was 
 certain that as the court voted upon that article so 
 would it vote upon all. Thirty-four voices pronounced 
 the President guilty. As a two-thirds vote was neces- 
 sary to his condemnation, he was pronounced ac- 
 quitted, notwithstanding the great majority against 
 him. The change of one vote from the not guilty 
 side would have sustained the impeachment. 
 
 The President, for the remainder of his term, was 
 but little regarded. He continued, though impotently, 
 his conflict with Congress. His own party did not 
 think it expedient to renominate him for the Presi- 
 dency. The Nation rallied, with enthusiasm unpar- 
 alleled since the days of Washington, around the name 
 of Gen. Grant. Andrew Johnson was forgotten. 
 The bullet of the assassin introduced him to the 
 President's chair. Notwithstanding this, never was 
 there presented to a man a better opportunity to im- 
 mortalize his name, and to win the gratitude of a 
 nation. He failed utterly. He retired to his home 
 in Greenville, Tenn., taking no very active part in 
 politics until 1875. On Jan. 26, after an exciting 
 struggle, he was chosen by the Legislature of Ten- 
 nessee, United States Senator in the forty-fourth Con- 
 gress, and took his seat in that body, at the special 
 session convened by President Grant, on the 5th of 
 March. On the 27th of July, 1875, the ex-President 
 made a visit to his daughter's home, near Carter 
 Station, Tenn. When he started on his journey, he was 
 apparently in his usual vigorous health, but on reach- 
 ing the residence of his child the following day, was 
 stricken with paralysis, rendering him unconscious. 
 He rallied occasionally, but finally passed away at 
 2 A.M., July 3 1, aged sixty-seven years. His fun- 
 eral was attended at Geenville, on the 3d of August, 
 with every demonstration of respect. 
 
 

EIGHTEENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 I 
 
 LYSSES S. GRANT, the 
 eighteenth President of the 
 United States, was born on 
 the agth of April, 1822, of 
 Christian parents, in a humble 
 home, at Point Pleasant, on the 
 banks of the Ohio. Shortly after 
 his father moved to George- 
 town, Brown Co., O. In this re- 
 mote frontier hamlet, Ulysses 
 received a common-school edu- 
 cation. At the age of seven- 
 teen, in the year 1839, he entered 
 the Military Academy at West 
 Point. Here he was regarded as a 
 solid, sensible young man of fair abilities, and of 
 sturdy, honest character. He took respectable rank 
 as a scholar. In June, 1843, he graduated, about the 
 middle in his class, and was sent as lieutenant of in- 
 fantry to one of the distant military posts in the Mis- 
 souri Territory. Two years he past in these dreary 
 solitudes, watching the vagabond and exasperating 
 Indians. 
 
 The war with Mexico came. Lieut. Grant was 
 sent with his regiment to Corpus Christi. His first 
 battle was at Palo Alto. There was no chance here 
 for the exhibition of either skill or heroism, nor at 
 Resacade la Palma, his second battle. At the battle 
 of Monterey, his third engagement, it is said that 
 he performed a signal service of daring and skillful 
 horsemanship. His brigade had exhausted its am- 
 munition. A messenger must be sent for more, along 
 a route exposed to the bullets of the foe. Lieut. 
 Grant, adopting an expedient learned of the Indians, 
 grasped the mane of hrs horse, and hanging upon one 
 side of the animal, ran the gauntlet in entire safety. 
 
 From Monterey he was sent, with the fourth infantry, 
 to aid Gen. Scott, at the siege of Vera Cruz. In 
 preparation for the march to the city of Mexico, he 
 was appointed quartermaster of his regiment. At the 
 battle of Molino del Rey, he was promoted to a 
 first lieutenancy, and was brevetted captain at Cha- 
 pultepec. 
 
 At the close of the Mexican War, Capt. Grant re- 
 turned with his regiment to New York, and was again 
 sent to one of the military posts on the frontier. The 
 discovery of gold in California causing an immense 
 tide of emigration to flow to the Pacific shores, Capt. 
 Grant was sent with a battalion to Fort Dallas, in 
 Oregon, for the protection of the interests of the im- 
 migrants. Life was wearisome in those wilds. Capt. 
 Grant resigned his commission and returned to the 
 States; and having married, entered upon the cultiva- 
 tion of a small farm near St. Louis, Mo. He had but 
 little skill as a farmer. Finding his toil not re- 
 munerative, he turned to mercantile life, entering into 
 the leather business, with a younger brother, at Ga- 
 lena, 111. This was in the year 1860. As the tidings 
 of the rebels firing on Fort Sumpter reached the ears 
 of Capt. Grant in his counting-room, he said, 
 "Uncle Sam has educated me for the army; though 
 I have served him through one war, I do not feel that 
 I have yet repaid the debt. I am still ready to discharge 
 my obligations. I shall therefore buckle on my sword 
 and see Uncle Sam through this war too." 
 
 He went into the streets, raised a company of vol- 
 unteers, and led them as their captain to Springfield, 
 the capital of the State, where their services were 
 offered to Gov. Yates. The Governor, impressed by 
 the zeal and straightforward executive ability of Capt. 
 Grant, gave him a desk in his office, to assist in the 
 volunteer organization that was being formed in the 
 State in behalf of the Government. On the i5th of 
 
88 
 
 UL YSSES S. GRA NT. 
 
 June, 1 86 1, Capt. Grant received a commission as 
 Colonel of the Twenty-first Regiment of Illinois Vol- 
 unteers. His merits as a West Point graduate, who 
 had served for 15 years in the regular army, were such 
 that he was soon promoted to the rank of Brigadier- 
 General and was placed in command at Cairo. The 
 rebels raised their banner at Paducah, near the mouth 
 of the Tennessee River. Scarcely had its folds ap- 
 peared in the breeze ere Gen. Grant was there. The 
 rebels fled. Their banner fell, and the star and 
 stripes were unfurled in its stead. 
 
 He entered the service with great determination 
 and immediately began active duty. This was the be- 
 ginning, and until the surrender of Lee at Richmond 
 he was ever pushing the enemy with great vigor and 
 effectiveness. At Belmont, a few days later, he sur- 
 prised and routed the rebels, then at Fort Henry 
 won another victory. Then came the brilliant fight 
 at Fort Donelson. The nation was electrified by the 
 
 r victory, and the brave leader of the boys in blue was 
 immediately made a Major-General, and the military 
 
 I district of Tennessee was assigned to him. 
 
 * Like all great captains, Gen. Grant knew well how 
 to secure the results of victory. He immediately 
 pushed on to the enemies' lines. Then came the 
 
 terrible battles of Pittsburg Landing, Corinth, and the 
 siege of Vicksburg, where Gen. Pemberton made an 
 unconditional surrender of the city with over thirty 
 thousand men and one-hundred and seventy-two can- 
 non. The fall of Vicksburg was by far the most 
 severe blow which the rebels had thus far encountered, 
 and opened up the Mississippi from Cairo to the Gulf. 
 
 Gen. Grant was next ordered to co-operate with 
 Gen. Banks in a movement upon Texas, and pro- 
 ceeded to New Orleans, where he was thrown from 
 his horse, and received severe injuries, from which he 
 was laid up for months. He then rushed to the aid 
 of Gens. Rosecrans and Thomas at Chattanooga, and 
 by a wonderful series of strategic and technical meas- 
 ures put the Union Army in fighting condition. Then 
 followed the bloody battles at Chattanooga, Lookout 
 Mountain and Missionary Ridge, in which the rebels 
 were routed with great loss. This won for him un- 
 bounded praise in the North. On the 4th of Febru- 
 ary, 1864, Congress revived the grade of lieutenant- 
 general, and the rank was conferred on Gen. Grant. 
 He repaired to Washington to receive his credentials 
 and enter upon the duties of his new office. 
 
 Gen. Grant decided as soon as he took charge of 
 the army to concentrate the widely-dispersed National 
 troops for an attack upon Richmond, the nominal 
 capital of the Rebellion, and endeavor there to de- 
 stroy the rebel armies which would be promptly as- 
 sembled from all quarters for its defence. The whole 
 continent seemed to tremble under the tramp of these 
 majestic armies, rushing to the decisive battle field. 
 Steamers were crowded with troops. Railway trains 
 were burdened with closely packed thousands. His 
 plans were comprehensive and involved a series of 
 campaigns, which were executed with remarkable en- 
 ergy and ability, and were consummated at the sur- 
 render of Lee, April 9, 1865. 
 
 The war was ended. The Union was saved. The 
 almost unanimous voice of the Nation declared Gen. 
 Grant to be the most prominent instrument in its sal- 
 vation. The eminent services he had thus rendered 
 the country brought him conspicuously forward as the 
 Republican candidate for the Presidential chair. 
 
 At the Republican Convention held at Chicago, 
 May 21, 1868, he was unanimously nominated for the 
 Presidency, and at the autumn election received a 
 majority of the popular vote, and 214 out of 294 
 electoral votes. 
 
 The National Convention of the Republican party 
 which met at Philadelphia on the 5th of June, 1872, 
 placed Gen. Grant in nomination for a second term 
 by a unanimous vote. The selection was emphati- 
 cally indorsed by the people five months later, 292 
 electoral votes being cast for him. 
 
 Soon after the close of his second term, Gen. Grant 
 started upon his famous trip around the world. He 
 visited almost every country of the civilized world, 
 and was everywhere received with such ovations 
 and demonstrations of respect and honor, private 
 as well as public and official, as were never before 
 bestowed upon any citizen of the United States. 
 
 He was the most prominent candidate before the 
 Republican National Convention in 1880 for a re- 
 nomination for President. He went to New York and 
 embarked in the brokerage business under the firm 
 nameof Grant & Ward. The latter proved a villain, 
 wrecked Grant's fortune, and for larceny was sent to 
 the penitentiary. The General was attacked with 
 cancer in the throat, but suffered in his stoic-like 
 manner, never complaining. He was re-instated as 
 General of the Army and retired by Congress. The 
 cancer soon finished its deadly work, and July 23, 
 1885, the nation went in mourning over the death of 
 the illustrious General. 
 
 
^? 
 
NINETEENTH PRESIDENT. 
 
 UTHERFORD B. HAYES, 
 the nineteenth President of 
 the United States, was born in 
 Delaware, O., Oct. 4, 1822, al- 
 most three months after the 
 death of his father, Rutherford 
 Hayes. His ancestry on both 
 the paternal and maternal sides, 
 was of the most honorable char- 
 acter. It can be traced, it is said, 
 as farbackas 1280, when Hayes and 
 Rutherford were two Scottish chief- 
 tains, fighting side by side with 
 Baliol, William Wallace and Robert 
 Bruce. Both families belonged to the 
 nobility, owned extensive estates, 
 and had a large following. Misfor- 
 tune overtaking the family, George Hayes left Scot- 
 land in 1680, and settled in Windsor, Conn. His son 
 George was born in Windsor, and remained there 
 during his life. Daniel Hayes, son of the latter, mar- 
 ried Sarah Lee, and lived from the time of his mar- 
 riage until his death in Simsbury, Conn. Ezekiel, 
 son of Daniel, was born in 1724, and was a manufac- 
 turer of scythes at Bradford, Conn. Rutherford Hayes, 
 son of Ezekiel and grandfather of President Hayes, was 
 born in New Haven, in August, 1756. He was a farmer, 
 blacksmith and tavern-keeper. He emigrated to 
 Vermont at an unknown date, settling in Brattleboro, 
 where he established a hotel. Here his son Ruth- 
 erford Hayes, the father of President Hayes, was 
 
 born. He was married, in September, 1813, to Sophia 
 Birchard, of Wilmington, Vt., whose ancestors emi- 
 grated thither from Connecticut, they having been 
 among the wealthiest and best famlies of Norwich. 
 Her ancestry on the male side are traced back to 
 1635, to John Birchard, one of the principal founders 
 of Norwich. Both of her grandfathers were soldiers 
 in the Revolutionary War. 
 
 The father of President Hayes was an industrious, 
 frugal and opened-hearted man. He was of a me- 
 chanical turn, and could mend a plow, knit a stock- 
 ing, or do almost anything else that he choose to 
 undertake. He was a member of the Church, active 
 in all the benevolent enterprises of the town, and con- 
 ducted his business on Christian principles. After 
 the close of the war of 1812, for reasons inexplicable 
 to his neighbors, he resolved to emigrate to Ohio. 
 
 The journey from Vermont to Ohio in that day, 
 when there were no canals, steamers, nor railways, 
 was a very serious affair. A tour of inspection was 
 first made, occupying four months. Mr. Hayes deter- 
 mined to move to Delaware, where the family arrived 
 in i8r7. He died July 22, 1822, a victim of malarial 
 fever, less than three months before the birth of the 
 son, of whom we now write. Mrs. Hayes, in her sore be- 
 reavement, found the support she so much needed in 
 her brother Sardis, who had been a member of the 
 household from the day of its departure from Ver- 
 mont, and in an orphan girl whom she had adopted 
 some time before as an act of charity. 
 
 Mrs. Hayes at this period was very weak, and the 
 
RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 subject of this sketch was so feeble at birth that he 
 was not expected to live beyond a month or two at 
 most. As the months went by he grew weaker and 
 weaker, so that the neighbors were in the habit of in- 
 quiring from time to time l; if Mrs. Hayes' baby died 
 last night." On one occasion a neighbor, who was on 
 familiar terms with the family, after alluding to the 
 boy's big head, and the mother's assiduous care of 
 him, said in a bantering way, li That's right ! Stick to 
 him. You have got him along so far, and I shouldn't 
 wonder if he wo.ild really come to something yet." 
 
 " You need not laugh," said Mrs. Hayes. " You 
 wait and see. You can't tell but I shall make him 
 President of the United States yet." The boy lived, 
 in spite of the universal predictions of his speedy 
 death; and when, in 1825, his older brother was 
 drowned, he became, if possible, still dearer to his 
 mother. 
 
 The boy was seven years old before he went to 
 school. His education, however, was not neglected. 
 He probably learned as much from his mother and 
 sister as he would have done at school. His sports 
 were almost wholly within doors, his playmates being 
 his sister and her associates. These circumstances 
 tended, no doubt, to foster that gentleness of dispo- 
 sition, and that delicate consideration for the feelings 
 of others, which are marked traits of his character. 
 
 His uncle Sardis Birchard took the deepest interest 
 in his education ; and as the boy's health had im- 
 proved, and he was making good progress in his 
 studies, he proposed to send him to college. His pre- 
 paration commenced with a tutor at home; but he 
 was afterwards sent for one year to a professor in the 
 Wesleyan University, in Middletovvn, Conn. He en- 
 tered Kenyon College in 1838, at the age of sixteen, 
 and was graduated at the head of his class in 1842. 
 
 Immediately after his graduation he began the 
 study of law in the office of Thomas Sparrow, Esq., 
 in Columbus. Finding his opportunities for study in 
 Columbus somewhat limited, he determined to enter 
 the Law School at Cambridge, Mass., where he re- 
 mained two years. 
 
 In 1845, after graduating at the Law School, he was 
 admitted to the bar at Marietta, Ohio, and shortly 
 afterward went into practice as an attorney-at-law 
 with Ralph P. Buckland, of Fremont. Here he re- 
 mained three years, acquiring but a limited practice, 
 and apparently unambitious of distinction in his pro- 
 fession. 
 
 In 1849 he moved to Cincinnati, where his ambi- 
 tion found a new stimulus. For several years, how- 
 ever, his progress was slow. Two events, occurring at 
 this period, had a powerful influence upon his subse- 
 quent life. One of these was his marrage with Miss 
 Lucy Ware Webb, daughter of Dr. James Webb, of 
 Chilicothe; the other was his introduction to the Cin- 
 cinnati Literary Club, a body embracing among its 
 members such men as Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase, 
 
 _ | _ [ < ^ * J\ 
 
 Gen. John Pope, Gov. Edward F. Noyes, and many 
 others hardly less distinguished in after life. The 
 marriage was a fortunate one in every respect, as 
 everybody knows. Not one of all the wives of our 
 Presidents was more universally admired, reverenced 
 and beloved than was Mrs. Hayes, and no one did 
 more than she to reflect honor upon AVnerican woman- 
 hood. The Literary Club brought Mr. Hayes into 
 constant association with young men of high char- 
 acter and noble aims, and lured him to display the 
 qualities so long hidden by his bashfulness and 
 modesty. 
 
 In 1856 he was nominated to the office of Judge of 
 the Court of Common Pleas; but he declined to ac- 
 cept the nomination. Two years later, the office of 
 city solicitor becoming vacant, the City Council 
 elected him for the unexpired term. 
 
 In 1861, when the Rebellion broke out, he was at 
 the zenith of his professional life. His rank at the 
 bar was among the the first. But the news of the 
 attack on Fort Sumpter found him eager to take up 
 arms for the defense of his country. 
 
 His military record was bright ard illustrious. In 
 October, 1861, he was made Lieutenant-Colonel, and. 
 in August, 1862, promoted Colonel of the 79th Ohio 
 regiment, but he refused to leave his old comrades 
 and go among strangers. Subsequently, however, he i 
 was made Colonel of his old regiment. At the battled 
 of South Mountain he received a wound, and while' 
 faint and bleeding displayed courage and fortitude 
 that won admiration from all. 
 
 Col. Hayes was detached from his regiment, after 
 his recovery, to act as Brigadier-General, and placed 
 in command of the celebrated Kanawha division, 
 and for gallant and meritorious services in the battles 
 of Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek, he was 
 promoted Brigadier-General. He was also brevetled 
 Major-General, "for gallant and distirguished fervices 
 during the campaigns of 1864, in West Virginia." In 
 the course of his arduous services, four horses were 
 shot from under him, and he was wounded four times. 
 
 In 1864, Gen. Hayes was elected to Congress, from 
 the Second Ohio District, which had long been Dem- 
 ocratic. He was not present during the campaign, 
 and after his election was importuned to resign his 
 commission in the army ; but he finally declared, " I 
 shall never corne to Washington until I can come by 
 the way of Richmond." He was re-elected in 1866. 
 
 In 1867, Gen Hayes was elected Governor of Ohio, 
 over Hon. Allen G. Thurman, a popular Democrat. 
 In 1869 was re-elected over George H. Pendleton. 
 He was elected Governor for the third term in 1875. 
 
 In 1876 he was the standard bearer of the Repub- 
 lican Party in the Presidential contest, and after a 
 hard long contest was chosen President, and was in 
 aucjurated Monday, March 5, 1875. He served his 
 full term, not, ruwever, with satisfaction to his party, 
 but his administration was an average one. 
 


 
TWENTIETH PRESIDENT. 
 
 95 
 
 - 
 
 AMES A. GARiTELD, twen- 
 tieth President of the United 
 States, was born Nov. 19, 
 1831, in the woods of Orange, 
 Cuyahoga Co., O His par- 
 ents were Abram and Eliza 
 (Ballou) Garfield, both of New 
 England ancestry and from fami- 
 lies well known in the early his- 
 tory of that section of our coun- 
 try, but had moved to the Western 
 Reserve, in Ohio, early in its settle- 
 ment. 
 
 The house in which James A. was 
 born was not unlike the houses of 
 poor Ohio farmers of that day. It 
 was about 20x30 feet, built of logs, with the spaces be- 
 tween the logs filled with clay. His father was a 
 hard working farmer, and he soon had his fields 
 cleared, an orchard planted, and a log barn built. 
 The household comprised the father and mother and 
 their four children Mehetabel, Thomas, Mary and 
 James. In May, 1823, the father, from a cold con- 
 tracted in helping to put out a forest fire, died. At 
 this time James was about eighteen months old, and 
 Thomas about ten years old. No one, perhaps, can 
 tell how much James was indebted to his btother's 
 toil and self-sacrifice during the twenty years suc- 
 ceeding his father's death, but undoubtedly very 
 much. He now lives in Michigan, and the two sis- 
 ters live in Solon, O., near their birthplace. 
 
 The early educational advantages young Garfield 
 enjoyed were very limited, yet he made the most of 
 them. He labored at farm work for others, did car- 
 penter work, chopped wood, or did anything that 
 would bring in a few dollars to aid his widowed 
 mother in her struggles to keep the little family to- 
 
 gether. Nor was Gen. Garfield ever ashamed of his 
 origin, and he never forgot the friends of his strug- 
 gling childhood, youth and manhood, neither did they 
 ever forget him. When in the highest seats of honor, 
 the humblest fiiend of his boyhood was as kindly 
 greeted as ever. The poorest laborer was sure of the 
 sympathy of one who had known all the bitterness 
 of wa;it and the sweetness of bread earned by the 
 sweat of the brow. He was ever the simple, plain, 
 modest gentleman. 
 
 The highest ambition of young Garfield until he 
 was about sixteen years old was to be a captain of 
 a vessel on Lake Erie. He was anxious to go aboard 
 a vessel, which his mother strongly opposed. She 
 finally consented to his going to Cleveland, with the 
 understanding, however, that he should try to obtain 
 some other kind of employment. He walked all the 
 way to Cleveland. This was his first visit to the city. 
 Afier making many applications for work, and trying 
 to get aboard a lake vessel, and not meeting with 
 success, he engaged as a driver for his cousin, Amos 
 Letcher, on the Ohio & Pennsylvania Canal. He re- 
 mained at this work but a short time when he went 
 home, and attended the seminary at Chester for 
 about three years, when he entered Hiram and the 
 Eclectic Institute, teaching a few terms of school in 
 the meantime, and doing other work. This school 
 was started by the Disciples of Christ in 1850, of 
 which church he was then a member. He became 
 janitor and bell-ringer in order to help pay his way. 
 He then became both teacher and pupil. He soon 
 " exhausted Hiram " and needed more ; hence, in the 
 fall of 1854, he entered Williams College, from which 
 he graduated in 1856, taking one of the highest hon- 
 ors of his class. He afterwards returned to Hiram 
 College as its President. As above stated, he early 
 united with the Christian or Diciples Church at 
 Hiram, and was ever after a devoted, zealous mem- 
 ber, often preaching in its pulpit and places where 
 he happened to be. Dr. Noah Porter, President of 
 Yale College, says of him in reference to his religion : 
 
9 6 
 
 JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 " President Garfield was more than a man of 
 strong moral and religious convictions. His whole 
 history, from boyhood to the last, shows that duty to 
 man and to God, and devotion to Christ and life and 
 faith and spiritual commission were controlling springs 
 of his being, and to a more than usual degree. In 
 my judgment there ii no more interesting feature of 
 his character than his loyal allegiance to the body of 
 Christians in which he was trained, and the fervent 
 sympathy which he ever showed in their Christian 
 communion. Not many of the few 'wise and mighty 
 and noble who are called" show a similar loyalty to 
 the less stately and cultured Christian communions 
 in which they have been reared. Too often it is true 
 that as they step upward in social and political sig- 
 nificance they step upward from one degree to 
 another in some of the many types of fashionable 
 Christianity. President Garfield adhered to the 
 church of his mother, the church in which he was 
 trained, and in which he served as a pillar and an 
 evangelist, and yet with the largest and most unsec- 
 tarian charity for all 'who loveour Lord in sincerity.'" 
 
 Mr. Garfield was united in marriage with Miss 
 Lucretia Rudolph, Nov. 1 1, 1858, who proved herself 
 worthy as the wife of one whom all the world loved and 
 mourned. To them were born seven children, five of 
 whom are still living, four boys and one girl. 
 
 Mr. Garfield made his first political speeches in 1 856, 
 in Hiram and the neighboring villages, and three 
 years later he began to speak at county mass-meet- 
 ings, and became the favorite speaker wherever he 
 was. During this year he was elected to the Ohio 
 Senate. He also began to study law at Cleveland, 
 and in 1861 was admitted to the bar. The great 
 Rebellion broke out in the early part of this year, 
 and Mr. Garfield at once resolved to fight as he had 
 talked, and enlisted to defend the old flag. He re- 
 ceived his commission as Lieut. -Colonel of the Forty- 
 second Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Aug. 
 14, 1861. He was immediately put into active ser- 
 vice, and before he had ever seen a gun fired in action, 
 was placed in command of four regiments of infantry 
 and eight companies of cavalry, charged with the 
 work of driving out of his native State the officer 
 (Humphrey Marshall) reputed to be the ablest of 
 those, not educated to war whom Kentucky had given 
 to the Rebellion. This work was bravely and speed- 
 ily accomplished, although against great odds. Pres- 
 ident Lincoln, on his success commissioned him 
 Brigadier-General, Jan. 10, 1862; and as "he had 
 been the youngest man in the Ohio Senate two years 
 before, so now he was the youngest Geneial in the 
 army." He was with Gen. Buell's army at Shiloh, 
 in its operations around Corinth and its march through 
 Alabama. He was then detailed as a member of the 
 General Court-Martial for the trial of Gen. Fitz-John 
 Porter. He was then ordered to report to Gen. Rose- 
 crans, and was assigned to the "Chief of Staff." 
 
 The military history of Gen. Garfield closed with 
 
 his brilliant services at Chickamauga, where he won 
 the stars of the Major-General. 
 
 Without an effort on his part Gen. Garfield was 
 elected to Congress in the fall of 1862 from the 
 Nineteenth District of Ohio. This section of Ohio 
 had been represented in Congress for sixty years 
 mainly by two men Elisha Whittlesey and Joshua 
 R. Giddings. It was not without a struggle that he 
 resigned his place in the army. At the time he en- 
 tered Congress he was the youngest member in that 
 body. There he remained by successive re- 
 elections until he was elected President in 1880. 
 Of his labors in Congress Senator Hoar says : " Since 
 the year 1864 you cannot think of a question which 
 has been debated in Congress, or discussed before a 
 tribunel of the American people, in regard to which 
 you will not find, if you wish instruction, the argu- 
 ment on one side stated, in almost every instance 
 better than by anybody else, in some speech made in 
 the House of Representatives or on the hustings by 
 Mr. Garfield." 
 
 Upon Jan. 14, 1880, Gen. Garfield was elected to 
 the U. S. Senate, and on the eighth of June, of the 
 same year, was nominated as the candidate of his 
 party for President at the great Chicago Convention. 
 He was elected in the following November, and on 
 March 4, 1881, was inaugurated. Probably no ad- 
 ministration ever opened its existence under brighter 
 auspices than that of President Gaifield, and every 
 day it grew in favor with the people, and by the first 
 of July he had completed all the initiatory and pre- 
 liminary work of his administration and was prepar- 
 ing to leave the city to meet his friends at Williams 
 College. While on his way ap.d at the depot, in com- 
 pany with Secretary Elaine, a man stepped behind 
 him, drew a revolver, and fired directly at his back. 
 The President tottered and fell, and as he did so the 
 assassin fired a second shot, the bullet cutting the 
 left coat sleeve of his victim, but inflicting no further 
 injury. It has been very truthfully said that this was 
 " the shot that was heard round the world " Never 
 before in the history of the Nation had anything oc- 
 curred which so nearly froze the blood of the people 
 for the moment, as this awful deed. He was smit- 
 ten on the brightest, gladdest day of all his life, and 
 was at the summit of his power and hope. Foreighty 
 days, all during the hot months of July and August, 
 he lingered and suffered. He, however, remained 
 master of himself till the last, and by his mngnificent 
 bearing was teaching the country and the world the 
 noblest of human lessons how to live grar.dly in the 
 very clutch of death. Great in life, he was surpass- 
 ingly great in death. He passed serenely away Sept. 
 19, 1883, at Elberon, N. J , on the very bank of the 
 ocean, where he had been taken shortly previous. The 
 world wept at his death, as it never had done on the 
 death of any other man who had ever lived upon it. 
 The murderer was duly tried, found guilty and exe- 
 cuted, in one year after he committed the foul deed. 
 

TWENTY-FIRST PRESIDENT. 
 
 99 
 
 HESTER A. ARTHUR, 
 twenty-first President of the 
 United States, was born in 
 franklin County, Vermont, on 
 thefifthof October, 1830, and is 
 the oldest of a family of two 
 sons and five daughters. His 
 father was the Rev. Dr. William 
 Arthur, a Baptist clergyman, who 
 emigrated to this country from 
 the county Antrim, Ireland, in 
 his 1 8th year, and died in 1875, in 
 Newtonville, near Albany, after a 
 long and successful ministry. 
 
 Young Arthur was educated at 
 Union College, Schenectady, where 
 he excelled in all his studies. Af- 
 ter his graduation he taught school 
 in Vermont for two years, and at 
 the expiration of that time came to 
 New York, with $500 in his [wcket, 
 and entered the office of ex-Judge 
 E. D. Culver as student. After 
 I being admitted to the bar he formed 
 a partnership with his intimate friend and room-mate, 
 Henry D. Gardiner, with the intention of practicing 
 in the West, and for three months they roamed about 
 in the Western States in search of an eligible site, 
 but in the end returned to New York, where they 
 hung out their shingle, and entered upon a success- 
 ful career almost from the start. General Arthur 
 soon afterward married the daughter of Lieutenant 
 
 Herndon, of the United States Navy, who was lost at 
 sea. Congress voted a gold medal to his widow in 
 recognition of the bravery he displayed on that occa- 
 sion. Mrs. Arthur died shortly before Mr. Arthur's 
 nomination to the Vice Presidency, leaving two 
 children. 
 
 Gen. Arthur obtained considerable legal celebrity 
 in his first great case, the famous Lemmon suit, 
 brought to recover possession of eight slaves who had 
 been declared free by Judge Paine, of the Superior 
 Court of New York City. It was in 1852 that Jon- 
 athan Lemmon, of Virginia, went to New York with 
 his slaves, intending to ship them to Texas, when 
 they were discovered and freed. The Judge decided 
 that they could not be held by the owner under the 
 Fugitive Slave Law. A howl of rage went up from 
 the South, and the Virginia Legislature authorized the 
 Attorney General of that State to assist in an appeal. 
 Wm. M. Evarts and Chester A. Arthur were employed 
 to represent the People, and they won their case, 
 which then went to the Supreme Court of the United 
 States. Charles O'Conor here espoused the cause 
 of the slave-holders, but he too was beaten by Messrs. 
 Evarts and Arthur, and a long step was taken toward 
 the emancipation of the black race. 
 
 Another great service was rendered by General 
 Arthur in the same cause in 1856. Lizzie Jennings, 
 a respectable colored woman, was put off a Fourth 
 Avenue car with violence after she had paid her fare, 
 General Arthur sued on her behalf, and secured a 
 verdict of $500 damages. The next day the compa- 
 ny issued an order to admit colored persons to ride 
 on their cars, and the other car companies quickly 
 
IOO 
 
 CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
 followed their example. Before that the Sixth Ave- 
 nue Company ran a few special cars for colored per- 
 sons and the other lines refused to let them ride at all. 
 
 General Arthur was a delegate to the Convention 
 at Saratoga that founded the Republican party. 
 Previous to the war he was Judge- Advocate of the 
 Second Brigade of the State of New York, and Gov- 
 ernor Morgan, of that State, appointed him Engineer- 
 in-Chief of his staff. In. 1861, he was made Inspec- 
 tor General, and soon afterward became Quartermas- 
 ter-General. In each of these offices he rendered 
 great service to the Government during the war. At 
 the end of Governor Morgan's term he resumed the 
 practice of the law, forming a partnership with Mr. 
 Ransom, and then Mr. Phelps, the District Attorney 
 of New Yoik, was added to the firm. The legal prac- 
 tice of this well-known firm was very large and lucra- 
 tive, each of the gentlemen composing it were able 
 lawyers, and possessed a splendid local reputation, if 
 not indeed one of national extent. 
 
 He always took a leading part in State and city 
 jwlitics. He was appointed Collector of the Port of 
 /New York by President Grant, Nov. 21 1872, to suc- 
 
 Iceed Thomas Murphy, and held the office until July, 
 20, 1878, when he was succeeded by Collector Merritt. 
 Mr. Arthur was nominated on the Presidential 
 ticket, with Gen. James A. Garfield, at the famous 
 National Republican Convention held at Chicago in 
 June, 1880. This was perhaps the greatest political 
 convention that ever assembled on the continent. It 
 was composed of the leading politicians of the Re- 
 publican party, all able men, and each stood firm and 
 fought vigorously and with signal tenacity for their 
 respective candidates that were before the conven- 
 tion for the nomination. Finally Gen. Garfield re- 
 ceived the nomination for President and Gen. Arthur 
 for Vice-President. The campaign which followed 
 was one of the most animated known in the history of 
 our country. Gen. Hancock, the standard-bearer of 
 the Democratic party, was a popular man, and his 
 party made a valiant fight for his election. 
 
 Finally the election came and the country's choice 
 was Garfield and Arthur. They were inaugurated 
 March 4, i88r, as President and Vice-President. 
 A few months only had passed ere the newly chosen 
 President was the victim of the assassin's bullet. Then 
 came terrible weeks of suffering, those moments of 
 anxious suspense, when the hearts of all civilized na- 
 
 tions were throbbing in unison, longing for the re- 
 covery of the noble, the good President. The remark- 
 able patience that he manifested during those hours 
 and weeks, and even months, of the most terrible suf- 
 fering man has often been called upon to endure, was 
 seemingly more than human. It was certainly God- 
 like. During all this period of deepest anxiety Mr. 
 Arthur's every move was watched, and be it said to his 
 credit that his every action displayed only an earnest 
 desire that the suffering Garfield might recover, to 
 serve the remainder of the term he had so auspi- 
 ciously begun. Not a selfish feeling was manifested 
 in deed or look of this man, even though the most 
 honored position in tfie world was at any moment 
 likely to fall to him. 
 
 At last God in his mercy relieved President Gar- 
 field from further suffering, and the world, as never 
 before in its history over the death of any other 
 man, wept at his bier. Then it became the duty of 
 the Vice President to assume the responsibilities of 
 the high office, and he took the oath in New York, 
 Sept. 20, 1881. The position was an embarrassing 
 one to him, made doubly so from the facts that all 
 eyes were on him, anxious to know what he would do, 
 what policy he would pursue, and who he would se- 
 lect as advisers. The duties of the office had been 
 greatly neglected during the President's long illness, 
 and many important measures were to be immediately 
 decided by him ; and still farther to embarrass him he 
 did not fail to realize under what circumstances he 
 became President, and knew the feelings of many on 
 this point. Under these trying circumstances President 
 Arthur took the reins of the Government in his own 
 hands ; and, as embarrassing as were the condition of 
 affairs, he happily surprised the nation, acting so 
 wisely that but few criticised his administration. 
 He served the nation well and faithfully, until the 
 close of his administration, March 4, 1885, and was 
 a popular candidate before his party for a second 
 term. His name was ably presented before the con- 
 vention at Chicago, and was received with great 
 favor, and doubtless but for the personal popularity 
 of one of the opposing candidates, he would have 
 been selected as the standard-bearer of his party 
 for another campaign. He retired to private life car- 
 rying with him the best wishes of the American peo- 
 ple, whom he had served in a manner satisfactory 
 to them and with credit to himself. 
 
UBUH 
 

 
TWENTY-SECOND PRESIDENT. 
 
 
 TEPHEN GROVER CLEVE- 
 LAND,the twenty-second Pres- 
 ident of the United States, was 
 born in 1837, in the obscure 
 town of Caldwell, Essex Co., 
 N. J., and in a little tworand-a- 
 half-story white house which is still 
 standing, characteristically to mark 
 the humble birth-place of one of 
 America's great men in striking con- 
 trast with the Old World, where all 
 men high in office must be high in 
 origin and born in ' the cradle of 
 wealth. When the subject of this 
 sketch was three years of age, his 
 father, who was a Presbyterian min- 
 ister, with a large family and a small salary, moved, 
 by way of the Hudson River and Erie ("anal, to 
 Fayetteville, in search of an increased income and a 
 larger field of work. Fayetteville was then the most 
 straggling of country villages, about five miles from 
 Pompey Hill, where Governor Seymour was born. 
 
 At the last mentioned place young Grover com- 
 menced going to school in the "good, old-fashioned 
 way," and presumably distinguished himself after the 
 manner of all village boys, in doing the things he 
 ought not to do. Such is the distinguishing trait of 
 all geniuses and independent thinkers. When he 
 arrived at the age of 14 years, he had outgrown the 
 capacity of the village school and expressed a most 
 
 emphatic desire to be sent to an academy. To this 
 his father decidedly objected. Academies in those 
 days cost money; besides, his father wanted him to 
 become self-supporting by the quickest possible 
 means, and this at that time in Fayetteville seemed 
 to be a position in a country store, where his father 
 and the large family on his hands had considerable 
 influence. Grover was to be paid $50 for his services 
 the first year, and if he proved trustworthy he was to 
 receive $100 the second year. Here the lad com- 
 menced his career as salesman, and in two years he 
 had earned so good a reputation for trustworthiness 
 that his employers desired to retain him for an in- 
 definite length of time. Otherwise he did not ex- 
 hibit as yet any particular " flashes of genius " or 
 eccentricities of talent. He was simply a good boy. 
 But instead of remaining with this firm in Fayette- 
 ville, he went with the family in their removal to 
 Clinton, where he had an opportunity of attending a 
 high school. Here he industriously pursued his 
 studies until the family removed with him to a point 
 on Black River known as the " Holland Patent," a 
 village of 500 or 600 people, 15 miles north of Utica, 
 N. Y. At this place his father died, after preaching 
 but three Sundays. This event broke up the family, 
 and Grover set out for New York City to accept, at a 
 small salary, the position of " under-teacher " in an 
 asylum for the blind. He taught faithfully for two 
 years, and although he obtained a good reputation in 
 this capacity, he concluded that teaching was not his 
 
 I 
 
 T.A.' 
 
104 
 
 5. GROVER CLEVELAND. 
 
 calling for life, and, reversing the traditional order, 
 he left the city to seek his fortune, instead of going 
 to a city. He first thought of Cleveland, Ohio, as 
 there was some charm in that name for him ; but 
 before proceeding to that place he went to Buffalo to 
 ask the advice of his uncle, Lewis F. Allan, a noted 
 stock-breeder of that place. The latter did not 
 speak enthusiastically. " What is it you want to do, 
 my boy?" he asked. "Well, sir, I want to study 
 law," was the reply. " Good gracious ! " remarked 
 the old gentleman ; " do you, indeed ? What ever put 
 that into your head? How much money have you 
 got?" "Well, sir, to tell the truth, I haven't got 
 any." 
 
 After a long consultation, his uncle offered him a 
 place temporarily as assistant herd-keeper, at $50 a 
 year, while he could "look around." One day soon 
 afterward he boldly walked into the office of Rogers, 
 Bowen & Rogers, of Buffalo, and told them what he 
 wanted. A number of young men were already en- 
 I gaged in the office, but Grover's persistency won, and 
 he was finally permitted to come as an office boy and 
 
 - 
 
 ' have the use of the law library, for the nominal sum 
 of $3 or $4 a week. Out of this he had to pay for 
 his board and washing. The walk to and from his 
 uncle's was along and rugged one; and, although 
 the first winter was a memorably severe one, his 
 shoes were out of repair and his overcoat he had 
 none yet he was nevertheless prompt and regular. 
 On the first day of his service here, his senior em- 
 ployer threw down a copy of Blackstone before him 
 with a bang that made the dust fly, saying "That's 
 where they all begin." A titter ran around the little 
 circle of clerks and students, as they thought that 
 was enough to scare young Grover out of his plans ; 
 but indue time he mastered that cumbersome volume. 
 Then, as ever afterward, however, Mr. Cleveland 
 exhibited a talent for executiveness rather than for 
 chasing principles through all their metaphysical 
 possibilities. " Let us quit talking and go and do 
 it," was practically his motto. 
 
 The first public office to which Mr. Cleveland was 
 elected was that of Sheriff of Erie Co., N. Y., in 
 which Buffalo is situated; and in such capacity it fell 
 to his duty to inflict capital punishment upon two 
 criminals. In 1881 he was elected Mayor of the 
 City of Buffalo, on the Democratic ticket, with es- 
 pecial reference to the bringing about certain reforms 
 
 in the administration of the municipal affairs of that 
 city. In this office, as well as that of Sheriff, his 
 performance of duty has generally been considered 
 fair, with possibly a few exceptions which were fer- 
 reted out and magnified during the last Presidential 
 campaign. As a specimen of his plain language in 
 a veto message, we quote from one vetoing an iniqui- 
 tous street-cleaning contract : " This is a time for 
 plain speech, and my objection to your action shall 
 be plainly stated. I regard it as the culmination of 
 a mos'; bare-faced, impudent and shameless scheme 
 to betray the interests of the people and to worse 
 than squander the people's money." The New York 
 Sun afterward very highly commended Mr. Cleve- 
 land's administration as Mayor of Buffalo, and there- 
 upon recommended him for Governor of the Empire 
 State. To the latter office he was elected in 1882, 
 and his administration of the affairs of State was 
 generally satisfactory. The mistakes he made, if 
 any, were made very public throughout the nation 
 after he was nominated for President of the United 
 States. For this high office he was nominated July 
 n, 1884, by the National Democratic Convention at 
 Chicago, when other competitors were Thomas F. 
 Bayard, Roswell P. Flower, Thomas A. Hendricks, 
 Benjamin F. Butler, Allen G. Thurman, etc.; and he 
 was elected by the people, by a majority of about a 
 thousand, over the brilliant and long-tried Repub- 
 lican statesman, James G. Blaine. President Cleve- 
 land resigned his office as Governor of New York in 
 January, 1885, in order to prepare for his duties as 
 the Chief Executive of the United States, in which 
 capacity his term commenced at noon on the 4th of 
 March, 1885. For his Cabinet officers he selected 
 the following gentlemen: For Secretary of State, 
 Thomas F. Bayard, of Delaware ; Secretary of the 
 Treasury, Daniel Manning, of New York ; Secretary 
 of War, William C. Endicott, of Massachusetts ; 
 Secretary of the Navy, William C. Whitney, of New 
 York ; Secretary of the Interior, L. Q. C. Lamar, of 
 Mississippi; Postmaster-General, William F. Vilas, 
 of Wisconsin ; Attorney-General, A. H. Garland, of 
 Arkansas. 
 
 The silver question precipitated a controversy be- 
 tween those who were in favor of the continuance of 
 silver coinage and those who were opposed, Mr. 
 Cleveland answering for the latter, even before his 
 inauguration. 
 
 
 , 
 
(B - S) 
 
 ^ 
 
 LI* 
 
 'LL>-^^ 
 
 H I* 
 


e 
 
 GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 in 
 
 -s* 
 
 
 HADRACH BOND, the first 
 Governor of Illinois after its 
 organization as a State, serving 
 from 1818 to 1822, was born in 
 Frederick County, Maryland, 
 in the year 1773, and was 
 raised a farmer on his father's 
 plantation, receiving only a plain 
 English education. He emigrated 
 to this State in 1794, when it was a 
 part of the " Northwest Territory," 
 continuing in the vocation in which 
 he had been brought up in his native 
 State, in the " New Design," near 
 Eagle Creek, in what is now Monroe 
 County. He served several terms as 
 a member of the General Assembly 
 of Indiana Territory, after it was organized as such, 
 and in 1812-14 he was a Delegate to the Twelfth 
 and Thirteenth Congresses, taking his seat Dec. 3, 
 1812, and serving until Oct. 3, 1814. These were 
 the times, the reader will recollect, when this Gov- 
 ernment had its last struggle with Great Britain. 
 The year 1812 is also noted in the history of this 
 State as that in which the first Territorial Legislature 
 was held. It convened at Kaskaskia, Nov. 25, and 
 adjourned Dec. 26, following. 
 
 While serving as Delegate to Congress, Mr. Bond 
 was instrumental in procuring the right of pre-emp- 
 tion on the public domain. On the expiration of his 
 term at Washington he was appointed Receiver of 
 Public Moneys at Kaskaskia, then the capital of the 
 Territory. In company with John G. Comyges, 
 
 Thomas H. Harris, Charles Slade, Michael Jones, 
 Warren Brown, Edward Humphries and Charles W. 
 Hunter, he became a proprietor of the site of the 
 initial city of Cairo, which they hoped, from its favor- 
 able location at the junction of the two _great 
 rivers near the center of the Great West, would 
 rapidly develop into a metropolis. To aid the enter- 
 prise, they obtained a special charter from the Legis- 
 lature, incorporating both the City and the Bank of 
 Cairo. 
 
 In 1818 Mr. Bond was elected the first Governor 
 of the State of Illinois, being inaugurated Oct. 6, 
 that year, which was several weeks before Illinois 
 was actually admitted. The facts are these: In 
 January, 1818, the Territorial Legislature sent a peti- 
 tion to Congress for the admission of Illinois as a 
 State, Nathaniel Pope being then Delegate. The 
 petition was granted, fixing the northern line of the 
 State on the latitude of the southern extremity of 
 Lake Michigan ; but the bill was afterward so amend- 
 ed as to extend this line to its present latitude. In 
 July a convention was called at Kaskaskia to draft a 
 constitution, which, however, was not submitted to 
 the people. By its provisions, supreme judges, pros- 
 ecuting attorneys, county and circuit judges, record- 
 ers and justices of the peace were all to be appointed 
 by the Governor or elected by the Legislature. This 
 constitution was accepted by Congress Dec. 30. At 
 that time Illinois comprised but eleven counties, 
 namely, Randolph, Madison, Gallatin, Johnson, 
 Pope, Jackson, Crawford, Bond, Union, Washington 
 and Franklin, the northern portion of the State be- 
 ing mainly in Madison County. Thus it appears 
 that Mr. Bond was honored by the naming of a 
 
SHADRACH BOND. 
 
 
 county before he was elected Governor. The present 
 county of Bond is of small limitations, about 60 to 80 
 miles south of Springfield. For Lieutenant Governor 
 the people chose Pierre Menard, a prominent and 
 worthy Frenchman, after whom a county in this State 
 is named. In this election there were no opposition 
 candidates, as the popularity of these men had made 
 their promotion to the chief offices of the Siate, even 
 before the constitution was drafted, a foregone con- 
 clusion. 
 
 The principal points that excited the people in 
 reference to political issues at this period were local 
 or "internal improvements," as they were' called, 
 State banks, location of the capital, slavery and the 
 personal characteristics of the proposed candidates. 
 Mr. Bond represented the " Convention party," for 
 introducing slavery into the State, supported by Elias 
 Kelt Kane, his Secretary of State, and John Mc- 
 Lean, while Nathaniel Pope and John P. Cook led 
 the anti-slavery element. The people, however, did 
 not become very much excited over this issue until 
 1820, when the famous Missouri Compromise was 
 adopted by Congress, limiting slavery to the south 
 of the parallel of 36 30' except in Missouri. While 
 this measure settled the great slavery controversy, 
 so far as the average public sentiment was tempor- 
 arily concerned, until 1854, when it was repealed 
 under the leadership of Stephen A. Douglas, the issue 
 as considered locally in this State was not decided 
 until 1824, after a most furious campaign. (See 
 sketch of Gov. Coles.) The ticket of 1818 was a 
 compromise one, Bond representing (moderately) the 
 pro-slavery sentiment and Menard the anti-slavery. 
 
 An awkward element in the State government 
 under Gov. Bond's administration, was the imperfec- 
 tion of the State constitution. The Convention 
 wished to have Elijah C. Berry for the first Auditor 
 of Public Accounts, but, as it was believed that the 
 new Governor would not appoint him to the office, 
 the Convention declared in a schedule that " an 
 auditor of public accounts, an attorney general and 
 such other officers of the State as may be necessary, 
 may be appointed by the General Assembly." The 
 Constitution, as it stood, vested a very large appoint- 
 ing power in the Governor ; but for the purpose of 
 getting one man into office, a total change was made, 
 and the power vested in the Legislature. Of this 
 provision the Legislature took advantage, and de- 
 
 clared that State's attorneys, canal commissioners, 
 bank directors, etc., were all " officers of the State " 
 and must therefore be appointed by itself independ- 
 ently of the Governor. 
 
 During Gov. Bond's administration a general law 
 was passed for the incorporation of academies and 
 towns, and one authorizing lotteries. The session of 
 1822 authorized the Governor to appoint commis- 
 sioners, to act in conjunction with like commissioners 
 appointed by the State of Indiana, to report on the 
 practicability and expediency of improving the navi- 
 gation of the Wabash River; also inland navigation 
 generally. Many improvements were recommended, 
 some of which have been feebly worked at even till 
 the present day, those along the Wabash being of no 
 value. Also, during Gov. Bond's term of office, the 
 capital of the State was removed from Kaskaskia to 
 Vandalia. In 1820 a law was passed by Congress 
 authorizing this State to open a canal through the 
 public lands. The State appointed commissioners 
 lo explore the route and prepare the necessary sur- ' 
 veys and estimates, preparatory to its execution; 
 but, being unable out of its own resources to defray 
 the expenses of the undertaking, it was abandoned 
 until some time after Congress made the grant of 
 land for the purpose of its construction. 
 
 On the whole, Gov. Bond's administration was ' 
 fairly good, not being open to severe criticism from 
 any party. In 1824, two years after the expiration 
 of his term of office, he was brought out as a candi- 
 date for Congress against the formidable John P. 
 Cook, but received only 4,374 votes to 7,460 for the 
 latter. Gov. Bond was no orator, but had made 
 many fast friends by a judicious bestowment of his 
 gubernatorial patronage, and these worked zealously 
 for him in the campaign. 
 
 In 1827 ex-Gov. Bond was appointed by the Leg- 
 islature, with VVm. P. McKee and Dr. Gershom 
 Jayne, as Commissioners to locate a site for a peni- 
 tentiary on the Mississippi at or near Alton. 
 
 Mr. Bond was of a benevolent and convivial dis- 
 position, a man of shrewd observation and clear ap- 
 preciation of events. His person was erect, stand- 
 ing six feet in height, and after middle life became 
 portly, weighing 200 pounds. His features were 
 strongly masculine, complexion dark, hair jet and 
 eyes hazel ; was a favorite with the ladies. He died 
 April n, 1830, in peace and contentment. 
 
 
 

 f 
 
 ' 
 
Y- 
 GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 )>war& Coles. 
 
 DWARD COLES, second 
 Governor of Illinois, 1823- 
 6, was born Dec. 15, 1786, 
 in Albemarle Co., Va., on 
 the old family estate called 
 "Enniscorthy," on the 
 Green Mountain. His fath- 
 er, John Coles, was a Colonel in the 
 Revolutionary War. Having been fit- 
 ted for college by private tutors, he 
 was sent to Hampden Sidney, where 
 he remained until the autumn of 1805, 
 when he was removed to William and 
 Mary College, at Williamsburg, Va. 
 This college he left in the summer of 
 1807, a short time before the final and graduating 
 examination. Among his classmates were Lieut. 
 Gen. Scott, President John Tyler, Wm. S. Archer, 
 United States Senator from Virginia, and Justice 
 Baldwin, of the United States Supreme Court. The 
 President of the latter college, Bishop Madison, was 
 a cousin of President James Madison, and that cir- 
 cumstance was the occasion of Mr. Coles becoming 
 personally acquainted with the President and re- 
 ceiving a position as his private secretary, 1809-15. 
 The family of Coles was a prominent one in Vir- 
 ginia, and their mansion was the seat of the old- 
 fashioned Virginian hospitality. It was visited by 
 such notables as Patrick Henry, Jefferson, Madison, 
 Monroe, the Randolphs, Tazewell, Wirt, etc. At the 
 age of 23, young Coles found himself heir to a plant- 
 ation and a considerable number of slaves. Ever 
 since his earlier college days his attention had been 
 drawn to the question of slavery. He read every- 
 
 thing on the subject that came in his way, and 
 listened to lectures on the rights of man. The more 
 he reflected upon the subject, the more impossible 
 was it for him to reconcile the immortal declaration 
 "that all men are born free and equal" with the 
 practice of slave-holding. He resolved, therefore, to. 
 free his slaves the first opportunity, and even remove 
 his residence to a free State. One reason which de-J 
 termined him to accept the appointment as private*' 
 secretary to Mr. Madison was because he believed] 
 that through the acquaintances he could make at 
 Washington he could better determine in what part] 
 of the non-slaveholding portion of the Union he would 
 prefer to settle. 
 
 The relations between Mr. Coles and President 
 Madison, as well as Jefferson and other distinguished 
 men, were of a very friendly character, arising from 
 the similarity of their views on the question of slavery 
 and their sympathy for each other in holding doc- 
 trines so much at variance with the prevailing senti- 
 ment in their own State. 
 
 In 1857, he resigned his secretaryship and spent a 
 portion of the following autumn in exploring the 
 Northwest Territory, for the purpose of finding a lo- 
 cation and purchasing lands on which to settle his 
 negroes. He traveled with a horse and buggy, with 
 an extra man and horse for emergencies, through 
 many parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri, 
 determining finally to settle in Illinois. At this time, 
 however, a misunderstanding arose between our 
 Government and Russia, and Mr. Coles was selected 
 to repair to St. Petersburg on a .special mission, bear- 
 ing important papers concerning the matter at issue. 
 The result was a conviction of the Emperor (Alex.- 
 
 t 3 
 
n6 
 
 EDWARD COLES. 
 
 ander) of the error committed by his minister at 
 Washington, and the consequent withdrawal of the 
 the latter from the post. On his return, Mr. Coles 
 visited other parts of Europe, especially Paris, where 
 he was introduced to Gen. Lafayette. 
 
 In the spring of 1819, he removed with all his 
 negroes from Virginia to Edwardsville, 111., with the 
 intention of giving them their liberty. He did not 
 make known to them his intention until one beautiful 
 morning in April, as they were descending the Ohio 
 River. He lashed all the boats together and called 
 all the negroes on deck and made them a short ad- 
 dress, concluding his remarks by so expressing him- 
 self that by a turn of a sentence he proclaimed in 
 the shortest and fullest manner that they were no 
 longer slaves, but free as he was and were at liberty 
 to proceed with him or go ashore at their pleas- 
 ure. A description of the effect upon the negroes is 
 best desciibed in his own language : 
 
 "The effect upon them was electrical. They stared 
 at me and then at each other, as if doubting the ac- 
 curacy or reality of what they heard. In breathless 
 silence they stood before me, unable to utter a word, 
 but with countenances beaming with expression which 
 no words could convey, and which no language 
 can describe. As they began to see the truth of 
 what they had heard, and realize their situation, there 
 came on a kind of hysterical, giggling laugh. After 
 I a pause of intense and unutterable emotion, bathed 
 in tears, and with tremulous voices, they gave vent to 
 their gratitude and implored the blessing of God 
 * on me." 
 
 Before landing he gave them a general certificate 
 of freedom, and afterward conformed more particu- 
 larly with the law of this State requiring that each 
 individual should have a certificate. This act of 
 Mr. Coles, all the more noble and heroic considering 
 the overwhelming pro-slavery influences surrounding 
 him, has challenged the admiration of every philan- 
 thropist of modern times. 
 
 March 5, r8ig, President Monroe appointed Mr. 
 Coles Registrar of the Land Office at Edwardsville, 
 at that time one of the principal land offices in the 
 State. While acting in this capacity and gaining 
 many friends by his politeness and general intelli- 
 gence, the greatest struggle that ever occurred in 
 Illinois on the slavery question culminated in the 
 furious contest characterizing the campaigns and 
 elections of 1822-4. In the summer of 1823, when a 
 new Governor was to be elected to succeed Mr. 
 Bond, the pro-slavery element divided into factions, 
 putting forward for the executive office Joseph 
 Phillips, Chief Justice of the State, Thomas C. 
 Browne and Gen. James B. Moore, of the State Mil- 
 itia. The anti-slavery element united upon Mr. 
 Coles, and, after one of the most bitter campaigns, 
 succeeded in electing him as Governor. His plural- 
 ity over Judge Phillips was only 59 in a total vote of 
 
 over 8,000. The Lieutenant Governor was elected 
 by the slavery men. Mr. Coles' inauguration speech 
 was marked by calmness, deliberation and such a 
 wise expression of appropriate suggestions as to 
 elicit the sanction of all judicious politicians. But 
 lie compromised not with evil. In his message to 
 the Legislature, the seat of Government being then 
 at Vandalia, he strongly urged the abrogation of the 
 modified form of slavery which then existed in this 
 State, contrary to the Ordinance of 1787. His posi- 
 tion on this subject seems the more remarkable, when 
 it is considered that he was a minority Governor, the 
 population of Illinois being at that time almost ex- 
 clusively from slave-holding States and by a large 
 majority in 'favor of the perpetuation of that old relic 
 of barbarism. The Legislature itself was, of course, 
 a reflex of the popular sentiment, and a majority of 
 them were led on by fiery men in denunciations of 
 the conscientious Governor, and in curses loud and 
 deep upon him and all his friends. Some of the 
 public men, indeed, went so far as to head a sort of 
 mob, or " shiveree " party, who visited the residence 
 of the Governor and others at Vandalia and yelled 
 and groaned and spat fire. 
 
 The Constitution, not establishing or permitting 
 slavery in this State, was thought therefore to be 
 defective by the slavery politicians, and they desired 
 a State Convention to be elected, to devise and sub- 
 mit a new Constitution ; and the dominant politics 
 of the day was "Convention" and "anti-Conven- 
 tion." Both parties issued addresses to the people, 
 Gov. Coles himself being the author of the address 
 published by the latter party. This address revealed 
 the schemes of the conspirators in a masterly man- 
 ner. It is difficult for us at this distant day to esti- 
 mate the critical and extremely delicate situation in 
 which the Governor was placed at that time. 
 
 Our hero maintained himself honorably and with 
 supreme dignity throughout his administration, and 
 in his honor a county in this State is named. He 
 was truly a great man, and those who lived in 
 this State during his sojourn here, like those who 
 live at the base of the mountain, were too near to see 
 and recognize the greatness that overshadowed them. 
 
 Mr. Coles was married Nov. 28, 1833, by Bishop 
 De Luncey, to Miss Sally Logan Roberts, a daughter 
 of Hugh Roberts, a descendant of Welsh ancestry, 
 who cami to this country with Wm. Penn in 1682. 
 
 After the expiration of his term of service, Gov. 
 Coles continued his residence in Edwardsville, sup- 
 erintending his farm in the vicinity. He was fond 
 of agriculture, and was the founder of the first agri- 
 cultural society in the State. On account of ill 
 health, however, and having no family to tie him 
 down, he spent much of his time in Eastern cities. 
 About 1832 he changed his residence to Philadel- 
 phia, where he died July 7, 1868, and is buried at 
 Woodland, near that city. 
 
 
 
ittSI I | v) I. 
 
 
. 
 
 GOl'ER.VOXS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 INIAN EDWARDS, Governor 
 from 1827 to 1830, was a son 
 p of Benjamin Edwards, and 
 was born in Montgomery 
 _,,<> County, Maryland, in March, 
 ~ 1775. His domestic train- 
 .V" ing was well fitted to give 
 his mind strength, firmness and 
 honorable principles, and a good 
 foundation was laid for the elevated 
 character to which he afterwards 
 attained. His parents were Bap- 
 tists, and very strict in their moral 
 principles. His education in early 
 youth was in company with and 
 partly under the tuition of Hon. \Vni. 
 Wirt, whom his father patronized 
 and who was more than two years 
 older. An intimacy was thus 
 form.'d between them which was lasting for life. He 
 was further educated at Dickinson College, at Car 
 lisle, Pa. He next commenced the study of law, but 
 before completing his course he moved to Nelson 
 County, Ky., to open a farm for his father and to 
 purchase homes and locate lands for his brothers and 
 sisters. Here he fell in the company of dissolute 
 companions, and for several years led the life of a 
 spendthrift. He was, however, elected to the Legis- 
 lature of Kentucky as the Representative of Nelson 
 County before he was 21 years of age, and was re- 
 elected by an almost unanimous vote. 
 
 In 1798 he was licensed to practice law, and the 
 following year was admitted to the Courts of Tennes- 
 see. About this time he left Nelson Comity for 
 Russellville, in Logan County, broke away from his 
 dissolute companions, commenced a reformation and 
 devoted himself to severe and laborious study. He 
 then began to rise rapidly in his profession, and soon 
 became an eminent lawyer, and inside of four years 
 he filled in succession the offices of Presiding Judge 
 of the General Court, Circuit Judge, fourth Judge of 
 the Court of Appeals and Chief Justice of the State, 
 all before he was 32 years of age ! In addition, in 
 1802, he received a commission as Major of a battal- 
 ion of Kentucky militia, and in 1804 was chosen a 
 Presidential Elector, on the Jefferson and Clinton 
 ticket. In 1806 he was a candidate for Congress, 
 but withdrew on being promoted to the Court of 
 Appeals. 
 
 Illinois was organized as a separate Territory in 
 the spring of 1809, when Mr. Edwards, then Chief 
 [astice of the Court of Appeals in Kentucky, received 
 from President Madison the appointment as Gover- 
 nor of the new Territory, his commission bearing date 
 April 24, 1809. Edwards arrived at Kaskaskia in 
 June, and on the i ith of that month took the oath of 
 office. At the same time he was appointed Superin- 
 tendent of the United States Saline, this Government 
 interest then developing into considerable proportions 
 in Southern Illinois. Although during the first three 
 years of his administration he had the power to make 
 new counties and appoint all the officers, yet he always 
 allowed the people of each county, by an informal 
 
 ** 
 
 119 
 
 
 
 i 
 
120 
 
 NINIAN EDWARDS. 
 
 vote, to select their own officers, both civil and mili- 
 tary. The noted John J. Crittenden, afterward 
 United States Senator from Kentucky, was appointed 
 by Gev. Edwards to the office of Attorney General of 
 the Territory, which office was accepted for a short 
 time only. 
 
 The Indians in 1810 committing sundry depreda- 
 tions in the Territory, crossing the Mississippi from 
 the Territory of Louisiana, a long correspondence fol- 
 lowed between the respective Governors concerning 
 the remedies, which ended in a council with the sav- 
 ages at Peoria in 1812, and a fresh interpretation of 
 the treaties. Peoria was depopulated by these de- 
 predations, and was not re-settled for many .years 
 afterward. 
 
 As Gov. Edwards' term of office expired by law in 
 1812, he was re-appointed for another term of three 
 years, and again in 1815 for a third term, serving 
 until the organization of the State in the fall of 1818 
 and the inauguration of Gov. Bond. At this time 
 ex-Gov. Edwards was sent to the United States 
 Senate, his colleague being Jesse B. Thomas. As 
 Senator, Mr. Edwards took a conspicuous part, and 
 7 acquitted himself honorably in all the measures that 
 f came up in that body, being well posted, an able de- 
 bater and a conscientious statesman. He, thought 
 seriously of resigning this situation in 1821, but was 
 persuaded by his old friend, Wm. Wirt, and others to 
 continue in office, which he did to the end of the 
 term. 
 
 He was then appointed Minister to Mexico by 
 President Monroe. About this time, it appears that 
 Mr. Edwards saw suspicious signs in the conduct of 
 Wm. H. Crawford, Secretary of the United States 
 Treasury, and an ambitious candidate for the Presi- 
 dency, and being implicated by the latter in some of 
 his statements, he resigned his Mexican mission in 
 order fully to investigate the charges. The result 
 was the exculpation of Mr. Edwards. 
 
 Pro-slavery regulations, often termed "Black Laws," 
 disgraced the statute books of both the Territory and 
 the State of Illinois during the whole of his career in 
 this commonwealth, and Mr. Edwards always main- 
 tained the doctrines of freedom, and was an important 
 actor in the great struggle which ended in a victory 
 for his par f y in 1824. 
 
 In 1826-7 the Winnebago and other Indians com- 
 mitted soir.e depredations in the northern part of the 
 
 State, and the white settlers, who desired the lands 
 and wished to exasperate the savages into an evacu- 
 ation of the country, magnified the misdemeanors of 
 the aborigines and thereby produced a hostility be- 
 tween the races so great as to precipitate a little war, 
 known in history as the "Winnebago War." A few 
 chases and skirmishes were had, when Gen. Atkinson 
 succeeded in capturing Red Bird, the Indian chief, 
 and putting him to death, thus ending the contest, at 
 least until the troubles commenced which ended in 
 the "Black Hawk War" of 1832. In the interpre- 
 tation of treaties and execution of their provisions 
 Gov. Edwards had much vexatious work to do. The 
 Indians kept themselves generally within the juris- 
 diction of Michigan Territory, and its Governor, 
 Lewis Cass, was at a point so remote that ready cor- 
 respondence with him was difficult or impossible. 
 Gov. Edwards' administration, however, in regard to 
 the protection of the Illinois frontier, seems to have 
 been very efficient and satisfactory. 
 
 For a considerable portion of his time after his re- 
 moval to Illinois, Gov. Edwards resided upon his 
 farm near Kaskaskia, which he had well stocked with 
 horses, cattle and sheep from Kentucky, also with 
 fruit-trees, grape-vines and shrubbery. He estab- 
 lished saw and grist-mills, and engaged extensively 
 in mercantile business, having no less than eight or ten 
 stores in this State and Missouri. Notwithstanding 
 the arduous duties of his office, he nearly always pur- 
 chased the goods himself with which to supply the 
 stores. Although not a regular practitioner of medi- 
 cine, he studied the healing art to a considerable ex- 
 tent, and took great pleasure in prescribing for, and 
 taking care of, the sick, generally without charge. 
 He was also liberal to the poor, several widows and 
 ministers of the gospel becoming indebted to him 
 even for their homes. 
 
 He married Miss Elvira Lane, of Maryland, in 
 1803, and they became the affectionate parents of 
 several children, one of whom, especially, is well 
 known to the people of the l; Prairie State," namely, 
 Ninian Wirt Edwards, once the Superintendent of 
 Public Instruction and still a resident of Springfield. 
 Gov. Edwards resided at and in the vicinity of Kas- 
 kaskia from 1809 to 1818; in Edwardsville (named 
 after him) from that time to 1824; and from the lat- 
 ter date at Belleville, St. Clair County, until his 
 death, July 20, 1833, of Asiatic cholera. Edwards 
 County is also named in his honor. 
 
I" 
 

GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 j : OHN REYNOLDS, Governor 1831- 
 
 4, was born in Montgomery Coun- 
 ty, Pennsylvania, Feb. 26, 1788. 
 His father, Robert Reynolds and 
 his mother, nee Margaret Moore, 
 were both natives of Ireland, from 
 which country they emigrated to 
 the United States in 1785, land- 
 ing at Philadelphia. The senior 
 Reynolds entertained an undying 
 hostility to the British Govern- 
 ment. When the subject of this 
 sketch was about six months old, 
 his parents emigrated with him to 
 Tennessee, where many of their 
 relatives had already located, at the base of the 
 Copper Ridge Mountain, about 14 miles northeast of 
 the present city of Knoxville. There they were ex- 
 posed to Indian depredations, and were much molest- 
 ed by them. In 1794 they moved into the interior 
 of the State. They were poor, and brought up their 
 children to habits of manual industry. 
 
 In 1800 the family removed to Kaskaskia, 111., with 
 eight horses and two wagons, encountering many 
 hardships on the way. Here young Reynolds passed 
 the most of his childhood, while his character began 
 to develop, the most prominent traits of which were 
 ambition and energy. He also adopted the principle 
 and practice of total abstinence from intoxicating 
 liquors. In 1807 the family made another removal, 
 
 this time to the " Goshen Settlement," at the foot of 
 the Mississippi bluffs three or four miles southwest 
 of Edwardsville. 
 
 On arriving at his 2oth year, Mr. Reynolds, seeing 
 that he must look about for his own livelihood and 
 not yet having determined what calling to pursue, 
 concluded first to attend college, and he accordingly 
 went to such an institution of learning, near Knox- 
 ville, Tenn., where he had relatives. Imagine his 
 diffidence, when, after passing the first 20 years of 
 his life without ever having seen a carpet, a papered 
 wall or a Windsor chair, and never having lived in a 
 shingle-roofed house, he suddenly ushered himself 
 into the society of the wealthy in the vicinity of 
 Knoxville! He attended college nearly two years, 
 going through the principal Latin authors; but it 
 seems that he, like the rest of the world in modern 
 times, had but very little use for his Latin in after 
 life. He always failed, indeed, to exhibit any good 
 degree of literary discipline. He commenced the 
 study of law in Knoxville, but a pulmonary trouble 
 came on and compelled him to change his mode 
 of life. Accordingly he returned home and re- 
 cuperated, and in 1812 resumed his college and 
 law studies at Knoxville. In the fall of 1812 he was 
 admitted to the Bar at Kaskaskia. About this time 
 he also learned the French language, which he 
 practiced with pleasure in conversation with his 
 family for many years. He regarded this language 
 as being superior to all others for social intercourse. 
 
124 
 
 JOHN REYNOLDS. 
 
 From his services in the West, in the war of 1812, 
 he obtained the sobriquet of the " Old Ranger." He 
 was Orderly Sergeant, then Judge Advocate. 
 
 Mr. Reynolds opened his first law office in the 
 winter and spring of 1814, in the French village of 
 Cahokia, then the capital of St. Clair County. 
 
 In the fall of 1818 he was elected an Associate 
 Justice upon the Supreme Bench by the General 
 Assembly. In 1825 he entered more earnestly than 
 ever into the practice of law, and the very next year 
 was elected a member of the Legislature, where he 
 acted independently of all cliques and private inter- 
 ests. In 1828 the Whigs and Democrats were for 
 the first time distinctively organized as such in Illi- 
 nois, and the usual party bitterness grew up and 
 raged on all sides, while Mr. Reynolds preserved a 
 judicial calmness and moderation. The real animus 
 of the campaign was " Jackson " and " anti-Jackson," 
 the former party carrying the State. 
 
 In August, 1830, Mr. Reynolds was elected Gov- 
 ernor, amid great excitement. Installed in office, he 
 did all within his power to advance the cause of edu- 
 cation, internal improvements, the Illinois & Mich- 
 igan Canal, the harbor at Chicago, settling the coun- 
 try, etc.; also reccmmended the winding up of the 
 State Bank, as its affairs had become dangerously 
 complicated. In his national politics, he was a 
 moderate supporter of General Jackson. But the 
 most celebrated event of his gubernatorial admin- 
 istration was the Black Hawk War, which occurred 
 in 1832. He called out the militia and prosecuted 
 the contest with commendable diligence, appearing 
 in person on the battle-grounds during the most 
 critical periods. He was recognized by the President 
 as Major-General, and authorized by him to make 
 treaties witli the Indians. By the assistance of the 
 general Government the war was terminated without 
 much bloodshed, but after many serious fights. This 
 war, as well as everything else, was materially re- 
 tarded by the occurrence of Asiatic cholera in the 
 West. This was its first appearance here, and was 
 the next event in prominence during Gov. Reynolds' 
 term. 
 
 South Carolina nullification coming up at this time, 
 it was heartily condemned by both President Jackson 
 and Gov. Reynolds, who took precisely the same 
 grounds as the Unionists in the last war. 
 
 On the termination of his gubernatorial term in 
 1834, Gov. Reynolds was elected a Member of Con- 
 gress, still considering himself a backwoodsman, as 
 he had scarcely been outside of the State since he 
 became of age, and had spent nearly all his youthful 
 days in the wildest region of the frontier. His first 
 move in Congress was to adopt a resolution that in 
 all elections made by the House for officers the votes 
 should be given viva voce, each member in his place 
 naming aloud the person for whom he votes. This 
 created considerable heated discussion, but was es- 
 
 sentially adopted, and remained the controlling prin- 
 ciple for many years. The ex-Governor was scarcely 
 absent from his seat a single day, during eight ses- 
 sions of Congress, covering a period of seven years, 
 and he never vacillated in a party vote; but he failed 
 to get the Democratic party to foster his "National 
 Road" scheme. He says, in "My Own Times" (a 
 large autobiography he published), that it was only 
 by rigid economy that he avoided insolvency while in 
 Washington. During his sojourn in that city he was 
 married, to a lady of the place. 
 
 In 1837, while out of Congress, and in company 
 with a few others, he built the first railroad in the 
 Mississippi Valley, namely, one about six miles long, 
 leading from his coal mine in the Mississippi bluff to 
 the bank of the river opposite St. Louis. Having not 
 the means to purchase a locomotive, they operated it 
 by horse-power. The next spring, however, the com- 
 pany sold out, at great sacrifice. 
 
 In 1839 the ex-Governor was appointed one of the 
 Canal Commissioners, and authorized to borrow 
 money to proseeute the enterprise. Accord' ngly, he 
 repaired to Philadelphia and succeeding in obtaining 
 a million dollars, which, however, was only a fourth 
 of what was wanted. The same year he and his 
 wife made at our of Europe. This year, also, Mr. 
 Reynolds had the rather awkward little responsibility 
 of introducing to President Van Buren the noted 
 Mormon Prophet, Joseph Smith, as a " Latter-Day 
 Saint ! " 
 
 In 1846 Gov. Reynolds was elected a member of 
 the Legislature from St. Clair County, more particu- 
 larly for the purpose of obtaining a feasible charter 
 for a macadamized road from Belleville to St. Louis, 
 a distance of nearly 14 miles. This was immediately 
 built, and was the first road of the kind in the State. 
 He was again elected to the Legislature in 1852, when 
 he was chosen Speaker of the House. In 1860, aged 
 and infirm, he attended the National Democratic 
 Convention at Charleston, S. C., as an anti-Douglas 
 Delegate, where he received more attention from the 
 Southern Delegates than any other member. He 
 supported Breckenridge for the Presidency. After 
 the October elections foreshadowed the success of 
 Lincoln, he published an address urging the Demo- 
 crats to rally to the support of Douglas. Immedi- 
 ately preceding and during the late war, his corre- 
 spondence evinced a clear sympathy for the Southern 
 secession, and about the first of March, 1861, he 
 urged upon the Buchanan officials the seizure of the 
 treasure and arms in the custom-house and arsenal 
 at St. Louis. Mr. Reynolds was a rather talkative 
 man, and apt in all the Western phrases and catch- 
 words that ever gained currency, besides many cun- 
 ning and odd ones of his own manufacture. 
 
 He was married twice, but had no children. He 
 died in Belleville, in May, 1865, just after the close 
 of the war. 
 
 
' 
 
. 
 
 GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 127 
 
 ILLIAM LEE U. EWING, 
 Governor of Illinois Nov. 3 
 to 17, 1834, was a native 
 of Kentucky, and probably 
 of Scotch ancestry. He had 
 a fine education, was a gentle- 
 man of polished manners and 
 refined sentiment. In 1830 John Rey- 
 nolds was elected Governor of the State, 
 and Zadok Casey Lieutenant Governor, 
 and for the principal events that followed, 
 and the characteristics of the times, see 
 sketch of Gov. Reynolds. The first we 
 see in history concerning Mr. Ewing, in- 
 forms us that he was a Receiver of Public 
 Moneys at Vandalia soon after the organization of 
 this State, and that the public moneys in his hands 
 were deposited in various banks, as they are usually 
 at the present day. In 1823 the State Bank was 
 robbed, by which disaster Mr. Ewing lost a thousand- 
 dollar deposit. 
 
 The subject of this sketch had a commission as 
 Colonel in the Black Hawk War, and in emergencies 
 he acted also as Major. In the summer of r832, 
 when it was rumored among the whites that Black 
 Hawk and his men had encamped somewhere on 
 Rock River, Gen. Henry was sent on a tour of 
 reconnoisance, and with orders to drive the Indians 
 from the State. After some opposition from his 
 subordinate officers, Henry resolved to proceed up 
 Rock River in search of the enemy. On the igth of 
 July, early in the morning, five baggage wagons. 
 
 camp equipage and all heavy and cumbersome arti- 
 cles were piled up and left, so that the army might 
 make speedy and forced marches. For some miles 
 the travel was exceedingly bad, crossing swamps 
 and the worst thickets ; but the large, fresh trail 
 gave life and animation to the Americans. Gen. 
 Dodge and Col. Ewing were both acting as Majors, 
 and composed the " spy corps " or vanguard of the < 
 army. It is supposed the army marched nearly 50 
 miles this day, and the Indian trail they followed 
 became fresher, and was strewed with much property 
 and trinkets of the red-skim that they had lost or 
 thrown away to hasten their march. During the 
 following night there was a terrific thunder-storm, and 
 the soldiery, with all their appurtenances, were thor- 
 oughly drenched. 
 
 On approaching nearer the Indians the next day. 
 Gen. Dodge and Major Ewing, each commanding a 
 battalion of men, were placed in front to bring on the 
 battle, but the savages were not overtaken this day 
 Forced marches were continued until they reached. 
 Wisconsin River, where a veritable battle ensued, 
 resulting in the death of about 68 of Black Hawk's 
 men. The next day they continued the chase, and 
 as soon as he discovered the trail of the Indians 
 leading toward the Mississippi, Maj. Ewing formed 
 his battalion in order of battle and awaited the order 
 of Gen. Henry. The latter soon appeared on the 
 ground and ordered a charge, which directly resulted 
 in chasing the red warriors across the great river. 
 Maj. Ewing and his command proved particularly 
 efficient in war, as it seems they were the chief actors 
 in driving the main body of the Sacs and Foxes,, in- 
 
 
128 
 
 WILLIAM L. D. EWING. 
 
 eluding Black Hawk himself, across the Mississippi, 
 while Gen. Atkinson, commander-in-chief of the ex- 
 pedition, with a body of the army, was hunting for 
 them in another direction. 
 
 In the above affair Maj. Ewing is often referred to 
 as a " General," which title he had derived from his 
 connection with the militia. 
 
 It was in the latter part of the same year (1832) 
 that Lieutenant Governor Casey was elected to Con- 
 gress and Gen. Ewing, who had been elected to the 
 Senate, was chosen to preside over that body. At 
 the August election of 1834, Gov. Reynolds was also 
 elected to Congress, more than a year ahead of the 
 time at which he could actually take his seat, as was 
 then the law. His predecessor, Charles Slade, had 
 just died of Asiatic cholera, soon after the elec- 
 tion, and Gov. Reynolds was chosen to serve out his 
 unexpired term. Accordingly he set out for Wash- 
 ington in November of that year to take his seat in 
 Congress, and Gen. Ewing, by virtue of his office as 
 President of the Senate, became Governor of the 
 State of Illinois, his term covering only a period of 
 15 days, namely, from the 3d to the i;th days, in- 
 clusive, of November. On the iyth the Legislature 
 met, and Gov. Ewing transmitted to that body his 
 message, giving a statement of the condition of the 
 affairs of the State at that time, and urging a contin- 
 uance of the policy adopted by his predecessor ; and 
 on the same day Governor elect Joseph Duncan 
 was sworn into office, thus relieving Mr. Ewing from 
 
 the responsible situation. This is the only time that 
 such a juncture has happened in the history of Illi- 
 nois. 
 
 On the 2 Qth of December, 1835, Gen. Ewing was 
 elected a United States Senator to serve out the 
 unexpired term of Elias Kent Kane, deceased. The 
 latter gentleman was a very prominent figure in the 
 early politics of Illinois, and a county in this State is 
 named in his honor. The election of Gen. Ewing to 
 the Senate was a protracted struggle. His competi- 
 tors were James Semple, who afterwards held several 
 important offices in this State, and Richard M. 
 Young, afterward a United States Senator and a 
 Supreme Judge and a man of vast influence. On 
 the first ballot Mr. Semple had 25 votes, Young 19 
 and Ewing 18. On the eighth ballot Young was 
 dropped ; the ninth and tenth stood a tie ; but on 
 the 1 2th Ewing received 40, to Semple 37, and was 
 accordingly declared elected. In 1837 Mr. Ewing 
 received some votes for a continuance of his term in 
 Congress, when Mr. Young, just referred to, was 
 elected. In 1842 Mr. Ewing was elected State 
 Auditor on the ticket with Gov. Ford. 
 
 Gen. Ewing was a gentleman of culture, a lawyer 
 by profession, and was much in public life. In person 
 he was above medium height and of heavy build, 
 with auburn hair, blue eyes, large-sized head and 
 short face. He was genial, social, friendly and 
 affable, with fair talent, though of no high degree of 
 originality. He died March 25, 1846. 
 
 * 
 

GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 -887- ijl 
 
 OSEPH DUNCAN, Governor 
 1834-8, was born at Paris, 
 Ky., Feb. 23, 1794. At the 
 tender age of 19 years he en- 
 listed in the war against Great 
 Britain, and as a soldier he 
 acquitted himself with credit. He 
 was an Ensign under the daunt- 
 less Croghan at Lower Sandusky, 
 or Fort Stephenson. In Illinois 
 lie first appeared in a public capa- 
 city as Major-General of the Militia, 
 a. position which his military fame 
 had procured him. Subsequently 
 he became a State Senator from 
 Jackson County, and is honorably 
 mentioned for introducing the first bill providing for 
 a free-school system. In 1826, when the redoubt- 
 able John P. Cook, who had previously beaten such 
 men as John McLean, Elias Kent Kane and ex- 
 Gov. Bond, came up for the fourth time for Congress, 
 Mr. Duncan was brought forward against him by his 
 friends, greatly to the surprise of all the politicians. 
 As yet he was but little known in the State. He was 
 an original Jackson man at that time, being attached 
 to his political fortune in admiration of the glory of 
 his military achievements. His chances of success 
 against Cook were generally regarded as hopeless, 
 but he entered upon the campaign undaunted. His 
 speeches, though short and devoid of ornament, were 
 full of good sense. He made a diligent canvass of 
 the State, Mr. Cook being hindered by the condition of 
 his health. The most that was expected of Mr. 
 Duncan, under the circumstances, was that he would 
 
 obtain a respectable vote, but without defeating Mr. 
 Cook. The result of the campaign, however, was a 
 source of surprise and amazement to both friends 
 and foes, as Mr. Duncan came out 641 votes ahead! 
 He received 6,32 r votes, and Mr. Cook 5,680. Un- 
 til this denouement, the violence of party feeling 
 smoldering in the breasts of the people on account 
 of the defeat of Jackson, was not duly appreciated. 
 Aside from the great convention struggle of 1824, no 
 other than mere local and penonal considerations 
 had ever before controlled an election in Illinois. 
 
 From the above date Mr. Duncan retained his 
 seat in Congress until his election as Governor in 
 August, 1834. The first and bloodless year of the 
 Black Hawk War he was appointed by Gov. Rey- 
 nolds to the position of Brigadier-General of the 
 volunteers, and he conducted his brigade to Rock 
 Island. But he was absent from the State, in Wash- 
 ington, during the gubernatorial campaign, and did 
 not personally participate in it, but addressed circu- 
 lars to his constituents. His election was, indeed, 
 attributed to the circumstance of his absence, be- 
 cause his estrangement from Jackson, formerly his 
 political idol, and also from the Democracy, largely 
 in ascendency in the State, was complete ; but while 
 his defection was well known to his Whig friends, 
 and even to the leading Jackson men of this State, 
 the latter were unable to carry conviction of that fact 
 to the masses, as mail and newspaper facilities at 
 that day were far inferior to those of the present 
 time. Of course the Governor was much abused 
 afterward by the fossilized Jackson men who re- 
 garded party ties and affiliations as above all 
 other issues that could arise; but he was doubtless 
 
f 
 
 3 2 
 
 JOSEPH D UNCA N. 
 
 ncere in his opposition to the old hero, as the latter 
 ad vetoed several important western measures 
 hich were dear to Mr. Duncan. In his inaugural 
 icssage he threw off the mask and took a bold stand 
 
 igajnst the course of the President. The measures 
 e recommended in his message, however, were so 
 
 desirable that the Legislature, although by a large 
 lajority consisting of Jackson men, could not refrain 
 om endorsing them. These measures related 
 lainly to banks and internal improvements. 
 It was while Mr. Duncan was Governor that the 
 eople of Illinois went whirling on with bank and in- 
 :rnal improvement schemes that well nigh bank- 
 jpted the State. The hard times of 1837 came on, 
 
 md the disasters that attended the inauguration of 
 
 icse plans and the operation of the banks were mu- 
 
 lally charged upon the two political parties. Had 
 
 ny one man autocratic power to introduce and 
 
 arry on any one of these measures, he would proba- 
 
 ly have succeeded to the satisfaction of the public ; 
 
 t as many jealous men had hold of the same plow 
 
 i ndle, no success followed and each blamed the other 
 
 the failure. In this great vortex Gov. Duncan 
 
 s carried along, suffering the like derogation of 
 
 aracter with his fellow citizens. 
 
 At the height of the excitement the Legislature 
 
 Jrovided for " railroads from Galena to Cairo, Alton 
 
 ) Shawneetown, Alton to Mount Carmel, Alton to the 
 
 : astern boundary of the State in the direction of 
 'erre Haute, Quincy via Springfield to the Wabash, 
 loomington to Pekin, and Peoria to Warsaw, in all 
 
 ix>ut 1,300 miles of road. It also provided for the 
 nprovement of the navigation of the Kaskaskia. 
 linois, Great and Little Wabash and Rock Rivers ; 
 
 s so as a placebo, $200,000 in money were to be dis- 
 ibuted to the various counties wherein no improve- 
 
 n tents were ordered to be made as above. The 
 itimate for the expenses for all these projects was 
 
 placed at a little over $10,000,000, which was not 
 lore than half enough! That would now be equal to 
 tddling upon the State a debt of $225,000,000! It 
 
 w as sufficient to bankrupt the State several times 
 yer, even counting all the possible benefits. 
 One of the most exciting events that ever occurred 
 
 i this fair State was the murder of Elijah P. Love- 
 y in the fall of 1837, at Alton, during Mr. Duncan's 
 rm as Governor. Lovejoy was an " Abolitionist," 
 
 z liting the Observer at that place, and the pro- 
 avery slums there formed themselves into a mob, 
 
 and after destroying successively three presses be- 
 longing to Mr. Lovejoy, surrounded the warehouse 
 where the fourth press was stored away, endeavoring 
 to destroy it, and where Lovejoy and his friends 
 were entrenching themselves, and shot and killed the 
 brave reformer! 
 
 About this time, also, the question of removing the 
 State capital again came up, as the 20 years' limit for 
 its existence at Vandalia was drawing to a close. 
 There was, of course, considerable excitement over 
 the matter, the two main points competing for it be- 
 ing Springfield and Peoria. The jealousy of the lat- 
 ter place is not even yet, 45 years afterward, fully 
 allayed. 
 
 Gov. Duncan's term expired in 1838. In 1842 
 he was again proposed as a candidate for the Execu- 
 tive chair, this time by the Whig party, against Adam 
 W. Snyder, of St. Clair County, the nominee of the 
 Democrats. Charles W. Hunter was a third candi- 
 date for the same position. Mr. Snyder, however, died 
 before the campaign had advanced very far, and his 
 party substituted Thomas Ford, who was elected, 
 receiving 46,901 votes, to 38,584 for Duncan, and 
 909 for Hunter. The cause of Democratic success 
 at this time is mainly attributed to the temporary 
 support of the Mormons which they enjoyed, and the 
 want of any knowledge, on the part of the masses, 
 that Mr. Ford was opposed to any given policy en- 
 tertained in the respective localities. 
 
 Gov. Duncan was a man of rather limited educa- 
 tion, but with naturally fine abilities he profited 
 greatly by his various public services, and gathered 
 a store of knowledge regarding public affairs which 
 served him a ready purpose. He possessed a clear 
 judgment, decision, confidence in himself and moral 
 courage to carry out his convictions of right. In his 
 deportment he was well adapted to gain the admira- 
 tion of the people. His intercourse with them was 
 both affable and dignified. His portrait at the Gov- 
 ernor's mansion, from which the accompanying was 
 made, represents him as having a swarthy complex- 
 ion, high cheek bones, broad forehead, piercing black 
 eyes and straight black hair. 
 
 He was a liberal patron of the Illinois College at 
 Jacksonville, a member of its Board of Trustees, and 
 died, after a short illness, Jan. 15, 1844, a devoted 
 member of the Presbyterian Church, leaving a wife 
 but no children. Two children, born to them, had 
 died in infancy. 
 
it 
 
GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 HOMAS CARLIN, the sixth 
 Governor of the State of 
 Illinois, serving from 1838 
 to 1842, was also a Ken- 
 tuckian, being born near 
 Frankfort, that State, July 
 1 8, 1789, of Irish paternity. 
 The opportunities for an education 
 being very meager in his native 
 place, he, on approaching years of 
 judgment and maturity, applied 
 himself to those branches of learn- 
 ing that seemed most important, 
 and thus became a self-made man ; 
 and his taste for reading and 
 study remained with him through 
 life. In 1803 his father removed 
 lo Missouri, then a part of " New Spain," where he 
 died in 1810. 
 
 In 1812 young Carlin came to Illinois and partici- 
 pated in all the "ranging" service incident to the 
 war of that period, proving himself a soldier of un- 
 daunted bravery. In 1814 he married Rebecca 
 Huitt, and lived for four years on the bank of the 
 Mississippi River, opposite the mouth of the Mis- 
 souri, where he followed farming, and then removed 
 to Greene County. He located the town site of Car- 
 rollton, in that county, and in 1825 made a liberal 
 donation of land for county building purposes. He 
 was the first Sheriff of that county after its separate 
 organization, and afterward was twice elected, as a 
 Jackson Democrat, to the Illinois Senate. In the 
 Black Hawk War he commanded a spy battalion, a 
 post of considerable danger. In 1834 he was ap- 
 pointed by President Jackson to the position of 
 Receiver of Public Moneys, and to fulfill the office 
 
 more conveniently he removed to the city of QuincJ. 
 
 While, in 1838, the unwieldy internal improvement 
 system of the State was in full operation, with all it;s 
 expensive machinery, amidst bank suspensions 
 throughout the United States, a great stringency ih 
 the money market everywhere, and Illinois bondb 
 forced to sale at a heavy discount, and the " hardest 
 times" existing that the people of the Prairie State 
 ever saw, the general election of State officers was 
 approaching. Discreet men who had cherished 1 1 
 hope of a speedy subsidence of the public infatua- 
 tion, met with disappointment. A Governor i 
 Legislature were to be elected, and these were noV 
 looked forward to for a repeal of the ruinous Sii t 
 policy. But the grand scheme had not yet lost t 
 dazzling influence upon the minds of the people 
 Time and experience had not yet fully demonstratei 
 its utter absurdity. Hence the question of arrestin 
 its career of profligate expenditures did not becom 
 a leading one with the dominant party during th 
 campaign, and most of the old members of the Leg 
 islature were returned at this election. 
 
 Under these circumstances the Democratsvin Stat 
 Convention assembled, nominated Mr. Carlin for th 
 office of Governor, and S. H. Anderson for Lieuten 
 ant Governor, while the Whigs nominated Cyrus Ed 
 wards, brother of Ninian Edwards, formerly Governo 
 and W. H. Davidson. Edwards came out strongljy 
 for a continuance of the State policy, while Carlin 
 remained non-committal. This was the first time 
 that the two main political parties in this State were 
 unembarrassed by any third party in the field. The 
 result of the election was : Carlin, 35,573; Ander- 
 son, 30,335; Edwards, 29,629; and Davidson, 28,- 
 
 7M- 
 
 Upon the meeting of the subsequent Legislature 
 (1839), the retiring Governor (Duncan) in his mes- 
 
136 
 
 THOMAS CARLIN. 
 
 sage spoke in emphatic terms of the impolicy of the 
 internal improvement system, presaging the evils 
 threatened, and uiged that body to do their utmost 
 to correct the great error ; yet, on the contrary, the 
 Legislature not only decided to continue the policy 
 but also added to its burden by voting more appro- 
 priations and ordering more improvements. Although 
 the money market was still stringent, a further loan 
 of $4,000,000 was ordered for the Illinois & Mich- 
 igan Canal alone. Ch'cago at that time began to 
 loom up and promise to be an important city, even 
 the great emporium of the West, as it has since in- 
 deed came to be. Ex-Gov. Reynolds, an incompe- 
 tent financier, was commissioned to effect the loan, 
 and accordingly hastened to the East on this respons- 
 ible errand, and negotiated the loans, at considera- 
 ble sacrifice to the State. Besides this embarrassment 
 to Carlin's administration, the Legislature also de- 
 clared that he had no authority to appoint a Secretary 
 of State until a vacancy existed, and A. P. Field, a 
 Whig, who had already held the post by appointment 
 through three administrations, was determined to 
 keep the place a while longer, in spite of Gov. Car- 
 lin's preferences. The course of the Legislature in 
 this regard, however, was finally sustained by the 
 Supreme Court, in a quo warranto case brought up 
 before it by Jchn A. McClernand, whom the Gov- 
 ernor had nominated for the office. Thereupon that 
 dignified body was denounced as a "Whig Court!" 
 endeavoring to establish the principle of life-tenure 
 of office. 
 
 A new law was adopted re-organizing the Judici- 
 ary, and under it five additional Supreme Judges 
 were elected by the Legislature, namely, Thomas 
 Ford (afterward Governor), Sidney Breese, Walter B. 
 Scales, Samuel H. Treat and Stephen A. Douglas 
 all Democrats. 
 
 It was during Cov. Carlin's administration that the 
 noisy campaign of "Tippecanoe and Tyler too" oc- 
 curred, resulting in a Whig victory. This, however, 
 did not affect Illinois politics very seriously. 
 
 Another prominent event in the West during Gov. 
 Carlin's term of office was the excitement caused by 
 the Mormons and their removal from Independence, 
 Mo., to Nauvoo, 111., in 1840. At the same time 
 they began to figure somewhat in State politics. On 
 account of their believing as they thought, accord- 
 ing to the New Testament that they should have 
 
 " all things common," and that consequently " all 
 the earth " and all that is upon it were the" Lord's " 
 and therefore the property of his " saints," they 
 were suspected, and correctly, too, of committing 
 many of the deeds of larceny, robbery, etc., that 
 were so rife throughout this country in those days. 
 Hence a feeling of violence grew up between the 
 Mormons and "anti-Mormons." In the State of 
 Missouri the Mormons always supported the Dem- 
 ocracy until they were driven out by the Democratic 
 government, when they turned their support to the 
 Whigs. They were becoming numerous, and in the 
 Legislature of 1840-1, therefore, it became a matter 
 of great interest with both parties to conciliate these 
 people. Through the agency of one John C. Ben- 
 nett, a scamp, the Mormons succeeded in rushing 
 through the Legislature (both parties not daring to 
 oppose) a charter for the city of Nauvoo which vir- 
 tually erected a hierarchy co-ordinate with the Fed- 
 eral Government itself. In the fall of 1841 the 
 Governor of Missouri made a demand upon Gov. 
 Carlin for the body of Joe Smith, the Mormon leader, 
 as a fugitive from justice. Gov. Carlin issued the 
 writ, but for some reason it was returned unserved. t 
 It was again issued in 1842, and Smith was arrested, 
 but was either rescued by his followers or discharged 
 by the municipal court on a writ of habeas corpus. 
 
 In December, 1841, the Democratic Convention 
 nominated Adam W. Snyder, of Belleville, for Gov- 
 ernor. As he had been, as A member of the Legisla- 
 ture, rather friendly to the Mormons, the latter 
 naturally turned their support to the Democratic 
 party. The next spring the Whigs nominated Ex- 
 Gov. Duncan for the same office. In the meantime 
 the Mormons began to grow more odious to the 
 masses of the people, and the comparative prospects 
 of the respective parties for success became very 
 problematical. Mr. Snyder died in May, and 
 Thomas Ford, a Supreme Judge, was substituted as 
 a candidate, and was elected. 
 
 At the close of his gubernatorial term, Mr. Carlin 
 removed back to his old home at Carrollton, where 
 he spent the remainder of his life, as before his ele- 
 vation to office, in agricultural pursuits. In 1849 
 he served out the unexpired term of J. D. Fry in the 
 Illinois House of Representatives, and died Feb. 4, 
 1852, at his residence at Carrollton, leaving a wife 
 and seven children. 
 
 
Ht 
 
Gt> VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 
 k&AJi4^fe*&&fe^fe&4^&i^^4*^^ !! ^yyyyi=> 
 
 - 5=5*-- ""ffurwgjj? 
 
 JHOMAS FORW, Governor 
 from 1842 to 1846, and au- 
 thor of a very interesting 
 history of Illinois, was born 
 at Uniontown, Pa., in the 
 year 1 800. His mother, after 
 the death of her first hus- 
 band (Mr. Forquer), married Rob- 
 ert Ford, who was killed in 1802, 
 by the Indians in the mountains 
 of Pennsylvania. She was conse- 
 quently left in indigent circum- 
 stances, with a large family, mostly 
 girls. With a view to better her 
 condition, she, in 1804, removed to 
 Missouri, where it had been cus- 
 tomary by the Spanish Govern- 
 ment to give land to actual settlers; but upon her 
 arrival at St. Louis she found the country ceded to 
 the United States, and the liberal policy toward set- 
 tlers changed by the new ownership. After some 
 sickness to herself and family, she finally removed to 
 Illinois, and settled some three miles south of Water- 
 loo, but the following year moved nearer the Missis- 
 sippi bluffs. Here young Ford received his first 
 
 schooling, under the instructions of a Mr. Humphrey^ 
 for which he had to walk three miles. His mother, 
 though lacking a thorough education, was a woman 
 of superior mental endowments, joined to energy 
 and determination of character. She inculcated in 
 her children those high-toned principles which dis- 
 tinguished her sons in public life. She exercised a 
 rigid economy to provide her children an education ; 
 but George Forquer, her oldest son (six years older 
 than Thomas Ford), at an early age had to quit 
 school to aid by his labor in the support of the family. 
 He afterward became an eminent man in Illinois 
 affairs, and but for his early death would probably 
 have been elected to the United States Senate. 
 
 Young Ford, with somewhat better opportunities, 
 received a better education, though limited to the 
 curriculum of the common school of those pioneer 
 times. His mind gave early promise of superior en- 
 dowments, with an inclination for mathematics. His 
 proficiency attracted the attention of Hon. Daniel P. 
 Cook, who became his efficient patron and friend. 
 The latter gentleman was an eminent Illinois states- 
 man who, as a Member of Congress, obtained a grant 
 of 300,000 acres of land to aid in completing the 
 Illinois & Michigan Canal, and after whom the 
 county of Cook was named. Through the advice of 
 
140 
 
 THOMAS FORD. 
 
 this gentleman, Mr. Ford turned his attention to the 
 study of law; but Forquer, then merchandising, re- 
 garding his education defective, sent him to Transyl- 
 vania University, where, however, he remained but 
 one term, owing to Forquer's failure in business. On 
 his return he alternated his law reading with teach- 
 ing school for support. 
 
 In 1829 Gov. EdVards appointed him Prosecuting 
 Attorney, and in 1831 he was re-appointed by Gov. 
 Reynolds, and after that he was four times elected a 
 Judge by the Legislature, without opposition, twice a 
 Circuit Judge, once a Judge of Chicago, and as As- 
 sociate Judge of the Supreme Court, when, in 1841, 
 the latter tribunal was re-organized by the addition 
 of five Judges, all Democrats. Ford was assigned to 
 the Ninth Judicial Circuit, and while in this capacity 
 he was holding Court in Ogle County he received a 
 notice of his nomination by the Democratic Conven- 
 tion for the office of Governor. He immediately re- 
 signed his place and entered upon the canvass. In 
 August, 1842, he was elected, and on the 8th of De- 
 cember following he was inaugurated. 
 
 All the offices which he had held were unsolicited 
 by him. He received them upon the true Jefferson- 
 ian principle, Never to ask and never to refuse 
 office. Both as a lawyer and as a Judge he stood 
 deservedly high, but his cast of intellect fitted him 
 rather for a writer upon law than a practicing advo- 
 cate in the courts. In the latter capacity he was void 
 of the moving power of eloquence, so necessary to 
 success with juries. As a Judge his opinions were 
 sound, lucid and able expositions of the law. In 
 practice, he was a stranger to the tact, skill and in- 
 sinuating address of the politician, but he saw through 
 the arts of demagogues as well as any man. He was 
 plain in his demeanor, so much so, indeed, that at 
 one time after the expiration of his term of office, 
 during a session of the Legislature, he was taken by 
 a stranger to be a seeker for the position of door- 
 keeper, and was waited upon at his hotel near mid- 
 night by a knot of small office-seekers with the view 
 of effecting a " combination ! " 
 
 Mr. Ford had not the " brass " of the ordinary 
 politician, nor that impetuosity which characterizes a 
 political leader. He cared little for money, and 
 hardly enough for a decent support. In person he 
 was of small stature, slender, of dark complexion, 
 with black hair, sharp features, deep-set eyes, a 
 pointed, aquiline nose having a decided twist to one 
 side, and a small mouth. 
 
 The three most important events in Gov. Ford's 
 administration were the establishment of the high 
 financial credit of the State, the " Mormon War "and 
 the Mexican War. 
 
 In the first of these the Governor proved himself 
 to be eminently wise. On coming into office he found 
 the State badly paralyzed by the ruinous effects of 
 the notorious "internal improvement" schemes of 
 
 the preceding decade, with scarcely anything to 
 show by way of "improvement." The enterprise 
 that seemed to be getting ahead more than all the 
 rest was the Illinois & Michigan Canal. As this 
 promised to be the most important thoroughfare, 
 feasible to the people, it was well under headway in 
 its construction. Therefore the State policy was 
 almost concentrated upon it, in order to rush it on to 
 completion. The bonded indebtedness of the State 
 was growing so large as to frighten the people, and 
 they were about ready to entertain a proposition for 
 repudiation. But the Governor had the foresight to 
 recommend such measures as would maintain the 
 public credit, for which every citizen to-day feels 
 thankful. 
 
 But perhaps the Governor is remembered more for 
 his connection with the Mormon troubles than foi 
 anything else; for it was during his term of office 
 that the " Latter-Day Saints " became so strong at 
 Nauvoo, built their temple there, increased their num- 
 bers throughout the country, committed misdemean- 
 ors, taught dangerous doctrines, suffered the loss o 
 their leader, Jo Smith, by a violent death, were driver 
 out of Nauvoo to the far West, etc. Having been \t 
 Judge for so many years previously, Mr. Ford 1 01 
 course was non-committal concerning Mormon affairs 
 and was therefore claimed by both parties and a;ls< 
 accused by each of sympathizing too greatly with^ht 
 other side. Mormonism claiming to be a system' o 
 religion, the Governor no doubt was " between tw< 
 fires," and felt compelled to touch the matter rathe 
 " gingerly," and doubtless felt greatly relieved whei 
 that pestilential people left the State. Such compji- 
 cated matters, especially when religion is mixed uj 
 with them, expose every person participating ir 
 them to criticism from all parties. 
 
 The Mexican War was begun in the spring o 
 1845, and was continued into the gubernatorial tern 
 of Mr. Ford's successor. The Governor's connectioi 
 with this war, however, was not conspicuous, as i 
 was only administrative, commissioning officers, etc 
 
 Ford's " History of Illinois " is a very readable anc 
 entertaining work, of 450 small octavo pages, and i 
 destined to increase in value with the lapse of time 
 It exhibits a natural flow of compact arid forcibl 
 thought, never failing to convey the nicest sense. Ii 
 tracing with his trenchant pen the devious operation 
 of the professional politician, in which he is inimit 
 able, his account is open, perhaps, to the objectioi 
 that all his contemporaries are treated as mere place 
 seekers, while many of them have since been judge 
 by the people to be worthy statesmen. His writing 
 seem slightly open to the criticism that they exhiljii 
 a little splenetic partiality against those of his con 
 temporaries who were prominent during his term 
 office as Governor. 
 
 The death of Gov. Ford took place at Peoria, Il|l 
 ; Nov. 2, 1850. 
 
bt fit 
 
-3- 
 
 GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 143 
 
 Augustus C. French 
 
 UGUSTUS C. FRENCH, 
 Governor of Illinois from 
 1846 to 1852, was born in 
 the town of Hill, in the 
 State of New Hampshire, 
 Aug. 2, 1808. He was a 
 descendant in .the fourth 
 generation of Nathaniel 
 French, who emigrated from England 
 in 1687 and settled in Saybury, Mass. 
 In early life 'young French lost his 
 father, but continued to receive in- 
 struction from an exemplary and 
 Christian mother until he was 19 years 
 old, when she also died, confiding to 
 his care and trust four younger broth- 
 ers and one sister. He discharged his trust with 
 parental devotion. His education in early life was 
 such mainly as a common school afforded. For a 
 brief period he attended Dartmouth College, but 
 from pecuniary causes and the care of his brothers 
 and sister, he did not graduate. He subsequently 
 read law, and was admitted to the Bar in 1831, and 
 shortly afterward removed to Illinois, settling first at 
 Albion, Edwards County, where he established him- 
 self in the practice of law. The following year he 
 removed to Paris, Edgar County. Here he attained 
 eminence in his profession, and entered public life 
 representing that county in the Legislature. A 
 Strong attachment sprang up between him and Ste- 
 ihen A. Douglas. 
 
 In 1839, Mr. French was appointed Receiver of 
 tine United States Land Office at Palestine, Craw- 
 fcrd County, at which place he was a resident when 
 
 elevated to the gubernatorial chair. In 1844 he was 
 a Presidential Elector, and as such he voted for 
 James K. Polk. 
 
 The Democratic State Convention of 1846, meet- 
 ing at Springfield Feb. 10, nominated Mr. French 
 for Governor. Other Democratic candidates were 
 Lyman Trumbull, John Calhoun (subsequently of 
 Lecompton Constitution notoriety), Walter B. Scales, 
 Richard M. Young and A. W. Cavarly, an array of 
 very able and prominent names. Trumbull was per- 
 haps defeated in the Convention by the rumor that 
 he was opposed to the Illinois and Michigan Canal, 
 as he had been a year previously. For Lieutenant 
 Governor J. B. Wells was chosen, while other candi- 
 dates were Lewis Ross, Win. McMurtry, Newton 
 Cloud, J. B. Hamilton and W. W. Thompson. The 
 resolutions declared strongly against the resuscita- 
 tion of the old State Banks. 
 
 The Whigs, who were in a hopeless minority, held 
 their convention June 8, at Peoria, and selected 
 Thomas M. Kilpatrick, of Scott County, for Governor, 
 and Gen. Nathaniel G. Wilcox, of Schuyler, for 
 Lieutenant Governor. 
 
 In the campaign the latter exposed Mr. French's 
 record and connection with the passage of the in- 
 ternal improvement system, urging it against his 
 election ; but in the meantime the war with Mexico 
 broke out, regarding which the Whig record was un- 
 popular in this State. The war was the absorbing 
 and dominating question of the period, sweeping 
 every other political issue in its course. The elec- 
 tion in August gave Mr. French 58,700 votes, and 
 Kilpatrick only 36,775. Richard Eells, Abolitionist 
 candidate for the same office, received 5,152 votes. 
 
144 
 
 AUGUSTUS c. FRENCH: 
 
 By the new Constitution of 1848, a new election for 
 State officers was ordered in November of that year, 
 before Gov. French's term was half out, and he was 
 re-elected for the term of four years. He was there- 
 fore the incumbent for six consecutive years, the 
 only Governor of this State who has ever served in 
 that capacity so long at one time. As there was no 
 organized opposition to his election, he received 67,- 
 453 votes, to 5,639 for Pierre Menard (son of the 
 first Lieutenant Governor), 4,748 for Charles V. 
 Dyer, 3,834 for W. L. D. Morrison, and 1,361 for 
 James L. D. Morrison. But Wm. McMurtry, of 
 Knox County, was elected Lieutenant Governor, in 
 place of Joseph B. Wells, who was, before elected 
 and did not run again. 
 
 Governor French was inaugurated into office dur- 
 ing the progress of the Mexican War, which closed 
 during the summer of 1847, although the treaty of 
 Guadalupe Hidalgo was not made until Feb. 2, 
 1848. The policy of Gov. French's party was com- 
 mitted to that war, but in connection with that affair 
 he was, of course, only an administrative officer. 
 During his term of office, Feb. 19, 1847, the Legisla- 
 ture, by special permission of Congress, declared that 
 all Government lands sold to settlers should be im- 
 mediately subject to State taxation ; before this they 
 were exempt for five years after sale. By this ar- 
 rangement the revenue was materially increased. 
 About the same time, the distribution of Government 
 land warrants among the Mexican soldiers as bounty 
 threw upon the market a great quantity of good 
 lands, and this enhanced the settlement of the State. 
 The same Legislature authorized, with the recom- 
 mendation of the Governor, the sale of the Northern 
 Cross Railroad (from Springfield to Meredosia, the 
 first in the State and now a section of the Wabash, 
 St. Louis & Pacific) It sold for $100,000 in bonds, 
 although it had cost the State not less than a million. 
 The salt wells and canal lands in the Saline reserve 
 in Gallatin County, granted by the general Govern- 
 ment to the State, were also authorized by the 
 Governor to be sold, to apply on the State debt. In 
 1850, for the first time since 1839, the accruing State 
 revenue, exclusive of specific appropriations, was 
 sufficient to meet the current demands upon the 
 treasury. The aggregate taxable property of the 
 State at this time was over $100,000,000, and the 
 population 851,470. 
 
 In 1849 the Legislature adopted the township or- 
 ganization law, which, however, proved defective, 
 and was properly amended in 1851. At its session 
 in the latter year, the General Assembly also passed 
 a law to exempt homesteads from sale on executions. 
 This beneficent measure had been repeatedly urged 
 upon that body by Gov. French. 
 
 In 1850 some business men in St. Louis com- 
 menced to build a dike opposite the lower part of 
 their city on the Illinois side, to keep the Mississippi 
 in its channel near St. Louis, instead of breaking 
 away from them as it sometimes threatened to do. 
 This they undertook without permission from the 
 Legislature or Executive authority of this State ; and 
 as many of the inhabitants there complained that 
 the scheme would inundate and ruin much valuable 
 land, there was a slight conflict of jurisdictions, re- 
 sulting in favor of the St. Louis project; and since 
 then a good site has existed there for a city (East St. 
 Louis), and now a score of railroads center there. 
 
 It was in September, 1850, that Conaress granted . 
 to this State nearly 3,000,000 acres of land in aid of J 
 the completion of the Illinois Central Railroad, ! 
 which constituted the most important epoch in the ' 
 railroad we might say internal improvement- his- 1 
 tory of the State. The road was rushed on to com- 
 pletion, which accelerated the settlement of the in- J 
 terior of the State by a good c.ass of industrious citi- 
 zens, and by the charter a good income to the State 
 Treasury is paid in from the earnings of the road. 
 
 In 185 i the Legislature passed a law authorizing 
 free stock banks, which was the source of much leg- 
 islative discussion for a number of years. 
 
 But we have not space further to particularize 
 concerning legislation. Gov. French's administra- 
 tion was not marked by any feature to be criticised, 
 while the country was settling up as never before. 
 
 In stature, Gov. French was of medium height, 
 squarely built, light complexioned, with ruddy face 
 and pleasant countenance. In manners he was 
 plain and agreeable. By rfature he was somewhat 
 diffident, but he was often very outspoken in his con- 
 victions of duty. In public speech he was not an 
 orator, but was chaste, earnest and persuasive. In 
 business he was accurate and methodical, and in his 
 administration he kept up the credit of the State. 
 
 He died in 1865, at his home in Lebanon, St. 
 Clair Co., Ill, 
 


 

 
 GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 147 
 
 .OEL A. MATTESON, Governor 
 1853-6, was born Aug. 8, 1808, 
 in Jefferson County, New York, 
 to which place his father had re- 
 moved from Vermont three years 
 before. His father was a farmer 
 in fair circumstances, but a com- 
 mon English education was all 
 that his only son received. Young 
 Joel first tempted fortune as a 
 small tradesman in Prescott, 
 Canada, before he was of age. 
 He returned from that place to 
 his home, entered an academy, 
 taught school, visited the prin- 
 cipal Eastern cities, improved a farm his father had 
 given him, made a tour in the South, worked there 
 in building railroads, experienced a storm on the 
 Gulf of Mexico, visited the gold diggings of Northern 
 Georgia, and returned via Nashville to St. Louis and 
 through Illinois to his father's home, when he mar- 
 ried. In 1833, having sold his farm, he removed, 
 with his wife and one child, to Illinois, and entered 
 a claim on Government land near the head of An 
 Sable River, in what is now Kendall County. At 
 that time there were not more than two neighbors 
 within a range of ten miles of his place, and only 
 three or four houses between him and Chicago. He 
 opened a large farm. His family was boarded 12 
 
 miles away while he erected a house on his claim, 
 sleeping, during this time, under a rude pole shed. 
 Here his life was once placed in imminent peril by 
 a huge prairie rattlesnake sharing his bed. 
 
 In 1835 he bought largely at the Government land 
 sales. During the speculative real-estate mania which 
 broke out in Chicago in 1836 and spread over the State, J 
 he sold his lands under the inflation of that period 
 and removed to Joliet. In 1838 he became a heavy 
 contractor on the Illinois & Michigan Canal. Upon 
 the completion of his job in 1841, when hard times 
 prevailed, business at a stand, contracts paid in State 
 scrip; when all the public works except the canal 
 were abandoned, the State offered for sale 700 tons 
 of railroad iron, which was purchased by Mr. Mat- 
 teson at a bargain. This he accepted, shipped and 
 sold at Detroit, realizing a very handsome profit, 
 enough to pay off all his canal debts and leave him a 
 surplus of several thousand dollars. His enterprise 
 next prompted him to start a woolen mill at Joliet, 
 in which he prospered, and which, after successive 
 enlargements, became an enormous establishment. 
 
 In 1842 he was first elected a State Senator, but, 
 by a bungling apportionment, John Pearson, a Senator 
 holding over, was found to be in the same district, 
 and decided to be entitled to represent it. Mat- 
 teson's seat was declared vacant. Pearson, however, 
 with a nobleness difficult to appreciate in this day of 
 
 
 
148 
 
 JOEL A. MATTESON. 
 
 greed for office, unwilling to represent his district 
 under the circumstances, immediately resigned his 
 unexpired term of two years. A bill was passed in a 
 few hours ordering a new election, and in ten days' 
 time Mr. Matteson was returned re-elected and took 
 his seat as Senator. From his well-known capacity 
 as a business man, he was made Chairman of the 
 Committee on Finance, a position he held during 
 this half and two full succeeding Senatorial terms, 
 discharging its important duties with ability and faith- 
 fulness. Besides his extensive woolen-mill interest, 
 when work was resumed on the canal under the new 
 loan of $1,600,000 he again became a heavy con- 
 tractor, and also subsequently operated largely in 
 building railroads. Thus he showed himself a most 
 energetic and thorough business man. 
 
 He was nominated for Governor by the Demo- 
 cratic State Convention which met at Springfield 
 April 20, 1852. Other candidates before the Con- 
 vention were D. L. Gregg and F. C. Sherman, of 
 Cook ; John Dement, of Lee ; Thomas L. Harris, of 
 Menard ; Lewis W. Ross, of Fulton ; and D. P. Bush, 
 of Pike. Gustavus Koerner, of St. Clair, was nom- 
 inated for Lieutenant Governor. For the same offices 
 the Whigs nominated Edwin B. Webb and Dexter A. 
 Knowlton. Mr. Matteson received 80,645 votes at 
 the election, while Mr. Webb received 64,408. Mat- 
 teson "s forte was not on the stump; he had not cul- 
 tivated the art of oily flattery, or the faculty of being 
 all things to all men. His intellectual qualities took 
 rather the direction of efficient executive ability. His 
 turn consisted not so much in the adroit manage- 
 ment of party, or the powerful advocacy of great gov- 
 ernmental principles, as in those more solid and 
 enduring operations which cause the physical devel- 
 opment and advancement of a State, of commerce 
 and business enterprise, into which he labored with 
 success to lead the people. As a politician he was 
 just and liberal in his views, and both in official and 
 private life he then stood untainted and free from 
 blemish. As a man, in active benevolence, social 
 rirtues and all the amiable qualities of neighbor or 
 citizen, he had few superiors. His messages present 
 a perspicuous array of facts as to the condition of the 
 State, and are often couched in forcible and elegant 
 diction. 
 
 The greatest excitement during his term of office 
 was the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, by Con- 
 
 gress, under the leadership of Stephen A. Douglas in 
 1854, when the bill was passed organizing the Terri- 
 tory of Kansas and Nebraska. A large portion of 
 the Whig party of the North, through their bitter op- 
 position to the Democratic party, naturally drifted 
 into the doctrine of anti-slavery, and thus led to what 
 was temporarily called the " Anti-Nebraska " party, 
 while the followers of Douglas were known as " Ne- 
 braska or Douglas Democrats." It was during this 
 embryo stage of the Republican party that Abraham 
 Lincoln was brought forward as the "Anti-Nebraska " 
 candidate for the United States Senatorship, while 
 Gen. James Shields, the incumbent, was re-nom- 
 inated by the Democrats. But after a few ballotings 
 in the Legislature (1855), these men were dropped, 
 and Lyman Trumbull, an Anti-Nebraska Democrat, 
 was brought up by the former, and Mr. Matteson, 
 then Governor, by the latter. On the nth ballot 
 Mr. Trumbull obtained one majority, and was ac- 
 cordingly declared elected. Before Gov. Matteson 's 
 term expired, the Republicans were fully organized 
 as a national party, and in r856 put into the field a 
 full national and State ticket, carrying the State, but 
 not the nation. 
 
 The Legislature of r855 passed two very import- 
 ant measures, the present free-school system and a 
 submission of the Maine liquor law to a vote of the 
 people. The latter was defeated by a small majority 
 of the popular vote. 
 
 During the four years of Gov. Matteson 's admin- 
 istration the taxable wealth of the State was about 
 trebled, from $137,818,07910 $349,951,272; the pub- 
 lic debt was reduced from $17,398,985 to $12,843,- 
 144; taxation was at the same time reduced, and the 
 State resumed paying interest on its debt in New 
 York as fast as it fell due ; railroads were increased 
 in their mileage from something less than 400 to 
 about 3,000 ; and the population of Chicago was 
 nearly doubled, and its commerce more than quad- 
 rupled. 
 
 Before closing this account, we regret that we have 
 to say that Mr. Matteson, in all other respects an 
 upright man and a good Governor, was implicated 
 in a false re-issue of redeemed canal scrip, amount- 
 ing to $224,182.66. By a suit in the Sangamon Cir- 
 cuit Court the State recovered the principal and all 
 the interest excepting $27,500. 
 
 He died in the winter of 1872-3, at Chicago. 
 
 : 
 
l? J JVUttlll 
 
 
 
GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 '5' 
 
 I LLIAM H. BISSELL, Gov- 
 ernor 1857-60, was born 
 April 25, 1811, in the 
 State of New York, near 
 Painted Post, Yates County. 
 His parents were obscure, 
 honest, God-fearing people, 
 ho reared their children under trie daily 
 example of industry and frugality, accord- 
 ing to the custom othat class of Eastern 
 society. Mr. Bissell received a respecta- 
 ble but not thorough academical education. 
 By assiduous application he acquired a 
 knowledge of medicine, and in his early 
 manhood came West and located in Mon- 
 roe County, this State, where he engaged in the 
 practice of that profession. But he was not enam- 
 ored of his calling: he was swayed by a broader 
 ambition, to such an extent that the mysteries of the 
 healing art and its arduous duties failed to yield him 
 further any charms. In a few years he discovered 
 his choice of a 'profession to be a- mistake, and, when 
 he approached the age of 30 he sought to begin 
 anew. Dr. Bissell, no doubt unexpectedly to him- 
 self, discovered a singular facility and charm of 
 speech, the exercise of which acquired for him a 
 ready local notoriety. It soon came lo be under- 
 
 stood that he desired to abandon his profession and 
 take up that of the law. During terms of Court he { 
 would spend his time at the county seat among the * 
 members of the Bar, who extended to him a ready 
 welcome. 
 
 It was not strange, therefore, that he should drift 
 into public life. In 1840 he was elected as a Dem- 
 ocrat to the Legislature from Monroe County, and 
 was an efficient member of that body. On his re- 
 turn home he qualified himself for admission to the 
 Bar and speedily rose to the front rank as an advo- 
 cate. His powers of oratory were captivating. With a 
 pure diction, charming and inimitable gestures, 
 clearness of statement, and a remarkable vein of sly 
 humor, his efforts before a jury told with irresistible 
 effect. He was chosen by the Legislature Prosecut- 
 ing Attorney for the Circuit in which he lived, and 
 in that position he fully discharged his duty to the 
 State, gained the esteem of the Bar, and seldom 
 failed to convict the offender of the law. 
 
 In_ stature he was somewhat tall and slender, and 
 with a straight, military bearing, he presented a dis- 
 tinguished appearance. His complexion was dark, 
 his head well poised, though not large, his address 
 pleasant and manner winning. He was exemplary 
 in his habits, a devoted husband and kind parent. 
 He was twice married, the first time to Miss James, 
 
 A' 
 
WILLIAM H. BISSELL, 
 
 of Monroe County, by whom he had two children, 
 both daughters. She died soon after the year 1840, 
 and Mr. B. married for his second wife a daughter 
 of Elias K. Kane, previously a United States Senator 
 from this State. She survived him but a short time, 
 and died without issue. 
 
 When the war with Mexico was declared in 1846, 
 Mr. Bissell enlisted and was elected Colonel of his 
 regiment, over Hon. Don Morrison, by an almost 
 unanimous vote, 807 to 6. Considering the limited 
 opportunities he had had, he evinced a high order of 
 military talent. On the bloody field of Buena Vista 
 he acquitted himself with intrepid and distinguished 
 ability, contributing with his regiment, the Second 
 Illinois, in no small degree toward saving the waver- 
 ing fortunes of our arms during that long and fiercely 
 contested battle. 
 
 After his return home, at the close of the war, he 
 
 was elected to Congress, his opponents being the 
 
 . Hons. P. B. Fouke and Joseph Gillespie. He served 
 
 two terms in Congress. He was an ardent politician. 
 
 During the great contest of 1850 he voted in favor 
 
 of the adjustment measures; but in 1854 he opposed 
 
 the repeal of the Missouri Compromise act and 
 
 therefore the Kansas-Nebraska bill of Douglas, and 
 
 thus became identified with the nascent Republican 
 
 party. 
 
 During his first Congressional term, while the 
 Southern members were following their old practice 
 of intimidating the North by bullying language, 
 and claiming most of the credit for victories in the 
 Mexican War, and Jefferson Davis claiming for the 
 Mississippi troops all the credit for success at Buena 
 Vista, Mr. Bissell bravely defended the Northern 
 troops; whereupon Davis challenged Bissell to a duel, 
 which was accepted. This matter was brought up 
 against Bissell when he was candidate for Governor 
 and during his term of office, as the Constitution of 
 this State forbade any duelist from holding a State 
 office. 
 
 In 1856, when the Republican party first put forth 
 a candidate, John C. Fremont, for President of the 
 United States, the same party nominated Mr. Bissell 
 for Governor of Illinois, and John Wood, of Quincy, 
 for Lieutenant Governor, while the Democrats nomi- 
 nated Hon. W. A. Richardson, of Adams County, 
 for Governor, and Col. R. J. Hamilton, of Cook 
 County, for Lieutenant Governor. The result of the 
 
 election was a plurality of 4,729 votes over Richard- 
 son. The American, or Know-Nothing, party had a 
 ticket in the field. The Legislature was nearly bal- 
 anced, but was politically opposed to the Governor. 
 His message to the Legislature was short and rather 
 ordinary, and was criticised for expressing the sup- 
 posed obligations of the people to the incorporators 
 of the Illinois Central Railroad Company and for re- 
 opening the slavery question by allusions to the 
 Kansas troubles. Late in the session an apportion- 
 ment bill, based upon the State census of 1855, was 
 passed, amid much partisan strife. The Governor 
 at first signed the bill and then vetoed it. A furious 
 debate followed, and the question whether the Gov- 
 ernor had the authority to recall a signature was 
 referred to the Courts, that of last resort deciding in 
 favor of the Governor. Two years afterward another 
 outrageous attempt was made for a re-apportionment 
 and to gerrymander the State, but the Legislature 
 failed to pass the bill over the veto of the Governor. 
 
 It was during Gov. Bissell's administration that 
 the notorious canal scrip fraud was brought to light, 
 implicating ex-Gov. Matteson and other prominent 
 State officials. The principal and interest, aggregat- J| 
 ing $255,500, was all recovered by the State except- 
 ing $27,500. (See sketch of Gov. Matteson.) 
 
 In 1859 an attempt was discovered to fraudu- 
 lently refund the Macalister and Stebbins bonds and 
 thus rob the State Treasury of nearly a quarter of a 
 million dollars. The State Government was impli- 
 cated ia this affair, and to this day remains unex- 
 plained or unatoned for. For the above, and other 
 matters previously mentioned, Gov. Bissell has been 
 severely criticised, and he has also been most shame- 
 fully libelled and slandered. 
 
 On account of exposure in the army, the remote 
 cause of a nervous form of disease gained entrance 
 into his system and eventually developed paraplegia, 
 affecting his lower extremities, which, while it left 
 his body in comparative health, deprived him of loco- 
 motion except by the aid of crutches. While he was 
 generally hopeful of ultimate recovery, this myste- 
 rious disease pursued him, without once relaxing its 
 stealthy hold, to the close of his life, March 18, 
 1860, over nine months before the expiration of his 
 gubernatorial term, at the early age of 48 years. He 
 died in the faith of the Roman Catholic Church, of 
 which he haii been a member since 1854. 
 

GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 '55 
 
 
 |:OHN WOOD, Governor 1860-1, and 
 the first settler of Quincy, 111., 
 was born in the town of Sempro- 
 nius (now Moravia), Cayuga Co.j 
 N. Y., Dec. 20, 1798. He was 
 the second child and only son of 
 Dr. Daniel Wood. His mother, 
 nee Catherine Crause, was of 
 German parentage, and died 
 while he was an infant. Dr. 
 Wood was a learned and skillful 
 physician, of classical attain- 
 ments and proficient in several 
 modern languages, who, after 
 serving throughout the Revolu- 
 tionary War as a Surgeon, settled on the land granted 
 him by the Government, and resided there a re- 
 spected and leading influence in his section until his 
 death, at the ripe age of 92 years. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, impelled by the spirit 
 of Western adventure then pervading everywhere, 
 left his home, Nov. 2, 1818, and passed the succeed- 
 ing winter in Cincinnati, Ohio. The following sum- 
 mer he pushed on to Illinois, landing at Shawneetown. 
 and spent the fall and following winter in Calhoun 
 County. In 1820, in company with Willard Keyes, 
 he settled in Pike County, about 30 miles southeast 
 of Quincy, where for the next two years he pursued 
 farming. In 1821 he visited "the Bluffs" (as the 
 present site of Quincy was called, then uninhabited) 
 and, pleased with its prospects, soon after purchased 
 a quarter-section of land near by, and in the follow- 
 ing fall (1822) erected near the river a small cabin, 
 
 18 x 20 feet, the first building in Quincy, of which 
 he then became the first and for some months the 
 only occupant. 
 
 About this time he visited his old friends in Pike 
 County, chief of whom was William Ross, the lead- 
 ing man in building up the village of Atlas, of that 
 county, which was thought then to be the possible 
 commencement of a city. One day they and others 
 were traveling together over the country between the 
 two points named, making observations on the com- 
 parative merits of the respective localities. On ap- 
 proaching the Mississippi near Mr. Wood's place, 
 the latter told his companions to follow him and he 
 would show them where he was going to build a city. 
 They went about a mile off the main trail, to a high 
 point, from which the view in every direction was 
 most magnificent, as it had been for ages and as yet 
 untouched by the hand of man. Before them swept 
 by the majestic Father of Waters, yet unburdened by 
 navigation. After Mr. Wood had expatiated at 
 length on the advantages of the situation, Mr. Ross 
 replied, " But it's too near Atlas ever to amount to 
 anything!" 
 
 Atlas is still a cultivated farm, and Quincy is a 
 city of over 30,000 population. 
 
 In 1824 Mr. Wood gave a jiewspaper notice, 
 as the law then prescribed, of his intention to apply 
 to the General Assembly for the formation of a new 
 county. This was done the following winter, result- 
 ing in the establishment of the present Adams 
 County. During the next summer Quincy was se- 
 lected as the county seat, it and the vicinity then 
 containing but four adult male residents and half 
 
JOHN WOOD. 
 
 that number of females. Sinoe that period Mr. 
 Wood resided at the place of his early adoption un- 
 til his death, and far more than any other man was 
 he identified with every measure of its progress and 
 history, and almost continuously kept in public posi- 
 tions. 
 
 He was one of the early town Trustees, and after 
 the place became a city he was often a member of 
 the City Council, many times elected Mayor, in the 
 face of a constant large opposition political majority. 
 In 1850 he was elected to the State Senate. In 1856, 
 on the organization of the Republican party, he was 
 chosen Lieutenant Governor of the State, on the 
 ticket with Wm. H. Bissell for Governor, and on the 
 death of the latter, March 18, 1860, he succeeded to 
 the Chief Executive chair, which he occupied until 
 Gov. Yates was inaugurated nearly ten months after- 
 ward. 
 
 Nothing very marked characterized the adminis- 
 tration of Gov. Wood. The great anti-slavery cam- 
 paign of 1860, resulting in the election of the honest 
 Illinoisan, Abraham Lincoln, to the Presidency of the 
 United States, occurred during the short period 
 while Mr. Wood was Governor, and the excitement 
 and issues of that struggle dominated over every 
 other consideration, indeed, supplanted them in a 
 great measure. The people of Illinois, during all 
 that time, were passing the comparatively petty strifes 
 under Bissell's administration to the overwhelming 
 issue of preserving the whole nation from destruction. 
 
 In 1861 ex-Gov. Wood was one of the five Dele- 
 gates from Illinois to the " Peace Convention " at 
 Washington, and in April of the same year, on the 
 breaking out of the Rebellion, he was appointed 
 
 Quartermaster-General of the State, which position 
 he held throughout the war. In 1 864 he took com- 
 mand as Colonel of the I37th 111. Vol. Inf., with 
 whom he served until the period of enlistment ex- 
 pired. 
 
 Politically, Gov. Wood was always actively identi- 
 fied with the Whig and Republican parties. Few 
 men have in personal experience comprehended so 
 many surprising and advancing local changes as 
 vested in the more than half century recollections of 
 Gov. Wood. Sixty-four years ago a solitary settler 
 on the "Bluffs," with no family, and no neighbor 
 within a score of miles, the world of civilization away 
 behind him, and the strolling red-man almost his 
 only visitant, he lived to see growing around him, 
 and under his auspices and aid, overspreading the 
 wild hills and scraggy forest a teaming city, second 
 only in size in the State, and surpassed nowhere in 
 beauty, prosperity and promise ; whose people recog- 
 nize as with a single voice the proverbial honor and 
 liberality that attach to the name and lengthened 
 life of their pioneer settler, "the old Governor." 
 
 Gov. Wood was twice married, first in January, 
 1826, to Ann M. Streeter, daughter of Joshua Streeter, 
 formerly of Salem, Washington Co., N. Y. They had 
 eight children. Mrs. W. died Oct. 8, 1863, and in 
 June, 1865, Gov. Wood married Mrs. Mary A., widow 
 of Rev. Joseph T. Holmes. Gov. Wood died June 4, 
 1880, at his residence in Quincy. Four of his eight 
 children are now living, namely: Ann E., wife of 
 Gen. John Tillson; Daniel C., who married Mary J. 
 Abernethy; John, Jr., who married Josephine Skinner, 
 and Joshua S., who married Annie Bradley. The 
 last mentioned now resides at Atchison, Kansas, and 
 all the rest are still at Quincy. 
 
it 
 
rr; 
 
 GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS, 
 
 '59 
 
 ICHARD YATES, the "War 
 Governor," 1861-4, was born 
 Jan. 18, 1818, on the banks of 
 the Ohio River, at Warsaw, 
 Gallatin Co., Ky. His father 
 moved in 1831 to Illinois, and 
 after stopping for a time in 
 Springfield, settled at Island 
 Grove, Sangamon County. Here, 
 after attending school, Richard joined 
 the family. Subsequently he entered 
 Illinois College at Jacksonville, 
 where, in 1837, he graduated with 
 first honors. He chose for his pro- 
 fession the law, the Hon. J. J. Har- 
 din being his instructor. After ad- 
 mission to the Bar he soon rose to distinction as an 
 advocate. 
 
 Gifted with a fluent and ready oratory, he soon 
 appeared in the political hustings, and, being a 
 passionate admirer of the great Whig leader of the 
 West, Henry Clay, he joined his political fortunes to 
 the party of his idol. In 1 840 he engaged with great 
 ardor in the exciting " hard cider " campaign for 
 Harrison. Two years later he was elected to the 
 Legislature from Morgan County, a Democratic 
 stronghold. He served three or four terms in the 
 Legislature, and such was the fascination of his ora- 
 tory that by 1850 his large Congressional District, 
 extending from Morgan and Sangamon Counties 
 north to include LaSalle, unanimously tendered him 
 the Whig nomination for Congress. His Democratic 
 opponent was Maj. Thomas L. Harris, a very pop- 
 ular man who had won distinction at the battle of 
 Cerro Gordo, in the Mexican War, and who had 
 beaten Hon. Stephen T. Logan for the same position, 
 
 two years before, by a large majority. Yates was 
 elected. Two years later he was re-elected, over 
 John Calhoun. 
 
 It was during Yates' second term in Congress that 
 the great question of the repeal of the Missouri Com- 
 promise was agitated, and the bars laid down for re- 
 opening the dreaded anti-slavery question. He took 
 strong grounds against the repeal, and thus became 
 identified with the rising Republican party. Conse- 
 quently he fell into the minority in his district, which 
 was pro-slavery. Even then, in a third contest, he 
 fell behind Major Harris only 200 votes, after the 
 district had two years before given Pierce 2,000 
 majority for President. 
 
 The Republican State Convention of 1860 met at 
 Decatur May 9, and nominated for the office of Gov- 
 ernor Mr. Yates, in preference to Hon. Norman B. 
 Judd, of Chicago, and Leonard Swett, of Blooming- 
 ton, two of the ablest men of the State, who were 
 also candidates before the Convention. Francis A. 
 Hoffman, of DuPage County, was nominated for 
 Lieutenant Governor. This was the year when Mr. 
 Lincoln was a candidate for President, a period re- 
 membered as characterized by the great whirlpool 
 which precipitated the bloody War of the Rebellion. 
 The Douglas Democrats nominated J. C. Allen of 
 Crawford County, for Governor, and Lewis W. Ross, 
 of Fulton County, for Lieutenant Governor. The 
 Breckenridge Democrats and the Bell-Everett party 
 had also full tickets in the field. After a most fear- 
 ful campaign, the result of the election gave Mr. 
 Yates 172,196 votes, and Mr. Allen 159,253. Mr. 
 Yates received over a thousand more votes than did 
 Mr. Lincoln himself. 
 
 Gov. Yates occupied the chair of State during the 
 
i6o 
 
 RICHARD YATES. 
 
 most critical period of our country's history. In the 
 fate of the nation was involved that of each State. 
 The life struggle of the former derived its sustenance 
 from the loyalty of the latter; and Gov. Yates 
 seemed to realize the situation, and proved himself 
 both loyal and wise in upholding the Government. 
 He had a deep hold upon the affections of the 
 people, won by his moving eloquence and genial 
 manners. Erect and symmetrical in person, of pre- 
 possessing appearance, with a winning address and a 
 magnetic power, few men possessed more of the ele- 
 ments of popularity. His oratory was scholarly and 
 captivating, his hearers hardly knowing why they 
 were transported. He was social and convivial. In 
 the latter respect he was ultimately carried too far. 
 
 The very creditable military efforts of this State 
 during the War of the Rebellion, in putting into the 
 field the enormous number of about 200,000 soldiers, 
 were ever promptly and ably seconded by his excel- 
 lency ; and the was ambitious to deserve the title of 
 "the soldier's friend." Immediately after the battle of 
 Shiloh he repaired to the field of carnage to look 
 after the wounded, and his appeals for aid were 
 promptly responded to by the people. His procla- 
 mations calling for volunteers were impassionate 
 appeals, urging upon the people the duties and re- 
 quirements of patriotism ; and his special message 
 in 1863 to the Democratic Legislature of this State 
 pleading for material aid for the sick and wounded 
 soldiers of Illinois regiments, breathes a de'ep fervor 
 of noble sentiment and feeling rarely equaled in 
 beauty or felicity of expression. Generally his mes- 
 sages on political and civil affairs were able and com- 
 prehensive. During his administration, however, 
 there were no civil events of an engrossing character, 
 although two years of his time were replete with 
 partisan quarrels of great bitterness. Military ar- 
 rests, Knights of the Golden Circle, riot in Fulton 
 County, attempted suppression of the Chicago Times 
 and the usurping State Constitutional Convention of 
 1862, were the chief local topics that were exciting 
 during the Governor's term. This Convention assem- 
 bled Jan. 7, and at once took the high position that 
 the law calling it was no longer binding, and that it 
 had supreme power; that it represented a virtual 
 assemblage of the whole people of the State, and was 
 sovereign in the exercise of all power necessary to 
 effect a peaceable revolution of the State Government 
 
 and to the re-establishment of one for the " happiness, 
 prosperity and freedom of the citizens," limited only 
 by the Federal Constitution. Notwithstanding the 
 law calling the Convention required its members to 
 take an oath to support the Constitution of the State 
 as well as that of the general Government, they 
 utterly refused to take such oath. They also as- 
 sumed legislative powers and passed several import- 
 ant "laws!" Interfering with the (then) present 
 executive duties, Gov. Yates was provoked to tell 
 them plainly that " he did not acknowledge the right 
 of the Convention to instruct him in the performance 
 of his duty." 
 
 In 1863 the Governor astonished the Democrats 
 by " proroguing " their Legislature. This body, after 
 a recess, met June 2, that year, and soon began to 
 waste time upon various partisan resolutions ; and, 
 while the two houses were disagreeing upon the 
 question of adjourning sine die, the Governor, having 
 the authority in such cases, surprised them all by 
 adjourning them " to the Saturday next preceding the 
 first Monday in January, 1865 ! " This led to great 
 excitement and confusion, and to a reference of the 
 Governor's act to the Supreme Court, who decided in 
 his favor. Then it was the Court's turn to receive 
 abuse for weeks and months afterward. 
 
 During the autumn of 1864 a conspiracy was de- 
 tected at Chicago which had for its object the liber- 
 ation of the prisoners of war at Camp Douglas, the 
 burning of the city and the inauguration of rebellion 
 in the North. Gen. Sweet, who had charge of the 
 camp at the time, first had his suspicions of danger 
 aroused by a number of enigmatically worded letters 
 which passed through the Camp postoffice. A de- 
 tective afterward discovered that the rebel Gen. 
 Marmaduke was in the city, under an assumed 
 name, and he, with other rebel officers Grenfell, 
 Morgan, Cantrell, Buckner Morris, and Charles 
 Walsh was arrested, most of whom were convicted 
 by a court-martial at Cincinnati and sentenced to 
 imprisonment, Grenfell to be hung. The sentence 
 of the latter was afterward commuted to imprison- 
 ment for life, and all the others, after nine months' 
 imprisonment, were pardoned. 
 
 In March, 1873, Gov. Yates was appointed a Gov- 
 ernment Director of the Union Pacific Railroad, in 
 which office he continued until his decease, at St. 
 Louis, Mo., on the 27th of November following. 
 

GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 
 Richard J. Ogles 
 
 ICHARD J. OGLESBY, Gov- 
 ernor 1865-8, and re-elected 
 in 1872 and 1884, was born 
 July 25, 1824, in Oldham Co., 
 Ky. ( the State which might 
 be considered the " mother of 
 Illinois Governors." Bereft of 
 his parents at the tender age 
 of eight years, his early education 
 was neglected. When 12 years of 
 age, and after he had worked a year 
 and a half at the carpenter's trade, 
 he removed with an uncle, Willis 
 Oglesby, into whose care he had 
 been committed, to Decatur, this 
 State, where he continued his ap- 
 prenticeship as a mechanic, working six months for 
 Hon. E. O. Smith. 
 
 In 1844 he commenced studying law at Spring- 
 field, with Judge Silas Robbins, and read with him 
 one year. He was admitted to the Bar in 184^, and 
 commenced the practice of his chosen profession at 
 Sullivan, the county seat of Moultrie County. 
 
 The next year the war with Mexico was com- 
 menced, and in June, 1846, Mr. Oglesby volunteered, 
 was elected First Lieutenant of Co. C, Fourth Illinois 
 Regiment of Volunteers, and participated in the bat- 
 tles of Vera Cruz and Cerro Gordo. 
 
 On his return he sought to perfect his law studies 
 by attending a course of lectures at Louisville, but 
 on the breaking out of the California "gold fever " in 
 1849, he crossed the plains and mountains to the 
 new Eldorado, driving a six-mule team, with a com- 
 
 pany of eight men, Henry Prather being the leader. 
 
 In 1852 he returned home to Macon County, and 
 was placed that year by the Whig party on the ticket 
 of Presidential Electors. In 1856 he visited Europe, 
 Asia and Africa, being absent 20 months. On his 
 return home he resu;ned the practice of law, as a 
 member of the firm of Gallagher, Wait & Oglesby. 
 In 1858 he was the Republican no.ainee for the 
 Lower House of Congress, but was defeated by the 
 Hon. James C. Robinson, Democrat. In 1860 he 
 was elected to the Illinois State Senate ; and on the 
 evening the returns of this election were coming in, 
 Mr. Oglesby had a fisticuff encounter with " Cerro 
 Gordo Williams," in which he came out victorious, 
 and which was regarded as " the first fight of the 
 Rebellion." The following spring, when the war 
 had commenced in earnest, his ardent nature 
 quickly responded to the demands of patriotism and 
 he enlisted. The extra session of the Legislature 
 elected him Colonel of the Eighth Illinois Infantry, 
 the second one in the State raised to suppress the 
 great Rebellion. 
 
 He w is shortly entrusted with important com- 
 mands. For a time he was stationed at Bird's Point 
 and Cairo; in April he was promoted Brigadier Gen- 
 eral ; at Fort Donelson his brigade was in the van, 
 being stationed on the right of General Grant's army 
 and the first brigade to be attacked. He lost 500 
 men before re-inforcements arrived. Many of these 
 men were from Macon County. He was engaged in 
 the battle of Corinth, and, in a brave charge at this 
 place, was shot in the left lung with an ounce ball, 
 and was carried from the field in expectation of im- 
 
1 6 4 
 
 RICHARD J. OGLESBY. 
 
 mediate death. That rebel ball he carries to this 
 day. On his partial recovery he was promoted as 
 Major General, for gallantry, his commission to rank 
 from November, 1862. In the spring of 1863 he 
 was assigned to the command of the i6th Army 
 Corps, but, owing to inability from the effects of his 
 wound, he relinquished this command in July, that 
 year. Gen. Grant, however, refused to accept his 
 resignation, and he was detailed, in December follow- 
 ing, to court-martial and try the Surgeon General of 
 the Army at Washington, where he remained until 
 May, 1864, when he returned home. 
 The Republican, or Union, State Convention of 
 
 1864 was held at Springfield, May 25, when Mr. 
 Oglesby was nominated for the office of Governor, 
 while other candidates before the Convention were 
 Allen C. Fuller, of Boone, Jesse K. Dubois,of Sanga- 
 mon, and John M. Palmer, of Macoupin. Wm. 
 Bross, of Chicago, was nominated for Lieutenant 
 Governor. On the Democratic State ticket were 
 James C. Robinson, of Clark, for Governor, and S. 
 Corning Judd, of Fulton, for Lieutenant Governor. 
 The general election gave Gen. Oglesby a majority 
 of about 31,000 votes. The Republicans had also a 
 majority in both the Legislature and in the repre- 
 sentation in Congress. 
 
 Gov. Oglesby was duly inaugurated Jan. 17, 1865. 
 The day before the first time set for his installation 
 death visited his home at Decatur, and took from it 
 his only son, an intelligent and sprightly lad of six 
 years, a great favorite of the bereaved parents. This 
 caused the inauguration to be postponed a week. 
 
 The political events of the Legislative session of 
 
 1865 were the election of ex-Gov. Yates to the 
 United States Senate, and the ratification of the 131)1 
 amendment to the Constitution of the United States, 
 abolishing slavery. This session also signalized 
 itself by repealing the notorious " black laws," part 
 of which, although a dead letter, had held their place 
 upon the statute books since 1819. Also, laws re- 
 quiring the registration of voters, and establishing a 
 State Board of Equalization, were passed by this Leg- 
 islature. But the same body evinced that it was cor- 
 ruptly influenced by a mercenary lobby, as it adopted 
 some bad legislation, over the Governor's veto, nota- 
 bly an amendment to a charter for a Chicago horse 
 railway, granted in 1859 for 25 years, and now 
 sought to be extended 99 years. As this measure 
 was promptly passed over his veto by both branches 
 of the Legislature, he deemed it useless further to 
 attempt to check their headlong career. At this 
 session no law of a general useful character or public 
 interest was perfected, unless we count such the 
 turning over of the canal to Chicago to be deepened. 
 The session of 1867 was still more productive of 
 private and special acts. Many omnibus bills were 
 proposed, and some passed. The contests over the 
 location of the Industrial College, the Capital, the 
 
 Southern Penitentiary, and the canal enlargement 
 and Illinois River improvement, dominated every 
 thing else. 
 
 During the year r872, it became evident that if 
 the Republicans could re-elect Mr. Oglesby to the 
 office of Governor, they could also elect him to the 
 United States Senate, which they desired to do. 
 Accordingly they re-nominated him for the Execu- 
 tive chair, and placed upon the ticket with him for 
 Lieutenant Governor, John L. Beveridge, of Cook 
 County. On the other side the Democrats put into 
 the field Gastavus Koerner for Governor and John 
 C. Black for Lieutenant Governor. The election 
 gave the Republican ticket majorities ranging from 
 3S>334 to 56,174, the Democratic defection being 
 caused mainly by their having an old-time Whig and 
 Abolitionist, Horace Greeley, on the national ticket 
 for President. According to the general understand- 
 ing had beforehand, as soon as the Legislature met 
 it elected Gov. Oglesby to the United States Senate, 
 whereupon Mr. Beveridge became Governor. Sena- 
 tor Oglesby 's term expired March 4, i879,*having 
 served his party faithfully and exhibited an order of 
 statesmanship beyond criticism. 
 
 During the campaign of 1884 Mr. Oglesby was 1 
 nominated for a "third term" as Executive of the 
 State of Illinois, against Carter H. Harrison, Mayor 
 of Chicago, nominated by the Democrats. Both 
 gentlemen "stumped " the State, and while the peo- " 
 pie elected a Legislature which was a tie on a joint 1 
 ballot, as between the two parties, they gave the I 
 jovial " Dick" Oglesby a majority of 15,018 for Gov- J 
 ernor, and he was inaugurated Jan. 30, 1885. The 
 Legislature did not fully organize until this date, on 
 account of its equal division between the two main 
 parties and the consequent desperate tactics of each 
 party to checkmate the latter in the organization of 
 the House. 
 
 Gov. Oglesby is a fine-appearing, affable man, with 
 regular, well defined features and rotund face. In 
 stature he is a little above medium height, of a large 
 frame and somewhat fleshy. His physical appear- 
 ance is striking and prepossessing, while his straight- 
 out, not to say bluff, manner and speech are well 
 calculated favorably to impress the average masses. 
 Ardent in feeling and strongly committed to the pol- 
 icies of his party, he intensifies Republicanism 
 among Republicans, while at the same time his iovial 
 and liberal manner prevents those of the opposite 
 party from hating him. 
 
 He is quite an effective stump orator. With vehe- 
 ment, passionate and scornful tone and gestures, 
 tremendous physical power, which in speaking he 
 exercises to the utmost ; with frequent descents to 
 the grotesque; and with abundant homely compari- 
 sons or frontier figures, expressed in the broadest 
 vernacular and enforced with stentorian emphasis, 
 he delights a promiscuous audience beyond measure. 
 
1/fcfi 
 
 Ar, 
 

GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 167 
 
 JOHN M. PALMES 
 
 ||OHN Me AULEY PALMER, Gov- 
 ernor 1869-72, was born on 
 Eagle Creek, Sco'tt Co., Ky., 
 Sept. 13, 1817. During his in- 
 fancy, his father, who had been 
 a soldier in the war of 1812, re- 
 moved to Christian Co., Ky., 
 where lands were cheap. Here 
 the future Governor of the great 
 Prairie State spent his childhood 
 and received such meager school- 
 ing as the new and sparsely set- 
 tled country, afforded. To this 
 he added materially by diligent 
 reading, for which he evinced an 
 early aptitude. His father, an ardent Jackson man, 
 was also noted for his anti-slavery sentiments, which 
 he thoroughly impressed upon his children. In 1831 
 he emigrated to Illinois, settling in Madison County. 
 Here the labor of improving a farm was pursued for 
 about two years, when the death of Mr. Palmer's 
 mother broke up the family. About this time Alton 
 College was opened, on the "manual labor " system, 
 and in the spring of 1834 young Palmer, with his 
 elder brother, Elihu, entered this school and remained 
 1 8 months. Next, for over three years, he tried 
 variously coopering, peddling and school-teaching. 
 
 During the summer of 1838 he formed the ac- 
 quaintance of Stephen A. Douglas, then making his 
 
 first canvass for Congress. Young, eloquent and in 
 political accord with Mr. Palmer, he won his confi- 1 
 dence, fired his ambition and fixed his purpose. The 
 following winter, while teaching near Canton, he be- J, 
 gan to devote his spare time to a desultory reading t 
 of law, and in the spring entered a law office at Car- I 
 linville, making his home with his elder brother, I 
 Elihu. (The latter was a learned clergyman, of con- 
 siderable orginality of thought and doctrine.) On 
 the next meeting of the Supreme Court he was ad- 
 mitted to the Bar, Douglas being one of his examiners. 
 He was not immediately successful in his profession, 
 and would have located elsewhere than Carlinville 
 had he the requisite means. Thus his early poverty 
 was a blessing in disguise, for to it he now attributes 
 the success of his life. 
 
 From 1839 on, while he diligently pursued his 
 profession, he participated more or less in local 
 politics. In 1843 he became Probate Judge. In 
 1 847 he was elected to the State Constitutional Con- 
 vention, where he took a leading part. In 1852 he 
 was elected to the State Senate, and at the special 
 session of February, 1854, true to the anti-slavery 
 sentiments bred in him, he took a firm stand in op- 
 position to the repeal of the Missouri Compromise; 
 and when the Nebraska question became a party 
 issue he refused to receive a re-nomination for the 
 Senatorship at the hands of the Democracy, issuing 
 a circular to that effect. A few weeks afterward, 
 
 
 
i68 
 
 JOHN MC AULEY PALMER. 
 
 however, hesitating to break with his party, he par- 
 ticipated in a Congressional Convention which nomi- 
 T. L. Harris against Richard Yates, and which 
 unqualifiedly approved the principles of the Kansas- 
 Nebraska act. But later in the campaign he made 
 the plunge, ran for the Senate as an Anti-Nebraska 
 Democrat, and was elected. The following winter 
 he put in nomination for the United States Senate 
 Mr. Trumbull, and was one of the five steadfast men 
 who voted for him until all the Whigs came to their 
 support and elected their man. 
 
 In 1856 he was Chairman of the Republican State 
 Convention at Bloomington. He ran for Congress in 
 r859, but was defeated. In 1860 he was Republican 
 Presidential Elector for the State at large. In 1861 
 he was appointed one of the five Delegates (all Re- 
 publicans) sent by Illinois to the peace congress at 
 Washington. 
 
 When the civil conflict broke out, he offered his 
 services to his country, and was elected Colonel of the 
 I I4th 111. Vol. Inf., and participated in the engagements 
 I at Island No. 10 ; at Farmington, where he skillfully 
 J extricated his command from a dangerous position ; 
 at Stone River, where his division for several hours, 
 Dec. 31, 1862, held the advance and stood like a 
 I rock, and for his gallantry there he was made Major 
 General; at Chickamauga, where his and Van Cleve's 
 divisions for two hours maintained their position 
 when they were cut off by overpowering numbers. 
 Under Gen. Sherman, he was assigned to the I4th 
 Army Corps and participated in the Atlanta campaign. 
 At Peach-Tree Creek his prudence did much to avert 
 disaster. In February, 1865, Gen. Palmer was as- 
 signed to the military administration of Kentucky, 
 which was a delicate post. That State was about 
 half rebel and half Union, and those of the latter 
 element were daily fretted by the loss of their slaves. 
 He, who had been bred to the rules of common law, 
 trembled at the contemplation of his extraordinary 
 power over the persons and property of his fellow 
 men, with which he was vested in his capacity as 
 military Governor ; and he exhibited great caution in 
 the execution of the duties of his post. 
 
 Gen. Palmer was nominated for Governor of Illi- 
 nois by the Republican State Convention which met 
 at Peori.i May 6, 1868, and his nomination would 
 probably have been made by acclamation had he not 
 persistently declared that he could not accept a can- 
 
 didature for the office. The result of the ensuing 
 election gave Mr. Palmer a majority of 44,707 over 
 John R. Eden, the Democratic nominee. 
 
 On the meeting of the Legislature in January, 
 1869, the first thing to arrest public attention was 
 that portion of the Governor's message which took 
 broad State's rights ground. This and some minor 
 points, which were more in keeping with the Demo- 
 cratic sentiment, constituted the entering wedge f >r 
 the criticisms and reproofs he af:erward received 
 from the Republican party, and ultimuely resulted 
 in his entire aleniation from the latter element. The 
 Legislature just referred to was noted for the intro- 
 duction of numerous bills in the interest of private 
 parties, which were embarrassing to the Governor. 
 Among the public acts passed was that which limited 
 railroad charges for passenger travel to a maximum 
 of three cents per mile ; and it was passed over the 
 Governor's veto. Also, they passed, over his veto, 
 the "tax-grabbing law" to pay railroad subscriptions, 
 "the Chicago Lake Front "bill, etc. The new State 
 Constitution of 1870, far superior to the old, was a 
 peaceful " revolution " which took place during Gov. 
 Palmer's term of office. The suffering caused by the 
 great Chicago Fire of October, 1871, was greatly 
 alleviated by the prompt responses of his excellency. 
 
 Since the expiration of Gov. Palmers 's term, he has 
 been somewhat prominent in Illinois politics, and 
 has been talked of by many, especially in the Dem- 
 ocratic party, as the best man in the State for a 
 United States Senator. His business during life has 
 been that of the law. Few excel him in an accurate 
 appreciation of the depth and scope of its principles- 
 The great number of his able veto messages abun- 
 dantly testify not only this but also a rare capacity to 
 point them out. He is a logical and cogent reasoner 
 and an interesting, forcible and convincing speaker, 
 though not fluent or ornate. Without brilliancy, his 
 dealings are rather with facts and ideas than with 
 appeals to passions and prejudices. He is a patriot 
 and a statesman of very high order. Physically he is 
 above the medium height, of robust frame, ruddy 
 complexion and sanguine-nervous temperament. He 
 has a large cranial development, is vivacious, social 
 in disposition, easy of approach, unostentatious in his 
 habits of life, democratic in his habits and manners 
 and is a true American in his fundamental principles 
 of statesmanship. 
 

,-,-. 
 
GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 171 
 
 OHN LOWRiE BEVER- 
 IDGE, Governor 1 87 3-6, was 
 born in the town of Green- 
 wich, Washington Co., N. Y., 
 July 6, 1824. His parents 
 were George and Ann Bever- 
 idge. His father's parents, An- 
 drew and Isabel Beveridge, be- 
 fore their marriage emigrated 
 from Scotland just before the 
 Revolutionary War, settling in 
 Washington County. His father 
 was the eldest of eight brothers, the 
 youngest of whom was 60 years of 
 age when the first one of the num- 
 ber died. His mother's parents, 
 James and Agnes Hoy, emigrated 
 from Scotland .at the close of the 
 Revolutionary War, settling also in 
 Washington Co., N. Y., with their 
 first-born, whose " native land "was 
 the wild ocean. His parents and 
 grandparents lived beyond the time 
 allotted to man, their average age 
 being over 80 years. They belonged to the " Asso- 
 ciate Church," a seceding Presbyterian body of 
 
 America from the old Scotch school ; and so rigid 
 was the training of young Beveridge that he never 
 heard a sermon from any other minister except that 
 of his own denomination until he was in his igth 
 year. Later in life he became a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, which relation he still 
 holds. 
 
 Mr. Beveridge received a good common-school ed- 
 ucation, but his parents, who could obtain a livelihood 
 only by rigid economy and industry, could not send 
 him away to college. He was raised upon a farm, 
 and was in his i8th year when the family removed 
 to De Kalb County, this State, when that section was 
 very sparsely settled. Chicago had less than 7,000 
 inhabitants. In this wild West he continued as a 
 farm laborer, teaching school during the winter 
 months to supply the means of an education. In the 
 fall of 1842 he attended one term at the academy at 
 Granville, Putnam Co., 111., and subsequently several 
 terms at the Rock River Seminary at Mount Morris, 
 Ogle Co., 111., completing the academic course. At 
 this time, the fall of 1845, his parents and brothers 
 were anxious to have him go to college, even though 
 he had not money sufficient; but, njt willing to bur- 
 den the family, he packed his trunk and with only 
 $40 in money started South to seek his fortune. 
 
I 7 2 
 
 JOHN L. BEVERTDGE. 
 
 Poor, alone, without friends and influence, he thus 
 entered upon the battle of life. 
 
 First, he taught school in Wilson, Overton and 
 Jackson Cos., Tenn., in which experience he under- 
 went considerable mental drill, both in book studies 
 and in the ways of the world. He read law and was 
 admitted to the Bar, in the South, but did not learn 
 to love the institution of slavery, although he ad- 
 mired many features of Southern character. In De- 
 cember, 1847, he returned North, and Jan. 20, 1848, 
 he married Miss Helen M. Judson, in the old Clark- 
 Street M. E. church in Chicago, her father at that 
 time being Pastor of the society there. In the spring 
 of 1848 he returned with his wife to Tennessee, 
 where his two children, Alia May and Philo Judson, 
 were born. 
 
 In the fall of 1849, through the mismanagement 
 of an associate, he lost what little he had accumu- 
 lated and was left in debt. He soon managed to 
 earn means to pay his debts, returned to De Kalb 
 Co., 111., and entered upon the practice of his pro- 
 fession at Sycamore, the county seat. On arrival 
 from the South he had but one-quarter of a dollar in 
 money, and scanty clothing and bedding for himself 
 and family. He borrowed a little money, practiced 
 law, worked in public offices, kept books for some of 
 the business men of the town, and some railroad en- 
 gineering, till the spring of 1854, when he removed 
 to Evanston, 12 miles north of Chicago, a place then 
 but recently laid out, under the supervision of the 
 Northwestern University, a Methodist institution. 
 Of the latter his father-in-law was then financial 
 agent and business manager. Here Mr. Beveridge 
 prospered, and the next year (1855) opened a law 
 office in Chicago, where he found the battle some- 
 what hard; but he persevered with encouragement 
 and increasing success. 
 
 Aug. 12, 1861, his law partner, Gen. John F. 
 Farnsworth, secured authority to raise a regiment of 
 cavalry, and authorized Mr. Beveridge to raise a 
 company for it. He succeeded in a few days in rais- 
 ing the company, of course enlisting himself along 
 with it. The regiment rendezvoused at St. Charles, 
 111., was mustered in Sept. 1 8, and on its organiza- 
 tion Mr. B. was elected Second Major. It was at- 
 tached, Oct. ii, to the Eighth Cavalry and to the 
 Army of the Potomac. He served with the regiment 
 until November, 1863, participating in some 40 bat- 
 
 - 
 
 tles and skirmishes : was at Fair Oaks, the seven days' 
 fight around Richmond, Fredericksburg, Chancellors- 
 ville and Gettysburg. He commanded the regiment 
 the greater part of the summer of 1863, and it was while 
 lying in camp this year that he originated the policy 
 of encouraging recruits as well as the fighting capac- 
 ity of the soldiery, by the wholesale furlough system. 
 It worked so well that many other officers adopted 
 it. In the fall of this year he recruited another com- 
 pany, against heavy odds, in January, 1864, was 
 commissioned Colonel of the lyth 111. Cav., and 
 skirmished around in Missouri, concluding with the 
 reception of the surrender of Gen. Kirby Smith's 
 army in Arkansas. In 1865 he commanded various 
 sub-districts in the Southwest. He was mustered 
 out Feb. 6, 1866, safe from the casualties of war and 
 a stouter man than when he first enlisted. His men 
 idolized him. 
 
 He then returned to Chicago, to practice law, with 
 no library and no clientage, and no political experi- 
 ence except to help others into office. In the fall of! 
 1866 he was elected Sheriff of Cook County, serving 
 one term; next, until November, 1870, he practiced 1 
 law and closed up the unfinished business of his 
 office. He was then elected State Senator; in No- 
 vember, 1871, he was elected Congressman at large; 
 in November, 1872, he was elected Lieutenant Gov- 
 ernor on the ticket with Gov. Oglesby ; the latter be- 
 ing elected to the U. S. Senate, Mr. Beveridge became 
 Governor, Jan. 21, 1873. Thus, inside of a few 
 weeks, he was Congressman at large, Lieutenant 
 Governor and Governor. The principal events oc- 
 curring during Gov. Beveridge 's administration were: 
 The completion of the revision of the statutes, begun 
 in 1869; the partial success of the "farmers' move- 
 ment;" "Haines" Legislature " and Illinois' exhibit at 
 the Centennial. 
 
 Since the close of his gubernatorial term ex-Gov. 
 Beveridge has been a member of the firm of Bever- 
 idge & Dewey, bankers and dealers in commercial 
 paper at 7 1 Dearborn Street (McCormick Block), 
 Chicago, and since November, 1881, he has also been 
 Assistant United States Treasurer : office in the 
 Government Building. His residence is still at Ev- 
 anston. 
 
 He has a brother and two sisters yet residing in 
 De Kalb County James H. Beveridge, Mrs. Jennet 
 Henry and Mrs. Isabel French. 
 
"" 
 
 
 
GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 '75 
 
 SHMLB Y M. CULLOM, 
 
 HELBY M. CULLOM, Gover- 
 nor 1877-83,13 the sixth child 
 of the late Richard N. Cullom, 
 and was born Nov. 22, 1829,111 
 Wayne Co., Ky., where his fa- 
 ther then resided, and whence 
 both the Illinois and Tennessee 
 branches of the family originated. In 
 the following year the family emi- 
 grated to the vicinity of Washington, 
 Tazewell Co., 111., when that section 
 was very sparsely settled. They lo- 
 cated on Deer Creek, in a grove at 
 the time occupied by a party of In- 
 dians, attracted there by the superior 
 hunting and fishing afforded in that 
 vicinity. The following winter was 
 known as the " hard winter," the snow [being very 
 deep and lasting and the weather severely cold; and 
 the family had to subsist mainly on boiled corn or 
 hominy, and some wild game, for several weeks. In 
 the course of time Mr. R. N. Cullom became a prom- 
 inent citizen and was several times elected to the 
 Legislature, both before and after the removal of the 
 capital from Vandalia to Springfield. He died about 
 
 Until about 19 years of age young Cullom grew up 
 to agricultural pursuits, attending school as he had 
 opportunity during the winter. Within this time, 
 however, he spent several months teaching school, 
 
 and in the following summer he "broke prairie "with 
 an ox team for the neighbors. With the money ob- 
 tained by these various ventures, he undertook a 
 course of study at the Rock River Seminary, a 
 Methodist institution at Mt. Morris, Ogle County; 
 but the sudden change to the in-door life of a stu- 
 dent told severely upon his health, and he was taken 
 home, being considered in a hopeless condition. While 
 at Mt. Morris he heard Hon. E. B. Washburne make 
 his first speech. 
 
 On recovering health, Mr. Cullom concluded to 
 study law, under the instruction of Abraham Lincoln, 
 at Springfield, who had by this time attained some 
 notoriety as an able lawyer; but the latter, being ab- 
 sent from his office most of the time, advised Mr. 
 Cullom to enter the office of Stuart & Edwards. 
 After about a year of study there, however, his health 
 failed again, and he was obliged to return once more 
 to out-door life. Accordingly he bought hogs for 
 packing, for A. G. Tyng, in 1'eoria, and while he re- 
 gained his health he gained in purse, netting $400 in 
 a few weeks. Having been admitted to the Bar, he 
 went to Springfield, where he was soon elected City 
 Attorney, on the Anti-Nebraska ticket. 
 
 In 1856 he ran on the Fillmore ticket as a Presi- 
 dential Elector, and, although failing to be elected as 
 such, he was at the same time elected a Representa- 
 tive in the Legislature from Sangamon County, by a 
 local coalition of the American and Republican par- 
 ties. On the organization of the House, he received 
 the vote of the Fillmore men for Speaker. Practicing 
 
i 7 6 
 
 SHELB Y M. CULLOM. 
 
 law until 1860, he was again elected to the Legisla- 
 ture, as a Republican, while the county went Demo- 
 cratic on the Presidential ticket. In January follow- 
 ing he was elected Speaker, probably the youngest 
 man who had ever presided over an Illinois Legis- 
 lature. After the session of 1861, he was a candidate 
 for the State Constitutional Convention called for 
 that year, but was defeated, and thus escaped the 
 disgrace of being connected with that abortive party 
 scheme to revolutionize the State Government. In 
 1862 he was a candidate for the State Senate, but 
 was defeated. The same year, however, he was ap- 
 pointed by President Lincoln on a Government 
 Commission, in company with Gov. Boutwell of 
 Massachusetts and Cnarles A. Dana, since of the 
 New York Sun, to investigate the affairs of the 
 Quartermaster's and Commissary Departments at 
 Cairo. He devoted several months to this duty. 
 
 In 1864 he entered upon a larger political field, 
 being nominated as the Republican candidate for 
 Congress from the Eighth (Springfield) District, in 
 opposition to the incumbent, JohnT. Stuart, who had 
 been elected in 1862 by about 1,500 majority over 
 
 I Leonard Swett, then of Bloomington, now of Chicago. 
 The result was the election of Mr. Cullom in Novem- 
 ber following by a majority of 1,785. In 1866 he 
 was re-elected to Congress, over Dr. E. S. Fowler, by 
 the magnificent majority of 4,103! In 1868 he was 
 again a candidate, defeating the Hon. B. S. Edwards, 
 another of his old preceptors, by 2,884 votes. 
 
 During his first term in Congress he served on the 
 Committee on Foreign Affairs and Expenditures in 
 the Treasury Department; in his second term, on 
 the Committees on Foreign Affairs and on Territories ; 
 and in his third term he succeeded Mr. Ashley, of 
 Ohio, to the Chairmanship of the latter. He intro- 
 duced a bill in the House, to aid in the execution -of 
 law in Utah, which caused more consternation among 
 the Mormons than any measure had previously, but 
 which, though it passed the House, failed to pass the 
 Senate. 
 
 The Republican Convention which met May 25, 
 1876, nominated Mr. Cullom for Governor, while the 
 other contestant was Gov. Beveridge. For Lieuten- 
 ant-Governor they nominated Andrew Shuman, editor 
 of the Chicago Jourtial. For the same offices the 
 Democrats, combining with the Anti-Monopolists, 
 placed in nomination Lewis Steward, a wealthy 
 
 farmer and manufacturer, and A. A. Glenn. The 
 result of the election was rather close, Mr. Cullom 
 obtaining only 6,800 majority. He was inaugurated 
 Jan. 8, 1877. 
 
 Great depression prevailed in financial circles at 
 this time, as a consequence of the heavy failures of 
 1873 and afterward, the effect of which had seemed 
 to gather force from that time to the end of Gov. 
 Cullom's first administration. This unspeculative 
 period was not calculated to call forth any new 
 issues, but the Governor's energies were at one time 
 put to task to quell a spirit of insubordination that 
 had been begun in Pittsburg, Pa., among the laboring 
 classes, and transferred to Illinois at Chicago, East 
 St. Louis and Braidwood, at which places laboring 
 men for a short time refused to work or allow others 
 to work. These disturbances were soon quelled and 
 the wheels of industry again set in motion. 
 
 In May, 1880, Gov. Cullom was re-nominated by 
 the Republicans, against Lyman Trumbull, by the 
 Democrats; and although the former party was some- ' 
 what handicapped in the campaign by a zealous 
 faction opposed to Grant for President and to Grant , 
 men for office generally, Mr. Cullom was re-elected " 
 by about 314,565, to 277,532 for the Democratic State 
 ticket. The Greenback vote at the same time was 
 about 27,000. Both Houses of the Legislature again ' 
 became Republican, and no representative of the 
 Greenback or Socialist parties were elected. Gov. 
 Cullom was inaugurated Jan. 10, iSSi. In his mes- 
 sage he announced that the last dollar of the State 
 debt had been provided for. 
 
 March 4, 1883, the term of David Davis as United 
 States Senator from Illinois expired, and Gov. Cul- 
 lom was chosen to succeed him. This promoted 
 Lieutenant-Governor John M. Hamilton to the Gov- 
 ernorship. Senator Cullom's term in the United 
 States Senate will expire March 4, 1889. 
 
 As a practitioner of law Mr. C. has been a member 
 of the firm of Cullom, Scholes & Mather, at Spring- 
 field ; and he has also bjen President of the State 
 National Bank. 
 
 He has been married twice, the first time Dec. 
 12, 1855, to Miss Hannah Fisher, by whom he had 
 two daughters; and the second time May 5, 1863, 
 to Julia Fisher. Mrs. C is a member of the Method- 
 ist Episcopal Church, with which religious body Mr. 
 C. is also in sympathy. 
 

 
GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 '79 
 
 OHN MARSHALL HAMIL- 
 TON, Governor 1883-5, was 
 born May 28, 1847, in a log 
 house upon a farm about two 
 miles from Richwood, Union 
 County, Ohio. His father was 
 Samuel Hamilton, the eldest son 
 of Rev. Wm. Hamilton, who, to- 
 gether with his brother, the Rev. 
 Samuel Hamilton, was among the 
 early pioneer Methodist preachers in 
 Ohio. The mother of the subject of 
 this sketch was, before her marriage, 
 Mrs. Nancy McMorris, who was 
 born and raised in Fauquier or Lou- 
 | doun County, Va., and related to the 
 two large families of Youngs and Marshalls, well 
 known in that commonwealth ; and from the latter 
 family name was derived the middle name of Gov. 
 Hamilton. 
 
 In March, 1854, Mr. Hamilton's father sold out 
 his little pioneer forest home in Union County, O., 
 and, loading his few household effects and family 
 (of six children) into two emigrant covered wagons, 
 moved to Roberts Township, Marshall Co., 111., being 
 2 1 days on the route. Swamps, unbridged streams 
 and innumerable hardships and privations met them 
 on their way. Their new home had been previously 
 selected by the father. Here, after many long years 
 of toil, they succeeded in paying for the land and 
 making a comfortable home. John was, of course, 
 ' ' A 
 
 brought up to hard manual labor, with no schooling 
 except three or four months in the year at a common 
 country school. However, he evinced a capacity, 
 and taste for a high order of self-education, by 
 studying or reading what books he could borrow, as 
 the family had but very few in the house. Much o: 
 his study he prosecuted by the light of a log fire int 
 the old-fashioned chimney place. The financial 
 panic of 1857 caused the family to come near losing] 
 their home, to pay debts ; but the father and two 
 sons, William and John, " buckled to " and perse- 
 vered in hard labor and economy until they redeemed 
 their place from the mortgage. 
 
 When the tremendous excitement of the political 
 campaign of 1860 reached the neighborhood of Rob- 
 erts Township, young Hamilton, who had been 
 brought up in the doctrine of anti-slavery, took a zeal- 
 ous part in favor of Lincoln's election. Making special 
 efforts to procure a little money to buy a uniform, he 
 joined a company of Lincoln Wide-Awakes at Mag- 
 nolia, a village not far away. Directly after the 
 ensuing election it became evident that trouble 
 would ensue with the South, and this Wide-Awake 
 company, like many others throughout the country, 
 kept up its organization and transformed itself into a 
 military company. During the ensuing summer they 
 met often for drill and became proficient ; but when 
 they offered themselves for the war, young Hamilton 
 was rejected on account of his youth, he being then 
 but 14 years of age. During the winter of 1863-4 he 
 attended an academy at Henry, Marshall County, 
 
i8c 
 
 JOHN MARSHALL HAMILTON. 
 
 and in the following May he again enlisted, for the 
 fourth time, when he was placed in the 141 st III. 
 Vol. Inf., a regiment then being raised at Elgin, 111., 
 for the loo-day service. He took with him 13 other 
 lads from his neighborhood, for enlistment in the 
 service. This regiment operated in Southwestern 
 Kentucky, for about five months, under Gen. Paine. 
 
 The following winter, 1864-5, Mr. Hamilton taught 
 school, and during the two college years 1865-7, ' le 
 went through three years of the curriculum of the 
 Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, Ohio. The 
 third year he graduated, the fourth in a class of 46, 
 in the classical department. In due time he received 
 the degree of M. A. For a few months he was the 
 Principal of Marshall " College " at Henry, an acad- 
 emy under the auspices of the M. E. Church. By 
 this time he had commenced the study of law, and 
 after earning some money as a temporary Professor 
 of Latin at the Illinois Wesleyan University at 
 Bloomington, he entered the law office of Weldon, 
 Tipton & Benjamin, of that city. Each member of 
 this firm has since been distinguished as a Judge. 
 Admitted to the Bar in May, 1870, Mr. Hamilton 
 i was given an interest in the same firm, Tipton hav- 
 ing been elected Judge. In October following he 
 formed a partnership with J. H. Rowell, at that time 
 Prosecuting Attorney. Their business was then 
 small, but they increased it to very large proportions, 
 practicing in all grades of courts, including even the 
 U. S. Supreme Court, and this partnership continued 
 unbroken until Feb. 6, 1883, when Mr. Hamilton 
 was sworn in as Executive of Illinois. On the 4th 
 of March following Mr. Rowell took his seat in Con- 
 gress. 
 
 In July, 1871. Mr. Hamilton married Miss Helen 
 M. Williams, the daughter of Prof. Wm. G. Williams, 
 Professor of Greek in the Ohio Wejleyan University. 
 Mr. and Mrs. H. have two daughters and one son. 
 
 In 1876 Mr. Hamilton was nominated by the Re- 
 publicans for the State Senate, over other and older 
 competitors. He took an active part " on the stump " 
 in the campaign, for the success of his party, and was 
 elected by a majority of 1,640 over his Democratic- 
 Greenback opponent. In the Senate he served on 
 the Committees on Judiciary, Revenue, State Insti- 
 tutions, Appropriations, Education, and on Miscel- 
 lany ; and during the contest for the election of a 
 U. S. Senator, the Republicans endeavoring to re- 
 
 elect John A. Logan, he voted for the war chief on 
 every ballot, even alone when all the other Republi- 
 cans had gone over to the Hon. E. B. Lawrence and 
 the Democrats and Independents elected Judge 
 David Davis. At this session, also, was passed the 
 first Board of Health and Medical Practice act, of 
 which Mr. Hamilton was a champion, against so 
 much opposition that the bill was several times 
 " laid on the table." Also, this session authorized 
 the location and establishment of a southern peni- 
 tentiary, which was fixed at Chester. In the session 
 of 1879 Mr. Hamilton was elected President pro tern. 
 of the Senate, and was a zealous supporter of John 
 A. Logan for the U. S. Senate, who was this time 
 elected without any trouble. 
 
 In May, 1880, Mr. Hamilton was nominated on 
 the Republican ticket for Lieutenant Governor, his 
 principal competitors before the Convention being 
 Hon. Wm. A. James, ex-Speaker of the House of 
 Representatives, Judge Robert Bell, of Wabash 
 County, Hon. T. T. Fountain, of Perry County, and 
 Hon. M. M. Saddler, of Marion County. He engaged 
 actively in the campaign, and his ticket was elected 
 by a majority of 41,200. As Lieutenant Governor, 
 he presided almost continuously over the Senate in 
 the 32d General Assembly and during the early days 
 of the 33d, until he succeeded to the Governorship. 
 When the Legislature of 1883 elected Gov. Cullom 
 to the United States Senate, Lieut. Gov. Hamilton 
 succeeded him, under the Constitution, taking the' 
 oath of office Feb. 6, 1883. He bravely met all the 
 annoyances and embarrassments incidental upon 
 taking up another's administration. The principal 
 events with which Gov. Hamilton was connected as 
 the Chief Executive of the State were, the mine dis- 
 aster at Braidwood, the riots in St. Clairand Madison 
 Counties in May, 1883, the appropriations for the 
 State militia, the adoption of the Harper high-license 
 liquor law, the veto of a dangerous railroad bill, etc. 
 
 The Governor was a Delegate at large to the 
 National Republican Convention at Chicago in June, 
 
 1884, where his first choice for President was John 
 A. Logan, and second choice Chester A. Arthur; but 
 he afterward zealously worked for the election of Mr. 
 Blaine, true to his party. 
 
 Mr. Hamilton's term as Governor expired Jan. 30, 
 
 1885, when the great favorite " Dick " Oglesby was 
 inaugurated. 
 
 A' 
 
e- 
 

 W* _^r' 
 
INTRODUCTORY, 
 
 JHE time has arrived when it 
 becomes the duty of the 
 people of this county to per- 
 petuate the names of their 
 pioneers, to furnish a record 
 of their early settlement, 
 and relate the story of their 
 progress. The civilization of our 
 day, the enlightenment of the age 
 and the duty that men of the pres- 
 ent time owe to their ancestors, to 
 themselves and to their posterity, 
 demand that a record of their lives 
 and deeds should be made. In bio- 
 graphical history is found a power 
 to instruct man by precedent, to 
 enliven the mental faculties, and 
 to waft down the river of time a 
 safe vessel in which the names and actions of the 
 people who contributed to raise this country from its 
 primitive state may be preserved. Surely and rapidly 
 the great and aged men, who in their prime entered 
 the wilderness and claimed the virgin soil as their 
 heritage, are passing to their graves. The number re- 
 maining wliocan relate the incidents of the first days 
 of settlement is becoming small indeed, so that an 
 actual necessity exists for the collection and preser- 
 vation of events without delay, before all the early 
 settlers are cut down by the scythe of Time. 
 
 To be forgotten has been the great dread of mankind 
 from remotest ages. All will be forgotten soon enough, 
 in spite of their best works and the most e.irnest 
 efforts of their friends to perserve the memory of 
 their lives. The means employed to prevent oblivion 
 and to perpetuate their memory has been in propor- 
 tion to the amount of intelligence they possessed. 
 The pyramids of Kgvpt were built to perpetuate the 
 names and deeds of their great rulers. The exhu- 
 mations made by the archeologists of Egypt from 
 buried Memphis indicate a desire of those people 
 
 to perpetuate the memory of their achievements. 
 The erection of the great obelisks were for the same 
 purpose. Coming down to a later period, we find the 
 Greeks and Romans erecting mausoleums and monu- 
 ments, and carving out statues to chronicle their 
 great achievements and carry them down the ages. 
 It is also evident that the Mound-bu'lders, in piling 
 up their great mounds of earth, had but this idea 
 to leave something to show that they had lived. All 
 these works, though many ot them costly in the ex- 
 treme, give but a faint idea of the lives and charac- 
 ters of those whose memory they were intended to 
 perpetuate, and scarcely anything of the masses of 
 the people that then lived. The great pyramids and 
 some of the obelisks remain objects only of curiosity; 
 the mausoleums, monuments and statues are crum- 
 bling into dust. 
 
 It was lift to modern nges to establish an intelli- 
 gent, undecaying, immutable method of perpetuating 
 a full history immutable in that it is almost un- 
 limited in extent and perpetual in its action ; and 
 this is through the art of printing. 
 
 To the present generation, however, we are in- 
 debted for the introduction of the admirable system 
 of.local biography. By this system every man, though 
 he has not achieved what the world calls greatness, 
 h-is the means to perpetuate his life, his history, 
 through the coming ages. 
 
 The scythe of Time cuts down all ; nothing of the 
 physical man is left. The monument which his chil- 
 dren or friends may erect to his memory in the ceme- 
 tery will crumble into dust and pass away; but his 
 life, his achievements, the work he has accomplished, 
 which otherwise would be forgotten, is perpetuated 
 by a record of this kind. 
 
 To preserve the lineaments of our companions we 
 engrave their portraits, for the same reason we col- 
 lect the attainable facts of their history. Nor do we 
 thir.k it necessary, as we speak only truth of them, to 
 wait until they are dead, or until those who know 
 them are gone: to do this we are ashamed only to 
 publish t) the world the history of those whose lives 
 are unworthy of public record. 
 

 

 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 189 
 
 i&&*#l&^ 
 
 aj. John C. Bond, for nearly 
 half a century one of the 
 most prominent and 
 valued citizens of Warren 
 County, was born in Knox 
 Co., Tenn., Dec. 25, 1799. 
 Here he was reaied and 
 educated and, in 1818, was married 
 to Miss Polly Grimsley, of the same 
 county. To them were born five 
 children Susannah Johnson, widow 
 of Walter Johnson, deceased; W. 
 G. Bond, ex-Sheriff of this county; 
 Jesse W. Bond, a prominent citizen 
 of Lenox Township; Ruby L. Cay- 
 ton, wife of A. J. Cayton, of S'.van 
 Township ; and Anna Bond, all of whom are living 
 except the latter, who died when quite young. 
 Sketches of the former may be found elsewhere in 
 this volume. 
 
 Maj. Bond removed from Tennessee to Alabama, 
 and from there to Morgan County this State, in 
 1826, in which county his wife died. In May, 
 1829, he was married the second time, to Miss Mary 
 Singleton, of Morgan County, and by her had three 
 children Fielding, Mary and Eveline, all of whom 
 are deceased. Fielding was elected School Com- 
 missioner of Warren County in 1861 or 1862, but 
 died shortly after his election. He was a young 
 man of brilliant promise ; graduated from Lom- 
 bard University with honors in 1857 ; shortly after 
 was admitted to the Bar, but died April 19, 1862, 
 
 when only 28 years of age. Mrs. Bond died in 
 September, 1842, and in January, 1844, Maj. Bond 
 was married to Mrs. Nancy Terry, by whom he had 
 two children Canzada S., the wife of Mathew 
 Campbell, of Stella, Neb ; and Cordelia, the wife of 
 Henry Staat, of Berwick Township. (See sketch.) 
 Maj. Bond was the father of ten children, six of 
 whom survived him, and all of whom were present 
 at his funeral. He lived to behold his fourth gen- 
 eration of children. His funeral services were held 
 in the Methodist Episcopal Church, at Greenbush, 
 Sunday afternoon, May 21, 1882, and were conducted 
 by Elder Van Meter, a well known minister of the 
 Regular Baptist Church, of McDonough County. It 
 was attended by an immense concourse of old set- 
 tlers from the south part of the county, who knew 
 the venerable and esteemed man so long, so inti- 
 mately and so well. He was buried in the grave- 
 yard laid out by his father on the old home farm 
 many long years ago. 
 
 Maj. Bonfl played an important part in the early 
 history of Warren County. He was one of the Com- 
 missioners of the county in 1839, when the affairs of 
 the county were conducted by three men, and in 
 1853, together with Samuel Hallam and Robert Gil- 
 more, was appointed to divide the county into Town- 
 ships, which they did as they now exist. After the 
 adoption of the township organization system, he 
 was the first Supervisor elected from Greenbush, and 
 served for 14 successive years, and until he became 
 so deaf and bending with age he asked his fellow 
 citizens of Greenbush to relieve him of further dis- 
 charge of his arduous duties. He served the county 
 
f 
 
 190 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 on the Board long and well, and his judgment and 
 excellent good sense, as well as public spirit, per- 
 vaded the affairs of the county for many years. He 
 was the first Justice of the Peace in the south part 
 of the county, to which position he was elected in 
 1835, and appointed his own constable to conduct 
 his court and serve his papers. His first court was 
 held in a smoke-house, and the trial was over a steer 
 belonging to some Indianaian. Being his first term 
 and the occasion an important one, he ordered his 
 sons to clean out the smoke-house, and set the 
 " court-room " in order. While carrying out the 
 order, they performed some tricks not proper to 
 docket, for which the 'squire fined them " for con- 
 tempt of court,' and they paid the penalty. 
 
 In 1844, Maj. Bond was candidate for the Legis- 
 lature, and was beaten by only three votes. He 
 was Assessor for his township for a number of years. 
 In 1828, he went to Galena and worked in the lead 
 mines. He passed through this county on his way 
 and camped for the first time in the edge of the tim- 
 ber two miles west of what became his own home. 
 At that time, as he surveyed the broad, open prairie, 
 that stretched out for miles before him, he was en- 
 raptured with the high rolling mound where the old 
 homestead now stands. He remarked to his com- 
 ''panion that " there was where he would settle." 
 
 He received his title as Major under the old mil- 
 itia law of Illinois, and was Major of the regiment of 
 this section of the country, of which John Butler, 
 deceased, of Greenbush, was Colonel. In 1834, 
 Maj. Bond settled on the old homestead where he 
 died. The land was entered by his father, and after 
 his death Maj. Bond purchased from the other heirs 
 their interest in the farm. 
 
 As a neighbor and friend, he was a most genial 
 and companionable man, and just as true as the 
 needle to the pole. His integrity was as unbending 
 as the oak, and no man more heartily despised a 
 dishonorable action than he. His heart and purse 
 were ever open to the needy, unfortunate and op- 
 pressed, and no one was ever turned hungry from 
 his door. His home and its hospitalities were often 
 shared by the early settlers who sought locations in 
 this county, and they never forgot the genuine friend- 
 ship they received from John C. Bond, and many are 
 the silent tears that will be shed to his memory by 
 those who bore the trials and vicissitudes of the 
 years long gone by in the settlement of the county. 
 
 Having well and faithfully performed the task set 
 before him, and more than filled out the measure of 
 his four score years with a firm and abiding faith in 
 the mercies of a true and just God, he peacefully 
 closed his eyes and rests from the long journey of 
 life. Thus, on the 2oth day of May, 1882, passed 
 away John C. Bond, as good and true a man as ever 
 resided in Warren County, leaving to his descend- 
 ants a priceless heritage a spotless name. His 
 widow is still living and now resides with her daugh- 
 ter, Mrs. Campbell, at Stella, Nebraska. His grand- 
 son, J. C. Bond, lives on the old farm in Greenbush. 
 We are pleased to present the portrait of Major 
 Bond in connection with this sketch. 
 
 B. Houlton, a member of the well known 
 banking and mercantile firm of Chapin, 
 Houlton & Co., Kirkwood, was born in 
 Maine, in 1833. His father, Joseph Houlton, 
 was a native of Massachusetts, and his mother, 
 
 . 
 
 Almira (Ray) Houlton, was born in New 
 Hampshire. They came to Illinois in 1852 and set- 
 tied on a farm in Ellison Township, Warren County. 
 Here the elder Houlton passed his life in the quiet 
 pursuit he had selected 31 years before his death. 
 
 In 1850 Mr. F. R. Houlton set out with a few 
 others to cross the plains to California. For four 
 years and a half, he was interested in gold mining on 
 the Pacific Coast. Returning to Illinois, we find 
 him in 1858, entering Kirkwood. He secured an en- 
 gagement as clerk for Knowles, Ray & Chapin, with 
 whom he remained one year, when he bought out 
 the interest of Mr. Knowles, and became a partner 
 in the new firm, and from that date, 1859, until the 
 present, he has been connected with the firm and 
 there have been but two changes in it. Besides his 
 interest in the business carried on by Chapin, Houl- 
 ton & Co., our subject owns about 700 acres of land 
 in Warren and Henderson Counties, the cultivation 
 of which he superintends himself. Politically he is 
 identified with the Republican party. 
 
 Mr. Houlton was married Jan. 22, 1862, to Miss 
 L. J. Calkins, who was a native of Maine. She was 
 born June 18, 1836. To this union two children 
 have been born, Blanche L. and Fred. N. ; Fred. N. 
 died in infancy. Blanche L. was born Sept. 7, 1863. 
 Mrs. Houlton died April i, 1885. 
 
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 :^^^vJ^fv ' ^'Wte-Jl 
 

WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 9S 
 
 i illiam Harrison Frantz, one of Warren 
 County's most prominent and highly re- 
 spected citizens, who has met with success 
 in his chosen vocation of life, resides on 
 section 27, Monmouth Township. He is a 
 Director in the Monmouth National Bank and 
 one of the leading general farmers and stock- 
 raisers of this section of Illinois. He is a native of 
 Maryland, and was born in Alleghany County, 
 that State, April 10, 1829. His father, Solomon 
 Frantz, was born in the same county. His par- 
 ents were John and Catherine Frantz. They 
 were early settlers in the State and their grand- 
 parents were the first who settled in the United 
 States by that name, having located in Bedford 
 Co., Pa., at an early day. A few years previous to 
 their demise the grandparents removed to Alleghany 
 County, where they resided until their death, and 
 where, previous to that event, they followed the 
 vocation of farming. The father of Mr. Frantz, of 
 this biographical notice, was married in Alleghany 
 County to Jane McElroy, a lady of Scotch-Irish ex- 
 traction and American parentage. After their mar- 
 riage they resided in Alleghany County until 1849, 
 when they moved to Perry Co., Ohio, and there be- 
 came large land-owners and successful farmers, 
 carrying on agricultural pursuits until about 1871. 
 During that year they came to this State and settled 
 on a part of the farm belonging to William H., in this 
 county. Here the father died in March, 1882, aged 
 79 years. He was a strong temperance man and was 
 one of the first to sign the total abstinence pledge 
 in the State of Maryland, which he scrupulously 
 kept the remainder of his life. In fact, the family 
 were noted for their strong temperance views and 
 their lives were passed in strict accordance with 
 their opinions. The mother yet survives and re- 
 sides with her son, H. M. Frantz, and although 
 at the venerable age of 8t years,- is enjoying the 
 best of health. She and her husband were active 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal Church and 
 were respected and honored citizens of the com- 
 munity in which they resided. Their children were 
 
 nine in number, two of whom have passed to the 
 land of the hereafter. The following is a record of 
 their family : Lucinda, who married Alfred Thayer, 
 and resides at Tuscola, Douglas County, this State. 
 Mr. Thayer is a stock dealer and farmer, but has re- 
 tired from the active labors of life, enjoying the 
 accumulations of the past. Andrew J. who married 
 Virginia Johnson, and resides in the city of Bran- 
 don, Mississippi, is editor of the Brandon Re- 
 publican ; William H. was the next in order of 
 birth; Isabella was united in marriage with O. P. 
 Wilson, who follows the occupation of a fanner in 
 Monmouth Township, this county ; Elizabeth mar- 
 ried Thomas Bushfield. She died in Ohio, in Octo- 
 ber, 1855; John H. (see sketch) married Anna 
 Porter and resides on a farm in Spring Grove Town- 
 ship ; Catherine became the wife of J. W. Free, who 
 is a resident of New Lexington, Perry Co., Ohio, 
 where he is following the profession of the law. He 
 was also Major of a regiment of Ohio Volunteers dur- 
 ing the late Rebellion; Mrs. Free died in 1864;! 
 Nannie E. was married twice, her first husband be- 
 ing J. D. Mackey, after whose demise she became! 
 the wife of S. K. Cramer, who is a resident of Wap-K 
 ello Co., Iowa; H. M. formed a matrimonial alliance 
 with Flora Murphy, and is a farmer and stock ship- 
 per, residing in Monmouth Township (see sketch). 
 
 Our subject received all the advantages in the way 
 of an education afforded by the common schools of 
 his native county, and when disengaged, assisted his 
 father in the duties of the farm until he attained his 
 i gth year, when his parents removed to New Lexing- 
 ton, Perry Co., Ohio. Remaining at the latter place 
 three years, his next move was in the year 1851, 
 when he came to Warren County and -located in 
 Monmouth Township. Here our subject rented 
 land for about four years. He then purchased a 
 tract of 80 acres, all of which was improved, but 
 soon sold this and bought 180 acres, a portion of 
 which is included in his present homestead. 
 
 April 2, 1857, Mr. Frantz was united in the holy 
 bonds of matrimony at the residence of the bride's 
 parents at Monmouth, to Miss Mary A. Lucas, 
 daughter of Marsham and Elizabeth (Deweese) 
 Lucas, natives of Kentucky. Her mother was first 
 married in her native State to William Davidson, by 
 whom she had four children, only one of whom sur- 
 vives. Her marriage to Mr. Lucas was celebrated 
 in Monmouth Township, this county, and to them 
 
196 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 have been born six children, of whom four survive. 
 Mrs. F., our subject's wife, is the eldest. Next in 
 order of birth was John T., his death occurring 
 when a young man of 20 years ; William B., the third, 
 formed a matrimonial alliance with Melissa John- 
 son, and follows the vocation of farming near Ash- 
 land, Neb. ; Charles is also married, his wife's maiden 
 name being Lidia Taylor. He is a conductor on 
 the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railway, and re- 
 sides at Galesburg ; Benedict N. is a resident of Ore- 
 gqn, and is engaged in farming ; Cassius died in early 
 life. The parents of Mrs. Frantz are yet living and 
 reside at Abingdon, Knox County, this State, where 
 they are living in retirement. Her father was one 
 of the first settlers in this county, coming here as 
 early as 1830. He helped to locate the county 
 road and lay out the city of Monmouth, and exten- 
 sively operated here for nearly half a century. He 
 was here when the Indians were numerous and en- 
 dured all the privations incident to the settlement of 
 a new country. At that early date Chicago was 
 their trading post, and thither they were compelled 
 to go to do all their marketing. He is now in his 
 851)1 year, and his wife, the mother of Mrs. Frantz, 
 in her 7Sth year, and both are enjoying extremely 
 good health for that age in life, and are among the 
 best known and most highly respected pioneers of 
 this part of Illinois. 
 
 Mrs. Frantz enjoyed only such educational advan- 
 tages as the common schools such as they were 
 in an early day afforded. She is, however, re- 
 garded by her many friends as a lady of rare cul- 
 ture and refinement. She is one of the leading 
 spirits in every circle in which she moves. The 
 most excellent judgment which she possesses, and 
 the qualities of both mind and heart with which she 
 is gifted, eminently fit her for a wider sphere than 
 the home circle. However, in this divinely endowed 
 sphere, that of the home, she is a wife and mother of 
 the most admirable type. She continued to reside 
 with her parents until her marriage to Mr. Frantz. 
 Of their union seven children have been born, 
 namely : Delavan C.,who chose for his life partner, 
 Mary E. Paine, and is engaged in farming in Mon- 
 mouth Township. They have had one child, 
 Harrison Paine; Kate married Charles Sickmon, 
 who is also a farmer of Monmouth Township; Sina 
 became the wife of Philo Kettering, a farmer by occu- 
 pation, and she also lives near her old home; Pearl, 
 
 Ella J. and Mary L. reside at home. The demise of 
 Georgie V. occurred in infancy. 
 
 After the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Frantz, they 
 located on the homestead which Mr. F. had previ- 
 ously purchased, and where he was for a few years 
 engaged in farming, afterwards going extensively into 
 the stock business, ( buying, breeding and ship- 
 ping stock ) in which business he is still engaged 
 at the present time. Mr. F. is one of the heaviest 
 land-owners in this county, owning nearly 1,000 
 acres, all joining, and having three good residences 
 and eight houses on his land. His land is all under 
 an advanced state of cultivation and he is one of the 
 most successful farmers of Warren County. His ac- 
 cumulations of this world's goods is indicative of that 
 energy, perseverance and good judgment which he 
 possesses. 
 
 During the last four years he has been engaged in 
 the breeding of fine stock. In July of 1882, he 
 visited England, Scotland and France, where he T 
 made purchases of some of the purest-blooded stock "i 
 to be found in those countries. Among the animals , 
 he bought were King Cole, Knight of Athloe, Prin- j i 
 cess of Wales, Princess Beatrice and Maggie Wilson.^ 
 These are the names by which these splendid i 
 animals were known in the herd books of Great I i 
 Britain and America. They were pure-blooded ' 
 Clydesdales, and rank among the best horses ever 
 brought to Illinois. Princess of Wales has taken the 
 first premiums at the Chicago State Fair, State Fairs 
 at Peoria, at Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and at the great 
 fair at St. Louis. These magnificent specimens of 
 this excellent breed of horses were bought by 
 Mr. Frantz for the purpose of improving the char- 
 acter of the horses throughout his section of the 
 county. The results have been most gratifying, and 
 he should be commended for his enterprise and 
 receive the gratitude of farmers and those interested 
 in raising this noble animal in Warren County. 
 
 Not only has Mr. Frantz exhibited rare enter- 
 prise in his desire to develop the horse in this sec- 
 tion of the State, but has carried the same spirit 
 into his plans to better the grade of cattle. This is 
 shown by his purchase of several head of pure Gal- 
 loway cattle from some of the famous herds of 
 Scotland, which he added to his already extensive 
 herd on his fine stock farm, near Monmouth. Among 
 those secured from Scotland were North Star, Rock- 
 ford, Bonnie Lass and Bonnie Perle. 
 
 
 i t 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 197 
 
 The publishers of this ALBUM are not only pleased 
 to be able to present Mr. Frantz's property as show- 
 ing one of the most beautiful country residences and 
 splendid set of farm buildings in the Military Tract, 
 but to show some of the magnificent specimens of 
 both horses and cattle above mentioned. 
 
 Mrs. Frantz and some of her children are mem- 
 bers of the Christian Church. Politically, Mr. F. is 
 a believer in and a supporter of the principles of 
 the Republican party. He has held the position 
 of Road Commissioner, School Trustee and Director 
 in his township, and is a gentleman whose word in a 
 financial point of view is considered equal to his 
 bond. His portrait, as one of the truly representa- 
 tive men of this county, is given in connection with 
 this sketch. 
 
 J. Wood, associate editor of the Dai- 
 ly Evening Gazette, of Monmouth, a son 
 of Cyrus A. and Mary A. (Roe) Wood, 
 was bom in Cayuga Co., N. Y., Dec. 3, 1858. 
 His father was by occupation a farmer, and 
 died when the subject of our sketch was but 
 four years of age. 
 
 At the common schools of his neighborhood, sup- 
 plemented by a thorough preparatory training at 
 Cortland, N. Y., Normal Academy, Cyrus J. Wood 
 fitted himself for Rochester, N. Y., University, from 
 which institution he graduated with honors in the 
 class of 1883. The following fall found him at Mon- 
 mouth, where he at once began the study of law, ac- 
 cepting in the meantime the position of reporter on 
 the Gazette. It may be well to remember, that for 
 several years (and the question may not even yet be 
 definitely settled) he was not quite sure as to 
 whether the third or the fourth estate, as recognized 
 by men of letters, should become the field of his per- 
 manent operations. While at college he held the 
 position of telegraph editor of the Rochester Sunday 
 Morning Herald, and after graduating, and before 
 coining West, he was police reporter of the daily is- 
 sue of the same paper. Since coming to the city of 
 Monmouth, though he has in nowise neglected the 
 study of law, the press has claimed him fully as one 
 of its members. From reporter he was first promoted 
 
 to the position of city editor of the Gazette, and was 
 soon afterward advanced to the position he has since 
 so ably filled to the entire satisfaction of the Gazette 
 and its readers. 
 
 He was admitted to the Bar in October, 1885, and 
 as a member of the legal profession he may yet 
 achieve the highest aims of his ambition and a rec- 
 ord that will favorably compare with that made by 
 any of the disciples of Blackstone. 
 
 H3- 
 
 eorge Abbey, engaged in the livery busi- 
 ness at Kirk wood, is a native of New York, 
 having been born in Steuben County, in 
 1844. He is a son of Newman and Harriet 
 (Van Wagoner) Abbey, natives of Ulster Co., 
 N. Y. The father came to this State in 1857, 
 and at first located on section 3, Tompkins Town- 
 ship, where, on rented land, he was engaged in 
 fanning for one year. He then moved into the vil- 
 lage of Kirkwood and embarked in the drug business 
 with Mr. L. Howard, the original firm continuing to 
 exist for three years. At the expiration of that time 
 he took into the business his son, Horatio, and the 
 partnership continued until the death of the father, 
 Sept. i, 1885. 
 
 The gentleman whose name we place at the head 
 of this notice was an inmate of his father's household 
 until he reached the age of 17 years, receiving at his 
 hands and in the common schools of the county a 
 good English education. At that young age in life, 
 George Abbey enlisted in the war for the Union, 
 joining Company A, 83d 111. Vol. Inf., as a private, 
 and served in defense of his country's flag for two 
 years and eleven months. He participated in the 
 second battle of Fort Donelson, and engaged in many 
 skirmishes with the guerrillas and was in between 20 
 and 30 engagements with them. At the expiration 
 of his term of enlistment he received an honorable 
 discharge, came home and once more entered upon 
 the peaceful pursuits of life. He rented land and 
 for two years was engaged in farming. In 1 867 he 
 embarked in the livery business, with which he com- 
 bined that of a feed and sale stable at Kirkwood and 
 has since continued in the same, meeting with that 
 
i 9 8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 success which almost universally comes to a man 
 possessed of that push and energy which has char- 
 acterized Mr. Abbey's career in life. In addition to 
 his extensive stables, located contiguous to the tracks 
 of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, Mr. 
 Abbey has a fine residence and two lots in the vil- 
 lage. He is also the owner of 80 acres of land in 
 Kansas, which he is rapidly bringing under a high 
 state of cultivation. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Abbey was solemnized in 
 1871, at which time Miss Helen Barnum, a native of 
 this State, became his wife. Mr. Abbey votes the 
 Republican ticket, and socially is a member of the 
 G. A. R. He is eminently worthy to be classed as 
 one of the representative business men of the thriv- 
 ing little village of Kirkwood. 
 
 ' saac B. Kirby, engaged as a general farmer 
 on section 34, Ellison Township, was born 
 in Greene Co., Pa., June 25, 1825, his father 
 being Joseph H Kirby, a farmer by occupation, 
 at present residing in Berwick Township, this 
 county. Of a family of four sons and three 
 daughters, our subject was the eldest. 
 
 Isaac B. lived at home until he attained the age 
 of 25 years, when he was married, on the 7th of July, 
 1850, in Greene County, to Miss Eliza A^ Bailey, a 
 native of the same county. She was the daughter 
 of a Pennsylvania farmer, and lived at home until 
 her marriage. Her parents died some time ago in 
 the Keystone State. Mrs. Kirby was the youngest 
 child of a family of nine children, and of her union 
 with Isaac B. Kirby, she has become the mother of 
 eight children, all of whom are now living. Three 
 sons and one daughter, of the above mentioned eight 
 children, are married. 
 
 In the fall after marriage, Mr. Kirby came to 
 Illinois, and rented land for two years in Peoria 
 County, after which time he removed to Warren 
 County and in the latter county purchased an 80- 
 acre tract of land where he now resides. He has 
 improved his farm and added to his original purchase 
 until he is now the possessor of 200 acres in this 
 township, and 240 acres in Iowa, where two of his 
 
 sons now reside. Mr. Kirby has been a very suc- 
 cessful agriculturist, which is attributable to his in- 
 domitable energy, economy and perseverance, with 
 the assistance of his good helpmeet. 
 
 Religiously, Mr. Kirby and wife are members of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. K. has filled 
 the position of Township Trustee and has also held 
 several of the minor township offices, creditably dis- 
 charging the duties of each. Politically, he is iden- 
 tified w ith the Democratic party. 
 
 ames F. Arthurs is a pioneer of Warren 
 County of 1836 and resides on section 18. 
 Kelly Township. He was born in the 
 southern section of the United States, and was 
 reared there. The death of his father when 
 he was three years old left a heavy burden on 
 the mother, as there were eight children of whom 
 she was sole guardian. In 1831, a removal of the 
 family to Putnam Co., Ind., was effected, and in 
 1836 another change brought the widow and her 
 children to Illinois. 
 
 Mr. Arthurs was born Dec. 29, 1807, and is the 
 son of Joseph and Catherine (Wingfield) Arthurs. 
 Mr. Arthurs was 19 when he came to this county, 
 where he has since been identified with its develop- 
 ment and general well-being. The journey was 
 made hither in the manner common in those days, 
 with horses and oxen, and the domestic affairs were 
 managed while the party were en route as nearly as 
 possible as in the home they had left. Mr. Arthurs 
 lived with his brother-in-law for a few months after 
 reaching Illinois, and meanwhile bought the land in- 
 cluded in the farm which he now owns. He erected 
 a log house and split clapboards for the roof and 
 puncheons for the floor. The place now presents a. 
 modernized appearance, as the cabin of that early 
 period has given place to farm-structures that are in 
 every way suitable to the change in the circum- 
 stances of the proprietor and to the times. 
 
 The union in marriage of Mr. Arthurs and Miss 
 Elizabeth A. Carmichael, took place in 1835. She 
 was born in the District of Newbury, South Carolina, 
 July 5, 1817. Five of their children are now living. 
 Two sons enlisted in Co. C, 361)1 111. Vol. Inf. Will- 
 
 : 
 
- Y . '. "~ 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 199 
 
 iam T. was killed in the action at Stone River, Tenn. 
 Abraham Y. died a few weeks after his return to his 
 home. 
 
 Mr. Arthurs is a member of the United Brethren 
 Church. He is a man whom his fellow citizens re- 
 spect and esteem. 
 
 ohn P. Campbell is the present Township 
 Clerk of Spring Grove. He was born in 
 Huntingdon Co., Pa., Aug. 6, 1853. He 
 is a member of the fourth generation from his 
 earliest known ancestor in this country, being 
 of Scotch-Irish extraction. John A. Camp- 
 bell, his father, was born in 1807, in the same coun- 
 ty in Pennsylvania where the son was born. He was 
 bred a farmer, that having been the calling of his 
 race for many generations. He was married in the 
 Keystone State to Mary J. Wray, who was also born 
 Huntingdon County, Oct. 16, 1817. After his 
 marriage the senior Campbell bought a farm in Bra- 
 dy Township, seven miles from the county-seat, 
 which remained the home of the family until 1865, 
 when the property was sold and a removal to Illi- 
 nois effected. A farm was rented in Suez Township, 
 in Mercer County, where they resided one year, dur- 
 ing which time the father was engaged in prospect- 
 ing for a suitable location for a permanent homestead. 
 In company with his eldest son, he bought a farm on 
 section 9, in the township of Spring Grove, which, in 
 the spring of 1866, he took possession of and made 
 it the family residence until the death of the father, 
 which took place in 1873. His widow now resides 
 in Norwood, Mercer Codnty. They were the parents 
 of ii children, of whom eight are still living. 
 
 Mr. Campbell is the fourth child. He was 12 
 years old when his father's family removed to Illi- 
 nois. He had obtained a fair education before com- 
 ing to this State, but after removal hither he contin- 
 ued his studies in the common schools of Spring 
 Grove Township. In the interims of school he en- 
 gaged in the duties of farming. He obtained a prac- 
 tical education, and in 1874 he commenced teaching. 
 He made his first engagement as a pedagogue in 
 District No. 5, of the same township in which he now 
 
 lives. In July, 1877, he bought an interest in the 
 dry-goods establishment of G. B. Hardy, at Alexis, 
 and carried on a commercial business for 14 months. 
 He sold out at the end of that time and resumed 
 teaching, to which profession he has since devoted 
 himself exclusively, having been engaged for nearly 
 eight years in the schools of Alexis. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Campbell is a Democrat. He has 
 officiated as Collector in his township and is serving 
 a second term in his present official position. 
 
 He formed a matrimonial alliance with Ida Mc- 
 Bride, Oct. n, 1877. She was born in Monmouth, 
 and is the daughter of Abisha and Parmelia (Alley) 
 McBride. Their children are Freddie H. and Stan- 
 ley Vergne. Mr. and Mrs. Campbell are members 
 of the Presbyterian Church and he is one of the El- 
 ders of his congregation. 
 
 oseph S. Gowdy, engaged as an agricultur- 
 ist on section 24, Hale Township,, was 
 born in Clarke Co., .Ohio, June 29, 1831. 
 He lived at the place of his nativity until he 
 was about 20 years of age, when he decided Jo 
 come Westward, deeming the facilities better 
 there for acquiring a competency than in the East. 
 He has, since 1851, made his residence in Warren 
 County, with the exception of two years spent in 
 Henderson County. He purchased 70 acres of land, 
 which, by his careful judgment and energy, has been 
 put in an advanced state of cultivation, and is second 
 to none in the township in its appearance to-day. 
 
 Mr. Gowdy was united in marriage in Hale Town- 
 ship, Oct. 24, 1860, with Eliza Hess, who was born 
 in Clarke Co., Ohio, Feb. 8, 1840. Of their union, 
 four children have been born, their names being as 
 follows : Lunetta B., Henry C., Meda A. and Nan- 
 nie L. Mr. Gowdy has been School Director, and 
 himself and wife are members of the United Presby- 
 terian Church. Politically, Mr. Gowdy is a Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 The parents, John and Ann (Steele) Gowdy, were 
 natives respectively of Ohio and Kentucky. They 
 came to Warren County before the days of railroads, 
 locating in Hale Township as early as 1851. Here 
 
200 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1 
 
 they lived for over a quarter of a century, becoming 
 well known and highly respected people of that com- 
 munity. The elder Gowdy died Oct. 12, 1864, his 
 wife dying March 8, 1880. The parents of Mrs. 
 Gowdy were Christian and Nancy (Sellburger) Hess. 
 They were both born in Pennsylvania. Mr. Hess 
 came to Warren County the year before the elder 
 Gowdy, being in the spring of 1850. His wife died 
 in Ohio, in May, 1845. He lives at Kirkwood, 111. 
 
 \ saac Jenkins, a retired farmer residing in 
 Berwick village, was born in Clermont Co., 
 Ohio, Aug. 20, 1814, and is a son of Zeph- 
 aniah Jenkins, who was born Aug. 9, 1789, in 
 New Jersey, and who moved with his parents 
 t to Ohio in 1805, where he remained until his 
 death, which took place Dec. i, 1854. Zephaniah 
 Jenkins was married Jan. 16, 1812, to Miss South, 
 who was born in New Jersey, in 1789, and died in 
 Ohio, in 1844. Their children were four in num- 
 ber, John S., Isaac, Frances M. and Elijah. 
 
 Isaac Jenkins, the subject of this biographical 
 no.tice, worked on his father's farm and attended the 
 common school, developing into manhood. He also 
 passed a portion of his time in clerking in his native 
 State before coming to this county. He came here 
 March 25, 1853, and engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits, which he continued until the time he removed 
 to Berwick village. 
 
 Mr. Jenkins was married to Miss Caroline Kellum, 
 March 4, 1841, in Ohio, Rev. Fife, of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, officiating. She was born Sept. 
 19, 1817, in New Jersey, her parents moving to Ohio 
 when she was but one year old. Her father, James 
 Kellum, was born May i, 1792, and died May 30, 
 1878, in Berwick. He was married to Ann Albert- 
 son, in 1816, who died Oct. 20, 1880. The issue of 
 their union was nine children, Caroline, wife of the 
 subject of this sketch ; Elizabeth, born April 30, 
 1819; Maria, July, 26, 1821; Rebecca, Dec. 13, 
 1823; James, Sept. 20, 1826; Josiah, Aug. 13, 1829; 
 John M., March 20, 1832; Edward M., Nov. 30, 
 1834; Sanford W., March 21, 1837. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds have had born to them 
 
 five children, three of whom are deceased. The 
 record is as follows: Annie, born Dec. 3, 1841; 
 John, April i, 1844, died May 19, 1866; Amanda, 
 born Nov. 23, 1847, died Nov. 19, 1848; Dean F., 
 born Oct. u, 1850, died the same year; Belle, born 
 March 15, 1857. 
 
 Mr. Jenkins has 7654 acres of good farm land on 
 section 8, Berwick Township, and also 2*4 acres 
 inside the corporate limits of Berwick village, on 
 which he has a good residence and there resides re- 
 tired from the active labors of life. Socially, he is a 
 member of the Order of Good Templars and also of 
 the I. O. O. F., to which latter organization he has 
 belonged for 36 years. He at present is a member 
 of Lodge No. 84, Abingdon. Religiously, he and 
 his wife are members of the Baptist Church located 
 at Berwick, and politically, he votes with the Re- 
 publican party. 
 
 The grandfather of Mrs. Jenkins, James Kellum, 
 was born Jan. 18, 1758, and died April 26, 1817, and 
 his wife, Elizabeth Kellum, was born Feb. n, 1759, 
 and died in 1819. Their children were, Gilbert, 
 born April 8, 1780, died May 19, 1844; Ziba, born 
 Feb. 18, 1782, died May 12, 1832; John, born April 
 23, 1785; Lovisa, born Aug. 12, 1787; Rebecca, 
 Dec. 23, 1789; James, May i, 1792; Elizabeth, 
 Jan. 17, 1795; William, birth unknown ; Aaron, born 
 June 6, 1800. 
 
 .ark S. Douglas, manager of the Star Livery, 
 Sale and Feed Stables, of Monmouth, is a 
 native of that city, having been born Sept. 
 13, 1847. He is the son of Samuel Douglas, 
 whose biography will be found elsewhere in the 
 pages of this work. Hark S. was educated at 
 the Monmouth schools and studied law some time 
 with Mr. Almon Kidder, but the " turf" was always 
 more attractive to him than were the pages of Coke 
 or Blackstone, so we find him in 1880 engaged in 
 the livery business, to the management of which he 
 has since devoted himself with an assiduity that fully 
 betokens his eminent fitness for that particular sphere 
 in life. And, in point of fact, aside from a horse 
 show or a horse race, his present business affords him 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 JO I 
 
 more real pleasure than anything else that he could 
 possibly engage in. 
 
 He was too young for a soldier and too honest for 
 a politician, so the name of Hark Douglas will prob- 
 ably continue for some time to be found among the 
 plain, every-day people, though it is not likely that 
 as a rule the class named will have quite as much 
 fun as he will. > In politics, the Republicans claim 
 him, but as he boasts of being a " Mugwump," it is 
 evident that his great love for the old land-marks of 
 that party did not include a certain " plumed knight." 
 
 Mr. D. was married at Abingdon, 111., Feb. 15, 
 1872,10 Miss Lidie Reynolds, a native of Warren 
 County, 111. They have two children, a girl and 
 boy, bearing the names of Leota and S. Leonard. 
 
 Sillis Fruit is an old settler of Warren 
 County and is a farmer on section 25, 
 Kelly Township. He was born Aug. 3, 
 1810, in Henderson Co., Ky., and is the son 
 of Doakes and Milly (Hanks) Pruit. His 
 parents were natives of North Carolina, and 
 were among the earliest pioneers of the county in 
 Kentucky where their son was born. They both 
 died there. 
 
 Mr. Pruit received the bringing up and education 
 of a farmer's son, and in 1829 he went to Brecken- 
 ridge County, in his native State, where he liyed four 
 years. While there, in 1832, he was married to Jane 
 Moredock. She was a native of the county where 
 she was married, and was born Dec. 24, 1823. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Pruit left that county in the year in which 
 they were married and returned thither in 1834. Mr. 
 Pruit engaged in farming until the struggle between 
 Texas and Mexico gave opportunity to see the world, 
 and he enlisted in the service of the Mexican govern- 
 ment. He was in service there three years and was 
 in the action at San Jacinto under Santa Anna. He 
 remained a year in Henderson County after his re- 
 turn to Kentucky, and went thence to New Madrid 
 Co., Mo., where he operated as a farmer two years. 
 In 1845, he came to Warren County. He ob- 
 tained the ownership of the farm on which he has 
 resided for forty years and on which there had been 
 
 a few acres of prairie broken. He erected a log 
 cabin, and when the structure burned three years 
 later he erected the frame house in which his family 
 have since lived. Mrs. Pruit died in 1879. They 
 had five children. William is a resident of Furness 
 Co., Neb. ; Lucy is Mrs. S. G. Heflin, of Shelby Co., 
 Iowa; Abby is married to Mr. E. Guernsey, of Pot- 
 tawatomie Co., Iowa ; Alfred G. lives in York Co., 
 Neb. ; Jennie is the wife of Homer Guernsey, and 
 they are the managers of the Pruit homestead. 
 
 eorge W. Robinson, the owner of 250 
 acres of good farm land located on sec- 
 tions 5, 6 and 17, Berwick Township, and 
 which he is actively engaged in cultivating, 
 was born in Chautauqua Co., N. Y., Dec. 5, 
 1842. He is a son of William Robinson, also 
 a native of York State, born there in 1812, and who 
 died in his native State in 1876. The father mar- 
 ried a Miss Ruah Newman in 1834. She was born<J 
 in 1815, in New Jersey, and died iiv 1878. They! 
 were the parents of four children, born in the follow- 
 ing order: Lydia M., Oct. 28, 1836 ; Cordelia, Nov.] 
 7, 1838; William W., Nov. 28, 1840; George W., 
 Dec. s, 1842. 
 
 George W. Robinson formed a matrimonial alli- 
 ance Oct. 24, 1867, with Miss Anna Jenkins, who 
 was born in the Buckeye State, Dec. 3, 1841. Her 
 father, Isaac Jenkins, was born in Clermont Co., Ohio, 
 in 1815. He married Miss Caroline Kellum (born 
 Sept. 19, 1818,) March 4, 1841, and came to Illinois in 
 1853. They are the parents of five children and are 
 both yet living, passing the sunset of their lives in 
 peace and quiet in the village of Berwick. Their chil- 
 dren are Anna, wife of the subject of this notice; 
 John, born April i, 1844 ; Amanda died in infancy ; 
 Dean, who also died in infancy; and Belle, born in 
 
 1857- 
 
 The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Robinson of 
 this notice are John W., born May 4, 1869; Edith, 
 Dec. 9, 1873; Claude, June 7, 1875; Zaida Belle, 
 May 6, 1879; and Arthur Garfield, Oct. 8, 1881. 
 
 Mr. Robinson enlisted in the War for the Union, 
 joining Co. C, 83d 111. Vol. Inf., Aug. 9, 1862, and 
 was mustered into the service at Monmouth, 111. 
 
202 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 He accompanied his regiment to Cairo, 111., where 
 it remained some two weeks. He was first in active 
 service at Forts Henry and Hindman ; was then 
 ordered to Fort Donelson, and participated in the 
 battle of Feb. 3, 1863 ; then went to Clarksville, 
 Tenn., at which point he remained until he was 
 mustered out, July 5, 1865. He was once wounded 
 (in the back of the neck), but it was not sufficiently 
 serious to prevent him from participating in every 
 battle in which his company was engaged up to the 
 time of being mustered out of service. 
 
 On receiving his discharge, he returned to this 
 county and again engaged in the peaceful pursuits 
 of life. On his fine farm of 250 acres he has a good 
 residence and barn, and is meeting with that success 
 in life which is duly merited by a man of his energy 
 and perseverance. Socially, he is a member of the 
 G. A. R., Post, No. 239, at Monmouth, and, in his 
 politics, votes as he shot, with the Republican party. 
 
 ^lonzo Sperry, formerly an agriculturist of 
 this county, but who at present is passing 
 the sunset of his life in quiet retirement, 
 residing on section 10, Hale Township, was 
 born in Ashtabula Co., Ohio, Nov. 22, 1822. 
 He continued to reside in his native State un- 
 til about 1849, when he went to Jefferson Co., Wis., 
 and there lived until 1860. During that year he 
 came to this county and became a citizen of Mon- 
 mouth Township, from whence he moved to Lenox 
 Township, and then, in 1874, made another removal, 
 locating in Hale Township, where for the past n 
 years he has continued to reside. He has disposed 
 of his real estate and now lives a retired life in Hale 
 Township. 
 
 The marriage of Alonzo Sperry to Miss Julia 
 Heath, occurred Nov. 15, 1844, in Ashtabula Co., 
 Ohio. She was born in the county in which she was 
 married, Aug. 2, 1826, and has borne her husband 
 three children, Aura E., George VV. and Plin R. 
 Aura was married to George Lynch Jan. 31, 1863, 
 . but is now residing with her brother in Hale Town- 
 ship; George W. is a mechanic living at Monmouth; 
 and Plin R. is engaged in farming, living in Hale 
 Township^where he is the owner of 90 acres of land, 
 the major portion of which is tillable. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Sperry endorses the principles ad- 
 vocated by the Democratic party. 
 
 evi B. Cowick, farmer and stock-raiser, re- 
 siding in Larchland, and owning 240 acres 
 of improved and well equipped farm land, 
 in Lenox Township, is the second child in or- 
 der of birth of his parent's family. He was born 
 Sept. 2, 1846, in Cumberland Co., Pa. John 
 and Hannah (Bixler) Cowick, his parents, were na- 
 tives of the Keystone State, coming to Warren Co., 
 111., in 1854, \vhen they settled in Monmouth. They 
 now reside in Lenox Township. Their children were 
 Mary, Levi B. and Samuel R. Mary and Samuel R. 
 reside in Kansas. 
 
 Levi B. Cowick, the gentleman whose name heads 
 this biographical notice, was but a child of eight . 
 years when his parents removed to Warren County, 
 and of which he has since been a resident. Mr. 
 Cowick was among the many who with brave hearts _- 
 and strong arms successfully defended the Union 
 flag in the struggle against treason. He enlisted in 
 May, 1864, in the i38th 111. Vol. Inf., and served 
 until the October following, when he returned to 
 this county and engaged in agricultural pursuits, 
 becoming also quite an extensive stock dealer. He 
 has endeavored hard and earnestly to put his land 
 .under the best cultivation possible and has succeed- 
 ed, for at present his farm of 240 acres, entirely 
 fenced and improved with all necessary farm build- 
 ings, farming implements, machinery, etc., is second 
 to none in the township. 
 
 The marriage of Sarah O. Jones and Levi B. Cow- 
 ick occurred in Tompkins Township, this county, on 
 Feb. 22, 1872, she being a daughter of Calvin and 
 Rebecca (McQuown) Jones, who were natives of 
 Virginia. They came to Warren County about the 
 year 1854, and settled in Tompkins Township, mak- 
 ing it their permanent home. Of their union were 
 born four children, John, Furney, Parker and Sa- 
 rah O., our subject's wife, who was born Oct. 10, 
 1850, in the State of Virginia. Mr. and Mrs. Cow- 
 ick have had two children, Arthur G. and Frank 
 B. Mr. C. has been Justice of the Peace for ten years, 
 and in politics is identified with the Republican party. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 205 
 
 1; hilip J. Karns, a farmer residing on sec- 
 tion 32, Berwick Township, was born in 
 the Province of Baden, Germany, Oct. 22, 
 1815, and came to the United States in 1828, 
 with his uncle, Jacob Sackman. He landed 
 at New York city after a voyage of 52 days on 
 a sailing vessel, and Was one of three persons out of 
 360 that was not affected by what is known as sea- 
 sickness. 
 
 Soon after landing he accompanied his uncle 
 to Lancaster, Ohio, where he remained until 1842, 
 when he removed to Morgan Co., Ind. In that 
 county he remained some five years, engaged in 
 farming, when he came to Greenbush Township, this- 
 county, and there followed his chosen vocation, that 
 of agriculture, until 1870, when he moved one half 
 mile north into Berwick Township, where, on section 
 32, he had purchased 467 acres of land, and which 
 he has increased by subsequent purchases to 700 
 acres. He has a fine residence on his place, cover- 
 ing 166 feet of ground, two stories in height, with a 
 cellar under the entire building, and it is said to be 
 one of the most splendid farm dwellings in Warren 
 County. It was erected at a cost of $7,000. Not 
 alone to agriculture does Mr. Karns attribute his 
 financial success. He is and has been engaged to a 
 considerable extent in the breeding of Norman horses, 
 and also lias a fine lot of mules. He has one span 
 of roadsters on the farm which are " beauties," and is 
 also extensively engaged in raising Poland-China 
 hogs and Short-horn cattle. His herd of cattle are 
 seven-eighths full blood. 
 
 Mr. Karns formed a matrimonial alliance Aug. 20, 
 1837, in Ohio, with' Miss Anna Ellinger, the cere- 
 mony being performed by George W. Sanders, Justice 
 of the Peace. She was born Nov. 15, 1817, in Fair- 
 field Co., Ohio, and has borne her husband n chil- 
 dren, six of whom are deceased. The living are: 
 Catherine, born July 3, 1838; Margaret A., Oct. 27, 
 1842; Jacob, Aug." 20, 1854 ; William H., Nov. 24, 
 1858; Joseph L., Jan. 5, 1863. Catherine married 
 Riley Adams, and now resides in Hardin Co., Iowa, 
 and is the mother of eight children. Margarette is 
 ' the wife of George Emerick ; they live in Bourbon 
 
 Co., Kan., and are the parents of nine children. 
 Jacob married Amanda Johnson, and they live upon 
 the home farm, and are the parents of three children. 
 Samuel L married Edwina Bond; he died Nov. i, 
 1873, and left two children, Nora and Hulda May. 
 His widow married Dr. William Randall. John 
 Hemy married Clara Nier. He died when about 30 
 years of age, leaving two children, now deceased. His 
 widow married Charles Thomas. Thefatherof Mrs. 
 Karns, Joseph Ellinger, was born Dec. 30, 1785, in 
 Pennsylvania. He married Miss Nancy Bowman, 
 Feb. 14, 1815, who was born Dec. 10. 1787, and died 
 March 30, 1862, her husband having preceded her 
 totheTand of the hereafter Oct. 6, 1853. Their 
 children were seven in number, and named as fol- 
 lows : Catherine, born April 4, 1816; Ann, Nov. 15, 
 1819: Samuel L., Jan. 17, 1820; Mary, June 20, 
 1823; Elizabeth, July 30, 1826; John E., twin 
 brother to Elizabeth; and Barbara, Nov. 30, 1828. 
 Catherine and Ann still survive, at the venerable ages 
 of 79 and 76 respectively. Mr. and Mrs. Karns have 
 22 grandchildren, and are passing the sunset of their 
 lives in peace and quiet on their homestead, enjoy- 
 ing their accumulations of the past. On the cele- . 
 bration of Mr. Karns' 7oth birth-day, his children 
 and grandchildren, friends and relatives to the num- 
 ber of 90 assembled to do honor to the old gen- 
 tleman.- 
 
 Mr. Karns is a member of the Lutheran Church 
 and his wife of the Baptist Church. In 1836 he cast 
 his first vote, which was for Harrison. In 1856, upon 
 the formation of the Republican party, he' joined it, 
 and from that time to the present has remained a 
 firm, staunch and liberal supporter of the principles 
 of that party. 
 
 illiam H. Brooks, one of the representa- 
 tive men and respected citizens of Warren 
 County, is engaged in farming and stock- 
 raising on sections 9 and 10, Roseville Town- 
 ship, where he has always resided. The 
 date of his birth is Jan. i, 1846, and he is the 
 son of Thompson and Harriet E. (Ray) Brooks, who 
 are natives of Kentucky and who came to Illinois 
 with their parents before their marriage and were 
 among the early settlers of the State. Their mar- 
 
2o6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 riage occurred May 18, 1840. They had three sons, 
 of whom W. H. is the only survivor. After coming 
 to Illinois, they purchased 80 acres of land in Rose- 
 ville Township, and afterward added to their landed 
 interests 520 acres. Here they lived until their 
 deaths, the father's occurring April 23, 1871, and 
 the mother's March 22, 1878. 
 
 William H., whose name heads this biographical 
 notice, remained on the homestead with his parents 
 until their death. Since these sad events he has 
 had possession of the estate, and has added to the 
 original homestead until at present he is the pos- 
 sessor of 700 acres, which is well stocked with cattle, 
 horses and swine. We are pleased to give a full- 
 page view of his residence and farm buildings, which 
 may be seen on the preceding page. 
 
 Mr. Brooks was married to Miss Amanda E. Forl, 
 March 4, 1866. Like her husband, Mrs. Brooks is 
 also a native of Illinois. She is a daughter of Wash- 
 ington Fort, of Henderson Co., 111. Her parents 
 were natives of Kentucky and prominent settlers of 
 Henderson County. Mrs. Brooks has borne to her 
 husband five children, namely : Efifa, George T., 
 John F., Jessie and Harriet. 
 
 Mr. Brooks has held the office of Road Commis- 
 sioner of his township, and both he and his wife are 
 members of the Baptist Church. Mr. Brooks is one of 
 the solid and substantial men of Warren County. 
 Politically, he is identified with the Democratic 
 party. 
 
 arren B. Jenks, the owner and manager 
 of 100 acres of excellent improved land 
 and 1 6 acres of timber, residing on section 
 26 of Lenox Township, is the son of Eras- 
 tus and Polly F. (Wilber) Jenks, natives of 
 the Empire State. They were married and set- 
 tled in Warren County, where, in Lenox Township, 
 they have since made their home. Their famly con- 
 sists of five children, Alice P., Warren B., Ann H., 
 Genie and Flora G. Gertie is deceased. 
 
 Warren B. Jenks, (if whom we write, was born in 
 Lenox Township on the igth day of September, 1846, 
 and received a fair English education and has al- 
 ways made this his place of residence, When a 
 
 young man he had accumulated sufficient of his earn- 
 ings to procure a good farm of 100 acres, which op- 
 portunity he took advantage of, and now is the 
 proprietor of as nice a farm as there is in his town- 
 ship. The appearance of the same presents that 
 thrift and hard labor characteristic of our subject, 
 and his farm is now cultivated to a high degree, with 
 a fine residence and all the necessary and suitable 
 farm buildings erected thereon. 
 
 Mr. Jenks. was married on the 7th of February, 
 1875, to Miss Lucy, daughter of Asa Capps (see 
 sketch of F. L Capps). The ceremony was per- 
 formed in Lenox Township. Mrs. Jenks was born 
 there, Oct. 15, 1855. Of this union were born 
 four children, Mabel L., Wilber B., Edna F. and 
 Chester G. Mr. Jenks lias served his township as 
 School Director, besides having held other minor 
 offices, and with his wife is a member of the Baptist 
 Church. In political opinion he is identified with the 
 Republican party. 
 
 lorance K. Morris, M. D., practicing 
 physician residing at Berwick, was born in 
 Greene Co., Pa., April 18, 1849, and is the 
 son of James B. Morris, a native of Mt. Mor- 
 ris, Pa., where he was born in 1827. The 
 father was a miller by trade, and soon after the 
 breaking out of the late Civil War, enlisted in the 
 cause for the Union, joining a regiment of infantry, 
 and was selected as Captain of Co. F, and served in 
 that position for two years. At the expiration of that 
 time, he was commissioned Major in the 7th W. Va. 
 Inf. and served until his discharge in 1864. He 
 participated in several hotly contested engagements 
 while in the service. The father was married in 
 1848 to Miss Kezia Way, a native of West Virginia, 
 where she was born in 1825. They are both living, 
 and have been blessed by the birth of seven children : 
 Florance, the subject of this notice ; Sturgis W. was 
 born Aug. 8, 1850; Josephine S., April 8, 1852; 
 Mary J., September, 1854; Arabella, April 28, 1856; 
 Emma L., Dec. 15, 1858; George T., October, 1860. 
 Dr. Florance K. Morris was united in marriage to 
 Miss Emma L. Kelley, June 22, 1876, in West Vir- 
 ginia. She was born in that State in 1851, and has 
 borne her husband three children, namely: Lena 
 
 : 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 May, born April 9, 1877 ; Mary M., March 28, 1879; 
 and Emma B., Oct. n, 1882. Dr. Morris com- 
 menced the study of medicine at Mt. Morris, his na- 
 tive State; there he read one year under the instruc- 
 tion of Dr. Spencer Morris and two years under Dr. 
 Leander McMillan. He then attended Jefferson 
 Medical College, at Philadelphia, followed the curric- 
 ulum of that institution two years and graduated 
 thereat with honors March 1 1, 1876, receiving his 
 diploma. In April of the same year, he engaged in 
 the practice of his profession in his native State, and 
 then, in April, 1884, came to Berwick village, and 
 has since followed his practice at that place. By 
 carefully diagnosing his cases and bringing his ex- 
 perience and study directly to bear upon them, to- 
 gether with his close application to eacli and every 
 case he has in hand, the doctor has built up a fine 
 practice, both in medicine and surgery. That he 
 might be sure of pure drugs, which to use with his 
 practice and which are so essential in the treatn ent 
 of cases, he engaged in the drug business at Berwick, 
 which he is at present conducting in connection 
 with his practice. In politics he is a Republican. 
 
 loseph M. White, a well-to-do and suc- 
 \ji cessful farmer and stock-raiser, residing 
 on section 27, Monmouth Township, is a 
 native of Pennsylvania, having been born in 
 Honey Brook, Chester County, that Mate, April 
 12, 1833. The father of Mr. White, of this 
 notice, Thomas White, was a native of the same 
 State as his son, his father also having been born in 
 that State. Thomas was of Irish descent and in 
 early life learned the trade of blacksmith, which, in 
 the sunset of his years, lie abandoned to follow the 
 vocation of a farmer. The parents of Thomas 
 White always resided in their native State until 
 their death. Thomas was the third child in order of 
 birth of a family of five sons and one daughter. He 
 was married in Chester Co., Pa., to Catherine Mar- 
 pie, who was a native of the same county and State 
 in which she was married, and was the only daugh- 
 ter in a family of four children by her father's first 
 marriage, the issue of his second marriage being 
 two children. 
 
 The gentleman whose name heads this biographi- 
 
 A 1 
 
 cal notice was the oldest and only son of his father's 
 family, the remaining child being a daughter, Mary 
 J., who attained the age of majority and became the 
 wife of George Brown, a merchant in Fayette Co., 
 Pa. The early education of Mr. White was ac- 
 quired in the common schools, after which he at- 
 tended college at Meadville, Crawford County, his 
 native State. He continued to reside on the old 
 family homestead until he attained the age of man- 
 hood, in the meantime engaged in teaching. On at- 
 taining his majority he set forth upon the road of 
 adversity to fight the battles of life single-handed 
 and alone, and engaged in farming. His marriage 
 occurred in Fayette Co., Pa., where his parents had 
 removed when he was two years old, March 18, 
 1858, when Miss Sarah J. Rankin, the daughter of 
 James and Rachel (Hill) Rankin, natives of Penn- 
 sylvania, became his wife. Her father and mother 
 were both children of Pennsylvania farmers and 
 were of Irish extraction and American parentage. 
 Her father's family consisted of seven children, of 
 whom Mrs. White was next to the oldest. She was 
 born in Fayette County, Nov. 20, 1834. Her father 
 died in Pennsylvania about 1875, aged 67 years, and 
 her mother is yet living and resides on the old 
 homestead in that State. Mrs. White was educated 
 in the common schools at the college at Waynes- 
 burg. Greene County, her native State. She lives at 
 home, and for a portion of her time prior to her mar- 
 riage was engaged in the occupation of a teacher. 
 Mr. and Mrs. White have become the parents of 
 three children, one of whom is deceased. Thomas 
 is a resident of Lenox Township; Lucian resides at 
 home, and Roclanea is deceased. 
 
 After Mr. and Mrs;. White were united in marriage 
 they continued to reside in Pennsylvania for a short 
 time, when in the fall of 1858 they came West and 
 located on a farm of tot acres, which was partly im- 
 proved. Mr. White has since devoted his time to 
 that pursuit in life. In 1869, in company with A. 
 M. Black, Mr. White leased 1,400 acres of land in 
 Monmouth Township, which embraced the present 
 site of the Monmouth Mining Manufacturing Com- 
 pany. This company was first organized by Joseph 
 M. White and A. M. Black. They bored for coal 
 at an expense of about $1,000, and found a coal vein 
 of two feet; but the most important discovery was 
 fire-clay. The first vein of fire-clay is about three 
 
208 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 
 feet thick. Going still farther down, they found su- 
 perior quality, a vein of fire-clay, eight to ten feet 
 thick. As the coal could not be economically worked, 
 and the fire-clay being found of great value, they 
 turned their attention to the full development of that 
 discovery. In order to do that successfully, a stock 
 company was organized by Messrs. White & Black 
 for the purpose of manufacturing sewer-pipe, fire- 
 brick, etc. The stock was $50,000. The capital 
 stock was subsequently raised to $100,000. Mr. 
 White was a director in the first board, and a 
 stockholder until the fall of 1884. The establish- 
 ment now is among the largest of its kind in the 
 State; and much credit is due to Mr. White for 
 his energy in aiding to establish this great en- 
 terprise. He has done his full share in building 
 up the city of Monmouth. Mr. White continued 
 his connection with it until recently. At present he 
 is the owner, in Monmouth Township, of 182^ acres, 
 and 40 acres in Lenox Township. He has a fine, 
 we might say magnificent, residence on his place, 
 and is meeting with that success in. life which his 
 energy, perseverance and good judgment have 
 brought him. He and his wife are active mem- 
 bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which 
 denomination Mr. W. is at present Trustee. In poli- 
 tics Mr. White is classified as a " true blue " Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 } rs. Mary C. Klingingsmith is the widow 
 of Philip Klingingsmith, one of the pio- 
 neers of Roseville Township, and for 
 ft \ many years a prominent and influential 
 business man of the village. He was born in 
 1820, in Pennsylvania, and came to Illinois in 
 1855, selecting a quarter of a section of land in 
 Roseville Township. Here for over 20 years, until 
 1877, he was engaged in agricultural pursuits. Dur- 
 ing that year he moved into the village of Roseville 
 and purchased the Roseville Flouring-Mill. This 
 he continued to run until his death, which occurred 
 Nov. 27, 1884. Besides his mill he owned six dwell- 
 ing-houses, and 160 acres of land lying three miles 
 northeast of Roseville, all of which he managed him- 
 self. He was an enterprising man and a valuable 
 
 citizen to any village, and in his death Roseville lost 
 one of her most esteemed citizens. 
 
 Mr. Klingingsmith was married to Mrs. Mary C. 
 Rogers, widow of John Rogers, Sept. 25, 1875. She 
 was a native of Virginia and the daughter of James 
 and Elizabeth Jane (Robinson) Clemmer. Her par- 
 ents were natives of Fayette Co., Pa., came to Illinois 
 in 1862 and settled upon a farm in Berwick Town- 
 ship, this county, where they lived until 1879, when 
 they removed to Iowa, and in 1884 removed to Ne- 
 braska. Mrs. Klingingsmith, who was born in 1847, 
 resides in Roseville and has one daughter living with 
 her, Emily U. Rogers, who was a child by her former 
 husband. 
 
 Mr. Rogers was a native of Missouri and a resi- 
 dent of Berwick Township at the time of his mar- 
 riage to Miss Mary C. Clemmer. He died in 1868, 
 in Quincy. Mrs. Klingingsmith was raised in Dod- 
 dridge Co., Va., and remained there until she was 
 14 years of age, when her parents came to Illinois 
 and to Berwick Township. He also owns the flour- 
 ing-mill. 
 
 osephus Kirby, a successful farmer and 
 respected citizen of Warren County, resid- 
 ing on section 7, Berwick Township, was 
 born in Greene Co., Pa., Dec. 26, 1834, and is 
 a son of Joseph H. Kirby, who was born in 
 the same county and State, Feb. 21, 1802. 
 Joseph H. Kirby was married Oct. 26, r824. 
 
 Mr. Kirby of this sketch traces his ancestry in 
 this country back to Richard and Anna Kirby, who 
 had a son, Joseph, who was born Oct. 18, 1731. 
 Joseph Kirby was married and had a son, Isaac, 
 who was born Sept. 23, 1756 Isaac was married 
 and had a son, Joseph H. Kirby, the father of the 
 subject of this notice. Joseph H. Kirby came to 
 this State in 1853, and located in Berwick Township, 
 this county, where he purchased 270 acres of land, 
 on which he located with his family and engaged 
 vigorously upon the task of its improvement. Of 
 their union nine children were born, whose names 
 are Isaac B., born June 25, 1825; Emily, Jan. 23, 
 1827; John M., Dec. 24, 1830; Margaret, Feb. 5, 
 1833; Josephus, subject of this sketch, Dec. 26 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 209 
 
 
 1834; Phebe A., July 22, 1837; Sarah J., Sept. n, 
 1839; Mary E., Oct. 26. 1842; and George W., 
 April 24, 1847. Of the nine children, three only 
 are now living, John M., Isaac B. and Joseplms. 
 Joseph H. made his trip to this county overland 
 with wagons and teams, and was occupied 27 days 
 in the journey. Since coming here he has devoted 
 his time exclusively to agricultural pursuits, and yet 
 survives, at the venerable age of 84 years. In pol- 
 itics, he is an adherent of the Democratic party, and 
 he and his wife are members of the Methodist Prot- 
 estant Church. 
 
 Josephus Kirby, subject of this biographical notice, 
 has followed agricultural pursuits all his life. He 
 received such edacation as was to be acquired in 
 the common schools and worked on his father's farm 
 in Pennsylvania until his parents emigrated to this 
 county, when he emigrated with them, and has here 
 continued to follow the vocation which he had 
 learned in early life. He was united in marriage to 
 Fannie E. Townsend in 1862, Rev. P. P. Sirley 
 officiating. Miss Townsend was born April 19, 1843, 
 in New Yoik and has borne her husband six chil- 
 dren, Jennie S., born June 29, 1863; Nellie A., Jan. 
 24, 1865 ; Leeny F., Aug. 26, 1869; Harry T., Aug. 
 29, 1871; Ross J., Aug. 13, 1874; and Ralph, June 
 13, 1880. 
 
 Mr. Kirby, in addition to the cultivation of his 
 land, is devoting considerable attention to the 
 raising of fine stock, in which he is meeting with 
 success. He belongs to the Order of Good Tem- 
 plars, and religiously, he and his wife are members of 
 the Baptist Church. 
 
 jilliam P. Speakman, raiser of sugar cane 
 and manufacturer of sorghum, and also a 
 general farmer, residing on section 31, 
 Monmouth Township, was born in New Lin, 
 Chester Co., Pa., June 29, 1836. Jacob 
 Speakman, father of the gentleman whose name 
 heads this notice, was a native of the same county 
 and State as his son, and was of English descent and 
 American parentage. He was married in Chester 
 Co., Pa., to Miss Hannah Mitchner, a native of the 
 county and State where she was married. After their 
 
 
 marriage they continued to reside in Pennsylvania, 
 where Jacob Speakman was engaged in farming and 
 operating a grist-rnill until 1854. During that year 
 they came West and settled in Tompkins Township, 
 this county, where they purchased and improved a 
 tract of uncultivated land, on which they resided 
 until 1864. Jacob then moved to Monmouth Town- 
 ship, where, near the city limits of Monmouth, he 
 purchased 36 acres of improved land. On this land 
 he and his family moved and there resided until the 
 death of the mother, which occurred in 1879, in her 
 dgthyear. Jacob is now in his 8ist year. In his 
 politics he is a strong adherent to the principles of 
 the Republican party, and has always taken an act- 
 ive part in local politics. 
 
 After the parents of William P. had moved to this 
 county, the subject of this notice continued to reside 
 with them until the breaking out of the Civil War, 
 when he and his brother, Henry C., enlisted in the 
 83d 111. Vol Inf., Co. A, the date of their enlistment 
 being Aug. 2, 1862. His regiment was assigned to ' 
 the Army of the Cumberland and was under com- 
 mand of Gen. Thomas. It participated in the bat- 
 tle of Fort Donelson in February, 1863, in that of 
 Pulaski in 1864; also the battle of Athens, Tenn., 
 and many skirmishes. The two brothers were in all 
 the engagements in which the regiment participated, J 
 and both received an honorable discharge in Chicago, 
 in 1865. After his discharge Mr. Speakman returned 
 to his home, and two weeks later was married, on the 
 zist of July, 1865, to Miss Parnee L. Harroun. She 
 was born near Meadville, Crawford Co., Pa., June 
 n, 1839. Her father, J. E. Harroun, was Captain 
 of a militia company and engaged in the various 
 Indian troubles on the Pennsylvania frontier, near 
 Erie. His life occupation was varied, and he died 
 when Mrs. Speakman was but seven years old. She 
 then went to Wisconsin with her mother, Lucinda 
 (Hastings) Harroun, and there resided for seven 
 years, when her mother died After ihe death of her 
 mother, Mrs. Speakman resided with relatives until 
 her marriage. Of her union with Mr. S. six children 
 have been born, three of whom are deceased. Hur- 
 bert G., Rutherna and Fannie are living, and El- 
 wood, Mary and Ruth are deceased. After their 
 marriage, Mr. and Mrs. S. located on the farm and 
 followed that vocation in life for a while, when Mr. 
 Speakman purchased eight acres, on which he is at 
 present residing and engaged in his present occupa- 
 
 - 
 
210 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 tion of manufacturing sorghum. He has a mill on 
 his place with a capacity of 25,000 gallons for the 
 season, and he is at present making about 20,000 
 gallons annually. The mill is owned by himself and 
 brothers, who raise sugar cane for their own manu- 
 facture and also manufacture sorghum for the neigh- 
 borhood. In politics Mr. Speakman is a believer in 
 and a supporter of the principles of the Republican 
 party. 
 
 mdolph A. Beck, a member of the mercan- 
 : tile firm of Beck & Lewis, at Berwick, was 
 born in Ehingen, Wurtemburg, Germany, 
 Aug. 18, 1834, his parents being Henry and 
 Anna Beck. He received his education in 
 the public schools of his native country, at- 
 tending them until he was nine years of age, when 
 he entered college and there remained until he was 
 14. The father of our subject, Henry Beck, died 
 Dec. 21, 1848, aged 42 years. Rudolph, after this 
 sad event, was sent by his mother to a friend of his 
 father's, at Merger, to learn the confectioner's trade. 
 He lived in that beautiful country for some six 
 months, and on returning home he stopped at Berne 
 and fell in with Sigel's German insurgents, with 
 whom he remained for awhile and then returned to 
 Germany. After his return he was sent to Hoch- 
 ingen to finish his apprenticeship, and there remained 
 for two and a half years. He then again went to 
 France, from there to Switzerland and then back to 
 his native land, Germany. After staying at home 
 six weeks, in 1853, he emigrated to the United States 
 via Liverpool, Eng. After a voyage of 30 days, he 
 landed in New York, where he remained for about 
 one and a half years, and then went to Lancaster, 
 Pa., on foot, and from there to Wheeling, W. Va., 
 and then to Sabina, Ohio. In the latter place he 
 worked some six months, at the enormous salary of 
 $5 per month ! 
 
 Leaving Ohio, 1855, Mr. Beck came to Illinois, 
 where he found work on a farm near Berwick village. 
 During the spring of 1861 the war for the Union be- 
 gan, and Mr. Beck enlisted in October following in 
 Co. E, 1 3th 111. Cav., under Capt. Rolland. After 
 participating in several skirmishes in Arkansas and 
 Missouri, he was sent to Jefferson Barracks Hospital, 
 Missouri, where he was discharged. He was mus- 
 
 tered into the service at Chicago, and from there his 
 company went to Pilot Knob, Mo., and from there to 
 Arkansas, on the White River, where they were en- 
 gaged in the battle of Cotton Plant, after which they 
 went to Helena, Ark., where Mr. Beck remained for 
 some three days, and from which place, as stated, 
 he was sent to the hospital, the occasion of which 
 being the falling of his horse upon him in the last 
 battle in which he participated, and from which he 
 has never fully recovered. He received his discharge 
 at Jefferson Barracks, Oct. 9, 1862. Returning 
 home, Mr. Beck remained in the vicinity of Berwick, 
 endeavoring to regain his health, until the 22d day 
 of May, 1863, when he started for his native home. 
 On arriving in that country and after remaining 
 there some three or four months, he was united in 
 marriage with Miss Anna Mederle, Sept. 2t, 1863, 
 the ceremony being performed by the Rev. Fulgey. 
 She was born July 24, 1846. He started back to 
 the United States with his bride in October of the 
 same year of their marriage, and arrived here in No-1 
 vember following. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Beck are the parents of four chil- 
 dren, Ida T., born July 8, 1866; Cora A., Oct. 17, 
 1868; Grace A., Jan. it, 1873; Irma A., July 30, 
 1875. Mr. Beck has a fine residence in the village 
 of Berwick, 36 x 36 feet in dimensions, and two 
 stories in height. In politics, he is a Republican. 
 Socially, he is a member of the A. F. & A. M., Lodge 
 No. 619, at Cameron, and, religiously, he and his 
 wife are members of the Baptist Church. 
 
 The present firm of Beck & Lewis, at Berwick vil- 
 lage, carry an average stock of $3,000. They handle 
 a general stock of dry goods, hardware, groceries, 
 and in fact everything that periains to their business, 
 and by fair and honest dealings with their patrons 
 have built up a good and constantly increasing trade. 
 
 Mr. Beck has held the office of Postmaster at Ber- 
 wick for the last 25 years, and still acts in that ca- 
 pacity. 
 
 Henderson. One of the progressive 
 and energetic farmers of Warren County 
 1 is Mr. S. S. Henderson. He was born in 
 *^ Fayette Co., Pa., on the 271)1 of May, 1848, 
 and is a son of Harvey and Eliza (Harris) 
 Henderson, who were natives of Pennsylvania 
 and had a family consisting of 13 children, five of 
 
- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 21 I 
 
 whom are living. Mrs. Henderson died in Pennsyl- 
 vania, March 12, 1870. The father is still a resi- 
 dent of Fayette Co., Pa. 
 
 The subject of this notice remained at home until 
 he attained his majority, and while there assisted in 
 the farm duties and also attended the district schools. 
 He afterwards took charge of his father's farm, on 
 shares, for six years, which proved very successful, 
 and our subject managed to accumulate sufficient to 
 enable him to emigrate West, arriving in Larchland, 
 this county, in the spring of 1875, and in the fall 
 made a purchase of 160 acres, where he now resides, 
 and owns 240 acres all together. On this land he is 
 engaged extensively in general farming. About the 
 year 1881 he was very unfortunate, having his house 
 and other buildings burnt, but since has replaced 
 them by an elegant residence costing $2,000, and 
 good, substantial outbuildings. 
 
 The most important event in the life of Mr. Hen- 
 derson occurred on the 5th of November, 1868, when 
 he was married to Miss E. J. Woodward, a native of 
 Pennsylvania and a daughter of Davis and Mary 
 (Boyd) Woodward. They were farmers and the 
 " parents of ^children, all of whom are living (except 
 ' one who died in infancy) and had married and raised 
 families of children before the father's death, which 
 occurred in 1882. Mr. and Mrs. Henderson are the 
 parents of seven children. Mary, Harvey, Davis, 
 Amanda, Joseph O., Iran I. and Elizabeth. 
 
 Mr. Henderson belongs to the Order of Masons, 
 Monmouth Lodge, No. 37, and Odd Fellows, Warren 
 Lodge, No. 1 60, at Monmouih. He has held the 
 offices of School Director and Constable of his town- 
 ship, and is considered one of the substantial men of 
 Warren County. Politically, Mr. H. is identified 
 with the Republican party. 
 
 Imiron G. Parker, the junior member of 
 the mercantile firm of Foster & Parker, ;it 
 Gerlaw, is a native of the county in which 
 he is a business man, having been born in the 
 township of Cold Brook, March 28, 1849. He 
 is the oldest son of Barton S. and Margaret 
 (Rowe) Parker, who were pioneers of that part of 
 Warren County. The father was a farmer and the 
 spn was brought up on the family homestead.. He 
 
 obtained only education in the common schools, and 
 all he needed, as he possesses the intelligence neces- 
 sary to the management of such business projects as 
 he sees fit to engage in ; and contact with the world 
 at large is, to a man of his proclivities, equivalent to 
 the advantages afforded by extended intimacy with 
 the schools ; and it is an open question if the more 
 practical course does not the better subserve the idea 
 of education. In the spring of 1875 he made his 
 first acquaintance with the commercial world, and 
 engaged in the capacity of merchant at Cameron, 
 where he operated as such until 1881. In that year 
 he formed his present business relation at th-; point 
 where he is at present located. He has pursued 
 the varied avenues of its connection without inter- 
 mission ever since. 
 
 His union in marriage to Hulda Jewel took place 
 in February, 1870. Mrs. Parker was born in Logan 
 Co., Ohio, and in their family five children have 
 been born, and Harry, Bertha, Arnold, Alva and 
 Charles are their names. The father and mother 
 are members of the Christian Church. Mr. Parker 
 is a Democrat in political persuasion. 
 
 W. Rhinehart, proprietor of a quar- 
 ter-section of land located on section 34, 
 Hale Township, where he resides and 
 where he is engaged in the active labors of 
 an agriculturist, is a nat : ve of New York 
 State, having been born in Ulster County, 
 Oct. 14, 1824. The parents of Mr. Rhinehart were 
 William and Maria (Jansen) Rhinehart, they both 
 being natives of Ulster Co., N. Y. The father died 
 in October, 1883. The mother still survives and 
 lives in New York. They were of the old Huguenot 
 stock, coming to this country at an early day. Mr. 
 Rhinehart continued to reside in his native county 
 until he attained the age of 29 years, receiving the 
 education afforded by the common schools and pass- 
 ing the major portion of his time until that age on 
 the farm. 
 
 In 1853, David W. Rhinehart emigrated from New 
 York to this county, and for two years was engaged 
 in farming on rented land. He then purchased a 
 quarter-section of land on section 34, Hale Town- 
 ship, and at once entered actively and vigorously 
 
212 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 upon its improvement and cultivation. He erected 
 a good residence, barn and outbuildings and to-day 
 has the entire quarter-section in an advanced state 
 of cultivation, and the place is indicative of that 
 sbility which he possesses in the vocation which he 
 has chosen for a life-time pursuit. 
 
 Miss Maria Bruyn, sister of Mrs. Jeremiah Hoorn- 
 beck, whose sketch is given elsewhere in this volume, 
 on the i7th of November, 1853, in the busy and en- 
 terprising little city of Monmouth, became the wife 
 of the subject of this notice. She was born in Ulster 
 Co., N. Y., March 18, 1832, and during their 32 
 years of married life eight children have been born to 
 them, whose names are: William, Nathaniel B., 
 Lefever, Headley, John, Cornelia, Laura E. and 
 Charles J. William resides in Missouri; Nathaniel 
 lives in Iowa, and the remaining children live at 
 home. 
 
 Mr. Rhineliart, although a gentleman who has no 
 craving for public office, preferring to attend strictly 
 to the business of his farm life, has held the office 
 of Overseer of Highways. He and his wife are 
 strict Presbyterians, and in politics Mr. R. vojes 
 with and indorses the platform of the Democratic 
 parly. 
 
 |[rthur G. Seymour, owning 160 acres of 
 good farm land, under an advanced system 
 of cultivation, on section 2, Ellison Town- 
 ship, was born in Fulton, Oswego Co., N. Y. , 
 Nov. 23, 1833. Rodney Seymour, father of 
 the gentleman whose name heads this sketch, 
 also born in Oswego Co., N. Y., and was the 
 white male born in that county. His father 
 and two other families moved to that county before 
 the hand of civilization had improved an acre of 
 ground, and when the same was one dense wilder- 
 ness. Rodney was reared at home in Oswego County, 
 and the necessity which compelled him to assist in 
 the maintenance of the family, and the absence of 
 common schools in the community in which he re- 
 sided, deterred him from receiving an education 
 other than that given by parental instruction. He 
 assisted his father in " tree-cutting " and clearing 
 his land, and experienced all the trials and privations 
 incident to the settlement of a new cpuntry. He 
 
 was 
 first 
 
 was married to Amy K. Peabody, a native of Oswego 
 County, where she had resided with her parents until 
 her marriage. They were also early settlers of that 
 county, and continued to reside there until her 
 death, which occurred some years ago. 
 
 The parents pf Arthur G. had three children, of 
 whom the subject of this notice was the eldest. He 
 continued to reside on the parental homestead until 
 he was 20 years of age, when, in March, 1860, in 
 company with his two sisters, Celesta and Emetine, 
 he came to this State, and located in the southeast 
 corner of Berwick Township, this county. He rented 
 land there and for two years was occupied in its 
 cultivation, when he removed to Tompkins Town- 
 ship, and was there similarly engaged in the culti- 
 vation of rented land for another two years. He 
 afterward rented land in Ellison Township and oc- 
 cupied his time one year in raising a crop thereon. 
 During his residence in that township, Mr. Seymour 
 was united in marriage with Mary M. Abdill, daugh- 
 ter of Isaac and Mary M. (Bissett) Abdill, natives of 
 Delaware and New Jersey respectively, the date of 
 their union being Dec. 30, 1864. Her parents were 
 married in New Jersey and came West in 1858, and 
 located at Keithsburg, 111., having lived in Kentucky : 
 for some years after their marriage, from which 
 Stale they came here. Her f.ither was a molder and j 
 millwright, and died at the residence of his daughter, 
 Mrs. Seymour, in Ellison Township, March 6, 1875, 
 and his wife, mother of Mrs. Seymour, died at Mon- 
 mouth, Jan. 20, 1875. Mrs. Seymour was born in 
 Cadiz, Ohio, in 1836. She acquired her education 
 in the district schools and resided with her parents 
 until her marriage. 
 
 In 1865, Mr. Seymour purchased 160 acres of 
 land in this county, the same being his farm upon 
 which he at present resides. At the time at which 
 he purchased it, it was an unbroken tract of prairie 
 land. He located upon it, and by laborious toil has 
 succeeded in placing it under the advanced state of 
 cultivation in which it is at present. He has a good 
 residence on his farm, built some years ago, and the 
 place is well supplied with a good barn and neces- 
 sary outbuildings. Ten children have been born to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Seymour, one of whom is deceased, 
 Florence, who became the wife of William Galbrith, 
 who is a farmer residing in Ellison Township ; Jes- 
 sie M., Willard L., Nellie M., Arlena A., Mamie G., 
 

 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Evelina, Fannie, Roscoe and Minnie G., deceased. 
 Mrs S. is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 When Mr. Seymour first came to this State, he 
 had the enormous capital of 45 cents in his pocket, 
 and, in addition to his own support, had the care of 
 two sisters. Still, having faith in the future devel- 
 opment of the country and a firm determination to 
 succeed, backed up by energy, perseverance and 
 industry, he " stuck to it," endured the privations 
 which a settler in a new country necessarily encoun- 
 ters, and was successful. In addition to his home- 
 stead in this county, he is the owner of 400 acres of 
 good farm land, all fenced and partly improved, in 
 Taylor Co., Iowa. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Seymour was formerly a Republi- 
 can, but, since the Prohibition party sprang into 
 existence, affiliates with that party. 
 
 H- 
 
 ["osh.ua W." Barber, a resident on section 
 30, Lenox Township, engaged in agricul- 
 tural pursuits, is a son of Aaron W. and 
 Ann C. (Hill) Barber, natives of New Jersey 
 and Ohio respectively. They had a family 
 consisting of six children, of whom J. W. Bar- 
 ber was the second in order of birth. He was born 
 in Clermont Co., Ohio, Aug. 13, 1831, and lived at 
 home with his parents until 1846, when he came to 
 Knox County, this State, and there resided until 
 1857. We next find him in Warren County, where 
 he located in Lenox Township, and has been a 
 resident of this place ever since. 
 
 In October, 1864, lie enlisted in the 3oth 111. Vol. 
 Inf., and served for about nine months, and, on re- 
 ceiving an honorable discharge, he returned to his 
 home in this county and again engaged in the peace- 
 ful pursuits of life. His farm comprises 85 acres of 
 giod tillable land, which, by his industry and econ- 
 omy has been all improved. 
 
 Joshua W. was married in Knox County, this 
 State, on the 151)1 of November, 1855, the lady 
 chosen to be h's companion in life being Mary A. 
 Woodmansee, who was a native of Ohio. Albert F., 
 who is a conductor on the Rock Island & St. Louis 
 
 Division of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Rail- 
 road ; and Edith V., the wife of Wm. K. Kittering, a 
 resident of Monmouth Township, are the two chil- 
 dren of Mr. and Mrs. Joshua W. Barber. 
 
 Mr. B. has served his township as Clerk and School 
 Director, and politically he is a Republican, and a 
 St. John man in temperance. Mr. and Mrs. B. are 
 members of the Methodist Protestant Church. 
 
 athaniel A. Rankin, general farmer and 
 fruit-grower, on section 31, Monmouth 
 Township, was born in Henderson Co., 
 Ky., Feb. r, 1809. His father, Adam, was a 
 doctor by profession and a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania, and of Scotch descent. He was married 
 in Kentucky, near Danville, to a Miss Speed, who 
 afterward died, leaving five children. Before the 
 death of his wife he had moved to Henderson 
 County, in another part of the State, and there formed 
 his second matrimonial alliance, the lady being Miss 
 Susan Roan Anderson, who was born in Virginia, and 
 was a daughter of a farmer and came to Kentucky 
 when quite young. Of the latter union five children 
 were born, of whom our subject, Nathaniel A., is the 
 eldest and the only survivor. His brother, James 
 E., was shot by a band of marauders while in his 
 store in Henderson County, because he was a Union 
 sympathizer. He was a prominent merchant and 
 member of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 Nathaniel A. Rankin, of whom we write, resided 
 with his parents until the death of his father, liv- 
 ing with his mother afterward until his marriage. 
 He has been twice married, the first time to Miss 
 Ann Louisa Holloway, third child of George Hollo- 
 way, of Bourbon Co., Ky. The acquaintance which 
 led to this union was formed while she was on a 
 visit to her relatives in Henderson Co., Ky., and was 
 celebrated at that place March 29, 1831. She lived 
 only a little over two years after her marriage, her 
 demise occurring Dec. 18, 1833. His second mar- 
 riage was celebrated near Paris, Bourbon County, 
 Ky., on Christmas day, in the year 1834, the lady 
 chosen to share his joys and sorrows, successes and 
 
 I 
 
216 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 reverses, being Miss Martha Holloway, a daughter 
 of George Holloway and sister of Hon. Robert 
 Holloway (see sketch). She was born in Bourbon 
 County, Dec. 7, 1816, and was reared in her native 
 county, remaining at home with her parents until her 
 marriage. They were farmers, and father died in 
 Bourbon County. The mother's demise occurred at 
 the home of one of her sisters, the wife of Gen. 
 W. F. Thornton, of Shelbyville, 111. Mrs. Rankin 
 was the fourth child of her father's family of seven 
 children, and she has become the "mother of ten 
 children, seven of whom are living : William H. is 
 married and engaged as a furniture dealer in Mon- 
 mouth, where he resides; Adam is also married and 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits in Johnson Co., 
 Kan.; Anna is the wife of D. E. Thompson, a stock 
 speculator, and resides in Los Angeles, Cal. ; Mary 
 married William H. Irwin, who is engaged in the real- 
 estate business in Dawson Co., Neb. ; George C. is 
 Clerk of the Circuit Court of Warren County ; Belle 
 
 fand Robert reside at home, the latter operating the 
 homestead. Three of Mr. Rankin's children died in 
 
 [infancy. 
 
 Immediately after marriage Mr. and Mrs. Rankin 
 
 I came to Illinois, locating at Springfield, where Mr. 
 
 I R. had established himself about 12 months prior to 
 his marriage in the mercantile business. After mar- 
 riage he lived there for about nine years, doing a 
 successful business in his line. He went thence to 
 Shelbyville, 111., and embarked in the same business 
 and remained for about three years. In 1845, he 
 came to Warren County, and settled in Monmouth, 
 where he carried on an extensive business in pro- 
 duce and general merchandise. He was thus occu- 
 pied until 1861, when he came to his present farm, 
 which consists of 80 acres of land, and which is 
 under an excellent state of cultivation. As a fruit- 
 grower he has done exceedingly well, and at the 
 annual fairs he represents his products, which always 
 take away a share of the laurels. Grapes and straw- 
 berries are his specialty. 
 
 Mr. Rankin has overtaken an active and promin- 
 ent part in every enterprise having for its object the 
 advancement of the public interest. He has always 
 been found associated with the best and most prom- 
 inent people in the county in laboring for the public 
 good. He has been called upon to fill many public 
 positions, which he always did with a high degree of 
 
 satisfaction to all concerned. He was one of the 
 first Aldermen of Monmouth, and during the years 
 1859-60 was Mayor of the city. He was United 
 States Internal Revenue Assessor of his district for 
 six years from 1862 to 1868. He served as Super- 
 visor for two years and Justice of the Peace for 
 eight years. In 1864 the Warren County Agricul- 
 tural Society elected him President, and re-elected 
 him the following year. In 1868, when the War- 
 ren County Reading Room was first organized, he 
 was chosen President of the Board of Directors, and 
 was a member of the Board of Directors of the War- 
 ren County Library from 1870 to 1879, the lat- 
 ter institution growing out of the Reading Room. 
 Thus it will be seen, as above stated, that he has 
 been both an active and a leading spirit in the affairs 
 of Monmouth and Warren County for years. He 
 never has pushed himself into position, but being 
 recognized as the man best fitted for the work in 
 hand was selected without opposition. 
 
 Politically, Mr. R. is a Republican, and takes a 
 prominent part in politics. Mr. Rankin, wife and 
 daughter Belle are active members of the Chris- 
 tian Church, and he has been Elder of his con- 
 gregation for nearly 40 years, which position he is 
 filling at the present time. 
 
 We are pleased to present to our patrons the por- . 
 trait of Mr. Rankin, which we do in connection with 
 this sketch. It will be gladly received by his many 
 friends all over the county who have so long and 
 favorably known him. 
 
 W. Meacham, spending the sunset of his 
 life in ease and comfort at Roseville, was 
 born in Kentucky, July 26, 1830, and is a 
 son of Andrew and Elizabeth (Jones) Meacham 
 natives respectively of North Carolina and Ken- 
 tucky. They came to Illinois in 1838 and lo- 
 cated in Sangamon County, where they purchased 
 120 acres of land and remained for two years ; the 
 elder Meacham then sold out there and came to 
 Warren County and made a purchase of a farm 
 where the village of Ellison now stands. Here he 
 remained for four years. He next located three 
 miles west of Roseville, on a tract of 80 acres of 
 land. He subsequently went to New Lancaster, 
 where he was engaged in the dry-goods and grocery 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 217 
 
 business for a number of years. After selling his 
 interest in the latter enterprise he purchased 80 
 acres in the southeast part of Ellison Township, 
 upon which he resided until his death, in 1878, the 
 death of his wife occurring a year later. Their 
 family consisted of nine children, five of whom are 
 living, Miles G., Lavina, Frances VV., Etna and 
 Achilles. 
 
 F. W. Meacham, the gentleman whose name 
 heads this personal narrative, remained the compan- 
 ion of his parents until he reached the age of 20 
 years, in the meantime receiving a good common- 
 school education. After leaving home, he rented a 
 farm for the first year, and in '1851 made a purchase 
 of 80 acres, located on section 34, Ellison Township, 
 and upon this he resided for 20 years, entering act- 
 ively and energetically upon the task of its im- 
 provement and cultivation, adding by subsequent 
 purchases 269 acres. He, in the year 1870, pur- 
 chased a house and five acres of land at Roseville, 
 where he resides. This he has since increased by a 
 ten-acre tract. 
 
 Mr. F. W. Meacham was married in 1851 to Miss 
 Harriet Herring, a native of Pennsylvania. She 
 has borne him seven children, as follows : Edward, 
 Nora, George, Casa, Luther, Oscar (deceased) and 
 Flora, who died when 1 2 years old. Edward mar- 
 ried Miss Mary Bragg, and they have a family 
 consisting of four children, Frederick, William, 
 Clara and Angie. Nora married William Buckley, 
 and George is in partnership with the last named 
 gentleman in the hardware business at Roseville. 
 
 Mr. Meacham is a Republican and with his wife 
 belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 "osiah C. Lucas, one of the largest land- 
 yjr owners in Warren County and also one of 
 her most successful farmers and respected 
 citizens, resides on section 18, Cold Brook 
 Township. He has been a resident of this 
 county during his entire life, having been born 
 in Monmouth Township, July 30, 1832, and has 
 consequently witnessed the development of the 
 county to the present magnificent agricultural con. 
 dition which it presents to-day. 
 
 The father of Mr. Lucas of this sketch, Marsham 
 Lucas, was a native of Hart Co., Ky., and a farmer 
 by occupation. He was married in his native county 
 to Miss Cynthia Ann Whitman, likewise a native of 
 that county and State. They emigrated to this State 
 in 1829, locating in Morgan County, and after a resi- 
 dence there of some time, came to this county, in 
 1831, where Marsham Lucas purchased land from 
 the Government, located on section 31, Monmouth 
 Township, and where the parents continued to re- 
 side until the death of the mother, which occurred in 
 October, 1837. Marsham Lucas, by his first mar- 
 riage, had five sons and two daughters. In order of 
 birth they were, Thomas H.,'now a resident of Ore- 
 gon ; Christopher W., who died in 1880 ; Albert W., 
 also a resident of Oregon ; Sarah E. became the wife 
 of Elijah I). Butler : they moved to Oregon, where 
 they both died ; Josiah C. was next in order of birth ; 
 Emily J. became the wife of James M. Ellis, and 
 they live in Palmyra, Mo. ; and Samuel C., a resi- 
 dent of Indiana. 
 
 The gentleman whose name heads this article was 
 a child of five years at the date of his mother's death. ' 
 He was the youngest but two of his parents' children, ' 
 and after the death of his mother, his father was a J 
 second time married, when Mrs. Elizabeth Davidson, 
 nee Deweese, became his wife, with whom Mr. 
 Lucas of this sketch continued to reside until four 
 years after attaining his majority. In 1865 his father 
 and step-mother moved to Abingdon, where they 
 are at present living, retired from the active labors 
 of life and enjoying their accumulations of the past. 
 
 Josiah C. Lucas resided with his parents until he 
 was 24 years old, at which time he was married in 
 the township of his nativity fo Hannah J. Townsend. 
 She was a native of Putnam Co., N. Y., born March 
 22, 1833, and came to Illinois with her parents 
 when a young lady. She resided at home, acquiring 
 an education in the common schools and assisting 
 her mother in the household labors, until her mar- 
 riage to Mr. Lucas. Her parents are both de- 
 ceased. They were James and Polly (Baldwin) 
 Townsend. They became residents of this county 
 in 1855 and were farmers and members of the Bap- 
 tist Church, and Mr. Townsend, in politics, was a 
 Democrat. 
 
 Our subject and wife have had born to them eight 
 children, namely : Berry, who married Katie B. Jam.- 
 
f V 
 
 218 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ison: they live near Abingdon, Knox Co., 111., where 
 he is engaged in farming and the breeding of Polled 
 Angus cattle ; Guy is deceased ; Ola A. is now a 
 student of law at the Chicago Union College of 
 Law : he is a graduate of Knox College ; James 
 L., Jessie E., Rosa J., Harry C., and a daughter 
 who died in infancy, are the names of the other 
 members of the family. 
 
 After Mr. and Mrs. Lucas were united in marriage, 
 Mr. Lucas made his first purchase of land in Cold 
 Brook Township, consisting of 80 acres, on which he 
 located and engaged actively and energetically in its 
 improvement. He has subsequently, by his energy, 
 good judgment and perseverance, added to his orig- 
 inal purchase of land in this county at different 
 times until he is at present the proprietor of i, 800 
 acres of good farm land, the same being located ia 
 Cold Brook, Floyd and Monmouth Townships, and 
 some in Knox County. The landed interests of Mr. 
 Lucas have been acquired through that indomitable 
 energy and perseverance of which he is character- 
 istic. He is a gentleman possessed of far more than 
 ordinary ability as a business man, and is regarded 
 as one of the successful farmers of Warren County. 
 He is also engaged in breeding thorougbred Polled 
 Angus cattle. A view of his home is shown on 
 another page of this ALBUM. 
 
 Mr. Lucas and his wife are members [of the 
 Christian Church, and in politics Mr. Lucas is a 
 believer in and a supporter of the principles of the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 | iinothy Thomas, an energetic and success- 
 ful agriculturist of Lenox Township, War- 
 ren County, is a son of Reuben and Lucy 
 (Sprague) Thomas, and a native of Ohio, hav- 
 ing been born in Clermont County in August, 
 1830. His parents were natives of New Jer- 
 sey and New Hampshire respectively, and of their 
 union four children were born, Zuba, Alonzo, Tim- 
 othy and Alice. Zuba is deceased. 
 
 Timothy Thomas, the subject of this biographical 
 sketch, remained at home, working on the farm and 
 attending school when opportunity presented itself, 
 
 until he attained the age of majority, at which age he 
 came to Warren County and worked out by the 
 month for two years. At the expiration of that time 
 he rented land and improved and cultivated it for 
 three years, when he engaged in working with his 
 father. After thus being busily engaged for several 
 years, he accumulated sufficient to enable him to 
 purchase a tract of 120 acres of land, of which he 
 is now the possessor. Having entered actively and 
 energetically upon its improvement, he has it now 
 under an advanced state of cultivation, with a good 
 residence and other necessary buildings upon it. 
 
 July 7, 1870, in Knox County, this State, occurred 
 one of the most important events in the life of Mr. 
 Thomas, it being his marriage to Miss Leannah 
 Neff, a daughter of Jacob and Mary (Shoemaker) 
 Neff, natives of Virginia Jonathan, Jackson, Sally, 
 Catherine, Rebecca, Melvina, Leannah, Susan, Jo- 
 seph, Mary and Elias are the names of the 1 1 chil- 
 dren born to Mr. and Mrs. Neff. Leannah, now the 
 wife of Timothy Thomas, our subject, was born in 
 Virginia, March 28, 1840, and with her husband has 
 become the parent of four children, Mary V., Asa, 
 Charles and Lucy B., all residing at home with their 
 parents. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Thomas are members of the Baptist 
 Church, and politically Mr. T. casts his vote with 
 the Republican party. 
 
 Draper Babcock, the leading dry-goods 
 merchant of Monmouth, was born in 
 Wales, Mass., Dec. i, 1827. (For a his- 
 tory of the parents, see sketch of E. C. Bab- 
 cock in this volume.) Draper accompanied his 
 parents to Monmouth in 1842, and has here 
 since been engaged in mercantile pursuits. He be- 
 came a partner with his father in 1852, and assumed 
 full control of the business in 1864. 
 
 From 1859 to 1865, Mr. Babcock of this notice 
 held the office of County Treasurer, and during the 
 late Civil War was Deputy United States Revenue 
 Collector under Grimshaw. In 1873, the Temper- 
 ance element elected him Mayor of the city, and he 
 has represented his ward in the City Council for 
 many years. For several years he was connected 
 
Of -ttl 
 WUVBW1.I 
 
 
RESIDENCE OF COLBY M AT TESON.SEC.SG. LENOX TOWNSHIP. 
 
 RESIDENCE or J. C. Luc AS, SEC, 18, COLD BROOK TOWNS HI P. 
 
e- 
 
 - 
 
 JO 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 221 
 
 with Monmouth College as Trustee, and he has filled 
 a similar capacity on the Public Library Board since 
 its organization. He was one of the organizers of 
 the unfortunate First National Bank, and was one of 
 its Directors up to the time of its collapse. 
 
 Leaving the old Whig party, Mr. Babcock united 
 with the Republicans, and while no politician, he 
 has served his party in various ways effectively. In 
 popularity as a business man and citizen, it is stating 
 mildly a truth that has passed into a proverb, to say 
 that he is the peer of any man in Warren County. 
 He is not rich in worldly possessions, perhaps, but is 
 opulent in good name. 
 
 Mr. Babcock was married at Monmouth, Dec. 22, 
 1852, to Miss Mary E. Elliott, daughter of the late 
 Rev. Joseph Elliott, of the Baptist Church, and of 
 his three sons and one daughter we have the follow- 
 ing brief memoranda : Edward C., brought up to 
 mercantile pursuits, was quite successfully engaged 
 in business at Leadville, Col., for some years: he is 
 ' now (October, 1885,) in Butte City, Montana; How- 
 ard resides at Galesburg, 111. ; and Lucius A. makes 
 his home with his parents. Probably the most pop- 
 ular young lady in Monmouth was Miss Jennie O. 
 Babcock. She is now the wife of A. B. Seaman, a 
 prominent young attorney of Denver, Col. 
 
 Like his father, Mr. Babcock is a consistent mem- 
 ber of the Baptist Church, to which he devotes much 
 of his time and money. 
 
 .lijah Coddington Babcock, deceased, 
 was born in Wales, Hampden Co., Mass., 
 Jan. 1 6, 1803, where he lived until 1841, 
 and died at Monmouth, 111., from paralysis, 
 Feb. 13, 1885. He was a son of James and 
 Phila Babcock, who were descendants of that 
 Puritan stock of which Americans are so proud. In 
 early boyhood he manifested a taste for the mercan- 
 tile business and entered a store at the age of 14 
 years. His thrift and enterprise enabled him to ac- 
 cumulate the means with which he purchased an in- 
 terest in the establishment, which he afterwards 
 bought entire. 
 
 On Dec. 17, 1823, Mr. Babcock was married to 
 Miss Cynthia Weld, of Brimfield, Mass. The result 
 Of the union was twq sons and three daughters, viz.: 
 
 Mrs. Persis W. Stapp, now deceased; John Babcock, 
 of Denver, Col.; Draper, of Monmouth (see sketch) ; 
 Mrs. Mary Patterson, also of Monmouth, and Mrs. 
 A. H. Holt, of Washington, D. C. 
 
 In the early part of 1842 Mr. Babcock decided to 
 come West, and some time in April of that year, in 
 company with his brother George, reached St. Louis. 
 Being informed by merchants of that city that there 
 was a splendid prospect for the marcantile business 
 in the locality of Oquawka on the upper Mississippi, 
 they came up the river, but on reaching Oquawka 
 were not pleased with the prospect. They started 
 for Monmouth, riding as far as Olmstead's Mill with 
 Uncle William Hopper and walking the rest of the 
 way. The next day the fortune-seekers rented a 
 room in the building which stood where the Mon- 
 mouth National Bank building now stands, which be- 
 longed to Daniel McNiel, George Babcock being a 
 silent partner. It was not long until they were doing 
 an extensive business, having a stock of general mer- 
 chandise, comprising everything that satisfied the 
 demand of early settlers. In 1851 George Babcock 
 retired and the deceased gave his two sons, John 
 and Draper, interests in the establishment. Mr. > 
 Babcock 's strict honesty and correct business prin- 
 ciples won for the establishment a reputation for 
 fairness and upright dealing that extended for many 
 miles around Monmouth. He was noted for the 
 correctness of his accounts, but his great trouble was 
 selling on credit. At the time of the great fire on 
 May o, 1871, his business house was entirely de- 
 stroyed and he sustained heavy losses. He did not 
 again re-open business, but was engaged in the store 
 of his son, Draper. 
 
 In the year 1841 the Baptist Church was organized 
 in Monmouth, to which the deceased largely contrib- 
 uted. Mrs. Babcock joined the organization by let- 
 ter in 1843, an< 3 Mr. Babcock became a member by 
 baptism during the pastorate of Rev. Miner in 1846. 
 His membership in the Church abounds with 
 liberal contributions and unrelenting interest in its 
 behalf. He often bore half of the expenses of the 
 Church and was the head and shoulders of the con- 
 gregation. He was elected to the office of Deacon 
 years ago, the duties of which he performed until the 
 time of his death. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Babcock celebrated the 5oth anni- 
 versary of their marriage on Dec. 17, 1873. Mrs, 
 
222 
 
 rv: 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Babcock died Sept. 29, 1878. After a. long life of 
 Christian usefulness she sank gently to her rest, 
 bowed under the weight of years. She was a faith- 
 ful and constant member of the Baptist Church for 
 over 40 years. Her last days were soothed by the 
 loving ministrations of her children and friends. 
 
 The Rev. Mr. Watson, in his funeral sermon, paid 
 the deceased the following tribute : We have been 
 called together to-day to pay a last grateful tribute 
 to the memory of one long known and felt in your 
 community. Coming to this city in 1842, the de- 
 ceased has been identified with the progress and 
 prosperity of Monmouth during a very important 
 period of its history. Felt in all the enterprises of 
 our growth, he has given his special energies toward 
 the establishing of the Baptist Church of this place. 
 Uniting with the Church in 1846, he ever after took 
 a deep interest in all her struggles. It was owing 
 very largely to his untiring efforts and large-hearted 
 liberality, that this building was ever erected. The 
 f regularity of the enterprise manifested in his busi- 
 I ness relations was but the exponent of his habits in 
 | reference to spiritual matters. Seldom heard in 
 " meetings of any kind, he was always seen in his 
 I place no matter how fierce the storm ; and his 
 beaming eye and hearty grasp of hand, spoke louder 
 than words of his devotion and interest. The 
 encouragement which he gave to the Pastor in his 
 labor by his devoted attendance and earnest co-oper- 
 ation, was worth more than the most eloquent words 
 of some. To show how his heart yearned for the 
 prosperity of Zion during his late suffering, whenever 
 one entered the room ha enquired about the meetings 
 and longed to be there. 
 
 Such as he, when they are called hence, leave a 
 vacancy which we can not fill. We shall miss him 
 sadly from our midst, bat his influence shall abide ; 
 and may it prove a lasting incentive to us all, to 
 quicken us and prompt us to greater diligence in 
 every good work, while it is day. 
 
 His sufferings, which were so severe, are already 
 passed away forever ; and he has joined the in- 
 numerable throng of redeemed ones around the 
 throne. One more added to the treasures in heaven, 
 who shall await your coming with the King. The 
 Savior, who has called him from his labors into rest, 
 stands by your side and whispers, " Let not your 
 heart be troubled; ye believe in God, believe also in 
 
 me." "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give 
 unto you," and remember that " The Lord will not 
 cast off His people, neither will he forsake his in- 
 heritance." Put your confidence and trust in Him. 
 
 James Babcock, the first known ancestor of our 
 subject, came from England in 1663, and settled in 
 Rhode Island. His youngest son, Jeremiah, was 
 born at Westerly, R. I., in 1679, and became quite 
 renowned as a soldier. In Monmouth, the Babcocks 
 erected and conducted the first grain elevator. They 
 were also the first pork-packers in this part of the 
 country. 
 
 E. C. Babcock led a life which, though quiet, was 
 full of kindness and good words. Poverty and sick- 
 ness found in him a friend. He was a good friend, 
 a good citizen and a good Christian, always openly 
 avowing his convictions yet careful of the feelings of 
 others. His demise was deeply felt throughout the 
 county. 
 
 eorge W. Palmer, another of Warren 
 County's farmers, who by his energy and 
 economy has succeeded in obtaining a 
 good title to 135 acres of good tillable land, 
 located on sectij i 7, Hale Township, where 
 he is actively engaged in the labors of an 
 agriculturist, is a son of Wilkinson and Nancy 
 (Hurd) Palmer, natives of Brighton, Canada West. 
 The parents came from the latter province to White- 
 side County, in r844, from whence they removed to 
 Hancock County, and soor. after became residents of 
 this county, having settled in Monmouth. They 
 lived in the latter city for one year, when they lo- 
 cated in what is now Hale Township, where they 
 lived until their death. The mother died in i863 j 
 and the father in 1878. Their children were n in 
 number. 
 
 George W. Palmer was the eighth child in order 
 of birth of his parents' family. He was born in 
 Canada, Aug. 15, 1838, and was about six years old 
 when his parents came to this State, and is conse- 
 quently a pioneer settler here. He came \vith his 
 parents to this county and engaged in the active la- 
 bors on the farm, and has continued to reside here 
 until the present time, having, during the meantime, 
 become the proprietor of 135 acres of good, tillable 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 223 
 
 land, on which he resides and is there engaged in 
 the vocation which he has followed the major portion 
 of his life, agriculture. 
 
 In Henderson County, this State, Oct. 25, 1859, 
 the ceremony was performed which united for life 
 the subject of this notice with Miss Sarah Haines, 
 the accomplished daughter of Amos and Catherine 
 (Miller) Haines, natives of Ohio. The parents of 
 Mrs. Palmer had six children, of whom she was the 
 second in order of birth. She was born near Colum- 
 bus, Ohio, March, 18, 1842, and has borne her hus- 
 band seven children, Flora E., James C., Ida M., 
 Emma J., Laura P., Maud A. and Nettie C. James 
 C. died in infancy. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Palmer is a believer in and a sup- 
 porter of the principles advocated by the Republican 
 party. Mrs. Palmer is a member of the Christian 
 Church. 
 
 i,olby Matteson. Among the leading ag- 
 riculturists of Lenox Township and War- 
 ren County is the subject of this sketch. 
 He is a son of Norman and Emeline (Matte- 
 son) Matteson, who were natives of Vermont 
 and New York respectively. Norman Mat- 
 ttson was a son of the Rev. Isaiah Matteson, and 
 was born at Shaftsbury, Vt., June 15, 1806. At the 
 age of 17 he was converted, and baptized by his 
 father, and was, up to the time of his death, an act- 
 ive member of the Baptist Church. When 2 r years 
 years old, he went to Western, New York, where, in 
 1829, he was married to Mahal a Beckwith. One 
 child, a girl, was born to them, but mother and child 
 died in 1833. In 1835 he was married to Emeline 
 Matteson, who died in 1856, the mother of six chil- 
 dren. Their names were Colby, Adelbert, Abner, 
 Caroline, Avery and Florence. Abner, Caroline and 
 Avery are deceased ; Florence became the wife of 
 George Best, now residing in Floyd Township; Adel- 
 bert is single and lives in Portland, Oregon. He 
 served in the Union army during the late Rebellion, 
 as a member of the 83d Regt. 111. Vol., and partici- 
 pated in several of the important battles of the war, 
 in one of which Fort Donelson he was wounded 
 
 in the arm. This being serious, he was honorably 
 discharged. 
 
 After his marriage in 1835, Norman Matteson and 
 wife settled in Avon, N. Y., where they lived for a 
 time, then removed to Western, and subsequently to 
 Floyd, N. Y., and from there to Berwick, 111., in 
 1838. The elder Matteson was therefore one of the 
 pioneers of this section of the country. From Ber- 
 wick they removed to Roseville Township, but af- 
 terward removed to Floyd Township, where they 
 remained for several years. They then moved to 
 Lenox Township, and in 1865 he made another re- 
 moval, this time locating in the village of Betwick, 
 where he continued to reside, retired from the active 
 labors of life, until his death. His second wife died 
 in Lenox Township, Dec. 25, 1856. In 1857 he 
 married Miss Elizabeth Schuessler, at Berwick. She 
 is a native of Hamburg, Germany, is a woman of 
 many excellent qualities, and proved to be a devoted 
 wife and a good mother to his children. His death 
 occurred Oct. 17, 1881. His widow still survives, 
 and now lives in Floyd Township, and is highly es- 
 teemed by her neighbors and friends. 
 
 Colby Matteson was born in Avon, Livingston 
 Co., N. Y., June 27, 1837, and came to this county 
 with his parents, and has continued to reside here 
 ever since. He acquired a good education in the 
 common schools of this county, and during the sev- 
 eral years which have elapsed, he has been a careful 
 observer and reader of the current literature of the 
 day, and at this writing we find him to be a man of 
 practical views on the many important questions of 
 the times. His vocation is that of a farmer, agri- 
 ricultural pursuits and stock-raising having not only 
 afforded him a pleasing but a profitable occupation. 
 His farm now comprises 240 acres, on section 36, 
 Lenox Township, and is one of the handsomest and 
 best improved farms in the township. His carefully 
 kept lawn, well appointed house, within and without, 
 neat and substantial barn and outbuildings, and well 
 ordered fences and hedges, all combine to show 
 where thrift, enterprise and energy dwell. We in- 
 vite the reader's attention to another page of this 
 work, on which is shown an elegant view of the resi- 
 dence and farm property of Mr. Matteson. In his 
 chosen vocation of life Mr. Matteson is meeting with 
 that success which his energetic disposition, push 
 and tact are sure to bring. 
 
 He was married in Roseville Township, this 
 
224 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 county, Jan. 24, 1865, to Miss Harriet A. Dillon. 
 She was the daughter of William and Lavina Dillon, 
 and was \born Sept. 8, 1845, in Kentucky. Of the 
 union of Mr. and Mrs. Matteson, four children, 
 Harvey N., Flora E., Alfred and Ida, have been 
 born to them and are now residing at home. Mrs. 
 Matteson died at her home in Lenox Township, May 
 i 2, 1883. She was a member of the Baptist Church, 
 as is likewise Mr. Matteson. 
 
 During the late Rebellion he was a staunch Union 
 man. In politics, he is a supporter of the principles 
 of the Republican party. 
 
 
 
 illiam W. Wilson, a general farmer and 
 stock-raiser, residing on section 16, Mon- 
 mouth Township, was born in Perry Co., 
 Ohio, on the igth of August, 1837. His 
 father, James J., was a farmer and a native 
 of Pennsylvania and of Scotch descent. He was 
 a young man when he accompanied his parents to 
 Perry County, the Buckeye State, and while there 
 married a Miss Elizabeth Williams, who was a na- 
 tive of Washington Co , Pa. She was a daughter of 
 a Pennsylvania farmer named William Williams, 
 who came to Perry Co., Ohio, when that county and 
 even all that portion of the State was but little set- 
 tled. They located in the woods of Perry County, 
 where her father engaged actively and energetically 
 in the severe task of clearing and improving a farm. 
 James J. Wilson, the father of the subject of our 
 sketch, also resided with his family in Perry County, 
 and it was there that his children were born. His 
 family comprised nine children, six sons and three 
 daughters, of whom William W. is the seventh child. 
 Six of the children are still living, three sons and 
 three daughters. All are married and have reared 
 families, and all but one live in Illinois ; four reside 
 in Warren County. James J. Wilson also repre- 
 sented his county in the Ohio Legislature for two 
 terms. In politics he was a Democrat and took an 
 active interest in public affairs. He and his wife 
 were both members of the United Presbyterian 
 Church. He died in December, 1856, and his widow 
 survived him till April, 1863. 
 
 Mr. Wilson, of this notice, was about 18 years of 
 
 age when his father died, and afterwards lived with, 
 and was the principal support of, his mother until 
 her death, which took place when he was 27 years 
 old. He afterwards began to learn the trade of tin- 
 ner and purchased a hardware and tin-shop, which 
 he conducted for some eight years in New Lexing- 
 ton, his native county. 
 
 He was united in marriage, Dec. 4, 1869, in New 
 Lexington, to Miss Sarah Kelley, who was born in 
 Perry Co., Ohio, March 5, 1831, and was the daugh- 
 ter of Riley and Jane (Jones) Kelley. Her parents 
 were married in Perry County, where her father was 
 for some time engaged in the hotel business and later 
 in life followed the occupation of farmer, and where 
 he died in 1861. Her mother is yet living, in Lex- 
 ington, Perry Co., Ohio, and is about 75 years of 
 age. Mrs. Wilson is the eldest in order of birth of a 
 family of nine children, and of her union with Mr. 
 W. two children have been born, one of whom is de- 
 ceased. Jessie M. is the surviving child and Victor 
 is deceased. 
 
 After Mr. and Mrs. Wilson were united in marri- 
 age, they continued to reside in New Lexington, 
 Perry Co., Ohio, for one year. At the expiration of 
 that time they came to McDonough County, this 
 State, where Mr. Wilson followed his trade one year. 
 They then came to Warren County in 1871, and 
 three years later, in 1874, located on a farm of 95 
 acres of improved land, which belonged to his brother, 
 O. P. Wilson, and on which Mr. Wilson, of this 
 sketch, has since resided. Politically, Mr. W. is a 
 strong adherent to the principles of the Democratic 
 party. v 
 
 homas L. Capps, owning 170 acres of 
 good, tillable land in Lenox Township, and 
 residing on section 24, is a son of Asa and 
 Mary (Brooks) Capps, natives of Kentucky. 
 The parents were married and settled in this 
 county, where the father was an agriculturist 
 until his death, which occurred Dec. 6, 1878. His 
 widow still survives. The issue of their union was 
 nine children, named Thomas L., Nancy E., John 
 L., Sarah J., Lewis M., Lucy C., Orville and Edwin 
 R. Mary E. died when she was about ten years 
 old. 
 
 The gentleman whose life's sketch we write, is a 
 

 . 
 
 V iVUUUII 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 227 
 
 native of this county, having been born in Rose- 
 ville Township, June 6, 1843. From childhood his 
 inclination was 'to become a successful and inde- 
 pendent farmer, and his younger days were passed 
 principally on the farm, alternating his labors thereon 
 with attendance at the common schools, and sup- 
 plementing his education gained here by a five 
 months' course of study at Abingdon College. He 
 is at present the proprietor of a fine and well im- 
 proved farm, and a gentleman possessed of sound, 
 practical knowledge of the vocation of an agricultur- 
 ist, in the following of which occupation he is meet- 
 ing with success. 
 
 The lady whom Mr. Capps wooed and won and 
 who, on Sept. 16, 1866, became his wife, Miss Mary 
 Jewell, is a daughter of Reuben and Elizabeth 
 (Johnson) Jewell, natives of New York State and 
 Virginia, respectively. Mrs. Capps was born in this 
 county, March 5, 1844, and was the second in order 
 
 of birth of a family of 1 1 children. Her parents, on 
 coming to this county, settled in Berwick Township, 
 
 where they resided until their deaths. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Capps have become the parents of 
 
 >four children, Minnie J., Nettie B, Ada C. and 
 
 j Orion A. The head of the household has held the 
 
 office of Supervisor of Lenox Township two years and 
 also the offices of School Director, Trustee and 
 
 Tax Collector. Socially, he is a member of the I. O. 
 O. F., and in religious matters he and his wife both 
 believe in the doctrines of the Baptist Church, to 
 which denomination they belong. In politics Mr. 
 Capps votes with the Democratic party. 
 
 A ^ <-:> - ^ 
 
 Benjamin F. Forwood is one of the well- 
 known and prominent pioneers of Warren 
 County. He settled in the township of 
 Spring Grove as early as 1839. He was 
 born in Hartford Co., Md., Dec. 18, 1816. 
 His father, William W. Forwood, was a na- 
 tive of Lycoming Co., Pa., and was a descendant of 
 Irish ancestry. The father of the Mr. Forwood last 
 named was also a native of the State where his son 
 was born, and was a member of the Society of 
 Friends, or Quakers. All the early generations of 
 the family belonged to the same fraternity. The 
 grandfather removed with his family to Maryland 
 
 and there bought a farm, upon which William was 
 reared and attained to the estate of manhood, and 
 served his country in the War of 1812. Here he was 
 married to Sarah T. Gilbert. She was a native of 
 Maryland and was of English descent. In 1822 he 
 bought a farm in Hartford County, upon which there 
 were all the facilities for the manufacture of lum- 
 ber. They consisted of a saw-mill and an excellent 
 water-power. He built a small factory on the stream 
 which furnished the motive power for the saw-mill 
 already in order of business. He managed his 
 varied business projects, including a good-sized farm, 
 until 1837, when he sold the place and in the year 
 succeeding set out for the West. He came by the 
 water route from Maryland to St. Louis, where the 
 family passed the winter. 
 
 In the spring, the father, mother and seven chil- 
 dren once more took passage on the river and landed 
 at Oquawka. In company with a man named Joseph 
 Plum, Mr. Forwood entered 640 acres of land on sec- 
 tions 15 and 22, in what is now the township of 
 Spring Grove There was a vacant log house on 
 section 23 and, although not owning the land, the 
 family took possession and it was their abode until 
 the father could erect a stone house, better suited 
 to their needs, which he located on the northwest 
 quarter of section 22. 
 
 He was assisted in the improvement of the farm 
 by his sons, and was the occupant and owner of the 
 place until 1850, when he went to California, ac- 
 companied by his sons, Philip G. and Shadrach R. 
 They operated for a time as miners and afterwards 
 built a saw-mill at a point known as Yankee Jim's, 
 in Placer County. They carried on a profitable 
 lumber business until the death of the father, which 
 occurred July 9, 1853. His wife died in April, 1859, 
 at the residence of her son, the subject of this per- 
 sonal narration, in Spring Grove Township. The 
 latter is the oldest child of his parents. The family 
 record reads as follows : Hannah R. is the wife of 
 L A. Cunningham, of Oquawka; Cordelia Ann is 
 the widow of R. P. Tinkham and resides in Kirk- 
 wood, Warren County ; Philip is a resident of Wash- 
 ington Territory ; Shadrach lives in Nevada ; Sarah 
 J. married L. H. Gilmore, of this township; Harriet 
 married R. P. Barnes, of Spring Grove Township, 
 and is his survivor. 
 
 Mr. Forwood resided with his parents until the 
 
228 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 year in which his father went to California. He 
 then took possession of the farm and assumed the 
 entire charge. In the year 1840 he bought the 
 southeast quarter of section 23, which was then un- 
 improved, and it is now his place of abode and field 
 of operations. The usual improvements have been 
 made and the place, which consists of 1 68 acres of 
 fine land, is in excellent order for successful cultiva- 
 tion. His other property, however, increases his 
 entire acreage to 369 acres. The proprietor is en- 
 gaged in mixed farming. The buildings on the farm 
 are of the necessary type on a farm of advanced im- 
 provement. A view of them is given in this vol- 
 ume. 
 
 In political connection, Mr. Forwood is independ- 
 ent. He commonly finds the best man to receive 
 his vote in the Democratic party, but is untram- 
 meled in opinion. He has held the position of 
 Township Treasurer of Schools since 1846. He 
 was the second Clerk in the township and has also 
 served as Supervisor. He is a member of Mon- 
 mouth Lodge, No. 37, A. F. & A. M., Warren 
 Chapter No. 30, and Council No. 14, of the same 
 order. Mr. Forwood's portrait appears on another 
 page of this work. It is giyen as that of one of the 
 representative men of the county. As a pioneer he 
 was known here nearly half a century ago, and is 
 also regarded as one of the leading agriculturists of 
 his township. 
 
 t enry Teare, a farmer, owning 80 acres of 
 good land on section 22, Lenox Township, 
 where he has resided since 1858, is a son of 
 Charles and Ann (Cane) Teare, natives of the 
 Isle of Man, where they resided until their 
 death. The parents' children were six in num- 
 ber, named Charles, John, Robert, Thomas, Eliza- 
 beth and Henry. The latter is the youngest of the 
 family, and was born on the Isle of Man, Feb. 17, 
 1839. He lived on his native isle until 18 years of 
 his life was passed, when, hearing of the glowing ac- 
 counts of a country across the waters called the 
 United States, and hoping to better his financial con- 
 dition in life, he immediately set sail for that land of 
 promise. Soon after landing at an Eastern seaport, 
 
 he came to Peoria County, this State, where he re- 
 sided for one year. In 1858, he came to this 
 county and located in Lenox Township, and since 
 that time has been engaged in agiicultural pursuits. 
 His farm is well cultivated and improved, and re- 
 flects credit upon its owner. 
 
 Mr. Teare was married in Lenox Township, Jan. 
 i, 1868, to Elvira A., daughter of Chambers and 
 Catherine (Foster) Wick, natives of Pennsylvania. 
 They came to Warren County in 1858 and first set- 
 tled in Lenox Township. Here Mr. Wick died. His 
 widow, the mother of Mrs. Teare, still survives and 
 resides in Stark County. They had a family of eight 
 children, Theo. F., Elvira A., Nancy E., Thos. J., 
 James M., William R., Belle, Curtis R. Elvira A., 
 wife of our subject, was born in Armstrong Co., Pa., 
 April 23, 1847, and her home circle was blessed with 
 the birth of two children, Cora E. and Flora B. The 
 former died Jan. 14, 1884, at the age of 16 years. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Teare are members of the Methodist 
 Church, and, socially, he belongs to the Order of Odd 
 Fellows. In politics, he affiliates with the Republi- 
 can party. 
 
 rs. Jemima Sawtell, residing at Rose- 
 ville, is the widow of the late John Saw- 
 tell, who was born in the State of Maine 
 in 1807, and came to Illinois in r842, set- 
 tling in La Harpe,- Hancock County, where he 
 remained three years. He then went to Mc- 
 Donough County, where, after a stay of seven 
 years, he came into Warren County and located in 
 Ellison Township, on a tract of 80 acres of land 
 which he had purchased. He increased his landed 
 possessions by a subsequent purchase of 30 acres 
 and lived on the same until 1871, when he came to 
 Roseville village and there bought a lot on Main 
 Street. He erected a fine substantial residence on 
 the same and lived a retired life until his death, 
 which occurred March 23, 1882, during his 75th 
 year". He was also a carpenter and joiner. 
 
 Mr. John Sawtell and Mrs. Jemima Johnson, 
 widow of Norman Johnson, were married in 1842. 
 She was a native of Tompkins Co., N. Y., and her 
 first marriage was celebrated in Michigan in 1835, 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 22 9 
 
 her husband, Mr. Johnson, having been born in 1810. 
 His parents were Nathaniel and Lucy (Smith) John- 
 son, natives of Vermont. Norman Johnson had a 
 farm of 80 acres in Wayne Co., Mich., which he sold 
 and .came to Illinois in 1841, settling in La Harpe, 
 Hancock County. At the latter place he remained 
 until his death, in 1841. Of this union were born 
 two daughters, Elvira E. and Electa L. Elvira E. 
 married John Talbot in 185 6,. and they have become 
 the parents of one child, who is living, Ida A., wife 
 of Charles Pyington, who is book-keeper for Phillips 
 & Co., of Burlington; Mr. Talbot died in February, 
 1883; and Electa L. married Hiram Huring in 1855, 
 his demise occurring in 1875. 
 
 Mrs. Sawtell was born July 10, 1818, and still lives 
 in the village of Roseville. Her parents were Isaac 
 and Electa (Allen) Goodell, natives of Northampton, 
 Mass., and were married in 1812. They came to 
 Wayne Co., Mich., in 1830, and there purchased 
 r,6oo acres of land, remaining there until their death, 
 the father in 1842, and the mother in 1862. 
 
 Mr. Sawtell was a member of the Christian Church 
 at the time of his death. Politically, he was a Demo- 
 crat. 
 
 zra Cable, one of Warren County's success- 
 ful agriculturists and a gentleman whose 
 success as such is attributable to no leg- 
 acy, but to his own indomitable perseverance, 
 is a resident on section 19, Floyd Township, 
 with postoffice at Berwick. His father was 
 named Henry Cable, was of German extraction, 
 born in New York in 1795, and died in Monmouth, 
 March 8, 1878. His mother, Olive (Kingsley) Cable, 
 was of Scotch extraction, born in 1792, and died at 
 Monmouth, Feb. 23, 1876. Ezra Cable, of whom we 
 write, was born at Floyd, OneidaCo., N. Y., Feb. n, 
 1821. Leaving his native county and State, in the 
 fall of 1835, he came with his father's family to this 
 county, where the senior Cable purchased 200 acres 
 of land, on which he located with his family and 
 where Ezra, the subject of this notice, lived and 
 labored until 1855, in the meantime supplement- 
 ing his education which he had received in the com- 
 mon schools of his native county by an attendance 
 
 at the district schools for a period of about three 
 months. 
 
 In 1853, Mr. Cable purchased a farm of 80 acres, 
 on which he moved two years later, and has there 
 resided until the present time, engaged in its culti- 
 vation and improvement in which he has met with 
 no small degree of success. By economy and perse- 
 verance he has succeeded in increasing his landed 
 interests until his place at present comprises 200 
 acres of as good farm land as can be found in 
 the county, and to the, passer-by it presents an ap- 
 pearance indicative of that push and good judg- 
 ment possessed by its proprietor. Mr. Cable has 
 been School Trustee for many years and in his polit- 
 ical views is strictly a Republican. 
 
 Mr. Cable formed a matrimonial alliance, April 26, 
 1854, with Miss Martha J. Latimer, the ceremony 
 being performed in Knox County, this State, by the 
 Rev. J. M. B. Roach. Of their union six children 
 have been born ; the record is as follows : Addie M., 
 born March 9, 1855; Clara L., Oct. 15, 1856; Effie 
 M., Nov. 13, 1858; Carl D., June 29, 1860; Grace 
 V., June 5, 1869; Roy E., Oct. 18, 1870. Addie, on - 
 the 15 th day of January, 1879, became the wife of ^ 
 Alfred A. Phelps. Sept. 13, 1881, Clara married A. \ 
 T. Brooks. Dec. 27, 1883, Effie united her future 
 life with that of Myron D. Matteson. J 
 
 Mrs. Ezra Cable was born in Knox Co., 111., Oct. 
 13, 1833, and was the accomplished daughter of 
 George G. and Rebecca (Drennan) Latimer. Her 
 father was born in Sumner Co., Tenn., Feb. 28, 1810, 
 and was a prominent and leading citizen of that 
 county, and after his removal to Illinois, became a 
 Colonel in the Black Hawk War, and was one of the 
 leading men of Knox County. The mother of Mrs. 
 Cable was born in Kentucky, Feb. 26, 1814, and was 
 of Scotch-Irish extraction, her husband being of Eng- 
 lish descent. 
 
 .ames W. Robertson, who is engaged as a 
 farmer" on section 32, Lenox Township, was 
 born in Washington Co., N. Y., on the 4th 
 of March, 1822. His parents were John and 
 Margaret Robertson, natives respectively of 
 Scotland and New York State. They first 
 settled in the latter state and then removed to Ash- 
 tabula Co., Ohio, where they resided until their 
 
 \ 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 deaths. Of this union were born 1 1 children, the 
 eighth in order of birth being James W., of whom we 
 write. 
 
 He remained at home until he attained his ma- 
 jority, in the meantime attending the common 
 schools and assisting in the labors of the farm. At 
 the age of 21 he came to Warren County, and re- 
 sided at Monmouth for something over three years, 
 being engaged in different occupations. He was a 
 soldier in the Mexican War, belonging to a company 
 known as Capt. Stapp's Cavalry. He remained in 
 the army for about a year, when he returned home 
 and has since been a resident of this county. Mr. 
 Robertson is the owner of 158 acres of fine tillable 
 land, upon which he lias erected a substantial set of 
 farm buildings. 
 
 In Monmouth, on the 4th of January, 1849, the 
 wedding of Mr. James W. Robertson and Miss Erne- 
 line Morgan was celebrated. Mrs. R. is a na- 
 tive of the Empire State and James and Penelope 
 .Morgan were her parents. They had a family of 
 four children, the following being the names: Mar- 
 garet J., Ralph J., Harlow C. and Nellie A. Mrs. 
 Robertson died in Lenox Township, April 17, 1868, 
 
 I and Mr. J. W. Robertson was again married on the 
 8th of September, 1880, at Monmouth, to Mrs. Jen- 
 nie (Wilcox) Clark, daughter of Arom and Mary Ann 
 Wilcox and widow of David Clark". She was born in 
 Rockford, this State, Oct. i, 1838. Mr. Robertson 
 has held the office of Supervisor one term and also 
 other minor offices in his township. He is a member 
 of the Order of Odd Fellows and politically is identi- 
 fied with the Republican party. 
 
 > 
 
 Daniel Bird, engaged in the manufacture of 
 
 tile and brick at Roseville, was born in 
 Shropshire, England in 1832, and is a son 
 of an English potter. Daniel Bird, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch, remained at home until he 
 attained the age of 20 years, in the meantime 
 learning the pottery trade of his father, having com- 
 menced to turn the potter's wheel at the age of eight 
 years. After leaving home he engaged in the manu- 
 facture of tile and brick and was thus occupied until 
 the fall of 1856, when he emigrated to the United 
 
 States, reaching New York in October. He stopped 
 but a short time in that city, when, learning of the 
 fertility and rapid growth of the West, he pushed 
 forward, corning to Illinois and settling in Swan 
 Township, this county, and here engaging at his 
 trade, which occupation he continued for ten years. 
 He subsequently came to Roseville village and en- 
 gaged in his present business, at which he has met 
 with excellent success and is doing a constantly in- 
 creasing business. He employs about 13 men. He 
 has erected fine large buildings, suitable to his oc- 
 cupation, costing him over $10,000. His sons are 
 interested with him in his manufacturing business. 
 
 Mr. Bird and Miss Mary Ann, daughter of Joseph 
 and Jane Barker, were united in marriage in Eng- 
 land, in the year 1856, she being a native of that 
 country. Mr. and Mrs. Bird have become the par- 
 ents of three children, George, John and William. 
 George is married to Miss Sarah McCammon and 
 they have four children, Delia, Mary, Charles and 
 "Roy. John married Miss Minda McCammon. 
 
 Mr. Bird's political affiliations are with the Repub- 
 lican party, and he is considered one of the solid and 
 substantial men of Warren. 
 
 eorge W. Morey. As early as 1841, 
 Charles Morey with his family came into 
 Warren County and located in what is 
 now Floyd Township. Accompanying him 
 was his son, George W., the subject of this 
 personal sketch. The elder Morey had mar- 
 ried, in his native State, Miss Polly Blair. He died 
 at his home in the winter of 1872, but his wife 
 still survives him. They had a family of 12 chil- 
 dren, of whom George W. was the third. He was 
 born Jan. 18, 1824, in Erie Co., Pa. His early life 
 was passed at home, and when a lad of 17 he ac- 
 companied his parents to this county, which at the 
 time was newly settled, without railroads, and in fact 
 almost a wilderness. Here he has lived for 44 
 years, and has witnessed a wonderful transformation 
 in the face of the country. About 22 years ago he 
 moved into Lenox Township, where he has been 
 living since. He now owns an excellent farm of 160 
 acres thereon section i^. He has been prominent 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 *33 
 
 in the affairs of his township, and has served in var- 
 ious official positions for many years. He has been 
 Road Commissioner for 12 years and much of the 
 present good condition of the highways is due to his 
 management. Politically, he is a Republican. He 
 voted twice for Abraham Lincoln, and during the 
 war was a staunch Union man.' 
 
 While living in Floyd Township, he was married 
 to Emily Bonnell, their wedding occurring Sept. 20, 
 1851. His wife was born in Erie Co., Pa., and is 
 the daughter of William and Elizabeth Bonnell. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Morey have a family of three children : 
 Mary V., who is the wife of T. W. Russell, and re- 
 sides in Nebraska ; William F. married Emma F. 
 Patterson and they live in Monmouth; and Charles 
 H., who lives at home. Besides these, two died in 
 infancy. Mrs. M. is a member of the Methodist 
 Church. 
 
 When Mr. M. began life he had nothing but his 
 strong hands to aid him, but with that tenacity of 
 purpose characteristic of the pioneers, he has suc- 
 ceeded in gathering together a comfortable compe- 
 tency for his old age. 
 
 L.ineus B. Crane. Prominent among the 
 extensive farmers and stock-raisers of War- 
 ren County, may be classed Mr. S. B. 
 Crane, who is residing on section 12, Ellison 
 Township. He was born in Morris Co. N. J., 
 June 3, 1831, and his father, Benjamin Crane, 
 also a farmer, was a native of New Jersey and of 
 English descent. His grandfather, whose name was 
 Norris, was born in New Jersey, and married Jennie 
 Dunham. They both lived, after marriage, in Mor- 
 ris County, where they died. The former was born 
 near Elizabeth, Union Co., N. J., and the latter in 
 Essex County, same State. The father, Benjamin 
 Crane, was married in Morris County to Julia A. 
 Bebout, who was born in the'same county, the date 
 of her birth being March 16, 1802, and who died 
 Sept. 7, 1880. She was of New England parentage 
 of Holland Dutch and Scotch descent, and a most 
 estimable lady. Mr. Benjamin Crane had been 
 fairly successful in life and was appointed Lieuten- 
 ant of militia in his native State. The date of his 
 birth was April j6, 1802, and that of his death April 
 
 8, 1873, when he was aged 71 years. He and his 
 wife were Methodists in the latter years of life. 
 
 Sineus B., the gentleman whose name heads this 
 biographical notice, was the second in order of birth 
 of a family of three children born to his parents, one 
 of whom was a daughter named Sarah J. She was 
 born Sept 18, 1834, and is the wife of Oscar Linds- 
 ley, a resident at Green Village, N. J., ex-State Rep- 
 resentative and quite a prominent man in public life. 
 He is a farmer by vocation. The other member of 
 the family, John O., was born May 23, 1826, and 
 was united in marriage with Miss Mary Searing, who 
 is now deceased. The husband resides in Morris 
 Co., N. J., and is a farmer. 
 
 .Sineus B. lived at home with his father on the 
 farm until his marriage, which occurred when he was 
 6 years of age, at the residence of the bride's par- 
 ents in Morris Township, Morris Co , N. J., Dec. 9, 
 1856, to Miss Caroline M. Mills, daughter of Alfred 
 and Sally (Kinnan) Mills, who was -born in Morris 
 Co., N. J., and of English and Scotch extraction. 
 The father was a successful fanner, visiting his chil- 
 dren in Illinois twice since their removal West, and 
 died at his home in Morris Co., N. J., April 28, 1880, 
 at the venerable age of 80 years. The mother still 
 survives and is living with her children in New Jer- 
 sey, aged 82 years. Mrs. C. of this notice was born 
 in Morris Co., N. J., Oct. 6, 1835. She was reared 
 and educated at her father's home, and is the mother 
 of ii children, one of whom is deceased, namely: 
 Augusta M., born June i, 1858, resides athome ; 
 Joseph H., born Aug. 25, 1859, married Miss Electa 
 Nutt, resides on a farm in Nodaway Co., Mo., and 
 has a family of two children, Elizabeth and Mary 
 E. ; Alfred B., born Jan. 27, 1862, living with his 
 brother in Missouri, is unmarried; Frank L., single, 
 born March 4, 1863, died Dec. n, 1885; Eliphalet 
 C., born Nov. 17, 1865, resides at home; Llewella 
 C., born July 3, 1869, also resides at home; Julia, 
 born Oct. 17, 1871, lives at home ; Henry M., born 
 Dec. 27, 1873; Sarah, born March 28, 1876; Sineus 
 B., born Sept. 25, 1878 ; and Anna L, born May 18, 
 1 88 1. All that have passed school age have re- 
 ceived a good common -school education. 
 
 After marriage Mr. Crane engaged in farming in 
 Morris Co., N. J., for a short time, but soon began 
 to feel like coming West. This move was made in 
 October, 1859, when he came to Warren County and 
 settled on a rented farm in Berwick Township. His 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ' 
 
 first purchase of land was of 60 acres, all improved,' 
 which was bought in the spring of 1861. This 
 he owned until April, 1865, when he sold it and 
 bought 1 60 acres, his present site in Ellison Town- 
 ship, which was then only slightly improved. He 
 has since made all the necessary improvements, has 
 a splendid farm, fully equipped and all fenced. He 
 owns, in Roseville Township, 1 16 acres of improved 
 land, and 360 acres of land in Nodaway Co., Mo., 
 all of which is under excellent cultivation. In ad- 
 dition to farming, Mr. C. is engaged in stock-raising. 
 Among his herd is a thoroughbred Short-horn cow, 
 only four years old and yet is the mother of four 
 calves. He also feeds and fattens stock for the 
 market. Of the many splendid farm scenes shown 
 in the view department of this ALBUM, those of Mr. 
 Crane's farm, given in connection with this sketch, 
 are among the most inviting. His comfortable resi- 
 dence, the excellent facilities for caring for his stock 
 and storing grain, the beautifully undulating fields, 
 the splendid specimens of the horses and cattle 
 : of the farm, are all shown, which form a pleasing 
 picture. 
 
 Mr. C. has been Supervisor of Ellison Township 
 for two terms, and once for Berwick Township. He 
 has also held many of the minor offices of his town- 
 ship. Politically, he is a Democrat. 
 
 jj^iram M. Frantz, one of the influential citi- 
 zens as well as progressive and successful 
 farmers and stock-raisers of this county, re. 
 siding on section 25, Monmouth Township, is a 
 native of Maryland, having been born in that 
 State, March 7, 1844. The father of Mr. 
 Frantz of this notice, was Solomon Frantz. (See 
 sketch of William H. Frantz in another part of this 
 work.) Hiram M. lived in his native State only 
 three years, when his parents removed to Perry Co., 
 Ohio, in which State he continued to reside, liv- 
 ing in the parental household until 1 6 years of age. 
 At this age in life the country was imperiled by the 
 secession of the Southern States and shot and shell 
 from Rebel guns had been thundered against the 
 walls of Sumter. The President had called for brave 
 hearts and strong arms to put down the Rebellion, 
 
 and Hiram Frantz, then but 16 years of age, re- 
 sponded to the call by enlisting in Co. D, 171!) Ohio 
 Vol. Inf., under Capt. L. ]. Jackson and Col. J. M. 
 Council, for 90 days, the date of his enlistment be- 
 ing April 1 6, 1 86 1. After serving his time of enlist- 
 ment, he re -enlisted in the 3ist Ohio Vol. Inf. under 
 Capt. \V. H. Free and Col. N. B. Walker, and 
 his company was assigned to the Third Division, 
 141)1 Army Corps, of the Army of the Cumberland. 
 Mr. Frantz, of this notice, participated in the battles 
 of Mill Springs, Stone River, Hoover's Gap, Dalton, 
 Kenesaw Mountain, and was also in the Atlanta 
 campaign. Previous to the Atlanta campaign he 
 was in the battle of Chickamauga, and it was in that 
 battle that his regiment and company sustained their 
 heaviest loss during the war. Although Mr. Frantz 
 did his part in each and every battle in which his 
 company was engaged, he was fortunate, never re- 
 ceiving even a wound nor losing a day from duty. He 
 was honorably discharged at Columbus, Ohio, Aug. 
 27, 1865. 
 
 After the war was over and the cause for which 
 he fought was victorious, Mr. Frantz went to Perry 
 Co., Ohio, where he resided for two years. In 1868, 
 he came West and two years later, March 30, 1870, 
 he was united in marriage to Miss Flora L., the 
 daughter of Benjamin and Melinda (Claycomb) Mur- 
 phy. Her mother was a second time married, her 
 second husband being Benjamin H. Kittering. (See 
 sketch.) Mrs. Frantz, wife of the gentleman whose 
 name heads this notice, was born in Monmouth 
 Township, this county, May 10, 1848. She lived 
 with her parents, who were early settlers in this county, 
 until her marriage. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Frantz, two children have been born, Talma J. and 
 Ruth B. 
 
 After the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Frantz, in the 
 fall of 1870, he purchased 159 acres of land on sec- 
 tion 25, Monmouth Township, where he is at pres- 
 ent residing, and subsequently, by purchase, has 
 increased his landed interests in that township to 
 289 acres. His home farm presents that appear- 
 ance which is indicative of the push and energy pos- 
 sessed by its proprietor. Mr. Frantz has been a 
 more than ordinarily successful man in his vocation 
 of farming and stock-raising. In the latter depart- 
 ment of his vocation, he has indeed traded to a very 
 large extent, having shipped more than $200,000 of 
 stock and an average of about $12,000 annually. 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 2 3S 
 
 Religiously, Mr. and Mrs. Frantz are members of 
 the Christian Church. In politics Mr. F. votes with 
 the Republican party, and has held the minor offices 
 within the gift of the people of his township. 
 
 on. Daniel D. Parry, dealer in real estate 
 and insurance agent at Monmouth, was 
 born at Xenia, Greene Co., Ohio, May 28, 
 1839, and was the fifth child of Walter and Ann 
 (Dean) Parry, natives of South Wales and of 
 Bath Co., Ky., respectively. The parents were 
 married in Greene Co., Ohio, where their two sons 
 and six daughters were born. The family came to 
 Warren County in 1862, and here the mother and 
 father spent the remainder of their lives, the old lady 
 dying in 1876, aged 71 years, and Mr. Parry four 
 years later, at the age of 76 years. Walter Parry, the 
 father of our subject, came with his widowed mother 
 to America when he was about 14 years of age and 
 lived in Ohio up to 1862. The Deans came to Ohio 
 r8i3, and occupied a large tract of land in Greene 
 
 j- County, where quite a number of that name yet re- 
 side, and annually meet at what they term the " Dean 
 
 1 Picnic." 
 
 The Xenia, Ohio, schools afforded the subject of 
 our sketch such opportunities for an education as 
 was practicable before he was 17 years of age, and 
 after clerking in a grocery house, at that place, he 
 developed at once into a coal oil prospector. April 
 19, 1861, at Hamilton, Ohio, he enrolled as a private 
 soldier in Co. F, 3d Ohio Vol. Inf. (three-months 
 men), and June 3, following, was mustered into the 
 three-years service in the same company and regiment. 
 His final discharge was dated at Camp Der.nison, 
 March r, 1863, While in the service he spent his 
 first six months in West Virginia, went South with 
 the Army of the Ohio, and returned with Buell. At 
 Perry ville, Ky., Oct. 8, 1862, a minie ball penetrated 
 his left knee, which led to the amputation of the limb 
 25 hours later. He landed at Monmouth March 23, 
 1863, and the next day was given a position as 
 Deputy County Clerk. He held this place about three 
 years, and in November, 1867, was elected County 
 Treasurer, an office he held four terms in succes- 
 sion. In 1870 he was selected as a member of the 
 State Board of Equalization, and for four years dis- 
 
 charged the duties of the two offices, and in" 1880 
 represented Warren County in the Illinois Legisla- 
 ture. His last political venture was his candidacy 
 for the nomination for State Treasurer in 1882, which, 
 however, he failed to get. 
 
 Mr. Parry has always been a Republican of the 
 most pronounced type, and his official life has always 
 reflected credit upon that party. He is an active 
 business man ; a man of unswerving integrity ; pure 
 in his private life, unblemished in his public career 
 and fitted intellectually to fill any position to which 
 the people of his district may assign him. 
 
 March 24, 1864, he was married at Monmouth, 
 to Miss Mary A. Reed, daughter of Samuel Reed of 
 Huntingdon Co., Pa. Their three children are 
 named Nettie A., Walter D. and Jessie M. 
 
 were 
 
 ohn A. Nesbit, an energetic and prosperous 
 \ resident of Lenox Township, residing on 
 section n, where he is engaged quite ex- 
 tensively in agricultural pursuits, is a son of 
 Fisher and Jeniza (Adams) Nesbit, natives of 
 Pennsylvania, where, in Perry County, they 
 married and settled. About the year 1836, 
 they removed to Franklin County, their native State, 
 but finally returned to Perry County, there residing 
 until death called them to their eternal home. Their 
 family consisted of six children, three of whom are 
 now living. 
 
 John A., whose name is prominent in the affairs of 
 his township, was the eldest of his parents' family 
 and was born in Perry County, the Keystone State, 
 May 1 6, 1825. His school privileges were quite 
 limited and he was engaged in farming in the State 
 of his nativity until the year 1869, when, in October 
 of that year, he determined to travel Westward, 
 thinking the facilities were much greater for acquir- 
 ing a competency there than in his native State. He 
 soon found a desirable location in Lenox Township. 
 His success WAS remarkable in his last move and he 
 has since made this his permanent abode. After 
 laboring quite a while in the State of Pennsylvania, 
 he had accumulated something of this world's goods 
 before his emigration West, which enabled him to 
 purchase a tract of 120 acres of good land. Of 
 
236 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 course this was unimproved, except having been 
 fenced and broken, but Mr. Nesbit entered actively 
 and energetically upon its improvement; and the re- 
 sults of his efforts have been rewarded, for his farm 
 is now under an advanced state of cultivation, a fine 
 residence has been erected thereon, as well as all 
 other suitable outbuildings. 
 
 Mr. N. formed a matrimonial alliance on -the i8th 
 of September, 1848, in Cumberland Co., Pa., with 
 Miss Hetty A. Hemp, daughter of Adam and Eliza- 
 beth (Bowlar) Hemp, both natives of the State of 
 Pennsylvania. Mrs. Nesbit was the eldest of a 
 family of four children, and \vas born in Cumberland 
 Co., Pa., Dec. 14, 1825. Their home circle has been 
 blessed by the birth of one child, Addison H., who 
 married Harriet G. Weakley and resides in Lenox 
 Township, this county. 
 
 Mr. Nesbit has held the position of School Di- 
 rector, besides other minor offices within the gift of 
 the people of his township, and he and his wife are 
 members of the Presbyterian Church. Politically, 
 Mr. N. casts his vote with the Republican party. 
 
 fwrville Capps, who is engaged in agricultural 
 J> pursuits on section 25, Lenox Township, 
 
 where he was born Oct. 23, 1857, is a son 
 of Asa and Mary A. (Brooks) Capps. (See 
 sketch of T. L. Capps elsewhere in this vol- 
 ume.) Orville remained at home, attending 
 the district schools and assisting in the home duties, 
 until he became the owner of 160 acres of land, 
 which he then engaged in cultivating and improving, 
 and which, as the result of his hard labor and en- 
 ergy, now presents the appearance of thrift and suc- 
 cess. It is all good, tillable land and under an 
 advanced state of cultivation. Besides this, he owns 
 six acres of timber land. 
 
 Mr. Orville Capps and Miss Minerva ]. Ray were 
 married Jan. n, i88r, in Roseville Township, she 
 being a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Landis) 
 Ray. Of their eight children, Mrs. Capps was the 
 eldest, and was born in Berwick Township, Sept. i, 
 1858. Mr. and Mrs. Capps had one child, Roy, 
 who died when six weeks old. 
 
 Mr. C. has been School Director in his township, 
 
 and politically, affiliates with the Democratic party. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Capps are members of the Baptist 
 Church. 
 
 I. Wickersham, engaged as a general 
 merchant at Roseville, was born in Hen- 
 derson Co., III., in 1845. His parents, 
 Sellers and Adelia (Brown) Wickersham, were 
 natives of Pennsylvania and Indiana respect- 
 ively. They were married in 1844, in Illinois, 
 and the subject of this sketch was their only child. 
 He remained at home with his parents until of age, 
 in the meantime receiving a fair English education. 
 After leaving home he engaged to clerk for his uncle, 
 John Edwards, at Oquawka, Henderson County, 
 this State, and remained in his store for about a year 
 and a half. He then formed a partnership, which 
 existed two years, when he bought out the interest of 
 his uncle. He conducted the business himself for a 
 year, when William Stockton was taken in as a part- 
 ner and the firm name became Wickersham & Stock- 
 ton. This continued for only a year, when Mr. 
 Wickersham, being desirous of making a change, 
 sold out to his partner and went to Galesburg. At 
 the latter place he engaged in the occupation of a 
 clerk in the firm of Willard, Kurd & Butler. He 
 remained a year with this firm, and in 1871 came to 
 Roseville and connected himself with a Mr. Janes, 
 under the firm name of Janes & Wickersham, in 
 the merchant-tailoring business, located on the cor- 
 ner where now stands the Roseville Bank. They 
 continued in partnership for two years, when Mr. 
 Wickersham bought out his partner's interest and ran 
 the business one year himself. He then took Ben- 
 jamin Morford as a partner, and the firm name be- 
 came Wickersham & Morford. These relations 
 continued for only two years, when Mr. Wickersham 
 again sold out to his partner, removing to Villisca, 
 Iowa, and engaged in the store of C. C. Lundy, as 
 clerk, remaining there for the short space of six 
 months. He again returned to Roseville, and clerked 
 for E. F. Emans for a year. His first purchase was 
 the lot on the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and 
 Market Street, where he erected a store building and 
 engaged in business, where he has since remained. 
 
. 
 
 
 I* 
 * 
 
4* 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 241 
 
 In his chosen vocation, that of general merchant, he 
 has been very successful. 
 
 Mr. Wickersham was married in October, 1873, to 
 Miss Louisa Pratt, daughter of Abijah and Mary 
 Pratt, natives of Massachusetts, who came to 
 Illinois at an early day and settled in Roseville, this 
 county. Mr. and Mrs. Wickersham have had their 
 home circle blessed and brightened by the birth of 
 five children, Ellis B., Mary L., Cora A., Clarence 
 E. and Ella. 
 
 t enry Staat, one of Warren County's most 
 successful farmers and large land-owners, 
 residing on section 30, Berwick Township, 
 was born in this county, Aug. 7, 1842. He is a 
 son of Francis Staat, a native of Alsace, Ger- 
 many, where he was born May 17, 1813. 
 The father emigrated to America, landing at New 
 York in May, 1832, and there worked at his trade 
 for some years. In 1837 he left the metropolis and 
 journeyed westward. Finding a desirable location 
 in this county, he made a settlement here, and was 
 consequently one of the earliest pioneers of the 
 county. He was an edge-tool maker, and made the 
 first scouring plows used in the county. He settled 
 on Crooked Creek, where he followed his trade of 
 blacksmithing and edge-tool making for one year, 
 when he came a few miles east and located near 
 Greenbush, where he remained until 1849. During 
 the great gold excitement of that period he was 
 one of the thousands who left their homes to seek 
 their fortunes in the far western mountains. He left 
 this county in 1850, reached California after the 
 usual tedious journey common to that day, but re- 
 mained there only ten months, when he realized that 
 the fleeting goddess of fortune was no nearer than 
 when the merry song of toil and labor rang out from 
 the anvil in his rude cabin shop in Warren County. 
 County. Besides, being a man of domestic habits 
 and having strong family ties, the glittering nuggets 
 were too few and too small to compensate for being 
 deprived of the pleasures of the home circle. He 
 accordingly returned to this county, and we shortly 
 afterwards find him engaged in land speculation. In 
 1856 he moved to the place where his son Henry 
 now lives, which at the time was somewhat improved. 
 
 Here he made his home until the spring of 1870, 
 when he retired from the active labors of life and 
 moved to Monmouth, where he was pleasantly lo- 
 cated and lived in the enjoyment of the fruits of an 
 active and well spent life, until robbed of his com- 
 panion by the hand of death, Nov. 19, 1880. He 
 then returned to the old farm homestead, and lived 
 with his son until August i of the following year, 
 when he was called to join the companion of his 
 earthly life. He was married (March 19, 1855) to 
 Miss Margaret Ehrhardt, who was born in Germany 
 in 1810. Their children were seven in number, 
 namely : Frederick, Francis, Sallie, Elizabeth, Henry, 
 George and Emma. Four died in infancy. Eliza- 
 beth was the wife of Samuel Huston: she died Aug. 
 19, 1869, leaving no children. Emma is the wife of 
 John Wesley Malcolm. She and Henry are the only 
 survivors of this large family of children. 
 
 The elder Staat was not only one of the early pio- 
 neers of Warren County, but one of its . most active 
 and enterprising citizens. He was an energetic, 
 stirring fellow, and was a leading spirit in the affairs 
 of his community. We are pleased to be able to 
 present his portrait in this ALBUM of the portraits of ^ 
 so many of the leading men of the county. As a 
 fitting companion picture to his we present that of 
 the lady who was so long his companion in life. 
 The hardships of pioneer life, the labor and strug- 
 gles of their early years, were alike shared by her. 
 Few of the present day realize what are the hard- 
 ships of those who push ahead into a new and un- 
 settled country, subdue and prepare it for a home for 
 their children and posterity. There were, of course, 
 pleasures, pure, simple, but genuine, which softened 
 the hard experiences and were a shield from the 
 thorny and rocky paths over which they traveled. 
 
 Henry Staat formed a matrimonial alliance with 
 Miss Cordelia C. Bond, Aug. 12, 1869, at Burling- 
 ton, Iowa. She was born June 2, 1850, in this 
 county, and was the daughter of John C. Bond, a 
 native of Tennessee, where he was born in 1779. 
 Her father came to this county in 1832, and died 
 May 20, 1882. For a further biography, we refer 
 the reader to his sketch in another part of his vol- 
 ume. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Staat, eight 
 children were born, seven of whom are living, 
 namely: Ora A., born Oct. 30, 1870; John F., 
 Nov. 24, 1872; Nellie M., Sept. 30, 1874; Lena, 
 , 1876; George, Sept. 21, 1877 ; Eddie J., Sept, 
 
34* 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 i, 1881 ; Norris H., Jan. 18, 1885. A twin brother to 
 George died in infancy. 
 
 Mr. Staat is the proprietor of 2,027 acres of land 
 in this county, and on his home farm he has a fine 
 residence, together with a good barn and other 
 necessary outbuildings. His land lies in Berwick, 
 Roseville and Swan Townships. He is probably 
 the largest stock-raiser in Warren County, and 
 ships large quantities direct to the great markets. 
 He is also engaged in raising fine horses and mules, 
 and at the present writing has over 100 head. He 
 is a gentleman noted for his business judgment, 
 strict integrity, and fair and honest dealing with his 
 fellow men, and his success in life is attributable to 
 the energy and good judgment which he always 
 brings to bear in business transactions. In politics, 
 he is a believer in and a supporter of the principles 
 advocated by the Democratic party. 
 
 lohn Caldwell, an influential citizen and 
 successful farmer of Hale Township, resid- 
 ing on section 1 1, where he owns 200 acres 
 of good farm land, is a native of Cadiz, Ohio, 
 having been born there Dec. 31, 1813. When 
 Mr. Caldwell was eight years of age his father 
 died, and he went to live with an uncle, with whom 
 he remained until he attained his majority. At that 
 time he engaged to learn '.he carpenter's trade, which 
 he mastered and followed until he was about 35 years 
 of age. He came to this State in 1853, and settled 
 in Sumner Township, this county, where he resided 
 for about one year, when he made a transfer to Hale 
 Township. In the latter township, upon his excel- 
 lent farm, he has erected fine buildings, and by in- 
 cessant labor has placed his land under an advanced 
 state of cultivation, until his farm to day present? an 
 attractive appearance to the passer-by. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Caldwell to Mary A. (Mc- 
 Mehan) Nichol took place in Greene Co., Ohio, Nov. 
 5, 1840. She was bom in Belmont County, that 
 State, March 26, 1822, and has borne her husband 
 ten children, Nancy J., Jackson N , Joseph M., 
 John M., Francis M., James R., Donna M. E., Lelia 
 A., Eva J. and William E. Nancy J. is the wife of 
 Thomas Goudy, of Kansas; Jackson, Joseph and 
 John also reside in Kansas and are all ^married; 
 
 Francis M. is a professor of music at Monmouth, 
 and is also married; James lives at home; Donna 
 married Henry Runyan, a resident of Iowa; Lelia is 
 the wife of John Shaffer, a farmer in Hale Township; 
 Eva married James T. Nash, who also resides in 
 Hale Township; William E. is likewise a resident of 
 the township last named. 
 
 Mr. Caldwell has been Supervisor and Justice of 
 the Peace and held other minor offices within the 
 gift of the people of his township. He and his wife 
 are members of the United Presbyterian Church, 
 and, in politics, Mr. Caldwell votes with the Repub- 
 lican party. 
 
 bsalom Vandeveer. Prominent among the 
 leading agriculturists of Warren County is 
 Absalom Vandeveer, who resides on seo- 
 tion 15, Swan Township. He has long been 
 regarded as one of the enterprising and suc- 
 cessful farmers of the county. He was born 
 Sept. 22, 1822, in Jackson Co., Ind., and is a son of 
 Charles Vandeveer, a native of North Carolina. The 
 father spent the early part of his life prior to his 
 marriage in Kentucky, and was among the early 
 pioneers of Illinois, coming here as early as 1830. 
 He then located in Sangamon County, where he re- 
 mained until 1836, when he removed to this county 
 and here resided until his death, in 1854, at the age 
 of 66 years. He was born in 1788, and had occu- 
 pied the pulpit for over 30 years, preaching the doc- 
 trine of the old-school Baptist. His marriage to 
 Polly Gilbraith took place in 1810. She was born 
 in 1788 and was of Irish parentage, her father hav- 
 ing emigrated to this country in time to take part in 
 the Revolutionary War. She died in March, 1856, 
 in Warren County, after having borne her husband 
 eight children, Eveline, John, William, Elizabeth, 
 Aaron, Cynthia, Absalom and Polly, only four of 
 whom are yet living, viz. : John, William, Cynthia 
 and Absalom. 
 
 Absalom Vandeveer, of whom we write, formed a 
 matrimonial alliance with Miss Delila Lieurance, 
 Dec. 14, 1845. She was born Aug. 23, 1827, in 
 Clinton Co., Ohio, and came to Illinois with her par- 
 ents in 1835. Her father still lives in this county, 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 at the advanced age of 84 years, having been born 
 in 1 80 r in Tennessee. He married Miss Anna 
 Wright in 1822. She was born in 1803, and died in 
 1838, leaving to the care of her husband six chil- 
 dren, Mary, Delila, Aylett R., Rebecca, Jehu and 
 Amos, the latter two of whom have deceased. 
 
 Mr. Vandeveer and his wife have become the par- 
 ents of nine children. The record is as follows: 
 Silas B., born Dec. 8, 1846; Amelia J., Feb. 16, 
 1848; Abbie, Dec. 16, 1851; Lovell P., Oct. 12, 
 1852; Mary E., Match 10, 1854; George M., Dec. 
 15. 1855 ; William A., Jan. 8, 1858; Donezell, Nov. 
 19,1859; and Flo N., Oct. 27, 1861. Mr. Vandeveer 
 has 12 grandchildren. Of his own children men- 
 tioned above, George was killed in the memorable 
 tornado, May *2, 1873. He was in the cellar under 
 the house when the tornado took the building from its 
 foundation, and a field roller was blown into the 
 cellar, which was probably the cause of his death, 
 the roller striking him, while in motion, on the back 
 [part of his head. His life was thus cut short in the 
 1 7th year of his age. 
 
 Mr. Vandeveer is an earnest worker in the Baptist 
 Church, of which he is Deacon. He has 280 acres 
 of land in Swan Township, with a fine two-story 
 residence, 30 x 36 feet in dimensions, and a barn 
 24 x 50 with 2o-foot posts. In addition to the cul- 
 tivation of his land, he is also devoting a portion of 
 his time to the breeding of thoroughbred Short- 
 horns, of which he has seven head. In the tornado 
 of 1873 he lost everything save his land, but he had 
 many kind neighbors who contributed to the wants 
 of himself and family until assistance was no longer 
 necessary, and now that he has recovered his losses, 
 and is in a fair way to secure a certain competency, 
 he does not forget the acts of kindness bestowed 
 upon him and his in the hour of need. All of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Vande veer's children, except Amelia, 
 are living in this county. She became the wife of 
 James M. Crabb, and is now living with him in Mac- 
 pherson Co., Kan. They have seven children, whose 
 names are Leon, Minnie ; Rena, Edward, Paul, Mar- 
 lin and Flo Crabb. Mary E. is the wife of Samuel 
 Larkin, a farmer of this county, and they have three 
 children, D. Alvin, Walter and an infant. Lovell 
 married Ida Lawrence and resides on the home 
 farm : Floss Rose is the name of their only child. 
 Donnie married Robert Beekner, a farmer of Swan 
 
 Township, and is the mother of two children, Lova 
 and Zelma. The entire family are members of the 
 Baptist Church, and in politics Mr. V. is identified 
 with the Democratic party. 
 
 oe; 
 
 IK illiam Patch, who is one of the leading 
 agriculturists and stock-raisers of Ellison 
 Township, was born on the old homestead 
 V of his parents, on section 31 of this town- 
 ship, July ii, 1858. His home farm is now 
 on section 30. His father, Mayhew Patch, in 
 early years was engaged at the carpenter's trade, 
 but turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, 'at 
 which he devoted the remainder of his life. He was 
 born in New Hampshire, of New England ancestry, 
 and was married in Eaton, his native State, to Mis 
 Susan Snow, a native of that place, where she was 
 also reared. As early as 1855, they came West, and 
 located upon a tract of raw land in Ellison Town- 
 snip. Here he erected a house, made excellent im- 
 provements and with the exception of three years 
 spent in the cily of Monmouth, he passed the re- 
 mainder of his life here. He died at his home July 
 24, 1880, at the age of 57 years. He was highly es- 
 teemed for his many excellent virtues, and was re- 
 garded as one of the leading citizens in Ellison 
 Township. His widow yet resides on the old home- 
 stead. She is the mother of five children, four of 
 whom are living and all married. 
 
 William Patch was the youngest but one of the 
 family mentioned above. He was born, reared, edu- 
 cated and embarked in business for himself in this 
 township. He lived with his mother after the death 
 of his father, working on the home farm until his 
 marriage. This important event of his life occurred 
 June 10, 1885, at the residence of the bride's father 
 in Prairie City, 111. The lady who joined him at 
 this time was Miss Hattie Jones, daughter of Robert 
 Jonee. She is a native of New England, and was 
 only five years of age when her parents came to 
 Prairie City. Here she was reared and educated 
 and lived at home until her marriage For five years 
 previous to this event, however, she had been en- 
 gaged in teaching school. Her mother died in 1881. 
 
244 
 
 WARREW COUNTY. 
 
 Her father is a blacksmith, residing in Prairie City. 
 
 The parents of Mr. Patch were active and zealous 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, to 
 which our subject with his wife is also connected, 
 and he has taken an active part in the labors of the 
 Church. His father was a Democrat in politics, but 
 William is inclined to be more independent in his 
 political views. He has held the minor offices of 
 his township, and is regarded as one of the enterpris- 
 ing young farmers of Warren County. 
 
 saac Van Tasell, who is passing the sunset 
 of his life in ease and comfort, having re- 
 tired from active labors of the farm and 
 who is at present residing at Monmouth, is a 
 son of Green and Deborah Van Tasell. The 
 parents of Mr. Van Tasell died in Lyons, 
 |Dutchess Co., N. Y., when Isaac was but two years 
 fof age. Isaac was born in Dutchess Co., York 
 State, July 3, 1822, and continued to reside there 
 [until 1851, when, hoping to better his financial con- 
 dition in life, he came to Kendall County, this State. 
 In the latter county he resided for ten years, follow- 
 ing agricultural pursuits, and in the fall of 1859 
 came to this county and located in Lenox Township 
 and followed the same occupation there until 1883, 
 when he removed to Monmouth. 
 
 'Mr. Van Tasell was united in marriage in his na- 
 tive county and State, Sept. 12, 1850, Miss Phebe 
 D. Cargill becoming his wife. She was a native of 
 York State and- has borne her husband five children, 
 Mary E., Julia A., Jam-is W., Ella L. and Carrie 
 M. Mary E. became the wife of George Brown, a 
 farmer of Kendall County, this State; Julia A. mar- 
 ried Jacob Ball, and resides in Nebraska; James W. 
 follows farming in Lenox Township (see sketch) ; 
 Ella L. resides at home; Carrie M. was united in 
 marriage with Ira Sprout, a resident of Kirkwood. 
 
 Mr. Van Tasell is the proprietor of 134^ acres of 
 land, r2oof which is under an advanced state of 
 cultivation. He resides in Monmouth Township, 
 where he is passing the sunset of his life, enjoying 
 the accumulations which toil and economy have 
 
 brought him. He has held the office of School 
 Director, and his politics are those of a staunch and 
 unflinching Republican. 
 
 ranklin Booth, located on section [8, 
 j- Swan Township, where he resides and is 
 ~ actively engaged in its cultivation and 
 improvement, which has been the vocation of 
 his life, was born in Cabell Co., Va,, Nov. 7, 
 1829, and is a son of Ferguson Booth, de- 
 ceased, who was" born in Virginia, Oct. 10, 1799. 
 The father came to this State in March, 1836, and 
 located in Knox County ; remained there for a time, 
 then moved to this county, where he died, Feb. 14, 
 1876. He was married to Miss Lucinda Perdue in 
 1819. She was born in 1804 in Virginia, and still 
 survives, residing in this county. Of the parents' 
 union, these children were born : Sarah J., Burwell, 
 Franklin, Russell, Morris, James W., Leander and 
 Mary A. Marinda was drowned when four years of 
 age while wading across a stream in Virginia. She 
 became bewildered, and falling was unable to re- 
 cover herself, and was thus drowned. Sarah J., 
 wife of Stephen Spordock, died leaving eight chil- 
 dren ; William Lewis, the eldest child, died in his 
 infancy. 
 
 Franklin Booth, the subject of this biographical 
 notice, was married to Miss Martha Sargent, March 
 23, 1854, at Monmouth, 111. She wds born April 3, 
 1836, in Jacksonville, Morgan County, this Slate, 
 and is a daughter of John Sargent, born in Ohio, 
 Dec. 15, 1801. Her father came, to this State in 
 1822, and participated in the Black Hawk War. His 
 wife, Mary (Johnson) Sargent, to whom he was mar- 
 ried in 1827, was born in 1809, and died in 1838, 
 her husband surviving her until Sept. 24, 1884. Of 
 their union nine children were born, Elizabeth, 
 Mary A., Sarah, Martha J., Lorinda, Eveline, 
 Thomas B., Tobitha and Mary L. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Booth are the parents of seven chil- 
 dren, namely: James W., born July 2, 1857; Ira 
 S., Jan. 20, 1858; Henry T., March 8, 1859; Nellie, 
 June 23, 1863; Allen C., Sept. 27, 1865 ; Nola E., 
 Feb. 20, 1868; Annie M., July 19, 1873. Two of 
 
; ve 
 

 RESIDENCE OF JOHN WONDERLY, SEC. 13., LENOX TOWNSHIP. 
 
 RESIDENCE or B.r. FORWOOD SEC. 23., SPRING GRQMZ TOWNSHIP. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 247 
 
 the above named are deceased, James and Nellie, 
 the former dying May 17, 1858, and the latter June 
 3, 1864. Ira S. married Ada Cooper, and resides in 
 Swan Township. All are at home except Ira S. and 
 Henry T. The latter is fanning in Swan Township. 
 Mr. Booth and family are pleasantly situated on 
 their magnificent farm of 375 acres, located on sec- 
 tion 18, Swan Township. He owns his land and 
 has the same under an advanced state of cultivation, 
 and since coming to the county, in 1852, he has de- 
 1 voted his time and attention to its cultivation. In 
 addition to the cultivation of his land, he is to no 
 ' small extent interesting himself in the breeding of 
 : Short-horn cattle, and fattens stock for the purpose 
 of shipping. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Booth are consistent members of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. In politics, Mr. 
 Booth is, and has been all his life, a Republican. 
 
 ohn H. Lippy, engaged in merchandising 
 at Swan Creek, is a native of Hamilton 
 Co., Ohio, where he was born July 31, 
 1841. He came to this State in 1844, landing 
 in Fulton County July 4, of that year. The 
 father of Mr. Lippy, John Lippy, Sr., was born 
 in Maryland, in 1804, and married Miss Sarah Zepp 
 in 1832. She was born May i, 1806, and they be- 
 came the parents of 14 children, nine daughters and 
 five sons, Mary E., Rebecca, Sarah C, J. H., 
 George W., David E., Susan L., Marinda J., Jane, 
 Edna M., William, and three unnamed who died in 
 infancy. 
 
 Mr. Lippy of this notice was married April 12, 
 1866, to Miss Hulda Luper, who was born Aug. 29, 
 1846, and has borne her husband four children, 
 Ida May, S. J., P. H. and Louisa I. Mr. Lippy 
 has a .fine stock of goods in Swan Creek, his store 
 room being 22 x 50 feet in dimensions, and is meet- 
 ing with financial success in his business. He car- 
 ries a stock of about $3,500. In July, 1877, he was 
 appointed Postmaster, and still holds that office. In 
 politics, he is an active, working Republican. In 
 1862 he entered the service of the Union, and June 
 6 of that year was mustered in at Knoxville, 111., 
 
 joining Co. D, io2d 111. Vol. Inf., Col. McMurtry 
 commanding. He first did service in Kentucky, 
 " after Bragg," and was in several general engage- 
 ments and 24 skirmishes. He was wounded twice 
 in the left leg while in Mississippi, but is receiving 
 no pension from the Government. Jan. 6, 1865, 
 almost at the close of the war, Mr. Lippy received 
 his discharge at Vicksburg, Miss., and returned 
 home. 
 
 In addition to his general mercantile business, Mr. 
 Lippy is engaged in buying and shipping grain and 
 stock. He started his business at Swan Creek 
 March 13, 1876, and by his fair and honest dealings 
 with his patrons has established a good trade. So- 
 cially, he is a member of the G. A. R. He has nine 
 lots and four buildings in Swan Creek. 
 
 ohn Wonderly, one of the best known of 
 the many well-to-do farmers of Lenox 
 Township, is the owner of an excellent farm 
 located on section 15, where he is residing. 
 He is a son of Daniel and Elizabeth (Wolf) 
 Wonderly, natives of Pennsylvania, in which 
 State they also died. John was the third in order of 
 birth of a family of six children. He was born in 
 Cumberland Co., Pa., Nov. 20, 1822, and received 
 his education in the common schools. His years, 
 prior to his emigration to this county, were passed 
 in farming in his native State, with the exception of 
 about ten months, which were spent in Indiana. He 
 came here in 1855, and after being a short time in 
 Monmouth, located in Lenox Township, where he 
 has since resided. He is the owner of 1 60 acres, 
 the major portion of which is tillable, and with his 
 family resides on the farm on section 13, Lenox 
 Township; besides, he owns a tract of timber land 
 in Floyd Township on section 8. He has a com- 
 modious and well furnished farm residence, which 
 with its pleasant surroundings are illustrated in the 
 view on page 245. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Wonderly to the lady whom 
 he wooed and won, Miss Margaret Zug, occurred in 
 Cumberland Co., Pa., Nov. 28, 1844. She was a 
 native of the county in which she was married and 
 
 -: 
 
f "4JT 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 has borne her husband nine children. The living 
 are Mary E., Emma C., Daniel Z., John W. Martha 
 J. and Charles A. Those deceased are George W., 
 Ann M. and Clara A. Mary E. became the wife of 
 J. L. Young, a farmer of Lenox Township ; Emma 
 C. was united in marriage with Wm. Jewell, who re- 
 sides in Nebraska ; Daniel Z. is a resident of Hen- 
 derson County; John lives in Nebraska; the husband 
 of Martha, Henry Norcross, with his wife resides in 
 Nebraska ; Charles A. lives at home. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Wonderly casts his vote with the 
 Democratic party. He has held the offices of Road 
 Commissioner and School Director, and is one of the 
 energetic and highly respected farmers of Lenox 
 Township. He and his wife are members of the 
 Methodist Church. 
 
 : ! ayton A. Vaughn, farrner, residing on sec- 
 tion 20, Greenbush Township, was born in 
 Dinwiddie Co., Va., March 31, 1810, and 
 is the son of John E. Vaughn, a native of that 
 State. The father married Miss Susan Cotton 
 in 1808. She was a native of England, and 
 bore her husband five children, Payton, Nancy, 
 George C., Jane and Emily. 
 
 Payton A. Vaughn married Miss Mary A. Dar- 
 neille, July 18, 1834, Rev. Kirkpatrick, of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church, officiating. She was born 
 Feb. 13, 1820, in Kentucky, and came to this State 
 in 1833 with her mother, and located near Quincy, 
 Adams County. Of their union seven children were 
 born, the following being their names: Elizabeth, 
 Dec. 5, 1835 ; Martha A., June 27, 1838, died March 
 13, 1843; Barthenia, Jan. 6, 1841 ; James T., May 
 21, 1843; Mary Z., Nov. 2, 1848; George E., July 
 10, 1852, and Douglas B., Feb. 14, 1860. 
 
 Mr. Vaughn, of this sketch, owns 370 acres of 
 good farm land, located on section 20, Greenbush 
 Township, and is there engaged in farming and rais- 
 ing graded stock. He has some very fine Norman 
 horses, and also a fine half-blooded Clydesdale four- 
 year-old, and in both branches of his vocation is 
 meeting with financial success. He has served as 
 Road Commissioner and School Trustee. In politics, 
 
 he is a believer in and supporter of the principles ad- 
 vocated by the Democratic party. Mr. Vaughn and 
 and wife are both members of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church. 
 
 t rs. Rebecca Morford, residing at Rose- 
 ville, is the widow of Benjamin Morford, 
 who was born in Mercer Co., Pa., March 
 18, 1813. The parents of Mr. Morford were 
 Joseph and Elizabeth (Fell) Morford, natives 
 of New Jersey. The family of the parents 
 consisted of ten children, seven of whom grew to the 
 age of manhood and womanhood. 
 
 Benjamin Morford, husband of the subject of this 
 sketch, assisted his father on the farm and attended 
 the common schools, developing into manhood. Four 
 years after he attained his majority, when 25 years 
 of age, his father gave him a farm, on which he lo- 
 cated and at once engaged in the vocation in which 
 he had received instruction at home up to that time, 
 farming; and on this place- he remained and 
 continued to cultivate the same for 14 years. He 
 then sold his farm and came to this State, in 1851, 
 and settled at Roseville, purchasing 80 acres of land 
 on the east and one acre on the west side of Main 
 Street. On this land he erected a residence and 
 there made his home until the date of his death, 
 which occurred Jan. 14, 1875. He platted a part of 
 his farm, and since his death the remainder, with 
 the exception of a few acres, has been incorporated 
 within the present limits of the village of Roseville. 
 
 Mr. Morford was united in marriage to Miss Re- 
 becca Stem in 1838. She was a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania, her parents being Frederick and Sarah 
 (Harris) Stem, natives of Maryland and Pennsyl- 
 vania respectively. Her father came with his family 
 to this State in 1861, and settled one and a half 
 miles east of Roseville, where he purchased 160 
 acres of land, and by his economy and perseverance 
 increased his landed interests in the county to 400 
 acres. He and his wife continued to reside on the 
 old homestead until their deaths, that of the former 
 occurring June 9, 1875, and the latter Jan. 14, 1867. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Morford became the parents of ten 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 249 
 
 children, six of whom are still living, Sarah E. 
 Patch, Zilpah A. Lewis, Nelson A., Ross C., Cora 
 D. and George E. Mrs. Morford still continues to 
 reside on the old homestead, with her daughter Cora 
 and son George. She is a member of the Baptist 
 Church, to which denomination he also belonged. 
 Mr. Morford was the first Postmaster in Roseville, 
 and held the office for some 10 or 12 years. He 
 also held the offices of Justice of the Peace and 
 Road Commissioner, and was one of the respected 
 and honored pioneers of the village of Roseville. 
 
 Chester Brooks, a prosperous and ener- 
 getic farmer and stock-raiser, on section 
 1 6, Ellison Township, was born in Ni- 
 agara Co., N. Y., on the 27 th of December, 
 1817. His father, Noah Brooks, a farmer and 
 mechanic by occupation, was a native of Con- 
 necticut, of New England parentage and Welsh de- 
 scent. He formed a matrimonial alliance in Ulster 
 Co., N. Y., with Miss Maria Russell, also a native 
 of Connecticut, and of similar ancestry and descent. 
 Before the war of 1812, the parents settled in Gene- 
 see Co., York State, where they remained for some 
 years. Mr. Noah Brooks, during the War of 1812, 
 held the position of a militia soldier, and after his re- 
 turn moved to Orleans Co., the same State. When 
 our subject, Chester Brooks, was but a small child of 
 about 12 years of age, and while living near his birth- 
 place, Noah Brooks, his father, died. The mother 
 afterward lived with her daughter in Wisconsin and 
 Ohio, dying at the former place at an advanced age. 
 Chester, after the death of his father, went to live with 
 a Mr. William Jackson, of Orleans Co., Empire State. 
 Here he remained, making that his home until he 
 reached the age of 26 .years, having attended the 
 high schools of Orleans and Niagara Counties in the 
 meantime. In the fall of 1844 he came to Illinois, 
 and began teaching in the common schools and also 
 teaching music in Cass County, and later worked at 
 his trade, that of carpenter and joiner, which he had 
 learned in his native State. While in Cass County 
 he was united in marriage, in 1847, to Miss Elizabeth 
 V. Beard, daughter of Alex, and Lucy (Yates) Beard, 
 
 the latter a cousin to Governor Yates. Mrs. Brooks 
 was born in Cass County, this State, Nov. 26, 1830, 
 and her parents were successful farmers and natives 
 of Kentucky and Virginia, respectively. After Mr. 
 Beard's first marriage, he came to Illinois, but re- 
 turned to Kentucky after the demise of his wife, and 
 married the second time. He again returned to this 
 State and here both he and his wife died. Mrs. 
 Brooks was well educated in the public schools and 
 lived at home until her marriage. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Brooks have became the parents of five children, of 
 whom the following is a brief record : William mar- 
 ried Jennie Reynolds and they reside on a farm in 
 Hardin Co., Iowa; Edwin C. is the husband of 
 Sarah, nee Baldwin, and is engaged in stock-raising at 
 Centralia, Nemaha Co., Kan.; Lucy A., wife of B. F. 
 Graham, lives on a farm in Grundy Co., Iowa; 
 George A. resides at home, as likewise does Emma E. 
 After marriage Mr. Brooks resided in Cass County, 
 this State, for 10 years, where he was engaged in 
 in farming. In October, 1864, he came to this' 
 county and purchased 137 acres of land, all of which 
 was improved, with good buildings, etc. Since that 
 time he has added 40 acres to his purchase and now 
 has 177 acres of good farm land. He has held the 
 offices of Justice of the Peace and Township Clerk 
 and also School Trustee, which latter office he has. 
 held for 15 years and is the present incumbent. He 
 has been a Republican ever since the organization 
 of that party, and is an active and e.iergetic worker 
 in support of its principles. 
 
 amos B. Reynolds is a fanner on section 
 24 in the township of Sumner, where he 
 
 r*" has resided since 186?. At the time he suc- 
 J 
 
 j> ceeded to its ownership a small frame house 
 was on the place, which, with the other appur- 
 tenances of the site, was in a dilapidated con- 
 dition. He has erected a good set of buildings and 
 put the place under improvements second to none in 
 the county. The residence and its surroundings are 
 beautiful, the former being of much more than ordin- 
 ary style for a farm house, and the well planned and 
 beautified grounds adding greatly to its attractive 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 appearance. The ornamental trees include Scotch 
 pine, European larch and others of equal rarity and 
 beauty. It is but justice to state that the estate is 
 one of the most attractive and valuable in Warren 
 County. The location is on a southern slope, and 
 from the buildings, which are placed on the height 
 of the land, the spires of Monmouth are plainly vis- 
 ible. 
 
 Mr. Reynolds has been a Democrat until later 
 issues engaged his attention, and now adopts the 
 views of the Prohibitionists. He was born in the 
 township of Hale in Warren County, Feb. 18, 1838. 
 
 Thomas Reynolds, his father, was a pioneer of the 
 county, of 1836. He was born Oct. 15, 1782, in 
 North Carolina, and was of Scotch-Irish origin. He 
 passed all the earlier years of his life in his native 
 State, where he was married to Eleanor McClanahan. 
 She was born in North Carolina, March 10, 1803. 
 In addition to the business of farmer the senior 
 Reynolds was a practical miller, and he followed 
 the combined relations of his two callings in his na- 
 tive State until 1834. 
 L. About that time the spirit of progress seemed to 
 take possession of the people in a manner then un- 
 common, and Mr. Reynolds yielded to it and to the 
 belief that he could secure for himself and his in- 
 creasing family the advantages of a broader field of. 
 operation. Accordingly, in the year named, he set 
 out with his household for Indiana. The country 
 between North Carolina and the point of destination 
 in the Hoosier State was traversed with a team and 
 a covered wagon ; and the same conveyance carried 
 the goods of the household ; and the cooking and 
 domestic arrangements generally were conducted on 
 the way much after the same pattern as in the de- 
 serted home in the South. They stayed their steps 
 in White Co., Ind., and resided there two years. In 
 1836 they took up their line of march to the west- 
 ward and came in the same manner in which they 
 had made their former journey, to Illinois. The 
 father made a location at Sugar Grove, in Hale 
 Township, in this county. He rented land for a time 
 to give himself an opportunity to look about and de- 
 termine on the best plan to pursue and where was 
 the best place to make a permanent settlement. He 
 decided to go to Henderson County. He bought a 
 tract of land in the timber in the vicinity of Hollings- 
 worth/s mill, and proceeded to arrange his affairs on 
 
 the accepted plan of the pioneers. He erected a log 
 cabin for a temporary home and cleared 40 acres of 
 land. There he remained about 14 years. On sell- 
 ing out, he bought a prairie farm two miles from 
 Biggsville and was its owner and occupant until 
 1866. That was the year in which he made his final 
 removal to Sumner Township. He settled on the 
 farm which his son had bought in that township and 
 his life continued only a few years after. He died 
 June 12, 1869. The wife and mother lived until 
 Aug 15, 1881. Of their seven children only two 
 survive. Mr. Reynolds has a younger sister Mar- 
 tha E., the wife of R. W. Wiley, of Sumner Town- 
 ship. 
 
 Mr. Reynolds was ten years of age when his par- 
 ents removed to Henderson County. He was brought 
 up to the calling of his forefathers and was a pupil 
 in the public school. Later he attended the High 
 School at Oquawka, and finally finished his educa- 
 tion with three years' attendance at Monmouth Col- 
 lege. 
 
 Feb. 1 8, 1868, he was married to Araminta C. 
 McCrery, and they have two children. Mabel is 
 pursuing a course of study at Monmouth College. < 
 Bertha A. is the younger, Mrs. Reynolds was born 
 in Monmouth, June 25, 1849. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds are members of the United 
 Presbyterian Church, as is their oldest daughter. 
 
 illiam K. Stewart attorney at law, Mon- 
 mouth, was born in McDonough County, 
 this State, Dec. 3, 1845. He spent his 
 youth largely at school, and graduated from 
 Monmouth College in the class of 1867. He 
 began the study of law at once under his father 
 and was admitted to the Bar in April, 1868, and be- 
 gan practice at Oquawka the following fall. (For 
 parentage, etc., see biography of Hon. J. H. Stewart, 
 this volume.) In 1873 he came to Monmouth from 
 -Oquawka and became the junior of the firm of 
 Stewart, Phelps & Stewart, probably the strongest 
 law firm in the city. At the end of two years the 
 firm dissolved, and Mr. Stewart repaired to Burling- 
 ton, Iowa, and was there two years. Returning tq 
 
\H 'K 
 
 > u 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 S3 
 
 Monmouth in 1877, he was at once appointed City 
 Attorney, and in 1878 was elected Police Magistrate, 
 which he resigned at the end of three years to be- 
 come a member of the firm of Stewart & Grier. 
 Since 1883, this firm has been Stewart & Stewart, 
 and is composed of Hon. J. H. Stewart and the sub- 
 ject of this sketch. At the spring election of 1885, 
 Mr. Stewart was elected City Attorney, and is the 
 present incumbent of that office. 
 
 He was married in McDonough County, this State, 
 April 16, 1873, to Miss Mary E. Mariner, and has 
 three children. 
 
 acob Byers, a sturdy tiller of the soil, 
 which vocation he has followed the major 
 portion of his life, resides on section 18, 
 Hale Township. He is a son of Jacob and 
 Catherine (Lawyer) Byers, natives of Pennsyl- 
 vania. The father died in Darke Co., Ohio, 
 Aug. 12, 1862, aged 80, and the mother in Franklin 
 Co., Pa., Aug. 4, 1842, aged 63. The parents of the 
 elder Byers were of German and Irish ancestry re- 
 spectively. The record of the elder Jacob Byers' 
 family of seven children is as follows: David, Re- 
 becca, Elizabeth, Joseph, Solomon, Rosana and 
 Jacob. David married Miss Eve Stake, of Frank- 
 lin Co., Pa., and they had one son : the father and 
 son are deceased. Rebecca married George Ens- 
 menger, of Cumberland Co., Pa., and a large family 
 blessed this union : the mother is deceased. Eliza- 
 beth married Isaac Basehore, of Franklin Co., Pa., 
 and became the mother of two children, one of 
 whom, with the mother, is deceased. Joseph mar- 
 ried Rebecca Rafesnyder, of the same county, and 
 had a family of two boys and three girls. Solomon 
 married Sarah A. Bitner and had 15 children, five of 
 whom are deceased : the father died in 1884. Ro- 
 sanna married Samuel Railing, of Cumberland Co., 
 Pa., and had a family of seven children, four of 
 whom are deceased. 
 
 Jacob Byers was the youngest of a family of seven 
 children born to his parents, all growing to attain the 
 age of their majority. He was born June 16, 1821, 
 
 and during his early boyhood attended the common 
 schools, receiving a fair education. At the age of 
 15 years he went forth in the cold, unfriendly world 
 to d ) for himself. His first occupation after leaving 
 the parental roof was that of an agriculturist, which 
 he followed for two years, receiving remuneration for 
 his services, at the expiration of which time, when 
 he was 17 years of age, he apprenticed himself to 
 learn the blacksmith's trade. This he mastered and 
 continued to follow as a means of livelihood for sev- 
 eral years, and even after coming to this county he 
 was thus engaged in connection with his farm duties 
 for about seven years. He came to Warren County 
 in 1853, and for about three and a half years lived 
 in Monmouth, where he followed his trade. He 
 moved to Hale Township in 1857, and settled on 
 section 18, where he became the owner of 88 acres 
 of good tillable land, and on which he has lived and 
 labored until the present time. By his energy and 
 economy he has succeeded in making additions to 
 his original purchase until he is at present the pro- 
 prietor of 208 acres of land in Hale Township and a 
 farm of 69 acres in Henderson County. 
 
 Mr. Byers was wedded to Harriet E. Bitner, in 
 Franklin Co., Pa., June 20, 1845. She was the 
 daughter of Michael and Jane (Goodman) Bitner, 
 the former of whom died in Franklin Co., Pa., and . 
 the latter in Monmouth. Mr. and Mrs. Byers have 
 become the parents of eight children, whom they 
 have named Priscilla J., Catherine E., John F., 
 William E., Jacob M., Lydia B., David I. and Grace 
 
 E. Priscilla is the wife of Henry Cooper and re- 
 sides in Henderson County; Catherine E. married 
 Ralph Ostrander, a resident of St. Louis, Mo. ; John 
 
 F. lives in Georgetown, Col. ; William E. is engaged 
 in teaching in Iowa; Jacob lives at home; Lydia B. 
 married Nicholas Resener, who is a resident of Gris- 
 wold, Iowa; David I. lives in St. Louis, Mo.; and 
 Grace E. is deceased. 
 
 Mrs. Byers died in Hale Township, March 28 
 1879, and Mr. Byers was the second time married, 
 in that township. The date of this marriage was 
 Dec. 21, 1882, at which time Miss Hannah Stevenson 
 became his wife. They lived together as man and 
 wife but three short months, when, March 4, 1883, 
 she passed to the land of the hereafter. Mr. Byers 
 has held the offices of Road Commissioner and 
 School Director in his township, and his political 
 views coincide with the principles ao>ocate4 by thq 
 
 r 
 
~1 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Republican party. He has attained no little prom- 
 inence as a man of energy and honor in the com- 
 munity, and his accompanying portrait gives addi- 
 tional interest to this volume. 
 
 ichard Henry Shultz, deceased, was born 
 at Maysville, Mason Co., Ky., June 7, 
 1829, and died at Monmouth, May 21, 
 1883. His parents were Christian and Char- 
 lotte (Lee) Shultz. The former was a native 
 of Pennsylvania and of German descent, 
 while the latter was a. native of Kentucky and of 
 English extraction. The Shultz family was of the 
 sturdy old Pennsylvania Dutch stock, which was 
 noted for habits of economy and industry, combined 
 with a strict regard for the rights of others, and 
 formed the elements of a superior citizenship, while 
 the Lees combined with all these elements the blue 
 blood of the patrician, which infused itself with no 
 stock but to better it, assimilating with none to the 
 exclusion of its inherent potency, and displaying 
 itself ever and anon in the very highest order of 
 manhood. Men, eminent in State craft and in war; 
 distinguished in belles-lettres and in song; men who 
 have adorned the Bench and the Bar; men whose 
 eloquence have swayed the assemblage from the 
 pulpit, the rostrum and forum, aye, these are the 
 men whose names will ever be found in the biog- 
 raphy of the Lees. The mother of Richard H. 
 Sluiltz was a cousin of Gen. Robert E. Lee and Gen. 
 " Stonewall " Jackson. Thus in our own great Re- 
 public alone can the combinations of these elements 
 be found possible; and when in the fullness of time 
 the best people of all the races of the earth shall 
 have brought each his own peculiar superiority, 
 whatever that virtue may consist in, and the whole 
 shall have intermingled to form one race the 
 American then, indeed, will the human family have 
 attained that high eminence to which it is by the 
 Creator destined. The partial effect of this com- 
 bination of race may be noticed daily by the student 
 of human nature. Short biographical sketches of 
 men who have been identified with the growth, 
 progress and welfare of a single county, often dis- 
 
 closes the important fact, though insignificant as it 
 may appear, that the great design of nature was in 
 these good men being partially carried out. 
 
 Read the biographical sketches in the Warren 
 County ALBUM, note there the history of the lives 
 of the best people that live and have lived within its 
 province, and by tracing their ancestry the true 
 secret of the route to greatness, can be seen, though 
 not in wealth. Wealth is not greatness; in fact it 
 is seldom an integral part of it. So with Mr. Shultz: 
 his greatness consisted in a superior citizenship, and 
 its essential qualities are largely traceable to his an- 
 cestry. 
 
 Mr. Shultz was educated in Kentucky, and em- 
 barked in business while yet a young man. June 7, 
 1853, he was married, at Maysville, to Miss Lizzie 
 Mcllvain, daughter of William Mcllvain, who was 
 30 years a banker in that city. Soon after his mar- 
 riage, Mr. Shultz removed to Cincinnati, where he 
 was for about three years engaged in a commission 
 business. From there he emigrated to Missouri, 
 where he was engaged in farming up to the time of 
 his coming to Warren County, in 1861. Here he 
 purchased a farm in Lenox Township and occupied 
 it two or three years, when he removed to Mon- 
 mouth. Here he purchased an interest in the drug 
 firm of Brewer & McGrew, and later on bought the 
 interest of Mr. McGrew and changed the firm to 
 Brewer & Shultz, which continued for a few years. 
 He then purchased Mr. Brewer's interest and es- 
 tablished his two sons in the store, under the firm 
 name of W. M. Shultz & Co.. Subsequently one of 
 the sons, C. Shultz, became the owner. He was one 
 of the projectors of the Monmouth Opera House, 
 pressed the enterprise to completion and subse- 
 quentlj became its sole owner. It is a magnificent 
 structure, and a fitting monument to his public- 
 spiritedness and enterprise while a citizen of the 
 county. In all his undertakings he was successful 
 and died the possessor of a handsome competency. 
 
 Of Mr. and Mrs. Shultz 's four children, William 
 M. is a r/romising young physician at Buena Vista, 
 Col.; Crit is the sole successor to the drug business 
 of W. M. Shultz & Co., and manager and one-fourth 
 owner of the Opera House ; Lottie and Lewis are 
 the names of the younger members of the household. 
 
 Mr. Shultz was an ardent Democrat and a mem- 
 ber of the Masonic Order, and, though identified 
 with no particular Church^ was a liberal giver to all. 
 
 i 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 The day succeeding his death, a local paper con- 
 tained the following handsome tribute to his memory : 
 " Mr. Shultz was an open, generous, enterpris- 
 ing and public-spirited man, always ready with his 
 purse and influence to further ^very enterprise for 
 the growth and advancement of Monmouth. As a 
 neighbor and friend he was possessed of that gen- 
 uine Kentucky hospitality and frankness that made 
 his home one of the most pleasant and attractive in 
 the city, and none were more earnest in entertaining 
 friends and company than he. To those with whom 
 he was intimate, he was a fast and abiding friend, 
 tried and true, and with them was most deservedly 
 popular. The death of no citizen could be more 
 universally regretted." 
 
 ', ames Kelsay, formerly a resident of Swan 
 Township, was born in Kentucky in 1805. 
 He came to Illinois when he was a young 
 man and located in the southern portion 
 of Sangamon County which, by a later divi- 
 sion, was set off to Christian County. He oc- 
 cupied his time in farming, and, in 1834, was married 
 to Elizabeth Vandervere, who was born in Indi- 
 ana in 1 8 [5. They continued to reside in the 
 county in which they were married until the fall of 
 the year succeeding In that season they removed to 
 Warren County. They passed the first year in Hoyd 
 Township and then fixed their residence in Swan 
 Township. They bought land there and the hus- 
 band erected a log house. He lost no time in mak- 
 ing the improvements customary in a prairie country 
 and the work was far advanced at the time of his 
 death. That event occurred in August, 1844. His 
 widow was his survivor 28 years, her demise occur- 
 ring Aug. 28, 1872. Their children numbered six 
 and there are five still living. Mary J. is the wife of 
 Israel Jared and they are living in Point Pleasant 
 Township. Margaret A. is married to James Jared 
 and they live in Swan Township. John A. is a citi- 
 zen of the township. William resides in the State of 
 Missouri. Samuel B. lives in the township where his 
 father and mother resided. 
 
 Mrs. Kelsay was married in 1847 to John Blue. 
 
 They had three children. Cynthia is married to 
 Benjamin Kidder and they also reside in Swan 
 Township. Absalom V. is a citizen of Shenandoah, 
 Iowa. Bailey R. lives in Nebraska. The parents 
 were both members of the Baptist Church. 
 
 illiam Spencer Almond, now deceased, 
 was formerly a resident in the township of 
 Point Pleasant. He was born Oct. n, 
 i8n,in Louisa Co., Va. His parents re- 
 moved in his youth to Kentucky and were 
 pioneers of Warren County, that State. Wyatt 
 Almond, his father, was a man of superior abilities 
 and education and was a soldier in the service of 
 the United States in the War of 1812. He followed 
 the profession of teacher in Kentucky and was a 
 resident of that State after his removal there until 
 the time of his death. The name of the lady who 
 became his wife was Susannah Ware -previous to her 
 marriage to him. After his death she came to Illi- 
 nois and married Thomas Gunter, and finally died 
 in Swan Township, this county. Five of her chil- 
 dren are her survivors. A daughter, Mrs. Elizabeth 
 Watkins, resides in Shenandoah, Iowa. Thomas 
 lives in Point Pleasant Township. William S. was 
 the next in order of birth. Mrs. Emma Wade lives 
 in this county. Mrs. Susan Collier resides in Ar- 
 kansas. Z;icliariah D. is a citizen of Union Mills, 
 Mahaska Co., Iowa. 
 
 Mr. Almond, of this sketch, was brought up in the 
 county in which he was born. He was married in 
 Kentucky, to Miss Nancy Sprudling, who was a na- 
 tive of that State, and died there in 1852. She left 
 six children : William Allen lives in Union Mills, 
 Iowa. Martha J. is the wife of Joseph Johnson, of 
 Point Pleasant Township. Thomas J. is a farmer in 
 the same. James W. was a soldier in the 83d 111. 
 Vol. Inf., and was killed at Fort Donelson. After 
 the death of his first wife, Mr. Almond was married 
 to Sarah A. Hawkins. Mrs. Hawkins was born in 
 Warren Co., Ky., March 3, 1818. She was the 
 daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Meyers) Haw- 
 kins. Mr. H. was an Englishman by birth and his 
 wife was a native of Virginia. They both died in 
 Edmonson Co., Ky. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 : 
 
 Almond took place about the year 1854. She, by a 
 former marriage, to Mitchell Spradliag, had four chil- 
 dren : Mary F.,wife of George Evving, a resident of 
 Mills Co., Iowa. James K. lives in Kansas. Re- 
 becca, wife of L. W. Simmons, and lives in Califor- 
 nia. Angeline, wife of Weldon Worrell, and a 
 resident of Mills Co., Iowa. 
 
 The family removed to Illinois in 1852. They 
 traveled with ox-teams and brought with them all 
 their household belongings, and they lived in the 
 gipsey fashion while on the road. Mr. Almond made 
 a location in the township of Swan, whete he bought 
 50 acres of land on section 34, on which he lived 
 four years. At the end of that time he sold 'the prop- 
 erty there and removed to Point Pleasant Township, 
 where he bought 160 acres of wild land, on section 
 34. This was the homestead until the death of the 
 father, which occurred May 12, 1884. 'All the prop- 
 erty was under improvement, and the proprietor had 
 increased his acreage until he was the owner of 320 
 acres in that township and another considerable tract 
 in Iowa. Mr. Almond had built farm structures of a 
 character suited to the farm. He was a quiet man 
 "and good neighbor, a member of the Methodist 
 Church, and in political sentiment a Democrat. 
 
 Of the second marriage which lias been mentioned 
 there were three children, of whom two are living. 
 They are named Andrew S. and Jesse E. The lat- 
 ter was born April 30, 1859. He received his edu- 
 cation in the public schools, and was married to 
 Lydia J. Larkins, June r3, 1880. Mrs. Almond was 
 born in Warren County, Jan. 22, 1860, and is the 
 daughter of Samuel and Mary (Smith) Larkins. 
 Wernie C. is the only surviving child of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Almond. Their first child was named Ora 
 Dell, and she died whin less than nine months old. 
 Mr. Isaac N. Almond, the youngest son Joy the 
 former marriage, was in his second year when his 
 mother died, and he was brought to Illinois by his 
 father. He was trained and educated in the manner 
 common to the sons of farmers, and the first import- 
 ant event of his life was his marriage to Mary E. 
 Waters, which took place April 23, 1876. She was 
 born in Ohio, Aug. 5, 1855. Her death occurred 
 March 16, 1881. In September, 1882, Mr. Almond 
 was again married to Etta C. Prather. She is a 
 native of Abingdon, Knox Co., 111. Two children 
 were born of. the first marriage. Their names are 
 
 Elvin Walter and Eva J. George C. is the name of 
 the only child of the second marriage. 
 
 f arnes Smith, an agriculturist prosecuting 
 his vocation on section 16, Berwick Town- 
 ship, was born in Greene Co., Ohio, near 
 Xenia, Sept. 15, 1841, and is a son of James 
 Smith, who was born in Pennsylvania and died 
 about 1850, in Ohio, and whose father, Joseph 
 Smith, died at Jeffersonville, Ind., about 1841, the 
 year in which the subject of this sketch first saw the 
 light of day. 
 
 James Smith, at the date of his father's death, was 
 but nine years of age, and accompanied his grand- 
 father on his mother's side, by the name of Broad- 
 stone, to this State. His grandfather came from 
 Wales to this country, and to this State in 1850, and . 
 located in Crawford County and there died. Some 
 three years later, in the spring of 1856, James, the 
 subject, came here and located near Monmouth. 
 
 He enlisted in the war for the Union, joining Co. ' 
 C, 83d Regt. 111. Vol. Inf., under Capt. L. B. Cutler, 
 of Monmouth, and was mustered into the service in 
 that city. His regiment was ordered to Fort Henry, 
 Ky., where it remained for some 25 days, and was 
 then ordered to Fort Donelson, some 12 miles dis- 
 tant. He participated in the fight of Fort Donelson, 
 Feb. 3, 1863, and after that battle he was stationed 
 at the fort until June, 1865, when he was mustered 
 out at Nashville, Tenn., receiving his final discharge 
 and pay at Chicago, July 5, 1865, whereupon he 
 immediately started upon the train for his home in 
 Monmouth Township, Warren County. 
 
 Mr. Smith, of this notice, was united in marriage 
 with Abbie S. Pike, March 25, 1879. She was born 
 June 5, 1850, in Stoughton, Mass. Her father 
 Augustus H. Pike, was a native of Maine, and died 
 while in the Union army, in i86r, some six months 
 after he had enlisted. He married Miss Mary T. 
 Southworth, of the literary family of Southworths, 
 who was born in Boston, Mass., in 1823, and died in 
 Dubuque, Iowa, in 1855. Mrs. Smith was a resident 
 of Galesburg, Knox Co., 111., at the time of her mar- 
 riage, where her western relatives live. To Mr. 
 and Mrs. Pike three children were born, Abbie S., 
 
" EVERGREEN LAWM!' RESIDENCE OF SCHUYLER PALMER, SEC. 15 SPRING SROYE . 
 
 VIEW OF BUILDINGS FRONT NORTH . 
 
 A " 
 
 MAPLE GROVE, RESIDENCE OF JOHN H.FRANTz,SEc.22,SpRiHB GROVE. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 259 
 
 Jan. 5, 1850; Mary A., Feb. 10, 1852; and Ozro, 
 who died when two years of age. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Smith of this notice are the parents of three chil- 
 dren, Wallace R., born Dec. 31, 1880; Winihrop 
 G., Dec. 29, 1882; and Glen D., March 12, 1885. 
 Mr. Smith moved on the place where he now resides 
 in March, 1884. This place he had purchased the 
 year previous. He is there actively engaged in the 
 vocation of an agriculturist, meeting with success. 
 In 'politics, he is a believer in and a supporter of the 
 principles advocated by the Republican party. 
 
 |:Chuyler Palmer, a resident on section 15 
 of Spring Grove Township, is a pioneer of 
 Warren County of 1845. He is one of 
 the leading farmers of the township and has 
 reached prominence through the extensive 
 business relations he has established in the 
 county. He was born Nov. 24, 1831, in the province 
 of Ontario, Canada, and is the son of Wilkinson and 
 Nancy (Hurd) Palmer. His parents were born in 
 the same portion of the country as himself. The 
 father was born of parents of New York origin and 
 those of the mother were originally from the State 
 of Vermont. The ancestors of the latter were orig- 
 inally from Connecticut and later from New Jersey, 
 and later still from New York. The father of Mr. 
 Palmer removed with his wife and children to White- 
 side Co., 111., in 1842. Here they made their home 
 in the vicinity of Prophetstown until the year named 
 as that in which their removal to Warren County was 
 effected. On coming to this county they located 
 in Hale Township, where the father rented land un- 
 til 1851, when a tract of 80 acres of land was pur- 
 chased. It was wholly unbroken and the first 
 move made was to build a house for the accommo- 
 dation of the family. It was made of logs and was 
 occupied for the purpose for which it was constructed 
 three or four years. The family then took posses- 
 sion of a new frame house which the father built on 
 the homestead. Prosperity attended him in his busi- 
 ness relations, and he was soon enabled to make 
 other purchases until he became the owner of 200 
 acres of land, a portion of which was located in 
 Henderson County. His death occurred in July, 
 
 1878, and that of his wife some years previous. 
 Eight of their n children are now living. Sarah is 
 the wife of Jeremiah Young. They are residents of 
 Ida Co., Iowa. Ira A. lives in Ringgold Co., Iowa 
 Minard resides in the same State, in the county of 
 Harrison. George W. is a farmer in Hale Town- 
 ship. Manada A. is married to B. C. Darrah, of 
 Henderson Co., Iowa. Eliza lives in Pottawatomie 
 County, in that State. William is a resident of Otoe 
 Co., Neb. 
 
 Until he became himself the head of a family by 
 marriage, Mr. Palmer was a member of the house- 
 hold of his father and mother. His marriage to 
 Lucy A. Mills took place Dec. 25, 1856. She was 
 born in Henderson County and is the daughter of 
 William H. and Lucretia (Morris) Mills, who were 
 early settlers in the county where their daughter was 
 born. William H. Mills, the father of Mrs. Palmer, 
 was a native of New Jersey, but when five years of 
 age his parents removed to Dearborn Co., Ind., lo- 
 cating near Lawrenceburg, where he became a farmer, ' 
 William H. there grew to manhood, and, in 1836, 
 married Lucretia Morris. Three years later he moved 
 to Henderson Co., 111., and settled upon a farm in ~ 
 Greenville Township, where they now reside. Here I 
 Mrs. Palmer was reared, and received her education 
 in the neighboring district school. She was born in a ^ 
 log cabin two miles west of where her parents now 
 reside. Her mother was a native of Eastern Penn- 
 sylvania, and is of Scotch parentage. Her mother's 
 parents were Amos and Johanna Morris. William 
 H. Mills' parents, the paternal grandparents of Mrs. 
 Palmer, were Cyrus and Nancy Mills. 
 
 About the time of his marriage Mr. Palmer bought 
 the northeast quarter of section i of Spring Grove 
 Township, which is now the site of that part of 
 Alexis that is in Warren County. It had never 
 been cultivated in any sense, being still in its orig- 
 inal condition of wild prairie land. He built a 
 house on the north line of the county and made the 
 first improvement on the place in the spring of 1856. 
 This was previous to his marriage. He bought the 
 farm in the fall preceding. He made the usual im- 
 provements, and that place was his home and field 
 of operation until his removal to the farm on which 
 he has lived since the spring of 1867. At that lime 
 he sold the place of which he was the first owner 
 and has since occupied the property on sections 10 
 and 15. There was already a good house on the 
 
 - 
 
JL 
 
 I 
 
 260 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1 
 
 - 
 
 southwest of the section first named and this was 
 the family abode until the fall of the same year 
 in which they took possession of it, when it was 
 destroyed by fire. They moved to another house 
 which had been erected on the farm, which they 
 occupied until 1871, when Mr. Palmer built the 
 frame house in which they now live and which is 
 situated on section 15. He has also increased the 
 value and appearance of his estate by building other 
 suitable and excellent farm structures, which are 
 without doubt the most substantial in Spring Grove 
 Township, and among the finest in Warren County. 
 We are pleased to be able to present a view of these 
 on page 258. He is the owner of 400 acres of land, 
 and, in addition to the common business of farming, 
 is engaged in raising Durham cattle of extra grade. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Palmer have 1 1 children. Mary E. 
 is the oldest. Alice J. is the wife of Charles Gal- 
 laugher, who is a resident of Ringgold Co., Iowa. 
 Lillian married Fred L. Gilmore, who lives on sec- 
 tion 9, Spring Grove Township. A sketch of the 
 parents of Mr. Gilmore may be found on another 
 page of this work. Effie A. is married to Robert 
 Armstrong, of Spring Grove Township. The younger 
 and unmarried children are named Henry W., Myron 
 G., Mattie, Lura, Eva, Kate and George W. 
 
 Mr. Palmer is a Democrat in his political views, 
 and has held the office of Road Commissioner for 17 
 years. Mrs. Palmer became a member of the Bap- 
 tist Church at the age of 13 years, and in 1869 Mr. 
 Palmer also became a member of the same Church. 
 Three of their eldest daughters are connected with 
 the Baptist Church, while the next three younger 
 are members of the Church of God. 
 
 ! ohn Wingate, a well-known and highly re- 
 spected farmer of Greenbush Township, who 
 is actively engaged in the cultivation of his 
 excellent farm, was born Feb. i, 1815, in 
 Maine, and is the son of Edmund Wingate, a 
 native of that State. His father was united in 
 marriage with Rebecca Whitney, also a native of 
 Maine, and they had four children, Hannah, 
 Daniel, John and Lydia. John Wingate, subject of 
 this biographical notice, came to this State in the 
 fall of 1838. He was married to Miss Annis Dibble, 
 
 March 5, 1844. She was born in Chenango Co., N. 
 Y., March i, 1820. Her father, John Dibble, was a 
 soldier in the war of 1812. In 1819 he married 
 Martha Brown, who was born in New York in 1801. 
 Of her parents' union five children, Annis, Eliza- 
 beth, Erastus P., Laura A. and Thomas, were born. 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Wingate of this notice, 
 five children have been born, namely: John J. 
 (deceased), Ann Eliza (deceased), Arthur L.* Ella 
 and Eva. 
 
 Mr. Wingate, with his wife and children, are pleas- 
 antly situated on their fine farm of 250 acres, all of 
 which is under an advanced state of cultivation. He 
 has held the office-, of Justice of the Peace, Town- 
 ship Cerk, Assessor and Treasurer of the School 
 Board for 39 years. In politics he votes with the 
 Democratic party. What he has of this world's 
 goods, he lias accumulated with his own strong 
 hands and the active co-operation of his good help- 
 meet, and is passing the sunset of his life in peace 
 and quiet at his pleasant home on section 20. 
 
 
 illiam T. Boyd, a farmer on section 1 1, in 
 the township of Point Pleasant, is a na- 
 , live of the State of Indiana. He was born 
 9 in Jefferson Township in Greene County, 
 Oct. 7, 1845. Thomas H. Boyd, his father^ 
 was born in Kentucky. The place of the birth 
 of the latter was Bath County and the occurrence 
 was dated June 4, 1812. He was the eldest son of 
 Drury B. and Elizabeth (Hurd) Boyd, of whom a 
 sketch is presented elsewhere in this work. His pa- 
 rents removed to Greene Co., Ind., when he was 13, 
 and there be passed the years that intervened be- 
 tween that period and his removal to Warren Co., 111. 
 His father was a carpenter by trade and he worked 
 with him both at that business and as an assistant 
 in the clearing of the farm. April 3, 1838, he was 
 married to Margaret Jones. She was born in New 
 Berry District, in the State of South Carolina, Jan. 
 17, 1818, and was the daughter of Benson and Pris- 
 cilla (O'Neil) Jones. The families of her parents 
 were both of the same State in which the daughter 
 was born. In 1819 they removed to Indiana and 
 were early settlers in Greene County. Their home 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 261 
 
 was there until 1847, when they made another trans- 
 fer of their interests to Illinois. They came to War- 
 ren County to seek a place for a permanent home 
 and at the time their family included three children. 
 They came from their abode in the Hoosier State 
 with oxen and horse teams and three wagons. They 
 were in fair circumstances and they' brought with 
 them their household belongings. After a journey of 
 three weeks duration they halted in Henderson 
 County, where they remained three months. At the 
 expiration of that time they removed to Ellison, 
 where they rented land and resided until the 
 year which has been mentioned as that in which 
 they removed to the township in which their son re- 
 sides. The senior Boyd bought a tract of unim- 
 proved prairie land on what was then " town 8,'' and 
 now bears its present " Pleasant " name. The father 
 erected a small frame house in which the family 
 could find shelter until he should be able to build 
 such a structure as their necessities demanded. He 
 
 ' at once proceeded to the work of improving the place 
 and put it in excellent condition. He added to and 
 rebuilt the house and erected a frame barn. The 
 
 ~ place was well supplied with trees of the varie- 
 
 ; ties common to the locality and was all enclosed. 
 
 I Mr. Boyd lived to see his township fully developed. 
 
 His demise occurred on his farm, March i, 1877. 
 His widow is still his survivor and is the occupant of 
 the homestead. Drury B., John J., William T. and 
 Gary are the names of their sons. Priscilla, the 
 only daughter, is the wife of Andrew Woodward and 
 they are residing on the homestead with their mother. 
 When his parents came to Illinois, Mr. Boyd, of 
 this sketch, was an infant of 18 months. Conse- 
 quently, he is to all purposes a native citizen of the 
 township of which he is now a resident and in which 
 he has been a continuous inhabitant ever since. He 
 was trained in the profession of a farmer and was a 
 pupil in the common schools during the early years 
 in which he was busy in obtaining his education. 
 Later, he was a student at Cherry Grove Seminary at 
 Abingdon, where he attended three terms. At the 
 age of 19 he engaged in teaching and filled his first 
 term of school in District No. 6, in the same town- 
 ship where he was brought up. He also taught one 
 term in addition and that was the extent of his oper- 
 ations as a pedagogue. He has passed the remainder i 
 of his life of activity in the pursuit of a farmer. 
 Oct. i, 1868, he was joined in marriage to Susan 
 
 F. Dean. She was born in Lewistown, Fulton Co., 
 111., Sept. i, 1849, and is the daughter of Michael 
 and Susan (Cummings) Dean. Her father was born 
 in Kentucky and her mother was a native of Scot- 
 land. They were pioneers of Fulton County and are 
 now living in Warren County. 
 
 Mr. Boyd located on the farm on which he is now 
 residing at the time of his marriage. It is situated 
 on the northeast quarter of the section which has 
 been mentioned. One child Jennie May, has been 
 born to the household. Mrs. Boyd is a member of 
 the Presbyterian Church. Politically, he is a Demo- 
 crat. He was Supervisor for three terms. 
 
 fr- 
 
 ^ 
 
 . ehu Bailey came to Illinois in 1855. In 
 the same year he located in Warren Coun- 
 ty, and has therefore lived within the same 
 municipality 30 years. He was born in York 
 Co., Pa., Feb. 14, 1823. Charles Bailey, his 
 father, was also a native citizen of the Key- 
 stone State. The family name of the mother of Mr. 
 Bailey was Davis. He was deprived of her care 
 when he was about four years of age and from that 
 time was the charge of an older sister. She was the 
 manager of the domestic affairs of the household un- 
 til she was married, which event transpired about 
 four years after the removal of their mother by death 
 He lived with his sister until he was 14, when he 
 undertook the solution of the problem of self-main- 
 tenance. He learned the trades of cooper and 
 plasterer, which he followed winters and summers 
 alternately in Cumberland Co., Pa., for some years. 
 He was there married to Frances Swiler, Dec. 25, 
 1846. She was born in the same county Feb. 22, 
 1827. They lived there until 1850, when they re- 
 moved to Ohio and were residents in Hancock 
 County until the year in which they came to Illinois. 
 While there, Mr. Bailey was engaged in the business 
 of plasterer and he also operated as a farmer. In 
 the fall of 1855 he set out with his family for an 
 overland trip to the West, journeying in the common 
 manner. They passed 2 1 days on the road between 
 Ohio and Warren County. Soon after his arrival, 
 Mr. Bailey bought 160 acres of land on section n 
 in the same township in which he is now a property 
 

 >6z 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 holder. It had been previously occupied, and there 
 was a log house for the accommodation of the family 
 and 20 acres of the land had been broken. Mr. 
 Bailey continued the purchase of land until he was 
 at one time the owner of more than 400 acres. The 
 buildings and stock on the place are of excellent 
 type. 
 
 In political faith Mr. Bailey is a Republican. In 
 former days he was a Whig, and passed through the 
 phases of the changes between that party and the 
 one to which he at present belongs. He has been 
 Assessor and Collector of Spring Grove Township. 
 He and his wife are members of the Church of God. 
 and he is an Elder in the local organization. 
 
 The record of the children of the family is as fol- 
 lows: Ira, the oldest son, is a farmer in Nemaha 
 Co., Kan. Agnes is the wife of William Postlewait, 
 of Spring Grove Township. Jacob and Lincoln re- 
 side in the same township and are married. Harry 
 lives at home with his parents. 
 
 j. - <:> - _ 
 
 j ruman Eldridg, one of the pioneer settlers 
 of Warren County, and a gentleman possess- 
 ing more than ordinary ability as a busi- 
 ness man, with a large amount of practical 
 knowledge obtained by actual experience, 
 who at present resides at Roseville, is a native 
 of Massachusetts, having been born in Hancock, 
 Berkshire Co., that State, April 24, 1808. The pa- 
 rents of Mr. Eldridg, Thomas and Rachel (Hall) 
 Eldridg, were natives of Massachusetts. Thomas 
 Eldridg, Sr., together with his wife, the grandparents, 
 moved from Rhode Island to Massachusetts at an 
 early day. They made their way thither on horse- 
 back by means of blazed trees which were marked to 
 indicate the road. Thomas, Sr., followed the voca- 
 tion of a farmer, and, with his wife, continued to re- 
 side there until their death. Thomas Eldridg, Jr., 
 the son of Thomas, Sr., and wife, lived in Berkshire 
 Co., Mass., until about 1845, when they moved and 
 located in Rensselaer County, he following the oc- 
 cupation of a farmer in that county until his death. 
 His wife also died in that county. They were the 
 parents of nine children, six sons and three daugh- 
 ters, all of whom grew t<? attain the age of manhood 
 
 and womanhood. Their names were Heman, James 
 H., Thomas B., Truman, Norman A., Nathaniel A., 
 Thyerressa G., Elvira S. and Mary. Three of them, 
 Truman, Norman and Nathaniel are yet living. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head of 
 this biographical notice was the fourth in order of 
 birth of his father's family. He remained at home 
 until 21 years old, alternating his labors on the 
 farm with attendance at the common schools. After 
 leaving the parental roof-tree he worked out, laying 
 stone walls and taking such jobs as he could pro- 
 cure to obtain a livelihood. At 20 years of age, be- 
 fore leaving the old homstead, he commenced teach- 
 ing school during winters, and was occupied in that 
 vocation for five seasons. He then engaged in part- 
 nership with a gentleman in a country store, his 
 partner being Erastus Brown, at North Stephentown, 
 Rensselaer Co., N. Y., which partnership existed 
 for three years, when Mr. Eldridg sold his interest 
 and, in 1836, came to this State and county. On ar- 
 rival here he '' took up " 240 acres of land near Hat 
 Grove, on which he remained for about three months. 
 He then returned to South Williamstown, Berkshire 
 Co., Mass., and engaged in the mercantile business, 
 which he followed for about two years, until the first 
 of September, 1838. He then returned to this county 
 determined to make it his permanent abiding place, 
 and during the winter of 1838 stopped at Swan 
 Creek. He went into the woods, cut down his tim- 
 ber and hewed and framed the same, preparatory to 
 the erection of a residence. He then hauled it four 
 miles to his prairie farm and the 2d day of April, 
 1839, raised the then palace residence of Warren 
 County. It was 24x24 feet in dimensions and one 
 and a half stories in height, and was at that time con- 
 sidered a most magnificent residence for the then 
 undeveloped portion of Warren County. Mr. Eld- 
 ridg at once engaged actively and energetically upon 
 the task of improving his farm, determined to make 
 it his permanent abiding place for all time to come, 
 and improve and beautify it until it became one of 
 the most pleasant homes, as it has, in this part of 
 the county. When Mr. Eldridg came here in 1839 
 the country was new and undeveloped, at one point 
 of the compass his nearest neighbor being three 
 miles and the other 12 miles. He nevertheless had 
 great faith in the future development of the country 
 and resolved to " stick it out," which he did, and by 
 so doing succeeded in accumulating a competency, 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ,67 
 
 In this, the sunset of his life, while his hair is 
 streaked with silver threads of years past and gone, 
 he looks back to those pioneer days with no small 
 degree of pleasure. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Eldridg to Miss Alma Jones, 
 occurred Jan. 12, 1839. She was a native of Rens- 
 selaer Co., N. Y., having been born in that State, 
 April 2, 1808, the same year as her husband ; and be 
 it said to her credit that during the trials of the past 
 and the privations incident to the early settlement of 
 a new country, she bore her part with that womanly 
 fortitude of which she is characteristic. Of their 
 union one child was born, Irene E., who became 
 the wife of Edwin R. Smith, of Monmouth. He died 
 in 1867, leaving one daughter, Edna B. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Eldridg adopted Flora A. Jones, who became 
 the wife of Dr. H. E. Aylsworth, and by him she 
 had three children, Murray, Mabel and Iran. Dr. 
 Aylsworth died in 1865. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Eldridg are members of the Baptist 
 Church, as are likewise both of their daughters. Mr. 
 Eldridg was the the first Postmaster in the village 
 of Roseville, which was originally called Hat Grove. 
 In politics he is a believer in and a supporter of the 
 principles of the Republican party, and has held 
 offices within the gift of the citizens of his township. 
 He has been the owner since he came to this county 
 of three quarter-sections of land, a portion of which 
 he has sold, and a portion has been incorporated 
 within the limits of the village of Roseville. 
 
 i illiam P. Sykes, deceased, formerly a 
 farmer and stock-raiser residing on section 
 9, Monmouth Township, was born in the 
 city of Philadelphia, Pa., Oct. n, 1805. 
 Mr. Sykes was the son of Henry Sykes, a 
 \^ native of England, who emigrated to the United 
 States in company with two brothers some years 
 previous to his marriage. He was accidentally killed 
 by falling from the top of a house in Philadelphia, 
 which accident occurred when William P. was but a 
 small child. The mother of the subject of this notice 
 died in Philadelphia, Aug. 29, 1835. 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head of 
 
 this biographical notice, was the youngest in order of 
 birth of his parents' five children. After the death of 
 his father, which, as stated, occurred when he was 
 quite young, William P. lived with his mother, attend- 
 ing the common schools and assisting in her mainten- 
 ance, until his marriage. In his early years he had 
 learned the trade of a cabinet-maker, at which he 
 worked, obtaining remuneration sufficient to enable 
 him to procure the necessities of life and support his 
 mother, and amass a property worth $3,000. At his 
 death he had property valued at $40,0.00 
 
 He was married in Lancaster Co., Pa., to Jane 
 Ramble, daughter of a respected and wealthy miller 
 of Lancaster County. Some 15 months after his 
 marriage and after one child had been born to them, 
 Mrs. Sykes died, the date thereof being 1828, her 
 child having preceded her to the land of the here- 
 after. 
 
 Mr. Sykes had learned his trade with a Mr. Eagle 
 in Lancaster Co., Pa., and about 1825 engaged in 
 the business of undertaker, which he followed for 
 some years, meeting with success. Eight years after 
 the death of his first wife, Mr. Sykes was again mar- 
 ried in Salisbury Township, Lancaster Co., Pa., the.< 
 date in which he formed a union with Miss Anna C. 
 Linville being Dec. 29, 1836. She was a daughter 
 of Arthur and Elizabeth (Haines) Linville, who re-, 
 sided in Lancaster County the major portion of their 
 lives, and where her father was engaged in the voca- 
 tion of farming. Her father was appointed Justice of 
 the Peace for Lancaster County by Gov. Rittner. 
 He died in this county Nov. 29, 1857, aged 65 years; 
 his wife dying in Logan Co., Ohio, Sept. |n, 1846, 
 aged 50 years. Mrs. Sykes' brother, Jacob H. Lin- 
 ville, of Philadelphia, is one of the celebrated civil 
 engineers of the present day, having assisted to con- 
 struct the St. Louis and Brooklyn bridges. He is 
 now President of the Keystone Bridge Company. 
 
 Mrs. Sykes, wife of the subject of this notice, was 
 born in Lancaster Co., Pa., Aug. 25, 1819. She re- 
 ceived a good education in the common schools, and 
 was brought up under the influence of the doctrines 
 of the Presbyterian Church, to which denomination 
 her parents belong. Mrs. S. was the eldest child 
 but one in order of birth of a family of n children. 
 About one year after the birth of their first child, 
 William A., who was born Oct. 16, 1837, and died in 
 Warren County in 1853, at the age of 16 years, they 
 came West, settling upon a farni of 160 acres, 
 
68 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 had formerly belonged to General Harding. On this 
 place, Mr. Sykes at once went to work with a view 
 to making it an abiding place for himself and family 
 for all time to come. He added to his landed pos- 
 sessions but disposed subsequently of his additional 
 purchases and at the time of his death was the owner 
 of 160 acres of good farm land. Mrs. Sykes, since 
 the death of her husband, has increased her acreage 
 in the county by purchasing 87 acres on section 17, 
 the same township, which is also under a high state 
 of cultivation, and she is also the owner of 240 acres 
 of well improved land in Nebraska. The homestead 
 farm on which she resides is under an advanced 
 state of cultivation and has a good residence, to- 
 gether with substantial outbuildings upon it. 
 
 Mr. S., while living, was honored with all the minor 
 offices within the gift of the people of his township, 
 and politically, was a supporter of the principles ad- 
 vocated by the Republican party. He was a well- 
 respected and honored citizen of Warren County, 
 'and like his wife, who then as she is still, was an 
 active member in support of the Presbyterian 
 Church. His death occurred Dec. 13, 1875. A 
 >second child was born of their union Charles L., 
 the date of his birth being Jan. 17, 1855. His 
 demise occurred Dec. 16, 1871. 
 
 Portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Sykes and a view of 
 their homestead are shown on other pages of this 
 work. 
 
 of Bengtson, deceased, of the township of 
 Spring Grove, was a native of Sweden, and 
 was born in Christianstadt, Dec. 5, 1823. 
 He was reared a farmer and was well educated 
 "|(j in the common schools of the province where 
 lie was born. The town was several miles 
 distant from the farm on which he was born and 
 brought up, and when he was 17 he succeeded to 
 the entire charge of the homestead estate. Soon 
 after entering upon the duties of the position, he 
 opened a store and supplied the adjoining commun- 
 ity with groceries. He continued this line of traffic 
 as long as he remained in the land of his birth. 
 
 In 1853 he left his native land to come to the 
 American Continent. He sailed thence and after a 
 
 voyage of seven weeks he landed at the port of New 
 York. He made no tarry there but came directly to 
 Illinois. He made a stay of a few months in Knox 
 County and came thence to Monmouth. He con- 
 tinued in that place until 1856, when he bought i 60 
 acres of land on section 1 1 in Spring Grove Town- 
 ship. It was in a wholly unimproved condition, and 
 he at on e built a shanty for a shelter and proceeded 
 to the work of putting the land in a satisfactory con- 
 dition. He was at the time a single man, and as 
 long as he remained such he discharged the duties 
 of his domestic establishment after a pattern of his 
 own. He was married May 3, 1857, to Anna Rem, 
 daughter of Nils and Caroline Rem. She is a native 
 of the eastern part of Sweden, where she was born 
 in 183.7. She came to this country in 1855. Im- 
 mediately after their union in marriage they com- 
 menced their house-keeping in the board house 
 which had been the home of the husband during the 
 days of his bachelorhood, and which they occupied 
 eight years. Meanwhile Mr. Bengtson had bought 
 the northwest quarter of section 14 in the same 
 township, and at the expiration of the time named 
 he moved his family there. He improved all the 
 land he had at first purchased and fenced it. He 
 erected a good frame house on the land he bought 
 secondarily, and that was his home until his death, 
 which transpired July 18, 1885. He was one of the 
 most successful farmers in the township and accu- 
 mulated territory until he was the owner of 515 acres 
 of land, which was all situated in the same township 
 where he at first became a land-holder. He was 
 from first to last engaged in mixed farming. Polit- 
 ically, he was a radical Republican, ai.d after be- 
 coming a citizen of this State he was fearless in the 
 advocacy of his principles and always acted con- 
 sistently with his convictions. 
 
 To him and his' surviving wife six children were 
 born, four of whom lived to realize the condition of 
 the fatherless. Minnie is married to Nels A. Hol- 
 mer. Her husband is a native of Christianstadt, 
 Sweden, and was born March 13, 1862. He con- 
 tinued to reside in his native country until he had 
 reached manhood, and in 1880 he came to America, 
 He set out from home Marcli 10, and celebrated his 
 birthday on the North Sea. After landing at New 
 York he came immediately to Warren County. He 
 was married Aug. 22, 1884. Their children are 
 Anna and Alma. They reside with the widowed 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 269 
 
 : 
 
 mother on the Bengtson homestead. Edward, Carrie 
 and Harry are the names of the remaining children 
 who are the brothers and sisters of Mrs. Holmer. 
 
 : srael Jared, of Point Pleasant Township, is 
 one of the leading agriculturists of Warren 
 County. He is the owner of a consider- 
 able tract of land in the township in which he 
 is a resident, and also of a considerable acre- 
 age in Swan Township. His residence is on 
 section 23. 
 
 Mr. Jared was born in Bedford Co., Va., Aug. 5, 
 1829. His father, John Jared, was born in the same 
 county, in 1795. The latter grew to the age and 
 ambitions of manhood in the county where he was 
 born, and where he was married, to Elizabeth Bandy. 
 She was born in the same county, in 1800, and was 
 therefore but 14 when she became a wife in 1814. 
 They remained in the "old Dominion" until 1830, 
 when they emigrated to Kentucky. They resided in 
 Breckenridge County, in that State, until 1835, when 
 they came to Morgan Co., 111. They passed a year 
 there and at the end of a twelvemonth they came to 
 Warren County, landing May 6, 1836. They settled 
 on a tract of land in Swan Township, which was 
 designated " patent " land. It was situated on sec- 
 tion 5, and they also purchased a piece of timber on 
 section 8. On the former a log house was built, 
 which had clapboards for a roof and a puncheon 
 floor. The chimney was built outside and was con- 
 structed of earth and sticks of wood. The death of 
 John Jared occurred in the pioneer home, in May, 
 1844. His widow was the occupant of the place 
 until her death, April i, 1879. Of their family of 13 
 children nine are still living. Ruth is married to 
 John Simmons and they are located in Nodaway Co., 
 Mo.; Joseph resides in Hamilton, same State; John 
 lives in Allen Co., Kan. ; Thomas is located in Rose- 
 ville, 111.; Mr. Jared, of this sketch, is next in order 
 of birth; Benjamin F., who was Second Lieutenant 
 in the late war, lives in Wayne Co., Iowa; James is 
 a farmer in Swan Township; Elizabeth married A. 
 L. Bair, of Allen Co., Kan.; and Miriam L. is the 
 wife of Caleb Bair, of Roseville, 111. The children 
 
 of John Jared who are deceased, were: William, 
 who died in 1873, in his 6gth year, leaving four chil- 
 dren; George, who died in his i2th year; Polly Ann, 
 wife of James C. Emerick, who died in 1868, in her 
 4oth year, leaving six children ; and Agnes, wife of 
 Thomas Bair, who died Aug. 8, 1871, in her 341!) 
 year, leaving four children. 
 
 Mr. Jared was a child in his mother's arms and 
 was only six months old when the removal to Ken- 
 tucky was made. He was but six years of age when 
 the family came to Warren County, and was 15 when 
 his father died. He has consequently been a resi- i 
 dent of Warren County since 1836. He remained 
 in the family of his mother until he went to Califor- 
 nia, in 1852. On the i6th of April of that year he 
 set out for the land of gold and crossed the plains 
 with an ox team, carrying a load of provisions and 
 camping on the route. The company comprised ; 
 Joseph Jared, D. K. Michael, Win. Rogers, the sub- ! 
 ject of this sketch and B. F. Jared. Wm. Rogers died 
 on the plains, from cholera, and was buried there.- 
 Cholera made its appearance among them and many 
 of the company lost their lives. After four months 
 of travel the remainder of the party arrived at Placer 
 ville, which then rejoiced in the significant name of 
 Hangtown. Mr. Jared remained there six years and 
 passed the first four years in mining and the next 
 two in the business of a farmer. In 1858 he returned 
 to the East, via the Isthmus of Panama and thence ; 
 to New York and then home. 
 
 He resumed farming as soon as he was fairly at 
 home in Warren County, locating >on land he had j 
 bought before leaving for California. After a resi- j 
 dence on it of about 16 years, he sold out and lo- 
 cated on the farm which he has since occupied in 
 the township of Point Pleasant. He bought the 
 property in 1862, and at that time it consisted of 
 wild prairie and timber. The farm is all improved, 
 and is well supplied with good buildings. He is the 
 owner of 470 acres in the township where he resides 
 and of 115 acres in Swan Township, of which he has 
 retained the ownership since it became his property. 
 
 His marriage to Mary J. Kelsey took place Dec. 
 15, 1859. The sketch of the parents of Mrs. Jared 
 is given in full on another page, and the credit of its j 
 appearance in this work is due to Mr. Jared, who 
 has presented the items relating to the family of his 
 wife. The latter was born in Sangamon Co., 111., 
 Oct. i, 1835. Their five children are named Leenora 
 
170 
 
 , Y i 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 A., Allen E., George B., Israel K. and Roy L. James 
 Albert died in his second year, Leon H. died in 
 childhood, and Lilborn E. died in his fourth year. 
 
 The parents are members of the Universalist So- 
 ciety at Swan Creek, and Mr. Jared is a Democrat in 
 his political sentiments. 
 
 awrence H. Gilmore is a. resident on sec- 
 tion 34, Spring Grove Township, and has 
 been a citizen of Warren County since 
 1833. In that year his parents, Col. Robert 
 and Maria (Pilgrim) Gilmore (see sketch of 
 Col. Robert Gilmore in biography of J. T. Gil- 
 more), removed from Jefferson Co., Ohio, to Warren 
 Co., 111. The son was born in the former county 
 April n, 1830, and was but three years of age when 
 the family of which he was a small member located 
 . in the township where he is now a part of the busi- 
 
 (ness element. 
 Mr. Gilmcre had only the advantages of the pio- 
 neer home and log school-house, and attained to I he 
 age of independent manhood in Warren County. He 
 was born in a log house, schooled in a log house and 
 lived in a log house until he built his present resi- 
 dence in 1854. His initial business enterprise on his 
 own responsibility was the securing of a pre-emption 
 claim in Spring Grove Township in 1851. It is the 
 same on which he is now situated, on section 34. He 
 had little available means, and he was obliged to 
 borrow the balance of the purchase money beyond 
 the amount of his small savings. In 1854 he built a 
 small frame house on his property and at the same 
 time commenced the work of improvement. He was 
 until that year a member of the family of his father. 
 From the little beginning made by Mr. Gilmore in 
 1854 his possessions have swelled until his real es- 
 tate comprises more than 1,000 acres of land, all in 
 advanced agricultural condition, 840 acres of which 
 is in Spring Grove Township and 160 acres in Lenox 
 Township. The acreage is divided into several 
 farms, which are managed by himself and his sons. 
 In 1857 Mr. Gilmore commenced to raise stock and 
 since that date has operated in all the avenues of 
 
 mixed farming. He raises grain and stock, the lat- 
 ter including horses, hogs and cattle. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Gilmore adheres to the faith of the 
 Democratic party. He served his township as Super- 
 visor for 1 1 or r 2 years, and it is said of him that he 
 made a very excellent officer and did much to pro- 
 mote the welfare of his township. 
 
 Nov. 9, 1854, he was joined in marriage to Sarah 
 A. Forwood, who was born July 19, 1831, in Harvard 
 Co., Md., and is the daughter of William W. For- 
 wood. (See sketch of him in the biography of his son, 
 Benjamin F., on another page.) The children born 
 to Mr. and Mrs. Gilmore, six in number, are named 
 Clarence M., Frederick L., Frank E., George F., 
 Rosa L. and Sarah B. They all reside at home ex- 
 cept Clarence M., and Frederick L., the second son, 
 who is married to Lillian, daughter of Schuyler 
 Palmer, of Spring Grove Township. Her parents 
 were pioneers of this county and are represented by 
 a sketch in another part of this volume. He became 
 a member of the First Presbyterian Church at Mon- 
 mouth in 1856, his wife having been a member 
 since 1852. For many years he has been a Trustee 
 of the congregation and for the last five years has 
 held the responsible position of Elder. He has ever 
 been ready to advance the cause of religion and 
 morality in his section of the country. Three of his 
 children are also members of the Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 i? 
 
 "jasper M. Dull, farmer, residing upon sec- 
 tion 8, Hale Township, is a native of 
 Pennsylvania, having been born in Mifflin 
 Co., Pa., Sept. 4, 1822. When Mr. Dull was 
 five years old and after his father's death, his 
 mother moved to Greene Co., Ohio, where 
 Casper M. resided until 1851, being engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits. His years prior to attaining his 
 majority were passed on the farm and in attend- 
 ance at the common schools. In 185 i Mr. Dull came 
 to this county and joined with the farmers of Hale 
 Township in their efforts to establish a permanent 
 home for themselves and family. He became a 
 citizen of that township by the purchase of 160 acres 
 of land and by moving his family upon the same. 
 
to -jit 
 ' 
 

 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 He at once engaged actively upon its cultivation 
 and improvement, and has there resided until the 
 present time, having developed his land until the 
 major portion thereof is in an advanced State of 
 cultivation. 
 
 June 5, 1861, in Greene Co., Ohio, he was united 
 in marriage with Miss Margaret Stevenson, who 
 was a native of the same county and State in which 
 she was married, having been born there Dec. 25, 
 1832. Of their marriage, two children, a son and 
 a daughter, have been born, Florence J. and 
 Calvin M., who reside at home. In politics, Mr. 
 Dull is independent. 
 
 The parents of Casper M. Dull were Benjamin 
 and Nancy (Junkin) Dull, natives of the Keystone 
 State. They married and settled in that State, 
 where his father died, his mother afterwards remov- 
 ing to Greene Co., Ohio, from which State she came 
 to this county with the subject of this notice, and 
 here died, at the age of 74, in February, 1876. She 
 was the daughter of Major John and Catharine 
 (Kirkpatrick) Stevenson. The Major was a native of 
 Virginia and a soldier in the War of 1812. He went 
 with his parents to Kentucky, where he grew up and 
 was married about 1809 or 1810. They were mar- 
 ried in their native State and immediately afterwards 
 moved to Ohio, where he was a farmer and resided 
 until his death. He had 12 children, of whom Mrs. 
 Dull was the youngest. 
 
 in 
 
 Charles Torrance, one of the leading and 
 well known farmers of the township of 
 Point Pleasant, came to Warren County 
 1868, and settled in that township. He is 
 the owner of 320 acres of excellent farm land 
 and is closely identified with the development 
 of the agricultural resources of the county. 
 
 Mr. Torrance was born in the town of Jay, Essex 
 Co.. N. Y., Nov. 17, 1834. Riley Torrance, his 
 father, was a native of Bennington, Vt., and was 
 born May 13, 1801, only 13 years after the admis- 
 sion of that State to the Union. John Torrance, the 
 father of the latter, removed from Bennington, Vt., 
 to Essex Co., N. Y., in 1808, and was one of the 
 
 earliest of the white settlers there. He purchased 
 a large tract of timber land, upon which he cleared 
 a farm. He was a resident there when the War of 
 1812 was declared, and lie enlisted in the service to 
 protect what had cost the colonists so much to se- 
 cure. He remained on the Essex County farm until 
 his death. The name of the lady he married was 
 Ruth Hurd. They had nine children, eight of the 
 number living to become the heads of families. 
 
 The father of Mr. Torrance of this sketch was but 
 seven years of age when his parents removed to the 
 northern portion of the Empire State, and he was 
 reared there on the farm of his father. He married 
 Lydia Foulton, who was born at Plattsburg, Clinton 
 Co., N. Y., Feb. 5, 1804, a place where some of the 
 stirring scenes of the War of 1812 were enacted. 
 Her father had died previous to that war. Her 
 mother was the only woman that refused to leave 
 the place at the time of the battle of Plattsburg. 
 She said she was needed there and would remain 
 and render all the assistance in her power. And 
 she carried out her resolution. 
 
 At the time of hjs marriage, Mr. Torrance settled 
 on a portion of the land which his father had pur- 
 chased in the town of Jay and continued its occu- 
 pant until r865. In that year he removed to Illinois, 
 accompanied by his wife, and they passed the re- 
 mainder of their lives in the household of their son 
 Charles. They were not long separated in their 
 deaths, as that of the mother occurred Oct. 27, 1873, 
 and the father died May 28, 1874, following the wife 
 of his youth to the grave seven months after she 
 had been placed within that retreat of peace and 
 rest. They were the parents of 16 children, and of 
 that number 13 grew to mature years, nine of whom 
 are still living. 
 
 While in his early youth, Mr. Torrance of this 
 sketch attended the common schools in the winter 
 and operated as the assistant of his father in the 
 summer. He remained in Essex County until 1858, 
 when he turned toward the setting sun to seek a 
 place where there was a reasonable prospect of win- 
 ning the smiles of the fickle goddess, fortune. He 
 came to Warren County and obtained a position as 
 a farm hand. In the spring of 1859, accompanied 
 by a party who psessed similar intentions, he set 
 out for what was just then the land of promise 
 Pike's Peak. The company made their way across 
 the plains with ox teams. They found, before they - 
 
f * 
 
 174 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 arrived at their destination, that the stories that had 
 lured them away from their homes were rather 
 mythical, and as they received positive proof of the 
 futility of the hopes that incited them, they turned 
 their faces again toward the land of certainties. 
 They arrived in Henderson County in the fall of the 
 same year. Mr. Torrance rented land there and 
 continued to operate it in that manner until 1868, 
 when he came to- the township of Point Pleasant. 
 He bought land on section 17 and made a perma- 
 nent location thereon'. He has since been eminently 
 successful and his farm is justly ranked, in 'propor- 
 tion to its value, as one of the most desirable and 
 best managed in the township. We present a view 
 of his residence with its pleasant surroundings on 
 page 272. 
 
 Mr. Torrance is a stanch Republican in his polit- 
 ical relations, and has always been consistent in his 
 actions. His wife is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. 
 
 He was united in marriage to Margaret Hindman, 
 May 1 8, 1871. She was born in Green Co!, Ind., 
 and is the daughter of Joshua and Lucinda (Hughen) 
 Hindman. Four daughters are now included in the 
 household. Their respective names are Bertha, 
 Carrie, Laura and Hallie. 
 
 his demise, which his widow is controlling at the 
 present time. She has erected a fine residence and 
 all other necessary outbuildings on her farm, and to- 
 day it presents the appearance of thrift and energy . 
 Mrs. Teare and family are members of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church. 
 
 |ji obert Teare, deceased, was born on the 
 Isle of Man, Feb. 3, 1828, and there lived 
 until about 25 years of age, when he emi- 
 grated to Australia for the purpose of engag- 
 ing in mining, and there remained about five 
 years. He came to America, and in the 
 spring of 1860 came to Warren County 'and located 
 in Lenox Township, where he died Feb. 20, 1866. 
 
 His marriage to Martha Killey, who was also a 
 native of the Isle of Man, having been born there 
 March 5, 1840, was celebrated in their native coun- 
 try on the ist of March, 1860. She was the daugh- 
 ter of John and Catherine (Quayle) Killey, and of 
 her union with Mr. Teare were born three children, 
 John K., Kate A. and Lizzie R.; all reside at 
 home. Mr. Teare was the possessor and owner of 
 240 acres of excellent improved land at the time of 
 
 y,ercules Honey, a well to-do farmer, resid- 
 ing on section 21, Hale Township, and 
 clerk of that township, was born in this 
 county, and in the township in which he now 
 resides, Feb. 10, 1845. He received a com- 
 mon T school education, which he supplemented 
 by a course of study at a commercial college at Day- 
 ton, Ohio. He has been a resident of this county, 
 with tlie exception of three years, spent at Dayton,, 
 and has devoted his time exclusively to the vocation 
 of an agriculturist. He is at present the owner of| 
 90 acres of land, 80 of which is under an advanced! 
 state of cultivation. On his farm he has erected a 
 good set of buildings and his place presents an at- 
 tractive appearance to the passers-by. A view o:_ 
 his residence and farm buildinge is given on page 
 272. 
 
 Hercules Roney was married to Miss Mary A. 
 Mumma, Feb. n, 1869, at Dayton, Ohio. She was 
 born in Montgomery County, that State, Aug. 2, 
 1847, and has borne her husband one child, Mary 
 E. Mrs. Roney is the daughter of Joseph B. and 
 Elizabeth (Solenberger) Mumma, who reside at 
 Dayton. 
 
 Mr. Roney has held the offices of Commissioner of 
 Highways and Township Clerk, of which latter posi- 
 tion he is the present incumbent. He and his wife 
 are members of the Presbyterian Church, and, in 
 politics, Mr. Roney votes with the Republican party 
 and endorses the principles advocated by it. 
 
 The parents of Mr. Roney of this sketch, Hamil- 
 ton and Elizabeth (McReynolds) Roney, were natives 
 of Pennsylvania and Ohio respectively. The father 
 was an early settler of this county, coming here at 
 the early day of 1836. His first marriage took place 
 five years previous to his emigration to this county, 
 his wife's maiden name being Miss Margaret Mackey, 
 
 r 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 by whom lie had- five children. She died in 1841, 
 and in 1842 he married Elizabeth McReynolds, at 
 her home near Dayton, Ohio. She was a daughter 
 of Joseph McReynolds. Hamilton Roney, in early 
 life; was a blacksmith, and carried on that business 
 in Monmouth for about five years. There his first 
 wife died, and he continued to reside there a short 
 time after his second marriage, when he removed to 
 the farm. As a farmer he was eminently successful 
 and became the owner of 700 acres of land, some of 
 which was the finest farm land in the township. 
 This is now divided among his sons and daughters, 
 to whom, at his death, he left a comfortable com- 
 petency. He followed the vocation of an agricultur- 
 ist until 1863, when he went to Dayton, Ohio, and 
 there, on the 3d day of March, 1884, departed this 
 life. His wife survives him and resides in Dayton, 
 Ohio. 
 
 The parents of Mrs. Hercules Roney had a family 
 of nine children, of whom Mrs. R. was the second in 
 order of birth. 
 
 ;'ulius T. Lathrop, a retired farmer, resid- 
 [- ing in Roseville, Warren County, was born 
 in Livingston Co., N. Y.,in the year 1818. 
 He is a son of Colby and Polly (Terry) La- 
 throp, natives respectively of New York and 
 New Hampshire. Coming to Ohio in an early ' 
 day, he, the father of our subject, purchased land 
 there and remained until his demise, which occurred 
 Marcli 12, 1857, his wife dying in 1874 in Michigan. 
 Julius T. assisted his father on the farm, attended 
 the district schools and remained under the influ- 
 ence of his parents until he was 25 years of age. In 
 1846, after leaving home, he engaged in carpentering 
 in a ship-yard in the Buckeye State, but not follow- 
 ing that trade long, he emigrated West the same year, 
 and settled in Greenbush Township, this county and 
 State. Here he invested some money in the purchase 
 of i 20 acres of prairie land, which he engaged la- 
 boriously in cultivating, and remained there for 
 about 24 years, when he removed to Roseville vil- 
 lage and bought a lot, on which he erected a build- 
 
 ing and has since lived therein, engaging in carpen- 
 tering and wagon making a part of the time. 
 
 Feb. 22, 1843, he was married to Miss Almira 
 Light, a native of New York, and they have one 
 child living, Sarah Sheppard, who resides in Iowa. 
 Mrs. Lathrop died in 1874, and Mr. Lathrop took 
 for his second wife a Mrs. Vurlinder T. Byarlay, a 
 native of Indiana and daughter of Joseph and Su- 
 sanna (Turnbull) Grain, natives of Indiana and Ken- 
 tucky respectively. They lived in Indiana until 
 their death, the father's occurring April, 1844, and 
 the mother in March of the same year. Mr. Lathrop 
 is the proprietor of a fine farm in Kansas, consisting 
 of 1 20 acres. He is a member of the Christian 
 Church and is one of the representative men of his 
 village, and politically is identified with the Repub- 
 lican party. 
 
 ohn B. Graham, one of the oldest settlers 
 in Warren County and a gentleman who 
 has witnessed the wonderful developments 
 the county has made during the last 50 years, 
 and who has shared the privations incident to 
 its early settlement, resides on section 3, Hale 
 Township. He was born in Greene Co., Ohio, Jan. 
 31, 1817, and continued to reside in his native State 
 until the fall of 1835. 
 
 During the year last named, Mr. Graham came to 
 this county and located in Hale Township, where 
 he has since lived. At that time, the hand of civ- 
 ilization had hardly turned a furrow and the land 
 was in its original, natural condition. Having a 
 firm determination in the future development of the 
 county, he " stuck to it," and to-day lives to witness 
 the fulfillment of a prediction made by him 50 years 
 ago, namely, that Warren County would in time to 
 come be one of the garden spots of the great com- 
 monwealth of Illinois. In r85o, he made a trip 
 across the plains to the land of gold and spent 12 
 months in California and Oregon. The trip was not 
 made for gain, but for health and pleasure, and after 
 returning he located in Hale Township, where he 
 has continued to reside until the present time, a 
 period of almost 50 years from the time he first set' 
 
 i 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 tied here. He is the proprietor of 340 acres of land 
 located on section 3, Hale Township, the major por- 
 tion of which is under advanced cultivation; and 
 there, in the sunset of his life, he lives, enjoying the 
 comforts which a life of labor, pluck and persever- 
 ance enabled him to procure. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Graham took place in Hale 
 Township, March 24, 1842, at which time Miss 
 Mary T. Rogers became his wife. She was born in 
 the" State of Missouri, Monroe County, Oct. 4, 1823, 
 and has borne her husband 1 1 children, Elizabeth 
 L., born Dec. 17, 1842; William F., Oct 31, 1844; 
 Phebe I., Feb. 8, 1847 ; Andrew R., March it, 1849; 
 Mary L., Feb. 4, 1852; Aleri R. and John A., twins 
 Aujj. 24, 1854; Emma A., June i r, 1858 ; Frank E., 
 June 3, 1861; Nannie M., Jan 24, 1864; and Eva 
 J., Jan. 1,1867. William and Andrew are deceased, 
 Elizabeth L. is the widow of John Balmer, and re- 
 sides in Hale Township with her parents; Phebe is 
 the wife of David Armstrong, a farmer living in Ne- 
 braska ; Mary L. married T. B. McCulley, and they 
 reside in Nebraska; John A. is a farmer of Hale 
 Township ; Aleri R. is a physician residing at Little 
 York ; Emma A. became the wife of George W. Hill, 
 who lives in Nebraska ; Frank is a farmer in Hale 
 Township; Nannie became the wife of Joseph W. 
 Dawson, who follows the vocation of farming in 
 Nebraska ; Eva J. lives at home. 
 
 Mr. Graham has been Supervisor of Hale Town- 
 ship one year, and has held other offices within the 
 gift of the. people of his township. He is a Demo- 
 crat in his political affiliations, and his wife is a 
 member of the United Presbyterian Church. 
 
 lohn W. Reynolds, one of the progressive 
 ^ and well known farmers of Warren County, 
 and a resident of section 10 of Hale Town- 
 ship, was born in North Carolina, Aug.- 14, 
 1818. He went with his parents to Jackson 
 Co., Ind., when but 12 years of age, and there 
 resided until October, 1836, when he came to War- 
 ren County and settled in Hale Township. He has 
 since made the latter place his permanent home, and 
 is the proprietpr of 150 acres of excellent tillable 
 
 land. Upon the same he has erected a fine set of 
 buildings, and altogether the farm presents the ap- 
 pearance of thrift and energy. 
 
 Mr. Reynolds was united in marriage in Hale 
 Township, Sept. i, 1846, the lady chosen to become 
 his wife being Miss Jane Campbell, who was born in 
 in Carroll Co., Ohio, June 23, 1826. Of this union 
 ten children were born, George W., Josiah B., 
 Martha A., William Y., John W., Mary J., Sarah E., 
 Richie C., James W. and Thomas M. George W. 
 and Martha A. are deceased ; Josiah, William and 
 John reside in Warren County and are married ; 
 Mary J. is the wife of F. P. Kilgore and resides in 
 Kirkwood ; Sarah E., James and Thomas reside at 
 home ; Richie resides in Spring Grove Township. 
 
 Mr. Reynolds has served his township as School 
 Director, and. both himself and ife are members of 
 the United Presbyterian Church. Politically, he is 
 a Republican. 
 
 
 P. Emans, who is accredited with being 
 the oldest merchant of Roseville, having 
 been constantly in business here since 
 1858, and one of the prominent business men 
 of Warren County, came to this State from 
 Ohio in 1855. He is a n.nive of the Buckeye 
 State and was born in 1832. He was left an orphan 
 when quite young and went to live with an uncle, 
 who gave him good educational advantages. He 
 sent him to the common district schools for a time 
 and later to a select school. He then engaged as a 
 clerk for his uncle and remained with him in that 
 capacity until he was 23 years of age. During the 
 meantime he studied book-keeping at Bacon's Com- 
 mercial College at Cincinnati. His health failing, he 
 was obliged to leave the desk and engage in some 
 other calling. For a time he was interested in the 
 livery business at Camden, Preble Co., Ohio. Here 
 he remained for five years. He came to Illinois in 
 May, 1855, bringing his livery stock, and located at 
 Fairview, Fulton County. He remained here but a 
 short time when he sold and came to Warren 
 County and embarked in the mercantile business 
 at Roseville. Here he has remained and 
 
t'i 
 

 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 *79 
 
 one of the most widely known merchants in the 
 southern part of the county. From 1870 until 
 1 88 1, he was engaged in the lumber business and 
 also, in company with William A. Pratt, in the 
 grain business, in which latter business he still con- 
 tinues. He is interested in Roseville village prop- 
 erty and owns several houses which he rents. He 
 does a large business in his store and employs two 
 clerks and a boy. 
 
 Mr. Emans, in 1863, was married to Miss Anna 
 Ostrander, a native of New York State, and came 
 to Ohio when young. Her mother is a native of 
 Ohio and came to Illinois in 1855, and now makes 
 her home with her daughter, Mrs. Emans. Mrs. 
 Ostrander has three sons, one a dealer in lumber and 
 hardware at Swan Creek, and two others are in 
 Washington Territory engaged in farming. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Emans have two children living, James H. 
 and Jessie. Mr. Emans is a Republican and at pres- 
 ent is serving as Treasurer of the village. 
 
 .ames A. Evans, deceased, who was one of 
 Warren County's well known and success- 
 ful farmers, and a resident on section 29, 
 Lenox Township, was born in Virginia, March 
 i, 1821, and passed his early life in the Buck- 
 eye State and Indiana. He afterward came to 
 Illinois, locating in Henderson County, where he re- 
 mained until his removal to Warren County, about 
 the year 1851. Locating in Lenox Township, he 
 entered land on section 29, where he resided and 
 labored until death. He was the owner at the time 
 of his demise, which occurred April 3, 1875, of 240 
 acres of some of the best equipped and cultivated 
 land in his township, having fine substantial build- 
 ings and all other necessary appurtenances upon 
 it; but his widow is now the possessor of only 80 
 acres. 
 
 Mr. James A. Evans was married in Henderson 
 County, March 7, 1844, to Miss Lucy C., daughter 
 of Washington and Elizabeth (McChesney) Fort, 
 who was born in Kentucky May 10, 1827. Mr, and 
 Mrs. Evans had become the parents of nine children, 
 six of whom survive, viz. : Emeline, who became 
 
 the wife of David Darr, and they are both now de- 
 ceased ; Washington, deceased ; John A., who is 
 married and lives in Lenox Township, this county ; 
 Samuel, deceased; Stephen D., who is married and 
 lives in Kansas ; Mary E. ; Ida J., now the wife of 
 Thomas Davis and living in Gladstone, Henderson 
 Co., 111.; James A., who resides in Kansas; and 
 Jesse C. is at home. 
 
 Mrs. Evans is a member of the Baptist Church, 
 as was her husband. She is now carrying on the 
 farm with the assistance of her sons. A portrait of 
 her late husband is shown on another page. 
 
 illiam V. Moore, Sr. There is growing 
 class of well-to-do farmers, who have la- 
 bored hard and diligently for years, and 
 now have wisely concluded to spend the 
 autumn years of their lives in comparative 
 ease and retirement. Among this number is 
 William V. Moore, Sr., who is living in the village of 
 Roseville. New Jersey is his native State, and May 
 t r, 1825, the date of his birth. Abraham H. Moore, 
 his father, also of New Jersey (Hunterdon County), 
 met and married Grace Van Dome, in 1813. They 
 came west to Ohio in 1839, and purchased a 100- 
 acre farm and followed agricultural pursuits there 
 until 1851, when they made another move westward, 
 coming to Illinois and settling in Fulton County. 
 Here, about three miles east of Prairie City, they 
 purchased 160 acres of land. In 1864 Mr. Moore 
 sold this and bought a farm near Bushnell, McDon- 
 ough County. Here he lived until a few years be- 
 fore his death, when, in 1871, he moved into the city 
 of Bushnell, where he died in 1879, in his 88th year. 
 Mrs. Moore survived her husband and died in Bush- 
 nell, Dec. 18, 1885, aged 90 years and four months. 
 William B. remained with his parents until he was 
 26 years old, assisting them, on the farm and in re- 
 turn was given an opportunity to receive a good 
 common-school education. After leaving home he 
 worked out for one summer, when his ambition led 
 led him to try farming on his own hook. He then 
 rented a farm in Butler Co., Ohio, which he kept for 
 two years. At the end of that time, in 1854, he came 
 
 
- 
 
 2 Bo 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 West to Illinois and settled in Fulton County on a 
 rented farm. Here he remained for two years 
 longer, when he found a desirable quarter-section of 
 land on section 3, Point Pleasant Township, in this 
 county, which he was able to purchase. He subse- 
 quently got 15 acres of land in Ellison Township, 
 and in 1873 secured 80 acres additional in the same 
 township. He continued to follow agricultural life 
 with satisfactory results until 1876, when he retired 
 from his farm, moving to the village of Roseville. 
 Here he purchased two and a half acres of land, 
 upon which are a good residence and barn, and the 
 family are living comfortably. He is regarded as 
 one of the most substantial men of Warren County. 
 Politically, he has been a Republican. 
 
 In 1851, before coming to Illinois, Mr. Moore was 
 married to Miss Temperance Curtis, who is a native 
 of Butler County, Ohio, and daughter of Daniel and 
 Charlotte Curtis. The latter were natives of Mary- 
 land, but came to Ohio before their marriage. There 
 they lived until their death, which occurred in 1853 
 and 1854 respectively. 
 
 Mr. Moore's brother, Isaac, who was a member of 
 Co. H, 7th 111. Cavalry, was killed while his regiment 
 was in Missouri, April 2, 1862. Mrs. Van Dyke 
 (his sister) died at her residence in Bushnell, III., one 
 week after the death of her mother. 
 
 ^aston Morris, deceased. One of the prom- 
 inent and well-to-do pioneers of Lenox 
 Township of 30 years ago was Easton 
 Morris, who located on section 15. He was 
 born in Wayne County, Southern Illinois, May 
 26, 1833, and enjoyed but limited advantages 
 for an education, as the days of his boyhood in Illi- 
 nois afforded very meager opportunities for securing 
 any advanced education. He met a violent death 
 while on a visit to Kansas, being killed ir. Missouri 
 by lightning on the 8th day of Sept. 1866. 
 
 Mr. Morris was married in Lenox Township, fan. 
 2 5> l8 5S) to Rebecca A, Butler. She, like her hus- 
 band, was also born in Illinois, in Warren County, 
 Feb. 28, 1834. She is the mother of three children, 
 Eva A., Ewing V. and Myron H- Eva is de- 
 
 ceased. Mrs. Morris owns 95 acres of excellent til- 
 lable land on section 15, in Lenox Township, and is 
 an excellent business lady. She is a member of the 
 Baptist Church. Ewing V. is married and lives in 
 Galesburg, where he practices medicine. The other 
 sop, Myron H., assists his mother in carrying on the 
 home farm. 
 
 eonard Hall, a successful and energetic 
 farmer, owning 234 acres of land located 
 on section 31, Greenbush Township, where 
 he resides, and also 50 acres of land in Iowa, 
 was born in Cortland Co., N. Y., Dec. 23, 
 1819. He came West and located at Mon- 
 mouth, and worked at that place from September, 
 1845, until the date of his marriage, March 25, 1852. 
 At this time, Miss Susan B. McMahill became his 
 wife. She was born in Sangamon County, this State, 
 and bore her husband six children, namely : Will- 
 iam L., born July 5, 1853; Wyatt, Julys, l &55- 
 Warren, Feb. 8, 1857; Mary M., April 17, 1861 ; 
 Albert P., Jan. 19, 1867; Aleta, March 14, 1872. 
 Wm. L. married a Miss Mollie Dilly, and is now a 
 successful farmer in Jewell Co., Kan. Wyatt mar- 
 ried Ann McFetridge. They have two children. 
 Wyatt is also a farmer. Mary M. is the wife of Mr. 
 Wetzvel, a resident of this township. 
 
 The father of Mr. Hall, Stephen Hall, was a na- 
 tive of Connecticut, and married Miss Cynthia Leon- 
 ard. They had eight children, Lester, Sarah Ann, 
 Polly, Leonard, Theophilus, Coridon. Benjamin, 
 Philomen, four of wnom are deceased, namely: 
 Sarah, Polly, Benjamin and Philomen. Mrs. Hall's 
 father, Mr. McMahill, was born in Kentucky in 
 1806, and died in 1881. He married Miss Mary 
 Snapp in 1827, She was born in 1806 in Kentucky, 
 and they became the parents of 12 children, viz.: 
 George S., Susan B., Sarah S. Nancy J., Elizabeth, 
 John, Maria A., Kentucky A., William H. H., Pink- 
 ney M., Mary and Lucinda. Four of these children 
 are dead. 
 
 Mr. Hall, of whom we write, has 235 acres of good 
 farm land, located on section 31, Greenbush Town- 
 ship, under an. advanced, state of cultivation, and 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 181 
 
 also 50 acres of land in Iowa. On his place he has 
 a good residence and barn, the latter being 34 x 40 
 feet in dimensions. In addition to his farm duties, 
 he is breeding Short-horn cattle and handles English 
 drafi horses. He has served as Road Commissioner 
 for some 12 years, and also School Director of his 
 township. In religion, he belongs to the Methodist 
 Episcopal Cnurch. Politically, he votes with the 
 Republican party. 
 
 r 
 
 4 
 
 W. Coghill, engaged as an agriculturist on 
 section 28, Roseville Township, is a pros- 
 perous and spirited citizen of Warren 
 County, and a native of Virginia, where he was 
 born Aug. 17, 1830. His parents were Benja- 
 min C. and Millecenl (Ellett) Coghill, also na- 
 tives of Virginia. The father came to Illinois in 
 1836, and settled in Warren County, where he pur- 
 -chased land and built a grist and saw mill in the 
 northern part of the county, which is known as Cog- 
 hill's Mill. It is now located in Henderson County, 
 but when it was built, that district was then a part 
 of Warren County. He died in 1880, in Virginia. 
 He was an apponent of the system of slavery as it 
 then existed in the Southern States, and was a slave- 
 owner at the time he lived in Viiginia. When he 
 made up his mind to go to the free State of Illinois, 
 the question arose in his mind what to do with his 
 slaves. He gave the matter serious thought and 
 made it the subject of earnest prayer. The tempta- 
 tion to sell them and get the money was strong 
 the conflict between the devil and the man was bitter 
 and fierce, but, upheld by Divine strength in the 
 hour of weakness, the right, as he understood it, pre- 
 vailed. They were set free, good homes procured 
 foi the older ones and the young sent to Liberia. The 
 Coghills are of English descent, the first member of 
 the family, James Coghill, coming to this country in 
 1664. 
 
 J. W. attended the common district schools dur- 
 ing his earlier boyhood, finishing his education at the 
 Galesburg College, at Galesburg. He was 27 years 
 of age before he left home. He was a partner 
 with his father in the milling business from the time 
 
 he became of age until he left home. On the nth 
 of August, 1858, he was married to Elizabeth Tucker. 
 She was a native of Warren County, and the daugh- 
 ter of James and Abigail (Long) Tucker, who were 
 among the earliest pioneers of the county. Among 
 the early labors of Mr. Coghill was teaching school 
 in Warren and Henderson Counties. We soon find 
 him comfortably located on a farm of 140 acres in 
 Henderson County. Here he lived for about 12 
 years, when he sold out and went to Washington Co., 
 111., and purchased a farm. He remained there but 
 four years. In the fall of 1874 he returned to War- 
 ren County and found a desirable location on an 80- 
 acre farm on section 20, in Roseville Township. 
 Here he has since lived and is engaged in mixed 
 farming. Politically, Mr. C. is a Democrat, and has 
 served the community as Highway Commissioner 
 and School Director and takes a general interest in 
 the affairs of the township. Both he and his wife 
 are members of the Baptist Church. Of the seven 
 children born to them, Benjamin C. died in his lyth 
 year and a daughter in infancy. Carrie and James 
 are attending school at Upper Alton, at the pres- 
 ent time. 
 
 -E*- 
 
 t avid M. Hallam, one of Warren County's 
 wide-awake and energetic citizens as well 
 as successful farmers and stock-raisers, re- 
 siding on section 26, Monmouth Township, 
 is a native of Ohio, having been born in Sabina, 
 Clinton County, that State, Sept. 3, 1837. 
 The father of the gentleman whose name stands 
 at the head of this biographical notice, Samuel Hal- 
 lam, was the son of a Pennsylvania farmer of Eng- 
 lish parentage and extraction, the family having 
 their origin in the United States prior to the Revo- 
 lutionary War, and which consisted of but one branch 
 which came from England. The members of that 
 branch generally followed agricultural pursuits. 
 The grandparents died in Pennsylvania and Ohio 
 respectively. Samuel, father of David M., was one 
 of a family of four children by his father's first mar- 
 riage, by his second marriage his father having the 
 same number of children. Samuel Hallam was born 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 in Washington Co., Pa., where he lived during the 
 early portion of his life. His education was acquired 
 in the common schools of his native county and his 
 years, prior to the age of majority, were passed on 
 the farm. He left the parental roof-tree when about 
 2 1 years of age and went to Clinton Co., Ohio, where 
 he made a settlement. At that time Clinton County 
 was very sparsely settled, and there he endured the 
 trials and hardships of a pioneer life. It was in that 
 county that -he was united in marriage with Miss 
 Mary Ann Mills. She was the daughter of a Clin- 
 ton County farmer who had come to that county and 
 State from Kentucky. After marriage, Samuel pur- 
 chased 80 acres of land, the same being in heavy 
 timber and located in that part of the State. He 
 went to work vigorously and energetically upon 
 the task of clearing and improving his land, and 
 after he had placed the same under an advanced 
 state of cultivation, he sold it and made another 
 purchase of 160 acres, also uncultivated. He im- 
 proved that place and by subsequent purchases in- 
 creased the same to 320 acres, all of which was 
 placed under an advanced state of cultivation, when 
 he disposed of it by sale and in the spring of 1850 
 came, to this State and located on an 8-acre farm 
 in this county (a portion of which is at present 
 within the limits of the city of Monmouth), which 
 he rented for one year. When Samuel Hallam 
 started West with his family, he intended to go to 
 Iowa, but on reaching Burlington, that State, the 
 condition of the country, and the action of a portion 
 of the citizens with whom he came in contact, were 
 such as to create a desire on the part of his wife and 
 children to return to Ohio, and thither they started ; 
 but on reaching Monmouth and finding a different 
 country, together with a change in the appearance 
 and actions of the people, they rented the farm before 
 referred to and engaged in farming. The residence 
 into which they moved had been occupied by a man 
 who had committed suicide by cutting his throat 
 with a razor a few days before their arrival there. 
 
 In the spring of 1851, Samuel Hallam purchased 
 240 acres of land in Monmouth Township, on which 
 he moved with his family, and where he resided 
 more or less until his death. His first wife, who 
 was the mother of the subject of this notice, died in 
 December, 1864, and he was again married, to Mrs. 
 Mary McKay, of Monmouth, by whom he had three 
 children, Harvey W., Anna S. and Maude F. Af- 
 
 ter his second marriage he moved to Monmouth 
 city, in 1873, where he continued to live until his 
 death, which occurred in July, 1879, while he was 
 in his 7pth year. His wife still survives and is re- 
 siding in Monmouth. 
 
 David M. Hallam, the subject of this notice, was 
 the fourth in order of birth of a family of 1 1 children 
 by the first wife of his father. He was about 13 
 years of age when his parents removed to this county, 
 and his education was acquired in the common 
 schools and at the college at Monmouth, which was 
 then under the presidency of David A. Wallace. 
 When a young man of 18 years, he engaged in teach- 
 ing, and for 18 winters he followed that profession, 
 working on the farm during the summer season, his 
 teaching being principally in this and Knox Counties. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Hallam took place March 
 12, 1861, at the residence of the bride's parents, to 
 Miss Mary C. Murphy. She was born in Warren 
 County, March 12, 1842, and was the daughter of a 
 farmer who died when she was a small child, his 
 name being John H. Murphy. Her mother's maiden 
 name was Eliza Moore, who was born in Virginia 
 and was first married in this State. Her second 
 marriage was to Samuel T. Shelton, with whom 
 she is at present residing at Cameron, this county. 
 Mrs. Hallam, wife of David M., attained the age of. 
 maturity under the fostering care of her mother and 
 step-father, with whom she resided until her mar- 
 riage. She obtained a good education in the com- 
 mon schools and graduated at Abingdon College, 
 Knox County, and for a short time prior to her mar- 
 riage was engaged in teaching. She has borne her 
 husband seven children, one of whom is deceased. 
 Orline E. is living in Chicago. He was for two years 
 engaged in the Grand Opera House at that place, 
 and also one year at McVicker's, and at present is 
 engaged in the support of McWade, whose reputation 
 throughout the country is so well established that it 
 requires no comment here. Samuel S. resides at 
 home and is engaged in the study of law, prepara- 
 tory to the practice of that profession; Clinnie M. 
 resides at home, as likewise do Frank M., Minnie 
 M. and George M. Charles M. is deceased. 
 
 After the marriage of Mr. Hallam, he resided al- 
 ternately in this and Knox Counties until 1873, 
 when he abandoned the profession of teaching and 
 settled on his farm of 183 acres in Monmouth Town- 
 ship and engaged in the vocation of farming. His 
 
*"<. 5 
 
m 
 
 RESIDENCE or THOMAS A. We A KIEV. SEC. 13. LENOX TOWN SH IP. 
 
 ' 
 
 RESIDENCE OF JAMES CAMPBELL, 
 
 ALETOWNSHI P. 
 
 
 ' 
 
 ." RE5.0F HON.H . M. LEWIS, SEC.. 19. BERWICK TOWNSHI P. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 285 
 
 place is in a high state of cultivation, and in his vo- 
 cation as a farmer Mr. Hallam is meeting with that 
 success which energy and perseverance, coupled 
 with good judgment, are sure to bring. He and his 
 wife are members of the Christian Church, of which 
 denomination Mr. Hallam is Deacon. He was for 
 20 years Superintendent of the Sunday-school, but 
 recently resigned that position. 
 
 Politically, he is a strong supporter of the princi- 
 ples of the Prohibition party. 
 
 on. Henry M. Lewis, one of the land- 
 holders of Berwick Township and a repre- 
 sentative citizen of Warren County, resid- 
 ing upon section 19, Berwick Township, was 
 born in Basking Ridge, N. J.,Feb. 21, 1824, the 
 son of Eliphalet C. Lewis, a native of New Jersey, 
 having been born in that State May n, 1799. He 
 >< came to Illinois in 1837 and two years later came 
 to this county from Sangamon County, and located 
 in Berwick Township, where he purchased a patent 
 title to the northeast quarterof section 20. He im- 
 mediately went to work to improve his land, and at 
 the same time economized and added to his original 
 purchase until he became the owner of 750 acres in 
 the county. 
 
 He was married to Mary Ann Mills, Nov. 21, 
 1823. She was also born in New Jersey, the date of 
 her birth being July 23, 1806. She bore her hus- 
 band five children, namely: Henry M., Feb. 21, 
 1824; Phebe A., July 9, 1826; Mary A., in July, 
 1838; Susan E., in October, 1841, and Thomas P. in 
 1843, all of whom are yet living. The father died in 
 1868, aged 69 years, and his widow still survives and 
 is living in this county, aged 79 years, and is enjoy- 
 ing good health. 
 
 Henry M. Lewis, of whom we write, formed a 
 matrimonial alliance, Oct. 18, 1849, w ' tn Miss Jane 
 Carr, the Rev. Young officiating. She was born 
 Jan. 22, 1827, in Perry Co., Ind., and came with her 
 parents, Absalom and Sarah Carr, to this State, in 
 1840. Mr. Carr was born in 1801, in Breckinridge 
 Co., Ky.,and married Miss Sarah Claycomb in 1824. 
 She was a native of Kentucky also, and was born 
 
 there in 1802. Her demise occurred in 1868, in this 
 county, and that of her husband July 4, 1879. Of 
 their union nine children were born, namely : Eli, 
 Jane, James, Lucy, Lewis, Thomas, Hannah, Malinda 
 and William H. Mr. and Mrs. Lewis have had born 
 to them nine children, eight of whom survive, viz.: 
 Norvel, born July 12, 1850; Mary, Nov. 29, 1852; 
 Jedediah, Nov. 13, 1854; Henry, Dec. 6, 1856; 
 Emery, March 31, r858; Sarah, March 9, 1862; 
 Phebe L., Aug. 13, 1864; Effie J., March 23, 1867; 
 Edwin C., Oct. 14, 1873. Henry is deceased, his 
 death occurring March 14, 1857. Norvel is married 
 and is engaged in farming in Nebraska. He has one 
 child. Mary is the wife of John W. Miller, of this 
 county, and the mother of five children. Emery 
 married Miss Nettie Mann and resides in this 
 county. Sarah is the wife of Geo. B. Richmond and 
 lives near Sedalia, Mo. 
 
 Mr. Lewis is the owner 895 acres of land in Ber- 
 wick Township, in pasture and under cultivation, and 
 on his farm has a fine residence, together with good ' 
 barns and necessary outbuildings, which are shown 
 in the view on page 284. In addition to carrying on 
 general farming he is also engaged in dealing in " 
 stock. He has taken a prominent part in the affairs 
 of his township and the county as well. He has 
 been Supervisor of his township for 13 years, and 
 was elected to represent the counties of Warren and 
 McDonough in the State Legislature during its 3rst 
 session. He was a member of the committees on 
 Agriculture, Militia and Labor, and a busy member 
 too, and represented those who gave him their suf- 
 frages in an able manner, and with credit to him- 
 self and satisfaction to his constituency. He has 
 also held various minor offices within the gift of the 
 people. In politics, he is a Democrat. 
 
 -JM 
 
 Toseph L. Young, a farmer residing on sec- 
 tion 12, Lenox Township, and of which he 
 is Township Clerk, is a son of John and 
 Elizabeth (Bishop) Young, natives of Pennsyl- 
 vania and Maryland respectively. After their 
 marriage the parents settled in Ohio, where 
 the father died, Sept. 2, [851. In 1865 the mother 
 
2 86 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 came to this county with her children. The chil- 
 dren by her marriage with Mr. Young were seven in 
 number, named Hannah, John L., Jacob, George, 
 Abraham N., Joseph L. and Elizabeth A. 
 
 In writing the biography of Joseph L. Young, we 
 record his birth as May 29, 1840, and the place of 
 his nativity Crawford County Ohio. His education 
 was not neglected in his early years, and on attain- 
 ing the age of manhood he was for eight y-iars occu- 
 pied in teaching school in Ohio, and continued to 
 reside in his native State until 1865, when he ac- 
 companied his mother and the remaining children of 
 the family to this county, locating with them in 
 Lenox Township, where he has since resided. He is 
 the owner of 30 acres of tillable land and is a gen- 
 tleman of considerable public prominence in his 
 township. In his agricultural pursuits he is meet- 
 ing with fair success, and his accumulations have 
 been acquired solely through his own push and en- 
 ergy. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Young took place in Mon- 
 mouth, Dec. 32, 1868, at which time the accomplish- 
 . ed daughter of John Wonderly, Miss Mary E. Won- 
 ,derly, became his wife. Her father's sketch is 
 given in another part of this ALBUM. She was born 
 in Cumberland Co., Pa., Sept. 26, 1845, and has 
 borne her husband one child, Bessie M. Mr. Young 
 has held the office of Township Clerk for six years, 
 and is still the incumbent of that position. He also 
 held the office of Township Collector four years, 
 Justice of the Peace three years, and School Trus- 
 tee three years, and in politics is a Democrat. 
 
 
 
 Charles O. Bradshaw, publisher and pro- 
 prietor of the Kirkwuod Leader, was born 
 in Sheffield, Bureau Co., this State, Dec. 30, 
 1856. The parents of Mr. Bradshaw of this 
 notice, J. F. and Mary M. Bradshaw, are at 
 present residing in Kirkwood. His father is 
 a native of Kentucky, and was born in that Slate 
 March 8, 1832, and at present is engaged in the fur- 
 niture business at the place mentioned. The mother's 
 maiden name was Smith, and she was born in Ful- 
 ton County, this State, May 20, 1836. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head of 
 this biographical notice, came to Kirkwood with his 
 parents in the fall of 1865. Here he received a 
 common-school education, at the completion of 
 which he decided to make journalism his lifes pur- 
 suit. After several years experience as a local re- 
 porter and correspondent, on Jan. ist, 1882, he 
 purchased a half interest in the Kirkwood Leader, 
 which had been established a few months previous. 
 He took editorial charge of the paper, and in Jan- 
 uary, 1885, became sole proprietor of the same. The 
 paper is at present an eight column folio, independ- 
 ent in politics, and is issued at the small subscription 
 price of $1.50 a year. From being a dubious venture 
 at the start it has come to be considered one of the 
 permanent institutions of the county. A good job 
 printing office is run in connection with the paper, 
 and Mr. Bradshaw is meeting with that success which 
 strict attention to business, push, tact and energy 
 are sure to bring. 
 
 
 ames A. McClannahan is one of the lead- 
 ing physicians of the county, and resides 
 at the village of Kirkwood. In 1854, when 
 the fertile prairies of Warren County were but 
 partly settled, Mr. Thomas McClannahan with 
 his young wife and small family came from 
 Ohio and located upon 80 acres of land in Hale 
 Township. Here he has since lived, but increased 
 his acreage to 240 acres and has grown to be one of 
 the prominent citizens of the county and for many 
 years has served the people as County Surveyor. 
 He oversees his farm and during the winter teaches 
 school. Before leaving Ohio he met and married 
 Miss Jane Martin, who like himself was a native of 
 the Buckeye State. Before they decided to leave 
 Ohio, theireldest son, James M., was born to them, 
 the date of his birth being March 26, 1850. Besides 
 this son they had born to them seven other children. 
 Dr. McClannahan received a good English edu- 
 cation, attending both the common schools and the 
 Academy at Monmouth. Until he reached his ma- 
 jority he remained on the home farm, assistingin its 
 cultivation during the time not spent at school. In 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1 87 i he commenced the study of medicine with Dr. 
 J. P. Clannahan, of Norwood, Mercer County, Illi- 
 nois, and for three years closely applied himself to 
 the study of his profession. He attended the Chi- 
 cago Medical College and from it graduated in 1874, 
 since which time he has been actively engaged in the 
 practice of medicine. He first located at Berwick, 
 this county, where he practiced with satisfactory 
 success for four years, when he came to Kirkwood. 
 Here he has built up a fine and lucrative practice 
 and has a residence, with an office connected, and 
 is recognized as one of the representative men of the 
 village. 
 
 Dr. McClannahan and Miss Anna McClung were 
 married Sept. 20, 1875. Miss McClung was born 
 in Ohio, and is a daughter of Charles and Nancy 
 McClung, of that State. Two children, both boys, 
 have been born to them, Ralph, born Oct. 22, 1876, 
 and Harold, born Sept. 25, 1872. The Doctor is a 
 Republican, and, with his wife, belongs to the Pres- 
 byterian Church. He is a member of the Board of 
 Health and has held most of the city offices. 
 
 B. Boyd, a farmer on section 2, Point 
 Pleasant Township, is the oldest son of 
 Thomas H. and Margaret (Jones) Boyd, 
 who were pioneers of the township and 
 county where their children are now identified 
 with the business community. He was born 
 in Greene Co., Ind., Dec. 12, 1839, and was in the 
 seventh year of his age when the household came to 
 Warren County. He has resided here ever since 
 and was educated in the schools of the township. 
 He was also reared to the calling of a farmer, which 
 he has pursued since the commencement of his act- 
 ive life. 
 
 He resided with his parents until his marriage to 
 Harriet Conklin. which took place Sept. 19, 1861. 
 Mrs. Boyd was born in Clatmont Co., Ohio. After 
 their marriage, they located on the farm on which 
 they have since lived. It is situated on the south- 
 east quarter of section 2. 
 The children of the household are named Elgie B. 
 
 and William L. The parents are connected in mem- 
 bership with the Methodist Church. Politically, 
 Mr. Boyd is a Democrat. 
 
 Stem, a retired fanner and one of Illi- 
 nois' early pioneers, is a resident of Rose- 
 ville Village, this county, having been 
 bom in Mercer Co., Pa., Jan. 13, 1829. His 
 parents were Frederick and Sarah (Harris) Stem, 
 natives respectively of Westmoreland and Fay- 
 ette Counties, Pa. In 1851 they came to the State of 
 Illinois, and located on section 28, this county, where 
 they purchased a i6o-acre tract of land and im- 
 mediately began to cultivate and improve the same. 
 Their efforts were fully rewarded, and they had the 
 gratification of seeing their land developed to that 
 high state of excellence which deservedly caused it 
 to take rank among the most valuable in Warren 
 County. They became the parents of 13 children, 
 and died amidst the comforts of their peaceful home- 
 stead. 
 
 David Stem, the gentleman whose name stands at 
 the head of this biographical notice, remained the 
 companion of his parents until he reached his 25th 
 year, in the meantime assisting in the duties of the 
 farm and alternated his labors thereon by attend- 
 ance at the district schools in the acquirement of an 
 English education. He engaged in farming for him- 
 self in the year 1854, purchased a tract of 80 acres of 
 land and began actively and energetically in the im- 
 provement and cultivation of the same, making his 
 home there for 20 years and interesting himself in 
 general farming. He then purchased, at different 
 times, land in the village of Roseville until he now 
 is the owner of 17 lots, containing 14 acres at the 
 present time being a resident on the same. 
 
 Aug. 16, 1854, was the date of one of the most im- 
 portant events in the life of Mr. David Stem, it be- 
 ing his marriage to Miss Sarah Adkinson. She is a 
 native of Kentucky, who came with her parents to 
 Illinois when she was a babe and settled in Warren 
 County Her parents were Pleasant and Fanny Ad- 
 kinson, and were among the earliest settlers here, 
 drawing the first stick of timber in what is now 
 
a 88 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 called Monmouth. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Stem four children have been born, only two of whom 
 are living Ida and Fatten. The former married 
 William Johnson, a resident of Ppint Pleasant Town- 
 ship, and a farmer. One daughter Marilla, blesses 
 their home. 
 
 Mr. Stem and his wife are members of the Baptist 
 Church of Roseville village and he is considered one 
 of the solid and substantial men of Warren County. 
 Politically, he affiiliates with the Republican party. 
 
 I 
 
 : W. McCurdy, a well known and prosper- 
 ous agriculturist, residing on section 20, 
 Roseville Township, was born near Ma- 
 comb, McDonough Co., this State, Oct. 12, 
 1842, and is the son of James and Hannah 
 (Herring) McCurdy, natives of the Keystone 
 I State. On the i6th of July, in the year 1839, Mr. 
 i James McCurdy, the father of the gentleman of this 
 7 narrative, was united in marriage with his present 
 wife, the mother of R. W. McCurdy. In 1839, they 
 I came to Illinois and settled in McDonough County, 
 remaining in the same until 1847, an< ^ then moved 
 to Ellison Township, Warren County, and about 
 four years later again removed, this time going to 
 Fulton County. At the latter place the father made 
 a purchase of 80 acres of land, and afterward added 
 to his original acreage by a purchase of a 160 acre 
 tract. Not being perfectly satisfied, he thought he 
 would try another change, and we next find him lo- 
 cated in Roseville Township, Warren County, where 
 he came in 1865. He purchased r2O acres of land 
 located on section 20, and entered energetically and 
 vigorously upon the task of its improvement, and 
 made this his home for ten years, when he moved 
 into Roseville village and retired from the active 
 labors of life. 
 
 R. W. McCurdy remained at home until he at- 
 tained the age of 23 years, in the meantime receiving 
 the advantages afforded by the district schools and 
 in his leisure moments assisting his parents in the 
 duties of the farm. After leaving home he rented a 
 farm for two years, it being located about a mile and 
 a half from Roseville village. In 1867, he made a 
 
 purchase of an 8o-acre tract in Tompkins Township, 
 and upon this he worked hard and arduously for 
 seven years, putting the same in an advanced state 
 of cultivation, when he sold it, and purchased the 
 property where he now resides, being 120 acres. He 
 is engaged in the stock business quite extensively 
 and is meeting with success in his chosen vocation. 
 Besides his present homestead he is the proprietor of 
 80 acres of land in Ellison Township. 
 
 Miss Lydia Pusey, a native of Maryland, and 
 daughter of William and Ann (Watson) Pusey, was 
 the lady chosen by Mr. R. W. McCurdy to be his 
 companion through life. Their married life has been 
 replete with domestic happiness and they are now 
 the ptoud parents of six children, namely : Louella 
 J., William B., Charles W., Melvin J., Robert R. and 
 Ralph E. Mrs. McCurdy 's parents were natives of 
 Delaware and Maryland respectively, and in 1850 
 the father, Mr. Pussy, came to Cuba, Fulton County, 
 this State, the mother having died in Clear Spring, 
 Maryland, Feb. 6, 1849. 
 
 Politically, Mr. McCurdy is a Democrat, and with 
 his wife belongs to the Methodist Protestant Church. 
 Socially, Mr. McCurdy is a member of the Select 
 Knights and the A. O. U. W., and is regarded as a 
 liberal, representative gentleman of Warren County, 
 always willing to help build and improve schools, 
 churches, etc., and lends a helping hand to all 
 worthy objects. 
 
 homas A. Weakley, a successful farmer of 
 Lenox Township, residing upon section 13, 
 comes of old Pennsylvania " stock," his 
 parents, James and Priscilla (Foulk) Weakley, 
 having been natives of that State. The elder 
 Weakley died in his native State. His widow, 
 the mother of Mr. Weakley of this notice, came to 
 Warren County to live with her son, Thomas, and 
 died in Lenox Township in 1861. The gentleman 
 whose name appears at the beginning of this bio- 
 graphical notice, was born in Cumberland Co., Pa., 
 Nov. n, 1826. He received a good education in his 
 native State, the rudimentary portion thereof being 
 attained at the common schools, which was supple- 
 mented by an attendance at the seminary at Kennet 
 
f V 
 
 ' 
 
 * f 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 291 
 
 Square, in Chester County, that State. In fact the 
 early life of Mr. Weakley, prior to his attaining his 
 majority, was passed alternately upon the farm and 
 in attendance at school. He was also engaged in 
 early manhood in the dry-goods business, which he 
 followed for about four years in Cumberland County. 
 Hoping to better his financial condition in life, at 
 least to procure a home for himself and family, in 
 1854 he came to this county, at first locating in Mon- 
 mouth Township. He lived there for 12 years, fol- 
 lowing the occupation of an agriculturist, when he 
 removed to Lenox Township, where he has resided 
 until the present writing. He owns 1 25 acres in that 
 township, every acre of which is good tillable land, 
 and in his chosen vocation in life, is meeting with 
 that success which energy and perseverance insure. 
 A view of his home place is shown on page 284. 
 
 Mr. Weakley was united in marriage with Miss 
 Lovinia Kaufman, Sept. 19, 1850. Mrs. W. was 
 born in Cumberland Co., Pa., Feb. 18, 1822, and 
 [ was of highly respected and well-to-do parents of 
 that county. Mr. and Mrs. Weakley have become 
 the parents of seven children, two of whom are de- 
 ceased. The living are: Spangler K., Anna J., 
 Harriet G., Willis F. and Emma L. The deceased 
 are Jane M. and Priscilla F. Anna J. is the wife of 
 Daniel Wonderly, a resident of Henderson County, 
 this State. Harriet G. married Addison Nesbitt and 
 resides in Lenox Township. The remaining chil- 
 dren reside at home. In politics Mr. Weakley is 
 identified with the Democratic party. Mrs. Weakley 
 and their two eldest daughters are members of the 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 '. ohn H. Murdock, a retired farmer residing 
 at Berwick, was born in Greene Co., Pa., 
 in 1814. He is a son of John Murdock, 
 who was married to Miss Margaret Hufty, and 
 by her had nine children, Sarah, Mary, 
 Jane, James, Hofty, Eliza, John H., Daniel 
 and William, 
 
 John H. formed a matrimonial alliance with Miss 
 Frances Milligan, Nov. 31, 1837. She was born 
 Sept. 15, 1815, in Greene Co., Pa., and has borne 
 
 her husband n children, Margaret A., Sept. 3, 
 1838; Jonas, July 22, 1840; Daniel, Aug. 21, 1842; 
 John, May 1 1, 1844 ; Mary J., Jan. 29, 1846 ; George, 
 June 26, 1848; Permelia, Dec. 26, 1850; Hiram, 
 March 21, 1853; Allen, June 26, 1855 ; Armina B., 
 June 3, 1858; Joseph E., Feb. 2, 1863. Six of the 
 children named are yet living. Mrs. Murdock's 
 father was born in 1776, by name John Milligan, 
 and died in 1846. 
 
 Mr. Murdock has an acre of ground within the 
 corporate limits of the village of Berwick, upon which 
 is a good dwelling, where he resides retired from the 
 active labors of life. He and his wife are members 
 of the Baptist Church, as are likewise all his children 
 except one. Mr. Murdock, although a gentleman 
 not seeking office, has held some of the minor offices 
 of his township, among which are Road Commis- 
 sioner and School Director. 
 
 ames T. Gilmore, who was one of the 
 earliest pioneers of Warren County, and 
 one of the very few yet living who came as 
 early as 1833, is the third son of Col. Robert 
 and Maria (Pilgrim) Gilmore. He is in every 
 sense a pioneer of the county, arriving here 
 June 13, 1833, and here he was reared and was edu- 
 cated and has since lived. He was born in Jeffer- 
 son Co., Ohio, June 5, 1823. His father was born 
 in Chester Co., Pa., Feb. 2, 1783, and grew to man- 
 hood in his native county. He learned the trade of 
 a tanner, serving an apprenticeship after he was 21 
 years of age. After acquiring an understanding of 
 his business, he went to Ohio, and there embarked 
 in the tannery business extensively, especially for 
 that period. He located at Cross Creek, in Jefferson 
 County, and carried on the business until the out- 
 break of the second war with Great Britain. He 
 then enlisted and was made a Colonel of a regiment. 
 He served under Harrison and was one of his staff 
 officers. He was in the military service as long as 
 there was any need of his assistance, and after the 
 close of the contest he returned to his business. He 
 was also the owner of a farm, which he put into the 
 management of a renter. In 1833, he sold all his 
 interests in the Buckeye State and started for IHU 
 
29* 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 npis. His family then consisted of himself, his wife 
 and nine children. They traveled on the rivers, 
 which at that period were the principal means of I 
 transfer to the West. One member of the family 
 was stricken with the cholera, which was prevalent I 
 in that year, but the attack did not prove fatal. 
 They landed at Oquawka on the i3th of June, a 
 day made memorable by the trial of the Indians who 
 murdered William Martin the previous year. The 
 eldest son of the family, Ephraim, started for Warren 
 County on foot, and obtained a team, which con- 
 sisted of three yokes of oxen and a wagon, and with 
 its aid the family and household belongings were 
 transported to Warren County. The father took a 
 claim on section 25 of township 12, range 2, or what 
 is now Spring Grove Township. He held his claim 
 until the land came into market, when he made the 
 customary effort to " prove up;" but failing to do so 
 and to secure a clear title, he sold his right, and 
 later bought the southwest quarter of section 24, in 
 the same township. While on -the first claim he 
 built a log house of a good type, then called a double 
 -house. It was covered with split clapboards and 
 had a puncheon floor. The chimney was built on 
 the outside of the dwelling and was made of dirt 
 and sticks. After buying the second place, he built 
 a similar structure upon that, and made shingles for 
 the roof and puncheon for the floor. He fenced and 
 otherwise improved more than half the land of the 
 claim and built a stable and a corn-crib. He was a 
 resident on that place until his death, which occurred 
 July 9, 1857. He was twice married. His fir^t 
 wife was Elizabeth Collins, who became the mother 
 of six children, as follows: Ephraim, John, Ara- 
 bella, Ann, Joseph ('., and one who died in infancy. 
 Mrs. Gilmore died about the year 1821 or 1822. 
 Col. Gilmore 's second wife was Maria Pilgrim, and 
 the record of their children is as follows : The eld- 
 est two died in infancy, James T. (our subject), then 
 Thomas, Elizabeth C., Lawrence H., Rachel, George 
 W., Benjamin Franklin and Robert, making 16 chil- 
 dren born to Col. Gilmore. His second wife was 
 born in Germany and came to America in her child- 
 hood. She died Aug. 20, 1840. Ephraim was for 
 many years a resident of Mercer County, and was 
 the first County Clerk of that county, and also 
 County Surveyor for eight or ten years. He after- 
 wards started into the banking business. In 7883 he 
 went to Paoli, Kan. John died in Ohio; Arabella 
 
 married Theodore Jennings and they live in Ford 
 Co , 111. ; Ann is the wife of John Ritchie, of Har- 
 rison Co, Ohio; Joseph G. lives in Aledo, Mercer 
 County ; James T. and Thomas are the next in 
 order of birth ; Elizabeth C. married Sidney Lafferty, 
 of Mercer County; Lawrence H. ; Rachel is the 
 wife of John Armstrong, of the same township of 
 which her parents were pioneers ; B. Franklin resides 
 in Hopkins, Mo. ; Robert died in Kansas 
 
 Mr. Giluure of this sketch was ten years old 
 when he came with his parents to Illinois, and he 
 grew to the estate of manhood in Warren County. 
 He was reared under all the influences of the 
 pioneer period and was a pupil in the pioneer log 
 school-house. At the age of 25 he commenced his 
 life as an independent man of business, and pur- 
 chased the farm on which he now lives. It had 
 been improved to some extent and included a double 
 log house, a stable and 30 acres of broken farming 
 land. There were 410 acres that had pot been un- 
 der the plow, and the new proprietor made all 
 possible haste to render his property a profitable in- 
 vestment. He erected a good class of buildings, 
 which are a credit and an ornament to the farm, and 
 of which a view is given in these pages. Mr. Gilmore 
 is the owner of 330 acres in Warren County and 160 
 acres in Mercer County. The entire amount of 
 land is in cultivation. 
 
 Oct. 26, 1848, his marriage to Mary C. Lair was 
 was celebrated. She was born in Warren Co., Ky., 
 Oct. 29, 1827. She was the daughter of William 
 and Sarah (Wallace) Lair. Her father was a native 
 of Warren Co., Ky., and is said to have been the 
 first white child born in that county. The date of 
 his birth was April 3. 1796. His parents were con- 
 sequently among the earliest pioneers of Ken- 
 tucky. His wife, the mother of Mrs. Gilmore, was 
 also a. native of Warren Co., Ky. She was born 
 May 8, 1808, and is of Scotch-Irish parentage. Her 
 husband was of German descent. They were mar- 
 ried in 1826, and removed to Illinois in 1832, and 
 settled on a tract of land now embraced in Kelly 
 Township, this county, where they improved a farm 
 and lived respected and honored members of society. 
 They had born to them a family of 73 children, six 
 of whom are yet living. Mr. Lair died April 7, 1873. 
 Politically, he was a Democrat, and in his religious 
 connections was a member of the Christian Church. 
 His wjdo\v survive? him, and resides with he.r son 
 
 I 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 *93 
 
 . 
 
 William M., on the old homestead on section 30, 
 Kelly Township, and is also a devoted member of 
 the Christian Church. 
 
 Of the five children of whom Mr. and Mrs. Gil- 
 more became the parents, three are now living: 
 Anna is married to John M. I rey, of Spring Grove 
 Township; Ella is the wife of Oliver Stoner : they 
 reside in Mercer County; George W. (married to 
 Mary A. McKelvey) is assisting his father in work- 
 ing the home farm. The mother died March 3, 
 (Sir. Mirch 23, 1882, Mr. Gilmore was married 
 to Susan, widow of George Leonard. She was born 
 in Pennsylvania, and was there married to her first 
 husband Feb. 21, 1850. In 1855, they came to 
 Spring Grove Township, where, in March, 1861, Mr. 
 Leonard died. She had eight children by her first 
 husband, six of whom are still living. Silas is a 
 resident of this township; Bertie resides in Alexis; 
 Stewart is a citizen of Monmouth ; Ida ; Alice lives 
 in Stephenson Co., I). T. ; Mary is the youngest. 
 
 Mr. Gilmore is a Democrat in political persuasion, 
 and both himself and wife are members of the Chris- 
 tian Church. He is looked upon by his many friends 
 as being one of the best men who ever honored War- 
 ren County with their presence. 
 
 A portrait of Mr. Gilmore is exhibited on page 
 290. 
 
 1=1 .-i 
 
 =*- 
 
 -*= 
 
 foseph Martin, ex-President of the First 
 I?- National Bank at Monmouth, a gentleman 
 of more than ordinary business ability, re- 
 tired from the active labors of life on u compe- 
 tency acquired by individual effort and good 
 judgment, coupled with economy and perse- 
 verance, resides on section 28, Monmouth Township, 
 near the limits of the city of that name. He was 
 born in '.he North of Ireland, Aug. 15, 1816, and is 
 of Scotch-Irish extraction His father, William Mar- 
 tin, was a native of the Emerald Isle, and resided 
 there until his death, engaged in the vocation of 
 farming. His death occurred about 1845. His wife, 
 Mary Forbes, was born in the North of Ireland and 
 was likewise of Scotch- Irish extraction, and also died 
 in her native country. 
 
 The gentleman whose name heads this sketch, was 
 
 next to the youngest in order of birth of a family of 
 six children, ard he and a brother, James, (who is re- 
 siding in Page County, Iowa, where he is engaged in 
 farming and cattle raising) are the only survivors. 
 Joseph Martin resided with his parents on his native 
 Isle until he reached the age of 19 years, when he 
 was united in marriage to Miss lane Groves, a 
 daughter of Joseph and Jane Groves. Soon after 
 they were weded, they crossed the briny waters and 
 located in the United States, the date thereof being 
 1834. His first location was in New Castle, Law- 
 ranee Co., Pa., where after residing for a short time, 
 he moved to Mercer Co., Pa., where he purchased 
 land and for 12 years followed agricultural pursuits. 
 Leaving Pennsylvania he came to Galena, this State, 
 and in the neighborhood of that place purchased 200 
 acres of land, whLh had been partly worked for lead. 
 He re-opened the mines and succeeded in striki.ig 
 an exceedingly rich vein, which yielded him about 
 $25,000. He continued to operate his mines in that 
 vicinity for about nine years, until r86o, when, in the 
 fall, he came to this county and purchased 160 acres 
 of partly improved land, in Tompkins Township, 
 where he operated only a short time; then rented 
 his land and moved to Monmouth with a view to 
 educating his children. He afterward sold his farm 
 in Tompkins township and purchased other property 
 and cleared $8,000. His success as a speculator has 
 been more than ordinary. In the fall of 1863, he 
 with others, established the First National Bank at 
 Monmouth, with a capital of $50,000, which was 
 later increased to $75,000. The institution at times 
 represented a capital of $500,000, and was doing a 
 good and increasing business until its recent failure. 
 Mr. Martin was a stock holder for about 20 years, 
 and was elected President of the institution some- 
 time previous to its failure, but no word of censure 
 has ever been heard against Mr. Martin on account 
 of the disaster to the bank, it being too well known 
 by every depositor and by the citizens of Warren 
 County, who was the cause of its failure. Mr. Mar- 
 tin has been actively engaged in many financial op- 
 erations, and at present is the proprietor of a 200 
 acre farm in Page Co., Iowa, which is under an ad- 
 vanced state of cultivation. He owns 22 acres on 
 which he at present resides, and also a large brick 
 store-house, of which the Y. M. C. A. occupy the 
 second story. 
 
 The first wife of Mr. Martin died in Monmouth 
 
*94 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 in 1871. He was again married in that city to Mrs. 
 Jennie Patton, nee Lee, widow of Rev. Samuel Pat- 
 ton, of Detroit, and daughter of Judge Thomas and 
 Nancy (Wilson) Lee, natives of Pennsylvania and 
 Ohio respectively, of American parentage and Scotch 
 descent. She was born in Cadiz, Ohio, Oct. 5, 1830. 
 Her father was formerly a farmer by occupation, but 
 later in life engaged in the business of a tanner, and 
 still later was connected with politics, being almost 
 continuously the incumbent of an official position 
 thereafter until his death, which occurred in Cadiz, 
 Ohio, in 1853, during his 57th year. Her mother 
 died Sept. 20, 1885, at the venerable age of 87 years. 
 Mrs. Martin has borne her husband one child, Nan- 
 nie L., born June 12, 1872. Seven children were 
 born to Mr. Martin by his first union, William W., 
 is married and lives in Salem, Oregon, the maiden 
 name of his wife being Belle Myers ; James is also 
 married and is likewise a resident of Salem, Oregon; 
 the other five children are deceased. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Martin are members of the United Presbyterian 
 Church at Monmouth, to the building of which Mr. 
 ; Martin contributed $2,000. He is present trustee 
 and member of the session. 
 
 In politics he is a staunch supporter of the princi- 
 ples of the Republican parly, having always opposed 
 the institution of slavery, and during the late Civil 
 War was a strong and unswerving Union man. 
 
 - 
 
 ienjamin P. Matteson, a farmer residing 
 on section 30, Floyd Township, was born 
 in Oneida Co., N. Y., Feb. 10, 1836, and 
 came to this State in 1838 with his parents. 
 The father of Mr. Matteson (Myron Matte- 
 son) was born in New York, in 1810, and 
 died in 1849, in this county, whither he removed 
 and settled in Floyd Township. He married Maria 
 Davis, in 1830. She was born in 1808, in Oneida 
 County, New York, and is still living. Of their union 
 six children were born, Geraldine, Juliet, Benja- 
 min P., Christian, Joann and Myron D. 
 
 Benjamin P. was married to Miss Margaret Mur- 
 dock, Oct. 2, 1858. She was born Sept. 3, 
 1838, and is a daughter of John Murdock, born 
 
 Feb. 9, 1807, in Greene County, Pa., and who 
 came to this State in 1851, and located in this 
 county. He married Miss Fannie Milligan, Nov. 14, 
 1830. She was born Oct. 15, 1810, in Pennsylva- 
 nia, and bore her husband n children, four of whom 
 are deceased. The names of the children are: Mar- 
 garet, Jonas, Mary, Daniel, John, George, Millie, 
 Hiram, Allen, Armenia and Edgar. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Matteson of this notice are the par- 
 ents of two children, Mabel, born Dec. 26, 1862, 
 and Dora, March 31, 1864. The former is the wife 
 of Dr. William McClannahan, a prominent physician 
 of West Jersey, Stark Co., 111. They have one son. 
 Miss Dora still resides with her parents. 
 
 Mr. Matteson is the proprietor of 80 acres of well 
 improved land, located on section 30, Floyd Town- 
 ship. He has a fine residence on his place, 22 x 35 
 feet in dimensions, with a barn, 32x36 feet. His 
 cattle are of a high grade and his place presents an 
 appearance to the passer-by indicative of that energy 
 which its proprietor possesses. Mr. Matteson is a 
 member of the Anti-Horse-Thief Society. In relig- 
 ion, he and his wife are members of the Baptist 
 Church, of which denomination he is a Deacon. In 
 politics, he affiliates with the Republican party, and 
 during the late war was a strong Union man. 
 
 'ohn D. G-rigg, proprietor of 130 acres of 
 agricultural land under an advanced state 
 of cultivation, located on section 32, Swan 
 Township, is a native of Kentucky, and was 
 there born May 26, 1841. He came to this 
 State in 1864 with his parents, and for six 
 years resided with them in McDonough County. 
 
 The father of John D., Joseph W. Grigg, was born 
 in 1802, in Virginia, his parents moving to Kentucky 
 when he was but a lad. He there grew to manhood, 
 receiving such education as was to be acquired in 
 the district school, and married Miss Delila Mc- 
 Cullough. Sept. 5, 1822. She was born in Vir- 
 ginia in 1806, and died in this State in 1877. Joseph 
 W., the father, is still living with his son (John D., 
 subject of this notice), at the venerable age of 83 
 years. 
 
 John D. Grigg was united in marriage, Sept 10, 
 
RESIDENCE OF JAMES . TGI LMO R E , S EC. 23, SPRING GROVE TOWNSHIP 
 
 
 RESIDENCE OF A.J.SissoN, SEC. 28, SWAN TOWNSHIP. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 97 
 
 1874, with Miss Anna B. Cline. This estimable 
 lady, who by her well cultivated intellect, consistent 
 course in life as a member of the Methodist Church 
 and amiable qualities in general, had won the es- 
 teem of all who knew her, died July *6, 1875, in the 
 24th year of her age (having been born Jan. 3, 1852), 
 leaving an only child, Joseph H., born June n, 
 1875, who followed the mother to the eternal home 
 on the 25th of August of the same year (1875). 
 
 Mr. Grigg formed a second matrimonial alliance, 
 Oct. 30, 1877, with Miss Florence C. Shoop. She 
 was born Nov. 4, 1855, and is the daughter of W. W. 
 Shoop, a native of Maryland, who at present resides 
 in McDonough County. Mr. and Mrs. Grigg have 
 three children, namely : Iva L., born Aug. 19, 1878; 
 Mina L., Dec. 6, 1880; Flora P., Oct. 31, 1884. 
 Mr. Grigg has two brothers and two sisters living, 
 James W. and R. C., Susan and America, and two 
 sisters, Sally and Minerva, deceased. Mrs. Grigg 
 has four sisters and five brothers, namely: Lydia 
 A., William H., Alva, Emma Catharine, Freddie, 
 George E. and Maggie M., and Mary E. and John 
 W., deceased. 
 
 Mr. Grigg is pleasantly situated on his home farm 
 of 130 acres on section 32, Swan Township, all of 
 which is under an advanced state of cultivation. 
 He is breeding high grades of Short-horn cattle, and 
 handles the Poland China hogs. He has a pair of 
 mares on his place weighing 1,500 pounds each. 
 
 In politics Mr. Grigg votes with the Republican 
 party. He was reared under the influences of the 
 Methodist Church, and although not a member of 
 that denomination, in his religious principles he is 
 inclined towards their doctrines. 
 
 . 
 
 J. Sisson, an energetic representa- 
 tive of the agricultural class of Warren 
 County, residing upon section 28, Swan 
 Township, was born Sept. 5, 1828, in Rens- 
 selaerville, Albany Co., N. Y. He is a son of 
 Joseph Sissen, a native of Rock Island, but 
 who became a resident of New York State when one 
 year old. 
 
 The father of Mr. Sisson married Miss Floretta 
 Frisbie in 1812. She was born in 1790 and he in 
 
 1789. They emigrated to Illinois in 1837 and lo- 
 cated in Swan Township, Warren County, where the 
 husband, and father of this notice, died June 12, 
 1851. The wife and mother survived him until 
 June, 1882, when she passed to the land of the here- 
 after. Of their union ten children were born, 
 namely: Asahel B., Cyrus, Emeline, Rufus, Ann, 
 Augustine W., Marcus F., Andrew J., Mary E. and 
 Martin V. His father was a pioneer settler in this 
 county, a farmer by occupation and one of the re- 
 spected and honored citizens of the community in 
 which he resided and died. 
 
 Andrew J. Sisson was united in marriage with Miss 
 Nancy Jane McMahill, Jan. 19, 1854. Of their 
 union there was no issue, but they have raised to 
 manhood and womanhood, two children, Nellie M. 
 Brooks, who, when she came under their care, was 
 three years old. She was born in 1859, received a 
 good education at the hands of Mr. and Mrs. Sis- 
 son, and resided with them until her marriage to 
 Joseph Thorn, in January, 1885. They reside on a 
 farm in Swan Township. The name of their other 
 adopted child is William H. Canfield, born Feb. 8, 
 1858, who also received a liberal education at the 
 hands of Mr. and Mrs. Sisson, and became the 
 head of family, May 5, 1881, by marriage with Miss 
 Alice Watson. At present he is a farmer in Seward 
 Co., Neb. 
 
 The father of Mrs. Sisson, Mr. William McMahill, 
 was born in Bourbon Co., Ky., in 1806. He was of 
 Scotch-Irish ancestry, his ancestors settling in Vir- 
 ginia and from there moved to Kentucky. Mr. Mc- 
 Mahill emigrated to Illinois, in 1829; was married to 
 Miss Mary Snapp in 1828. His wife was born in 
 1806, in Nicholas Co., Ky.,and died Aug. 31, 1877. 
 Their union was blessed with the birth of 12 chil- 
 dren, whom they named George, Susan, Sarah, 
 Nancy Jane, Elizabeth, John, Ann Maria, Kentucky 
 America, William H., Pinckney, Mary E., and Lu- 
 cinda, four of whom are deceased, namely : Elizabeth, 
 Mary, Lucinda and Ky America. 
 
 Mr. Sisson, of whom we write, is pleasantly lo- 
 cated with his family on his fine farm of 250 acres, 
 on section 28, Swan Township, and has the entire 
 place improved. In 1884, he erected a fine residence 
 on his farm, 33 X36 feet in dimensions and two story 
 with basement. His house is one of the best, if not 
 the best, in Swan Township, and its inside appear- 
 ance is almost as fine as its outside, it being fur- 
 
 - 
 
398 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 nished in the best possible manner, with all necessary 
 apparatus for lightening the labors of the female 
 portion of the household. He is engaged in gen- 
 eral farming and he and his wife are both mem- 
 bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Mr. Sisson 
 being Superintendent of the Sunday-school. In 
 politics, he is independent. A view of his home- 
 stead appears in this volume. 
 
 eorge Gossett, retired farmer, enjoying the 
 sunset of his life in ease and comfort at 
 Roseville, was born in Randolph Co., N. 
 C., March 31, 1807, his parents being William- 
 son and Rebecca (Stalker) Gossett, natives of 
 North Carolina and of English descent. The 
 parents of Mr. Gossett came to Indiana in 1815, the 
 father purchased land in that State, on which he lo- 
 cated and was laboriously occupied in its cultivation 
 until he became too old to follow the active labors of 
 life, when he retired, and continued to reside there 
 until his death, which occurred in 1863. 
 
 George Gossett received a good education in the 
 common schools of his native county, and worked on 
 his father's farm until he was 19 years old. He then 
 worked out by the month and continued to labor in 
 that manner until he attained the age of 23 years. 
 At that age in life he rented a farm on shares, but 
 as he was poor he was unable to buy a team and he 
 cultivated his land by working for others and receiv- 
 ing compensation therefor by their loaning him a 
 team. Under these trying circumstances he contin- 
 ued to cultivate rented land for two years, when, by 
 the closest economy he was enable to buy a team. 
 
 He continued to save his earnings until 1850, 
 when he had accumulated sufficient to purchase a 
 farm of 74 acres in Indiana, whither his parents had 
 removed. He raised two crops on this land, then 
 sold it, making $600 by the sale. 
 
 In 1852, Mr. Gossett came to Pike County, this 
 State, where he cultivated rented land for one year. 
 In February, 1854, he came to this county, where he 
 had previously purchased 152 acres of land on sec- 
 tion 4 Swan Township, and subsequently added 80 
 acres to the same, making in all 232 acres. He lo- 
 
 cated on this land and worked the same for 13 years, 
 and then, in 1867, came to Roseville, purchased prop- 
 erty and erected a residence thereon, and then sold 
 the same to William Moore. He then built on the 
 corner of Main and Chestnut Streets, where he has 
 continued to reside since 1876. Mr. Gossett rents 
 his farm and at present is living a retired life, en- 
 joying the accumulations which a life of energetic 
 effort and economy have brought him. 
 
 Mr. Gossett was married in January, 1829, to 
 Miss Vurlinder T. Turnbull, a native of Virginia, and 
 the daughter of John and Mary P. (Tannihill) Turn- 
 bull, natives of Maryland and Virginia respectively, 
 and of Scotch descent. The issue of their union is 
 six children, only two of whom survive, Rebecca R. 
 Davis and William T. Gossett. The latter is the 
 present postmaster at Roseville. In politics Mr. 
 Gossett is a staunch Republican. He and his wife 
 are members of the M. E. Church and have been 
 since 1839, of which denomination, Mr. Gossett 
 is trustee and has been steward and class leader. 
 Mr. and Mr. Gossett on the first day of January, 
 1879, celebrated their golden wedding, having passed 
 50 years of wedded life together. On that occasion - 
 they received many valuable presents from their 
 host of relatives and friends. 
 
 j 
 
 athaniel Kidder, a farmer residing on 
 section 28, Swan Township, was born 
 in this county, July 3t, 1845, and is a son 
 of Larnard Kidder, a native of Mansfield, 
 Conn., where he was born in 1806. The father 
 came to Illinois about 1837, and located in Swan 
 Township, where he died Sept. 24, 1864. He 
 was married to Miss Mary Ann Hoisington, March 
 32, 1837. She was born April 5, 1809, in Windsor, 
 Vt., and of her union with Mr. Kidder, seven chil- 
 dren were born, Almon, Feb. 27, 1838; William O., 
 Aug. 13, 1839; Henry H., May 25, 1841 ; Benjamin 
 H., April 7, 1843; Nathaniel, July 31, 1845; Olive 
 M., July 3, 1847, and Eliza A., Aug. 5, 1849. 
 
 The grandparents of Mr. Kidder, of this notice, 
 Abishi and Lucinda (Hastings) Hoisington, on his 
 mother's side. His grandfather was born in 1769, 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 99 
 
 
 
 and his grandmother, in 1771, The former died 
 March 16, 1859, and the latter Sept. 13, 1825, and 
 of their union nine children were born, Betsey, 
 Olive, Sabrina, Harriet, Maria, John, Mary Ann, 
 Eleanor D., and William W. 
 
 Nathaniel Kidder formed a matrimonial alliance 
 with Miss Mattie Meredith, Dec. 18, 1872. She was 
 born May 14, 1849, and has borne her husband two 
 children, Minnie I., Dec. 3, 1873, and Harriet G , 
 July 27, 1876. The parents of Mrs. Kidder were 
 James and Elizabeth (Thompson) Meredith. Her 
 father was born Feb. 22, 1808, and is still living, re- 
 siding in Nebraska. Her mother was born Sept. 1 1 , 
 1823, and bore her husband eight children, namely: 
 Sarah E., born May 22, 1847 ; Mattie, May 14, 
 1849 ; James W., Feb. 18, 1851 ; George R., July 9, 
 1853; Lucius M., Dec. 18, 1855; Philinda, Dec. 5, 
 1857; John M., Sept. 9, 1859; Bruce, Feb. 21, 
 1861. 
 
 Mr. Kidder is one of the substantial farmers and 
 land owners in Swan Township, owing 156 acres. 
 He has a fine residence on his place, two stories in 
 height, erected in 1882. The first residence built 
 on this site was 23 years ago. 
 
 He is engaged, in addition to the cultivation of his 
 land, in the raising of high grade short-horn cattle, 
 and in his vocation as an agriculturist is one of the 
 leading representatives, not only in Swan Township, 
 but in Warren County. Mr. Kidder entered the 
 service in the war for the Union, joining Co. C, 
 i28th 111. Vol. Inf , May 7, 1864. He was on guard 
 duty at Ft. Leavenworth, Kan., and there remained 
 five and a half months, when, Oct. 18, 1864, he was 
 mustered out at Springfield and honorably dis- 
 charged. 
 
 I lien S. Phillips, one of the large land-own- 
 ers of Swan Township, is an energetic suc- 
 cessful farmer of Warren Co., residing upon 
 section 33, who was born in Saratoga Springs, 
 N. Y., Jan. to, 1832. He is the son of Scuiber 
 Phillips, born in Greenbu&h, N. Y., Aug. 16, 
 1802, and who died June 16, 1873. He was mar- 
 ried to Miss Sophronia Davis, Sept. 19, 1822, in 
 New York. She was born Nov. 16, 1803, in Oris- 
 
 kany Falls, Oneida Co., N. Y., and is still living in 
 that State. Their children were six in number, 
 John N., Allen S., Cordelia J., Melissa D., Alonzo, 
 James H., the latter dying in infancy. 
 
 Allen S Phillips, subject of this notice, was united 
 in marriage with Miss Anna M. McMahill, Jan. 26, 
 1868, Rev. M. Sperlock, of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, officiating. Of their union, six children 
 have been born, one of whom is deceased: Emma, 
 born March 14, 1870, and died May 14, 1877 ; Mary 
 S., born March 22, 1872; Wilbur, Nov. 29, 1875; 
 Burtis, Sept. i, 1877; Windle, Nov. 21, i88r; and 
 Guy E., Aug. n, 1884. The father of Mrs. Phillips, 
 William McMahill, was born Nov. 26, 1806, in Ken- 
 tucky, and died June 7, 1881, in this State. He 
 was married to Miss Mary Snappin 1828. She was 
 born Feb. 22, 1806, and died Aug. 31, 1877. Of 
 their union 12 children were born, viz.: George, 
 Susan, Sarah, Nancy Jane, Elizabeth, John, Ann 
 M., America Ky., William H., Pinkney, Mary E. 
 and Lucinda A. The deceased-are Elizabeth, Amer- 
 ica, Mary and Lucinda. 
 
 Mr. Phillips with his family are pleasantly situated 
 on their large farm of 300 acres on section 33, Swan <; 
 Township, and has all his land under an advanced 
 state of cultivation. He has a fine thoroughbred 
 bull, two years old, and 14 head of high grade cattle . 
 on his place, and also handles the Clydesdale breed 
 of horses. He is Highway Commissioner of his 
 township, and, in politics, votes with the Greenback 
 party. His worthy wife is highly esteemed as a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and in 
 social circles generally. 
 
 rson G. Chapman, Postmaster at Alexis, is 
 a descendant of two families of New Eng- 
 land origin. His father Orson C. Chap- 
 man, was a native of that part of the United 
 States, and his mother, nee Rebecca Gilford, 
 was born in the State of New York. They 
 belonged to the agricultural class and reared their 
 son to the same calling. 
 
 The latter was born Feb. 26, 1843, in OswegoCo., 
 N. Y. He was a pupil in the common schools in 
 his boyhood and he remained in Oswego County 
 until 1866, when he came to Warren County and en- 
 gaged in farming in Spring Grove Township, in com- 
 
300 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 pany with his brother, Alexander Chapman. In one 
 year thereafter he went to Kansas, where he also 
 became interested in farming in Doniphan County, 
 remaining two years, and then returned to Spring 
 Grove, where he again resumed farming, which oc- 
 cupation he continued until 1870. In the autumn 
 of that year he embarked in the grocery business, 
 and was the first to establish an enterprise of that 
 character at Alexis. 
 
 In January, 1871, he received the appointment of 
 Postmaster, and has managed the postal affairs of 
 the Government at that place without intermission 
 ever since. In the fall of 1872 he closed the sale of 
 groceries, and has since conducted the sale of sta- 
 tioners' goods and jewelry. He is a Republican in 
 political sentiment. 
 
 In August, 1872, he was married to Adeline Gar- 
 rett They have two children, Wade and Ava. Mrs. 
 Chapman was born in Breckenridge, Ky. 
 
 |,arbard M. Hogan, a citizen of Kelly Town- 
 ship, residing on section 35, came to War- 
 ren County with his parents when he 
 was nine years of age. He was born in Harri- 
 son County, Ind., and is the son of Harmon 
 and Elizabeth (Miles) Hogan. His father was 
 born Oct. 30, 1792, in Montgomery County, Va. He 
 married Margaret Elliott in 1814, and soon after that 
 event he located in Indiana. He lived in Dearborn 
 County three years, and went thence to Harrison 
 County. The days of his removal to Indiana were 
 the days of the pioneer period, and in both the coun- 
 ties in which he was a resident he was among the 
 first of the settlers. In the latter he bought a tract 
 of land covered with primeval forest, cleared a small 
 space and built a log house. His wife died I here in 
 1820. In April, 1823, he married Elizabeth Miles. 
 She was born April 20, 1800, in Breckenridge Co., 
 Ky. After their marriage they went to live in the 
 native county of the wife, where they were residents 
 until the year in which they came to Illinois. They 
 started for the West October gih, with teams of 
 horses, and arrived in Warren Cohnty after 20 days 
 of travel across the country, M. Hogan bought a 
 
 tax title or. section 35, in Township 12, range i 
 which was his field of operation until his death, 
 which transpired Sept. 19, 1864. His wife survived 
 him until Nov. 22, 1875. He was the father of 12 
 children. William C. lives in the township of Hen- 
 derson, in Knox County. Nancy is the wife of Har- 
 mon Brown, of the same township in which her 
 brother lives. These two were the children of the 
 first wife. The second wife became the mother of 
 ten children, three of whom survive. Mr. Hogan 
 of this sketch is the oldest. Mary E. is the wife of 
 R. A. Sinclair, of Nebraska. Jane is married to O. 
 E. Beswick, of Council Bluffs, Iowa. 
 
 Mr. Hogan has lived in Kelly Township from the 
 time of the removal of his father hither to the fall of 
 1840, when he went to Missouri, remaining in that 
 State two months. The business in which he had 
 interested himself was that of an assistant in a fac- 
 tory for the manufacture of fanning-mills. He went 
 thence to Madison, Indiana, and was similarly occu- 
 pied while there. He remained in Indiana until 
 March, 1850. He then came back to Warren 
 County and engaged in the same business in the 
 township of Cold Brook. After a period of two years 
 passed as a craftsman there, he located on a farm, 
 on which he passed a year. After that he was occu- 
 pied a season as a lightning-rod agent, and then op- 
 erated as a collector. Meanwhile, in company with 
 a brother, he made a purchase of the farm which he 
 now owns and occupies. During the years 1853-4 
 he was engaged in the management of his interests 
 on the farm. In the autumn of the year last named 
 he went to Galesburg and was an assistant in build- 
 ing the first brick business block ever erected in that 
 place. From that date he has been occupied in the 
 pursuit of the business of a carpenter during the 
 greater part of the time. 
 
 He was married Dec. 30, 1862, to Miss Ida A. 
 Thompson. They have nine children. Their names 
 are Jennie B., Emma, Harmon B., H. Eva, L. Maud, 
 Willie, Orrin E., Frank M. and Ralph. 
 
 In political connection and faith, Mr. Hogan is a 
 Republican. He adheres to the faith of the Uni- 
 versalists. He has officiated in various township 
 official positions, among which are Collector of Taxes, 
 Treasurer of the school fund and Clerk. July 7, 
 1857, he was appointed Postmaster of Utah postal 
 station by President Buchanan. He resigned to enter 
 the military service and on his return was re-ap-. 
 
 : 
 
 L_ 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ^r- , 'v. '_ ^ ." . 
 
 pointed by President Lincoln. He held the office 
 until 1878, when he resigned. 
 
 Mr. Hogan was one of the earliest to respond to 
 the call of President Lincoln for troops, and he en- 
 listed in April, 1861, in Company E, i;th 111. Vol. 
 Inf., for three months. He was sworn into service 
 and continued to discharge the duties of a soldier 
 during that time. In 1862 he went to Ind.ana, ac- 
 companied by his wife, and while there that part of 
 the State was raided by Morgan and his guerrillas. 
 The inhabitants armed for defense and Mr. Hogan 
 joined them. He was captured by the Third Louis- 
 iana Cavalry and after a brief bondage was released, 
 after being robbed of his money and clothing. He 
 went a little later to Vicksburg, where he was em- 
 ployed in a bakery, and after a short service in that 
 capacity he obtained a pass from Gen. John A. Lo- 
 gan and went to New Orleans. After a stay in the 
 Crescent City of five weeks he returned to Warren 
 County. 
 
 eorge W. Fish, engaged in agriculture on 
 section 4, Berwick Township, was born in 
 Oneida Co., N. Y., July 28, 1820. He is 
 son of William A. Fish, a native of Connecti- 
 cut, in which State he was born April i, 1788. 
 Mr. Fish, father of the subject of this notice, 
 is one of the pioneer settlers of this county, coming 
 herein 1836, and purchasing 71 acres of land on 
 section 4, Berwick Township. Previous to his com- 
 ing to thjs State and county, he had followed his 
 trade, that of a carpenter, in Oneida Co., N. Y. 
 
 On arrival in this county, he located on his land 
 and there resided actively engaged in its cultivation 
 until his death, May 4, 1845. He was an industrious 
 man, kind-hearted and generous, and took an active 
 interest in any and all measures that were calculated 
 to benefit the community in which he resided. He 
 was married to Miss Lydia S. Allen, Feb. 4, 1816. 
 She was born Sept. 25, 1798, in Oneida Co., N. Y., 
 and died March 23, 1885. Of their union four chil- 
 dren were born, Helen, June 22, 1820; George, 
 July 28, 1822; Allen, Jan. 21, 1828, and Albert, 
 April 4, 1831. Two children are deceased. 
 
 George W. Fish came to this State with his pa- 
 
 rents, and located with them on the old homestead 
 in Berwick Township, this county. He has followed 
 agricultural pursuits all his life, and at present is en- 
 gaged in the same occupation on the identical land 
 on which his parents first located when they came to 
 the county. Mr. Fish has never enjoyed the " bless- 
 ings " of double blessedness, but has a most amiable 
 and intelligent housekeeper in the person of his sis- 
 ter. She was born in 1820; was never married, and 
 is a member of the Presbyterian Church, as was also 
 her mother. In politics, Mr. Fish votes with the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 n. Samuel Wood, deceased, formerly a 
 resident of Monmouth, was born at Blue 
 Hill, Maine, June 12, 1811, and died at 
 Monmauth, Dec. 21, 1881. His parents, Sam- 
 uel and Frances (Coburn) Wood, were natives , 
 I respectively of the States of Maine and Massa- 
 chusetts, and descendants from old English stock. . 
 They reared two sons and four daughters, of whom , 
 the subject of our sketch was the youngest. The 
 senior Mr. Wood was a farmer during his lifetime, 
 but the subject of this notice, early in life, learned 
 the carpenter's trade and followed it for about 20 
 years. He received his education at the Blue Hill 
 (Me.) Academy, and in 1838 came to Monmouth, 
 where he spent the remainder of his life. He was 
 married at Monmouth, Sept. i, 1840, by the Rev. 
 Samuel Wilson, to Miss Mary Ann Hogue, a native 
 of Tennessee. She died April 28, 1856. Their first 
 born, Almira Jane, died Jan. i, 1854, aged about n 
 years; Clarinda, now Mrs. William Mitchell; 
 Charles P., who died Jan. i, 1854, aged about six 
 years, and Alice, who died Dec. 22, 1853, when lit- 
 tle more than a year old. On Jan. 21, 1858, Mr. 
 Wood was again married at Monmouth, to Miss 
 Martha E. Mitchener, of Chester Co., Pa., the daugh- 
 ter of William and Rachel Mitchener. Her father's 
 family came over with William Penn to America. 
 Mrs. Wood, nee Mitchener, was born April 23, 1825. 
 Her parents came to Monmouth in 1854, where 
 her father died in 1860, at the age of 82 years. His 
 widow survived him about six years, finally passing 
 away in the 85 th year of her age. Of the two chil- 
 dren of Mr. and Mrs. Wood, the eldest, Lulu, born 
 
34 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 July 3, 1860, died Aug. u, following, and Lena 
 Leota is, at this writing, November, 1885, the ac- 
 complished companion of her mother. 
 
 Mr. Wood was a self-made man, and during his 
 life enjoyed the merited respect and esteem of his 
 neighbors. He was a Republican in politics and 
 a member of no Church or secret Order. He was 
 three times elected Mayor of Monmouth, and also 
 held the office of Township Assessor for several 
 years. For many years before his death, he had 
 been engaged in no particular business, and on his 
 demise he left his family a handsome competency. 
 A portrait of Mr. Wood will be found on another 
 page of this work. 
 
 Charles S. Colver, M. D., has been a 
 medical practitioner in Warren County 
 since 1853. He was educated primarily 
 in the common schools of the county in Ohio, 
 where he was born, and at the age of 19 he 
 commenced the study of medicine at Middle- 
 bury, in Logan County, under the instructions of 
 Dr. Walker. Later, he read under the advice of Dr. 
 Davenport, of Woodstock, in Union County. When 
 he was thoroughly grounded in the course of his 
 reading, he repaired to the college at Cincinnati, and 
 at a later date he attended lectures at Starling Medi- 
 cal College in Columbus, Ohio. He was graduated 
 from the latter institution with the degree of M. D. 
 in the same year in which he came to Warren 
 County. A few months prior to finishing his studies 
 at Starling he operated as a physician in Montgomery 
 County, and he went thence to New California, in 
 Union County, where he was engaged at the time he 
 completed his collegiate course. He started for Illi- 
 nois immediately after his graduation. He brought 
 his family with him as far as Hennepin, on the Illi- 
 nois River, whence he came to Little York with a 
 team to decide for himself as to the feasibility of the 
 place for his business. He also made examination of 
 other localities and desided on Little York as a suit- 
 able place for his purpose. He brought his house- 
 hold to that point and it has since been his field of 
 operation. Three years after his removal hither he 
 bought a piece of wild prairie in Mercer County 
 situated eight miles from Little York and his family 
 
 removed to it. The doctor continued his practice 
 and hired laborers to effect the work of improvement 
 on his land. After a residence there of about a de- 
 cade he sold out and removed to the farm he now 
 occupies on the northeast quarter of section 20. He 
 has rebuilt the house which was on the place, erected 
 a barn and otherwise improved the farm. 
 
 Hadassah Hamilton became his wife in 1848. She 
 is a native of Greene Co., Ohio. She was the daugh- 
 ter of Robert and Hadassah (Gillispie) Hamilton. 
 Her parents were of Scotch-Irish origin. The grand- 
 parents came to this country about 1770 and settled 
 in Pennsylvania. They moved from the above State 
 in 1812, and settled near Xenia, Ohio. Mrs. C. was 
 born March n, 1825, she being the oldest of four 
 children born to her parents, viz.: Hadassah T., 
 Hannah M., Mary J. and James G. Two are de- 
 ceased, Hannah M. and Mary J. Dr. and Mrs. 
 Colver have had the following children: Rosa, their 
 first-born, died when about 18 months old; Robert 
 O., married Miss Bessie Watt, a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania, and now resides in Sedgwick Co., Kan. ; Mark 
 S. married Jennie Brownlee, a native of Warren 
 County, and lives in Georgetown, Col., and have one 
 child Pearlie; Charles B. married Mrs. Libbie 
 Smythe, a native of New York, and they have one 
 child Hadassah, named after its grandmother. 
 They are now living in Edwards Co, Kan.; Olive, 
 born July 25, 1853, died Sept. 14, 1885 ; Abi H. and 
 Merle D. are the youngest children, and reside at 
 home. The vrtrious members of the family of Dr. 
 Colver are members of the United Presbyterian 
 Church. Dr. C. is a believer in and supporter of the 
 principles advocated by the Republican party. 
 
 li C. Johnston, general farmer and stock- 
 grower on section 36, Ellison Township, 
 was born in Daviess Co., Ind., Sept. 20, 
 1830. The family traditions give the following 
 facts concerning the remote account known to 
 any of the family at present : They are Scotch- 
 Irish descent. John Johnston, a soldier in the Innes- 
 killen Regiment, in the army of William the Third in 
 the battle of Boyne, married Jane Potter about 1692, 
 and settled as a farmer near the town of Straban, 
 County Tyrone, Ireland. The names of two of their 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 children were Christopher and James. Both were 
 born in County Tyrone, Ireland. Christopher came 
 to America some time during the first half of the 
 i8th century and settled in Lancaster Co., Pa.; the 
 other brother, James, remained in Ireland with his 
 parents, who lived to a great age. He, after their de- 
 cease, when about 50 years old, married Rebecca 
 Barnhill. She became the mother of five children 
 known to the family, namely : Christopher, John, 
 Edward, Elizabeth and Jane. The former was a 
 soldier at the battle of Brandywine, afterwards went 
 to Kentucky and was killed by the Indians at 
 Estill's defeat. Jonn went to Georgia and since 
 that eventful time has not been heard of. Elizabeth 
 married William Frame and lived in Pittsburg, Pa., 
 Jane married William Barnhill, who resided some 
 time in Kentucky, and afterward went to Lawrence 
 Co., Ind., where they both died. Edward was born 
 in 1776 in County Tyrone, Ireland, and was about 
 seven years old when he came to America with his 
 ffather in 1783. 
 
 His father died about 1791, and after his death and 
 ithe settlement of the estate, Edward went to Pitts- 
 'burg, Pa , and from there to Kentucky. He was en- 
 gaged in two or three campaigns against the Indians 
 and during the same, marched through the State of 
 Indiana when it was a wild wilderness, full of game 
 of all descriptions. He, Edward, married Jane 
 Miller and in 1797 purchased 200 acres of land, on 
 which he resided until i8oi,when lie removed to 
 Clark Co., Ind. In 1817, he left that county and 
 went to Lawrence County, same State, where he died 
 in May, 1834. His wife, Jane Miller, was born in 
 County Antrim, Ireland, in 1762, and died in Law- 
 rence Co , Ind., in December, 1833. Their married 
 life lasted tor 40 years, and during the time they 
 were man and wife they passed through many hard- 
 ships and privations, common to pioneer life. Of the 
 children born to Edward Johnston, Christopher, the 
 father of the subject of this article, died at Paducah, 
 Ky., while running a flat-boat down the Mississippi 
 River. Christopher married Miss Sarah Dixon, 
 daughter Eli and Rebecca Dixon. She was born in 
 Ohio. 
 
 Eli C. Johnston, the gentleman whose name stands 
 at the head of this biography, was the youngest child 
 of his parents' family, and is the only survivor. 
 His father died of cholera in Kentucky, as stated, 
 and was buried at Paducah, same State. He was a 
 
 pioneer in Lawrence Co., Ind., and by occupation 
 was a flat-boatman on the Mississippi, White and 
 Wabash Rivers. Mr. Johnston, of this notice, was 
 but three years old at the date of his father's demise, 
 and soon thereafter his mother, accompanied by 
 two children, went to Greene Co , Ind., where they 
 located near Worthington. Mr. Johnston continued 
 to reside with his mother until her death, which 
 occurred when he was seven years old. He after- 
 wards lived with and was reared by relatives, with 
 whom he remained until 1860, when he came to this 
 State. 
 
 Previous to coming here, Nov. 26, 1857, in Greene 
 County, his native State, he was married to Miss 
 Amanda, daughter of John C. and Charena (Alford) 
 Andrews, natives of Tennessee. Her father was a 
 blacksmith by trade, and was born in Lawrence Co., 
 Tenn., where Mrs. Johnston, wife of the subject of 
 this notice, was born, May 19, 1839. She was four 
 years old when her parents moved to Greene Co., 
 Ind., where they resided until their death, that of 
 the mother occurring in May, 1860, in her 461)1 year, 
 and that of the father in 1864, when he was 52 
 years of age. Mrs. Johnston was the oldest but one 
 of her parents' family, which consisted of three sons 
 and three daughters. She was educated at Broom- 
 field College, and resided with her parent, following 
 the vocation of teaching and assisting the mother in 
 the household duties until her marriage. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Johnston have become the parents 
 of five children. Edward C. married Miss Ora Ad- 
 kinson, daughter of William and Lucinda Adkinson, 
 and they reside in Point Pleasant Township, where 
 he is engaged in farming; William D. married Ida 
 Stem, daughter of David and Sarah Stem, and he is 
 also a farmer of Point Pleasant Township; Blanche 
 C., Minnie and Estella reside at home. 
 
 In the fall of ig6o Mr. and Mrs. Johnston came 
 to this State and were for a few months residents at 
 Roseville. Mr. Johnston then rented land in Point 
 Pleasant Township, which he cultivated for two 
 years. In 1863 he purchased 80 acres of partly im- 
 proved land, the same being on section 36, Ellison 
 Township. He and his family at once located there- 
 on, and he began the improvement which developed 
 into the fine farm of 220 acres, on which they are 
 now residing. By energetic labor and united efforts 
 on the part of his wife and children, and economy, 
 Mr. J. has been enabled to increase his landed pos- 
 
266 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 sessions in the county until he is at present the pro- 
 prietor 860 acres, all in, a body and all of -it in an 
 advanced state of cultivation. He has a good resi- 
 dence on his land, together with substantial out- 
 buildings, and after having passed through the trials 
 of the past he is now enjoying the comforts of life. 
 Since the fall of 1860, Mr. Johnston has not seen the 
 shining light of day. The toils of life and exposure 
 brought on a cold, which was followed by acute in- 
 flammation, and resulted in totally destroying his 
 sight, and he is now deprived of that greatest of 
 blessings to man. His wife is a member of the 
 Cumberland Presbyterian Church, of which denom- 
 ination Mr. Johnston is an Elder, and has held that 
 position for the past two years. Mrs. Johnston is a 
 consistent Christian, a kind mother and a loving wife. 
 The care she bestows on her blind husband needs 
 no mention in this book,.neither does she desire the 
 encomiums of friends for the performance of a loving 
 duty in taking care of him to whom, 28 years ago, she 
 gave her-heart and hand, and we can but say, "well 
 done, thou good and faithful servant." Politically, 
 Mr. J. is a Democrat. 
 
 A * 'fOc- 
 
 ilfred Hayes. There lives on section 19, 
 of Roseville Township, Alfred Hayes, who 
 has retired from the active labors of farm 
 life, in which occupation he was successful. 
 He is a native of New York and was born in 
 Cortland County, March 23, 1820. George 
 and Sally (Roberts) Hayes, his parents, were natives 
 of Connecticut, and were farmers by occupation. 
 They had a family of six children, all reaching 
 a mature life, Alfred being the youngest. The 
 names of the others were: Oliver, Sally, Samantha 
 and George W. The three sons are the only mem- 
 bers of the family living. 
 
 Alfred received a good common-school education 
 and assisted his father on the farm until he was 24 
 years of age, when he left home and worked out by 
 the month for 23 years. He came to Illinois, in 
 June, 1857, and stopped in Berwick Township, this 
 county, where he worked until 1859. He then 
 rented a farm in Berwick Township, consisting of 
 1 60 acres. He continued to rent and work out until 
 1863, when he purchased the 171 acres where he 
 
 is now living. Here he made all of the improve- 
 ments, erecting a fine dwelling, at a cost of $3,350, 
 and a good barn costing $1,200. He also set out 
 trees and beautified his place in various way, and is 
 now regarded as one of the solid and substantial 
 men of the township. Politically, he is a Republi- 
 can. 
 
 Mr. Hayes was married March 19, 1863, to Miss 
 Melissa Hall, a native of Maine and a daughter of 
 Lewis S. Hall. She was born Feb. 13, 1836. Her 
 parents came West in 1855, and her mother died 
 here. 
 
 .enry C. Giddings, a successful farmer of 
 Warren County, residing on section 28, 
 Floyd Township, was born in Erie Co., Pa., 
 March 20, 1846, and came to this State with 
 his parents in February, 1855. Moses Gid- 
 dings, father of Henry, was born in Lancaster 
 Co., N. H., Nov. 19, 1801, and died at the old home- 
 stead, where Henry now resides, May 7, 1881. 
 
 The father of Henry was united in marriage with 
 Miss Sophia Stafford, in 1830. She was born in 
 1817, in Erie Co., Pa., and died May n, 1876, in 
 Warren County. He was a Republican in politics, 
 and both he and his wife were consistent members of 
 the Methodist Episcopal 'Church. Of their union 13 
 children were born: Jesse, Sebastian C., Hannah, 
 Semantha, Eben W., Silas, John W., Marion, Thomas, 
 Henry C., George W., Harriet A. and one who 
 died in infancy. Jesse and Marion are now also 
 deceased. 
 
 The subject of this notice formed a matrimonial 
 alliance with Miss Ophelia E. Wagner, Nov. 15, 
 1866. She was born Jan, n, 1845, in New York, 
 her parents being Henry and Esther (Sherman), 
 Wagoner. Her father was born in Herkimer Co., 
 N. Y., and came to this State in 1851, locating in this 
 county, where he died June 19, 1881. He was mar- 
 ried to Esther Sherman in 1833, who was born Dec. 
 29, 1812, in Vermont, and died Jan. 20, 1873, in this 
 county. Of their union seven children were born, 
 Charles W., Mary S., Anna R., James S., Ophelia E., 
 Fannie A. and J. E. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Sherman had one child Cyrus 
 Sherman, born Aug. 23, 1867, and which died in in- 
 

 " 
 
Q. 
 
 h 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 fancy. Mr. Giddings is the owner of 190 acres of 
 good farm land, which constitutes one of the model 
 farms of Floyd Township. On the place is a good 
 residence 35 x 40 feet in dimensions and two stories 
 in height, and also a good barn 40 x 40 feet. He 
 has a fine imported Clydesdale, eight years old, 
 weighing 2,000 pounds, named King Cole. He is 
 also engaged in breeding thoroughbred Herefords, 
 and high grade Short-horns, having in head of the 
 latter on hand. 
 
 Mrs. Giddings is a member of the Baptist Church. 
 In politics, Mr. G. is a believer in and a supporter of 
 the principles advocated by the Republican party. 
 
 i illiam R. Rayburn, one of Warren 
 County's most prominent well-to-do and 
 respected farmers, and a resident of sec- 
 tion 36, Ellison Township, was born 
 near Mt. Sterling, Montgomery Co., Ky., 
 J ' Oct. 18, 1822. His father, George Rayburn, a 
 farmer and native of the same State, was a son of an 
 old Kentucky family who settled there in its early 
 history. He was first married in Montgomery 
 County to Miss White, who died a few years later 
 without issue. After the death of his wife, George 
 Rayburn went into Ripley Co., Ind., where he was 
 again married to Susan Shafer, a native of Virginia, 
 and daughter of farmer and old soldier of the Revo- 
 lutionary War, having enlisted when only 16 years of 
 sge. After marriage, Mr. Rayburn returned to 
 Montgomery County, settling near Mt. Sterling 
 (the county seat) and while residing there the 
 subject of our memoir was born. When but an infant 
 his parents again returned to Ripley Co., Ind., and 
 located upon a farm where William R. was reared, 
 educated and resided until his marriage. His pa- 
 rents died there some years after his marriage. 
 
 The date of the marriage of William R. Rayburn 
 with Miss Sarah Roberts, daughter of John and Jane 
 (Salyers) Roberts, natives of Kentucky, took place 
 Nov. 17, 1854, in Jefferson Co., Ind., where her pa- 
 rents had moved some time previous. Her parents 
 were very early settlers in Southern Indiana. Her 
 father was a farmer by occupation and had procured 
 
 Government land at an early date in that State. 
 
 , , ' ' * .X 
 
 They both died there. Mrs. Rayburn remained at 
 home until her marriage, receiving the advantages 
 afforded by the common schools. Mr. and Mrs. R. 
 are the parents of seven children, three of whom are 
 deceased. The living are: George W, Frank S., 
 John R. and Charles C.; Ida J., Willie and Eddie 
 are deceased. 
 
 About 18 months after marriage, Mr. Rayburn came 
 to Warren County, and the same year, April, 1855, 
 purchased a tax title to 160 acres of unbroken land, 
 on section 36, of Ellison Township. He had some 
 friends here and was attracted by the rich prairies of 
 Illinois, a sight of them convinced him that they 
 were 1 superior for farming purposes to the tender 
 land of Indina. He located on his land, engaged in 
 its improvement, and by laborious toil and economy 
 has added thereto until he is at present the proprie- 
 tor of 560 acres in Ellison Township, the major 
 portion of which is under an advanced state of culti- 
 vation. His farm is one of the best in the township, 
 and his residence, barn and outbuildings are sub- 
 stantial, as the view of the same, which appears in 
 this work, fully demonstrates. Mr. R., in addition 
 to his farm duties and the cultivation of his land, d 
 votes considerable of his time to the raising of stock,' 
 and feeds a large number of cattle and hogs. His 
 wife is an active member in the Baptist Church. 
 Politically, Mr. Rayburn is a believer in and a sup- 
 porter of the principles of the Republican party. 
 Although a gentleman not seeking office he has held 
 the position of Supervisor of his township for two 
 years. 
 
 eorge W. Beckner, a successful farmer, 
 owning 240 acres of land on section 32, 
 Swan Township, is a native of Bath Co., 
 Ky., where he was born Jan. 13, 1825. The 
 father of the subject of this notice, A. L. Beck- 
 ner, was also a native of Kentucky, having 
 been born in Fleming County, in 1805. 
 
 The father moved to Lewis Co., Mo., in 1851, 
 where he spent the remainder of his days and where 
 he died, in September, 1854. He married Miss Eliza- 
 beth Kinkaid in 1822. She was born in Kentucky, 
 in 1806, and died in March, 1856, and was laid to 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 rest in Bond Cemetery, just south of Greenbush, this 
 county. She was of Irish ancestry and bore her 
 husband 1 1 children, five of whom survive, George 
 W., born in 1825 ; Mary A., in 1827 ; Joanna M., in 
 1831; Peter T,, in 1845, and H. C., in 1850. 
 
 George W., of whom this notice treats, married 
 Miss Deborah Van Kirk, March 7, 1848. She was 
 born Aug. n, 1826, the issue of their union being u 
 children. The living are: Miranda, born May 16, 
 1849; Robert P., May 7, 1852; George, Feb. 25, 
 1865 ; Susan J., Aug. 31, 1867, and Hattie G., Aug. 
 17, 1869. The deceased are Mathias, Abraham, An- 
 drew S., Kansadia, Amelia A. and Mary C., all of 
 whom died in infancy. Miranda is the wife W. H. 
 King, to whom she was married Oct. 7, 1869. They 
 are residents of Swan Creek village, and have six 
 children George T., Iba, William, Albert, John and 
 Hattie. Robert is a farmer in Swan Township, and 
 married Donazett Vandiveer. They have two chil- 
 dren Lovinia and Virge. George resides in Brown 
 Co., Kan. Susan and Hattie are at home. 
 
 The parents of Mrs. Beckner were Mathias and 
 Elizabeth (Wilson) Van Kirk. Her father was born 
 in 1796, in Kentucky, and there died in 1846. Her 
 mother was born in 1802, in Kentucky, and died 
 May 27, 1882, in McDonough Co., 111. Her remains 
 rest in peace in Bond Cemetery, near Greenbush, this 
 county. Of her parents' union 16 children were 
 born, nine of whom are yet living, namely: John, 
 Henry, Nancy, Deborah, Adelia, Mary K., Ann 
 Eliza and Millie T. Of the children named, John 
 married Johanna Beckner, in 1854; Nancy became 
 the wife of Samuel Painter, in 1844, and Mary, the 
 wife of Jacob Kines, in 1849; Adelia, the wife of 
 Henry Stoner, in 1879; Ann Eliza, the wife of W. A. 
 Perry, in 1856; and Millie, the wife of Wm. Tracy. 
 Nancy and Mary are living in Kansas. The others 
 are living in Warren and McDonough Counties, this 
 State. 
 
 Mr. Beckner and his family are pleasantly situated 
 on their handsome 240-acre farm, all of which is 
 under an advanced state of cultivation, and since his 
 coming to this State, in 1851, he has continued to 
 follow the vocation in which he is engaged. His 
 first investment hi landed property was in 1852, the 
 year he settled in Warren County. It comprised 160 
 acres (unimproved). In 1873 he purchased 80 acres 
 which were broken and somewhat improved. These 
 
 240 acres now constitute the homestead upon which 
 he expects to remain the balance of his years in this 
 life. 
 
 Mr. Beckner belongs to the Order of Masonry, 
 of which organization he has been a member since 
 1866, and at the present holds fellowship with Lodge 
 No. 387, Youngstown, 111. He has been Secretary 
 of said Lodge for the last 12 years. He has held 
 the office of Township Supervisor three years, Jus- 
 tice of the Peace 15 years, Assessor 15 years, School 
 Trustee, 18 years. He and his wife are member of 
 the Baptist Church. In politics, Mr. Beckner votes 
 with and endorses the principles advocated by the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 uther B. Perry, proprietor of 80 acres of 
 land, located on section 30, Swan Town- 
 ship, where he resides, engaged in its cul- 1 
 tivation and improvement, was born May 25, 
 1841, in this county. His father, J. C. Perry, [ 
 was born in Vermont in 1801 ; came to this 
 State in 1840, and located in the vicinity Olena, 111.; 
 lived there one year, when lie moved to Swan 
 Township, and there resided until his death, which ' 
 took place Feb. 19, 1881. The father married a 
 Miss Phebe M. Dodge, in 1823. She was born in 
 1807, and died Sept. 6, 1885, in this county. They 
 were the parents of nine children: Elias C. (de- 
 ceased), born Dec. 14, 1824; Melissa M., Feb. 18, 
 1827; Cordelia O., July 29, 1829; Melvina J. 
 March 12, 1832; Alanson W., Jan. 14, 1834; Mary 
 O., May 24, 1836; Luther B., May 25, 1841 ; Lorane 
 E. (deceased), Oct. IT, 1844, and Lyman (deceased), 
 March 29, 1849. 
 
 Luther B. Perry was united in marriage with Miss 
 Sarah J. Lybarger, July 4, 1872, Judge Nicholas, of 
 Macomb, this State, officiating. Mrs. Luther B. 
 Perry was born in Knox Co., Ohio, Nov. 20, 1854, 
 and bore her husband four children, three of whom 
 are living, namely : Mina J., born April 9, 1873; 
 Orville L., Dec. 27, 1875; Iva M., Dec. 9, 1878; 
 Rosa D., born May 31, 1884; died Aug. 4, 1885. 
 
 The father of Mrs. Perry, Joseph Lybarger, was born 
 in 1807, and died near Marietta, Fulton County, this 
 State, in October, 1879. His wife, Joanna (Ewing) 
 Lybarger, with whom he was united in 1834, died 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Aug. 8, 1885. They were the parents of n chil- 
 dren, nine living and two dead, namely : Louis A., 
 born June 24, 1834; Elizabeth F., Feb. 4, 1837; 
 Lilburn W., Dec. 23, 1839; Milton C., June 28, 1842 ; 
 George H. (deceased). July 23, 1845; Joseph D. 
 (deceased), Oct. 20, 1847; James A., Feb. i, 1850; 
 Mary A., March 22, 1852; Sarah J., Nov. 20, 1854; 
 Hester E., Dec. 15, 1858, and John R., Oct. 15, 
 1861. 
 
 Mr. Perry is pleasantly located on 80 acres of 
 good farm land, situated on section 30, all of which 
 is under an advanced state of cultivation. In politics, 
 he votes and endorses the principles of the Demo- 
 cratic party. He is a consistant member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 - 
 
 homas J. Morris, owning more than 400 
 acres of excellent farm land in Roseville 
 Township, and one of the pushing farmers, 
 as well as a gentleman of more than ordinary 
 business ability, residing on section 12, was 
 born in Greene Co., Pa., Nov. 28, 1825. The 
 parents of Mr. Morris, Levi and Lucretia (Stephens) 
 Morris, were natives of Pennsylvania and New Jer- 
 sey respectively, and were " old settlers " of the Key- 
 stone State. His father was quite an extensive 
 farmer in that State, and of his marriage 1 1 children 
 were born, all of whom lived to attain the age of 
 manhood and womanhood. Their names were Mar- 
 garet, Hannah, Louisa, Josephus, Jefferson and Wash- 
 ington (twins), Franklin, Thomas J., James B., Al- 
 pheus and Lucrelia. The twree eldest girls are de- 
 ceased, as are also Jefferson and Alfred. They all 
 left families. The remainder are living, married and 
 have families, and all reside in Pennsylvania. Two 
 are engaged in mercantile pursuits, Washington and 
 Franklin, and the others are farmers. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head of 
 this biographical notice remained at home until he 
 was 35 years old, but since attaining his majority has 
 been doing for himself. He came to this State in the 
 spring of 1865, where he rented a farm on shares, 
 the same adjoining the one on which he is at present 
 residing. He continued to cultivate the rented farm 
 for ten years, until 1875, when he purchased the 
 
 place where he is at present living. He is to day 
 the proprietor of a little more than 400 acres of land, 
 and follows the vocation of farming and stock-rais- 
 ing. 
 
 The lady to whom Mr. Morris was united in mar- 
 riage on Feb. 22, 1866, was Miss Sarah Way, the 
 accomplished daughter of Gideon Way, of Monon- 
 galia Co., W. Va , where Mrs. Morris was born. She 
 has borne her husband three children, Charles W., 
 Ella J , and William I. In his politics, Mr. Morris 
 always votes with the Republican party. He has 
 held different offices within the gift of the people of 
 his township, and is a gentleman whose bond is ac- 
 cepted no quicker than his word in the transactions 
 of business. His success is indicative of that push, 
 pluck and good judgment of which he is characteris- 
 tic. The great grandfather of Mr. Morris, on his 
 father's side, Mr. Corbry, was a Baptist preacher and 
 lived in Western Pennsylvania. While on his way 
 with his family to deliver a sermon, they were at- 
 tacked by Indians and three of the children killed. 
 One of the girls of the family hid in a tree-top, and, 
 supposing the Indians had left, raised her head to 
 look around, when one of the red devils saw her and 
 threw his tomahawk at her head, taking off her 
 her scalp. They left her for dead, but she survived, 
 came to herself and lived to become the mother of a 
 family. Mrs. Morris is a member of the Baptist 
 Church. 
 
 jilliain O. Kidder, residing on his farm of 
 117 acres on section 21, Swan Township, 
 was born in this county, Aug. 13, 1839, 
 and is a son of Larnard Kidder, born in 
 Mansfield, Conn., March u, 1806, and who 
 died Sept. 24, 1864, in this county (having em- 
 igrated to Illinois in 1837), his remains being placed 
 at rest in the Hammond Cemetery. 
 
 The father was married to Miss Mary Ann Hois- 
 ington, March 22, 1837, in Champaign Co., Ohio. 
 She was born at Windsor, Vt., April 5, iSog.-and was 
 the daughter of Abisha and Lucinda (Hastings) 
 Hoisington. Mary A., the mother of the subject of 
 this notice, is at present (January, 1886) enjoying 
 good health in her venerable old age. 
 
 William O. Kidder, the subject of this biographical 
 
WARREN COUNTY; 
 
 notice, married Miss Mary C. Perry, Dec. 20, 1865. 
 She was born Jan. 20, 1847, and was the daughter 
 of Charles Perry, who was born in 1815, and married 
 Miss Elizabeth Jones. Mr. and Mrs. Kidder are the 
 the parents of three children, Nellie G., born Oct. 
 3, 1866; Grant L., Sept. 2, 1868; and Ross L., July 
 30, 1885. Mr. Kidder has 117 acres of land in this 
 countv, all well improved, on which he has a good 
 dwelling and barn, 24x36 feet in dimensions, with 
 1 6 feet posts. In addition to the cultivation of his 
 land, he is engaged in the raising of stock of a high 
 grade. 
 
 Win. O. Kidder's early education was acquired in 
 the common schools, and was supplemented by a 
 course of study at Lombard University, at which in- 
 stitution he passed three winters. In 1861, he en- 
 listed for the cause for the Union at Macomb, Mc- 
 Donough Co., this State, in Co. H, d 111. Vol. Cav., 
 and was mustered in at Springfield, Aug. 12, 1861. 
 The first general engagement was at Union City, 
 
 S^enn. ; then at Jackson, La Grange, Memphis, St. 
 oseph, Baker's Creek and Vicksburg. Mr. Kidder 
 scaped the casualities of the war without receiving 
 )any wounds. He was on the Teche and Red River 
 Icampaigns, under Gen. Banks, and was discharged 
 at Baton Rouge, La., just three years after his en- 
 uistment. In politics, he is a Republican. 
 
 t avid Van Gilder, the present Assessor of 
 the township of Point Pleasant, was born 
 in Hancock Co., Ind., Jan. 26, 1824. He 
 was 12 years of age when his parents emi- 
 grated to Illinois and became pioneers of Knox 
 County. The family removed hither with ox- 
 teams and brought all their personal property with 
 them. They drove their stock and camped and 
 cooked in the style of gipsies. The journey 'was 
 Ion? and tedious and was made across the trackless 
 country that intervened, and when they were beyond 
 the limits of civilization the streams were destitute 
 of bridges and all the annoyances increased in pro- 
 portion. To the unaccustomed people of the East 
 the sloughs were something terrible. 
 
 The father bought land in Knox County and the 
 family resided some time in Knoxville, until the head 
 
 of it could get out the timber necessary to build a 
 house and make things comfortable for them. The 
 first dwelling was a log house and was covered with 
 clapboards or "shakes." It had also a puncheon 
 floor according to the fashion of those days. The 
 furniture of the house was made by the father from 
 hewed timber. The parents resided in that county 
 until' their deaths, the father in September, 1857, 
 and the mother about 1870. 
 
 Mr. Van Gilder resided with his parents until he 
 w<is.j!2vwhen he was married to Nancy L. Maxey. 
 They lived the following year on the farm of the 
 father-in-law in Knox Township, whence they re- 
 moved to the northeast portion of the same county 
 and bought a farm in the vicinity of La Fayette> 
 Stark Co., 111. Mr. Van Gilder retained the posses- 
 sion of that place 18 months and then sold out. He 
 returned to the township of Knox, where he bought a 
 farm and there resided until 1865. He again sold 
 out and came thence to Warren County, where he 
 located in what seemed to him the best township in 
 the county. He established himself permanently by 
 uniting his interests with those of the general public, 
 buying land and proceeding to add his quota to the 
 development of the resources of his property. His 
 farm is situated on the northwest quarter of section 
 22, Point Pleasant Township, and is in advanced 
 "cultivation. The owner has planted a grove of shade- 
 trees and a valuable orchard. The buildings are in 
 every way suited to the purposes of general farming 
 and the place is well enclosed with hedges and is 
 cross-fenced. The entire property is in a condition 
 to compare favorably with the best farms in the 
 county. 
 
 The first wife of Mr. Van Gilder died in 1853, 
 leaving four children. James M. lives in Point 
 Pleasant Township. S. Annie is married to Alex- 
 ander Strickler, of this township. '.Jonathan S. mar- 
 ried and left one child, and Mary A. and Ellen are 
 now dead. 
 
 In 1858 Mr. Van Gilder was again married, to 
 Mary L. Smith. She died in 1864 and left one child, 
 who was named Smith Van Gilder. He is a resident 
 of Fremont Co., Iowa. In 1865 the subject of this 
 sketch was a third time married, to Jennie Axtell, a 
 native of Pennsylvania, but was a resident of War- 
 ren County at the time of her marriage. She was 
 the daughter of Joseph Axtell, who died while on his 
 way here in 1840. Mrs. Axtell died here. Mr. and 
 
 - 
 

 y 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Mrs. Van Gilder have four children Myrtie, Charlie 
 E., Nellie and Ray M. Both Mr. and Mrs. Van 
 Gilder are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. Politically, he is a Republican. 
 
 Teremiah Hoornbeek, residing "on section 
 gSHf' 35, Hale Township, where he is engaged 
 in the vocation of an agriculturist and 
 stock-raiser, is a son of Benjamin and Esther 
 (Wilkins) Hoornbeek, natives of New York. 
 They were of Holland and English ancestry 
 respectively. Mr. H. traces his family back to the 
 1 6th century. His father (who was born in Ulster 
 County) died Jan. 19, 1841, and [his mother (bom in 
 Orange County) died Aug. i, 1854. 
 
 Jeremiah was also born in Ulster County, May 3, 
 1824. He received a common-school education in 
 his native State and their resided until 1855. In 
 December, of that year, Mr. Hoornbeek came to this 
 State and located in Hale Township, this county, on 
 a farm which he had purchased, consisting of 160 
 acres. He at once engaged actively and energetic- 
 ally in the improvement and development of his 
 land. To-day he has it under an advanced state of 
 cultivation'and enhanced in value by the erection of 
 good, substantial buildings, and where [he still con- 
 tinues to follow the vocation of his life. 
 
 The marriage'.of Mr. Hoornbeek took place in 
 Ulster County, N. Y., April 2, 1851, at which time 
 Miss Elizabeth Bruyn became his wife. She was a 
 daughter of Nathaniel and Cornelia (LeFevre) Bruyn. 
 
 The Bruyn family are of Norwegian descent. Ja- 
 cobus Bruyn was the first of that name in this coun- 
 try. He came from (Norway and settled in New 
 York alout 1660. The LeFevres are of French ex- 
 traction and came to this "country about 1670 and 
 settled ii Ulster County, New York. 
 
 She was born in Ulster County, N. Y., Dec. 23, 
 1827, and i f the children she rfas borne Mr. Hoorn- 
 beek six ai. living, namely : Esther, Nathaniel B., 
 Adelia C., incline D., John W. and Catherine B. 
 Esther is tl. wife of Ira Dean, a resident of Nebras- 
 ka, and they_..have two [children, Ralph S. and Ho- 
 mer H. N laniel B. is a physician, engaged in 
 practice at \,. ungstown, this county. He has two 
 
 children, viz. : Lillian and Clyde. The other chil- 
 dren reside at home. 
 
 Mr. Hoornbeek has held the office of School Di- 
 rector and Overseer of Highways, and he and his 
 wife and children are members of the Presbyterian 
 Church. The parents of Mr. Hoornbeek both died 
 in Ulster County. The parents of Mrs. H. came to 
 this county in 1853, and are at present residing in 
 Tompkins Township. In politics, Mr. Hoornbeek 
 affiliates with the Democratic party. 
 
 Mr. Hoornbeek is a raiser of fine Durham cattle, 
 and has one of the finest herds in the State. Victor, 
 recorded in vol. 24, Short-horn- Record, is at the 
 head of the herd. He took first premium at the War- 
 ren County Fair. Fannie Snqwden stands at the 
 head in the cow line. She is recorded in vol. 13, 
 page 591, Short-horn Herd Book, and has taken the 
 sweepstakes premium for a number of years. The 
 herd took premiums at the Warren County Fair in 
 the years 1884-5. An excellent view of Mr. Hoorn- 
 beek 's farm residence and fine stock, and also Mr., 
 Hoornbeek's portrait, accompanies this sketch. 
 
 Phelps, who is the possessor of a 
 clear title 10400 acres of good farm land, 
 located on section 26, Tompkins Town- 
 ship (and the adjoining section) and where 
 he resides, following the vocation of an agricul- 
 turist, was born Jan. 6, 1836, in New York. The 
 parents of Mr. Phelps, Porter and Mary (Reese) 
 Phelps, were natives of the same State in which their 
 son, DeWitt, was born. They moved therefrom to 
 Knox County, 111., in 1836, but in 1837 settled in 
 Roseville Township, Warren County, and were con- 
 sequently among the pioneer settlers who laid the 
 corner-stone of the grandest commonwealth that now 
 reflects the brilliancy of our Union's diadem. The 
 father there purchased 80 acres of land, which he af- 
 terwards increased to 320 acres, residing upon the 
 same, engaged in its improvement and cultivation for 
 10 years. He then sold his land and moved to Len- 
 ox Township, where he purchased 320 acres, on 
 which he moved with his family and has since re- 
 sided there, following his avocation as a fanner until 
 the present time with satisfactory success. 
 
f 
 
 3i6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 The gentleman whose name we place at the head 
 of this notice was an inmate of his father's family for 
 25 years. His younger years were spent in acquir- 
 ing an education at the common schools and in labor 
 on the farm. After attaining the age mentioned, he 
 went to California and was there engaged in mining 
 and farming for five years. While a resident in the 
 far West, he also visited Idaho, and was engaged in 
 the livery business. He returned to this State in 
 1867, and the following year purchased 240 acres of 
 unimproved prairie land, on section 26, Tompkins 
 Township, where he has resided until the present 
 time. He is engaged in stock raising and general 
 farming, and in his chosen vocation is meeting with 
 success. He has a fine residence on his farm,' to- 
 gether with good barns, fences, etc., and the place is 
 greatly beautified by the numerous fruit and orna- 
 mental trees which have been made to flourish under 
 his careful husbandry. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Fhelps with Miss Mary A. 
 Lewis, a native of this State, was solemnized in 1 87 2, 
 and of their union four children, Kathrine L., Mary 
 P., Henneth G., and Charles E., have been 
 born. Mr. Phelps is a Democrat in his political af- 
 filiations, and holds the position of School Director 
 in his township. He is also a stockholder in the 
 First National Bank of Kirkwood, and is one of the 
 leading representative farmers of Tompkins Town- 
 ship. 
 
 M. Hamilton, M. D., Coroner of 
 Warren County. This talented physician 
 and surgeon of Monmouth, a native of 
 Darlington, Beaver Co., Pa., and son of Sam- 
 uel and Arabella W. (Scroggs) Hamilton, of 
 the same State, was born Oct. 23, 1829. At 
 the age of 2r years, James Hamilton came from the 
 North of Ireland to America, in the first ship that 
 landed at Boston after the close of the Revolutionary 
 War. He afterward married a young lady that came 
 over in the same ship, made his home in Beaver Co., 
 Pa., and there reared 15 children. Samuel, one of 
 the ten sons, married Miss Aarabella Scroggs, in 
 Beaver Co., Pa., where their four sons and five 
 daughters were born, two of the former dying in 
 
 childhood, the rest growing to man and womanhood. 
 The old gentleman, when about 60 years of age, re- 
 moved to Lawrence Co., Pa., and there died in 1872, 
 at the age of about 73 years. His widow at this 
 writing (September, 1885) is living at New Castle, 
 Pa.. His son Lieut. -Col. Thos. J. Hamilton, of the 
 looth Pa. Vol. Inf., was killed July r, 1864, during 
 the explosion of the mine in front of Petersburg. 
 
 The subject of our sketch was educated at the 
 common and high schools of Darlington. When he 
 was 1 6 years of age he was taken out of school on 
 account of failing health. He thereupon learned the 
 trade of saddler and harness-maker in his father's 
 shop in Darlington, and continued in the business 
 for nearly four years. He then returned to school 
 and completed his studies. He began the study of 
 medicine, soon after reaching bis majority, under 
 Dr. Daniel Leasure, of Westmoreland Co., Pa., at 
 New Castle. Entering Jefferson Medical College in 
 1851, he graduated in 18153, ar >d relumed to New 
 Castle, and the following six years was in partner- 
 ship with his old preceptor. In 1858, he reached 
 Monmouth, where he at once took rank with the 
 foremost of his profession. When the war cloud < 
 burst upon the country in 1861, he became Assistant 
 Surgeon of the Ninth 111. Regt., raised under the 
 three months call for volunteers, but was regularly 
 promoted to the position of Brigade Surgeon of U. 
 S. A. Volunteers (commissioned at Pittsburg Land- 
 ing in November of the same year), and saw service 
 at Donelson, Shiloh, siege of Corinth, Tuscumbia, 
 Nashville, and was ten months in charge of hospitals 
 at Gallatin, Tenn. In November, 1863, on account 
 of loss of health, he resigned, returned to Monmouth, 
 and the year following to New Castle, Pa., where 
 he remained two and a half years, and then again 
 returned to Mcnmouth, where he has continued in 
 the practice of his profession to the present. 
 
 The Doctor has been for many years an ardent 
 member of the Republican party ; in fact he was a 
 delegate from New Castle to the Convention at Pitts- 
 burg, Pa., in 1856, that nominated John C. Fremont 
 for the Presidency and laid the foundation for the 
 future greatness of the party. But, while taking an 
 active part in politics, he is not a. politician seeking 
 office. He is devoted to his profession ; belongs to 
 the various medical societies of the American Med- 
 ical Association and of the State and county, and 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 contributes largely to different journals and periodi- 
 cals upon various subjects. 
 
 He was married at Philadelphia, Dec. 25, 1856, to 
 Miss Eliza Starrett, native of Maine and daughter of 
 the late Rev. David Starrett, of the Congregational 
 Church. Their only child, torn in 1859, died in 
 infancy. 
 
 -se? *- 
 
 lohn H. Frantz is a settler of Warren 
 County of 1857. His farm located on sec- 
 lion 22, Spring Grove Township, is one 
 of the most attractive in the county. He 
 was born Feb. 20, 1836, in Alleghany Co., Md. 
 John Frantz, his grandfather, was a native of 
 Germany, and settled in the State of Maryland on 
 emigrating to America. His father, Solomon Frantz, 
 was born in that State, and there married Jane Mc- 
 Elroy. A sketch of his life will be found included 
 in the biography of Mr. W. H. Frantz. His wife 
 was born in Virginia. When the subject of the pres- 
 ent notice was 13 years old his father and mother re- 
 moved with their family to Perry Co., Ohio. He- 
 remained under the parental roof-tree until he reahed 
 the age of legal independence when he made his way 
 to Warren County. He rented a farm in Spring 
 Grove Township, upon which he remained until he 
 went to California in 1864. Going to New York in 
 February, of that year, from thence by water to Pan- 
 ama, he crossed the isthmus and continued by vessel 
 to San Francisco. He made but a brief stay in the 
 city of the Golden Gate, and turning his face east- 
 ward, stopped at Virginia City, Nev. He made his 
 headquarters there while operating in the wood busi- 
 ness on Carson River. He remahied there until 
 August, 1866, when lie turned his face Homeward, 
 coming back by the Nicaragua route, and via New 
 York, arriving at home on the 151)1 day of Septem- 
 ber. As soon as he had become again acclimated, 
 he bought 80 acres of land in Warren County, 
 which has remained in his possession ever since, and 
 which constituted the nucleus of his present farm. 
 Entering at once upon the work of improvement, he 
 has added to his real estate until he is now the 
 owner of 240 acres of land, all of which is fenced 
 and under cultivation'. For the past five years Mr. 
 
 Frantz has been engaged in the breeding of thor- 
 oughbred Short-horns, and is now the owner of some 
 of the finest specimens of this stock in the coun- 
 try. He is earnestly giving his attention to the 
 propagation of fine stock, having determined to make 
 it a specialty in the future operation of his farm work. 
 He is a breeder of thoroughbred Clydesdale horses 
 and has now about 35 head of horses and colts of 
 superior grade, owning also some fine specimens of 
 Morgan stock. He proposes to give his attention 
 very soon to the breeding of Norman horses. An ex- 
 cellent view of Mr. 'Frantz's homestead appears on 
 page 258. 
 
 In political connection Mr. Frantz remains, as he 
 has always been, a Republican. 
 
 His marriage to Annie M. Porter took place Sept. 
 23, j86o. She was bom in the township within the 
 borders of which she has, all her life, lived, and is 
 the daughter of Joshua and Mary (Tinkham) Porter. 
 Her birth occurred March 10, 1838. The children 
 now living, that have been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Frantz are Jessie A., Annie G., Virgie B. and Lillie 
 May. They have buried a son, Thatcher Ellsworth, 
 and three daughters, Jennie L., Rosa Belle and Bertha 
 May. Our subject and his wife are members of the 
 Christian Church. He is also a member of the In- 
 dependent Order of Odd Fellows. 
 
 O Carr, Jr., one of Warren County's most 
 energetic and prosperous farmers as well 
 as respected and representative citizens, 
 resides on section 13, Roseville Township, and 
 is a son of Otho and Nancy (Claycomb) Carr, 
 having been born on the place where he now 
 resides, Sept. 22, 1841. His parents were natives of 
 Breckenridge Co., Ky., the date of the birth of the 
 father being Feb. 14, 1805, and the mother, Jan. 14, 
 1805. They were among the early settlers here. 
 Mr. Carr, Sr., moved to Perry Co., Ind., where he 
 married and remained about five years, and then 
 came West to this county. The trip was made in 
 wagons across the country. He entered 320 acres 
 of land here. The cabin Mr. Carr built in 1835 was 
 located one-half mile east of the present homestead j 
 and here he lived until the present farm residence 
 
318 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 was built, where Mrs. Lucy J. Harris lives. Both Mr. 
 and Mrs. Harris were for 40 years members of the 
 Christian Church, of Roseville Township. Mr. Carr 
 remained on the above place until his death, which 
 occurred in 7883, his wife having preceded him to 
 the land of eternal happiness two years previously. 
 Of their union were born -six children, three of whom 
 survive, Redmond, Lucy J. and J. O., the subject 
 of this notice. 
 
 J. O. Carr remained at home and was in partner- 
 ship with his father and brother until 1875, and his 
 success as a farmer and stock-raiser has been more 
 than ordinary. Mr. Carr's close attention to busi- 
 ness, being accompanied by industry and economy, 
 has aided him in obtaining a competency. He is 
 the possessor of 360 acres of excellent land in this 
 township, and is engaged in raising horses, cattle 
 and swine. His farm is valued at $40 per acre. 
 
 Mr. J. O. Carr and Miss Mary E. Cox were united 
 in marriage, Dec. 31, 1869. She was born March 
 15, 1848, in Ellison To.vnship, this county. Her 
 parents were John and Fannelia (Lewis) Cox, na- 
 , lives of Illinois and New Jersey respectively, and 
 C in 1837 they settled in Ellison Township, where 
 they made a purchase of 160 acres of land. Both 
 died in this county. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Carr have had their home bright- 
 ened by the birth of five children, three daughters 
 and two sons, as follows : Fannelia N., Nettie L. 
 and William O. James E. and Mary E. are at 
 home. Mr. Carr is a Democrat in political opinion, 
 and with his wife and two daughters belongs to the 
 Christian Church. Mr. Carr is one of the substan- 
 tial and representative men of Warren County. 
 
 j( mos B. Billings. Among the well known 
 and prosperous farmers, who in their early 
 years entered actively and energetically 
 in the pursuit of tilling the soil, and thereby 
 accumulated sufficient of this world's goods to 
 enable them to spend the sunset of their 
 lives in peace and comfort, is Mr. Amos B. Billings. 
 He is a resident of Kirkwood and is a son of Justis 
 and Sarah (Alice) Billings, and was born in 
 Lewis County, the Empire State, Jan. 10, 1811. His 
 parents were natives of Connecticut, and in the year 
 
 1804 moved to New York and located in Lewis 
 County, where they remained, having purchased 
 land, until their death, occurring respectively on the 
 last day of July and the nth of August, in the year 
 1847. 
 
 Amos B. made the home of his parents his abid- 
 ing place until he reached majority, then worked out 
 by the month for six years, at the expiration of which 
 time he again resided on his father's farm and took 
 charge of the same, also caring for his parents until 
 the hand of death severed them. During his early 
 life he had acquired a good English education and 
 when opportunity presented itself, his father had him 
 assist in the duties of the farm, so our subject was 
 thoroughly initiated in the life of an agriculturist 
 when left to earn his own living. He was, there- 
 fore, well prepared for entering upon the task of the 
 improvement of his farm of 160 acres, which he had 
 purchased in Illinois, having sold his father's home- 
 stead in 1864, and emigrated westward. His tract 
 was located on section n, Tompkins Township, his 
 present site, and upon this he has erected all neces- 
 sary farm outbuildings and improved the same until 
 at the present time it is in an advanced state of cul- 
 tivation. He resided there until 1879, when he re- 
 tired from his farm and bought a house and lot in 
 Kirkwood village, where he has since resided. 
 
 Miss Eleanor Mott, a native of Oneida Co., N. Y., 
 and a daughter of Elias and Lucretia (Shear) Mott, 
 was married to Mr. Amos B. Billings in 1840. Her 
 parents were natives of New Jersey and Massachu- 
 setts respectively. Mr. and Mrs. B.'s family comprise 
 the following named children: Amelia A. was born 
 March 16, 1841 ; Ellen J., born Sept. 4, 1842; Em- 
 ily L., born Aug. 10, 1844; Mary L., born Dec. 15, 
 1845 ; Theodore J., born Aug. T3, 1847; Alfred E., 
 born June 7, 1853. Emily L. is now deceased, hav- 
 ing died Feb. 8, 1880. " Amelia A. married William 
 Starr, March 16, 1864. Six children was the result 
 of this marriage, Emory, Susan E. and Elmer. Ma- 
 tilda E., Chancy A. and Harriet are deceased. Mr. 
 Starr died Nov. 14, 1874. Mrs. S. was again mar- 
 ried Oct. 6, 1881, to Ferine Holman. One child has 
 blessed this union, Alida. Mr. and Mrs. H. are 
 now living in this township. Ellen J. married James 
 L. Perkins, Dec. 24, 1862, and is now living in Gales- 
 burg. Emily L. married Jesse E. Lamphere, Dec. 
 14, 1865. They had two children, Ralph and Grant. 
 
t'l 
 
RESIDENCE OF JACOB SHAWLER .SEC. 12 . LENOX TOWNSHIP. 
 
 CLEVELAND 
 
 RESIDENCE OF JEREMIAH HOORNBEE K SEC, 35, HALE TOWNSHIP. 
 
- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 321 
 
 Mary L. married Peter Burns, March 14, 1872, and 
 is now living at Monmouth. Theodore J. married 
 Sophrona Lamphere, Oct. 6, 1870. One child has 
 been the result of this marriage, Minnie. Alfred E. 
 married Emma Yeomans, Jan. n, 1877. Two chil- 
 dren have been born to them, Jennie and Charles. 
 Jennie is now deceased. 
 
 Mr. B. with hts wife belongs to the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, and is regarded as one of the 
 leading and substantial men of Warren County. In 
 his political affiliations, he is a Republican. 
 
 
 acob Shawler. Among the early settlers 
 of Warren County, having come here in 
 the year 1847, is Mr. Jacob Shawler, an 
 energetic, prosperous and representative citizen 
 of this county, where, on section 12, Lenox 
 Township, he is engaged extensively in agri- 
 cultural pursuits. The date of his birth is Dec. 16, 
 1826, and he is a native of Edmonson Co., Ky. 
 James B. and Eva (Duvall) Shawler, his parents, 
 were natives of Kentucky, where his mother died. 
 To them five children' were born, all of whom reached 
 the age of maturity. All are now deceased except 
 Jacob and one sister. His father afterward removed 
 to Warren County and settled in Floyd Township, 
 having re-married before he left Kentucky. His 
 second union was blessed with a family of 1 1 chil- 
 dren, six of whom are now living. He subsequently 
 removed to Swan Township, where he died. 
 
 Jacob was the second of a family of five children, 
 and came to this county in the autumn of 1847. For 
 three years he made his home in Floyd Township, 
 when he sold his property there and moved into 
 Lenox Township, where he has since remained and 
 is one of the most highly respected and influential 
 men in the township. In his business enterprises 
 he has experienced an unusual degree of prosperity, 
 and to-day owns 500 acres of land in Warren County 
 and 200 acres in Kansas. He has erected upon the 
 home farm an excellent class of buildings specially 
 adapted to agricultural pursuits. The barn is a very 
 commodious structure and a model building of its 
 kind. 
 
 On March i, 1852, after Mr. Shawler had moved 
 
 into Lenox Township, he was married there to Julia 
 A. Ray, who was also a native of Kentucky, where 
 she was born June 30, 1833. Five sons have risen 
 to bless their home, all of whom are living. Thomp- 
 son B., married, resides in Lenox Township; John 
 O. and Algernon S. H. live in Swan Township ; 
 Philemon and Jesse are with their parents. Both 
 Mr. and Mrs. S. are members of the Baptist Church 
 at Union. In his political belief, Mr. S. is a holder 
 of independent views. 
 
 Our subject now ranks among the large stock 
 raisers and feeders of the township. When he first 
 settled in this county he could claim but little of this 
 world's goods, and he is able to point with pride to 
 his present possessions as the result of well applied 
 industry and sound judgment. He to-day enjoys a 
 very comfortable competence and is properly recog- 
 nized as one of the public-spirited citizens of the 
 community. A view of his elegant and commodious 
 homestead is one of our pictorial features, and will 
 be found page 320. 
 
 - 
 
 K. Cummings, retired from a life of mer- 
 jj" cantile pursuits, and spending the closing 
 years of his life in peace and quiet at Kirk- 
 wood, is a native of Scotland, having been bom 
 in that country July 4, 1813. The parents of 
 Mr. Cummings, Israel W. and Susanna (Kerr) 
 Cummings, were natives of Massachusetts and Scot- 
 land respectively. Th_e father was a sailor in his 
 younger years, and from his native country he went 
 to Scotland, where he was married and where the 
 subject of this notice was born. In 1828, the father 
 with his family came to the United States, and for 
 a time resided in the father's native State, Massa- 
 chusetts. He then moved his family to Maine, 
 where for ten years he was engaged in farming. In 
 1837, the father sold his landed possessions in the 
 latter State and with his family came to this State, 
 locating in Fulton County, where the father pur- 
 chased 192 acres of land. He moved on the land 
 with his family and at once engaged in the laborious 
 task of improving it, by cultivation, the erection of a 
 residence, the setting out of trees, etc., and there 
 
322 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 continued to reside until his death, which event 
 took place in 1854. 
 
 The gentleman whose name we give at the begin- 
 ning of this biographical notice, was an inmate of 
 the parental household until J he attained the age of 
 20 years, having received a fair education in the 
 district schools. At this age in life, he engaged to 
 learn the carpenter's trade, at which he served ap- 
 prenticeship of three years, fully and completely 
 mastering the same, after which he followed his 
 trade in Fulton County from 1838 to 1856, a period 
 of 1 8 years. 
 
 Mr. Cummings came to Warren County in 1855 
 and in 1856 moved to Kirkwood. In 1859, he en- 
 gaged in the grocery business at that place, and was 
 thus occupied for 1 2 years. He then sold out and 
 began the hardware business and followed that for 
 five years, when, in 1878, he sold the same, and 
 since that time has lived a life of comparative retire- 
 ment, doing nothing except a little insurance busi- 
 ness. He is the proprietor of a farm of 162 acres, 
 one mile and a half from Kirkwood, and is enjoying 
 the comforts which a life of business activity coupled 
 with energy has acquired. 
 
 In 1836, Mr. Cummings married Miss Mary Eve- 
 leth in Kennebec Co., Maine, she being the daughter 
 of Joseph and Eunice (Jennings) Eveleth, four chil- 
 dren being the result of this union, Susan Jane and 
 James H., Melissa E. and Eunice A., who are de- 
 ceased. Mrs. C. died in the year of 1878. Mr. 
 Cummings again formed a matrimonial alliance with 
 Miss Eliza Bowen in 1879, a native of Ohio. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Cummings votes with the Repub- 
 lican party. He has held the offices of Assessor and 
 Collector of Tompkins Township, and is one of the 
 honored and respected citizens of Warren County. 
 
 fames W. Van Tasell, farmer on section 1 3, 
 \fc of Lenox Township, is a son of Isaac and 
 Phebe D. (Corgill) Van Tasell. (See sketch 
 of Isaac Van Tasell in this volume.) James W. 
 was born in Kendall Co., 111., Nov. 6, 1855. 
 He received a good common-school education 
 and has all his life been engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits. He was about four years of age when his par 
 
 ents came to Warren County. His marriage occurred 
 in Lenox Township, Sept. 9, 1880, to Catherine Ball. 
 She is the daughter of Frederick and Elizabeth 
 (Wurgler) Ball, natives of Germany. The family 
 emigrated to Canada, where the father died. His 
 widow survives. Mrs. Van Tasell was the third of a 
 family of five children born to them. She was born 
 in Canada, April 4, 1859. Mr. and Mrs. Van Tasell 
 are the parents of one child, Loui I. Mr. Van Tasell 
 in political affairs is a Republican. 
 
 ^arrison Meachum, a farmer pursuing his 
 vocation on section 33, Berwick Township, 
 was born in Onondaga Co., N. Y., March 
 23, 1818, and is a son of Calvin Meachum, who 
 , was likewise born in York State, in 1790, and 
 I who received his death from being thrown from 
 a spirited horse. He lived some 24 hours after the 
 accident, and at the date of his demise was 40 years 
 old. The father was united in marriage to Miss 
 Sally Huntley in 1812. She was born in New York 
 in 1792, and died in 1876, in Livingston Co., N. Y. 
 They were the parents of eight children, four sons 
 and four daughters, and who were named Enos, 
 Porter, Harrison, George, Sally, Hannah, Mary and 
 Eliza. The latter married Mr. Ferris, a resident of 
 Kansas City, and died at Mt. Morris, Livingston 
 Co., N. Y., in 1878. 
 
 Harrison Meachum, the subject of this sketch, 
 came to this State in 1854, and located in Floyd 
 Township, this county, where he remained for four 
 years, until 1858, when he removed to Berwick 
 Township and there bought 1 1 2 acres of good land, 
 with a number of small improvements upon the 
 same. He located upon his land and at once en- 
 gaged upon the arduous task of its improvement and 
 cultivation, and by energy and economy has added 
 to his original purchase until he is the proprietor of 
 260 acres. 
 
 The life of Mr. Meachum has been one of activity 
 and he now has his fine farm under an advanced 
 state of cultivation, and is also devoting considerable 
 of his time to the raising of stock. He has some 40 
 head of cattle on his place, with room for 60 head, 
 and makes the Jerseys a specialty. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Meachum to Miss Cornelia 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 3*3 
 
 Landoii, took place April i, 1840. She was born 
 May 16, 1821, in New Jersey, and moved to York 
 State in 1831, where she resided until her marriage. 
 The issue of their union has been six children, 
 John, William, Harrison S., Mary, Lydia and Bertie. 
 Lydia became the wife of Andy Willard, and died in 
 1875; Bertie married Martin Simmons, and died in 
 1881 ; Mary was married to Harry Murphy, who re- 
 sides in Avon. 
 
 Ebenezer Landon, father of Mrs. Meachum, was 
 born in New York in 1793, and died in 1877. He 
 married Miss Lettie Rich, a. native of Halifax, in 
 1816. She was born in 1800 and came to the State 
 of New York when quite small. The father of Eb- 
 enezer Landon, John Landon, served in the War of 
 1812. Mrs. Meachum's mother is still living, and 
 resides in Berwick village. Her parents' family con- 
 sisted of six children, namely: Henry, Joseph, 
 Frederick, John, Lettie and Martha, and of her 
 marriage with Ebenezer Landon nine children were 
 I f born as follows : Cornelia, Mary, Martin, Susan, 
 i John, Martha, Thomas, Isaac and Elizabeth, only 
 | four of whom are at present living. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Meachum have the following grand- 
 children : Frederick, John Riley, Perly, Lucina, 
 Laura Belle,. John, Allie, Cornelia, Cloy and John 
 Willard. 
 
 Mr. Meacham, in his political opinions, favors the 
 principles advocated by the Greenback party. In 
 days past he belonged to the old line Whig, then 
 voted with the Republican party, but since the 
 former party sprung into existence, has voted with it. 
 
 ^ . ^ <:> ~ . 
 
 :enjamin T. Kettering, a resident of this 
 county since 1853 and one of the large 
 land-owners of Monmouth Township, re- 
 sides on section 27. He was born in Cum- 
 berland Co., Pa., April 16, 1820. The father 
 of Mr. Kettering was a native of the same 
 State as his son and was of German parentage. He 
 was married in his native State to Mary Thompson, 
 a lady of American parentage and Scotch descent. 
 After their marriage, they resided in Chambersburg, 
 Franklin Co., Pa., for a time, when they moved to 
 Cumberland County, that State. Their family con- 
 sisted of eight children. 
 
 Mr. Kettering was next to the youngest in order 
 
 of his parents' children. He lived on the parental 
 homestead, attending the common schools and work- 
 ing on the farm, thereby assisting in the mainten- 
 ance of his family and acquiring a fair English 
 education, until he attained the age of 24 years. In 
 1853, he came West and located in Warren County, 
 since which time he has continued to reside here. 
 The parents came to this county soon afterward and 
 remained until their death. On arriving in this 
 county, Mr. Kettering, of this sketch, first began to 
 work as a general laborer. His capital at the 
 time amounted to the sum of $2.50, and he was con- 
 sequently compelled to engage in work for a living. 
 Prior to attaining his majority Mr. K. had learned 
 the trade of his father, that of shoemaking, but on 
 coming to this State and county, he chose a differ- 
 ent vocation, that of farming, which he has followed 
 until the present time. 
 
 Feb. 8, 1858, five years after his arrival in this 
 county, Mr. Kettering was united in marriage to 
 Mrs. Melinda Murphy, nee Clacomb. She was a na- , 
 tive of Kentucky, in which State she was born Dec. 
 5, 1825, and came herewith her mother and brother, . 
 her father having died in Kentucky. She continued 
 to reside with her mother in this county, assisting her ; 
 in the household duties and attending the com- 
 mon schools, until her marriage to Mr. Murphy. 
 He died a few years after that event, leaving two 
 children to the care of his wife, both of whom have 
 since died, namely: T. Frantz Murphy and Ella O., 
 whose demise occurred when she was a young lady. 
 Of the later union, three children have been born : 
 Hattie B.; Milton A., who resides o.i a farm near 
 Kirkwood, this count/"; Philo E. was married to Sina 
 Frantz, and follows the occupation of farming in this 
 township. 
 
 After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Kettering lo- 
 cated on the homestead which Mrs. Kettering owned 
 previous to their marriage, consisting of a little more 
 than 100 acres, on which they are residing at the 
 present time. 
 
 Mr. Kettering, by energetic labor and economy, 
 coupled with good judgment and perseverance, has 
 since added to the original homestead until at pres- 
 ent the same consists of 400 acres of as good farm 
 land as can be found in Warren County. It is all 
 adjoined and has thereon a good residence, barn and 
 substantial outbuildings, and is regarded as one of 
 the best farms, not only in Monmouth Township, but 
 
324 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 in the county. In his chosen vocation, agriculture, 
 Mr. Kettering has met with more than ordinary suc- 
 cess, and the same is attributable to his indomitable 
 energy and perseverance, coupled with the active co- 
 operation of his good helpmeet. In addition to the 
 cultivation of his land he has been and is devoting 
 considerable time to the raising of stock, in which 
 department of his vocation he is also meeting with 
 success. He and his wife are consistent and active 
 members of the Christian Church. Mr. K. is a 
 Trustee and Deacon of that Church at Momouth, 
 and has been Treasurer of it for some time. In a 
 political sense, Mr. Kettering votes with, and believes 
 in the principles advocated by, the Republican party. 
 
 i,yrus Q. Rankin, one of the large land- 
 owners of Tompkins Township, as well as 
 successful farmers of Henderson County, 
 residing in retirement at his home on section 
 25, Tompkins Township, is a native of Sulli- 
 
 ^ van Co., Ind., where he was born in 1832. 
 William and Elizabeth (Gross) Rankin, his parents, 
 were natives of Pennsylvania and South Carolina 
 respectively. After their marriage, in 1830, they 
 emigrated to this State and located in Henderson 
 County, where the father purchased 1,000 acres of 
 land, and resided on the same for 40 years. He 
 then moved to Monmouth, Warren County, and 
 there passed his remaining days in peace and quiet, 
 retired from the active labors of life, and where he 
 died in 1873. Three years Sater his beloved wife, 
 who had accompanied him through all the trials of 
 the past, followed him to that better land, her de- 
 mise occurring in 1876. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the begin- 
 ning of this biographical notice, remained with his 
 parents until he attained his majority, in the mean- 
 time receiving an education in the common schools. 
 On becoming his own man, he began to trade in 
 stock and land, and was thus occupied until he be- 
 came 24 years of age, when he was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss M. T. Reynolds, a native of Ohio. 
 Before his marriage, he purchased 240 acres of land 
 in Olena Township, Henderson County, on which he 
 moved with his family and was occupied in its im- 
 provement and cultivation for 17 years. During 
 
 these years, by hard labor and economy, he accum- 
 ulated sufficient to enable him to add 620 acres to 
 his original purchase. He then, in 1873, came to 
 this county and for two years resided at Monmouth, 
 where he had purchased a residence and lot. In 
 1874, he purchased 480 acres of land in Tompkins 
 Township, where he removed in 1875, and has re- 
 sided on the same until the present time. He has 
 a $5,000 residence on his farm, together with three 
 barns and good, substantial outbuildings, and the 
 farm presents an appearance indicative of energy 
 and perseverance on the part of its proprietor. 
 
 The children of Mr. and Mrs. Rankin, five in 
 number, are named Elizabeth A., born July 27, 1857 ; 
 Reynolds P., Aug. 10, 1863; Elijah A., Oct. 22, 
 1865 ; Minnie A., Feb. 18, 1869; Edith O.,Feb. 13, 
 1878. Elizabeth was united in marriage with K. D. 
 Bridenthal, and they have become the parents of 
 one child Cyrus W. Elijah A. married Miss Ada 
 Beers, and they have one son, named Earl. 
 
 Mr. Rankin is a believer in and a supporter of the, 
 principles of the Republican party. In religious be- 
 lief, he and his wife both endorse the tenets of the 
 United Presbyterian Church, to which denomination 
 they belong. Mr. Rankin, truly speaking, is one of 
 the leading representative men of his line of busi- 
 ness in Warren County, and his success as an agri- 
 culturist and trader is indicative of his own good 
 good judgment and energy. 
 
 .avid S. Billingsley, owning 80 acres of 
 land in Berwick Township, and residing at 
 Berwick village, where he is engaged in 
 hotel business, and also to some extent in 
 dealing in fine horses and roadsters. He was 
 born in Monongalia Co., W. Va., Sept. 28, 
 i8r2, and is a son of Samuel Billingsley, who was 
 born near Baltimore, Md., in 1778. The latter 
 moved to Virginia, when he was 12 years of age, 
 and there, in Monongalia County, resided, follow- 
 ing the vocation of an agriculturist until his death, 
 which occurred in 1850. He was married to Miss 
 Elizabeth Snider, a native of Virginia. She bore her 
 husband 13 children, whose names were John, Sias, 
 Tobitha, Maria, Samuel, David, Thornton, Louisa, 
 
 3- 
 

 
 
 -K, - 
 
 
WARRE1 
 
 r 
 
 
 Warren, Eugene, Malinda, Mary and Morgan. The 
 wife and mother died in her native State, in 1862. 
 
 David Billingsley, of whom we write, came West 
 April ii, 1855, and located in Warren County. He 
 was married to Elizabeth Barrick, March 16, 1836, 
 in Virginia, Rev. Wood, of the Baptist Church, offi- 
 ciating. She was born Sept. 8, 1814, in Hampshire 
 Co., and bore her husband nine children, four of 
 whom are living. The record of their births are as 
 follows: Eliza Ann, torn Feb. 15, 1837; Louisa, 
 born April 15, 1839; Henry F., April 15, 1841; 
 David Luther, Oct. 23, 1843; Mary, Jan. 14, 1845; 
 Martha, June 9, 1847; Samuel, in August, 1840; 
 Louisa, in 1852; Jane, June 27, 1855. 
 
 The father of Mrs. Billingsley, Henry Barrick, 
 was born in Hancock Co., Va, in 1787, and married 
 Miss Catherine Wetzel about 1812. She was born 
 in 1795, in Maryland, and she and her husband were 
 both of German descent. Their family comprised 
 ten children Elizabeth M., Anna, Peter S., Henry, 
 Isaiah, James M., John W., George and Mary. The 
 father died in 1865, -in Virginia, and the mother in 
 October, 1868. 
 
 Mr. Billingsley is engaged in the hotel business at 
 Berwick village, as above stated. He is an admirer 
 of fine horses, and has done much to develop this 
 noble animal in this part of the county. He also 
 cultivates his farm, and as a business man and genial 
 landlord, is regarded as one of the foremost men not 
 only in Berwick village but also of the county. 
 
 ohn C. Turnbull, a retired farmer, pass- 
 ing the declining years of his life in quiet 
 ease and retirement at Roseville, this 
 county, is a native of Maryland, having been 
 born near Baltimore, Nov. 18, 1812. Mr. 
 Turnbull removed with his parents to New 
 Albany, Ind., when about six years of age (or in 
 1818). His father, John Turnbull, was born in 
 Maryland, Dec. 27, 1780, and died in Jackson Co., 
 Ind., March 28, 1840, in his 6oth year. His mother, 
 Mary (Tonahill) Turnbull, was born in Virginia, Jan. 
 14, 1777, and died March 29, 1820, near New Al- 
 bany, Floyd Co., Ind. They were married July 12, 
 1801, and of their union five children were born, 
 only two of whom at present survive, Mrs. Gossett 
 and John C., the subject of this notice. 
 
 The gentleman, whose life's history is herein 
 briefly summarized, was an inmate of the parental 
 household until 17 years of age, having received 
 what education he acquired in the common schools. 
 After leaving home he worked out by the day and 
 month until the spring of 1835. He then rented a 
 farm in Jackson Co., Ind., which he cultivated until 
 1850, when lie purchased 210 acres of land and was 
 engaged in its cultivation until Sept. 19, 1865. At 
 this date he came to Illinois and located in Warren 
 County, where he purchased 480 acres of land on 
 sections 20 and 21, Roseville Township, and con- 
 tinued to reside upon the same until 1872. He then 
 moved into Roseville, and purchased a lot, erecting 
 there on a fine residence, in which he has since 
 continued tc reside. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Turnbull is a Republican. Reli- 
 giously, he and his wife belong to the Baptist Church. 
 He is a gentleman whose accumulation of this 
 world's goods has been acquired through his own 
 energy, perseverance and good judgment, and is one 
 of the respected and influential citizens of Warren 
 County. Mr. Turnbull has been sadly unfortunate 
 in his married relations, having lost by death two 
 companions. The maiden name of his present wife 
 was Elizabeth Crane, a native of Jackson Co., Ind., 
 their marriage occurring Oct. 19, 1865. His first 
 wife, to whom he was married in Jackson Co., Ind., J 
 Jan. r i, ,1835, was a Miss Rhoda Ann K. Crane, a 
 native of New York State. She died in July, 1859. 
 By this wife he became the father of an only son, 
 John C., born Aug. 29, 1841, in Jackson Co., Ind., 
 who, in 1870, married Susan Gordley, of Brown Co., 
 III., by whom he has two children Warren and 
 Franklin. 
 
 arah J. Chatterton, owning 120 acres of 
 good farm land, located on section 25, 
 Greenbush Township, "where she resides, 
 is the widow of Lewis B. Chatterton, who was 
 born in New York, April 30, 1827, and came 
 to this State in 1836 with his parents and lo- 
 cated with them two miles east of Avon, in Fulton 
 County. He was the son of Cornelius and Lucy 
 (Ball) Chatterton, natives of New York, but of English 
 extraction. The father was a farmer by occupation. 
 Lewis B. was educated at the common schools of 
 
 
.-528 
 
 ry; 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Galesburg, 111. When the " California gold fever '' 
 became epidemic, he was one of the first to yield to its 
 seductive influence, and forthwith hastened to that 
 auriferous country, where he remained five years. 
 A portion of his time while there was occupied in 
 farming. He was united in marriage with Miss 
 Sarah J. Wells ; Aug. 20, 1857, Rev. Reed, of Peoria, 
 officiating. She was born Nov. 25, 1838, in Fulton 
 County, 111., (near Avon), being the daughter of 
 James a. d Roxanna (Stowell) Wells, natives of New 
 York. Mrs. Chatterton's parents died while she was 
 was very young. She bore unto her husband nine 
 children, namely: Freddie, born Sept. 20, 1859; 
 Chester J., born Feb. 16, 1861 ; Bessie E., June 2, 
 1863; Harry L., Nov. 2, 1865; George W., Aug. 25, 
 1877; Willie, June 10, 1870; Carrie L., Oct. 25, 
 1871 ; Henry K., July 25, 1884; Clarence O., Dec. 
 5, 1876. Bessie E. married J. W. Kinross. They 
 are living in Avon, Fulton County, this State, and 
 are the parents of one child, Nealy W. Kinross. 
 
 Mrs. Chatterton, since the death of her husband, 
 continues to reside on the home farm, which is under 
 an advanced state of cultivation, and with the as- 
 sistance of her children, is conducting the same with 
 marked ability and with well merited success. Her 
 place is well supplied with good farm buildings, and 
 last year she disposed of $1,000 worth of stock. Her 
 husband was a Republican in politics, and in relig- 
 ion, a member of the Universalist Church, as is 
 likewise Mrs. Chatterton. Her husband died May 
 19, 1884, on the old homestead. 
 
 A portrait of Mr. Chatterton appears on page 326. 
 
 sn. Azro Patterson, deceased. The Mon- 
 mouth Weekly Review on Friday morning, 
 June 30, 1782, contained 'the following fit- 
 ting obituary of one who was for many years 
 one of the most highly esteemed citizens of this 
 county: "Azro Patterson died at his residence 
 in this city, of Bright's disease of the kidneys, Satur- 
 day evening, June 24, 1882, at 7:15 o'clock, aged 63 
 years, 5 months." 
 
 No death has occurred in Monmouth in the last 
 quarter of a century that has caused such universal 
 
 
 sorrow among all classes of citizens high and low, 
 rich and poor, young and old as the decease of Azro 
 Patterson, and none will be more keenly missed from 
 our midst, particularly by the poor and unfortunate, 
 whose fast friend he was at all times and under all 
 circumstances. 
 
 Mr. Patterson was born in Stowe, Vt., Feb. IT, 
 1819. At the age of six years, with his father's 
 family, he moved from Vermont to Ashtabula, Ohio, 
 where he resided till he was 19 years old, when, in 
 company with a young man named Williams, and 
 about the same age, he started for the West to work 
 out his own fortunes and way through the world. He 
 reached Monmouth in 1837, and as there was no 
 railroad and but few facilities for travel in this coun- 
 try at that early day, he walked all the way from 
 Ashtabula to Monmouth, carrying his scanty pos- 
 sessions in a bundle on his back, and stopped with 
 his brother-in-law, R. N. Allen, who lived in an old 
 log house where his present residence stands. Dur- 
 ing the winter of 1837 he clerked in a dry goods . 
 store in a little frame house on the northwest corner 
 of the square, under what was known as the " old 
 cottonwood tree," for General McAlle.i. The next 
 summer he worked in a brick-yard for Erastus Rice, t 
 whom the early settlers well remember, and helped 
 make the brick of which our old court house is built. 
 Then he taught school at " Allen's Grove," in Ber- 
 wick township, and was very popular as a teacher 
 among the scholars and old settlers. In r839 he 
 went into the employ of S. S. Phelps, of Oquawka, 
 and had charge of the Indian trading store not far 
 from Iowa City, Iowa, and remained in the employ of 
 Mr. Phelps for a number of years. 
 
 In 1845 he was married to Miss Harriet Strong, at 
 Ashtabula, Ohio, and returned to Monmouth with his 
 bride. Her health failing her here, he started back 
 to her home with her, but she died at Beaver, Pa., 
 on the journey. She lived only seven months after 
 their 'marriage. 
 
 In 1848, and while residing at Oquawka, he was 
 elected State Senator from the i7th district. Gilbert 
 Turnbull, of Henderson, and A. C. Harding, of War- 
 ren, were the members of the lower house. In 1850 
 he was elected a member of the lower house of the 
 Illinois Legislature from Henderson and Warren 
 Counties. He was elected on the Democratic ticket, 
 the contest being between Democrats and Whigs. 
 He was never a candidate for any public position 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 3 2 9 
 
 after thai, although entreated times without number 
 by his political and personal friends to allow the use 
 of his name for important public trusts. 
 
 In October, 1849, he was married to the accom- 
 plished Christian lady, Miss Mary Babcock, daugh- 
 ter of an old and valued citizen, E. C. Babcock (see 
 sketch). 
 
 To Azro and Mary Patterson four children were 
 born three of whom died in infancy and but one 
 son, Henry, survives. He is endowed with the ster- 
 ling qualities of his parents. 
 
 After serving in the legislature, Mr. P. located per- 
 manently in Monmouth, and formed a partnership 
 with C. L. Armsby and Jerry Massie in the dry goods 
 trade. They occupied the old frame building that 
 stood north of the Monmouth National Bank building, 
 and afterwards moved to the building now occupied 
 by George Babcock, which was built by Mr. Massie. 
 
 In 1853 he formed a partnership with his brother- 
 in-law, R. N. Allen, in the dry goods trade, which 
 ' continued two years. Mr. Allen then retired from 
 business, and Mr. Patterson continued the trade in a 
 1 frame building that stood on the corner of Broadway 
 
 I and East streets, where the Second National Bank 
 now stands. Some time after Mr. Patterson sold his 
 stock of goods to Major Holt, who continued the 
 business a short time. He again formed a partner- 
 ship with N. A. Rankin and L. S. Wallace, and car- 
 ried on the dry goods trade in the building now oc- 
 cupied by the Spriggs Bros., as a drug store, on the 
 south side of the square. This partnership continued 
 some time, when Mr. Patterson permanently retired 
 from the dry goods trade, and devoted himself ntore 
 particularly to real estate transactions. 
 
 Of Mr. Patterson's father's family there survive 
 him his only brother, Edwin Patterson, and Mrs. R. 
 N. Allen, of Monmouth, and Mrs. S. S. Phelps, Mrs. 
 Dr. Park, Mrs. Asa Smith, of Oquawka, all of whom 
 were present at the funeral except Mrs. Phelps. 
 
 The large throng who were present at the funeral 
 from the town and county and from neighboring 
 places, who met around his coffin to pay their last 
 tribute of love and homage to his memory, but feebly 
 express the veneration in which Azro Patterson was 
 held in this community, where he had spent the 
 prime of his manhood, and had accomplished so 
 much good. His whole life, his noble deeds, are a 
 model for young men, particularly in humble circum- 
 stances, to pattern after and emulate. 
 
 In the proper adjustment of estates, in the settle- 
 ment of differences between man and man, and 
 " pulling men through," as it were, who had become 
 cramped and unfortunate in business transactions, 
 he perhaps did more than any other man in the 
 county. His sound judgment and advice was sought 
 by many, yea, scores of men in Monmouth and through- 
 out the county, in their hours of misfortune and 
 trouble, and they never failed of his tender sympathy, 
 his generous heart, his open hand. 
 
 He was ever the steadfast friend of the unfortun- 
 ate, the poor and the needy, and to him they went 
 as to a father. He visited the widow and the father- 
 less in their afflictions, he fed the hungry, he clothed 
 the naked, he bound up the wounds of the broken- 
 hearted and disconsolate, he buried the dead, he ac- 
 complished all the good for his fellowmen that he 
 could what more could mortal man do? 
 
 He was very decided in his political and religious 
 views, and entertained them honestly and fearlessly, 
 and though others differed with him on these mat- 
 ters, they honored him for the steadfastness with 
 which he clung to what he thought was right. 
 
 In his death this community has suffered a loss 
 that connot be supplied. As a citizen he was inter- 
 ested in all public affairs, and brought to their con- 
 sideration an intelligence, coupled with a judgment 
 of such native accuracy, as rarely permitted the pos- 
 sibility of error. As a business man his character 
 was integrity itself, and to himself, and to all who 
 knew him, his word was as good as his bond. In 
 matters of public spirit, his heart and purse were 
 open and generous, and enterprises of worth and 
 character never sought his aid in vain. As a bene- 
 factor of the poor and distressed, his reputation is 
 enviable indeed, as many who received his assistance 
 will rejoice to remember. Not a few who thought 
 their business affairs hopelessly entangled, and them- 
 selves and families ruined, sought and received his 
 aid, and through his rare business qualities found 
 themselves relieved from embarassment, and the 
 possessors still of home .and shelter. All these things 
 he did from pure, charitable motives, and not for re- 
 muneration. As a friend he was true as the needle 
 to the pole; generous, unselfish and abiding. As a 
 husband and father, he was as affectionate and ten- 
 der as a child, and will be missed from his pleasant 
 home beyond words to express. 
 
 Mr. Patterson began life a poor boy, but long be- 
 
 
33 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 fore his death, he was able to retire from active 
 business with a handsome and fixed income. His 
 parents, Lewis P. and Lucy (Bushnell) Patterson de- 
 scended respectively from Irish and Scotch ancestry. 
 His early education was limited to such as could be 
 acquired at the common schools of his day, but he 
 suffered not from that account. Those who knew 
 him in his mature manhood knevv him as an educat- 
 ed man, for from the variety of his opportunity and 
 experience he had learned much. 
 
 I; aul Brent, owning 200 acres of land on 
 section 8, Ellison Township, and one of the 
 successful farmers as well as respected and 
 honored citizens of Warren County, is a native 
 of Virginia, having been born in Lancaster 
 Co., that State, June 5, 1831. The father of 
 Mr. Brent of this notice, Kenner Brent, Sr., was a 
 native of Virginia, where he was engaged in farming, 
 and where he was united in marriage with Miss 
 Elizabeth Brent, also a native Virginian. They came 
 West in 1836, and settled in Ellison Township, this 
 county, when the same was in its natural condition 
 anH the hand of civilization was hardly visible. He 
 nevertheless procured some land on which he located 
 and at once set about breaking and improving the 
 same, and at one time owned more than 400 acies. 
 He continued to reside in Ellison Township, follow- 
 ing his chosen vocation, until Nov. 27, 1878, when 
 he passed to the land of the hereafter. His wife had 
 preceded him, in 1854. 
 
 Paul Brent, the gentleman of whom we write, is 
 one of 14 children born to his parents. He resided 
 with them until his marriage, which occurred in 
 Monmouth, this county, Aug. 13, 1857. The lady 
 who became his wife was Miss Phebe Moore, 
 daughter of Andrew and Margaret (Cleckner) Moore, 
 natives of Pennsylvania. Her father was a carpen- 
 ter by trade. 
 
 Mrs. Brent was born Oct. 9, 1836, in Ohio, to 
 which State her parents had moved soon after their 
 marriage. They came West in 1842, to Ellison 
 Township, this county, where, a few weeks after ar- 
 rival (Dec. 28, 1842), her father died. Her mother 
 
 was a second lime married, the name of her hus- 
 band being John Brown, a native of South Carolina, 
 and an uncle of Gen. Burnside. Her step-father 
 and mother lived in Ellison Township until their 
 death, Mrs. Brent, wife of the subject of this notice, 
 living with them. Mr. and Mrs. Brent have become 
 the parents of 12 children, seven of whom are liv- 
 ing. The living are: Ida A., Vesper M., Elias G., 
 Eva G., Jessie C., Paul, Jr. and Harry. The 
 names of the deceased are: Oreo E., Marvin M., 
 David L., Minnie and Edwin. 
 
 After Mr. and Mrs. Brent were married, they set- 
 tled on a farm of 40 acres of raw prairie land, and by 
 their united labors and economy, they have increased 
 their landed possessions in Ellison Township until 
 they at present own 200 acres of well improved land 
 and ten acres of timber. They are living on their 
 farm, enjoying the sweets of life after having tasted 
 of the bitter during their years of toil in the past. 
 Mr. Brent also devotes considerable of his time to 
 the raising of stock, Poland China hogs and Short- ' 
 horn cattle. He and his wife, together with some of 
 his children, are members of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church. In politics, Mr. B. casts his vote with 
 the Republican party. 
 
 .amuel E. Grooms, a resident of this county 
 since 1855, and the proprietor of 280 acres 
 of as good tillable land as can be found in 
 Lenox Township, where, on section 20, he re- 
 sides, is a son of Brice and Margaret (Jack- 
 son) Grooms, natives of Pennsylvania. The 
 parents died in their native State and the children 
 born of their union were seven in number, namely : 
 Hamilton, Mary M., Samuel E., Martha A., Leroy 
 W, Elizabeth and William H. 
 
 Samuel E. Grooms, whose name heads this bio- 
 graphical notice, was born in Greene Co., Pa., July 
 7, 1835, where he lived until about 20 years of age, 
 in the meantime attending school in the acquisition 
 of an English education and assisting his father on 
 the farm. In the year 1855, Samuel E. came to 
 Warren County, and later, in 1864, removed to 
 Lenox Township, where he has since resided, mak- 
 
tl 
 
:..*& 
 
 ESIDENCE ON StC..8 
 
 FARM PROPERTY OF D. J. SHAW, SPRING G 
 
 
 Re si PENCE OF J.T. PORTER, SEC. 26., SPRING GROVETOWNSHIP 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 333 
 
 ing the same his permanent home. His farm of 280 
 acres, as stated above, has all been put under excel- 
 ent cultivation, through his energy and industry, and 
 he has erected all the necessary farm buildings 
 thereon, which, in all, preseivts the appearance of 
 thrift and energy. 
 
 Samuel E. Grooms was married to Catherine J. 
 Miller, daughter of Henry and May Miller, on the 
 gth of October, 1859,1)16 ceremony taking place in 
 Berwick Township. Her parents were natives of 
 Virginia and came to Warren County in 1856, re- 
 siding there until the spring of 1885, when they re- 
 moved to Nebraska. Of their union were born ten 
 children, the following being their names: George S., 
 Catherine J., James C., Elizabeth H., Henry I., 
 Hiram C., Mary C., John W., Peach S. and Martha 
 V. Catherine J., our subject's " better half," was 
 born in West Virginia, Feb. 5, 1838, and with her 
 husband has become the parent of three children, 
 Leroy L., Mary A. and William H. Mary A. is the 
 wife of Perry D. White and resides in Lenox Town- 
 ship, having one child, Lottie M. ; Leroy and Will- 
 i iam reside at home. Mr. Grooms has been School 
 7 Director in his townshipj and with his wife belongs 
 to the United Brethren Church. Politically, his 
 affiliations are with the Republican party. 
 
 . oshua Porter, now deceased, was a pioneer 
 of Warren County of 1835. He was born 
 in Athens, Windham Co., Vt., in 1803. 
 He was the son of a farmer and passed his 
 youth and grew to manhood in the county 
 where he was born. The years of his boy- 
 hood were spent in the school-room and aiding in 
 the labors of the farm. 
 
 He was married there to Mary Tinkham, Dec. 
 10, 1831, who was also a native of the same county. 
 Mr. Porter, after his marriage, returned, to the 
 State of New York, locating near Schenectady, 
 where he lived until the year in which he became one 
 of the early settlers in this portion of the State of 
 Illinois. He, with his wife, crossed the intervening 
 country with a horse team and brought with them 
 
 their only child, Mary C., now the wife of W. J. Miller. 
 Their experiences on the route were similar to those 
 that have been so often related in the accounts of 
 those who set out with all the paraphernalia of 
 housekeeping with them in their wagons and who 
 kept up the routine of domestic duties on the road. 
 Their first year in Warren County was passed at 
 Center Grove, near Kirkwood, and in 1 836 they set- 
 tled in the township of Spring Grove, where they 
 made a permanent location. Mr. Porter entered a 
 claim on the southeast quarter of section 26, where 
 he built a log house for the accommodation of his 
 household, which was constructed in the manner 
 common with the settlers in a new country, where 
 all the appurtenances of modern carpentry were 
 lacking. Mr. Porter rived clapboards from logs 
 for covering the roof of his cabin, but in this the 
 family found comfort, health and contentment. 
 Later, when prosperous times warranted, Mr. Porter 
 erected more commodious and convenient buildings 
 for the abode of the household and for farming pur- 
 poses. He improved the entire acreage and lived 
 upon the estate until his death, which event trans- 
 pired Sept. 5, 1874. His wife survived until April 
 10, 1881. The following is the record of their seven 
 children : Mary C. is the wife of William Jackson 
 Miller, of Spring Grcve Township. Ann M. is mar- 
 ried to John Frantz, a sketch of whom is given in 
 another part of this work. William E. lives in Spring 
 Grove Township, as does Thatcher J. M. Constance 
 is the wife of Elias Smith, also of Spring Grove 
 Township. Alice is the wife of Edwin R. Rose, of 
 Kelly Township. Albert resides in Spring Grove 
 Township and is the twin^brother of the sister last 
 named. His residence is on the old Porter homestead. 
 The children are all living and are honored and re- 
 spected members of society. 
 
 Thatcher J. the second son of Joshua and Mary 
 (Tinkham) Porter, was born in Spring Grove Tp., July 
 25, 1841. He grew to manhood in that township 
 and attended the common schools of the neighbor- 
 hood. He was just 20 when the Civil War broke out, 
 and in its second year he entered the service of his 
 country to defend the old flag and the integrity of 
 the Union. In the fall of 1862 he enlisted in Com- 
 pany B, io2d 111. Vol. Inf., and continued in the 
 military service until March, 1863. He received his 
 discharge on account of disability, and returned to 
 his home. He passed the first year after his return 
 
334 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 in seeking to restore his health, and in 1865 be- 
 gan the work of improvement of the farm upon 
 which he has since lived. It is situated on the north- 
 east quarter of section 26, in the township of Spring 
 Grove. When it became his property a log house 
 had been built on the place and in this his family re- 
 sided a few years, or until time and circumstances 
 permitted the construction of a more suitable and 
 satisfactory structure. The estate of Mr. Porter con- 
 tains 360 acres and is all under improvement and 
 enclosed. It comprises the varieties of land which 
 make a farm in Illinois valuable and desirable. 
 There is a grove of native timber of about 50 acres 
 on the place: most of the place, however, is prairie 
 land. A view of his present residence and farm 
 buildings are shown on page 332. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Porter to Kate E. McCoy 
 took place Dec. i, 1864. She was born in Washing- 
 ton Co., Pa., and is the daughter of Thomas and 
 Margaret (Newland) McCoy. Thomas McCoy was 
 a native of Washington Co., Penn., arid was born 
 Dec. 6, 1803. He was of Scotch parentage, Angus 
 and Catherine (Monroe) McCoy, his father and 
 "7 mother, both having come from Scotland. They 
 settled in Pennsylvania, where they were married. 
 I Thomas McCoy grew to manhood in Washington 
 County, where he was married, and where he was 
 engaged in farming. In the spring of 1854, he came 
 to Warren County, first locating in Sumner Town- 
 ship. He remained here, however, but about three 
 months, when he bought a farm on section 27, 
 Spring Grove Township, where he lived until his 
 deiith, which occurred Sept. 19, 1873. His widow is 
 still living and resides on the old homestead with 
 her son, Angus. They had a family of four children, 
 Mary and John M., the eldest, two both died when 
 they were just blooming into manhood and woman- 
 hood. Angus and Mrs. Porter are the other two. 
 Mr. and Mrs. McCoy, after coming to Warren 
 County, connected themselves with the United Pres- 
 byterian Church. Subsequently, Mrs. McCoy be- 
 came a member of the Christian Church. In politics 
 the elder McCoy was a life-long Democrat. 
 
 The children of Mr. and Mrs. Porter are three in 
 number and are named Ada F., Alvin A. and T. 
 Lee. The parents are giving their children the 
 benefits of a good education, affording them far 
 greater advantages in this respect than either of 
 them ever enjoyed. Politically, Mr. Porter is a 
 
 Democrat. He is an excellent citizen and is con- 
 sidered a leading farmer of the county. His place is 
 justly rated as one of the most valuable in Warren 
 County. 
 
 rick Thompson, farmer, residing on sec- 
 tion 4, Berwick Township, was born Feb. 
 21, 1824, in the southern part of Sweden. 
 He emigrated to the " land of possibilities" in 
 1856, landing in New York Aug. 14, of that 
 year. On arrival in New York city Mr- 
 Thompson looked around and came to the conclu- 
 sion that his opportunities to establish a home in 
 that thriving metropolis with his meager means were 
 not encouraging, and he consequently concluded to 
 push farther west. He, therefore, soon after his ar- 
 rival there, came to Galesburg, Knox Co., this State, 
 from which place he came to Cameron, this county, 
 where he remained until the spring of 1857. He 
 then worked by the month at various occupations 
 for three years. 
 
 Dec. 4, 1861, Mr. Thompson enlisted in the War 
 for the Union, joining the 58th 111. Vol. Inf. under 
 Capt. Fuller, and was mustered into the service at 
 Chicago. He participated in the battle of Fort 
 Donelson, was in the three days' fight and at the bat- 
 tle of Pittsburg Landing, April 2, 1862, was taken 
 prisoner, and conveyed to Tuscalonsa, Ala., where he 
 remained 52 days, when he was taken to that " hell- 
 hole," Anderson ville Prison, and was there confined 
 for ten months and four days. He was detailed while 
 at Andersonville to dig graves for Union soldiers 
 who had died in that horrible den, and in the 
 months of June, July and August, Mr. Thompson as- 
 sisted in digging graves for 8,6 10 Union soldiers who 
 had died inside the walls of that filthy and inhuman 
 prison. He was taken, in September, 1864, to Flor- 
 ence, S. C., and there confined in another rebel 
 prison, where he remained until the latter part of De- 
 cember, when he was transferred to Charleston, S. C., 
 and the 7th day of February, 1865, he received his 
 discharge and was mustered out at Chicago. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Thompson to Mrs. Phebe 
 Charles took place Oct. 25, 1860. She was born 
 May 6, 1827, in Ohio, and died March 10, 1883. 
 By her former marriage she became the mother of 
 
-4- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 335 
 
 four children. Of her union with Mr. Thompson, 
 the following children were born, namely : Hannah 
 E., born Oct. 28, 1861; Ahnira J., Oct. 3, 1863; 
 James A., Nov. 3, 1868 ; Laura M., April 26, 1870. 
 James A. died Nov. 18, 1879. 
 
 Mr. Thompson is the proprietor of 58 acres of 
 land where he resides; has a good residence upon 
 his place, and is engaged in general farming, meeting 
 with success in his vocation. He and his family 
 are members of the Christian Church, and Mr. 
 Thompson, as long as he remembers the terrible trial 
 he passed through while a prisoner in rebel prisons, 
 will never fail to vote the Republican ticket. 
 
 . esse Biggs, owning 364 acres of good 
 farm land under excellent cultivation, lo- 
 cated on section 2, Roseville Township, 
 where he resides and is engaged in farming 
 and stock-raising, was born in Tennessee, Jan. 
 13, 1808, his parents being Reuben and 
 Catherine (Sailing) Riggs, natives of North Carolina. 
 The parents of Mr. Riggs, of this sketch, in 1818, 
 ten years after the birth of Jesse, moved from Ten- 
 nessee to Missouri and there purchased 160 acres of 
 land. They remained on the same for ten years, 
 where his father was engaged in its cultivation. In 
 1828 his father sold his farm in Missouri and came 
 to this State, locating in Morgan County, where he 
 became owner by purchase of 120 acres, on which he 
 resided for a number of years, when they came to 
 live with their son, the subject of this notice, with 
 whom they resided during the remainder of their 
 lives and were buried in Berwick Seminary. Their 
 family consisted of 12 children, n of whom lived 
 to become men and women, and three of whom yet 
 survive. 
 
 Jesse Riggs, whose biography we write, is the 
 sixth child in order of birth of his parent's family of 
 12 children. He remained at home assisting in the 
 maintenance of the family until 28 years of age. 
 From the age of his majority until 28, he took charge 
 of and cultivated his father's farm on shares. After 
 leaving home, Mr. Riggs came to Warren County, in 
 
 1834, and for ii years followed farming on rented 
 land. At the expiration of that time he purchased 
 80 acres in Lenox Township and resided thereon, 
 engaged in its cultivation six years, when, by ad- 
 ditional purchase, he added 50 acres to the same. 
 He then sold the entire tract and purchased 220 
 acres in Berwick Township. On this tract he moved 
 with his family and engaged in farming until 1864, 
 when he sold it and purchased 160 acres in Lenox 
 Township, which, after working two years, he also 
 sold. He then purchased 174 acres in the same 
 township and lived on that place for six years, when 
 he closed out his landed interests in that Section by 
 sale and bought the property on which he at present 
 resides, which consists of 364 acres. 
 
 Mr. Riggs lost his first two companions. By his 
 first wife he had three children, Martha E., John 
 T. and Jonathan P. The issue of the second union 
 was four children, who are living, as follows: James 
 O., Mary E., Henry H. and Eliza J. Mr. Riggs 
 married the third time in 1865, the lady chosen to 
 share his joys and sorrows, successes and reverses, 
 being Miss Emeline Vandeveere, a native of War- 
 ren Co., 111., and she has borne to her husband four 
 children, Frank, Florence H., Bertie M. and Willis. 
 
 Mr. Riggs is a Democrat and has held various 
 offices of his township and county, and with his wife 
 is a member of the Baptist Church. Mr. Riggs is 
 considered one of the solid and substantial men of 
 Warren County. 
 
 
 
 illiam H. Cable, engaged as an agricul- 
 turist, residing upon section 29, Floyd 
 Township, was born April 6, 1835, his 
 parents being Henry and Olive (Kingsley) 
 Cable. His father was born Sept. 8, 1795 
 in Columbia Co., N. Y., and came to Floyd 
 Township, Nov. i, 1835, where he resided until April, 
 1867, when he moved to Monmouth, in which place 
 he resided until liis death. He was six weeks on the 
 journey from his native State, coming down the Ohio 
 to Cairo, and from that place to St. Louis, finally 
 landing at Yellow Banks, now called Oquawka. At 
 the latter place he started with teams to Monmouth, 
 
( 
 
 336 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 where he found but one frame building in the city. 
 His marriage was celebrated on the 28th of April, 
 i8t6, in New York, with Miss Olive Kingsley, 
 mother of our subject, she having been born in Con- 
 necticut, April 16, 1792. To use Mr. Cable's own 
 language (expressed with a pride which reflects credit 
 upori him as a son), his mother was a " genuine Con- 
 necticut Yankee," who " spun the yarn from which 
 his father's wedding suit of clothes were made," Her 
 demise occurred Feb. 23, 1876, at the age of 83 years, 
 to months and 7 days. Mr. Henry Cable died after a 
 life of hard work, on the 8th of March, 1878. Their 
 family consisted of Mary, born April i, 1819; Ezra, 
 Feb. n, 1821; George C., April r, 1823; Chancy 
 M., May 19, 1825 ; Elizabeth A , Dec. 19, 1828, and 
 William H., of whom we write this biographical no- 
 tice. 
 
 Miss Mary A. Chaffee was the lady chosen to 
 share the joys and sorrows, successes and reverses of 
 Mr. William H. Cable, their marriage occurring Aug. 
 r 25, 1858. She was born in Wyoming Co., N. Y., 
 July 24, 1839, and of her union with Mr. Cable, five 
 children were born, all surviving. Charles H., born 
 July 31, 1860; Francis E., June 17, 1862; Henry 
 G., April 24, 1864; Eddy D., April 6, 1866; Albert 
 B., April 20, 1876. Henry, the third in order of 
 birth, was severely injured when 16 years of age by 
 the bursting of a circular saw operated for the pur- 
 pose of sawing stove wood at his father's door. While 
 the lad stood throwing away the blocks as they fell 
 from the machine, he was struck by a piece of the 
 bursted saw (measuring 16 x 28 inches) at the edge 
 of the hair over the left eye, tearing away a piece 
 from the skull 2> x $% inches. The scalp wound 
 was 13 inches in circumference, but the wound 
 healed without any artificial appliance, and to-day he 
 is in a sound physical condition, and with mental 
 faculties unimpaired and of the brightest order. He is 
 now residing in Minneapolis, Minn., holding a posi- 
 tion as Clerk in the Security Bank of Minnesota. He 
 is 21 years of age. 
 
 Mr. William H. Cable came to Illinois with his 
 parents when but six months old, in 1835. He has 
 160 acres of good land under excellent cultivation 
 and improvement. Upon it he has erected a dwel- 
 ling 30 x 34 feet in dimensions, with a fine grove of 
 forest trees surrounding it. He has a herd of about 
 25 head of Short-horn cattle highly graded, and his 
 horses are of the Hambletonian and Bashaw grades. 
 
 He is also the owner of a pair of Clydesdale colts of 
 very fine breed. Mr. Cable is now serving as Jus- 
 tice of the Peace in this township, having served as 
 School Director for 12 or 14 years. He and his wife 
 are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
 having belonged to this denomination for over 31 
 years. Politically, he is identified with the Republi- 
 can party. The Cable family originated from Ger- 
 many. Their great-grandfather emigrated to this 
 country in the early part of the 1710 century. 
 
 obert B. Woodward. One of the exten- 
 sive farmers of Roseville Township and 
 large land-owners of the county, is Mr. R. 
 B. Woodward: He is a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania and was born in Fayette Co., Oct. 14, 
 1829, his parents being Davis and Mary 
 (Boyd) Woodward, also natives of the Keystone 
 State. By occupation, the father, Davis, was en- 
 gaged in farming. He was married in 1828, and to 
 that union 13 children were born, 12 of whom grew 
 to maturity, and 1 1 survive their parents. The fam- 
 ily were from Cumberland County and moved West 
 to Fayette County. 
 
 Robert B. was the eldest child of his parents' 
 family, receiving at their hands a good common- 
 school education and assisting them whenever it was 
 possible until he attained the age of majority, when 
 he went out to earn his own livelihood, wholly de- 
 pendent upon himself. He rented a farm, which he 
 continued for two years, having had fair success, and 
 March 31, 1853, came to Illinois and located in 
 Roseville Township, this county, where he purchased 
 187 acres of land upon section 30, 20 acres of which 
 was timber. Upon this tract of land he remained, 
 engaged in its cultivation and improvement, until he 
 has increased his landed interests to 561 acres. He 
 is extensively engaged in the stock business and is 
 meeting with success. 
 
 Dec. 5, 1850, the marriage of Mr. Robert B. 
 Woodward and Miss Sarah A. Work, native of Penn- 
 sylvania, was solemnized. She was the daughter of 
 Andrew and Amy (Harris) Work, also natives of 
 that State. Mr. and Mrs. Woodward have had their 
 
^v 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 339 i 
 
 home circle blessed with the birth of six children, all 
 of whom survive, and of whom the following is a brief 
 memorandum: Mary, Davis A., Andrew D., Seth, 
 Jacob H. and Viola. Mary, wife of Charles Steward, 
 resides in Franklin Co., Kan. ; Davis A. married 
 Annie Wilson, a resident of Roseville Township; 
 Andrew D. married Priscilla Boyd, and is a farmer 
 in Point Pleasant Township; Seth married Ida 
 Lippe and is an occupant of the home farm ; Jacob 
 H. and Viola are still at home. 
 
 Mr. Woodward is a Democrat in political affilia- 
 tion, and, socially, belongs to the Select Knights and 
 is a member of the A. O. U. W. He is a director 
 and stockholder in the Roseville Union Bank, and is 
 one of the prominent and substantial men of Warren 
 County. Mrs. Woodward is a member of the Con- 
 gregational Church. 
 
 i ohn B. Sofield, of the firm of Sofield & 
 Schussler, successors to D. Harvey, dealer 
 in hardware, stoves, tinware and agricul- 
 tural implements, at Monmouth, was born at 
 Lawrenceville, Tioga Co., Pa., March 26, 1833. 
 His parents, John and Julia A. (Grant) Sofield, 
 natives of New Jersey and Connecticut respectively, 
 and dating their early ancestry back to old England, 
 were married in the State of New York, where two 
 of their children were born. The rest of their four 
 sons and five daughters were born in Pennsylvania. 
 The senior Mr. Sofield, who was for many years in 
 the hardware business at Wellsborough, Pa., died at 
 that place in 1860, aged about 58 years His widow 
 survived him eight years, and died at the age of 63. 
 Their eldest son, Alfred J. Sofield, was a. Captain in 
 the Union Army and lost his life at Gettysburg. His 
 Company was attached to the celebrated " Buck 
 Tails," 149111 Pa. Vol. Inf. 
 
 John B. Sofield was educated at the public schools 
 and at Wellsborough Academy. When between 16 
 and 17 years of age, he began learning the tinner's 
 trade, and in about a year and a half went into the 
 stove and tinware business at Wellsborough, which 
 he followed nine years. He then removed to Iowa 
 
 and a few months later to Osawatomie, Kan., where 
 he spent three years in the hardware business. In 
 1860 he'came to Warren County, where his principal 
 business has been in dealing in hardware, stoves, 
 tinware, etc. He was permanently located 20 years 
 at Kirkwood, coming to Monmouth in 1880. He 
 retained his interest, however, at Kirkwood, until 
 1883. He was appointed Postmaster at Kirkwood, 
 in 1879, but held the office only a few months, find- 
 ing the position irksome and militating to too great 
 an extent against the interests of his private busi- 
 ness. While at Kirkwood, he was several terms a 
 member of the Common Council of that city, a posi- 
 tion that has also been thrust upon him since coming 
 to Monmouth. 
 
 Aside from his mercantile business, Mr. Sofield is 
 largely interested in banking, to which he has given 
 considerable attention. He is eminently a business 
 man, full of energy and activity and possessed of a 
 high order of executive ability. 
 
 At Galesburg, this State, Mr. Sofield was married . 
 Oct. 18, 1859, to Miss Helen M. Smalley, native of ; 
 Madison Co., N. Y. They have one child, a daugh- , 
 ter. Mr. Sofield is ever an active Republican in , 
 politics, but his religion is liberal and broad. Both ' 
 he and Mrs. Sofield are members of the Universalist j 
 Church. 
 
 'lexander Hamilton Swain, editor and 
 proprietor of the Monmouth Review, a 
 history of which paper, see elsewhere in 
 
 rthis work, was born in Fayette Co., Pa., Oct. 
 13, 1828. His father was Wilson Swain, a 
 native of Pennsylvania and descended from 
 the German ; and his mother was Rebecca Mc- 
 Cracken, daughter of Rev Alex. McCracken, a pion- 
 eer Methodist preacher of Ohio, but a native of 
 Ireland, dating his ancestry back to the Scotch who 
 fled into Ireland at the time of the Romish persecu- 
 tion. Wilson Swain and Miss McCracken were mar- 
 ried in Fayette Co., Pa., where their five sons and 
 one daughter were born, and there the two old peo- 
 ple spent their lives. Mr. Swain died in 1845, aged 
 60 years, and his widow, in 1852, aged 68 years. 
 Alexander Hamilton Swain, whose name would in- 
 
 1 
 
 
34 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 
 dicate that the senior Swain leaned rather to the 
 Federal than to the Republican party of that time, 
 was the youngest of the five sons. The eldest, John, 
 developed into a river man (Steam-boat Captain), 
 and died in 1845 ; the second son, William T., be- 
 came a merchant and subsequently a soldier. He 
 was Captain of Co. H, I2th 111. Vol. Inf., and was 
 killed at Shiloh; the third son, Andrew J , grew into 
 a preacher in the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 
 and the fourth son, Wilson, learned to be a blacksmith, 
 and died at Uniontown, Pa., in 1850; the daugher, 
 Rebecca, married a Mr. T. A. Stone, and died in 
 1864, at Uniontown. 
 
 Alexander Swain, subject of this notice, was at 
 Uniontown College when his father died and from 
 that day he had to shift for himself. The Genius of 
 Liberty, a Democratic paper, was established at 
 Uniontown, in 1805, and through all the various 
 changes of eight decades, it has stood by its colors; 
 demonstrating the appropriateness of its title and is a 
 flourishing Democratic paper, A. D. 1886. In the office 
 of this paper, young Swain began to be a printer, and 
 here he worked for several years. In 1853, he land- 
 ed at Tiskilwa, Bureau County, this State, and there 
 worked about nine months for his merchant brother. 
 He next took employment as a printer on the Knox- 
 ville Journal, coming from there to Monmouth, in 
 1855. Friday, Dec. 28, 1855, the Monmouth Re- 
 view made its first appearance, and though its editor 
 and proprietor possessed but a very limited cash 
 fund when he struck the town, his paper has ap- 
 peared regularly every Friday, from that day to this 
 a period covering near a third of a century each 
 succeeding issue presenting a more promising indica- 
 tion of perpetual existence. That its many readers 
 may know that its Democracy, pure as it is to-day, is 
 but the embodiment of the time honored principles 
 of that great party, untarnished and unchanged by 
 the wear and tear of ages, we reproduce here, the 
 salient points set forth in Mr. Swain's salutatory of 
 over 30 years ago. 
 
 " In commencing the Monmouth Review we feel 
 called upon to make a short statement to the pub- 
 lic of our views and intentions in the future publica- 
 tion of this paper. Our movement in the present 
 instance has not been prompted by any spirit of con- 
 tention or desire to assail those who may differ with 
 us in opinion, but from the evident demands of the 
 growth and improvement of the country, and the 
 
 party whose principles we wish to advocate. The 
 Democratic party in this section of the State appears 
 to require an organ which should express their views, 
 uphold Democratic principles and seek to extend the 
 influences of Democracy among the people. How 
 far we shall succeed in performing this oner- 
 ous task it is not for us to say, more than that we 
 shall set ourselves with all our abilities to its per- 
 formance. The Democratic party at this time occu- 
 pies a singular position before the country ; beset by 
 all the different factions and organizations of the day 
 whose policy for the time is to drop minor differences 
 and unite for the defeat of that one party, which has 
 ever maintained its part as a barrier against section- 
 alism on the one hand and lawlessness on the 
 other. In reference to the important and exciting 
 issues which divide and excite the people, we stand 
 on the broad National platform of the Democracy of 
 the whole Union which allows the people of the sev- 
 eral States and Territories to regulate their domestic 
 concerns in their own way, which extends to the 
 needy of every country and clime the rights and 
 privileges we so bountifully enjoy, irrespective of 
 their religious and political opinion or place of, 
 birth." 
 
 The files of the Review attest the adherence of its 
 editor to the principles he has honestly thought 
 right. Though many have differed and will continue 
 to differ with him, none have ever doubted his sin- 
 cerity. His paper has always championed the weak 
 as against the strong, has always advocated the ad- 
 vancement of public interest and in no instance has 
 it groveled in the slum of personal abuse unaccom- 
 panied by public duty. Mr. Swain was one of the 
 original 12 to organize the Warren County Library 
 and that greatest of all the city's public institutions, 
 owes much of its success to the influences wielded 
 by Editor Swain and his paper. Personally, Mr. Swain 
 has been but little in politics. He was a candidate 
 for Circuit Clerk in 1864, and defeated by methods 
 that would never be tolerated when the country was 
 at peace. In 1869-70, he was Journal Clerk of the 
 Constitutional Convention, and as such wrote the 
 present Constitution of Illinois. 
 
 Mr. Swain is a 32d degree Mason ; served 14 
 years as High Priest in Chapter, and some years as 
 illustrious Grand Master of Council. June 9, 1856. 
 at Knoxville, 111., Mr. Swain was married to Miss 
 Mary Louisa Brewer, cousin of Dr. Brewer, whose 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 34i 
 
 biography is presented in another part of this vol- 
 ume. Their only daughter, Mary Rebecca, is mar- 
 ried to E. C. Babcock, of Butte City, M. T. 
 
 A portrait of Mr. Swain accompanies this sketch 
 of his life. 
 
 fndrew J. Reid is a resident on section 4 
 of the township of Spring'Grove. He was 
 born in the town of Greenwich, Washington 
 Co., N. Y., and is the son of Peter'and Phebe 
 (Hutchins) Reid. His parents were both born 
 in the same county where their son first saw 
 the light of day. His birth occurred July 9, 1833. 
 Alexander Reid, his paternal grandfather, was also 
 a native of the State of New York and was a Lieu- 
 tenant in the Continental Army. He was a partici- 
 pant in the battle of Hubbardton in Rutland Co., 
 Vt., the only authenticated'battlefield of the Revo- 
 lution in the Green Mountain State. John Reid, 
 the great-grandfather, was a native of Scotland, and 
 he was one of the earliest settlers of Washington 
 Co., N. Y., where he settled on a tract of land known 
 . as the " Argyle Patent." The maternal grandmother 
 was a native of Nova Scotia. In her girlhood, she 
 was Eunice Campbell. Her father was of the 
 Campbell clan. 
 
 The father of Mr. Reid of this sketch was 
 reared on the home farm and became quite famous 
 as a naturalist. He was one of those who classified 
 and arranged the flora of the Empire State. He 
 was well known through his writings for the Spirit 
 Of The Times. His death took place in Greenwich, 
 Washington Co., N. Y.. in September, 1878, at the 
 age of 83 years and two months. The mother died 
 in 1878, aged 76. Six of 11 children of whom they 
 became the parents, are still living. Alexander H. 
 resides in De Kalb Co., 111. ; Andrew J. is the next 
 in order; Jane E. is the wife of John Wellman, of 
 Greenwich, N. Y. ; Catherine is married to H. L. 
 Pratt, of Westfield, ChautauquaCo., N. Y. ; Margaret 
 is the wife of Edward Orcutt, of Cambridge, Wash- 
 ington Co., N. Y. ; Emily A, is married to William T. 
 Creighton, of Harper City, Kan. 
 
 Mr. Reid grew to the age and condition of man- 
 hood in the county where he was born, and received 
 
 the training of a farmer's son. He obtained a de- 
 gree of learning which enabled him to engage in 
 teaching, and for a time he was occupied in that 
 pursuit. In 1857 he came to Illinois. He passed 
 three years in farming in Mercer County, and in 
 1860 came to Warren County and followed the same 
 pursuit in the summer seasons and taught school 
 winters until he decided to enter the military service 
 of the United States. He enlisted Sept. 30, 1861, 
 in Co. G, 3oth 111. Vol. Inf., and continued to dis- 
 charge military duty until he received an honorable 
 discharge, Dec. 21, 1862, for disability. He was in 
 the actions at Fort Donelson and Britton's Lane, 
 near Denmark. After his return to Warren County, 
 he located upon the farm where he now resides. It 
 was unimproved at the time, but under his skillful 
 management it was soon placed in proper condition 
 for prosperous agriculture. In 1872 he engaged in 
 mercantile business at Norwood, in which pursuit he 
 continued for seven years, when he again resumed 
 fanning. In political relations, he is a Republican. 
 His marriage to Selinda E. Boggs took place June 
 3, 1863. She was born in Huntingdon Co., Pa., 
 and is the mother of two children, Gertrude and 
 Eva May. 
 
 I. Field. Among the energetic and pros- 
 fc perous agriculturists of Warren County, is 
 Mr. Field of this notice, who is a resident 
 on section 15, Tompkins Township, and a na- 
 tive of the Buckeye State, having been born 
 there in the year 1819. Jacob and Martha 
 (Inman) Field, the parents of Mr. J. I. Field of this 
 writing; were natives of the State of Pennsylvania, 
 coming to Ohio from the latter State in the year 
 1818. The father, Jacob, resided in Ohio until 
 1854 (the mothers demise having occurred in 1849), 
 when he came to the State of Illinois, and located in 
 Henderson County, where he purchased land and 
 engaged in farming until his death, in 1875. 
 
 J. I. Field remained with his parents until he at- 
 tained the age of 30 years, or the year in which the 
 death of his mother occurred. He attended the com- 
 mon schools and at the age of 15 years engaged un- 
 der his father's instruction [to learn the blacksmith's 
 
f > 
 
 342 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 trade, at which he worked for 15 years in his father's 
 shop. He then came to this State and purchased 
 1 60 acres of raw prairie land in Walnut Grove Town- 
 ship, Henderson County, upon which he moved and 
 engaged in the laborious task of its improvement 
 and cultivation, and to which, by a subsequent pur- 
 chase, he added 80 acres. He continued to reside 
 on this land until 1876, when he sold out and moved 
 into the village of Kirkwood, there purchasing a lot 
 and residence, in which he resided for 18 months. 
 He then sold l.is village property a|id bought 160 
 acres of land, located upon sections 10 and 15. On 
 this land he moved his family and once more engag- 
 ed in the vocation of an agriculturist, which he has 
 successfully continued until the present time. He 
 has an excellent farm, with good residence and out- 
 buildings, and its general appearance and actual 
 condition is highly indicative of that thrift and ener- 
 gy which its owner possessses. 
 
 In 1857 Mr. Field was married to Miss Jane Math- 
 ews, a native of the State of Pennsylvania, and who 
 bore him three children, Martha J., William E.and 
 Joseph F. The wife and mother, after accompany- 
 ing her husband through the trials of 17 years, pass- 
 ed to the land of the hereafter, her death occurring 
 in 1874. In his political views, Mr. Field coincides 
 with the principles of the Republican party. His 
 religion is the same as that of the United Presbyter- 
 ian Church, of which denomination at Kirkwood, he 
 is a member. 
 
 . ohn Bennet, who, after the many struggles 
 which he has e.ncountered'in his more than 
 four score years, is now able to sit in the 
 midst of peace and plenty, while viewing the 
 the golden sunset of life in the domestic qui- 
 etude of his farm, on section 16, Tompkins 
 Township. He was born in Montgomery Co., N. Y., 
 July 13, 1800, his parents being James and Hannah 
 (Sharp) Bennett, natives of South Catolina and New 
 York respectively. 
 
 Mr. Bennett of this notice was an inmate of the 
 the parental household until 20 years of age. He re- 
 
 ceived such education as was to be acquired at the 
 district schools, and in 1824, after leaving the home 
 of his parents, he purchased a tract of farm land on 
 time, which, however, owing to reverses, he was un- 
 able to pay for. After this first bitter experience 
 with the " ups and downs "of life, he was occupied 
 until 1854 in agricultural pursuits on rented land in 
 his native State. In 1854 Mr. Bennett came to Il- 
 linois and purchased a farm of 80 acres in Warren 
 County, located on section 16, Tompkins Township, 
 on which he established a home for his family, and 
 for eight years he continued to reside thereon, dilli- 
 gently cultivating the soil. In 1865 he sold his 80- 
 acre tract and purchased the farm upon which he 
 has since resided. His improvements are of the 
 best quality and his farm is indicating of that push 
 and energy which has characterized the life of Mr. 
 Bennett. 
 
 Mr. Bennett has been twice married. His first 
 marriage was to Miss Lydia Thorp, January, 1821, 
 and by whom he had two children. Miss Melinda 
 Thorp became his second wife. In politics Mr. Ben- 
 nett is a strong advocate of the principles of the Re- 
 pyblican party. In religion he and his wife are lx>th 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 
 .ugh Martin, deceased, was a pioneer of 
 Warren County and came hither in 1832, 
 in which year he located in that part of the 
 county now included in the township of Sum- 
 ner. He was born in Westmoreland Co., Pa. 
 It is a. tradition that his father was an Indian 
 captive 12 years. Mr. Martin was married in his 
 native county to Margaret Brown, who was born in 
 Ireland. She came to this country at the age of 14. 
 On the route the vessel was captured by pirates. Half 
 of the crew from the freebooter was placed on board, 
 and one-half of the captured crew transferred to 
 pirate vessel. In the course of the storm that soon 
 after arose, the vessels became separated and that 
 portion of the captured crew left on board their own 
 ship, mutined (if such a term can properly apply) 
 and retook their ship. They made the port of New 
 York in safety and the owners of the vessel refunded 
 the passage money to the passengers. Mrs. Martin 
 
 
RESIDENCEOF JOHN SIMCOCK.SEC-H.SPRING GROVETOWNSHIP. 
 
 JOYDOR STUD FARM , OWKCD BY JOHN J.lvEY,5Ec.,33.SurviNE:R TOWNSHIP. 
 

 
 i 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 345 
 
 came in company with her brother and they located 
 in Pennsylvania. Seven years later her mother and 
 other members of the family came from the Green 
 Isle to join them. 
 
 Soon after his marriage, Mr. Martin went to Mus- 
 kingum Co., Ohio, being one of the earliest of its 
 pioneer population. In 1829, in company with his 
 wife and seven children, he set his face toward Illi- 
 nois. He drove a four-horse team across the many 
 intervening miles and made the trp in the Gipsy 
 fashion. After six weeks travel they arrived in Ful- 
 ton County. Mr. Martin bought a half-section of 
 land for which he paid $200. He rented a few acres 
 of timber which was in the vicinity of his pur- 
 chase, on which a log- cabin had been erected, and 
 the humble structure sheltered the family three 
 years. At the end of that time another removal 
 brought the household to Warren County. This was 
 in the fall of 1832. Mr. Martin pre-empted a claim 
 on section 28, in what became Sumner Township, 
 when the work of county organization was com- 
 pleted. He built a log house on his claim, which 
 , was his home until death. He was a hard-working, 
 honest man and was frugal in habits, and judicious 
 in the management of his affairs. Before he died he 
 was the owner of 600 acres of land which was dis- 
 tributed among his children previous to his death. 
 His second son, William, was the first of the family to 
 reach the site of Sumner Township. He was mur- 
 dered by the Indians in August, 1832. 
 
 *ohn J. Ivey is a farmer and breeder of 
 thoroughbred horses and trotting stock, 
 and resides on section 33, of Sumner Town- 
 ship. He is a native of Tennessee and is a 
 descendant of parents who were born respect- 
 ively in Virginia and Northern Tennessee. 
 His father, David A. Ivey, was a native of Sussex 
 Co., Va. He was old enough to take a part in the 
 war of 1812, when that struggle broke out, and after- 
 ward married a lady named Mourning Mason. She 
 was the daughter of a "hard-shell" Baptist preacher, 
 and her parents were natives of North Carolina. 
 The marriage took place in Robertson Co., Tenn., 
 
 where they lived about four years. They then went 
 to Logan Co., Ky., where the father purchased a 
 tract of timber three miles from the State line. He 
 lived to clear a farm upon which he died in 1867, 
 his wife following him in 1870. All their lives were 
 passed in the practice of the principles of Chris- 
 tianity, and they were consistent members of the 
 Methodist Church. They left a record which still 
 exerts an influence on those to whom their careers of 
 uprightness and integrity were well known. Six of 
 their children grew to maturity. Carrie, the oldest, 
 remained with her parents until their respective 
 deaths. She now resides with her brother in Sum- 
 ner Township. Virginia is also a member of the 
 household of her brother. James A. is a preacher in 
 the Methodist Church, and is now stationed at New 
 Orleans. Joseph died on the homestead in Kentucky. 
 Ellen is the wife of the Rev. James A. Lewis, of 
 Kentucky. 
 
 Mr. Ivey was born Dec. 6, 1827, in Robertson Co., 
 Tenn. He was but a few months old when his par- 
 ents removed to Kentucky, where he was brought 
 up on the farm of his father. The residence was in 
 Logan County and the boy passed his time mostly in 
 farm labor, with the exception of the winter seasons 
 which were spent in obtaining an education in the 
 select schools. His first engagement in active life . 
 was as a clerk in a store in Keysburg, where he 
 operated three years and went thence to Clarksville, 
 Tenn. At that place he continued in the same voca- 
 tion in a wholesale and retail establishment, where 
 he continued three years. He then formed a part- 
 nership with R. M. House, whereby he acquired an 
 interest in the oldest grocery house in Clarksville. 
 The relation continued until 1859 when it was ter- 
 minated by the death of Mr: House. After an ex- 
 perience alone, of about the duration of a year, he 
 sold out and went to that part of Steward County, 
 Tennessee, which is now included in Houston 
 County, and there bought a farm and milling prop- 
 erty the latter including a saw and flour mill. He 
 superintended these interests until interrupted by 
 circumstances growing out of the bitter internecine 
 war. He was a slave-holder and withal a' Union 
 man of decided and declared opinions. Unfortu- 
 nately, his ideas were not those that generally pre- 
 vailed there and he soon found himself in incogenial 
 quarters. His life was unsafe and eventually the 
 fate that overwhelmed all who had the smallest re- 
 
 - 
 
 T 
 
346 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 -- 
 
 spect for an integral Union, overtook him. His 
 property was confiscated and he became a fugitive 
 in the woods of the State where he had added to the 
 general prosperity without the privilege of cherishing 
 his own views of his rights as a man. After the fall 
 of Fort Donelson the Union commander removed the 
 family of Mr. Ivey under a guard of protection to the 
 home of his father in Kentucky. The Union forces 
 were under obligations to him for services for which 
 his knowledge of th surrounding country especially 
 fitted, and he acted as a scout and guide for the 
 soldiers. He was chiefly identified with the 83d 111. 
 Vol. Inf. In consequence of these important ser- 
 vices his interests received special attention at the 
 hands of the victors at Fort Donelson, and his family 
 was removed to safe quarters, and provided for. His 
 services to the Union cause, having rendered him 
 peculiarly unpopular among the people of Stewart 
 Co., Tenn., a return to his home in that section, 
 after the close of the war would have been, to say 
 the least, an unwise movement. He therefore con- 
 cluded to cast his fortunes with that part of the 
 Union whose side he had espoused in the course of 
 the conflict. As many of those with whom he had 
 become acquainted in the army were from War- 
 ren Co., 111., that fact determined his future and he 
 came hither. He arrived at Oquawka, July 4, 1865, 
 and came directly to Sumner Township. He had al- 
 ready bought 200 acres of land in that township, on 
 sections 29 and 33, and on his arrival he took pos- 
 session of the property. His family removed to a 
 small frame house which had been built previous to 
 his purchase. All the structures on The place, in- 
 cluding the fences, were in a state of dilapidation 
 and he at once set about the work of putting every- 
 thing into presentable conditition. He has erected a 
 fine large farmhouse and an excellent barn, beside 
 other buildings. He has also added 60 acres addi- 
 tional to the farm and the whole place is in the best 
 possible condition for profitable fanning. The place 
 is thus thoroughly well adapted to all the uses of 
 agriculture. It is supplied with running water, tim- 
 ber and building stone of a good quality. For a time 
 Mr. Ivey directed his attention to the breeding of 
 mules and operated with success in that line, until 
 1 88 1, when lie commenced to raise thoroughbred 
 Kentucky horses for the track. At present he has 
 eight of them in training, six of the number having 
 made a record at the agricultural exhibitions in the 
 
 adjoining counties in the autumn of 1885. An ex- 
 cellent view of Mr. Ivey's fine homestead is presented 
 elsewhere. 
 
 Mr. Ivey is a firm adherent of the Republican 
 party in his political views and connections. He is 
 a man of ability and one who is awake to all issues 
 that can affect the general welfare. He is thor- 
 oughly versed in the current news of the day, and 
 abreast of the advancement of the period. He is a 
 thoroughly domestic man with all the excellences of 
 character that mark men of like proclivities. He 
 has served two years as Supervisor of Sumner Town- 
 ship. 
 
 His marriage to Miss Columbia House took place 
 Aug. 26, 1856. She is the daughter of Robert M. 
 and Mary R. (Barnes) House, and was born in 
 Williamson Co., Tenn., and was of German descent, 
 his ancestors having been early settlers in Virginia. 
 Her mother is of Scotch descent. The first whole- 
 sale grocery business established at Clarksville, was 
 started by her father. He died Feb. i, 1859, leaving 
 to a family of five children, a priceless heritage, a 
 good name. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Ivey have only two children living. 
 They are daughters and are named Mary Virginia 
 and Emma F. Their first born was a daughter who 
 died in infancy. John J., the only son was born in 
 Stewart Co., in 1862, and died in Dallas, Texas, Nov. 
 23, 1883. 
 
 arvin Perry, a farmer of Tompkins Town- 
 ship residing on sec. 215, was born in Put- 
 nam Valley, Putnam Co., N. Y., Oct. 3, 
 1830, his parents being Reuben and Lorin- 
 da (Pratt) Perry, natives of New York and Con- 
 necticut respectively. The gentleman whose 
 name stands at the head of this biographical notice 
 lived with his parents until he attained the age of 20 
 years, receiving at their hands a good, common- 
 school education. Leaving home at that age of life, 
 he worked at various occupations by the month for 
 several years. In 1857 he came to Warren County, 
 this State, and settled near Cameron, where for three 
 years he followed the vocation of an agriculturist on 
 rented land. In 1861, when the news flashed across 
 

 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 347 
 
 the country that the Southern States had seceded 
 and Rebel shot and shell were being thundered 
 against the walls of Sumter, Mr. Perry was one of 
 the first to respond to the call of our martyred Pres- 
 ident for brave hearts and strong arms to defend the 
 country's flag. He enlisted in Co. H, 451)1 111. Vol. 
 Inf., and served for three years. He was Corporal 
 and then promoted Sergeant, and participated in the 
 battles of Fort Donelson, and many others of smaller 
 import. After being a member of the 451!! Regi- 
 ment for a year and a half, he received an honorable 
 discharge, by special order, and immediately enlisted 
 in the Mississippi River Marine Brigade, and served 
 in the same until he received an honorable discharge 
 by reason of the disbandment of the Brigade. Re- 
 turning home, he again rented land for three years 
 and engaged in his former occupation. At the expi- 
 ration of that time, he purchased 70 acres of land, 
 where he at present resides, engaging actively and 
 energetically in its improvement and cultivation. 
 
 Mr. Perry was united in marriage with Miss Eliz- 
 abeth F. Brown, a native of Indiana, Fs^ti^vjfi&f 
 and of their union two children, Villa May and Lo- 
 rinda D., have been born. In politics, Mr. Perry is 
 a strong supporter and active worker for the princi- 
 ples advocated by the Prohibition party. In religion, 
 he and his wife are members of the Protestant Meth- 
 odist Church. 
 
 . ohn Simcock, one of the highly esteemed 
 IF citizens of the township of Spring Grove, 
 where he has resided for many years, is a 
 native of England and was born in Stafford- 
 shire Dec. 27, 1829. He was a son of a miner 
 and, according to the custom in England, pre- 
 pared to follow the vocation of his ancestors. When 
 he was seven years of age he entered the mines to 
 assist in the variety of labor that can be performed 
 by the children of the miners, and which is in many 
 instances quite important, as the maintenance of the 
 family is thereby much enhanced. He was engaged 
 in the capacity of a door-tender and his duty was to 
 open the doors leading to various portions of the 
 
 mine before the passage of the cars which contained 
 the results of the labors of those who worked the 
 veins of coal. As he grew older he was \ romoted to 
 other kinds of labor of a more advanced character 
 until he could wield all the tools of z.bona-fide miner. 
 He continued to reside in his native country until 
 185 r. In that year, during the month of May, he 
 left Liverpool on a sailing vessel for the United 
 States, and landed at <he port of New York after an 
 ocean passage of six weeks and -three days. He pro- 
 ceeded to Mahoning Co., Ohio, and was occupied 
 in the mines there until the month of October fol- 
 lowing. 
 
 During the month last mentioned he came to 
 Illinois, and after a delay of a short time in LaSalle 
 County he came, in the spring of 1852, to Warren 
 County. He engaged in his old vocation here until 
 the spring of 1853, when he returned to the land of 
 his birth. He passed a year on his native island 
 and in the spring of r85s he returned to the home 
 'of his adoption. He then went to the same county- 
 In the Buckeye State where he had at first found 
 employment on coming to America, and in the fall of 
 the same year 'came again to La Salle County. He< 
 passed a year in the mines there and then went to 
 St. Louis. A year was passed in the State of Mis- 
 souri and in 1856 he came again to Warren County 
 with the intent to pass his remaining life within its 
 limits. 
 
 He then first entered into the business of a farmer 
 in good earnest, and rented land in the township of 
 Spring Grove. He operated there a few years-and 
 then became an independent landholder in the town- 
 ship of Cold Brook. The tract contained coal and 
 he opened the hidden treasures and operated as a 
 miner until i86(. In the fall of that year he went 
 thence to Pike's Peak. He drove an ox team and 
 passed two months on the way to his destination in 
 the mountains. After reaching there lie engaged in 
 gold-mining two months, and, not finding the results 
 of his labors satisfactory, he returned to Warren 
 County. He passed the first year after his return in 
 the township of Cold Brook and then rented a coal- 
 bank on section 14, Spring Grove Township. 
 
 fii 1864 he bought a tract of land situated on the 
 northeast quarter of section 14, and. as it contained 
 a vein of coal, he proceeded to open it for the pur- 
 pose of carrying on the same business witli which he 
 was familiar. It did not prove a success, and not 
 

 348 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 long after he exchanged the land for the same quan- 
 tity on the southeast quarter of the same section. 
 There he opened a coal-bank, which he has since 
 continued to operate with success. In 1872 lie put 
 in the shaft and it is the only one in the township. 
 The output of the bank is between 40,000 and 60,- 
 ooo bushels annually. A view of Mr. Sirncock's 
 residence and coal-bank is given on page 344. 
 
 Mr. Simcock was married April 26, 1859, to Janet 
 McKelvie. She was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, 
 April 16, 1842, and is the mother of 13 children, 12 
 of whom are living. Elizabeth is the wife of Enoch 
 Wilson, of Spring Grove Township; Ma'.ilda married 
 Lincoln Bailey of the same township. Those who 
 are unmarried are Margaret J., John, Janet, Thomas, 
 Aaron, Annie, Edith, Bertha, Charles and Richard. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Simcock are members of the Church 
 of God, at Spring Grove. In politics, he has always 
 been a strong supporter of the principles of the Re- 
 publican party. 
 
 ; illiam Crosby became a citizen of what is 
 now Kelly Township in 1848. He was 
 born in 1815, in Augusta County, Va., and 
 is the son of George Crosby, a native of 
 Pennsylvania. The latter was born in 1862, 
 and settled in the "Old Dominion " in 1804. 
 He bought a farm in Augusta County and was its 
 owner and occupant tnrough the remainder of his 
 life. He was by trade a blacksmith, and during the 
 second contest with Great Britain he made horse- 
 shoes for the use of the soldiers of the American 
 army. His wife was a native of the county where 
 her son was born. He was reared on the farm and 
 was a pupil in what was called the "subscription 
 school." He grew to the age of manhood in Virginia 
 and married Maria Wagner, in September, 1839. She 
 was born in Augusta County, in 1817. 
 
 For the next eight years Mr. and Mrs. Crosby re- 
 mained on the homestead of his father and in 1847 
 started to find a home in the West. They traveled 
 to Harrison County, Ind., with two horses and a 
 wagon, and lived there about a year. In Match, 
 1848, they again turned their faces toward the set- 
 
 tine; sun, setting out on the i6th of that month with 
 the same outfit as that with which they had left Vir- 
 ginia the year previous. They arrived in Warren 
 County on the ad day of April, and took possession 
 of a claim which the father had secured the fall pre- 
 v'ous. It consisted of 80 acres, and afier a few years 
 it was found that the title was defective and Mr.^ 
 Crosby was obliged to pay for the property a second 
 time. Since he secured himself in its ownership he 
 has been a continuous resident on the place. He is 
 at present the owner also of 80 acres on section i, in 
 the same township, and 21 acres of timber on section 
 13. He and his wife have nine children living, 
 Ruth, May, Elizabeth, George, Sally, John, Benja- 
 min, Melinda and Augustus. Mr. Crosby has been 
 a life-long adherent of the Democratic party. 
 
 :, iram Ingersoll, a pioneer of Warren County, 
 of 1835, was born Feb. 7, 1812, in Cortland 
 Co,N. Y. His father, David Ingersoll, 
 was a native of Massachusetts and the mother 
 was born in Ireland. Her name before her 
 marriage was Jane. McCoy. The elder Inger- 
 soll located with his family in Broome Co., N. Y., 
 when his son was 12 years of age. He was there 
 resident until the fall of the year named, in which he 
 determined to seek a home in the " far West." He 
 removed from his home in the Empire State as far 
 as Syracuse, where he took passage on a canal-boat 
 for Buffalo. He crossed the lakes from that place to 
 Chicago, and there hired a team which brought him 
 to Peoria. He came thence to Warren County on 
 foot. His father had settled in Kelly Township in 
 1833, and in the fall of 1835 Mr. Ingersoll joined 
 the family there. He engaged in farming on his fa- 
 ther's estate. In the spring following he went to 
 Knoxville and passed two months there working at 
 his trade of carpentry. He returned to the home of 
 his father and pursued the same occupation in War- 
 ren Count). In the spring of 1838 he went back to 
 the State of his nativity and remained there about a 
 year and a half. In the autumn of 1839 he again 
 came to Kelly Township, and lived with the family 
 of his father until the succeeding spring. In the 
 course of that season he built a house for his father 
 
 
' 
 
 . 
 
 in -nk 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 35' 
 
 and got out the timber preparatory to the construc- 
 tion of a saw-mill. He continued to follow the trade 
 of carpentry for some years, as he had opportunity. 
 In 1846 he was married, and bought a farm on sec- 
 tion 22 of the same township in which his parents 
 resided, and passing the intervening years between 
 that time and 1875 in farming and working at his 
 trade. In the year last mentioned he retired from 
 the cares and responsibilities of active life and bought 
 the place where he has since resided in that part of 
 Alexis which is included in Henderson Township, in 
 Mercer County. 
 
 Jan. i, 1846, he was married to Cecilia Potter. 
 She was born in Ashtabula County, Ohio, March 14, 
 1826, and is the daughter of Chester and Eliza (Cas- 
 tle) Potter. Her parents were natives of Litchfield, 
 Conn., and came to Fulton Co., 111., in 1831. After 
 passing a winter there they came, in the spring of 
 1832, to Warren County. They located at Rockwell's 
 Mills, where they resided at the time of the Black 
 Hawk War. The family was in the block-house in 
 the fort at the time of the murder of William Martin, 
 in 1832. An account of this affair will be found in 
 various parts of this work in connection with the 
 sketches of those who were witnesses of the flight of 
 the savages with the scalp of their victim. In 1833 
 Mr. Potter removed to Kelly Township, and in the 
 same year he erected a grist-mill on Main Hender- 
 son Creek. Soon after he built a saw-mill in con- 
 nection with the mill already standing. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Potter lived in Kelly Township until the events 
 of their death. Mr. and Mrs. Ingersoll had one 
 child, which died at the age of nine months. 
 
 ^avid J. Shaw is one of the prominent farm- 
 ers in the township of Spring Grove. His 
 home farm is located on section 8, where 
 he is the owner of 210 acres of excellent land 
 in the best possible condition. He also owns 
 a quarter section of the old homestead farm 
 on section 4, Spring Grove Township. 
 
 Mr. Shaw was born June 22, 1840, in Brown Co., 
 Ohio. He is the oldest son of Robert and Lucinda 
 (Stewart) Shaw. His father was a native of the 
 
 A 
 
 State of Kentucky, but reared in Ohio, to which 
 State his parents moved during his early childhood, 
 they being among the first permanent settlers in 
 Brown County. Robert Shaw was twice married, 
 and of the four children left motherless by the death 
 of his first wife, one only is now living, Ezra, who is 
 a resident of the city of Chicago. Lucinda Stewart, 
 the second wife and the mother of the gentleman 
 who is the subject of this sketch, was born in Ohio 
 and was of English extraction. On the paternal 
 side, the family is of Scotch origin. From the second 
 marriage were born 12 children, of whom only six 
 are now living. Elizabeth removed to Toledo, Tama 
 Co., Iowa; James is married and is a citizen of Dav- 
 enport, in that State; John lives in the city of Chi- 
 cago ; Catherine is the wife of Herman Loveridge, 
 of Galesburg, 111.; Laura is living in Toledo, Tama 
 Co., Iowa, with her sister. 
 
 Mr. Shaw was 16 years of age when his parents 
 came to Warren County. They located on section 
 4, in Spring Grove Township, his father purchasing ' 
 a farm which contained 240 acres. The claim upon 
 which the property was situated, was first settled by 
 a man named Stewart, who was one of. a body of 14 
 pioneers who made the first settlement in the county. 
 The original owner had placed 100 acres under cul- 
 tivation, and there was a convenient and fairly good 
 log house and stable on the place. The senior 
 Shaw made a further purchase of 40 acres on section 
 7, and was resident thereon for the remainder of his 
 life, with the exception of two years passed in Mon- 
 mouth. His death took place in September, 1874, 
 his wife following him in April, 1879. 
 
 Mr. Shaw remained at home with his parents until 
 his marriage. That event took place Oct. 3, 1861, 
 when he became the husband of Nancy Armstrong. 
 She was born in Indiana Co., Pa., and was the 
 daughter of Thomas and Mary (Johnson) Armstrong. 
 Mr. Shaw and his wife located in Mercer County 
 soon after their union, and one year later took pos- 
 session of the place on which they are now living, 
 where he is engaged in mixed husbandry. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Shaw are the parents of six children R. 
 Thomas, Mary L., William, Clarence, Delia and 
 George. Their eldest son occupies the old home- 
 stead farm located on section 4. Mary L. is mar- 
 ried to Alex. Pease, a farmer of Mercer County. 
 
 Mrs. Shaw has for 25 years been a communicant 
 of the Presbyterian Church, Mr. Shaw is a Repub- 
 
35* 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 lican in his political views and connections, and cast 
 his first Presidential vote for Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 Two of the brothers of the subject of our sketch, 
 Martin Luther and James, were soldiers in the late 
 Rebellion. The former was a member of Co. F, 
 i;th Regt. 111. Vol. Inf. He took an active part in 
 many engagements, participating in the battles of 
 Shiloh, Fort Donelson and Vicksburg, among others, 
 and during his service of three years was present at 
 all the engagements in which his regiment took part. 
 On his return home, he was appointed Deputy In- 
 ternal Revenue Collector, continuing to fill that im- 
 portant position until he received the appointment of 
 ticket agent at Monmouth for the Rockford, Rock 
 Island & St. Louis Railroad, on the completion of 
 the line. About three weeks thereafter he was killed 
 at the depot by a train. His death occurred in 
 1872, a wife and two children surviving him, who 
 are now living in Wilber, Neb. 
 
 James Shaw was a member of the io2d Regt. 111. 
 Vol. Inf. Going out during the latter part of the 
 war, he served until the close of the great contest. 
 Upon his return home, he engaged in farming, sub- 
 
 .equently becoming a merchant at Alexis. He after- 
 ard moved to Davenport, Iowa, where he is 
 
 employed in the mercantile business. He is mar- 
 
 ied and the father of several children. 
 
 We present in this connection a portrait of David 
 J. Shaw. There will also be found, on page 332, a 
 view of his residence, and of the original Shaw 
 homestead established by his father. 
 
 eorge W. McMahill, farmer, residing on 
 section 31:, Greenbush Township, was 
 born in 1826, in Kentucky, and is a son 
 of John McMahill, a native of the Keystone 
 State. The grandfather of Mr. McMahill, of 
 this notice, John McMahill, was kidnapped 
 when a small lad by a Captain of a sailing vessel 
 from off the coast of Ireland, and was brought to 
 this country and settled in Philadelphia, where he 
 remained until he was killed by the falling of a tree. 
 George W., of whom we write, was married to Miss 
 Martha Jane McMahill, May 8, 1848, in Illinois. 
 
 She was born in 1833. They have had no children. 
 Mr. McMahill is the owner of some 3,000 acres of 
 land, some of it being located in Missouri, some in 
 Iowa, and the remainder in McDonough and Warren 
 Counties, this State. He is engaged in breeding 
 full-blood Short-horn cattle, of which he has some 
 40 head. He also has one Holstein cow. His 
 horses are of the Norman and Clydesdale breed. In 
 religion, he and his wife are members of the Metho- 
 dist Episcopal Church, and in politics, Mr. McMa- 
 hill always votes the Democratic ticket. 
 
 illiam J. Nicol, a well-to-do farmer of 
 Sumner Township, residing on section 
 ^, has been all his life an inhabitant of 
 Illinois, and a resident of Warren County 
 since five years of age. He was born Sept. 
 18, 1847, in Edgington Township, Rock Island 
 Co., 111. James Nicol, his father, is a native of 
 Preble, Co., Ohio, and came to Warren Co. before he 
 was married. He passed a few years in Rock Isl- 
 and County, where he was one of the first settlers. 
 He bought land in the township which has been 
 named as the one in which his son was born, but at 
 that time it was designated by the number which 
 was to be found on the charts of the surveyors. He 
 remained there until 1852. In that year he removed 
 to Warren County and settled in Spring Grove 
 Township. After a residence there of five years, he 
 sold the farm on which he had lived, and located in 
 the township of Sumner. He became a landholder 
 on sections 18 and 19 and continued the manage- 
 ment of his property there until his decease, which 
 transpired March 4, 1861. His wife, Susan (Giles) 
 Nicol, was a native of Ohio, and died in 1869. They 
 were the parents of four children, and the son who 
 is the subject of this personal narration is the only 
 survivor. It can justly be said of him that he has 
 grown up with Warren County. He lived with his 
 parents until their death. 
 
 In 1883, Mr. Nicol was married to Sarah A. Mc- 
 Cracken. She is the daughter of Frederick and 
 Mary J. McCracken, and is a native of the county 
 in which she lives. She was born Jan. 21, 1862. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 353 
 
 The young people located on the Nicol homestead, 
 which is the property of the husband. In 1884, Mr. 
 Nicol bought the farm which he now owns on section 
 12, in the same township, which contains 160 acres. 
 The homestead includes 175 acres, and the estate 
 on section 19 comprises 105 acres, a total of 440 
 acres. Mr. Nicol is engaged in mixed husbandry. 
 He and his wife are the parents of one child, Will- 
 iam Ira. 
 
 H. Black, a gentleman of push and en- 
 ergy among the numerous citizens of his 
 vocation, that of a farmer, resides on sec- 
 tion 14, Tompkins Township. He was born 
 in Greene Co., Ohio, June 16, 1823, his par- 
 ents being William and Elizabeth (George) 
 Black, natives of Virginia and Pennsylvania respect- 
 ively. The parents were married in Greene County, 
 Ohio, and there.the father followed the occupation of 
 a farmer until 1838, when he came to this State and 
 located at Monmouth, this county, and where he re- 
 mained for about three years. He was consequently 
 a pioneer of this county, and was here to see the 
 broad and uncultivated prairie lands in their or- 
 iginal condition. He remained at Monmouth 
 for the time stated and then moved to Henderson 
 County, where, near Olena, he purchased 80 acres 
 of land. Here he located with his family and was 
 engaged in his chosen vocation until his death, 
 which occurred in 1858. His wife survived him until 
 1885. Their family comprised nine children, five 
 sons and four daughters. 
 
 A. H. Black, whose name stands at the head of 
 this notice, was the second in order of birth of his 
 parents' children, and remained on the old home- 
 stead, assisting his father in the labors of the farm, 
 until he attained his 28th year. At this age in life, 
 he left the parental roof-tree and went forth to bat- 
 tle against the trials of life alone, hoping to procure 
 a competency. He at first rented land, and for three 
 years was engaged in farming in that manner, when 
 he purchased a farm of his own, consisting of 80 
 acres, in close proximity to the village of Olena. On 
 this land he located and passed his years in labor 
 until 1864. He then sold it and came to Kirkwood, 
 
 and purchased a lot and residence there, where he 
 resided for two years, when he sold his village prop- 
 erty and bought 60 acres on section 14, Tompkins 
 Township, on which he removed and there resided 
 until 1880. During this year he rented his farm 
 and again moved into Kirkwood, where he lived four 
 years. At the expiration of that time he moved back 
 on his farm and has resided there ever since. He is 
 engaged in general farming, having been brought up 
 to that calling, and following it the major portion of 
 his life is consequently possessed of that knowledge 
 of agriculture which enables him to make a success 
 of it. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Black to Miss Martha Ran- 
 kin took place Jan. 16, 1851. She was a native of 
 Indiana, where she was born, May 27, 1832. Her 
 parents were Joseph and Lutitia (Brown) Rankin, 
 natives of Ohio and Pennsylvania respectively. They 
 came to this State in 1837 and purchased land in 
 Henderson County, and lived there until the latter's 
 death, in r847- Mr. Rankin went to Kansas after] 
 his wife's death, and was there engaged in farming 
 until Nov. i, r878, when he crossed the river to meet! 
 his companion in the land of the hereafter. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Black is a strong advocate of thej 
 principles of the Republican party, with which party 
 he always casts his vote. He and his wife are the' 
 parents of one child Melissa, who is the wife of 
 James Riggs, and by whom she has had four chil- 
 dren, who have been named, Cora, Edna, Hugh O. 
 and Albert G. Mrs. Black is a member of the Uni- 
 ted Presbyterian Church, with which she united at 
 the age of 18 years, and has since been a consistent 
 member in good standing. She first united with 
 that branch of the Church known as Seceders, but 
 joined with the union of the Seceders and Associate 
 Reformed when they united. 
 
 --- 
 
 W- 
 
 illiam Stark, one of the leading business 
 men of Kirkwood and who is engaged in 
 the drug trade, is a native of Scotland. 
 His father, James Stark, came to America 
 in 1835, and settled in Hancock Co., 111., 
 where he died the following year. His mother^ 
 Mary (Drown) Stark, died in Scotland. William re- 
 
354 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 mained with his parents until their death, when, in 
 company with his brother, and sister, he moved on 
 the farm in Hancock County, where they lived until 
 1849. At that time William engaged as a clerk in 
 his brother's store a: Augusta, 111., where he re- 
 mained until 1856, when he went to Plymouth, 
 and clerked for three years. He then returned 
 to the farm where he remained for two years 
 longer, when we again find him in his brother's store 
 at Augusta. He remained there until 1862, when 
 he enlisted in Co. K, ngth 1)1. Vol. Inf., and served 
 for 14 months, most of which time was spent in a 
 Rebel prison. He was captured at Rutherford, 
 Tenn., and remained a prisoner nine months, when 
 he was exchanged, and being sick, was honorably 
 discharged. He returned to his home in Augusta, 
 where he remained until 1867, when he came to 
 Kirkwood and embarked in the drug business, and 
 is now recognized as one of the most prominent 
 business men and influential citizens of the place. 
 He owns a fine brick store on Kirk street and 
 carries the largest stock of drugs in the village. 
 
 In 1866, the marriage of Mr. Stark and Miss Ellen 
 Douglass occurred. She is a native of Kentucky, 
 and a daughter of Joseph and Catherine (Eckels) 
 Douglass. One child blessed this union, which died 
 in infancy. Mr. Stark is a Republican in political 
 faith and a member of the Christian Church, and 
 also belongs to the G. A. R. 
 
 [ heodore C. Pearce, a farmer, residing on 
 section 20, Berwick Township, was born in 
 the same township of which he is at pres- 
 ent a resident, March 9, 1843. He remained 
 with his parents until he was 23 years old, 
 working on his father's farm, attending the dis- 
 trict schools and supplementing his education by an 
 attendance of one year at Monmouth College, and a 
 course of two years at Knox College. He is the son 
 of Andrew G. Pearce, a native of Ohio, having been 
 born in Champaign County, that State, Nov. 16, 
 1816. The father came to this State in 1830, and 
 located at Pekin, 111., where he remained one year, 
 then came to this county, and located in Berwick 
 
 Township, being one of the pioneer settlers of that 
 township as well as one of the pioneers of Warren 
 County. He married Miss Eliza Powers, May 28, 
 1840. She was born Jan. 19, 1819, near Cincin- 
 nati, the "Buckeye State." Her parents are both de- 
 ceased, having died in Greenbush Township. 
 
 The parents of our subject had a family compris- 
 ing four children, as follows: Martha J., born 
 March 28, 1841 ; Theodore C., of whom we write, 
 Mary C., March 18, 1848, and George T., July i, 
 1855. Both of the girls are deceased. 
 
 Mr. Pearce, of this notice, was united in marriage 
 with Miss Susan Baldwin, who was likewise born in 
 this township, Dec. 13, 1848. Her parents were A. 
 N. Baldwin, born in New York, July 20, 1822, and 
 Phebe A. (Lewis) Baldwin, born July 9, 1826. Her 
 father died Dec. 2, 1873. He was married in 1844, 
 and his wife still survives him. Their children were 
 12 in number, Mary Ann, Arthur N., Susan A., 
 Aletta A., Sarah E., Mary L, Charles L., Lgnnettie, 
 Phebe J., John, Minnie A. and Anna G. Five of the ^ 
 above are deceased, namely: Mary A., Arthur N., 
 Aletta A., Sarah E. and John M. 
 
 The date of the marriage of Mr. Pearce and Miss 
 Baldwin was Dec. 19, 1866, Rev. F. Smith, of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, officiating, and of 
 their union eight children have been born, of which . 
 the following is"a record, Alice M., born May 27, 
 1868; Ida G., July n, 1870; May A., May 2, 1872; 
 Arthur E., Feb. 16, 1874; Eva L., Aug. ir, 1876; 
 Fred G., March 9, 1879 ; Ralph E., June ir, 1881 and 
 Bessie, May 29, 1883, all of whom are living. Mr. 
 Pearce has 160 acres of good farm land in this 
 county, on which is a good dwelling, 66x24 feet in 
 dimensions and two stories in height. Its interior is 
 handsomely finished, while its exterior surroundings 
 are of a character which constitute it an exceedingly 
 charming place of residence. His substantial barn is 
 40 x 42 feet with i8-foot posts, the entire farm 
 being enclosed with a good wire and board fence. 
 His stock is kept in first-class condition and two 
 roadsters which he owns are of a very fine strain. 
 
 Socially, Mr. Pearce is a member of the A. F. and 
 A. M., belonging to Cameron Lodge, No. 625, to 
 to which he has belonged for some 15 years, and in 
 which order he has held many of the important offices. 
 He is also a member of the I. O. O. F., belong- 
 ing to Lodge No. 185, Abingdon. Religiously, he 
 and his wife are members of the Methodist Episco- 
 
 r 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 357 
 
 pal Church. In politics, Mr. Pearce affiliates with 
 the Republican party. 
 
 Eliphalet Lewis, the grandfather of Mrs. Pearce, 
 was born in New Jersey, May n, 1799, and during 
 his early life engaged in the occupation of oyster- 
 fishing near Amboy. He came to Illinois irv 1837, 
 and for a few years resided near Springfield. He 
 then located in Warren County,- and made the first 
 improvements on the farm now occupied by Mr. 
 Pearce, and upon which he continued to reside until 
 his death, June 25,1867. He married Miss Mary 
 A. Mills, May 24, 1823. She was born July 21, 
 1806, and bore her husband five children, viz.: 
 Henry, born in February, 1824; Phebe A., July 9, 
 1826; Mary A., July 3, 1838; Susan E., Oct. 12, 
 1841, and Thomas P., Aug. 12, 1843, all of whom 
 are living. 
 
 f 
 
 | obert W. Gerlaw, one of the largest land- 
 owners in Warren County and a prominent 
 example of what may be accomplished by 
 a straightforward, energetic and determined 
 man, is the founder of the village of Gerlaw, 
 near where he resides. He is a native of 
 Greene Co., Ohio, where he was born on the 4th of 
 March, 1817. Adam and Catherine (Haines) Ger- 
 law, his parents, had a family of ten children, of 
 whom Robert W. was the fifth child in order of birth. 
 Adam Gerlaw was born in Washington Co., Md., 
 about the year 1781. His father's name was also 
 Adam, who was a native of Germany. He came to 
 this country and settled in the Colony of South 
 Carolina prior to the Revolutionary War. He en- 
 listed in the service of his adopted country in that 
 heroic conflict for American liberty, and bore an 
 honorable part in aiding to establish our independ- 
 ence and laying the foundations of the splendid in- 
 stitutions that we now enjoy. At the close of that 
 war he removed to Maryland, and about the year 
 1808, with his family, became pioneers of Greene 
 Co., Ohio. Here he died about 1821. To him is 
 due the credit of establishing this branch of the Ger- 
 law family on American soil. No language can pic- 
 ture the hardships and suffering of the pioneer of 
 
 that early period, which was the price paid for the 
 blessings we enjoy to-day in this country. His wife, 
 the grandmother of Robert W., was for a short time 
 a prisoner in the hands of the Indians, but was lib- 
 erated after the treaty of Greenville. 
 
 Adam Gerlaw, Jr., as was observed, was born in 
 Maryland, where he was married, and with his father 
 removed to Greene Co., Ohio, and, like the elder 
 Gerlaw, became a prominent pioneer of that section. 
 Here the family cleared a patch of ground, built the 
 accustomed log cabin and engaged in farming in a 
 crude way. They likewise endured such privations 
 and hardships as were incident to life in a new coun- 
 try of that day. The Gerlaws have always been an 
 energetic and industrious people. Adam became, 
 for that period, a very successful farmer and stock- 
 raiser. He was a man of a kind heart and sterling 
 character, and greatly beloved by his family. The 
 following incident will illustrate their attachment for 
 him: His first seven children were sons, and they 
 all remained with him, aiding him in his farming 
 and other operations till all of them attained the 
 . years of manhood, and it was in a large measure ow- 
 ing to their united efforts that he acquired his wealth. 
 He continued to own his property, both personal 
 and real, until his death, when it was inherited by 
 his children. He was a soldier in the War of 1812, 
 and in that struggle nobly did his part in upholding 
 the national honor which his father had fought to 
 attain. Politically, he was a Whig, and always op- 
 posed to the institutions of slavery. He was a 
 member of the German Lutheran Church, and his 
 wife, Catherine Haines, who was also descended 
 from German parentage, worshiped with him. They 
 had ten children, all of whom reached the years of 
 maturity, and eight of whom are living at this writing 
 (January, 1886). Those deceased are David and 
 Adam. Those living are Jacob, Otho, Robert W., 
 Arthur, Jonathan, Francis Catherine (wife of Benja- 
 min Clark), Henry Harrison, and Jane, wife of 
 Emanuel Hawker. Mrs. Gerlaw, mother of Robert 
 W., died in 1852, at their residence in Greene Co., 
 Ohio. Her husband died while on a vist to his son, 
 Robert W., in this county, in 1857. 
 
 Robert W., the, subject of this sketch, was edu- 
 cated in the log school house in the neighborhood 
 where his parents resided. Such educational advant- 
 ages, as we might infer, were very meager. He has, 
 however, supplemented them by careful reading and 
 
35 8 
 
 ry~; 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 study, so that to-day we find him to be a gentlemen 
 well versed on the important questions of the hour. 
 In conversation he is most interesting, with a vein 
 of humor pervading his remarks which makes them 
 piquant and pleasing to listen to. In the autumn of 
 1850 he came to Warren County, and for about 16 
 months worked on a farm. He was then married to 
 Mary Jane Black, who was the daughter of Jonathan 
 and Abagail Black, who were both natives of Penn- 
 sylvania and of Irish extraction. The above named 
 union took place March 16, 1852, and the August 
 following they moved upon the farm where they now 
 reside. Mr. G. had previously erected a house 
 there, which is on section 34, Spring- Grove Town- 
 ship. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Gerlaw have had born to them five 
 children namely: Robert Dayton (deceased), Ella 
 M., Mary Abagail, Sarah and Frank L. Those liv- 
 'ing all reside at home. Mr. Gerlaw has given them 
 the advantages of a good education and many priv- 
 ileges which he did not enjoy. His wife is a mem- 
 ber of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Gerlaw was first a Whig, and on 
 the formation of the Republican party became iden- 
 tified with it, since which time he has been a sup- 
 porter of its principles. He voted both times for 
 Abraham Lincoln, with whom he was well ac- 
 quainted, and twice for Grant. During the late 
 Slave-holders' Rebellion, he was a staunch Union 
 man. He was elected several terms Supervisor for 
 Spring Grove Township, and during the war acted as 
 agent in selling the township bonds to raise money 
 to pay the bounty for the soldiers required to fill its 
 quota. He also went to Quincy, where he hired a 
 number of substitutes. 
 
 Mr. Gerlaw began life with but little of this world's 
 goods, in fact, about all he did possess was his 
 strong arms and abundance of energy, and thus 
 equipped, he set out, with the help of his good wife, 
 to carve out that success which has since crowned 
 their efforts. By dint of good jugment in making in- 
 vestments, he has succeeded in accumulating for 
 himself and family a very handsome competency. 
 Later in life upon the death of his father, he inher- 
 ited $10,000, which he invested in a judicious man- 
 ner. He also owns- a fine farm of 1,300 acres in 
 Nemaha Co., Neb., which is fenced and well stocked 
 with good graded cattle and supplied with comfort- 
 able buildings. 
 
 In May, 187 i, Mr. Gerlaw laid out the town which 
 is named in his honor, and which is situated on a 
 portion of the home farm and on the line of the 
 Rockford, Rock Island & St. Louis Railroad, now 
 the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. The 
 village is in a growing condition, enjoys considerable 
 trade and is a place from which a great deal of stock 
 is annually shipped. It is well supplied with schools 
 and churches and is quite prosperous. A fine bird's- 
 eye-view of the town, as well as a view of the hand- 
 some residence and surroundings of Mr. Gerlaw's 
 home, is shown by a well executed engraving on an 
 adjoining page. The act of founding this village 
 will cause the name of Robert Gerlaw to be long re- 
 membered by the people of this county, and he de- 
 servedly merits the respect in which he is held by 
 his fellow citizens. 
 
 -S3- 
 
 -e*- 
 
 }: uben Holeman, engaged in farming on sec- 
 tion 32, Roseville Township, was born in 
 Indiana, Jan. 20, 1817. His parents, Isaac 
 and Nancy (Cleghorn) Holeman, were natives 
 of North Carolina, and the mothers 's demise 
 occurred while in Jackson Co., Ind. The 
 father came to Illinois in 1848 and settled in Swan 
 Township, where he engaged quite extensively in 
 agricultural pursuits, and became the father of eight 
 children, seven of whom still survive. 
 
 Ruben Holeman remained at home assisting his 
 father in the labors on the farm, and alternating his 
 labors thereon by attendance at the common schools 
 until he attained his 2ist year. At that age in life 
 he began farming for himself on a rented farm, which 
 he continued for two years, and, in 1847, came to 
 Illinois and settled in Geenbush Township, this 
 county, then, in 1849, removed to Roseville Town- 
 ship and purchased too acres on section 32, and 
 lived on the same seven years. He then sold it and 
 purchased 437 acres of land, some of it being located 
 in Swan Township. He now resides on section 32 
 Roseville Township, where he has erected a fine res- 
 idence, with suitable outbuildings and made all his 
 improvements. 
 
 In 1844 he was married to Miss Susanna Crab, a 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 359 
 
 native of Indiana and daughter of James and Pau- 
 lina (Thelkeld) Crab, natives of Kentucky, who en- 
 gaged in the occupation of farming in Indiana, where 
 they resided until their death. The family of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Holeman consists of eight children, all of 
 whom are living John VV., Daniel B., Ugriah C., 
 Isaac A., Theodore, Albert A., Orville L. and Eliza 
 Ann. Eliza A. is the wife of Isaac Perkins, and 
 they are the parents of seven children ; Daniel B. 
 married Harriet Smith, and they have become the 
 parents of two children ; John W. married Mary, 
 Hosier and they have one child ; Uriah C. married 
 Usitta Rowland, and they have a family of two 
 children ; Theodore married Ida Carr, and their 
 family consists of two children.' 
 
 Mr. Holeman has held the office of Assessor, 
 Road Commissioner, Collector, and School Trustee. 
 He and his wife are members of the Christian 
 Church, and he is considered one of the solid and 
 substantial men of Warren County. Politically he 
 affiliates with the Democratic party. 
 
 K%tephen Dixson, deceased, was formerly a 
 resident of the township of Point Pleasant. 
 He was born in Preble Co., Ohio, Dec. 21, 
 1814, and was the son of Eli and Rebecca 
 (Hart) Dixson. His parents removed to In- 
 diana when he was four years old and he 
 there grew to the estate of manhood. He was trained 
 in the pursuit of agriculture, and was married in the 
 Hoosier State. The lady whom he married was the 
 sister of the wife of his brother, Eli, and was Miss 
 Amanda, the daughter of Drury B. and Rebecca 
 (Hurd) Boyd. In 1854 her parents came from 
 Greene County to Warren County, and located on 
 section i, in Point Pleasant Township. The husband 
 had previously purchased there a considerable tract 
 of unimproved land, and made it his home until 
 his death, which took place March i, 1879. His 
 wife died May 3, 1861. He was a man of industri- 
 ous habits, and at the time of his decease was the 
 owner of upwards of 600 acres of valuable farming 
 lands. 
 
 Three of their children lived to mature life. Eli 
 
 B. is a resident of Bushnell, McDonough Co., 111. 
 Margaret was born Oct. 27, 1855, and was the wife 
 of Andrew L. Madison. She died in March, 1879, 
 leaving two children. Elizabeth is the wife of Alex- 
 ander Elston, and they reside in Kansas. 
 
 Mr. Dixson was prominent in his defense of mo- 
 rality and temperance and liberal in his religious 
 views. He enjoyed the respect and esteec 
 fellowmen in the community of which he yfas a 
 ber. 
 
 ( rury B. Boyd, a pioneer settler at Point 
 Pleasant Township, was born in the State 
 of Virginia, May 12, 1780. He was the 
 son of George and Jemima (Birge) Boyd, and 
 was early orphaned by their deaths. He was 
 made an apprentice to a trade, and when still 
 young went to the State of Georgia. There he was 
 married to Elizabeth, the daughter of George and 
 Nancy (Dean) Hurd. She was born in Georgia and 
 soon after their marriage they went to Kentucky, 
 where they located in Bath County and the husband 
 utilized his good education in teaching and in the al- 
 ternate seasons he worked at his trade. They lived 
 there until 1822, when they went to Pulaski County, 
 in the same State, and remained there until 1825. 
 They removed thence to Greene Co., Ind., where 
 they were among the earliest of the pioneer element. 
 They located on land which was covered with heavy 
 timber and their two sons were occupied with the 
 work of clearing the farm, while the father worked at 
 his trade. After a time he purchased a saw-mill. 
 His wife died Aug. 14, 1835, and he was again mar- 
 ried, about two years later, to Elizabeth Kelshaw. 
 
 The children of George and Nancy (Dean) Hurd 
 were Mary, George, Elizabeth and Nancy. Mary 
 was married to Joseph Dixson and died in Greene 
 Co., Ind. George is married and lives in Georgia. 
 Elizabeth was the wife of Drury B. Boyd, subject of 
 this sketch. Nancy became the wife of Sanford 
 Raimy, and they live in Preble Co., Ohio. 
 
 While living in Indiana he was twice elected to 
 represent his District and served two terms in the 
 Legislature of that State. After his removal to War- 
 ren County, he located at Ellison and a few years 
 
t * 
 
 360 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 later settled on section 2, of Point Pleasant Town- 
 ship, where he died, Sept. 7, 1856. His wife was, 
 killed in the tornado at Ellison in 1858. Two of 
 their children are still living. Mrs. Dixson is repre- 
 sented elsewhere in this work, and it is through her 
 interest in the preservation of the records of her fam- 
 ily circle that these sketches of the members of the 
 family haye been obtained. Her only sister is the 
 wife of Elisha Hughen, of Point Pleasant Township, 
 of whom a sketch is given in this work. 
 
 Mr. Boyd and his family made the trip from Ken- 
 tucky to Greene County with horse-teams. They 
 settled in a small log house, of the. most unpreten- 
 tious style, until the father could clear a place, upon 
 which he erected a double-hewed log house. 
 
 errine Holman, a farmer residing on sec- 
 tion 21, Tompkins Township, where he is 
 actively engaged in the labors of Jiis voca- 
 tion, is a native of New Jersey, having been 
 born in that State, Aug. 20, 1819, of parents 
 named Kenneth and Sarah (Jemison) Holman, 
 natives of the same State. Perrine Holman was an 
 inmate of his father's household until lie attained the 
 age of 22 years, and received a good education in the 
 common schools. Arriving at the age named, he 
 set out to battle against the trials ^of life alone, with 
 naught but strong arms and a firm determination to 
 " get on " in the world. He first worked out by the 
 month and was engaged in accumulating in that 
 manner for five years. He then embarked in the 
 oyster trade, and followed that for five years, when 
 he rented a farm, which he cultivated for another 
 period of five years. At the expiration of this time, 
 in 1853, he came to this State and located in Hen- 
 derson County, where he purchased 40 acres of land, 
 on which he moved and was actively and laboriously 
 engaged in its cultivation for four years. He then 
 sold his land in Henderson County and moved to 
 Tompkins Township, this county, where he pur- 
 chased another 4o-acre tract on which he moved his 
 family and where he is to-day residing, meeting with 
 success in his vocation. 
 
 His first marriage, with Mrs. Elizabeth Meech, 
 
 took place in 1844. She was also a native of New 
 Jersey. The second marriage of Mr. Holman was 
 with Mrs. Annett Star, a native of New York State, 
 and took place Oct. 6, 1881. She came West in 
 1875. By her first marriage with Mr. Star six chil- 
 dren were born, three of whom are living and three 
 are dead. The living children are Emery A., Susan 
 E. and Elmer R. Star, and by the latter union, one 
 child, Alida M. Holman, was born. In politics, Mr. 
 Holman is a Greenbacker, and is one of the success- 
 ful farmers of Tompkins Township. 
 
 
 
 mery H. Crandall, Supenntendent of the 
 County Infirmary, located in Lenox Town- 
 ship, Warren County, is a son of Richard 
 and Sybil (Armstrong) Crandall, natives of 
 New York and Wisconsin respectively. They 
 married and settled in the Keystone State, and 
 in March, 1860, came to Warren County, locating in 
 Lenox Township, but removed to Monmouth in the 
 fall of 1871, where they still reside. Five children 
 were born to them, as follows : Melvina J., Emery 
 H., Martha, Armstrong and Lydia A. 
 
 Emery H., of whom this personal sketch is written, 
 was born in Erie Co., Pa., Aug. 8, 1843, and re- 
 mained at home, receiving a good common-school 
 education and assisting his father on the farm, thus 
 fully initiating him in the arts of agriculture, and 
 accompanied his parents to Warren County. He 
 has since been a resident of this county with the 
 exception of about ten months spent in the army. 
 He purchased land at different times until he is now 
 the proprietor of 240 acres, which, through his ex- 
 cellent knowledge of improving and cultivating, he 
 has all under an advanced state of cultivation, and 
 it is considered second to none in his township. 
 
 July 26, 1862, Mr. Crandall enlisted in Co. C, 
 83d 111. Vol. Inf., in which he served for about ten 
 months, being discharged at Cairo, this State, on ac- 
 count of disability. He then returned to the more 
 peaceful pursuit of agriculture. 
 
 Mr. Emery H. Crandall and Miss Kate Williams 
 were united in the holy bonds of matrimony, at 
 Monmouth, on the 22d of November, 1865, she be- 
 


 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 363 
 
 ing a native of Crawford Co., Pa., having been born 
 there March 18, 1848. Her parents, Peter and 
 Lamira (Woods) Williams, were both natives of the 
 Keystone State, and in the year 1856, emigrated 
 westward to Warren County, this State, and located 
 in Roseville Township. They afterward removed to 
 Iowa and from there to Kansas, where the father, 
 Mr. Williams, died, March 1 1, 1880. The mother 
 still survives. They had become the parents of n 
 children, namely : Sarah L., Margaret E., William 
 S., Cyrus, Kate (our subject's wife), Robert, Theo- 
 dore, Alice, Carson, Chester and Estella. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Emery H. Crandall's home has been blessed 
 with the birth of four children, the names of whom 
 are Archie, Minnie E., Francis E. and Maude G. 
 
 Mr. Crandall has served his township as School 
 Trustee for six years, also as School Director, and 
 in December, 1884, was appointed to take charge of 
 the County Infirmary in Lenox Township, in which 
 are from 25 to 40 inmates. Mr. Crandall and wife 
 are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
 and, in politics, Mr. C. affiliates with the Republican 
 party. 
 
 <% 
 
 Chancy Hardin. Prominent among the 
 names of men who, by their energy, good 
 judgment and perseverance, laid broad 
 and deep in her pioneer days, the foundation 
 for the subsequent growth, development and 
 material prosperity of Warren County, stands 
 the name of Chancy Hardin.* Occupying as he has 
 for the last 45 years, close business relations with 
 the citizens of the county, and being conspicuouous 
 among the few far-sighted men who early appreciated 
 the importance of railroads in promoting the settle- 
 ment of a new country, and the consequent benefits 
 resulting therefrom, it is not, therefore a matter of 
 comment to find Mr. Hardin one of the trio who 
 were in the van of the railroad builders in this 
 county. 
 
 Mr. Hardin of this notice is the second son of 
 Chancy and Anna (Gates) Hardin, and was born Jan. 
 15, 1815, in Richfield, Otsego Co., N. Y. He is de- 
 scended from a long line of English ancestry, the 
 
 father of Mr. Hardin used the "g" in his name 
 in the early part of his life, but left it off about the same 
 time as his son Chancy did. The other sou, Harry G., 
 retains the " g." 
 
 family being transplanted to America by Nathan 
 Hardin, who landed at Cape Cod in the year 1640. 
 His grandson, Chancy Hardin, was born at Middle 
 Haddam, Conn., Jan. 8, 1775, and died at Iowa 
 Falls, Dec. u, 1876. His first wife, the mother of 
 Chancy, the subject of this sketch, was also born at 
 Middle Haddam, n years later than her husband, 
 and died at Richfield, Otsego Co., N. Y., April 6, 
 1819, whither they had previously removed. Of 
 their union, there were only two sons who lived to 
 attain the age of maturity, both of whom yet survive, 
 Harry G. and Chancy. Some time after tbe death 
 of his first wife, Mr. Hardin married Miss Sally 
 Martin, who was born in Olsego Co., N. Y., Nov. 3, 
 1794, and who died at Iowa Falls, Iowa, in April, 
 1885. By the last marriage, three daughters were 
 born, Mary Ann, wife of Justin Soule ; Fidelia, wife 
 of A. E. Arnold; Arzelia, wife of S. P. Smith, all of 
 horn are living. The elder Hardin came to Illi- 
 nois in 1858; the next year moved to Iowa Falls, 
 Iowa, where two of the daughters reside, and the ' 
 other is living in Battle Creek, Mich. 
 
 Chancy Hardin spent his boyhood days on his' 
 father's farm, and his early education was acquired** 
 in the common schools of the neighborhood. When 1 
 about the age of 21, he began clerking in a store in 
 Burlington Flats, Otsego Co., N. Y., and continued 
 in that position about two and a half years. He 
 served the first six months for his board; the second 
 six months for board and $10 per month, after which 
 he received $35 per month for his services. Desir- 
 ing to better his financial condition in life, he con- 
 cluded to come West, and soon started, landing 
 at Monmouth, July 4, 1840. From his home in New 
 York he went to Chicago, via the canal and lakes, 
 and from the latter city his conveyance to this place 
 was by means of a two-horse farm wagon, the time 
 required to make the journey being three weeks. A 
 few months after reaching Monmouth. he was em- 
 ployed in the store of James E. Hogue at a salary of 
 $35 per month. 
 
 In August, 1840, Mr. Hardin and wife began 
 housekeeping, and as it may be interesting to the 
 reader of the present day to learn something in re- 
 gard to the inconveniences and privations of the 
 early settlers, we deem it appropos to give something 
 in detail in regard to their early housekeeping. Mr. 
 Hardin relates that their table consisted of a dry- 
 goods box ; dry-goods boxes were used for stools and 
 
364 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 
 one for a cupboard, with a curtain in front for doors. 
 This will illustrate to some extent the prudent meth- 
 ods of Mr. Hardin and wife when they began house- 
 keeping. Though he had at that time $800 in 
 currency, the careful economy thus practiced and 
 adhered to through a long life is no doubt the true 
 reason of the success which has attended his efforts. 
 After clerking for a time for Mr. Hogue, he sold out 
 the remnant of the goods ot auction for his employer, 
 after which he accepted the appointment of Deputy 
 Sheriff and Constable for one year. 
 
 In the spring of 1843, Mr. Hardin moved on a 
 farm of 640 acres, located in Tompkins Township, a 
 part of which he had previously purchased and the 
 balance leased. By additional purchases he in- 
 creased his landed interests to 1,000 acres, and con- 
 tinued farming, stock-raising and feeding until 1850, 
 when he sold the land for $12 per acre on ten years' 
 time at six per cent, interest. In the fall of 1850, 
 Mr. Hardin moved to Monmouth, where he has 
 since resided. His business since that time has 
 almost exclusively been devoted to loaning money 
 and dealing in real estate, in which he has been 
 eminently successful. 
 
 In 1853, in company with Gen. A. C. Harding 
 and Judge Ivory Quinby, Mr. Hardin built the rail- 
 road from Burlington to Knoxville, and, after com- 
 pleting and operating it for about six months, they 
 sold it to the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Rail- 
 road Company. They took the contract originally 
 to build and equip the road, that is, to make the bed, 
 bridges, tie and iron it and to put in side-tracks, for 
 $13,500 per mile. They carried out the contract, 
 which seems a remarkably low figure, but the rail- 
 road company failing to furnish the money to them 
 as per estimates agreed upon, a second arrangement 
 was entered into, by which the railroad company 
 furnished the iron at the rate of $5.000 per mile, ex- 
 cept the bottom division of seven and a half miles, 
 which the contractors built at a cost of $18,400 per 
 mile. Messrs. Hardin & Co.. knowing the route be- 
 forehand that the road would take, purchased such 
 tracts of land as were desirable for town sites, and 
 thereby made considerable money by the laying out 
 of towns and the sale of lots, and also on the land 
 they owned lying adjacent to the town. They laid 
 out the South Addition to the city of Monmouth, 
 and were also the founders of the towns of Kirkwood 
 and Riggsville. The above comprises the railroad 
 
 experience of Mr. Hardin, which important enter- 
 prise gave to the county its first eastern and western 
 outlet. 
 
 In 1860, Mr. Hardin and sons purchased a large 
 hardware stock in Monmouth, and engaged in mer- 
 chandising, which, under the firm style of C. Hardin 
 & Sons, they conducted for seven years. After that 
 Mr. Hardin established three banks, one at Dodge 
 Center, one at Wasseca, Minn., in 1873, and the 
 other at Eldora, Iowa, in 1877. The business of the 
 banks was carried on by his sons and sons-in-law. 
 Mr. Hardin has recently sold the bank at Dodge 
 Center, and his sons have returned to this county to 
 assist in looking after their father's interests. The 
 other banks are managed by J. D. K. Smith and A. 
 P. Jamison, his so*ns-in-law. Mr. Hardin was one 
 of the organizers of the Monmouth National Bank, in 
 1870; was Vice-President and Director until the 
 bank was sold to George F. Harding and others, in 
 1874. In January, 1875, Mr. H., with his brother 
 Harry G., and others, organized the Second National 
 Bank of Monmouth. With this bank he has since 
 been identified as President and Director. Almost 
 immediately upon its organization, the bank attained 
 prominence in financial circles, which it has ever 
 maintained. This is largely due to the liberal yet 
 conservative manner in which its business is trans- 
 acted. 
 
 In addition to his other large enterprises, Mr. 
 Hardin has for many years carried on farming upon 
 an extensive scale, and at this writing he farms over 
 2,000 acres in this county, besides 3,000 acres in 
 Iowa and 3,000 acres in Minnesota. The principal 
 part of his farming is devoted to stock raising and 
 feeding. It may be here stated, however, that the 
 foundation of his fortune was laid by judicious in- 
 vestments in real estate. He has borne an honora- 
 ble part in aiding to build up the city of Monmouth, 
 and several handsome and substantial blocks owe 
 tl'eir erection to his enterprise. Since the founda- 
 tion of Monmouth College, he has been a member of 
 the Board of Trustees, and has been actively and 
 prominently identified with its success and growth. 
 
 Mr. Hardin was married in the city of Chicago, 
 Aug. 27, 1840, to Miss Harriet A. Gordon, a native 
 of Richfield Springs, Otsego Co., N. Y. She was a 
 daughter of Samuel S. and Rebecca (Lee) Gordon. 
 Her father was a native of Connecticut, where he 
 born Dec. 13, 1783. His grandparents, Alex- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 35 
 
 
 ander Gordon, and Jane, his wife, left Ireland and 
 arrived in Boston, Mass.. in 1719. They subse- 
 quently settled in the colony of Connecticut. They 
 were both of Scotch-Irish parentage, and brought 
 with them to this country five children. To them 
 belong the credit of establishing that branch of the 
 family in the United States and which has since be- 
 come quite numerous. In religious belief, they were 
 Presbyterians. The wife and mother, Jane Gordon, 
 died May 14, 1774, and Alexander Gordon, the 
 pioneer, died July 27, 1774, at the advanced age of 
 103 years, both of their deaths taking place at their 
 home in Connecticut. One of the sons of Al- 
 exander, John Gordon, was married to Janet Carr, 
 March 30, 1732, and they had a family of four chil- 
 dren, of whom Samuel S. was the second child. His 
 father, John Gordon, died in 1797, and his widow 
 survived until her 82^ year. 
 
 Samuel S. Gordon, father of Mrs. Hardin, the 
 wife of the subject of this notice, was by trade a 
 clothier, and when he grew to manhood he moved 
 to and settled in Otsego Co., N. Y. There he became 
 acquainted with and married Rebecca Lee, their 
 wedding taking place about 1807. She was of Eng- 
 lish descent. Her parents were John and Anna 
 Lee, and they were also residents in early life of 
 Connecticut; afterwards removed to Otsego Co., N. 
 Y., where Mrs. Gordon resided until her death, 
 which took place about the year 1853. Mr. Gordon 
 scbsequently came to this county and lived with Mr. 
 and Mrs. Hardin, at whose home he died, Dec. i , 
 1873, at the venerable age of 90 years. Two other 
 children of Mr. and Mrs. Gordon had previously 
 moved to this State, John L. Gordon and N. Maria, 
 wife of Brainard Root. They are dead and both 
 buried at Monmouth. Mary Ann, the other chilil, 
 died in Michigan, and is also buried at Monmouth. 
 This branch of the Lee family first settled in East- 
 ern New York, and subsequently removed to the 
 western part of the same State. Mr. and Mrs. Gor- 
 don had a family of eight children, three sons and 
 five daughters, of whom Mrs. Hardin was the fifth 
 child in order of birth, and the only children now 
 living are Mrs. Hardin and a brother, Daniel B. 
 Gordon, of Oswego, N. Y. 
 
 As the fruits of the above union, Mr. Hardin and 
 wife had born to them six children. Arzelia, wife of 
 A. P. Jamison, resident of Wasseca, Minn; Delavan 
 S., who was married to Mary E. Parsons, a native of 
 
 Northamptonshire, England, and is residing in Mon- 
 mouth; Nina is the wife of J. D. K. Smith, and their 
 home is in Eldora, Iowa; Chancy Dewit married 
 Clara V. Smith, of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa ; Jennie be- 
 came the wife of Frank Brownell, and they reside in 
 Granville, N. Y. ; Dewane died in infancy. The two 
 sons are managing Mr. H.'s farms in this county 
 and are also partners with their father and sons-in- 
 law in the banking business in Iowa and Minnesota, 
 which is conducted under the name of C. Hardin & 
 Sons. 
 
 Since 1840, Mr. Hardin and wife have been mem- 
 bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church. During 
 the late war, Mr. Hardin was a staunch Union man. 
 His son Delavan S. was a soldier for about a year. 
 Mr. Hardin's success in life may be attributed to hi 
 careful, conservative and methodical manner of do- 
 ing things. His judgment on business and financial 
 matters is regarded by his friends as being eminently 
 sound, and he ranks as not only among the most 
 prominent successful business men of Warren County, . 
 but also in this part of the State. 
 
 Perhaps the portrait of no other man in Warren 
 County will be looked upon with more interest, or 
 be more appropriate in this ALBUM, than that of Mr. 
 Chancy Hardin, which the publishers take pleasure 
 in giving in connection with this sketch. 
 
 illiam P. Jones, owner of 165 acres of ex- 
 cellent farm land, on section 22, Swan 
 Township, and one of the earliest pioneers 
 p of Warren County, was born in Kentucey, 
 Nov. n, 1810. He was a son of Elijah 
 Jones, born in Old Virginia, who married Miss 
 Sarah Hamrock, about the year r8oi, the ceremony 
 taking place in North Carolina. She was born in 
 Virginia, in 1777, and of their union seven children 
 were born: Susanna, born in 1802; Wyley, in 1804; 
 Margaret, in 1809; William P., in 1810; Jessie, in 
 1812; John, in 1814; and Elizabeth, in 1816. Mrs. 
 Jones, mother of our subject, died ia Illinois, in 
 1857, the father in 1833, in Kentucky. 
 
 William P. Jones, of whom we write, was married 
 in 1829, to Miss Adora Strode, who was born in 
 
3 66 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 > 
 
 1810, in Kentucky, the ceremony being performed by 
 the Rev. IWilliam Whitman. Of their union nine 
 children have been born, namely : Mary A., born 
 April 19, 1830; Sarah A., April 15, r833 ; Cynthia 
 A., Jan. 24,1834; Elijah, Jan. 29, 1836; Elizabeth, 
 Sept.] 8, 1838; Catherina, Oct. 12, 1841; Angelina, 
 Sept. 6, 1845; William, May 4, 1848; and Peter, 
 Nov. 7, 1850. Only five of the children still sur- 
 vive. Mrs. Jones, wife of our subject, died April 7, 
 1877. 
 
 William P. Jones came to Illinois in 1835, and 
 first located in Greenbush Township. He is a thor- 
 oughly informed, practical agriculturist, having pur- 
 sued that avocation nearly all his life, and has been 
 abundantly blessed with prosperity, which invariably 
 is the reward of the industrious and intelligent tiller 
 of the soil. In political opinion, Mr. Jones is a 
 Democrat, having voted for " Hickory " Jackson. He 
 is a member of the Baptist Church, of which denom- 
 ination his wife was also a member. Mr. Jones is 
 now living with one of his sons, Peter B., who mar- 
 ried Miss Ellen Threlkeld, Feb. 6, 1878. They have 
 become the parents of five children, Mary Grace, 
 Inez A., Glen A., Frank M. and Wilford. 
 
 -Of 
 
 ^avid Duffield, a successful farmer, owning 
 a valuable farm, located on section 14, " 
 Berwick Township, was born Dec. 30, 
 1837, in McHenry County, this State. His 
 father, Nathan Duffield, was a native of Vir- 
 ginia, where he was born, in 1817. He 
 was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth P. 
 Duffield, a farmer's daughter, of Virginia, and in 
 which State she was born, in 1820, and who bore 
 him ten children, and departed this life in 1878. 
 Their children were named David, Caroline, Jeru- 
 sha, John, Thomas M., Martha, Charles, Nathan, 
 Jane and Alice. The father died Dec. 9, 1885. 
 
 David Duffield, subject of this biographical notice, 
 has passed the years of his life that are gone in ag- 
 ricultural pursuits. He was reared on a farm and 
 acquired an education in the common schools of his 
 native State. Nov. 5, 1869, he was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Lydia A. Stafford, in Otsego Co., N. 
 
 LA 
 
 Y. She was born July 13, 1844. Of their union 
 three children have been born, namely : Lalla E., 
 born June 14, 1872; Arlie S., born Nov. 26, 1875 ; 
 and Cyrus A., born Sept. 26, 1881. 
 
 The parents of Mrs. Duffield, S. P. and Sarah 
 (Smith) Stafford, were born in New York, in iSrs 
 and 1818, respectively. They had five children, 
 Maria, born 1841 ; Lydia A., in 1844; Joseph, in 
 1847 ; Amanda, in 1853 ; and Sarah, in i86r. Mr. 
 Duffield is at present pleasantly situated on 80 acres 
 of good farm land, located on section 14, Berwick 
 Township, which he owns, and is active engaged in 
 his chosen vocation. He has been Township Col- 
 lector for a number of years and School Director 
 for quite a long time. Politically, he is a Jefferson- 
 ian Democrat. Mrs. Duffield is a member of the 
 Christian Church. 
 
 |enry Charles Parsons, a former citizen of 
 the township of Sumner, was born in 1-- 
 Fletcher, Vt., in 1820, and was the son of 
 Elder and Charlotte Parsons. In his early 
 youth his mother was removed by death and he . 
 became an inmate of the household of a man 
 named George Buck, with whom he passed the re- 
 maining years of his minority. He was brought up 
 with a thorough knowledge of farming, and received 
 such education as the common schools of that day 
 afforded. 
 
 The first prominent event of his adult life was his 
 marriage to Abigail Buck, who became his wife Dec. 
 25, 1846. She was the daughter of Murray and 
 Polly (Thorp) Buck and her parents were natives of 
 the Green Mountain State. In the maternal line of 
 descent she was of Connecticut origin. Before mar- 
 riage Mr. Parsons had bought a small farm in Buck 
 Hollow, in Franklin Co., Vt., which became the 
 home of himself and his bride. After living on the 
 place two years, the sold out and came to Warren 
 County, arriving in 1848. Their route of travel was 
 via Lake Champlain, Cham plain Canal and Erie 
 Canal to Buffalo, and thence by the lakes to Chicago. 
 In that city Mr. Parsons bought a pair of horses and 
 set forth for his point of destination. One of the 
 horses sickened and died on the road. The father 
 
(li >tt 
 
ITCHEY, SEC.2..SPRIN6 Gf?OVETOWNSHI P. 
 
 EC., 26. LENOX TOWNS HI p. 
 
 
 
 RESIDENCE- or A.A.CHAPMAN^EC-.SS.SPRING GROVETOWNSHIP. 
 
A 
 
 T 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 369 
 
 traded the remaining animal for another span and 
 successfully com pled the journey. He located in 
 Hale Township on the farm owned by Murray Buck. 
 After two years he bought 160 acres of land on sec- 
 tion 33, in the same township. At first he built a 
 small frame house, of which his family took posses- 
 sion, and then he turned his attention to the work of 
 improving his land. Two years later the house was 
 burned with all its contents. A good and substan- 
 tial brick house replaced the primitive structure of 
 the pioneer and was his home during the remaining 
 years of his earthly course. He made subsequent 
 purchases of land and at the time of his death was 
 the owner of 240 acres, finely stocked and furnished 
 with modern farming implements of the most ap- 
 proved patterns. His demise took place Nov. 1 6, 
 1869. He was a Republican and a practical tem- 
 perance man. Six of the children of which he and 
 his wife became the parents are living. Wealthy is 
 married to Marion Harrison of Sumner Township. 
 Mary is the wife of William Morrison. They settled 
 at Atlantic, Iowa. Horace resides on the homestead. 
 Henry and Grant are also residents thereon. Pearl 
 is the youngest. 
 
 Alexander A. Chapman, a farmer on sec- 
 tion 35, in the township of Spring Grove, 
 like so many of the first settlers in this part 
 of the United States, is the descendant of a 
 family of New England origin. Ashbel Chap- 
 man, his grandfather, was born in the section 
 of this country first settled in the days of the Pil- 
 grims, and removed thence to Cayuga Co., N. Y., in 
 the beginning of the present century. At that period 
 the Empire State was in its infancy, the greater por- 
 tion of it still covered with the primeval forest. The 
 tract on which the elder Chapman located was in the 
 same condition as when his ancestors landed upon 
 the bleak Massachusetts coast nearly two centuries 
 below. He went sturdily at the work of clearing the 
 the wilderness, and in due time had reclaimed a suf- 
 ficient spot of ground and erected the first homestead. 
 The, then, nearest point was the Mohawk River, some 
 150 miles distant. With the breaking out of the dif- 
 ficulties engendered by the second struggle between 
 
 this country and England, our pioneer turned from 
 his axe and plow to assist in the settlement of his 
 rights and to aid in the defense of what had been 
 secured by his forefathers. He continued to reside 
 in New York till about 1836, when he removed to 
 Ohio, locating in Summit County, where he passed 
 to his rest at the ripe age of 80 years. 
 
 Orson C. Chapman, his son, married Rebecca 
 Giffbrd, a native of the State of New York. He was 
 born Feb. 26, 1801, previous to the removal of the 
 family to Cayuga County. After marriage he oper- 
 ated there as a business man until 1834, when he 
 removed thence to Oswego County, in the same 
 State, where he passed about ten years, and remov- 
 ing later to Ohio, where he settled in the same por- 
 tion of the State first chosen by his father, viz. ; Sum- 
 mit County. After continuing there six years he 
 returned to Oswego. In 1866 he made another 
 transfer of his home and interests to Noble Co., Ind., 
 where his demise took place in 1871. His wife, the 
 mother of the subject of this biography, still survives ' 
 him. They were the parents of 12 children. 
 
 Alexander A. Chapman is the fourth child of his ' 
 parents and was born in the town of Bennett, in " 
 Cayuga Co., N. Y., Oct. 19, 1833. In 1856 he sev- 
 ered his connections with the parental home and 
 came to Warren County. He obtained employment 
 as a farm hand and continued to work out until he 
 finally chose a partner for life. His marriage to Ann 
 M. Buck occurred Dec. 15, 1858. The parents of 
 his wife, Norman and Maria Buck, were natives of 
 Vermont, who had become settlers in this county in 
 1848. Mrs. Chapman was born in Loraine Co,, 
 Ohio, Nov. 5, 1834. After his union he settled in 
 Spring Grove Township, on the farm on which he 
 has ever since made his home. This property for- 
 merly belonged to the father of Mrs, Chapman and 
 then contained only 80 acres improved land, 60 
 acres of which was under cultivation. There was 
 then only a small frame house on the place. The 
 whole tract of 320 acres owned by Mr. Chapman in- 
 cludes the east half of the southeast part of section 
 35, and the west half of the southwest quarter of 
 section 36. The place is improved with handsome, 
 modern buildings, and with a fine lawn. A good idea 
 of the homestead will be obtained from the accom- 
 panying illustration. It is justly considered one of 
 the most attractive homes in the county. 
 
 The children of the household are three in num- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 
 
 her, two sons and one daughter. Norman Ward, the 
 eldest, is a civil engineer, now pursuing his profes- 
 sion in Nebraska. Isa and Frank reside at home, 
 where they are receiving the benefits of a thorough 
 education. In politics, the representative man, whose 
 career we have outlined, is a staunch supporter of 
 the principles of the Republican party, to which he 
 has adhered since its organization. 
 
 r. M. B. Bay, one of the large land- 
 owners of Lenox Township, a gentleman 
 of more than ordinary executive ability 
 and a successful farmer, residing on section 
 26, Lenox Township, is the son of Garland ;md 
 Sarah (Lee) Ray, natives of Kentucky. 
 His parents came to this county in 1835, and will 
 consequently take rank among its pioneer settlers. 
 They located in Roseville Township, where they 
 continued to reside for about a year, when they re- 
 moved to Lenox Township, where they lived until 
 their death, the decease of Mr. Ray's mother taking 
 place Feb. 24, 1868, and that of his father April 12, 
 1881. Their children were ten in number, namely: 
 Amelia A., Harriet E~, Henrietta M., James W., 
 M. B., Eletha, Clarinda J., Julia A., Susan A. and 
 Nancy Elizabeth. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head of 
 this notice was born in Edmonson Co., Ky., Feb. 6, 
 1828, and had reached the age of nine years when 
 he came with his parents to this county, where he 
 has continued to reside until the present time. Mr. 
 Ray ma) be said to have followed the vocation of an 
 agriculturist from childhood, as he was brought up to 
 that occupation and has made it the pursuit of his 
 life. He is at present the owner of over 1,200 acres 
 in this county, all of which, with the exception of 
 30 acres of timberland, is under an advanced state 
 of cultivation, and with the exception of 210 acres in 
 Roseville Township is all situated in Lenox Town- 
 ship. He keeps upon his home farm, which com- 
 prises 500 acres, about too head of cattle, 20 head 
 of horses and colts, and fattens about 100 head of 
 hogs annually. What of this world's goods he may 
 
 possess, and the same, as will be readily seen is not 
 small, has been accumulated through his own in- 
 domitable energy, pluck and good judgment. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Ray, which occurred in 
 Lenox Township, Seyt. 5, 1850, when Miss Nancy 
 C. Ray became his wife, has been blessed by the 
 birth of ten children. Mrs. Ray is the daughter of 
 John and Sarah Ray, natives of Kentucky. Their 
 children are Richard H., Emeline, Laura J., Letitia, 
 John L., Theodosia, Mary, Hiram, Hattie and Mar- 
 tha. Martha is deceased ; Richard resides in Lenox 
 Township; Emeline is the wife of Tilford Rice and 
 resides in Lenox Township ; Laura J. married John 
 Chapman, who resides in Iowa ; Letitia became the 
 wife of William Ken, also a resident of Iowa; John 
 L. lives in Lenox Township; Theodosia married 
 William Parrish, also a resident of Lenox Township; 
 Mary was united in marriage with Theo. C. Alexan- 
 der, who is a farmer in Lenox Township ; Hiram is 
 also residing in Lenox Township; Hattie became 
 the wife of Martin Landon, who is a farmer in Ber- 
 wick Township. 
 
 Mr. Ray has held the office of Highway Commis- ; 
 sioner and Overseer of Highways. In politics, he ~ 
 casts his vote with the Democratic party. Himself 
 and wife both belong to the Missionary Baptist 
 Church. 
 
 We present a fine view of Mr. Ray's substantial 
 homestead on page 368. 
 
 ): rlando Bandall, a successful farmer and 
 highly respected citizen of Warren County, 
 owning 330 acres of land in Tompkins 
 Township, and residing on section 16, is a na- 
 tive of Chenango Co., N. Y., where he was 
 born Jan. 28, 1827. The parents of Mr. Ran- 
 dall Roswell and Charlotte (Page) Randall, were 
 natives of New Hampshire and Vermont respect- 
 ively. After marriage, in 1849, they emigrated lo 
 this county, where the father became a citizen of 
 Tompkins Township, locating on section 1 6, where 
 he purchased 160 acres of land. The parents con- 
 tinued to reside on their land in Tompkins Town- 
 ship for 1 6 years, during which time the father was 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 37' 
 
 laboriously engaged in its cultivation. At the ex- 
 piration of that time, he, with his family moved into 
 the village of Kirkwood, and there resided until the 
 death of both heads of the household, which oc- 
 curred in 1878 and 1879 respectively. 
 
 The gentleman whose name we place at the be- 
 ginning of this biographical sketch, was an inmate of 
 the parental household, until he became 28 years of 
 age. He then, in 1856, purchased 80 acres of land 
 on section 2i,Tompkins Township, which, by subse- 
 quent purchases, he increased to 330 acres of as 
 good farm land as there is in the county. He is ac- 
 tively engaged in the cultivation and improvement of 
 his farm and is meeting with well merited success. 
 
 In 1855, Mr. Randall was united in marriage with 
 Miss Melissa Hall, a native of Oneida Co., N. Y., 
 and a daughter of Oliver and Rachel (Underhill) 
 Hall. They have six children living, named Edgar 
 H., Charles M., Allen C., Deliah R., Charlotte D., 
 and Frank P. In politics, Mr. Randall votes with 
 the Republican party. What of this world's goods 
 he may possess, has been acquired through his own 
 indomitable energy, perseverance and good judg- 
 ment, coupled with the active co-operation of his 
 good helpmeet, and is regarded he as one of the most 
 substantial farmers of Tompkins Township. 
 
 urton Godfrey, Road Commissioner, farm- 
 er and stock-raiser, residing on section 27, 
 Ellison Township, was born in Ross Co., 
 Ohio, June 28, 1822. The father of Mr. 
 Godfrey, Elisha Godfrey, was a native of 
 Maryland, of New England parentage, and 
 came to Ohio with his father and mother when a 
 young man. The mother of Elisha died in Warren 
 Co 111., and his father in Ohio. Elisha married Miss 
 Dorcas Hill, a native of Virginia. She came to Ohio 
 with her parents when quite young and they both 
 died in Ross County that State., 
 
 The gentleman whose sketch we write, resided 
 with his parents until his marriage, receiving the ad- 
 vantages afforded by the common schools, and as- 
 sisting in the maintenance of the family, by labor on 
 the farm. His parents came to this State in 1857. 
 
 Burton Godfrey had preceded them, having arrived 
 here in 1856, and settled in Ellison Township. His 
 parents settled in Ellison, but after witnessing the ter- 
 rible hurricane that passed through that village in the 
 spring of 1858, returned to Ohio, where they resided 
 five years and again returned to this county, where 
 the father died in 1873, of heart disease. His wife, 
 Burton's mother, soon afterward returned to Ohio, 
 where, in 1881, she died. 
 
 Burton Godfrey is the second in order of birth of 
 ic children. He lived with his parents in Ross Co., 
 Ohio, until his marriage with Rebecca J. Penwell. 
 She was born in the county where she was married, 
 and was the daughter of an Ohio farmer. Their 
 married life lasted for five years only, when the 
 wife and mother died, leaving two children 
 Joseph M. and Mrs. Sarah Lozier. Mr. Godfrey 
 was a second time married, in Pickaway Co., Ohio, 
 April n, 1853, when Mrs. Sarah A. Graham, nee 
 Grimes, became his wife. She was a daughter of 
 Benjamin and Ruth (Chenoweth) Grimes, natives of 
 Virginia and Ohio respectively, who were married 
 in the latter State and where they both died. They 
 were well-to-do people, loving and kind parents, 
 obliging neighbors and respected by all who knew 
 them. Mrs. Godfrey was the second in order of 
 birth of a family of five children, born of the second 
 marriage of her father, he having been married four 
 times. The date of her birth was Aug. 16, 1824, 
 and the place of her nativity Ross Co., Ohio. She 
 was about ten years of age when her mother died, 
 and afterward lived with her father and step-mother 
 until her marriage to John W. Graham, a native of 
 Pickaway Co.. Ohio, and a farmer by occupation. 
 He died in that county June 14, 1847, leaving two 
 children, Charles W. and Benjamin F., both of whom 
 are married and engaged in farming the former 
 in Ellison Township and the latter in Iowa. 
 
 After the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Godfrey, they 
 lived on a farm in Ohio from 1853 until 1856. On 
 coining to this State Mr. Godfrey purchased 80 acres 
 of land in this county on section 27, Ellison Town- 
 ship, on which he located and where he has since 
 lived. By energetic labor and economy he has added 
 240 acres to his original purchase, and is at present 
 the proprietor of 320 acres of excellent farm land, 
 under an advanced state of cultivation and ten acres 
 of timber. 
 
 He has a good residence on his farm, together with 
 
372 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 barn and other outbuildings, and is one of the suc- 
 cessful farmers of Warren County. His attention in 
 addition to his farm labors has been directed to the 
 raising of Short-horn cattle, in which he is meeting 
 with success. He and his wife are members of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, of which denomination 
 Mr. G. is present trustee and steward. In politics 
 Mr. Godfrey is a staunch and active worker in the 
 ranks of the Republican party. He has held the 
 office of Collector, Assessor, Road Commissioner, 
 Overseer of the Poor and many of the minor offices 
 within the gift of the people of his township. 
 
 eorge Thayer. Upon section 28, of Rose- 
 ville Township, there resides an intelli- 
 gent farmer in comfortable circumstances 
 and well known throughout the community, by 
 the name of George Thayer. He was born in 
 New York State, and is the son of Sabin 
 Thayer, a native of that State. There, the elder 
 Thayer, met and married Miss Lovina Kingsbury, 
 who was also born in the Empire State. They were 
 living there in the quiet and peaceful occupation of 
 farming, when their son, George, was born. His 
 birth occurred Aug. 24, 1828. Here young Thayer 
 lived until 1840, when his parents started with their 
 family westward. They found a desirable location 
 in Knox County, where the senior Thayer purchased 
 80 acres of land, and began its improvement. He 
 was however, not permitted to see the beautiful 
 prairies develop to the high condition which they 
 are in at present, for four years after his arrival here, 
 he died. His wife lived 20 years longer, dying 
 in 1864. 
 
 George Thayer left home at a very early age, the 
 death of his father compelling the mother to start 
 him out to help make a living for the family. He 
 worked out by the month until he was 23 years of 
 age, and by economy he had accumulated a little 
 money, and bought the place where he now lives. 
 This consisted of but 60 acres at that time, 1863, 
 but since success has crowned the hard labor and 
 good business judgment of Mr. Thayer to a certain 
 extent, we now find him the owner of 220 acres 
 
 acres. He is now engaged in general farming, and 
 is regarded in this community as a gentleman of 
 good, sound business judgment, and a respected 
 citizen. Politically he is a Republican, and together 
 with his wife, belongs to the Baptist Church. 
 
 In 1851, August 23, the wedding ceremony which 
 united in marriage George Thayer and Miss Jean- 
 nett White, occurred. Miss White was born in New 
 York State, and was the daughter of Ephraim and 
 Sally (Crane) White, eaily and respected pioneers of 
 Hancock Co., 111., her father and mother dying in 
 that county at a very early day, the death of the 
 forme* occurring in 1845, and the latter in 1843. 
 Mrs. Thayer is the mother of six children, namely : 
 John W., Bion L., Charles A., Darwin N., Ida L. 
 and Nettie. John W., married Mary Nisely, and 
 their two children are named George and Mary. 
 Bion L. selected for a wife, Stella Cunningham. 
 Lovell and Malvin are the names of their children. 
 
 'Ibert Rodgers is an energetic and respect- 
 ed citizen of Lenox Township, where he is 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits, on section 
 27. He is a son of Clark and Nancy (Bar. 
 rett) Rodgers, and was born in Pickaway 
 County, Ohio, Dec. 2, 1840. His parents were 
 na'ives of the Buckeye State, and came to Illinois in 
 1853, locating in McDonough County. They after- 
 ward removed to Fulton County, the adjoining coun- 
 ty, where they died, the father Oct. 4, 1880, and the 
 mother Aug. n, 1871. They had a family of ten 
 children John B., James O., William H., Eliza A., 
 Albert, May, Martha, Elvira, Scott, and Perry. 
 
 Albert Rodgers was but 13 years of age when his 
 parents removed to the State of Illinois, and he con- 
 tinued to live with them until he attained the age of 
 22 years, when he worked out for awhile at farming 
 and mining. He remained a resident of McDon- 
 ough County until 1871, when he came to Warren 
 County, where he has since been engaged in agricul- 
 tural pursuits, having purchased 80 acres of land on 
 section 27, his present location, in the year 1881, and 
 engaged actively and energetically in its improve- 
 ment and cultivation. 
 
 He was married in Berwick Township, Warren 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 375 
 
 County, March 26, 1874, to Miss Martha, daughter 
 of Greenbury and Mary (Moore) Ray, natives of 
 Kentucky, who came to Warren County in 1844. 
 They lived in Berwick Township, where they made 
 their permanent abiding place until their deaths, the 
 mother's demise occurring Dec. 28, 1871, and the 
 father Jan. 24, 1879. Their family comprised tHe 
 following named children : Martha, Lizzie, Willis, 
 Mary, Wilbur, Jennie and two who died in infancy. 
 Mrs. Rodgers was the eldest of her parents' family, 
 and was born in Kentucky, April 25, 1848. Herself 
 and husband are members of the Baptist Church, 
 and the latter in politics casts his vote with the Dem- 
 ocratic party. 
 
 ,,on. Ivory Quinby, deceased, son of Asa 
 and Mehitable Quinby, was born on the 
 I4th day of July, 1817, in Btixton, Maine, 
 
 jf and died at Monmouth, 111., Oct. 23, 18*9. 
 After completing his preparatory studies, he 
 entered the Freshman Class of Waterville Col- 
 lege, Maine, in 1832, being then a little over 15 
 years of age. While in college he ranked high as 
 a student. His favorite study was natural science, 
 and he was especially distinguished for his attain- 
 ments in chemistry. He graduated with honor-, his 
 diploma bearing the date of Aug. 3, 1836, he being 
 then a little over 19 years of age. 
 
 After leaving college, he spent a short time in 
 Parsonsfield, as an assistant teacher in the academy, 
 then under the care of his uncle, the Rev. Hosea 
 Quinby. He then went to Saco and entered the 
 office of Judge Shepley, as a student of law. His 
 health prevented him continuing here long, and in 
 the fall of 1837, when not yet 21 years of age, he 
 sought a home in Illinois. He left Maine with 
 $125, this being the sum total of his worldly goods. 
 
 He landed first at Quincy, where he made the 
 acquaintance of Hon. O. H. Browning and John 
 Mitchel, Esq. By the advice of Mr. Browning, he 
 selected Monmouth, then an inconsiderable village, 
 as his future home. He and Mr. Mitchel arranged 
 a partnership and set out for the place of their 
 choice. From Oquawka they came to Monmouth 
 on foot, opened an office, and commenced business 
 as attorneys and counsellors at law. 
 
 On March 14, 1839, when between 22 and 
 
 23 years of age, he married Miss Jane A. Allen. 
 She died on the 7th of February, 1847. She was 
 the mother of three children, all of whom died before 
 their father. 
 
 He does not appear to have continued long in 
 Monmouth at that time. For some cause he aban- 
 doned the practice of law, removed to Berwick and 
 went into the mercantile business. 
 
 On the i7th of February, 1848, he married Miss 
 Mary E. Pearce, a native of Ohio and daughter of 
 Thomas and Phebe (Little) Pearce, of Virginia and 
 Ne.v Jersey respectively. Mr. Thomas Pearce was 
 a soldier in the War of 1812. He came to Tazewell 
 County, this State, in the spring of 1830, removing 
 thence into Warren County in the fall of 1831. 
 With his team Mr. Pearce hauled the first load of 
 goods to Monmouth. In company with Hon. Sam- 
 uel G. Morse, he laid out the town of Berwick, and 
 resided there several years. He died in 1853, aged 
 75 years. His widow lived to be 78 years of 
 age, and died in 1869. By his second marriage, ' 
 Judge Quinby had born to him eight children, only 
 four of whom survived him Jane (Mrs. Dr. A. F. ' 
 Bucknam) ; George, a resident of Dakota where he 
 owns a large landed estate; Frank, an attorney-at- 
 law at Monmouth ; and Ivory, a student. 
 
 Soon after the opening of Monmouth College, he 
 became one of its warmest friends, and was elected 
 a member of the Board of Trustees. For a short 
 time he held the office of Treasurer. He was a 
 member of the committee entrusted with the erec- 
 tion of the new college building. He was also a 
 member of the Executive Committee, and for some 
 years President of the Board. Occupying these 
 responsible positions, the interests of the college 
 made large demands on his time ; yet it was cheer- 
 fully given. He was punctual and regular in at- 
 tending all meetings of the Committee and Board. 
 The many reports, carefully prepared, on file in his 
 handwriting, show that he gave the college much 
 and careful thought. His colleagues uniformly paid 
 the most profound respect to his opinion. It is be- 
 lieved that no measure he favored was ever voted 
 down. In addition to the time and thought given, 
 he also made frequent and large donations to the 
 college in money, which amounted to over $8,000. 
 Tliose bist acquainted with the history of the col- 
 lege affirm that his assistance, in various ways, was. 
 
 t i 
 
37 6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 so timely and valuable, that without him the enter- 
 prise could hardly have succeeded. 
 
 Judge Quinby was distinguished for the soundness 
 of his judgment and the candor with which he ex- 
 pressed his opinions. It is doubtful whether there 
 is a man in Monmouth whose opinion, on any ques- 
 tion with which he was familiar, carried greater 
 weight. Many a mooted point has he settled by 
 simply stating his deliberate judgment. 
 
 In appearance and manner he was somewhat 
 austere, yet, in fact, he was one of the most tender- 
 hearted of men. There are many who can testify 
 to substantial acts of kindness on his part, which 
 they will be slow to forget. They are not a few who 
 to-day bless his memory. 
 
 At the same time, he was peculiarly modest and 
 unostentatious. In giving money, he shrank from 
 notoriety. He made many offers, to stimulate others 
 to like liberality; but in all such cases he uniformly 
 enjoined secrecy as to his name. When he gave 
 alms, he did not sound a trumpet before him. He 
 hardly let his left hand know what his right hand 
 was doing. 
 
 Above all, he was a Christian man. He early 
 made a profession of faith in the Baptist Church, 
 and on his death-bed he confessed, unsolicited, in 
 the broadest and most unequivocal terms, his faith 
 in Christ. 
 
 All in all, in the death of Ivory Quinby, Mon- 
 mouth lost one of the worthiest of her citizens. The 
 vacancy will hardly be filled. Let those who survive 
 imitate his virtues and follow his footsteps, while 
 they revere his memory and lament his loss. 
 
 At a meeting of the Warren County Bar, Oct. 26, 
 1869, Mr. Delos Phelps read in open Court the fol- 
 lowing resolutions : 
 
 WHEREAS, Divine Providence, in His inscrutable 
 dispensation, has removed from among us Ivory 
 Quinby, long and well known to the citizens of our 
 county, for many years a practicing attorney of ac- 
 knowledged probity and ability, in our courts, and 
 for a long time occupying a judicial station among 
 us. Therefore be it 
 
 Resolved, By the members of the Warren County 
 Bar, assembled out of respect to the memory of our 
 deceased brother, and to pay a proper tribute to a 
 good man who has fallen in our midst, that in the 
 loss of him who now '' after life's fitful fever sleepeth 
 well," the members of the legal profession have lost 
 one who to the virtue of private life added the calm, 
 dispassioned judgment and consistent uprightness of 
 
 character, which rendered him, while in the prac- 
 tice of law, an ornament to the profession, a guide to 
 his brethren, and one who worthily illustrated the 
 exalted principles of enlightened jurisprudence. 
 
 Resolved, That we willingly bear testimony to the 
 ability, sterling integrity, and great usefulness in his 
 day, of our departed friend and brother. That we 
 deplore his loss, as an important member of the com- 
 munity at large, and sincerely sympathize with his 
 wife and family in the irreparable loss sustained by 
 them in the death of their husband and father. 
 
 Resolved, That as members of the Bar of Warren 
 County, we will attend his funeral in a body. That 
 a copy of these resolutions be published in the city 
 p.ipers, a copy sent to the family of the deceased, 
 and a copy spread on the records of the County and 
 Circuit Courts of Warren County at the next terms 
 of the same. A. C. HARDING, Chairman. 
 
 J. J. GLENN, Secretary. 
 
 Hon. A. C. Harding then said : 
 
 " If the Court please, I move that these resolutions 
 be unanimously adopted by the Bar of this county, 
 and spread upon the records of this Court. They 
 express the respectful and grateful feelings we all 
 entertain for our friend and colleague, Ivory Quinby, 
 Esq., who, since your last adjournment, has passed 
 from the scenes of earthly usefulness to the bourne 
 of the blessed. He went to the tomb with an escort 
 of a multitude of people, who bedewed his grave 
 with tears. The college and the pulpit pronounced 
 and expressed eulogies upon his character, and im- 
 mortalized his memory. No words or tears of mine 
 can add to -that homage which his noble life has 
 earned and received. His connection with the 
 courts as a lawyer and Judge has rendered honorable 
 the profession of the law, and left impressions of 
 respect for judicial urbanity and integrity which will 
 long remain upon the minds of his colleagues and 
 the people. His long career at the Bar of this Court 
 was never blotted by trick or chicanery; but at every 
 step of his legal practice he honored his profession 
 by frank, manly, courteous and honest conduct. To 
 him the Bar of this county owes as much as to any 
 of its members for the honorable character it bears. 
 I refrain from entering the fields of eulogy which 
 have been so abundantly harvested to the memory 
 of fudge Quinby by the Rev. Doctors of Divinity, 
 Matthews and Wallace, and by the Reverend and 
 eloquent Wasmuth. But because his character was 
 so peculiarly unostentatious and his charities secret, 
 I deem it proper to add that while I knew him in the 
 confidential relation of a partner in the practice of 
 the law for more than 15 years, and for more than 
 eight years in the construction of railways, I never 
 knew him to violate the rule, ' Do unto others as ye 
 would they should do unto you.' In all distribu- 
 tions of gains and losses he was liberal and just. 
 While differing in political relations until the great 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 377 
 
 
 
 Rebellion, no scenes of bitter strife between us is 
 remembered to have ever existed, and we rallied 
 together in the hour of the nation's trial with the 
 good and the true of all parties to the rescue of our 
 imperiled government. In one characteristic, our 
 friend was not generally well known. From some 
 consideration it may have been that he dreaded the 
 appearance of a desire to distinguish or aggrandize 
 himself he sedulously shrouded in secrecy his best 
 charities and noblest acts. I know of some of his 
 charities to the destitute in past days that I never 
 heard mentioned by him or others. His many acts 
 of beneficence to the college of our cities, and his 
 efforts to found a library, were all marked by modest 
 retirement from public notice. After all business 
 relations between us had been closed, I became en- 
 dangered, and should have been pecuniarily ruined, 
 but that my friend, Judge Quinby, almost unsolicited 
 (for I felt the danger so great that I ought not en- 
 danger him), became absolute security to pay a 
 judgment of more than $300,000. Sir, few or none 
 others could or would have done this from philan- 
 thropic obligations only. But I forget. Pardon this 
 digression. Let us cherish his memory and follow 
 his example, that like him, when we pass away, 
 those who remain may strew words of kind remem- 
 brance over our graves; and our names find a place 
 on the pages of this Court, and be written above in 
 the great Book of Eternal Life." 
 
 At the same meeting, Mr. Strain, who had been 
 intimately associated with Judge Quinby in the 
 Board of College Trustees for many years, paid to 
 his memory the following tribute : 
 
 " In every emergency, we sought his aid and coun- 
 cil, and it was always, when possible, given in his 
 quiet, unassuming way. His ideas were always 
 clothed in plain, simple and expressive language. 
 In his benefactions there was no sounding of trum- 
 pets, and the public but seldom knew the benefactor. 
 In his almsgiving which was liberal his left hand 
 knew not what his right hand did. And it is hi^h 
 praise of him to be able to say that after a life of 
 many years among us devoted to active business 
 to the discharge of professional duties ; to the per- 
 formance of official trusts, and to the accumulation 
 of a large estate no tongue speaks but in his praise, 
 and no breath of censure tarnishes his memory. 
 Such a character is indeed a rich legacy to his family 
 aud friends, and the community of which he was a 
 member, and an example of greatest worth to each 
 one of us.'' 
 
 At a meeting of the Board of Trustees and Di- 
 rectors of the Monmouth College, on Monday, Oct. 
 25, 1869, the following action was taken: 
 
 Resolved, By the Trustees and Directors of the 
 Monmouth College : 
 
 i. That in the death of the Hon. I. Quinby, long 
 
 a member and officer of the Board, we lost a col- 
 league, who we ever found, in all our intercourse 
 with him, an upright, courteous, Christian gentleman, 
 and in whose counsel we have been accustomed to 
 repose the utmost confidence. 
 
 2. That we found him a fast, true and efficient 
 friend of the college in the time of need ; by his able 
 counsels, active services, liberal and timely dona- 
 tions, he has placed the college under a debt of 
 gratitude which can never be repaid. 
 
 3. That we extend to the family of the deceased 
 our sympathies, in this their hour of great affliction, 
 and express the hope that the richest blessings of a 
 covenant-keeping God may descend and rest upon 
 them. 
 
 4. That these resolutions be spread upon the 
 records, published in the city papers and forwarded 
 to the widow of the deceased. 
 
 D. A. WALLACE, Pres. 
 
 JOHN J. GLENN, Sec'y. 
 
 Thus, in arranging and compiling the accessible 
 matter appertaining to a noble life, a bare recital of 
 the generous acts whereof would alone fill a volume, 
 the writer acknowledges his inability to do ample . 
 justice to the subject, and returns thanks to those 
 from whose contributions he has so liberally drawn, 
 and who, from their intimate relationship with Judge 
 Quinby in his lifetime, were best calculated to speak 
 advisedly of him. A portrait of the Judge is shown 
 on another page of this work. 
 
 Mrs. Quinby 's second marriage took place on the 
 ist of May, 1877, to Rev. R. Haney, a prominent 
 clergyman of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 Imon Kidder, attorney-at-laWj Monmouth, 
 was born in Warren County, Feb. 27, 
 1838, and was the son of Larnard and 
 Mary (Hoisington) Kidder. The subject of 
 this biographical notice was reared to man- 
 hood on his father's farm, attending regularly 
 the common schools, and in 1859 graduated from 
 Lombard University, at Galesburg. ' Leaving col- 
 lege, he began directly reading law with Philo Reed, 
 at Monmouth, and, in October, 1862, was admitted 
 to the Bar before the Supreme Court at Ottawa. His 
 first practice was with. James Strain as partner; later 
 with William C. Norcross, and recently with Mr. 
 Frank Quinby, son of the highly reputed Judge 
 
378 
 
 WARREN' COUNTY. 
 
 Quinby, whose sketch is given in this work. At this 
 writing (October, 1885), Mr. Kidder is unassociated 
 with any one. Early in life he was an ardent Re- 
 publican, but owing to the uncertain position of that 
 party upon the question of the whiskey traffic, he 
 abandoned it and politics altogether, and has since 
 thrown his influence in favor of Prohibition. He has 
 sought no office in any way, but in a spirit of duty 
 has served the people in various minor places, such 
 as School Director, Alderman and Justice of the 
 Peace. 
 
 The wife of Mr. Kidder, Anna C., daughter of 
 John Jacobs, Esq., to whom he was married at Mon- 
 rnouth, May 30, 1865, died Aug. 31, r882, leaving 
 one child, Nina. His second marriage occurred at 
 Moline, 111., Oct. 18, 1883, the lady being Mrs. Lucy 
 E. Folger, nee Mapes, widow of Dr. Folger, of Youngs- 
 town. Mr. Kidder devotes his time to his profes- 
 sion, although he has various outside interests. He 
 was one of the organizers of the Monrnouth Home- 
 stead and Loan Association, and in 1870 he found 
 time to compile and systematize the Monrnouth City 
 Ordinances, a work well and satisfactorily done.. He 
 is considered a close student, known to be a sound 
 lawyer, and, above all, a gentleman. 
 
 Mr. Kidder has spent his leisure moments for the 
 last ten years in collecting a genealogy of the Kid- 
 der family, which has occasioned considerable corre- 
 spondence and other labor. 
 
 . ames Bergen Van Arsdale is a farmer in 
 the township of Point Pleasant. He was 
 born in Somerset Co., N. J., Oct. 30, 1844. 
 The family was originally of Holland origin, 
 and in that country were respected members 
 of society. The grandfather of Mr. Van 
 Arsdale, of this narration, Abraham Van Arsdale, 
 was born in the same county in New Jersey in which 
 his descendants for several generations were also 
 born. His farm was located near Harlingen, in 
 Somerset County, and he was its occupant until his 
 death. His decease took place June 22, 1836. He 
 married Elizabeth Beekman, a lady likewise of Hol- 
 land descent, who was born March 9, 1788, and died 
 
 May 26, 1847. Their son William was born in 
 Somerset County, Feb. 8, i8rg. Sept. 14, 1836, he 
 was married to Johanna V. Bergen. She was born 
 June 7, r8i3. For a time after their marriage they 
 remained in Somerset County and rented land. Mr. 
 Van Arsdale then purchased a farm near the home- 
 stead and was there a resident until 1850, when he 
 sold all his interests in the State of his nativity and 
 came to Illinois. His wife and three children ac- 
 companied him. They crossed the mountains of 
 Pennsylvania in the stage and arrived at Wheeling, 
 W. Va. At that point they took passage on the 
 Ohio River and made the journey to Illinois on the 
 Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. They landed 
 at Copperas Creek, in Fulton County, and the father 
 bought land near Fairview in that county. No im- 
 provements had been made on it and the new pro- 
 prietor erected a dwelling and other needed buildings 
 of good style, and was there engaged in the busi- 
 ness of a farmer until his removal to Henderson 
 County in 1856. He sold the estate in Fulton 
 County and made a purchase of land in the county 
 to which he had removed. It was wholly unim- 
 proved and was situated in the vicinity of Raritan. 
 On this he repeated his pioneer experiences, and 
 was there a resident until 1869. In that year he 
 made an exchange for another farm and moved to 
 Raritan, where he has since resided. Three of the 
 five children born in their family are still living. 
 Abraham, who was born March i, 1838, lives in 
 Henderson County. Peter, born May 9, 1842, be- 
 came a soldier in the service of the United States in 
 the Civil War, in the I4th 111. Vol. Cav., and after a 
 term of active military life of nearly three years re- 
 ceived an honorable discharge. He now lives in 
 Henderson County. 
 
 Mr. Van Arsdale, of this narration, is the youngest 
 child. He was hardly six years of age when his pa- 
 rents removed to Illinois, and he reached manhood 
 in Henderson County. He received the training com- 
 mon to the children of farmers and a common-school 
 education. 
 
 His maniage to Anna M. Lewis occurred April 25, 
 1868. She was born in Fulton County, July 5, 1849. 
 She survived her marriage but a short time, and Dec. 
 6, 1871, Mr. Van Arsdale was again married, to 
 Sarah M. Brokaw. She was born in Somerset Co., 
 N. J., Nov. 3, 1848, and is the daughter of Henry A. 
 and Mary S. (Baird) Brokaw. Her parents were both 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 38' 
 
 natives of the State of New Jersey, came to Illinois 
 in 1857 and settled in Henderson County. In 1863 
 her father entered the military service of the United 
 States and died at Natchez, Miss. He was enrolled 
 in the Fourth 111. Cav. Her mother is living, at 
 Canton, Fulton Co., 111. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Van Arsdale have had three chil- 
 dren. Willie, the first-born, died at the age of seven 
 weeks. Nellie was born May 20, 1876. Paul was 
 born Sept. 26, 1879. 
 
 f mos Burford, a man who occupies a thor- 
 oughly representative position in the com- 
 munity, and whose success in life is the 
 outgrowth of his own energy and clear judg- 
 ment, is a resident on section 4, Monmouth 
 Township. He was born in Donegal Town- 
 f ship, Lancaster Co., Pa.. Aug. 18,1829. 
 
 His father, Jeremiah Burford, was also a native of 
 the Keystone State, a farmer by occupation and the 
 son of Robert Burford, an Englishman, who came to 
 this country when a young man and settled at his 
 marriage in the State of Pennsylvania. He reared 
 two sons, of whom Jeremiah, the father of the subject 
 of this sketch, was the eldest. His father died be- 
 fore he had attained the age of manhood. He was 
 first married in Lancaster Co., Pa,, to Lyda Sterner, 
 by whom he became the father of two children, La- 
 vina and Aaron, both of whom grew to maturity and 
 were married (the former of whom has since died). 
 Of the second marriage of Jeremiah, to Jane Mont- 
 gomery, a native of Pennsylvania, eight children 
 were born, of whom Amos, the subject of this noiice, 
 was the third. Of these offsprings, Margaret becnme 
 the wife of John Barton, at present a resident of 
 Erie, Pa,; Ann was united in marriage to James E. 
 McNair, who is living in Prairie City, Iowa, and has 
 accumulated a competency; Amos, the subject of 
 this notice, was next in order of birth ; Samuel died 
 at St. Joe, Mich., in the fall of 1883; Mary J. formed 
 a matrimonial alliance with Porter Freborn, who is 
 at present residing in Avon, this State; she died in 
 1868; Eliza was the wife of W. H. Smith, who fol- 
 lows the vocation of a farmer in Kansas, and died 
 
 Aug. 17, 1885; Sarah J. is single and resides at 
 Pittsburg, Pa., where she is engaged in clerking; 
 William H. is deceased, and formerly resided in Bos- 
 ton, Mass. He followed the occupation of a railroad 
 conductor. 
 
 The gentleman whose name heads our sketch, re- 
 ceived a common-school education and resided at 
 home with his parents, assisting in the maintenance 
 of the family, until he attained the age of 28 years. 
 Arrived at that age, he left the parental homestead 
 and came West, his journey terminating in Kansas, 
 which was then the scene of free-soil agitation. He 
 homesteaded 160 acres of land in Anderson County, 
 but owing to the pressure of hard times, he removed 
 to Illinois in July, 1858, and located east of Avon, in 
 Fulton County, where he rented a farm and lived 
 on it about three years, and in 1861 rented the farm 
 where he now resides, the old Kendall homestead. 
 He finally disposed of his interests in Kansas in 
 1873. His marriage took place in this county, Oct. 
 17, 1860, the lady who became his wife being Miss 
 Margaret Kendall, the daughter of Robert and Ann 
 (McNair) Kendall, natives of Pennsylvania. They 
 were of Scotch extraction, her father being a farmer 
 who removed to this county when Mrs. Burford was 
 a young lady of 15 years. The parental family at 
 that time consisted of six children, of whom Mrs. 
 Burford was the third. Her parents on coming to 
 this county purchased a partly improved farm of 250 
 acres, upon which they continued to reside until 
 their death, the demise of the former occurring Jan. 
 17, 1882, while in his 82d year, and that of the lat- 
 ter Feb. 14, 187 r, in her 7 rst year, both parents hav- 
 ing been born in the first year of the present century. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Burford are the parents of five chil- 
 dren, two of whom are deceased. Anna J. became 
 the wife of George Williams, to whom she bore two 
 children, and departed this life in Monmouth Town- 
 ship, in February, 1884. Mr. Williams at present 
 resides in Columbus, Kansas, his daughters, Stella 
 and Maggie B., living with their grandparents. Park 
 M., their first born son, lives on the homestead, 
 which he assists in cultivating. William R. am! 
 Frank A. are also living at home. The fifth child 
 died in infancy. Upon their union Mr. Burford and 
 his wife settled on the old Kend.ill homestead, in 
 this county. Our subject first became a landed pro- 
 prietor in 1870, and he has since added to his orig- 
 inal purchase until he is now the owner of 450 acres, 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 all lying in the township of Monmouth and under an 
 advanced state of cultivation. There are two good 
 residences on the place and the farm is divided into 
 three parts, each of which is well improved. Mr. 
 Burford, in addition to the cultivation of his large 
 farm, is extensively engaged in the breeding of Nor- 
 man horses and other stock of high grades. He is 
 at present Commissioner of Highways, which office 
 he has held consecutively for 15 years. He has also 
 held the position of Assistant Supervisor, and in pol- 
 itics votes with and advocates the principles of the 
 Republican party. His wife is a member of the Uni- 
 ted Presbyterian Church, at Gerlaw, in this county. 
 We present a view of the fine home of Mr. Burford 
 on another page. 
 
 )iss Desire E. Mather, a retired school 
 teacher, residing in Greenbush, was born 
 July 23, 1810, in Brownsville, Jefferson 
 Co., N. Y. She acquired a good education 
 in the district schools of her native State; ma- 
 triculated at Belleville College and followed the 
 entire curriculum of that college from which she 
 graduated with honors. 
 
 From her native State, Miss Mather moved to 
 Ohio, where, in the vicinity of Sandusky, at the early 
 age of 14 years, she first began the profession which 
 she followed for so many years and with such suc- 
 cess. For 1 6 years she taught in that section of 
 Ohio, and then removed to Illinois, coming to Green- 
 bush, this county, Sept. 8, 1850, where she taught 
 nine terms of school. She then went to Polk City, 
 Polk Co., Iowa, and there taught three terms. In 
 fact, Miss Mather has spent her life time in the in- 
 terest of education and as late as 1863 followed her 
 profession, two miles west of Greenbush. 
 
 Miss Mather is a lineal descendant of the old and 
 highly respected Mather family of the city of London, 
 out of which sprang the Mathers famous in the e;irly 
 history of this country. Rev. Richard Mather, who 
 was born in 1596, in Lowton, Lancastershire, England, 
 and whose old residence in that ancient town still re- 
 mains intact, was the first of the name to emigrate to 
 America, coming to Boston in the ship " James," in 
 
 1635. Timothy, the son of the Rev. Richard Mather, 
 had a son, Arthur, who in turn had a son named 
 Richard, who was the father of Cotton Mather, of the 
 seventh generation, who died at Bridgewater, where 
 his son, Horace Mather, who was the father of the 
 subject of this notice, Miss Desire Mather, was born 
 in 1775. 
 
 Horace Mather was first married in 1803, to Miss 
 Desire Emerson, who, in 1807, passed to the land of 
 the hereafter. Mr. Horace Mather was again mar- 
 ried, Oct. i, 1809, to Miss Hulda Smith, of Sackett's 
 Harbor. She was born in February, 1786, and died 
 of quick consumption at Sackett's Harbor, in 1836. 
 Mr. Mather died Aug. 2, 18215. Of his two marri- 
 ages, the following named children were born : 
 Thomas M., Feb. 2, 1804; Horace S., July 22, 1805 ; 
 Zylla, May 4, 1807, died May 6, 1807 ; Desire E., 
 born July 23, 1810; Charles W., June 4, 1812 ; Min- 
 erva, July 25, 1814, died, aged 19 months; Jane, 
 born March i, 1816; Hulda, April 3, 1818; Sylvia 
 M., Jan. 29, 1820; Dr. David C., April 3, 1823; 
 Sarah Ann, Aug. 2, 1824, died Nov. 4, 1846. Mr. 
 Horace Mather was a man of very superior mental 
 capacity, and, though a farmer by occupation, during 
 the last ten years of life he filled several offices of 
 public trust with great credit to himself and to the 
 satisfaction of the community at large. There was 
 universal mourning throughout Jefferson Co., N. Y., 
 at his death. 
 
 Clement Pierce, who is retired from active 
 mercantile pursuits and a pioneer of the 
 county, is a resident of Roseville, at which 
 place he was engaged as a merchant for some 
 years. He was born in Poultney, Rutland 
 Co., Vt. Sept. 24, 1813. Amos and Mary 
 (Sandford) Pierce, his parents, were also natives of 
 the Green Mountain State, and came to Ohio from 
 Vermont, in 1823, and remained there engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits until 1834. He then came to 
 this State and purchased with his son, the gentleman 
 whose name heads this personal sketch, 160 acres of 
 land in Greenbush Township, Warren County, upon 
 which he remained, engaged in its cultivation and 
 improvement for nearly three years. He then re- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 383 
 
 turned to Ohio, and brought his wife and family 
 to this State. They settled upon the farm which he 
 had began so hard and industriously to cultivate. 
 Here he remained farming and also blacksmithing 
 until 1864. The death of the father occurred July 
 20, 1872, and that of the mother Sept. 30, 1845. 
 
 Clement remained with his parents until 1834, 
 and received a common-shool education while under 
 the parental roof-tree, also assisted his parents in 
 the duties of the farm. Then leaving home, he came 
 to Illinois and in September, 1834, settled upon a 
 tract of land adjoining that he and his father had 
 purchased. Here he remained improving the farm 
 and engaged in its cultivation until March, 1845, 
 when he purchased the southwest quarter of sec- 
 tion 35, Roseville Township, and moved upon it. 
 Here he followed farming and stock-raising until 
 June, 1864, when he moved into the, then, little ham- 
 Jet of Roseville. Here he, in company with Dr. 
 Ragon, embarked in the mercantile business, in 
 which they continued for a period of two years, when 
 Mr. Pierce, the gentleman of this notice, bought out 
 the Doctor and conducted the business himself for 
 about seven years, when he sold out. At that time, 
 1873, he retired from active labors, having been suc- 
 cessful, the result of an energetic and progressive life, 
 which enabled him to have a sufficiency laid aside 
 to provide for himself and family in their old age. 
 Mr. Pierce has held several offices within the gift of, 
 the people, for instance, in 1872, he was elected 
 Justice of the Peace, and held that position until 
 1885, and besides has served in the office of City 
 Council and School Director. He is the owner of 
 500 acres of land which is in excellent condition and 
 very valuable. He also owns the Pierce Block and 
 several houses at Roseville. 
 
 Mr. Pierce and Miss Nancy Farr were united in 
 marriage, in the year 1834, she being a native of 
 Essex Co., N. Y. Of their union five children have 
 been born, all living but one, Mary M., born Aug. 
 2,1835; Laura A., Jan. 26, 1837; Amos, Dec. 10, 
 1843; and Phebe J., Oct. to, 1845; Zacharia T., 
 born April 23, 1848, died Sept. 23, 1860. Laura A. 
 married Alexander Bramhall, and resides in Rose- 
 ville Village, and their family consists of seven chil- 
 dren Nancy E., Mary E., Amos E., Levi A., Linnia 
 B., Emma and Charles VV. Amos, the only son of 
 our subject, married Miss Mary J. Baer, and they 
 reside in Belleville, Kan., and have two sons Har- 
 
 ley L. and George C. Phebe J., the youngest daugh- 
 ter married Thomas J. Newbern, and they are 
 residents of Wayne, Kan. Of their union eight chil- 
 dren have been born, namely : Mary, Effa J., Thomas 
 M.,LilliaN., Phebe G., Nancy M., Archie C. and 
 Pearly. 
 
 Mr. Clement Pierce has five great-grandchildren. 
 He is a Republican in politics and religiously, be- 
 longs to the Universalist Church. He is one of the 
 early pioneers of Warren County as well as substan- 
 tial and solid men. 
 
 W. Huston, a successful farmer, owning 
 160 acres of land, located on section 23, 
 Tompkins Township, where he resides and 
 is engaged in following the vocation of an ag- 
 riculturist, was born April 25, 1830, in Penn- 
 sylvania, his parents being John and Elizabeth 
 (Weakley) Huston, natives of that State. 
 
 The father of Mr. Huston of this notice was a 
 farmer by occupation and followed his chosen voca- 
 tion in Pennsylvania until his death. His son, S. 
 W., of whom we write, was an inmate of the parental 
 household until he became 23 years of age, having 
 in the meantime acquired a fair education in the 
 common schools. 
 
 After leaving home, Mr. Huston, October 12, 
 1853, came to this State and settled in Hale Town- 
 ship, arriving in Monmouth on the evening of Oct. 
 12, 1853. Purchasing 80 acres of land, he .moved 
 his family on the land and continued to cultivate it 
 until 1865, when he sold the property and made an- 
 other purchase, this time locating in Tompkins 
 Township, on 120 acres on sections 23 and 24. This 
 he continued to cultivate until he made his residence 
 upon the 160 acres on section 23, which he now 
 occupies as a homestead. The occupation of his 
 life has been that of an agriculturist, and by ener- 
 getically following the same he has met with that 
 success which a life of labor and energy are so sure 
 to bring. 
 
 Mr. Huston was united in marriage with Miss 
 Mary E. Woods, a native of Pennsylvania, in 1856, 
 and their union has been blessed by the birth of 
 
384 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 three children (slill living), whose names are Carrie 
 S., James W. and Robert W. Mr. Huston in his 
 political views coincides with the principles advocated 
 by the Democratic party. In religion, he is a mem- 
 ber of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 
 ames P. Firoved. Every village and city 
 (? has its live, go-ahead and enterprising men, 
 those who do more than all others towards 
 building up and firmly securing the pros- 
 perity of the place. Distinguished among 
 those is Mr. Firoved, of Kirkwood, who, be- 
 sides being interested in various other enterprises, 
 is also engaged as a farmer and stock-dealer. He 
 was born in Cumberland Co., Pa. His parents, 
 Simon and Isabella (Sprout) Firoved, were also 
 natives of the Keystone State, and were living there 
 at the time of James' birth, which occurred Nov. 13, 
 1843. I n '853, the family moved to Dayton, Ohio, 
 and from there to Bloomingtor., 111., and in 1856 lo- 
 cated in Monmouth. They soon secured 160 acres 
 of land in Hale Township, where they removed 
 and remained for seven years, when the elder Firoved 
 retired from active labors and removed into the city 
 of Monmouth. He has since lived there and is a 
 highly respected and venerable old gentleman of 75 
 years of age. His ancestors came from Prussia and 
 settled at Carlisle, Pa., over 120 years ago. His 
 father was a soldier in the War of 1812, with an 
 elder brother, who was wounded at Lundy's Lane. 
 
 James P. accompanied his parents to Illinois and 
 remained with them until he was 20 years of age, re- 
 ceiving a liberal education. His first business enter- 
 prise, after leaving home, was to engage in the 
 mercantile business at Monmouth. He subsequently 
 moved to Rock Island and later came to Kirkwood, 
 where he entered into the boot and shoe, l.at and 
 cap, and general furnishing goods business, carrying 
 also a line of books and stationery. For ten years 
 he remained one of the leading merchants of this 
 part of the county. He then sold out and engaged 
 in the stock business, feeding and shipping stock ex- 
 tensively. He also purchased 330 acres of land, 
 lying near the village of Kirkwood, and engaged in 
 
 farming. This highly improved farm is very valu- 
 able, lying as it does so near Kirkwood, and also 
 contiguous to the city of Monmouth. Besides this 
 property, he also owns a half interest in the Tre- 
 niont House at Kirkwood, in company with W. K. 
 Gamble; owns an interest in the Kirkwood Mineral 
 Spring Company, of which he is -Vice-President ; and 
 has been a stock-holder and one of the directors in 
 the First National Bank, at Kirkwood, ever since its 
 organization. He has also favored every enterprise 
 that had for its object the welfare of the community 
 and the building up of his town. It is certainly a 
 blessing to any community to have in its midst such 
 men who have also the inclination as well as the 
 ability to work for the interests and welfare of the 
 entire people. He has served the village in differ- 
 ent official positions, always giving eminent satisfac- 
 tion. Politically, he is a Democrat, and, socially, is 
 a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
 Jan. 25, 1869, the marriage of Mr. Firoved and 
 Miss Mattie J. Woods occurred. Mis9Woods was 
 the daughter of David and Nancy (Ayres) Woods, 
 natives of Indiana, born of parents who were natives 
 of Kentucky. They were among the first settlers of 
 Henderson County, and prominent and representa- 
 tive people of that part of the State. Mrs. Firoved 
 was born Nov. 13, 1849, and has become the mother 
 of two children M. Mabel, born Nov. n, 1869; 
 and James Ralph, Nov. 22, 1881. 
 
 |ugh R. Thomson, one of the successful 
 farmers of Tompkins Township, this county, 
 residing on section 13, and a gentleman 
 possessing more than ordinary push, tact and 
 energy in his vocation, was born in Ohio, Nov. 
 22, 1838. His parents were John and Rachel 
 (Francis) Thomson, natives of Ohio, who came to 
 this State in 1867, and settled in Warren County, 
 where his father purchased 1 60 acres of good farm 
 land, on which he is at present residing, leading the 
 contented life of an agriculturist. 
 
 The gentleman whose name appears at the begin- 
 ning of this sketch, remained with his parents until 
 1862, receiving at their hands a good common-school 
 education. During that year he enlisted in Co. H 
 
 f 
 
lpl 
 
 ""* 
 

 
 
4- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 387 
 
 1 26th Ohio Vol. Inf. With his Company he went 
 through the entire " Campaign of the Wilderness," 
 participated in the battles of Shenandoah Valley, 
 under Gen. Sheridan, and in the siege of Petersburg. 
 He was once struck by a fragment of a shell and 
 although numerous shots penetrated his clothing, he 
 came out of the war without any serious wounds, af- 
 ter having served three years, lacking two months. 
 After receiving an honorable discharge, Mr. Thom- 
 son returned home, and in 1866 came to this State 
 and taught school at Biggsville, Henderson County, 
 after which he was employed in the Circuit Clerk's 
 office at Oquawka. Prior to teaching school, he had 
 purchased an undivided half interest of 160 acres of 
 land, located on section 13, Tompkins Township, 
 this county, and in 1881 he purchased the remaining 
 half of the same quarter, which constitutes the 
 farm upon which he to-day resides, and where he 
 has been successfully engaged as an agriculturist 
 since locating thereon. 
 
 Mr. Thomson and Miss Sarah J. McNary, a 
 
 native of Ohio, were united in marriage in 1867. 
 
 She was the daughter of John and Sarah (Maxwell) 
 
 .- McNary, and bore her husband one child, Jessie L. 
 
 ' The wife and mother died Feb. 2, 1882. 
 
 Mr. Thomson votes with the Republican party. 
 - His religious views coincide with the tenets of 
 the United Presbyterian Church, to which denomi- 
 nation, at Kirkwood, he belongs and is one of its 
 Elders. He has held the office of Road Commis- 
 sioner three years and is rightly regarded as one of 
 the energetic and respected citizens of Tompkins 
 Township. 
 
 I homas H. Rice, a retired farmer and resi- 
 dent of Monmouth, was born in Greenup 
 County, Ky., Oct. 14, 1810. He was "de- 
 scended from a Welsh family, and the first an- 
 cestor upon this continent was named Thomas. 
 He was a wealthy gentleman, and returned 
 to England in a few years for the purpose of collect- 
 ing his property, but was never again heard of. 
 Thomas H., the subject of this sketch, was the son of 
 James and Ann (Hopkins) Rice, who reared five 
 sons and one daughter. James Rice was born in 
 
 Rockingham County, Va., and removed to Greenup 
 County in 1807. He was drowned while boating on 
 the Ohio River, in 1814. His wife was of Scotch 
 ancestry and was born in the above county. Two of 
 Mr. Rice's uncles, Thomas and John Hopkins, served 
 in the War of 1812, while Robert Snead, his wife's 
 father, defended the colonies in the Revolutionary 
 War. Thomas H. was the fifth child in order of 
 birth of the family of six children born to his parents, 
 and was brought up to farming and came to Warren 
 County in 1835. The land upon which he located 
 was afterward set off to Henderson County, and he 
 resided there up to his coming to Monmouth, in 
 1866. 
 
 Mr. R. was married in Henderson County, April 
 12, 1849, to Mrs. Mary I. Ellett, a native of Hanover 
 County, Va., where she was born, April 15, 1814. 
 Her maiden name was Snead, and she died at her 
 home in Monmouth, Feb. 3, 1883, of apoplexy. The 
 morning following her death, a local paper published 
 the following: 
 
 " Mary I. Rice was born April 14, 1814, near Rich- 
 mond, Va. She married Mr. Thomas Ellett in 1834, 
 and moved to this county in 1836, boarding, on their 
 arrival, at the old house of Aunt Betty McNeil, on 
 East Broadway, where now stands the residence of 
 John Carr, Esq. Afterward they took up their resi- 
 dence in the building now known as Cowan's black- 
 smith shop, on West Broadway. The family lived in 
 Monmouth only a short time, taking up their resi- 
 dence in Henderson County. Mr. Ellett dying, his 
 widow married Mr. Thomas Rice on April 12, 1849. 
 About 19 years ago, Mr. and Mrs. Rice moved to 
 Monmouth, where they have since resided. Of the 
 first union, the deceased mother leaves four children 
 one son, Virginius C., living in Denver, Col.; 
 Thomas F. Ellett, of Red Oak, Iowa; Edwin H. El- 
 lett, of Chicago; and Mrs. Sophia Mills, of Rosetta, 
 111. Those named, excepting the first, were present 
 to attend the funeral. Of the second union, the hus- 
 band and two children remain, Mr. William A. Rice, 
 banker at Rockport, Mo., and Miss Annie, at home. 
 The deceased was a communicant in the Baptist 
 Church since 1832." The funeral services were con- 
 ducted from the first Baptist Church. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Rice had born to them five children 
 James Albert, born Jan. 7, 1850, died June i, 
 1856 ; William A., born Dec. 13, 185 1, died at Rock- 
 port, Mo., where he was a bank cashier, Dec. 5, 
 
1 
 
 388 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 f> 
 
 1883; Annie and Minnie were born July 5, 1856, 
 and the latter died June 5, 1864; Jessie Jane was 
 born July 5, 1858, and died May 7, 1859. Mr. R. 
 was for several years engaged in the fruit and nur- 
 sery business. He is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church, and since the demise of the old Whig party, 
 has been a Republican. He has always been noted 
 for his generosity, his integrity and an unerring de- 
 votion to the best interests of society, and as one of 
 the truly representative men of Warren County, the 
 publishers take pleasure in presenting his portrait in 
 this ALBUM, accompanying this sketch. 
 
 rs. Flora A. Aylsworth, widow of Dr. 
 Homer E. Aylsworth, residing at Rose- 
 ville, is occupied in conducting the busi- 
 ness left by her husband. The latter was 
 born Sept. 8, 1838, in Burlington Green, Otsego 
 Co., N. Y. His parents were Perry and Luna 
 N. (Delong) Aylsworth, natives of Rhode Island. 
 His father was a farmer by occupation and his fam- 
 ily consisted of three children, Homer E., Henry 
 M. and Nelson O. 
 
 The Aylsworths are of English and Welsh ances- 
 try, and came to America in the iyth century, set- 
 tling in Rhode Island, and from that State emigrated 
 to New York.. 
 
 Homer E., husband of the subject of this notice, 
 lived with his parents until he attained the age of 
 1 6 years. Previous to his leaving home he was sent 
 to Cherry Valley, N. Y., where he acquired a thor- 
 ough and complete knowledge of music. He then 
 went to Michigan and was engaged in teaching vocal 
 and instrumental music in that State for some time. 
 In 1857 he came to this State and occupied his time 
 by teaching school, after which he returned East 
 and attended the Union College, at Schenectady, 
 and in 1863, after following the entire curriculum of 
 that institution, he graduated. He then returned to 
 Roseville, this county, and, under the instruction of 
 Dr. Bradley, commenced the study of medicine. He 
 was under Dr. Bradley 's instruction for three years, 
 during which time he attended medical lectures at 
 Michigan University, Ann Arbor, two years, and re- 
 
 ceived his diploma to practive medicine from that 
 institution in 1867. He at once entered upon the 
 practice of his profession at Roseville, which he fol- 
 lowed until shortly before his death, which occurred 
 Jan. 30, 1885. He also established a drug store 
 (the first one in the village), in 1868, which he con- 
 tinued to conduct until his death. 
 
 Dr. Aylsworth was united in marriage with Mrs. 
 Flora A. Eldridge, a native of Stephentown, Rensse- 
 laer Co., N. Y., June 26, 1867. She is the daughter 
 of Augustus and Maria (Murray) Jones, who were 
 old settlers of New York, and was born Jan. 24, 
 1845, an d b re her Irasband three children Murray 
 D., Mabel W. and Ivan S. Since the death of her 
 husband, Mrs. Aylsworth has continued to success- 
 fully conduct the drug business which her husband 
 had established. The Doctor in his political belief 
 was a Prohibitionist, and religiously was a member 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was an en- 
 terprising man, of more than ordinary business abil- 
 ity, and a respected citizen of this county. In addi- 
 tion to his possessions in this county, he was inter- 
 ested in land in Dakota, having purchased 640 acres 
 in Clark County (now a part of Day County), located 
 on what is called Aylsworth Lake. The Doctor left 
 a fine home at Roseville, costing about $4,000, in 
 which his wife and children reside. Prior to his 
 death he was engaged in compiling a biographical 
 history of the Aylsworth family, the completion of 
 which, however, was prevented by his demise. 
 
 horaas M. Hess, M. D., a practicing physi- 
 cian residing in Berwick village, and a 
 graduate of Rush Medical College, Chicago, 
 was born in New Albany, Ind., Sept. 22, 1819. 
 Dr. Hess read medicine in Westfield, Clark 
 I Co., 111., with Drs. Moore and Briscoe, and 
 then with Dr. Freeman. He entered Stirling Col- 
 lege at Columbus, Ohio, and then settled in Homer, 
 Champaign County, and practiced there for 26 
 years. 
 
 The first marriage of Dr. Hess took place Jan. 24, 
 1839, to Miss Nancy Button, who was born in Preble 
 Co., Ohio, Nov. 4, 1818. The Doctor was again 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 389 
 
 married, June 16, i88r, to Mrs. Martha M. Joyce, 
 who was born in Delaware Co., Ohio, Oct. 28, 1843. 
 Mrs. Hess is the daughter of Benj. F. Allen, a native 
 of Vermont, who was born in 1813, and died in 1865, 
 in Maquon, this State. He was a stock-raiser by oc- 
 cupation, and married Miss Almira Sweetzer, in 1831. 
 She died in 1845, in Delaware Co., Ohio, after hav- 
 ing borne her husband six children, who were named 
 Sarah E., Ethan, Benton, Mary D., Silas W. and 
 Martha. 
 
 Dr. Hess located in Berwick village in 1881, and 
 has continued to follow his profession there until the 
 present time. He is the father of nine children 
 Apollos, born Feb. 17, 1840; William H., Jan. n, 
 1842; Smith H., Feb. 10, 1844; Theodore, Dec. 23, 
 1851, a twin brother to Ferdinand, who died in in- 
 fancy; Allie Belle, Dec. 19, 1853; Theophilus M., 
 Nov. 22, 1857. The above children were by the first 
 marriage of Dr. Hess, to Miss Nancy Button. Of 
 his second union, namely, with Mrs. Joyce, the fol- 
 lowing children were born: Theo Leota, March 23, 
 1883; TheolaM., Jan. 14, 1885. Three of the above 
 named are physicians, namely, William H., Apollos 
 and Smith H. 
 
 The Doctor is a member of the Christian Church, 
 and has preached in the same for nearly 40 years. 
 His wife is also a member of the same denomination. 
 The Doctor joined the Order of Masonry in 1854, 
 and was a charter member of Homer Lodge, No. 199. 
 In politics he is a Douglas Democrat and has always 
 voted that ticket. In 1879 he occupied the pulpit for 
 some four or five meetings in the Christian Church on 
 Western Avenue, Chicago. 
 
 
 [ndrew Jackson Ritchey is one of the solid 
 farmers of the township of Spring Grove, 
 where he is the owner of a fine farm, 
 containing 450 acres of excellent land, 
 all of which is in the best possible condition 
 for the purpose to which the owner has de- 
 voted it since it became his property. See page 368. 
 Mr. Ritchey is a settler in Warren County of 1854. 
 He is a native of the State of Indiana, and was born 
 in Decatur County, May 17, 1833. He is the son of 
 
 William and Martha (Myers) Ritchey, who were na- 
 tives respectively of Pennsylvania and Ohio. They 
 were pioneers in the county, in which their son was 
 born, and the father was the owner of a farm there 
 which he had cleared from a heavy growth of tim- 
 ber, it being at the time of its purchase in its native 
 state. The senior Ritchey and his family were the 
 occupants of the farm in Indiana until 1858. In that 
 year they came to Warren County and located in the 
 township of Spring Grove. A few years later the fa- 
 ther and mother removed to Mercer County and there 
 were resident for the period of one year. They went 
 thence to Livingston County, and from there to Butler 
 Co., Missouri. There the father died, in 1875, the 
 widow returning to Fairbury, Livingston Co., 111., 
 where she died, Feb. 22, 1884. The family in- 
 cluded 12 children. Mr. Ritchey was the second 
 son. He was reared under the care of his parents 
 and obtained such education as was possible in the 
 public schools. 
 
 In 1854 he severed the ties between himself and > 
 his boyhood's home and associations and came to 
 Illinois to seek an opportunity to make his own way | 
 in the world unaided. He located in Warren County 
 and engaged in farming in the capacity of an assist- j 
 ant in the employ of his uncle, George Myers. He 
 remained with him 18 months, or thereabouts. In J 
 1855 he bought 75 acres of unimproved land on sec- 
 tion 2, of Spring Grove Township, for which he paid 
 at the rate of $6 per acre. In the succeeding winter 
 he built a frame house, for which he procured the 
 lumber at Oquawka. In March, 1856, he took pos- 
 session of his farm and new house and prepared to 
 enter at once upon the work of improving the place 
 according to his own plans and ideas. He was 
 prosperous in all his undertakings and is now the 
 owner of the fine acreage that has been mentioned. 
 Mr. Ritchey is occupied in the duties of mixed hus- 
 bandry and devotes much attention to the rearing of 
 stock for market. He exhibits some fine specimens 
 of Durham cattle and full-blooded Poland-China 
 swine. In political persuasion he is a Democrat. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Ritchey and Miss Mary 
 Lowe took place Sept. 13, 1855. She was the 
 daughter of John and Margaret Lowe. Her father 
 was an Englishman by birth, her mother a native of 
 Pennsylvania. Mrs. Ritchey was born in Washing- 
 ton Co., Pa., March 2, 1839. They are the parents 
 of seven children. Their oldest child, John William, 
 
 i i 
 
f 
 
 -H- 
 
 390 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 died at the age of four and one-half years. He was 
 born Sept. 12, 1856, and died May 10, 1861. Charles 
 was born June, i, 1858, and died May 23, 1861. 
 Sarah F., born Sept. 15, 1869, died May 9, 1861. 
 The parents were thus bereft of three children in the 
 space of 14 days, their deaths occurring from a com- 
 bination of measles and typhoid fever. Ida is the 
 wife of William W. Rowe. They reside on a portion 
 of the old homestead in the township in which her 
 parents reside. Emma married Sept. 23, 1885, 
 They are also farming on section 12, in this town- 
 ship. Harry and Jessie are the names of the young- 
 er of the surviving children. They reside at home 
 with their parents. The father and the mother are 
 members of the United Brethren Church, in Alexis. 
 
 ^sahel D. B. Sisson, one of the largest land- 
 owners (considering his acreage in Iowa) 
 in Swan Township, where he resides on 
 .,,_ section 29, was born in Albany Co., N. Y., Sept. 
 > JK 2, 1813. He is a son of Joseph Sisson, born 
 in Rhode Island, Oct. 20, 1789. The father 
 came to this State in 1837, and here resided, engaged 
 in farming, until the date of his death, June 12, 
 1851. He was married to Floretta Frisbee, in Jan- 
 uary, 1812. She died in 1882, in Iowa, in her 92d 
 year. Of their union ten children were born Asa- 
 hel D. B., Cyrus F., Emeline, Rufus K., Ann, Augus- 
 tine W., Marcus F., Andrew J., Mary E. and Martin. 
 The latter died in Henderson County, at the age of 
 five years. 
 
 Asahel D. B. Sisson came to Swan Township in 
 1836, being attracted hither by an acquaintance. 
 He had been raised on a farm, and before leaving 
 his native State had been teaching a winter school 
 for some time. After his arrival here he became the 
 pedagogue of the first school established in the town- 
 ship, giving his own labor also in the erection of the 
 building in which he was to instruct the youthful 
 mind. The old log school-house stood on section 
 17. The next winter he went to Greenbush Town- 
 ship and taught a school for 12 months. He con- 
 tinued school teaching, at different times for about 
 ii years. In 1838, he and his brother Cyrus bought 
 a half-section of unimproved land (one-quarter of 
 which was in timber) on section 29, but no building 
 , ' '. 
 
 was erected upon it until 1841, in which year he was 
 married. In the meantime he resided with his 
 father, who had removed here with his entire family 
 in 1837. 
 
 Mr. Sisson formed a matrimonial alliance with 
 Miss Henrietta Scott, Aug. 22, 1841. She was born 
 in 1819, in the State of Kentucky, her father being 
 Peter Scott. He was born in 1795, in North Caro- 
 lina, and married Miss Nancy Russell in 1814; 
 came to this State in 1824, and first located in Taze- 
 well County. His wife was born Dec. 10, 1793, in 
 Virginia, and died in California, in 1875. He died 
 in Oregon, in 1849. They had six children James, 
 Artemesia, Henrietta, Lemuel, Norman and Lawson, 
 all of whom are living. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Sisson of whom we write, had but 
 one child Lovina C. Sisson, who was born April 
 10, 1843, and died July 7, 1879. She became the 
 wife of Mr. A. A. Cornell, Oct 16, 1864, and of their 
 union there was no issue. Mr. A. A. Cornell was 
 born March 4, 1836, came to this State in September,' 
 1857, and is yet living here. 
 
 Mr. Sisson devotes his time exclusively to agri-j 
 cultural pursuits. He has 280 acres of good land in _' 
 Swan Township, under an advanced state of cultiva-i 
 tion, and is also the owner of 5 40 acres in Iowa.: 
 He was Justice of the Peace four years, and the first- 
 Treasurer of Swan Township. 
 
 Mr. Sisson voted with the Republican party until 
 1876, when he joined the Greenback party, and 
 since that time has continued to vote with and work 
 for the principles it advocates. 
 
 H. Sexton, County Clerk of Warren Co., 
 111., is a native of Pennsylvania, where it 
 ,, appears he was born in 1837. Of his pa- 
 v rentage the biographer is unable to write, as 
 like the exact date of his birth, the informa- 
 tion upon that score is not at hand. Shakes- 
 peare says something about some men being " born 
 great; some achieving greatness, and some having 
 greatness thrust upon them." It would be hardly 
 correct to paraphrase by saying that " some are born 
 to office ; some achieve office, and others have office 
 thrust upon them; " for an encyclopedia of American 
 

 
 - 
 
 
OLD ROCKWELL MILL. ON CEDAR C ff EEK. RECTED 1837 
 
 ESIDENCE AND MILL PROPERTY OF A. H. ROCKWELL/SEC. 35.SUMNER TOWNSHIP. 
 
 RESIDENCE OFMRS.ANNAC.SYKES.SEC.S. MONMOUTH TOWNSHIP. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 393 
 
 
 office-holding would plainly, if honestly compiled, 
 teach that the second proposition only bore upon 
 truth. But to say that some men are born to " soft 
 things; "some achieve "soft things" and others 
 have " soft things " thrust upon them, would seem to 
 be very nearly borne out by the record. 
 
 Mr. Sexton entered the army of the United States 
 in the late war as a Quartermaster Sergeant ; from 
 this not very hazardous position, he rose in due time to 
 Quartermaster of the regiment; from this position he 
 left the army at the close of the war and came into 
 Warren County to take charge of the office of City 
 Clerk of Monmouth. From City Clerk he rose tb 
 Deputy Circuit Clerk, and from that again to Deputy 
 County Clerk and finally to County Clerk. This 
 office he has held on to with great skill ; and as Mr. 
 Sexton has not said anything about abandoning the 
 office, there appears to be very healthy indications 
 that the good people of Warren County need not 
 have their best office become unoccupied for want of 
 a competent office-holder, for at least some consider- 
 able time. We regret that we are unable to say 
 more of Mr. S., but the truth is he has been so busy 
 serving the people by holding their offices, and in- 
 deed holding them with a skill that approaches the 
 professional that he has had no time for compiling 
 data for the historian. 
 
 ^apt. Alfred H. Rockwell, a resident on 
 section 35 in the township of Sumner, is 
 the son of one of the earliest pioneers of 
 the county, having come hither in 1832 with 
 his parents. Lovett P. Rockwell, his father, 
 was born in Connecticut, Jan. 31, 1798. 
 Joshua Rockwell, who was the grandfather of Mr. 
 Rockwell of this narrative, was a native of the same 
 State and was born Aug. 19, 1774. The former 
 married Nabbie Partridge, who was born Feb. 27, 
 1775. They left the land of " wooden nutmegs " for 
 Ohio soon after the War of 1812, and located in 
 Ashtabula County. They were members of the 
 pioneer element of the Buckeye State and there the 
 mother died, Aug. 10, 1843. The son, Lovett, had 
 come to Warren County in 1832, and after the death 
 
 of his wife he joined his children in Illinois. His 
 life terminated in Sumner Township, Aug. 25, 1866. 
 The father of Mr. Rockwell was a very young man 
 when his parents went to Ohio. He was married in 
 Ashtabula County, Dec. 19, 1819, to Mary E. John- 
 son, a native of the State of New Yoak. She was 
 born in Medina in that State, Nov. 23, 1803. Until 
 1831 the senior Rockwell was variously occupied in 
 Ohio. In that year he made a journey to Warren 
 County on a prospecting tour. He was satisfied 
 with the apparent prospects and bought the north- 
 east quarter of section 25 in township 12. The 
 troubles that culminated in the Black Hawk War 
 were felt in this county, and the terrified settlers had 
 built a fort and block-house for mutual protection in 
 what was afterward Sumner Township. Soon after 
 securing his claim, he returned to Ohio, and in the 
 spring of 1832 sought again the site he had selected 
 for a new home, accompanied by his family. His 
 household included his wife and three children, and 
 they came by the river route to Illinois. They came 
 from the Mississippi River by the Illinois River to 
 Fulton County, and from there to their destination, 
 arriving in June. The dangers from the Indians 
 made it necessary for them to move into the block- 
 house. The property Mr. Rockwell had bought was 
 under some improvements, and a saw -mill with an 
 outfit of burr-stones for grinding corn had been 
 erected on the place. The new proprietor improved 
 the land of which he had become the possessor and 
 operated the mills on it for some years. In 1837 he 
 built a grist-mill, and not long after still further in- 
 creased his business relations by opening a mercan- 
 tile establishment for the sale of general merchandise, 
 such as was required in a pioneer community. His 
 enterprise resulted in the place being made a postal 
 station and he was appointed to manage its connec- 
 tions in behalf of the Government. He conducted 
 the affairs of his several occupations until failing 
 health admonished him that a change was impera- 
 tive. The gold fever afforded a resort and he crossed 
 the plains to the El Dorado of the West, whither he 
 went in 1850. In the year following he bought a 
 ranch in what was known as the Napa Valley. He 
 remained in California a few years, returning in 1853. 
 On his way homeward he was taken sick, and never 
 fully recovered from that illness. He was well 
 enough to resume his business, which he did, and 
 continued to manage his interests two years. In 
 
394 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 
 1857 he went back to California, but remained there 
 only until the next year. In 1858 he came back, 
 but in no better health than when he went away, 
 and he never again gave his attention to business. 
 His death occurred May 17, 1860. His wife was 
 his survivor until Sept. 15, 1884. She was a mem- 
 ber of the family of her son Alfred as long as she 
 lived after the death of her husband. Six of their 
 eight children lived to mature life, Albert J., Clar- 
 issa, Alfred H., Maria L., Sarah A. and Edward W. 
 Mary E. and Nancy died young. Only three are 
 now living. Alfred H. is a resident on a part of the 
 homestead property. Maria L. is the survivor of 
 her husband W. W. Still wagon, of California. Sarah 
 A. is the widow of Theodore Hofies. She lives in 
 Chicago. Edward W., the^youngest son, was born 
 in Sumner Township, Aug. 4, 1840. He enlisted in 
 1862 in Co. B, 83d 111. Vol. Inf., and received a 
 fatal wound at the battle of Fort Donelson, Feb. 3, 
 1863, from which he died on the 27th of the same 
 month. 
 
 Mr. Rockwell was in the first year of his life when 
 his father removed to Warren County with his family. 
 He was born in 1831 in Ashtabula Co., Ohio. Until 
 he was large enough to be useful on the farm, he 
 was a pupil in the common schools. After arriving 
 at a suitable age, he acted as assistant in the mill 
 and on the farm until he reached the period of his 
 legal freedom baring the time he was in California. 
 At the age of 21 his father made him a partner in 
 his business relations and they operated jointly un- 
 til 1857. He then leased the entire property and 
 was its sole manager until 1862. The Civil War 
 was then the engrossing topic, and Mr. Rockwell 
 was too good a patriot to permit the defense of his 
 interests by others altogether, and in August of the 
 second year of the war he enlisted in the 83d 111. 
 Vol. Inf. He enrolled in Company I, and was in 
 active service from that time until soldiers were no 
 longer a necessity in the United States. He served 
 with the Army of the Tennessee and was discharged 
 with his regiment in June, 1865. On his return he 
 bought the homestead with his older brother (since 
 deceased). The estate contained 720 acres, and 
 when they made their division Mr. Rockwell took 
 2ii acres on sections 35 and 36, including the grist- 
 mill. He is still managing the mill and farm. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Rockwell took place Nov. 
 15, 1854, his wife being Martha P. Crawford, the 
 
 daughter of James C. and Esther (Sloan) Crawford, 
 who emigrated from Ohio to Mercer Co., 111., in 
 1833 theirs being the seventh family to settle in 
 that county. Two years after they moved into War- 
 ren County. The father of Mrs. Rockwell was born 
 in Washington Co., N. Y., and the mother in Blount 
 Co., Tenn., the marriage of the parents occurring 
 Jan. 27, i83r. The mother died May 9, 1882, but 
 the father is still living at this writing (Dec. 22, 1885) 
 in Henry Co., Mo. Mrs. Rockwell was born in 
 Franklin Co., Ohio, March 20, 1832, being only 
 about one year of age when her parents removed to 
 Illinois. To Mr. and Mrs. Rockwell were born eight 
 children, of whom six are yet living. They are 
 named William Elmer, Frank D., Clara A., Alma 
 E., Mary E. and J. Lovett. Wm. E. married Miss 
 Lou Louis and resides in Omaha. Their other chil- 
 dren reside at home. 
 
 His wife is a worthy member of the United Pres- 
 byterian Church. Mr. Rockwell, in politics, votes 
 as he fought, for the precepts of the Republican , 
 party. 
 
 An excellent view of the old mill and residence of 
 Capt. Rockwell is presented in the accompanying 
 pages. 
 
 H- 
 
 
 S. Douty, a well-to-do and respected farm- 
 er of Tompkins Township, where he owns 
 231 acres of land, located on section 30. 
 Here he resides in the prosecution of his voca- 
 tion. He was born Feb. 16, 1832, in Maine. 
 His parents, Oakesman and Mercy (Coulton) 
 Douty, were natives of Massachusetts. 
 
 Mr. Douty of this notice remained under the par- 
 ental roof until he was 16 years of age. He had the 
 misfortune to lose his father, he having died in 1844, 
 and his mother in 1853. He received a good com- 
 mon-school education in the district schools of his 
 native county, and after leaving home he engaged in 
 the lumber business, which he followed for several 
 years. In 1857 he came to this State, and passed 
 the winter in Galesburg, Knox County. He then 
 rented a farm in Henderson County, and for six 
 years was engaged in farming in that manner, meet- 
 ing with some success. In 1865 he purchased a, 
 
WARREN COU-NTY. 
 
 395 
 
 farm near Roseville, consisting of 80 acres, on which 
 he moved and labored for one year, when he sold it. 
 At that time he purchased 80 acres on section 30, 
 Tompkins Township, and has there resided ever 
 since. Soon after purchasing this land, with his 
 family he located thereon, and, by hard labor and 
 economy on the part of both heads of the family, he 
 has been enabled to add 151 acres to his original 
 purchase, and is now the owner of a fine farm of 231 
 acres, where he lives and is engaged in its cultiva- 
 tion and improvement. In addition to the cultiva- 
 tion of his land, he is engaged to no inconsiderable 
 extent in stock raising, and by combining both 
 branches of his avocation in life, he is meeting with 
 success. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Douty to Miss Sarah Stewart, 
 a native of Clinton Co., Pa., took place Sept. 19, 
 1861. She was the daughter of Michael and Eliza- 
 beth (Hunt) Stewart, who came to this State in 1859 
 and located in Henderson County, where they both 
 died, her father in 1869, and her mother in 1865. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Douty are the parents of two children, 
 Ida B. and Wilbur. They also have an adopted 
 daughter, Eva (Shriner) Douty. 
 
 In politics. Mr. Douty is a Republican. He is 
 also School Director of his district and one of the 
 respected as well as representative citizens of the 
 township. 
 
 lames E. Amos, farmer, residing on section 
 n,Greenbush Township, was born in Ver- 
 million Co., Ind., in 1833. He remained 
 with his parents until he attained the age of 21 
 years, receiving such advantages as were ob- 
 tainable at the common schools, and assisting 
 in the labors in the cabinet shop and finishing the 
 carpenter's trade in Perrysville, Ind. His father, 
 Nathaniel Amos, now deceased, was born in Penn- 
 sylvania, in 1802, and married Miss Jane Evans, in 
 1824. She was born Feb. 29, 1808, in Pennsyl- 
 vania, and bore her husband eight children, viz. : 
 Benjamin, Joanna, Kittie J. (deceased), James, Wil- 
 liam and George. John W. and an infant unnamed 
 are deceased. 
 
 James E. Amos, of whom we write, formed a mat- 
 
 X- 1 - 
 
 rimonial alliance with Miss Nancy M. Baughman, 
 April 22, 1856. The Baughman family were early 
 settlers in Fulton County, this State, her father be- 
 ing among the number. She was born March 21, 
 1842, and died May 5, 1877. She was a member of 
 the Methodist Church. Of their union five children 
 were born Amanda J., Nov. 3, 1857 ; Mary E., Feb. 
 17, 1860; William F., Sept. 15, 1864; Minnie A., 
 Aug. 19, 1869; Iva V., Feb. 16, 1877, all of whom 
 are living. 
 
 March 30, 1882, Mr. Amos was again married, to 
 Mrs. Josephine Lloyd. Her first husband's name 
 was John J. Butler, who was a native of Ohio, 
 born in 1836, and died in 1863; they were married 
 Dec. 29, 1860. The second husband of Mrs. Amos, 
 James R. Lloyd, was born in Kentucky, in 1831, and 
 died Nov. 21, 1879. They were married, Jan. 25, 
 1866, in this county. Mrs. Amos had two children 
 by her first husband, namely : Mary E., born Oct. 
 24, 1861, and Isaac L., born Jan. 16, 1863. The 
 latter died in May, same year. By her second mar- 
 riage, five children were born Eliza L., Nov. 28, 
 1866; died Nov. 15, 1876; Nellie, born May 3r, 
 1869; Rosa, April 4, 1871, and an unnamed infant "" 
 born Feb. 4, 1875; died May 7, same year, and 
 Joseph R., born Jan. 28, 1878. Mr. Lloyd, second 
 husband of Mrs. Amos, was one of the first settlers 
 in Greenbush Township. His mother was born in 
 1801, in Albemarle Co., Va.,and died Nov. 10, 1884. 
 She once attended a reception, given in honor of 
 Gen. LaFayette. William Lloyd, the father of Mr. 
 James R. Lloyd, was born Dec. 5, 1802; was married 
 to Eliza W. Traulliar in 1825 ; was the father of six 
 children Lucinda F., born Sept. 15, 1828: James 
 R., Feb. 16, 1831; Charles W., June 17, 1833; 
 Sarah E., Dec. 9, 1836, Martillus, July 14, 1839; 
 Thomas J., Feb. 16, 1841 ; James R. was the only 
 one that was married. Sarah E. is the only one of 
 the children living. 
 
 Mr. Amos, of this sketch, and Mrs. Lloyd were 
 married March 30, 1882. They have 200 acres of 
 good land in this county, which is particularly suited 
 for the raising of stock. On their place they have a 
 good dwelling 26 x 36 feet and two stories in height; 
 also a barn 30 x 42 feet, with a basement. Her 
 former husband, Mr. Butler, belonged to the Chris- 
 tian Church, as likewise does her third husband, Mr. 
 Amos. The latter is an ordained minister and has 
 occupied the pulpit in the Christian Church for the 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1 
 
 past 24 years. He is a temperance man and votes 
 with the Prohibition party. He is also President of 
 the Western Illinois Christian Conference and Secre- 
 tary of the Illinois State Conference. In his early 
 life he learned the carpenter's trade, and assisted to 
 build the first house that was erected in the city of 
 Bushnell. He also erected 56 buildings in Fulton 
 County. The father of Mrs. Amos, Joseph L. Park, 
 was born in November, 1810; was a member of the 
 Presbyterian Church; married Miss Mary McDonald 
 in 1833, and died in 1852. She was born in Ken- 
 tucky, in 1816, and is still living, residing in Green- 
 bush village. Of their union seven children were 
 born: William B., who died in the army, was born 
 in 1835; Columbus, in 1837; Josephine, Sept. 17, 
 1839; John, Jan. 9, 1842; Wallace, June 19, 1844; 
 Marion, Sept. 17, 1849, ar >d Sarah E., May 8, 1852. 
 
 -43- 
 
 -ames F. Thomson, an agricuturist of this 
 county, which vocation he has followed the 
 major portion of his life, is a resident of 
 section 10, Tompkins Township. He was born 
 in Jefferson Co., Ohio, Oct. 20, 1844, of pa- 
 rents who were natives of Ohio, and named re- 
 spectively John and Rachel (Frances) Thomson. 
 They came to this State in 1867, and settled upon 
 the same section where James F., of this sketch, at 
 present resides, and where the father purchased 160 
 acres of land on which he is at present residing. 
 
 The gentleman we name at the commencement of 
 this biography, was an inmate of his parent's family 
 until one year after attaining his majority. His years, 
 prior to that time, were passed in acquiring a rudi- 
 mentary education at the common schools, which he 
 supplemented by a course of study at a Normal 
 school. On attaining the age of 22 years, Mr. 
 Thomson engaged in teaching, and was thus occu- 
 pied for three years, one year in Ohio and two years 
 in Henderson County, this State. In 1870, in com- 
 pany with his brother, he purchased the undivided 
 half interest to 160 acres of land on section 13, 
 Tompkins Township. They jointly cultivated the 
 same until 1881, when Mr. Thomson, of this notice, 
 sold his interest to his brother and purchased the 80 
 
 acres on which he at present resides. He located on 
 his land and began the active labor of an agricul- 
 turist, which he has continued, with success, until 
 the present time. By energetic labor and economy 
 he succeeded in accumulating sufficient to make an 
 additional purchase of 80 acres, and at present is the 
 proprietor of 160 acres of good farming land, all in a 
 body and under an advanced state of cultivation. 
 
 Sept. 3, 1873, Mr. Thomson was married to the 
 lady of his choice, Miss Mary E. Norcross. She is 
 a native of this State, and a daughter of Hamlin 
 and Clarinda (Hoge) Norcross. Their union has 
 been blessed by the birth of three children, whom 
 they named Carl H., Frank N. and Maggie F. The 
 political views of Mr. Thomson coincide with the 
 principles advocated by the Republican party, with 
 which he always casts his vote. He and his wife are 
 members of the United Presbyterian Church. 
 
 Mr. Thomson was a soldier for the Union in the 
 late War, having enlisted in the i57th"Ohio Vol. Inf., 
 and served five months, having engaged in no con- 
 flict, but being actively occupied in guarding prison- 
 ers during that time. He received an honorable 
 discharge in September, 1864. He is one of the rep- 
 resentative citizens of Tompkins Township and a 
 successful and progressive follower of his vocation. 
 
 arzillai Parker, deceased, was a pioneer 
 of Warren County,who located in the town- 
 ship of Spring Grove rather what is now 
 known as such, in 1835. He was born at 
 Snow Hill, Worcester Co., Md., April 18, 
 1808. His home was there until he was 
 nine years of age, when his parents removed to Ken- 
 tucky, in which State he remained until his removal 
 to Warren County, in the year stated. His father 
 died in Kentucky soon after the family removed to 
 that State. Mr. Parker was accompanied to Warren 
 County by his mother and sister. The journey from 
 Ohio was made overland, they bringing with them 
 their household furniture and also what stock they 
 owned. Mr. Parker built a log house and rived the 
 shingles to cover the roof. After making provisions 
 for shelter he commenced improving the land which 
 

WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 399 
 
 he had pre-empted. He placed in order for success- 
 ful farming about 100 acres of the tract that he at 
 first pre-empted and from time to time continued his 
 purchases of real estate until he was at the time of 
 his death the possessor of upwards of 1,000 acres. 
 He had at various times visited Nebraska and Iowa 
 and made large pm chases of land in both States. 
 
 Mr. Parker was a man of zeal, energy and indus- 
 try and was prominent in his method of pushing 
 such projects as he was interested in to a successful 
 termination. 
 
 Politically, he was a Republican in later days. In 
 the early times, when he was first interested in poli- 
 itics, he was a Whig. He joined the ranks of the 
 "Grand Old Party '1 when it was organized. 
 
 He was twice married. Kllen D. Pease became 
 his wife in 1843. She was born near Rockland, 
 Maine, and her parents were pioneers in Mercer Co, 
 111. To Mr. and Mrs. Parker there were five chil- 
 dren born. Henry C. is a citizen of Monmouth 
 " Township. Adda P. is married to P helps Paine, a 
 resident of Lincoln, Neb. Rhoda H.Js the wife of 
 j George Herbert, of Spring Grove Township. Barzil- 
 "_ lai is the next in order of birth. Sarah is deceased. 
 Mrs. Parker, the mother of the children just enumer- 
 ated, died in 1851. In 1854 Mr. Parker formed a 
 second matrimonial relation with Mrs. Zoa Ulmer. 
 There were two children from this union. Mary W. 
 is married to George F. Miner, of Monmouth. Eva 
 is deceased. Mr. Parker died May 19, 1884. 
 
 ,on. James H. Stewart, Judge of War- 
 ren County Court, was born Jan. 5, 1818. 
 at Elkton, Todd Co., Ky., and is the son 
 of R.ev. W:n. K. and Lucretia P. (Moore) 
 Stewart, natives of North and South Carolina 
 respectively, and descended from Scotch and 
 Scotch-Irish ancestry. They were married in Chris- 
 tian Co., Ky., April i, 1817, and at once repaired to 
 Elkton, where their three sons and two daughters 
 were born. 
 
 The Rev. Mr. Stewart was of the Presbyterian 
 Church; came to Illinois in 1830: had charge of a 
 congregation at Vandalia five years; there buried his 
 wife in 1831 : removed to Macomb in 1836, where 
 
 he preached to his people as long as health per- 
 mitted, and died April [5, '852, in the 6ad year of 
 his life. He was a ripe scholar, a graduate of Hamp- 
 den-Sidney College, of Virginia, and was a preacher 
 of recognized force and merit from the time he was 
 21 years of age. 
 
 Judge James H. Stewart was the eldest son and 
 was educated at Hanover College, Ind., from whence 
 he graduated in 1836, and at once began the study 
 of law, under James Allen, and completing his 
 course of reading in the office of Cyrus Walker, of 
 Macomb, III. He was admitted to the Bar at Spring- 
 field, Jan. i, 1840, and immediately commenced to 
 practice at Lewistown, Fulton County, this State. 
 From there, at the end of a year, he removed to Mil- 
 lersburg, Mercer County, where he remained in close 
 practice four and a Half years. He then hung out 
 his shingle at Oquawka, and there added 15 years to 
 his life and much to his knowledge of the law. He 
 was then at Knoxville about a year and first came to 
 Monmouth in the spring of 1861. Here he has spent 
 the matured years of his life. Judge Stewart, the 
 Nestor of the Warren County Bar, has a reputation 
 as wide as the borders of the State in which he re- 
 sides. His name will be transmitted with the his- 
 tory of the community with whose interests he has 
 been so long identified, and the posterity of those 
 whose lives we chronicle to-day, will know, him as a 
 man honored among men and worthy of their emula- 
 tion. 
 
 fudge Stewart's official career began at Oquawka, 
 in 185 i, when he was elected State's Attorney, for 
 the isth Judicial Circuit. In 1856, after a division 
 of the district, he was twice re-elected to the same 
 position for the tenth circuit. In 1881 he was chosen 
 County Judge of Warren, to fill out the unexpired 
 term of Judge Willets, deceased, and in 1882, 
 regularly elected for the ensuing term of four 
 years. The Judge is a Democrat in whom there is 
 no guile, and that he is fully appreciated by his party 
 is attested by his record. He has twice been its 
 candidate for Representative from this county, but 
 that body being notorious as a Senatorial Manufac- 
 turing Machine, the good people usually select men 
 especially gifted (?) for that important duty rather 
 than men possessed of knowledge as law-makers. 
 The Judge was alternate delegate to the St. Louis 
 National Democratic Convention of 1876, and dele- 
 gate to that body at Cincinnati, in 1880. 
 
 A' 
 
400 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Beginning as a |>oor boy, Judge Stewart rounds 
 life at a ripe age possessed of a handsome competency. 
 He is largely interested in agriculture and banking, 
 which receives much of his personal attention. He 
 was married in McDonough County, this State, June 
 30, 1842, to Isabella C. McKamy, who was born in 
 Roane Co., Tenn., Jan. 22, 1824, and has borne to 
 him ten children, only three of whom are living 
 William K., whose biography appears in this volume; 
 Isabella, wife of D. M. Hammack, an attorney at 
 Burlington, Iowa, and Mary M. Lucretia P. was 
 born Aug. 18, 1862, and died Nov. 24, 1878; the rest 
 of his children died in infancy. We felicitate our- 
 selves on being enabled to add to this biographical 
 notice, as well as to the portrait feature of our work, 
 a reproduction of a life-like photograph of Judge 
 Stewart, which was recently taken. 
 
 Bennett, owning 67 acres of good tillable 
 land in Tompkins Township, and also 480 
 acres in Boone Co., Neb., and residing upon 
 )tj section 19, of the township named, where he is 
 engaged in the pursuits of an agriculturist, 
 _ was born in Madison Co., N. Y., April 8, 1829, 
 his parents being Jacob and Elizabeth (Coss) Ben- 
 nett, natives of Montgomery Co., N. Y. 
 
 The gentleman whose name heads this biographi- 
 cal notice, lived with his parents until he was eight 
 years of age, at which time his father died. He was 
 then absent from his mother until he was 14 years 
 old, when he returned and resided with her for four 
 years, receiving at her hands a good common school 
 education. He t'.ien left home and worked out for 
 five years by the month, [n 1854 he _came to this 
 State, and became a citizen of this county, where he 
 was engaged in the occupation of a farmer, working 
 for others and doing odd jobs for one season. Dur- 
 ing that year he purchased the 8o-acre tract of land 
 on which he is at present residing, moved upon it 
 with his family and at once engaged in the vocation 
 which he had followed more or less all his life. He 
 erected a fine residence upon his farm, together with 
 a good barn and necessary outbuildings and set out 
 trees, ornamental and fruit, and cultivated and im- 
 
 proved the place, until it presents a fine appearance 
 to the passer-by of to-day. In his chosen vocation, 
 Mr. Bennett is meeting with that success, which 
 push, perseverance and energy are sure to bring. 
 
 In 1857, Mr. Bennett was united in marriage with 
 Miss Liza Thorp, a native of New York, and a daugh- 
 ter of John Thorp. Her father came to this State 
 in 1854, settling in this county, where, with his wife, 
 he lived until their death. In politics, Mr. B. votes 
 with the Republican party, and is regarded as one of 
 the leading, representatives of his vocation in his 
 township. 
 
 ( avid Allard is a farmer in the township of 
 Point Pleasant and is the owner of 240 
 acres of land situated on section 8. He 
 was born April 6, 1824, in the town of Eaton, 
 Carroll Co., N. H., of which State his father, 
 $ Jacob Allard, was also a native. Job Allard, his 
 grandfather, was one of the earliest settlers in the 
 " Granite State," where he took up a tract of land all 
 in timber, which was located 18 miles from any set- 
 tlement of whites. It was in Carroll County, and 
 he cleared a farm, on which he resided until his 
 death. His son Jacob was born on the same farm, 
 and was the heir to the estate of the father who had 
 done the work of the pioneer on it. Sally (Thurs- 
 ton) Allard, the wife and mother, was also a native 
 of Eaton in the same county. To her and her hus- 
 band ten children were born, of whom six are now 
 living: David is the eldest; Jane is the wife of 
 Daniel Young, and they are living in Freedom, Car- 
 roll Co., N. H. ; Joseph S. is married to Miss Fannie 
 Wornom and is a farmer in this county ; Eliza is Mrs. 
 Bradley Davis, and, with her husband, resides in 
 Stockton, Cal. ; Martha is the wife of Charles Davis 
 and lives in Iowa; Rose A. is the youngest member 
 of the family living, and is married to F. H. Baldwin. 
 They live in Oregon. 
 
 Mr. Allard was reared and educated in the town 
 where he was born. At the age of 20 he went to 
 Belfast, Maine, and there passed two years in ac- 
 quiring a knowledge of blacksmithing He returned 
 to his native State and operated as a "jour" one 
 
 ' 
 
-4 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 401 
 
 year. July 2, 1846, Mr. Allard was married to Miss 
 Harriet Patch. "She was born in Eaton, N. H., and 
 is the daughter of Dennis and Susan (Drew) Patch. 
 He then purchased a farm in the vicinity of the old 
 homestead, and there opened a shop in his own inter- 
 est. He managed the farm and the shop together 
 until 1855, when he sold both, preparatory to moving 
 to Illinois. He settled in Warren County and bought 
 a farm near Jackson Corners, in the township of 
 Ellison. On this he resided until 1864, when he re- 
 moved to Monmouth, to secure for his children the 
 advantages of the schools of that place. He was 
 engaged in the pursuit of his trade in the C;irr Plow, 
 Shops there two years, and at the expiration of that 
 time he purchased a farm in Point Pleasant Town- 
 ship, on which he has since resided. It has the usual 
 complement of trees and farm buildings. It has 
 also a grove of forest trees, including white ash, wal- 
 nut, butternut, ash-leaved maple, white maple, cot- 
 tonwood, willow and chestnut. These cover six acres, 
 and are situated on a mound which is said by survey- 
 ors to be the highest point between the two rivers 
 east and west. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Allard were born ten children, 
 eight of whom are now living : Frank, Vina, Rose, 
 Josephine, Orrin, Charles, William and Elgena. 
 
 Jewell, an energetic and industrious 
 farmer, residing on section 33, of Lenox 
 Township, is a son of Lemuel and Jane 
 (Cole) Jewell, natives of York State, and who 
 settled there until 185 t, when they came West- 
 ward, located in Lenox Township, Warren 
 County, this State. At the latter place they made 
 their permanent abiding place until taken to their 
 eternal homes. Of their union were born seven chil- 
 dren Abel, Jacob, Halsey T., Harriet, Henry, Ira 
 and John being their names. 
 
 John Jewell, of whom we write, was born in Rome, 
 Oneida Co., N. Y., June 4, 1830, and in 1851 came 
 to Warren County, this State. While residing under 
 the parental roof-tree heattended the district schools 
 in the acquisition of an English education and as- 
 sisted his parents in the duties of the farm After 
 ... , ' ' A 
 
 his departure from home in the year above men- 
 tioned, he bought 80 acres of land on section 33, his 
 present site, which he has made his home ever since. 
 His farm has been put under excellent improvement 
 and cultivation and he has erected suitable buildings 
 thereon. 
 
 Mr. Jewell and Miss Juliet A. Smith were united 
 in marriage in Warren County, Sept. 30, 1852. She 
 was born in Virginia, Sept. 10, 1820, and bore her 
 husband one child, who died in infancy. She died 
 April 15, 1880, and he was again married, Feb. 24, 
 1881, to Flora L. Crosier, a native of Ellison Town- 
 ship, Warren County, where she was born March 3, 
 1859. She has become the mother of two children 
 by Mr. Jewell Rodney C. and Rosa. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Jewell are members of the United Brethren Church. 
 In politics, Mr. J. is identified with the principles of 
 the Democratic party. 
 
 illiarn P. Smith, retired merchant at Mon- 
 mouth, was born Feb. 22, 1815, in Louisa 
 ._ Co., Va. His parents, Barnett and Mary 
 1> (Grayson) Smith, were of Virginia and de- 
 scended from English ancestors. Of their 
 five sons and four daughters, five of whom are 
 still living, William F. was fourth in order of birth. 
 At the age of 15 years, Mr. Smith began clerking in 
 a store at Glasgow, Ky., the family having removed 
 into Barren County, that State, in 1820. The Ken- 
 tucky farm upon which the old people spent their 
 lives is yet owned by the subject of this sketch. The 
 father died in 1847, ' n n ' s &9th year, and the mother 
 in 1884, aged 95. Both died in Kentucky. 
 
 William F. Smith came to Monmouth in Novem- 
 ber, 1835, and opened a variety store. He had 
 only $t,ooo in money, but he was well backed by a 
 Louisville, Ky., firm, for whom he had clerked some 
 time, and after realizing upon his first cargo of goods 
 he had cleared about $1,500. With this he re- 
 turned to Louisville, as the weather promised to be 
 too cold for him up here, but his old backers induced 
 him to return. He next embarked in the dry-goods 
 business with an employe named B. C. Hord as his 
 partner. In 1838, the Louisville firm took an inter- 
 
402 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 est. In 1844, having sold out to the firm, Mr. 
 Smith opened a drug store and continued in that 
 line of business until 1868. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Smith was originally a Democrat, 
 and as such was elected Probate Justice in 1844-5. 
 Mr. Polk appointed him Postmaster to fill out an 
 unexpired term of a predecessor, but Zachary Tay- 
 lor, though Mr. Smith had 500 signers to his peti- 
 tion while his competitor had only 13, ousted him. 
 In 1849, however, the citizens of the county felt out- 
 raged, and though the Democrats to whom he had 
 belonged were greatly in the minority, he was elected 
 to the County Clerkship by a large majority, and 
 held the office tour years, ending in 1853. In 1856, 
 he became a Republican, and has affiliated with that 
 party to the present. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Smith took place April 12, 
 1838, at which time Miss Margaret Bell, the ac- 
 complished daughter of Rev. L. G. and Margaret 
 (Beard) Bell, of the Presbyterian Church, became 
 his wife. She was born in Leesburg, Va., April 18, 
 1817. She bore him ten children Charles (de- 
 ceased), Edwin R. (deceased), Mary, Inez B., Will- 
 iam B., Lancelot G., Carrie K., Lizzie A., Ella and 
 Harry B. All are grown, and the boys are in bust-' 
 ness. 
 
 lohn Barnes, owning 200 acres of good 
 farm land on section 24, Tompkins Town- 
 ship, where he lives and is engaged in its 
 cultivation, was bom in West Virginia, Jan. 10, 
 1820. His father, Henry Barnes, was a native 
 of the same State, and the mother of Mr. 
 Barnes, of this notice, Catherine Barnes, whose 
 maiden name was Cunningham, was also a native of 
 Virginia. 
 
 Mr. Barnes resided with his parents until he at- 
 tained his majority, when he moved to Indiana, and 
 having been brought up on a farm and becoming 
 familiar with agricultural pursuits, he purchased land 
 in the latter State, and followed the vocation which 
 he had chosen in early manhood, at that place, until 
 1856. During the year last named, Mr. Barnes 
 came to this State, and purchased the farm on which 
 he is at present residing. His farm comprises 200 
 
 acres of land under an advanced state of cultivation, 
 and its appearance is indicative of the push and 
 energy which Mr. B. possesses. 
 
 Mr. Barnes become the husband of Miss Elvira 
 Love, in 1843, and by her has had four children, as 
 follows : George, Ansell, Cynthia J. and Charles 
 W. The wife- and mother died in 1857, and Miss 
 Elizabeth Monroe became his wife. Of the latter 
 union, three children John F., Alice and Eddy, 
 have been born. Mr. Barnes votes with the Repub- 
 lican party and he and his wife and five children are 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Soci- 
 ally, Mr. Barnes is a member of the I. O. O. F. and 
 of the Order of Masonry, and is one of the pushing, 
 go-ahead representatives of his vocation in Tomp- 
 kins Township. 
 
 F. Trulock, one of Warren County's 
 energetic ;md successful farmers and large 
 land-owners, and who has been closely 
 identified with the development of the county 
 since 1850, resides on section 36, Berwick 
 Township. He was born in Scot Co., Ind., in 
 December, 1815, and is a son of Parker Trulock, a 
 native of Maryland. The father moved to Indiana 
 in 1815, and there resided, engaged in the occupa- 
 tion of a farmer until his death, which occurred 
 about 1854. He was married to Miss Elizabeth 
 Terrel, in Virginia, and by her had 1 1 .children, as 
 follows: John, William. Isaac, Mary, Sarah, Char- 
 lotte, Esther, Samuel M., James W., Parker L. and 
 Henry. 
 
 Henry F. Trulock has passed the years of his life 
 until the present in agricultural pursuits. Reared 
 on the parental homestead, he there first learned the 
 lessons of an agriculturist and in the schools of his 
 native county acquired his education, and there lived 
 and developed into manhood. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Trulock took place Jan. 30, 
 1845. at which time Miss Margaret Peacock became 
 his wife. She was born in Devonshire, Eng., Jan. 
 28, 1818, and has borne him six children Sarah E, 
 and Catherine, twins, born May 10 ,1847 ; Nancy A., 
 July 8, 1849; James M., Jan. 21, 1852; Frances 
 

 
THORNDALE FARM" RES. or J. F.OWEN s. SEC. 2.. MONMOUTH TOWNSHIP 
 
 RESIDENCE OF HENRY u. JEWETLL. SEC. 24. LENOXTOWNSH IP. 
 
 RES. OF WILLIAM EDWARDS, SEC. 35. HALETOVYNSHIP. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 45 
 
 M., March i, 1853; W. H., Oct. 28, 1854; and 
 Harriet J., April 28, 1856. 
 
 The father of Mrs. Trulock, Wm. Peacock, was 
 born in England, from which country he emigrated 
 to the United States and located in Indiana, in 1819. 
 
 In England, he married Nancy Davidson, and of 
 their union six children were born, namely : Mar- 
 garet, William, Robert, Frances, Mary and John. 
 
 Mr. Trulock, on coming to this county, at once 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits. He came here in 
 1850, and located in Berwick Township, and has_ 
 here resided until the present time. Considering 
 that on his arrival in Warren County, lie was only 
 the possessor of a span of horses and $^50 in 
 money, and has since accumulated his handsome 
 property, he certainly deserves mention in this work, 
 at least as a man of energy, pluck and perseverance. 
 That he has done a large amount of hard work and 
 a good deal of thinking, and passed through many 
 trials, cannot be denied, and his accumulations are ; 
 ' but the outgrowth of the same, for he was never the 
 recipient of any legacy, and what he has he has 
 made for himself. His landed interests in the county 
 ,> are upwards of 800 acres, on which he has five farm 
 houses, and in the vocation which he is following 
 and has followed for .so many years, he is meeting 
 with that success which energy and 'good judgment ! 
 are sure to bring. In politics, he votes with and en- ' 
 dorses the principles advocated by the Republican | 
 party. In this the sunset of his life, he is living in j 
 the enjoyment of that competency obtained througli 
 years of honest and laborious toil. 
 
 'l > ei V = 
 
 \ ames F. Owens, is of more than ordinary 
 |j|- reputation as a farmer and stock raiser, and 
 ' is a resident on section 2, Monmouth Town- 
 ship. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, May 
 1^ 8, 1829. His father, John Owens, was born 
 in Conway Castle, Wales, March 18, 1793, 
 and in his early life was a shoemaker, and later a 
 merchant at Davenport, Iowa. He was only six 
 weeks old when his parents emigrated to the United 
 States and located in New York City. His father 
 and mother lived in that city for some years, when 
 
 they moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, and there resided 
 until their deaths. John Owens, when a young man, 
 engaged to learn the trade of a shoemaker, which. 
 after having mustered it, he continued to follow until 
 his enlistment as private in the War of 1812. At 
 the close of that war, John, being yet a single man 
 and having no means, set out alone and on foot, to 
 cross the Alleghany Mountains, and then returned 
 to Cincinnati, Ohio. He arrived in the Queen City 
 in 1816, when that now populous and busy city had 
 but 8,000 inhabitants. On rrriving in that city he 
 engaged in working at his trade, which he followed 
 until his marriage to Mrs. Eunice Meeker, nee 
 Kent, a native of New Jersey. She was a descend- 
 ant of Anneke Jans, of the famous estate of that 
 name, and of whom Rev. Bogardus, whose history 
 was closely connected with that of New York, was a 
 member, who was followed by a Spears, then an Ed- 
 ward, and finally a Kent, of whom Mrs. Owens, the 
 mother of the subject of this notice, was descended. 
 The parents were married in Cincinnati, Ohio, and ^ 
 there the father followed his trade until 1838. At 
 that time eight children had been born to them, four . 
 sons and four daughters, of whom James Owens, the 
 subject of this notice, was fifth in order of birth The 
 parents then came to Davenport, Iowa, where the 
 father engaged in the mercantile business, and in 
 which he met with financial success. He was the 
 first Director of the first State bank of that city. 
 After the law was changed and State banks went out 
 of existence, national banks taking their place, Mr. 
 Owens became Director of the First National Bank 
 of Davenport, it_being known at the present as the 
 Davenport National Bank. He was a man of great 
 foresight, sound business judgment and possessed of 
 that indomitable energy and perseverance that is so 
 necessary to success in life. In addition to his 
 banking business at Davenport, he continued his 
 mercantile pursuits and became one of the prosper- 
 ous and well-to-do citizens of that city, in which he 
 continued to reside until his death, which occurred 
 Sept. 24, 1876, aged 84 years. His wife, the mother 
 of the subject of this notice, died in July, 1884, aged 
 9 r years. 
 
 The gentleman whose name heads this notice, was 
 ten years of age when his parents came from Cincin- 
 nati, Ohio, to Davenport, Iowa. He resided at home, 
 attending the public schools at Davenport and act- 
 ing as clerk iu his father's store, until 1855. August 
 
406 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 
 22, of that year, he was united in marriage, at the 
 residence of the bride's parents in Monmouth Town- 
 ship, with Mary T. Hopper, daughter of William 
 and Edith (Hirrison) Hopper, the latter being a 
 cousin of the hero of Tippecanoe, William Henry 
 Harrison. Her father was a native of Bourbon Co., 
 Ky., her mother cf Rockingham Co., Va. They 
 were married in Todd Co., Ky., Aug. 27, 1818. The 
 wife of the subject of this notice was born July 20, 
 1834. She was only an infant when her parents 
 came to this State, the date thereof being 1837. 
 Her parents located on land which was in its natural 
 condition, in Monmouth Township, few families 
 having located there at that time. They brought 
 with them a cooking-stove, which was the first ever 
 brought into the county. They located on their 
 land, and her father engaged actively and ener- 
 getically in its cultivation, and by laborious toil be- 
 came a well-to-do farmer of that township. While a 
 resident of Kentucky he followed the occupation of 
 a tanner and was the owner of slaves, but his con- 
 science taught him that to deal in human flesh was 
 wrong. He consequently liberated his slaves and 
 came to this county, determined to rear and educate 
 his children in a State where the doctrine of slavery 
 did not exist. He and his wife continued to reside 
 on the original homestead upon which they first lo- 
 cated in this county until their deaths, that of the 
 mother occurring Dec. 11, 1865, and the father May 
 10, 1877. 
 
 Mrs. Owens, wife of the subject of this notice, re- 
 mained under parental influence until her marriage, 
 her education having been a:quired in the schools 
 of Galeiburg, Knox Coun'y, this State. She is a 
 lady of more than ordinary intelligence and is re- 
 spected and honored in the community in which she 
 resides. Mr. and Mrs. Owens are the parents of six 
 children, viz. : Maria F., who became the wife of 
 H. M. Chamberlain, a resident of Greeley, Col. ; 
 Anna B., who resides at home; Eunice, a teacher by 
 profession, and who is at present in Atchison Co.. 
 Mo. ; Edith, wife of T. B. Rankin, who resides on a 
 farm in Atchison Co., Mo.; Maggie B. and Charles 
 O. reside at home. 
 
 Since the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Owens, they 
 have, with the exception of two years, 1859-60, 
 when Mr. O. was in the " Rockies," made their 
 home in Monmouth Township. Mr. Owens is at 
 present the proprietor of 260 acres of good farm land 
 
 in that township, which is finely improved. A view 
 of his premises is given on page 404. In addition 
 to the cultivation of his land, he is to a considerable 
 extent engaged in stock-raising of a general charac- 
 ter. Religiously, he and his wife are members of the 
 Christian Church, located at Monmouth. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Owens is a believer in and a sup- 
 porter of the principles of the Republican party. 
 He has held the office of Supervisor of his township 
 for some years, and has also been the incumbent of 
 the office of Road Commissioner. 
 
 illiam Edwards. Many of the most thrifty 
 and intelligent agriculturists of this section 
 of Illinois, were born and reared upon the 
 other side of the Atlantic, and to England 
 especially is Warren County indebted for 
 some of her most enterprising and prosperous 
 citizens. Prominent among the latter class is Wil- 
 liam Edwards, who is residing upon his splendid 
 farm on section 34, of Hale Township. He is the 
 son of William and Mary (Williams) Edwards, and 
 was born in England about 1830, where he was reared 
 and lived until May, 1849. There were five chil- 
 dren in his father's family, of whom the following is 
 a record : George, Eliza, Fannie, William and Jane. 
 George and Fannie are deceased. Eliza married 
 Richard Morgan, and lives in Monmouthshire, Eng- 
 land. There were born of this marriage six chil- 
 dren, two of whom are deceased. Jane, the youngest, 
 is living with her brother, the subject of this sketch. 
 The demise of his parents occurred in England. 
 
 As alrjady stated, William Edwards was a young 
 man of not 20 years of age when he bid adieu to the 
 shores of his native Isle, to seek a new home in 
 America. He found a location in Ohio, where he re- 
 mained for about two years, when, in August, 1852, 
 he came West to the fertile prairies of the Military 
 Tract, which were being then opened up by the 
 Peoria & Oquawka, the NorthernCross and the Mili- 
 tary Tract Railways. He found a desirable location 
 in Warren County, where he has since been a resi- 
 dent. He is the owner of 240 acres of well improved 
 land, on sections 34 and 35, of Hale Township. 
 
 
 
. 
 
 WARRRN COUNTY. 
 
 407 
 
 Upon this he erected a fine set of farm buildings and 
 entered vigorously and energetically upon the task 
 of its cultivation and improvement, until at present 
 it presents the appearance of thrift and energy. A 
 view of the residence and farm buildings of the 
 homestead, are represented in the pictorial depart- 
 ment of this work on page 404. 
 
 Mr. E. generally votes the Republican ticket, and 
 with his sister, advocates the doctrines of the Church 
 of England. 
 
 r. J. Lee, one of the well-known and suc- 
 cessful physicians of Roseville village, 
 Warren County, this State, is a native of 
 Kentucky, where he was born in the year 
 1818, and is a son of Stephen and Elizabeth 
 (Mcponald) Lee, natives respectively of East 
 Tennessee and Virginia. The Lee family of this 
 
 sketch are of the same family of whom Gen. Robert 
 f Lee, the famous General in the late Confederacy was 
 
 a member. They trace their ancestry back to the time 
 
 of Charles II., of England, one of whom married a 
 daughter of that monarch. They came to Virginia at 
 an early day and their descendants composed many 
 men of note and prominence in the history of that 
 State, and the father of the Doctor was a full cousin 
 of Gen. Robert E. Lee. 
 
 The parents of Dr. Lee came to Illinois in 1827 
 and located in Morgan County, where they bought a 
 considerable body of land and remained in the State 
 of Illinois until their death. At that time no settlers 
 had ventured farther north than Morgan County, 
 and even in that section there were but a few fami- 
 lies. Many of the pioneers, who finally located in 
 Northern Illinois, stopped for a year or two in Mor- 
 gan County, as a few men, like the elder Lee, had 
 moved there at a very early day and had raised 
 crops and thus made provisions for the incoming 
 pioneer. Stephen Lee had a family of six children, 
 as follows: Thomas, Joseph, Nancy, Stephen, Wil- 
 liam and John. 
 
 The Doctor is the second son of the family, and 
 spent the first 25 years of his life under the protec- 
 tion of his parents He attended the customary 
 
 common district schools, where he received a fair 
 education, and at the age of 16 years, while engaged 
 in farming, he commenced the study of medicine 
 with Dr. Charles Chandler, of Cass Co. He also read 
 with Dr. Schooley, of the same county. He finally 
 became a faithful student of Rush Medical College, 
 Chicago. He was in the drug business several years 
 at Virginia, 111., and since 1864 has been in active 
 prac'ice at Roseville. He is thus one of the oldest 
 physicians in the place and has as his associate coun- 
 sel, Drs. Webster and Crawford, of Monmouth. 
 
 Politically, the Doctor is identified with the Re- 
 publican party and religiously he and his wife are 
 members of the Congregational Church. He has been 
 quite successful both in his practice and in liis ac- 
 cumulations and to-day owns a good farm of 160 
 acres near Hancock Station, Pottawatamie Co., Iowa, 
 and has a fine residence, with office attached, at 
 Roseville. 
 
 His first marriagi was with Miss Sarah Eliza 
 Campbell, a daughter of Judge P. W. Campbell of 
 Mason County, this State, on April 1 1, 1842, her igth 
 birthday. She died Feb. 10, 1845, leaving two sons, 
 Stephen W. and Joseph N. Stephen W., was a 
 student and graduate of Rush Medical College; 
 practiced medicine in Chicago about 14 years ; died " 
 Feb. 22, 1880, of an injury received while in the 
 army, aged 36 years. He was a soldier in the Sec- 
 ond 111. Cav. Joseph N. Lee is farming in Wash- 
 ington Territory at present, and has been in the 
 territory for the past five years. 
 
 The Doctor was married to Miss Minerva Gord- 
 ley, his present wife, in March, 1858. 
 
 Ptiine, 
 1788, 
 latter 
 settler 
 
 ohn Edward Paine is the Supervisor of 
 Sumner Township, in the current year 
 (1885). He is a member of the agricultu- 
 ral class of Warren County, and is located on 
 section 27. He was born in Lake Co., Ohio, 
 Oct. 2, 1834. He is the son of Charles Henry 
 who was born in CayugaCo., N. Y., Feb. 13, 
 and was a soldier in the war of 1812. The 
 is the son of Gen. Edward Paine, who was a. 
 in Ohio when it was still a territory. He 
 
* 
 
 f 
 
 408 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 
 owned the site of the city of Gainesville, which per- 
 petuates his name. He purchased a considerable 
 tract of land when he located in what was Lake 
 County, after the municipal divisions had been made. 
 He improved a farm, on which he lived until his 
 death, at the age of 96. He was a Captain in the 
 Revolutionary War, under immediate command of 
 Gen. Washington. After the war he was commis- 
 sioned General of the State Militia in Ohio. His 
 son, the father of Mr. Paine, of this account, was 
 reared in Lake and married in Portage Co., Ohio. 
 Parthenia Mason became his wife May 19, 1817. 
 She was born Sept. 7, 1798,^1 Connecticut. She was 
 aunt to the wife of the lamented President Garfield, 
 consequently Mrs. Garfield and Mr. Paine are first 
 cousins. Mr. Garfield and his wife were at Mrs. 
 Paine's residence visiting. He arrived there several 
 days before the memorable battle of Bull Run. 
 Upon receiving the news of the battle, his feelings 
 were so worked up he could not continue his visit 
 any longer ; so Mr. Paine took him with a team to 
 Monmouth, in order to catch the first train to take 
 him to Ohio. As soon as he could make the neces- 
 sary arrangements, he then enlisted. 
 
 After their marriage, John Edward Paine and his 
 wife reu oved to Portage County, in the Buckeye 
 State, and located on a timber tract, where the pro- 
 prietor improved a farm. After a term of years they 
 returned to Lake County, where they continued to 
 reside until 1835. They removed in that year to In- 
 diana, where they passed a year, in Porter County. 
 In 1 836 they came to Warren County. The family 
 at the time included five children. The trip hither 
 was made by the conveyance commonly used by the 
 emigrants of that period and their method of manage- 
 ment was also the same, and consisted of domestic ar- 
 rangements of about the same character as they were 
 accustomed to at home, with the different surround- 
 ings of a house and home on wheels and the lack of 
 locality, as every morning, noon and night found 
 them fn a new place. It should have been stated 
 that Mr. Paine had made the selection of his loca- 
 tion on a previous visit to the county, and after tak- 
 ing possession he resided there until his death. A 
 log cabin, belonging to Mr. Rockwell (see sketch), 
 stood adjacent, and Mr. Paine rented it for the shel- 
 ter of his family through the first winter after their 
 arrival. During the winter season, Mr. Paine made 
 haste to build his own house, which was of hewn 
 
 logs. It was double, and well adapted to the comfort 
 of the household of that period. He made the first im- 
 provement on the place in the spring of 1837. After 
 getting settled, he gave his undivided attention to the 
 work of improvement, and soon put his entire acre- 
 age in valuable condition. His life continued until 
 Warren County was in a well developed and prosper- 
 ous condition. His death transpired April 5, 1859. 
 His wife died Jan. 27, 1877. Following is the brief 
 history of their children: Emmeline died at the age 
 of three years; Amanda lives at Monmouth and is 
 the wife of R. A. Gibson; Emily became the wife of 
 Nathaniel Brownlee, and is_ his survivor; Lucretia 
 married F. H. Merrill, and they live in Fulton Co. ; 
 Charles H. is a resident of Washington Territory ; 
 the subscriber is the next in order of birth ; Eliza 
 Arabella is married to C. M. Rogers, of Hale Town- 
 ship. 
 
 Mr. Paine arrived in Warren County on his sec- 
 ond birthday. After attending the common schools 
 until he had somewhat advanced toward the period 
 of his youth, he passed one winter attending school 
 at Galesburg. July 26, 1862, he enlisted in Co., B, ; 
 83d 111. Vol. Inf., and remained in the military ser- 
 vice until the war closed. His command was sta- 
 tioned for a long time at Fort Donelson, and while 
 there on duty repulsed an attack from a force of ' 
 Rebels of greatly surpassing numbers. Mr. Paine 
 received an honorable discharge with the regiment in 
 June, 1865. He returned to the homestead of his 
 parents, which is his property, and on which he has 
 since resided. The farm of which he is the owner 
 contains 630 acres. It is under excellent improve- 
 ments and is exceptional in the manner in which it 
 is watered. Two never-failing streams flow through 
 it, and it is also well supplied with a growth of natu- 
 ral timber. The latter is situated on the banks of 
 Cedar Creek. The farm residence is of brick and 
 the other buildings are frame structures. 
 
 Ann E. Turnbull became the wife of Mr. Paine 
 May 17, 1860. She is the daughter of David and Nan- 
 cy (Mitchel) Turnbull. Her birth took place March 
 13, 1835, in Warren County. Nine of their children 
 are living Olive P., John M., Mary E. (who is the 
 wife of Delavan Frantz, a citizen of Monmouth), Wil- 
 liam T., Nancy M.,Charle., H., Anna Belle, Freder- 
 ick C., Frank M. David, the seventh child, was 
 born June 22, 187 1, and died Oct. 14, 1875. Mr. 
 Paine is an Elder in the United Presbyterian Church. 
 

WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 411 
 
 His wife is a member of the same denomination. 
 Politically, Mr. Paine is a believer in the principles 
 of the Republican party. 
 
 1807, 
 
 acob Baldwin, who, in his 7 8th year, is 
 passing the evening of his life in quiet re- 
 tirement on his little farm of 83 acres, on 
 section 17, Tom pk ins Township, is a native of 
 York State, having been born in Fishkill, on 
 the Hudson, Dutchess Co., N. Y., Dec. 25, 
 and was consequently a Christmas gift to his 
 parents, Elisha and Jemima (Ryder) Baldwin, natives 
 of that State. 
 
 Jacob Baldwin, the gentleman whose name ap- 
 pears at the head of this biographical notice, remain- 
 . ed with his parents until three years after he had 
 attained his majority, in the meantime attending the 
 common schools and assisting his father in the labors 
 on the farm. Arriving at the age named, he bid 
 adieu to his father and mother, and went forth into 
 the cold and unfriendly world to do for himself. He 
 purchased land and for five years followed the call- 
 ing of a farmer, when he sold this place and pur- 
 chased another farm of 200 acres, in Cayuga County, 
 his native State, on which he located and for 18 
 years was actively and laboriously occupied in its 
 cultivation and improvement. He then sold his 
 landed interests in York State and in 1858 came to 
 this State, and for two years followed his chosen av- 
 . ocation, on rented land, in Tompkins Township, this 
 county. At the expiration of this time he bought 83 
 acres on section 17, where he is living to day, retired 
 from the active labors of a vocation he has followed 
 more or less all his life. 
 
 On the lotli day of January, 1833, Mr. Baldwin 
 was married to the lady of his choice, Miss Abigail 
 Brigg. a native of York State and a daughter of Elias 
 and Catherine (Campbell) Brigg, natives of Dutchess 
 County, N. Y., where her father followed agricul- 
 tural pursuits. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Bald- 
 win, 13 children have been born, whose names are, 
 Elias B., Elisha J., Philetus R., Charlotte J., Frances 
 J., Oscar, Charles H., Nora A., George W., Hattie 
 M. and Elmer R. Daniel P., the sixth child in or- 
 
 der of birth, was a veteran in the late war, and was 
 shot on the breast-works at Resaca, from which 
 wound he died. Nine of the children named are 
 married and Mr. and Mrs. Baldwin have 26 grand- 
 children and one great grandchild. 
 
 Mr. Baldwin, in politics, is a Greenbacker. He is 
 one of the leading citizens of his township and is re- 
 spected for his straightforward, manly dealings with 
 his fellow men. His wife has been a consistent 
 member of the Baptist Church for 40 years. Sarah 
 M. Baldwin, the seventh child in order of birth of 
 the children of Mr. and Mrs. B., died at the age of 
 one year xnd six months. Of their children, three 
 boys were soldiers in the war for the Union and in 
 fighting for which, as we have already stated, one 
 gave up his life. 
 
 Ibert J. Rockwell, deceased, was the sou 
 of one of the earliest pioneers of the town- 
 ship of Sumner, and passed the remainder 
 of his life, after the removal ot his parents to 
 Warren County, in that township. He was 
 prominent in his business relations, combining 
 the vocations of merchant and farmer, the latter oc- 
 cupying the greater portion of his life. 
 
 He was born in Ashtabula Co., Ohio, Jan. 16, 
 r823, and the eldest child of his parents, his father 
 being the lineal descendant of a Rockwell who came 
 to this country in 1630. The subject of this notice 
 was nine years of age when he came to Warren 
 County. (An account of the lives of the parents is 
 presented in connection with the personal narration 
 of Mr. A. H. Rockwell, to be found on another page 
 of this work.) Our subject was a pupil in the com- 
 mon schools of Ohio while his family were there res- 
 ident, and when a High School was established in 
 Hendersonville, Knox Co., 111., he attended it and 
 thus acquired a good and thorough education. His 1 
 father was engaged in a multitude of business rela- 
 tions, and the son early developed unusual ability as 
 a book-keeper and clerk in the store. In 1855 he 
 opened a stor^ on his own account at Denny, and 
 was extensively engaged in business pursuits until 
 1865. Himself and his brother bought the family 
 
412 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 homestead, which they divided not long after their 
 purchase. Retiring at this period from mercantile 
 Ijfe, he devoted his attention to farming exclusively 
 for the remainder of his days. His death occurred 
 July 22, 1882. His remains rest in the old Rock- 
 well burying ground situated on the homestead re- 
 purchased by himself and brother. At the time of 
 his death he was the proprietor of a farm of 200 
 acres. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Rockwell was a Democrat. He 
 was connected by membership with no religious de- 
 nomination, but was a regular attendant on the ser- 
 vices of the Church to which his wife belonged. 
 Always prominent in his interest and connection 
 with whatever seemed to promise good to the com- 
 munity,, he entered heartily into the prosecution of 
 all such enterprises. The deceased took a great 
 interest in the projected railroad through Sumner 
 Township, and lost heavily in his investment in a 
 scheme which unfortunately proved unavailable. 
 
 Mr. Rockwell was married twice. His first wife, 
 nee Mary J. Craig, was born in Ohio, and died Jan. 
 28, 1848. Their only child died in infancy. He 
 was again married to Helen M. Burnett, Feb. 12, 
 1856. She was born in Washington Co., N. Y., 
 May 23, 1833, and is the daughter of John and 
 Lucina (Tefft) Burnett. They were natives of Ver- 
 mont and New York respectively. The grandfather 
 of Mrs. Rockwell, on the father's side, was a native 
 of Scotland, and born about the year 1770. He 
 emigrated to this country about 1788, and settled in 
 Bennington Co., Vt. When the father of Mrs. 
 Rockwell was six years of age, the family moved to 
 Washington Co., N. Y. Mrs. Rockwell's grand- 
 mother on her mother's side was of English origin. 
 Her parents, on coming to this country, settled in 
 Connecticut, whence they also afterward emigrated 
 to Washington Co., N. Y.. where the mother of Mrs. 
 Rockwell was born in 1802. The father of Mrs. 
 Rockwell was known among his large circle of ac- 
 quaintances as Capt. John Burnett, which title he 
 acquired in the early times when " general training- 
 day " was an institution. 
 
 Six of the children who constitute the issue of Mr. 
 Rockwell's second marriage are living. Fannie F. is 
 the wife of John Whitman, who is settled in Page 
 Co., Iowa, where he is a school-teacher. The other 
 children are John, James, Albert, Archie and Ada 
 G,, and reside at home. 
 
 Mrs. Rockwell is a member of the United Presby- 
 terian Church. She is a resident on the homestead. 
 The many friends of her late husband will be pleased 
 to find, on another page, an excellent portrait of the 
 deceased. 
 
 'ohn Rogers is one of the farmers of War- 
 ren County who, from a small beginning, 
 k has made a competency by the application 
 of the industry and perseverance which is his 
 heritage as a foreigner and one who is born 
 into the world with a proclivity to make the 
 most of such resources as fall to the common lot of 
 mankind. 
 
 He is a resident on section 2, Spring Grove Town- 
 ship, and is the owner of a fine farm of 200 acres.. 
 He was born June 24, 1825, in the County Roscom- 
 mon, Ireland. His mother, Catherine, died when he 
 was 17 years of age, and in the succeeding year his 
 father, Michael, married again. When he was 18 
 years old he went to Yorkshire, England, and was 
 there employed as a farm hand until 1850, when he. 
 came to America. In November of that year he 
 sailed from the port of Liverpool for the United 
 States. The vessel was wrecked and was driven to 
 the Bermudas. Mr: Rogers finally reached New 
 York, after a passage of 13 weeks and three days. 
 The severity of the weather and the exposure of the 
 passengers on the wreck caused the death of many, 
 but his good health and powers of endurance ena- 
 bled him to survive all, and he landed in a compara- 
 tively uninjured condition. He went to Orange Co., 
 New York, where he had an older brother, who was 
 the only member of his family, besides himself, who 
 came to the United States. He remained there until 
 1855, when he came to Keithsburg, 111., where he 
 had some friends, and was there employed in aware- 
 house for William Gale. He came thence to Warren 
 County, in 1858, where he located on the farm on 
 which he has continued to reside ever since. He 
 had bought 160 acres of land ki Mercer County, and 
 paid for it, but, as it subsequently appeared, the 
 party had no legal power to sell it, and in conse- 
 quence Mr. Rogers lost both his money and land. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 He, therefore, had to start anew again. In 1851 he 
 came here, and has been 35 years in the West. Po- 
 litically, he has always been a Democrat and has 
 steadily voted for that party. He is engaged in 
 raising Short-horn stock, and is an accomplished 
 leader in that line of cattle. Before he came to 
 Spring Grove Township, he had bought 60 acres of 
 land, of which 30 acres were, under the plow at the 
 time of his purchase. His success has enabled him 
 to make further purchases, until he is now the owner 
 of a good farm, as mentioned above. He has also 
 become the owner of 200 acres, situated seven miles 
 west of the place on which he lives, and parts of 
 which lie respectively in Warren and in Mercer 
 Counties. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Rogers to Mary Murphy took 
 place Dec. 26, 1853. She was born in Ireland. She 
 was living in Orange County, New York, at the time 
 of her marriage. To them have been born six chil- 
 dren. Charles is the leading merchant in Little 
 York, Warren County, and is represented by a sketch 
 on another page. He married Maggie McNamara, 
 and they have two children. William resides in 
 Sumner Township, and is a farmer. He married 
 Miss Hannah McNamara. John is a partner in the 
 store with his brother at Little York. Kate is the 
 wife of Bartholomew McNamara, of Sumner Town- 
 ship ; they have two children. Mary and Ann are 
 the names of the two unmarried children. 
 
 L'ames Simmons, a goodly land owner in 
 Jjjj- Greenbush Township, residing upon sec- 
 tion 2, was born in Warren County, Ky., 
 Aug. 10, 1809. He is a son of William Sim- 
 mons, a native of Virginia, who was born in 
 1775, and who died in 1865, at the venerable 
 age of 90 years. The father was united in marriage 
 with Miss Esther Slice, in 1798. She was born in 
 1779, in South Carolina, and died in 1855. Their 
 union was blessed with the birth of 13 children, who 
 were named Peter, Martin, Betsey, James, Charles, 
 Sarah, Lucinda, John, Roley, Susan, Herbert, Nancy 
 and William. 
 
 James Simmons formed a matrimonial alliance 
 
 with Miss Melinda Jennings, Dec. 9, 1838. She was 
 born in 1819, in Indiana, and has borne her husband 
 ten children Elizabeth, born in 1842 ; Sarah E.,in 
 1844; Samantha J , in 1846; Nancy M., in 1848; 
 William E., in 1851, and died May 12, 1884; Eliza 
 E., born in 1855 ; Thomas J., in 1857; Ida M., in 
 1860; James E., in 1863. Mr. Simmons, of this no- 
 tice, when quite young, moved with his parents to 
 Howard County, Mo., where, after a residence of one 
 year, he removed to Boone County, tliat State. After 
 living there about eight years, his father moved, to 
 this State, and located near Jacksonville. From that 
 point he subsequently moved to Iowa, where he died 
 in the year stated. Mr. Simmons is the proprietor 
 of 373 acres of land, located on section 2, Greenbush 
 Township, and where he resides, passing the sunset 
 of his life in the occupation which he has followed so 
 many years, but from the active labors of which he is 
 retired. 
 
 Caldwell JJind, M. D., physician and sur- 
 geon at Monmouth, is of German extrac- 
 tion, and was born at Millersburg, Ohio, 
 Dec. 16, 1849. His parents were natives of 
 n Pennsylvania and were married in Ohio, rear- 
 ing five sons and three daughters. Two of the 
 sons are physicians, one a jeweler, one a farmer, and 
 one is Supreme Recorder of the order of Chosen 
 Friends, Indianapolis, Ind. Mrs. Linn, the mother, 
 died in 1885, aged 68 years. The senior Mr. Linn 
 is a farmer at or near Paint Valley, Ohio. 
 
 E. Caldwell Linn was reared upon a farm, alter- 
 nating the seasons at farm labor and attendance at 
 the common schools. At the age of 20 years he en- 
 tered the National Normal University at Lebanon, 
 Ohio; graduated in 1874, read medicine a while with 
 Dr. W. S. Battles, of Shreve, Ohio, took a course of 
 study and lectures at the Cincinnati (Ohio) College 
 of Physicians and Surgeons, and finally, after one of 
 the most thorough courses of preparatory sludy, 
 graduated in the spring of 1878 from the Keokuk 
 College of Physicians and Surgeons, as M. D. 
 
 He commenced practice at Hamilton, 111. .immedi- 
 ately after leaving college, and at the end of a yean 
 removed to Bowen, the same State, where he re- 
 
414 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 mained two years. From Bowen he returned to 
 Hamilton, and was there connected with the River- 
 side Infirmary as consulting physician for about a 
 year, coming thence to Monmouth, in the autumn of 
 1 88 1. Thoroughly conversant with the current liter- 
 ature of his profession, experienced in therapeutics, 
 conscientious in his pra.cr.ice, Dr. Linn merits and 
 enjoys the full confidence of his patroas, who are 
 numbered among the intelligent people of Warren Co. 
 He is prominently identified with the various medi- 
 cal associations, local and general, and without osten- 
 tatious parade keeps himself abreast with the best of 
 them. 
 
 The Doctor was married at Shreve, Ohio, Oct. 12, 
 1881, to Miss IxHiisa Seeberger, the accomplished 
 daughter of A. A. Seeberger, Esq., now of Mon- 
 mouth. Dr. Linn is the architect of his own fortune. 
 The recipient of no gratuity, what he is, he has 
 made himself; what he has, he has earned. Dr. 
 Linn is a member and Elder of the United Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 Tohn Kelsey, residing on a good farm 
 located on section 9, Swan Township, of 
 which he is the owner, was born in War- 
 ren Co., 111., Jan. 3, 1840, and is the son of 
 James Kelsey, a native of Kentucky, where he 
 was born in 1806. The father came to Illi- 
 nois in 1834, and first located in Sangamon County. 
 He came to this county in 1836, and died here Aug. 
 29, 1844. Before coming to Warren County, the 
 father of John Kelsey was united in marriage with 
 Miss Elizabeth Vandeveer, in 1835. She was born 
 in Indiana in 1815, and died in this county, Aug. 29, 
 1872. They were the parents of five children 
 Mary J , Margaret Ann., John, William H. and 
 Samuel, all of whom are living. 
 
 John Kelsey was married, to Miss Harriet Day, 
 Oct. 5, 1865, Rev. Whitehead,of the Baptist Church, 
 officiating. She was born in Indiana, June 5, i 849, 
 and has borne her husband five children, two of 
 whom are deceased. The record is as follows : 
 Delbert, born Oct. 12, 1866; Emory, Feb. i, 1870, 
 
 and died March 22, 1871; Mary, born March 6, 
 1872; Hershell, born Aug. 15, 1874, and died Nov. 
 15, 1876, and Nettie, born Jan. 27, 1878. The pa- 
 rents of Mrs. Kelsey were William H. H. and Sarah 
 (Hamilton) Day. Her father was born in Indiana, 
 in 1817, and died one year after coming to this State, 
 in 1853. He was married in 1837, and his wife was 
 born in Indiana, in 1818, and died in this State, in 
 1876. The death of the former was caused by a 
 cancer on the breast and he died after an illness of 
 about one year. Their children were five in num- 
 ber Amanda, Warren, Emily, Harriet and Mary F., 
 all of whom are living and well-to-do in life. 
 
 Mr. Kelsey, of this notice, has 140 acres of land 
 under an advanced state of cultivation, located on 
 sections 9 and 10, Swan Township, where he resides 
 and is engaged in agricultural pursuits. In addition 
 to the cultivation of his land, he is devoting consid- 
 erable of his time and means to the raising of high 
 grades of Short-horns, and his horses are from one- 
 half to seven-eighths Norman. Mr. Kelsey is a mem- 
 ber of the Baptist Church, and extremely liberal in 
 his religious opinions, although a firm believer in the 
 immortality of the soul. He is a just man, a kind 
 father, a generous neighbor, and always willing to 
 aid in any enterprise that is calculated to benefit his 
 fellow men or the community in which he lives. In 
 politics, he is a believer in and supporter of the prin- 
 ciples advocated by the Democratic party. 
 
 Mrs. James Kelsey, mother of the subject of this 
 notice, remained a widow for three years after the 
 death of her husband, when she was again married 
 to John Blue, a native of Kentucky. Their union 
 proved to be a very unhappy one, on account of his 
 intemperate habits which caused some of her chil- 
 dren, by her former marriage, to leave home, and the 
 society of their mother. John, whose biography we 
 write, was one of these unfortunate ones, and at the 
 age of nine years went to live with his uncle, Ab- 
 salom Vandeveer, with whom he resided until he 
 was 20 years of age. By energy and perseverance 
 he has succeeded in accumulating a goodly share of 
 this world's goods, and is surrounded with a happy 
 family of three children. Socially, Mr. Vandeveer is 
 a member of the A. F. & A. M., at Youngstown, be- 
 longing to Lodge No. 387. He first joined the order 
 in 1853, at Greenbush, this county, and has been 
 Treasurer of the Lodge for 25 years. For four years 
 Mr. Vandeveer was Justice of the Peace, in Swan 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Township, and we deem it no flattery to say that he 
 is one of the representative class of agriculturists of 
 the county. 
 
 *- 
 
 arker B. Parrish, a successful farmer in 
 this county, which occupation he has fol- 
 lowed for the major portion of his life, is a 
 resident on section 4, Ellison Township. He 
 was born near La Fayette, Tippecanoe Co., 
 Ind., Jan. 19, 1832. The father of Mr. Par- 
 rish of this notice was Henry Parrish, a native of 
 Virginia, who moved with his parents to Ross Co., 
 Ohio, and there resided until his marriage with Eliza 
 Harvey, a native of Maine, who accompanied her 
 parents on their emigration to that county a few 
 years prior to her marriage. After their marriage 
 they resided in Ohio until six children had been 
 born to them, when they moved to Indiana, in 1831, 
 and located near LaFayette, then but a hamlet. The 
 land at that early period was in its natural condition, 
 ! and the hand of civilization was as yet hardly visible. 
 They entered Government land at a time when the 
 I Indian Reserve was but seven miles from their resi- 
 dence, which was located near the battle ground on 
 which Harrison overcame Tecumseh, the afterwards 
 famous Tippecanoe Valley. The parents continued 
 to reside in that beautiful portion of the State, where 
 the father followed the occupation of a farmer, and 
 where they were both finally laid to rest. 
 
 The subject of this notice was the first child of his 
 parents born in Indiana, and the seventh in order of 
 birth of the family. He resided at home and got his 
 education in the old log-cabin school-house of the 
 day, these being the primitive educational advant- 
 ages then afforded the community. His years, prior 
 to his majority, were passed on the farm, lending a 
 hand in the maintenance of the family, and attend- 
 ing school. On becoming his own master, Mr. Par- 
 rish worked as a general laborer until his marriage. 
 This event took place April 16, 1855, in this county, 
 when Miss Annaretta Godfrey became his wife. She 
 was born July 4, 1828. After marriage Mr. Parrish 
 with his wife returned to Indiana, where they lived 
 in happy union for seven years, when she passed to 
 the land of the hereafter, the date of her demise be- 
 
 ing May 11, 1862. Three children survived her, 
 namely: Gus A., who married Florence Livermore, 
 and is residing on a farm in this township; Willard, 
 who was united in marriage with Mary Cramer and 
 is at present residing at Red Oak, la., near which 
 place he" is engaged in stock-raising and farming. 
 The third child, Anna, died at the age of seven 
 years. 
 
 Mr. Parrish, after the death of his first wife, re- 
 turned to this county, where, in Ellison Township, 
 on Sept. 7, 1863, he was again married, the lady 
 who became his second life-partner being Charlotte 
 Godfrey, a sister of his former wife, and the daughter 
 of Elijah and Ellen (Davis) Godfrey. Her parents 
 were natives of Maryland, prior to whose union the 
 parents of both had removed to Ross Co., Ohio, 
 where Mr. and Mrs. Godfrey first met each other 
 and where they were married. The parents of Mrs. 
 Godfrey removed to Indiana, and afterwards came 
 to this county and located in Ellison Township, 
 where her father died, her mother having preceded 
 him to the spirit-land during their stay in Tippe- 
 canoe Co., Ind. Mrs. Parrish was born in that 
 county, Sept. 30, 1837. She was the seventh in or- 
 der of birth of a family of ten children, which con- 
 sisted of eight daughters and two sons, and resided 
 at home, receiving her education in the district 
 schools and assisting her mother in the household 
 duties, until her marriage with Mr. Parrish. They 
 "have become the parents of eight children, three of 
 whom are deceased. Those living are Charles E. 
 John O., Ida, Nora B. and Effie E., and the de- 
 ceased are Frank, Lucilla and Harry. 
 
 In 1863, Mr. Parrish purchased 80 acres of land 
 where he is at present residing. Locating on this 
 land, he at once set to work with characteristic en- 
 ergy to establish a home for himself and family, 
 which would __ afford , a comfortable shelter in the de- 
 clining years of their life. By energy and economy, 
 hard work and the exercise of a naturally sound 
 judgment, he was, in 1875, enabled to purchase an 
 additional 160 acres, located on section 3, same 
 township, and a few years afterward added thereto 
 40 acres of farm land and 28 acres of timber. Mr. 
 Parrish has thus increased his landed interests in 
 this county until he is at present the owner of 
 308 acres of land, all of which, with the exception of 
 timber, is tillable. 
 
 lu politics, Mr. P. votes with, the Democratic 
 
4t8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 party. As an aid in spiritual guidance, he and his 
 wife early united with the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 In addition to strictly agricultural pursuits, Mr. 
 P. is somewhat extensively engaged in the breeding 
 and raising of stock. He was the second man in 
 this county to recognize the value of the improve- 
 ment of Short-horn stock, and began breeding in 
 1871. The first Short-horn heifer purchased by 
 him is yet on his farm, and weighs r,8oo pounds. 
 He is also the proud owner of two full-blood Clydes- 
 dale horses, and part owner of three others. Thus 
 successful has he proved himself as a propagator of 
 improved stock. 
 
 In connection with this sketch of the career of a 
 representative agriculturist, we present an excellent 
 view of his homestead, on page 416. 
 
 acob Hayden, who is passing the sunset 
 of his life on his farm, on sections 12 and 
 13, Tompkins Township, where he follows 
 his chosen vocation, that of an agriculturist, 
 was born in Ohio, in 1820. The parents of 
 Mr. Hayden, John and Nancy (Ellis) Hayden,- 
 were natives of Maryland and Virginia respectively. 
 They moved from the latter State to Ohio in 1816, 
 where the father purchased 160 acres of land, on 
 which he resided with his family, engaged in its cul- 
 tivation until his death. The gentleman whose name 
 appears at the head of this biographical notice, lived 
 with his parents until he was 22 years old, receiving 
 at their hands a good common-school education. At 
 that age in life his savings enabled him to purchase 
 40 acres of laad, and after living thereon until 1849, 
 he came to this State and for two years farmed on 
 rented land in this county. In 1850 he purchased 
 80 acres of land in Ellison Township, and there re- 
 sided for 15 years, until 1865. During that year he 
 moved to Tompkins Township, and there purchased 
 95 acres, on which he moved and has resided for 20 
 years, following the vocation of an agriculturist. 
 
 Miss Mary A. King, an accomplished young lady, 
 native of the Buckeye State, Jan. 27, 1846, became 
 the wife of the subject of this notice, and has borne 
 
 children, namely : Sarah F., George, Charles and 
 Carrie M. In politics, Mr. Hayden casts his vote 
 with the Republican party, and he and his wife are 
 consistent, active workers in the cause of religion, 
 belonging to the Christian Church. 
 
 W. Armstrong, a practicing physician, re- 
 siding at Kirkwood, this county, was born 
 in Knox County, East Tennessee, Jan. 22, 
 1807. The parents of Mr. Armstrong, John 
 and Nancy (Wier) Armstrong, were natives of 
 1 Tennessee. They moved from that State to 
 Indiana in 1826, where the father followed survey- 
 ing and where he purchased a quantity of land, on 
 which he lived until his death, Oct. 23, 1851, his wife 
 having preceded him to the land beyond the river, 
 July 5, 1818. 
 
 A. W. Armstrong, a sketch of whose life we give 
 in this biography, remained with his parents until 
 one year after attaining his majority. At the age 
 named, 22, he took a course of study in the Tennes- 
 see Literary College, at which he matriculated and 
 followed the entire curriculum of that institution, oc- 
 cupying six years of hi-; lime. He then taught 
 school for two years in the Male Seminary, at Knox- 
 ville, Tenn., and also taught Latin in the college 
 from which he graduated for one year. In 1833 
 Dr. Armstrong commenced the study of medicine 
 with Dr. Mclntosh, a graduate of Edinburgh Col- 
 lege, Scotland, with whom he remained two years. 
 He then attended a course of lectures at Drake's 
 College, Cincinnati, and subsequently took a course 
 of study at the Rush Medical College, Chicago, 
 where he graduated, in 1849. He at once entered 
 upon the practice of his profession and actively con- 
 tinued the same until r873. During that year he 
 took a trip to California, where he remained one year, 
 then returned, resumed his practice and continued 
 the same until 1879. At this date he took another 
 rest from active labor and spent a year in Arkansas, 
 when he returned and has since continued his prac- 
 tice. In 1844 Dr. Armstrong went to Crawfordsville, 
 Ind., where he lived for 12 years. He came to this 
 county in 1858 and settled at Kirkwood, and from 
 that time until the present, with the exception stated, 
 
 - 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 419 
 
 has actively followed the practice of his profession 
 there. He is a gentleman whose reputation in the 
 community is such that it requires at our hands no 
 encomiums, and his success in his profession places 
 him among the most prominent men in the county. 
 
 Dr. Armstrong wooed and won Miss Mary West- 
 fall, a native of Ohio, and they were married in 
 1847. Their union has been blessed with the birth 
 of three children William D., Sarah L. and Mattie. 
 In politics, the Doctor votes with the Democratic 
 party, and, with his wife, belongs to the Presbyterian 
 Church. Dr. Armstrong is the oldest physician of 
 Kirkwood.and although in his 7 8th year, is enjoying 
 good health. William D. Armstrong married Miss 
 Annie Cargill, a native of Warren County, this State. 
 This union has been blessed with seven children, 
 viz.: Alfred C, Clarence, Mary, Edith, Mabel, Wil- 
 liam and an infant, at this writing not named. 
 
 Sarah L. married Samuel Allen, a prominent bus- 
 iness man of Kirkwood ; to them have been born 
 four children, viz.: Kemper, Wilma, Pearl and Nina. 
 Kemper is now deceased. Mattie is living with her 
 parents and is a teacher in the public school. 
 
 ohn T. McWilliams, engaged in general 
 ''- farming on section i, Ellison Township, 
 was born in Jefferson County, Ohio, Dec. 
 20, 1826. His father, Alexander McWilliams, 
 of Irish descent, was a native of Pennsjlvania 
 and a farmer by occupation. He married Miss 
 Jane Boyle, in his native State. She was also a na- 
 tive of that State and of Scotch ancestry and descent. 
 John T., the gentleman whose name stands at the 
 head of this notice, was about 17 years of age when, 
 in 1844, his parents came to this State, locating in 
 Ellison Township, where two years afterward, in 1846, 
 the father died, aged 49 years. His mother died at 
 the residence of her daughter, Mrs. Almira Yoho, in 
 Ellison Township, in 1883, aged 81 years. John T. 
 was the fourth in order of birth of a family of twelve 
 children, only four of whom are living, two in Illinois 
 and two in Iowa, Mr. McWilliams being the oldest of 
 the children living. He received a limited educa- 
 
 tion in the district schools and assisted in the labors 
 of the farm, developing into manhood. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. McWilliams took place Aug. 
 3) t^SS- i" tne State of Missouri, at which time 
 Miss Naitcy Sackett, a highly educated, Christian 
 lady, became hrs wife. She was "born in 1839, in St. 
 Clair County, this State, and died at her home in 
 Ellison Township, Dec. 5, 1867. By their union five 
 children were born Charles H., a conductor on the 
 Northern Pacific Railroad, and who formerly followed 
 the same vocation on the Union Pacific Road ; 
 Frank resides in Cheyenne County, Kansas ; Marion 
 is living at Marshalhown, Iowa, where he is engaged 
 in teaching; Mannda B. became the wife of M. J. 
 Ralston, who lives at Creighton, Neb., where he is 
 following 1 he occupation of a farmer ; and Amy is 
 living at home. Afier the death of his first wife, Mr. 
 McWilliams was again married, March 14, 1869, 
 the Christian lady chosen for his wife being Mrs. 
 Mary Crosier, nee Loftus. Her parents were natives 
 of Kentucky. Of her former union with Mr. Crosier,-, 
 two children were born, and of her latter union with 
 Mr. McWilliams, three children have been born,one-j 
 of whom is deceased. The living are A. J. and- 
 Archie, who reside at home. Mrs. McWilliams de- 
 parted this life Aug. 3, 1879, at her home in Ellison 
 Township. 
 
 Mr. McWilliams made his first purchase of land 
 in this county in 1869, the same consisting of 80 
 acres. He at present has 60 acres under an ad- 
 vanced state of cultivation. He and his wife are 
 members of the Methodist Protestant Church. Mr. 
 McWilliams enlisted in the Mexican War in an in- 
 dependent company of Illinois Cavalry, and was in 
 active service as a scout, but was in no general en- 
 gagement. He was discharged at the close of the 
 w.ir, in August, 1848. He also enlisted in the war 
 for the Union, joining Co. C, 83d 111. Vol. Inf., and 
 was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland, where 
 his re'giment was under the command of General 
 Thomas. He belonged to a mounted company and 
 participated in no general engagement, but in nu- 
 merous skirmishes. He was finally transferred from 
 the 83d to the 6ist Regiment, and received an hon- 
 orable discharge in 1865. In the cyclone that swept 
 away the village of Ellison, May 30, 1858, Mr. Mc- 
 Williams lost two sisters, Mary A. and Harriet, both 
 young ladies, and both killed by the tornado at that 
 
42O 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1, 
 
 &-* 
 
 time. In politics, Mr. McWilliams is a believer in 
 and a supporter of the principles of the Republican 
 parly. 
 
 Charles S. Fletcher, a farmer on section 17, 
 Tompkins Township, Warren County, 
 was born in Ferrisburgh, Addison Co., 
 Vt., June 9, 1825. His parents were Samuel 
 and Ida (Cousins) Fletcher, natives of Eng- 
 land and Vermont respectively. Samuel 
 Fletcher was a signal officer at the battle on Lake 
 Champlain under Commodore McDonough, and re- 
 ceived $[,ooo as prize money. He was Captain of 
 the Ethan Allen, a vessel on Lake Champlain, and 
 during a heavy storm in 1832 he was swept over- 
 board and drowned. His wife's death occurred in 
 1829. 
 
 Charles S. Fletcher (the subject of this article), 
 who, previous to his father's death, had been placed 
 in the care of Samuel Spafford, came to Ohio with 
 him in 1832. He continued a member of that gen- 
 tleman's family until he was 14 years of age. He 
 remained in the Buckeye State until he attained his 
 2oth year, when he embarked in the show business, 
 and for 15 years traveled with a menagerie and cir- 
 cus, during which period he was with a company ex- 
 hibiting through the West Indies and South America, 
 in which countries he also made a large collection of 
 birds, reptiles and other curiosities. At the age of 
 35 years, Mr. Fletcher came to Ellison Township, 
 Warren County, where he had previously purchased 
 1 60 acres of land, and there remained, cultivating 
 and improving the same for a period of two years, 
 and then sold and purchased another tract of 160 
 acres, in the same township, being a resident of it 
 for about the same length of time as he was the 
 other. His next move was to his present location, 
 where he has landed possessions to the number of 90 
 acres on section 17 and 5 acres on section 6, this 
 township, and 640 acres in Nebraska. In 1876 Mr. 
 F. erected a residence, which cost him in the neigh- 
 borhood of $11,000, which he sold soon after com- 
 pleting. His home farm presents the appearance of 
 thrift and energy, and is in an advanced state of cul- 
 
 tivation. He carries on a general farming, and is 
 one of the substantial men of Warren County. 
 
 Mr. Fletcher and Miss Sarah E. Wilson, a native 
 of Connecticut, were united in the holy bonds of 
 matrimony Oct. 28, 1860. Her parents were Clark 
 S. and Elizabeth A. (Peck) Wilson, both natives of 
 the State of Connecticut. They came West in the 
 fall of 1861, and are now residing with Mr. and Mrs. 
 Fletcher. They have become the parents of a fam- 
 ily of eight children, all surviving, except one, as 
 follows: Samuel C., born July 20, 1862; Sidney W., 
 born May 31, 1864; Nina E., born Feb. i, 1866, 
 Ninette A., born Nov. 6, 1869 ; Ida May, born May 
 i, 1872; Ethan Allen, born Sept. 9, 1876; and 
 Charles B., born Aug. 26, 1884; and Minerva I., 
 deceased. 
 
 Politically, Mr. F. affiliates with the principles of 
 the Republican party. 
 
 
 
 W. Nisely, one of Warren County's ener- 
 getic and prosperous farmers, resides on 
 section 34, Roseville Township; is a son 
 of Jacob and Margaret (Hawk) Nisely, having 
 been born in Jefferson Co., Ohio, Feb. 22, 
 1818. His parents were natives of Pennsyl- 
 vania, and the former came to Jefferson Co., Ohio, 
 in 1816, and engaged in the distilling business, and 
 also that of a farmer for some time. They died in 
 Medina, Ohio, the father in 1867 and the mother in 
 1874. 
 
 G. W. Nisely remained at home until he was 25 
 years of age, spending his time in the common 
 schools and at work for his father. He has a good 
 farm of 130 acres, carries on a general farming busi- 
 ness, and is recognized as one of the solid and sub- 
 stantial men of Warren County. 
 
 On the gth of March, 1853, he was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Sarah M. Mabry, who was a native 
 of Pennsylvania and a daughter of William and 
 Esther (Leurman) Mabry, of Ohio. They have a 
 family of ten children, to whom they have given the 
 following names: Homer, George W., Mary, Jerome, 
 John F., Hester M., Thomas B., Charles E., Albert 
 A. and Kittie M. Mr. Nisely is a Prohibitionist in 
 
-m 
 
 
 
 / 
 
 ,-v;. : 
 
 ', -> v 
 
 
 
 'X 
 
 **i 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 423 
 
 political views, and with his wife, is a member of the 
 Christian Church. 
 
 There were 13 children in the family of Mr. 
 Nisely's father, eight of whom are living. Samuel, 
 one of the sons, lives in Iowa. The remainder are 
 all living in Ohio, except the subject of this sketch. 
 
 Jacob Nisely, the father, died in Medina County, 
 at the age of 76 years. His wife, and mother of 
 George, died also in that county at the age of 76 
 years. Mr. Nisely left home in the spring of 1855, 
 and stopped in Peoria County, and the next year 
 went to Knox County. He came to Warren County 
 in 1857 and rented land until 1864, when he pur- 
 chased 80 acres on section 34, of Roseville Township 
 and here has lived to the present. 
 
 r 
 
 Thomas Patton, of the firm of Patton & 
 Beedee, dealers in flour, seeds, pumps, ag- 
 ricultural implements, lime, cement, etc., 
 at Monmouth, 111., was born in Adams Co., 
 Ohio, Nov. 20, 1831. The parents of Mr. Pat- 
 ion, John S. and Jane (McCague) Patton, reared 
 two sons and two daughters. The senior Mr. Pat- 
 ton was twice married (see biography of R. S. Pat- 
 ton). 
 
 The subject of this biographical notice was 
 brought up on his father's farm. Of the children 
 Mr. Patton was the third in order of birth and 
 the second son. At the common schools he acquired 
 a good English education and taught successfully for 
 several years in Ohio. In 1855 he came to Illinois 
 and resided in Peoria County up to r868, teaching 
 school in the meantime, five or six winters, and car- 
 rying on a farm during the summer. In 1868 he re- 
 moved to Warren County and was engaged in the 
 occupation of an agriculturist, in Hale Township, for 
 about ten years, coming thence to Monmouth, where 
 he has since been engaged in his present business. 
 His first partner was M. A. Gidding; his second, D. 
 C. Goudy; and the third, Mr. Beedee. Mr. Patton 
 was a successful farmer and is likewise a popular 
 and successful merchant. Before coming to Mon- 
 mouth, he was two years School Trustee, and since 
 residing here he has represented his ward two years 
 in the city council. 
 
 Mr. Patton formed a matrimonial alliance with 
 
 Miss Esther Stevenson, in Marshall Co., 111., Oct. 16, 
 1856. Mrs. Patton died in 1877, leaving four chil- 
 dren Ella J. (Mrs. R. Miller), Charles, Nannie B. 
 and Alice. Mr. Patton's second marriage occurred 
 at Monmouth, in 1878, the present Mrs. Patton hav- 
 ing been Mrs. Eliza J. Davidson, nee Black. Relig- 
 io isly, both Mr. and Mrs. Patton are members of the 
 U !ted Presbyterian Church. 
 
 Charles E. Russell. Among the prominent 
 young farmers of Warren County, we have 
 the subject of this personal narrative. He 
 lives on section 14, of Lenox Township, and is 
 a son of Jonathan Russell, a prominent farmer 
 of the county, whose biography is given in 
 this ALBUM. His mother, Lydia A. (Evans) Rus- 
 sell, was a native of Pennsylvania. Charles was born 
 in Chautauqua County, N. Y., Aug. 29, 1859. He 
 received a good education in the schools of this 
 county, his | arents having moved here when he was 
 about a year old. Here he was reared and has since 
 lived. He is the owner of 70 acres of good, tillable 
 land in Lenox Township, section 22. He is a mem- 
 ber of the order of the Golden Rule, and in political 
 faith, is a Republican. 
 
 Mr. Russell was married at Monmouth, Sept. 4, 
 1884, to Lonie L. Shaw, daughter of Clarkston Shaw 
 and Melissa J. Codington, natives of New York and 
 Kentucky respectively. Mrs. R. was born in Spring 
 Grove Township, Nov. i, 1864. 
 
 oseph Tinkham, one of the large land- 
 owners of Warren County, living in retire- 
 ment at Kirkwood, where he is passing the 
 sunset of his life in peace and quiet, in the 
 u enjoyment of the comforts which are the re- 
 ward of a life of labor, energy and persever- 
 ance, was born in the Green Mountain State, March 
 26, i8r2. 
 
 The parents of Mr. Tinkham were Benjamin and 
 Anna (Gray) Tinkham, natives of Vermont and New 
 Hampshire respectively. His father was a farmer 
 and died in his native State in 1827. Mrs. Tink- 
 
 
424 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ham, mother of the subject of this notice, came to 
 this State and resided with her children until her 
 death, in 1861. Of this union, six children were 
 born Mary, Joseph, Benjamin, Ransom, Erastus 
 and Amerette. 
 
 Joseph, the second child, whose name heads this 
 biography, passed the years of his life prior to at- 
 taining his majority, under the care of his parents, 
 receiving at their hands a good education, and as- 
 sisting his father on the farm. On becoming his 
 own master, his ambition to accumulate a compe- 
 tency for himself immediately began to assert itself. 
 He left the parental homestead and worked out for 
 six years. In 1835, when 22 years of age, realizing 
 that better inducements were offered to young men 
 in the undeveloped West, he emigrated to this State, 
 and located in Warren County, where he purchased 
 1 60 acres of land. To his original purchase he sub- 
 sequently added 500 acres, upon which he moved 
 with his family and resided until 1 88 1, during which 
 time the land was brought to a high state of cultiva- 
 tion. In the year last mentioned, he retired from 
 the active labors of life and removed to Kirkwood, 
 where he purchased a house and lot and where he 
 has made his place of residence since. 
 
 Mr. Tinkham was married in 1841, the lady 
 chosen to be his companion for life being Miss Ann 
 Robinson, a native of the Keystone State, where she 
 was born Dec. 13, 1815. Her parents, William R. 
 and Sarah (Witcher) Robinson, natives of the State 
 of Virginia, came to Illinois, locating in Sangamon 
 County, in 1836, and after a period of four years re- 
 moved to Logan County. At the latter place they 
 entered on Government land and began to work 
 the same, their farm being under an advanced state 
 of cultivation when the mother died in 1845. The 
 father's death occurred at the residence of his daugh- 
 ter, Mrs. Ann Tinkham, in Kirkwood village, this 
 county, in 1858. They were natives of Virginia, 
 where her father was bom in 1779, and her mother 
 in 1795. The grandparents of Mrs. Tinkham were, 
 on the father's -side, McKenna Robinson and Eliz- 
 abeth Wamsley, also natives of Virginia. On the 
 mother's side, her ancestors were James Witcher and 
 Mary Kelly, who were likewise Virginians. Of the 
 union of William R. Robinson and Sarah Witcher, 12 
 children were the offspring, viz.: Mary, Rebecca, 
 Elizabeth, Sarah, Ann, Mary Ann, Lydia, Jane, Mi- 
 nerva, William, Kittie and Christopher T. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Tinkham have been born 
 two children to brighten and bless their family cir- 
 cle. Mary A. married Samuel H. Smith and is the 
 mother of four children Jessie M., Mary D., Hayden 
 F. and Edna F. who resides in this county. Joseph 
 W. married Emily Blanch Cunningham, and their 
 family comprises three children Willard B., Zelma 
 B. and Mary F., and they also live in this county. 
 
 Mr. Tinkham is a Democrat in political opinion, 
 and, with his wife, belongs to the Christian Church. 
 He is a stock-holder in the First National Bank at 
 Kirkwood, has served this community as Supervisor, 
 Township Treasurer, and in other minor offices, and 
 is justly regarded as one of the influential men of 
 Kirkwood village. Mr. Tinkham's portrait appears 
 on page 422. 
 
 ,rs. Martha M. Bennett, widow of Her- 
 man K. Bennett, resides on section 20, 
 Tompkins Township, where she is en- 
 gaged in carrying on agricultural pursuits, 
 cultivating the land left her by her husband^ 
 Herman K. Bennett, who was born Sept. 8, , 
 1833, in Madison Co., N. Y., and departed this life 
 Nov. 8, 1879. Mr. Bennett received a good educa- 
 tion in the common schools and was an inmate of 
 his parenls's household until he attained the age of 
 17 years. At this time he went forth to do for him- 
 self, and for three years worked out^by the month. 
 He then came to this State and engaged in the oc- 
 cupation of agriculture, which he made a lifetime 
 pursuit. In 1854 he purchased 80 acres of land on 
 section 19, Tompkins Township, on which he loca- 
 ted with his family and at once entered actively and 
 laboriously upon the task of its improvement and cul- 
 tivation. By hard labor and economy, coupled with 
 the active co-operation of his good helpmeet, he suc- 
 ceeded in saving sufficient to enable him to add 40 
 acres to his original purchase, the same being loca- 
 ted on section 31. He lived and labored on his farm, 
 determining to make it a permanent home for him- 
 self and family, until his death, at which time he left 
 a clear title to 1 20 acres of good farm land to his 
 wife and children. 
 
 The ceremony which united the lives of Mr. Ben- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 425 
 
 nett and Miss Martha M. Fitzsimmons, was solemn- 
 ized March 5, 1861. She was a native of New York 
 and a daughter of William and Elizabeth (Dewitt) 
 Fitzsimmons, natives of the same State. Their union 
 was blessed with the birth of two children Will H. 
 and Cora E. Mrs. Bennett has, since her husband's 
 death, purchased 160 acres of land, on section 20, 
 east of the old homestead, upon which she now re- 
 sides and manages the cultivation of her entire farm 
 of 280 acres. In politics, Mr. B. was a Republican. 
 He was a gentleman possessed of a large amount of 
 benevolence and never failed to lend a helping hand 
 to the needy, or failed to aid any good undertaking 
 that was calculated to benefit the community, either 
 with his time or means. 
 
 ^lisha .1. Hughen, is a member of the agri- 
 cultural community of the township of 
 Point Pleasant, and is located on section 
 14. He was born in Greene Co., Ind., Aug. 
 31, 1825, and is a son of Samuel Hughen who 
 was a native of South Carolina. The latter 
 was born in the District of Newbury, in that State, 
 and was married to Susannah Jones, who was a na- 
 tive of the same State and District. Some years 
 after their marriage they removed to Indiana, being 
 among the earliest of the permanent white settlers 
 there. Mr. Hughen, senior, bought a large tract of 
 timber land, where he cleared a farm, which was the 
 place of his residence and the field of his operations 
 until his death, which occurred in 1827. The mother, 
 by that prudent management characteristic of par- 
 ents in her generation, succeeded in keeping her 
 fatherless flock of seven children together until they 
 grew to the age of maturity and were settled in life. 
 In 1856, she came to Warren County to become a 
 member of the family of the son who is the subject 
 of this narration, and with whom she passed the last 
 years of her life. She died in 1859. 
 
 Mr. Hughen was less than two years of age when 
 his father died. As boy and man, he devoted him- 
 self to the service of his mother, continuing to assist 
 in the cultivation of the home farm, until his mar- 
 riage, solely for her benefit. 
 
 In 1847, he was joined in the bonds of malrimony 
 
 with Mary, daughter of Drury and Elizabeth (Hurd) 
 Boyd, and with his wife remained residents of the 
 old family homestead until their removal to Warren 
 County. 
 
 After their arrival here they farmed rented land 
 for two years. In 1858, Mr. Hughen bought 80 
 acres, which he has since retained possession of and 
 upon which he has expended the best energies of his 
 life. It was all wild prairie and previous to taking 
 possession with his family he was under the neces- 
 sity of erecting a dwelling into which they moved in 
 the spring of 1859. He has since enlarged the 
 homestead by the purchase of 40 acres additional. 
 The entire farm is under a high state of cultivation, 
 being devoted to mixed husbandry, and Mr. Hughen 
 may well be proud, not only of his success in secur- 
 ing a competency for the future, but also upon the 
 reputation he has attained as a model farmer. He 
 and his wife are the parents of four children. Eliz- 
 abeth is the wife of J. Newton Anstine, of Seward 
 Co., Neb. Esther married James King. She died 
 leaving four children. Her husband and children 
 live in Missouri. Susannah died in early chilhood. 
 William resides at home with his father and mother. 
 The latter is a member of the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 || : ansom Roberts, a representative citizen of 
 the agricultural class of Warren County, 
 residing upon section 2, Swan Township, 
 where he is the proprietor of 218 acres of 
 good farm land, is a native of this county, hav- 
 ing been born here Apr. 2, 1839. He is a son of 
 Abijah Roberts, a native of Ohio, who was born Jan. 2 6, 
 1798, came to this State in 1834 and located in Swan 
 Township, where he purchased 160 acres of land, on 
 section 12. He died June 23, 185 i, of cholera, after 
 an illness of 24 hours. He was buried in the Bond 
 Cemetery, Greenbush Township. Miss Laura Smith 
 became his wife Dec. 10, 1836, they having been 
 married in Morgan County. She was born in Mor- 
 gan County, July 9, 1820, and was the first white 
 child born in that county, her parents, Phineas and 
 Lucy Smith, being pioneer settlers there. 
 
 Mrs. Laura Roberts, mother of the subject of.this 
 
426 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 notice, died Feb. 3, 1877, and was likewise buried in 
 Bond Cemetery. She was the mother of seven chil- 
 dren, five of whom survive, the eldest two having 
 died in infancy. Those living are Ransom, born 
 April 2, 1839; Abirum, April 15, 1841; Mariette, 
 Dec. 16, 1843; Gilbert, July 8, 1845; George W., 
 April n, 1849. 
 
 Ransom Roberts, of whom we write, formed a mat- 
 rimonial alliance with Miss Henrietta Vandeveer Jan. 
 15, 1874. She was born March 18, 1847, in this 
 county, and died of consumption July 28, 1878, and 
 lies buried in Bond Cemetery. 
 
 Mr. Roberts enlisted in the war for the Union, in 
 August, 1862, joining Co. H, 83d 111. Vol. Inf., and 
 was mustered into service at Monmouth, 111., Aug. 
 21, of that year. He spent three years in his coun- 
 try's service, and was mustered out June 26, 1865, 
 at Nashville, and paid off at Chicago. Socially, Mr. 
 Roberts is a member of the A. F. and A. M., Lodge 
 No 387, at Youngstown. He joined that order in 
 1872. In politics, he votes with and supports the 
 principles advocated by the Greenback party. 
 
 arnard Kidder, deceased,- was one of the 
 pioneer settlers of Swan Township, Warren 
 Co., 111. to which section he removed in 
 jy September, 1837, from near Woodstock, Ch m- 
 paign Co., Ohio. He was born in Mansfic d, 
 Conn., March 1 1, 1806, arid was of Puritan an- 
 cestry. He died at the family residence in Swan 
 Township, Sept. 25, 1864, of typhoid fever. 
 
 His earliest American ancestor, was James Kid- 
 der, who, marrying Anna Moore in 1649, came to 
 New England about 1650, from East Grinstead, 
 County Sussex, England, and settled in Cam- 
 bridge, Mass., but soon removed to Billerica, 
 Mass. The ancestry has been traced back six gen- 
 erations in England. Maresfield, County Sussex, 
 was the ancestral home of the Kidders in old Eng- 
 land. It is an agricultural country. The Kidders 
 were land-holders there and some.of them Wardens 
 of the Parish Church. Richard Kidder, in 1492, was 
 of the manor of Maresfield. The name appears there 
 200 years earlier. Later, one of them was a Bailiff 
 
 of Ashdown Forrest, a part of the manor. The 
 manor of Maresfield was the property of John of 
 Gaunt, and there is authority for the statement that 
 Wycliffe found an asylum there for a time during his 
 retirement under the protection of John. From 
 James (rst) above mentioned, the line runs through 
 James (2d) of Billerica, Mass , born Jan. 3, 1854, at 
 Cambridge; married Sept. 23, 1678, to Elizabeth 
 Brown; James (3d), born June 27, 1679; married 
 Mary Abbott, at Concord, Mass., and settled in 
 Mansfield, Conn., in 1703; Nathaniel (4th), of Mans- 
 field, born Oct. 30, 1712; married Ann Royce; Na- 
 thaniel (sth), of Mansfield, born March. 5, 1754; 
 married widow Mary (Cross) Barrow; Nathaniel 
 (6th), born Nov. 25, 1782; married Speedy Whit- 
 more ; Larnard (7th), the subject of this sketch, born 
 as before stated. 
 
 Larnard Kidder had moved from Connecticut in 
 1822, with his father's family, near Woodstock, 
 Champaign Co., Ohio, and was married March 22, 
 1837, to Mary A., daughter of Abisha and Lucinda 
 (Hastings) Hoisington, in Ohio. She had emigrated 
 with her father's family from Windsor, Vt, in 1817, 
 where she was born April 5, 1809, and was of Puri- 
 tan ancestry. After their marriage they moved to 
 Warren Co., 111., settling in Swan Township, as al- 
 ready mention, being among the first settlers of that 
 portion of the county. Though 20 miles away, Mon- 
 mouth was then the nearest postoffice, and the post- 
 age charged by Uncle Sam for carrying a letter in 
 that day was 25 cents. The country was wild prairie 
 with groves and timber along the large streams. The 
 Black Hawk War of 1832, had cleared the country 
 of Indians. 
 
 Mr. Kidder's first attempt in aid of the development 
 of the, then, primitive country, was on a farm of 320 
 acres which is now a portion of the village of Youngs- 
 town. In 1838 the first house was built on the 
 site where Benjamin H. Kidder's house now stands, 
 about 60 rods north of the southeast corner, south- 
 east quarter section 28, near the east line. It was a 
 story and a half hewed log house, 18 x 20 feet, with 
 large brick fire-place at the north end, the chimney 
 being carried up outside of the wall, as was customary 
 in that day when stoves were an unknown feature of 
 the domestic arrangement. There was one window 
 in the east and one in the south wall, and a door 
 opening upon a porch, extending the length of the 
 east side. The roof was of clap-boards secured by 
 
 ; 
 
 9- 
 
(>\ -til 
 
SIDENCE OF LEONARDVV. EDELMAN, 3 
 
 RESIDENCE OF w? M. LAI R, SEC. so., KELLY TOWNSHIP. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 429 
 
 weight poles. It was in this house that life began in 
 earnest. It was a house identical in almost every 
 particular with that built by his father, in Ohio, in 
 1822, a prototype of the dwelling houses built by our 
 Puritan ancestors among the hills and valleys of 
 New England, on the banks of the Concord and Mer- 
 rimac and by the swift waters of the Willimantic and 
 Connecticut, and which, no doubt, were patterned 
 after the homes of the ancestry dwellings on the 
 downs of Sussex, or in the Forest of Ashdown. In 
 such homes our progenitors have faithfully done the 
 labors of this life, cheerfully accepted the privations 
 and heroicly borne the many burdens allotted to 
 mankind. Yet, in them were many joys, and though 
 always often cut off more or less widely apart, yet 
 good society and kind friends were not wanting. 
 They contained a thrifty household, the fireside glad- 
 dened by bright faces, children in health and happi- 
 ness, the pure manners and customs of the old times 
 and the oft repeated story of sire and grandsire, 
 ^mother and grandmother, were, as "mother, home 
 |and heaven." These, with the sacred regard for re- 
 ligion and the highest standard of morality, must not 
 >be too hastily dismissed for the modern advancement, 
 nor can we who have shared some of them in child- 
 hood, recall them but with pleasure, nor dismiss 
 .them from thought without a sigh for their departure. 
 Larnard Kidder was a man of energy and great in- 
 dustry, and in addition to his success in the develop- 
 ment of his farm, he had the satisfaction of securing 
 for his children the advantages of more than a 
 common school education. He devoted himself ex- 
 clusively to farming, that calling having been his 
 inheritance through many generations, and the pros- 
 perity which attended his efforts in the cultivation of 
 his land was of the most satisfactory nature. He was 
 diligent and resolute, practical and honest, faithful in 
 the discharge of duty, moral and upright, and a long 
 and faithful search into the records of the past dis- 
 closes the fact that his forefathers were possessed 
 of like traits of character, proving that character is 
 hereditary to a very great extent. In religion he was 
 not a member of any Church organization, nor had 
 his ancestors been for several generations. Yet he 
 was not without religious opinions, many of which 
 were in advance of the time in which he lived. His 
 funeral services were conducted by Rev. I. N. West- 
 fall, a Universalist minister. In politics, he was a 
 Whig, then a Republican. He never sought office, 
 
 but was elected Justice of the Peace, School Director, 
 Township Treasurer and to other minor offices. He 
 left no will. Records of the administration of his es- 
 tate, in Warren County Court, places the amount of 
 inventory at $22,739.38. In taking leave of Mr. 
 Kidder it is claimed for him only, that he was one of 
 the many whose push labor and enterprise made 
 good farms and pleasant homes of the wild lands of 
 Warren County, and hence contributed to the general 
 prosperity that he was a good citizen. 
 
 The children of Larnard and Mary A. Kidder are : 
 Almon, horn Feb. 27, 1838, an attorney at Mon- 
 mouth; William O., Aug. 13, 1839; Henry H., May 
 25, 1841; Benjamin H., April 7, 1843; Nathaniel, 
 July 31, 1845; Olive M. (Davis), July 3, 1847; 
 Eliza A. (Mapes), Aug. 5, 1849. This sketch, which 
 contains the results of much research, is given for a 
 memorial of the dead, yet no more for the benefit of 
 those living, than for those to come. His widow still 
 survives and resides at the old homestead. 
 
 eonard W. Edelman is a farmer on section 
 34, in the township of North Henderson, 
 Mercer County, 111., his farm lying on the 
 line between Mercer and Warren Counties. 
 He was born Feb. 15, 1832, in Rush Co,, Ind., 
 and is the son of Alexander Edelman, who was 
 a pioneer of Knox Co., 111. The grandparents of 
 Mr. Edelman were natives of Germany. The. latter 
 was born in Tennessee, in 1801, and accompanied 
 the family of his father to Kentucky when a youth. 
 Thence they went to Indiana, where he was a resi- 
 dent through the remainder of his early life and was 
 there married to Mary Heflin. Her great-grandfa- 
 ther Heflin was a soldier in the war of the Revolu- 
 tion, and his daughter lived until a few years ago, 
 when she died, at the age of 95 years. The wife was 
 a native of the State of Kentucky, and the newly 
 married people lived in Rush County until 1840. In 
 that year they came, with the four children which 
 had been born to them, to Illinois. They traveled 
 with ox-teams and covered wagons and brought with 
 them all their household belongings. They made 
 their first location on the prairie, in the township of 
 
43 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Rio, in Knox County. A log house was constructed 
 for the accommodation of the family and it was the 
 homestead 14 years. The father then sold the claim 
 and came to Warren County and settled in Kelly 
 Township. He bought a quarter-section (of section 
 2), resided there a few years, and went thence to 
 Union County, in this State, in the spring of 1860, 
 where his life terminated. The death of his wife 
 preceded his own by several years. They were the 
 parents of seven children. Lewis G. lives in Wil- 
 liamette,- C )., Oregon ; Leonard W. is the next in 
 order of birth of the survivors ; James A. lives at 
 Snake River, Idaho; Elizabeth resides with her 
 bro'her, the subject of this record. These are the 
 surviving children of Alexander and Mary Edelman. 
 Rachael A., one of the daughters, married Samuel 
 Smith in October, 1854, and died in March, 1856. 
 Leonard W. came to Knox County with his parents 
 in 184.0, and was a resident there with them through 
 his youth. He was reared on the farm and attended 
 the common schools as a pupil. When he was 14, 
 his mother died and lie rem lined with his father 
 until he was of age. He had become infected with 
 the Western fever to such an extent that when he 
 found himself at liberty to engage with the world in 
 in a single-handed contest, he connected himself with 
 a party to go to the Pacific coast. The company 
 set forth April 5, 1853, to cross the country, and Mr. 
 Edelman drove an ox-team the entire distance from 
 Warren County to the valley of the Williamette, in 
 Oregon. He arrived there in September, after a 
 journey of five months. He slept on the ground 
 every night while on the road. After crossing the 
 Missouri River, the party cast lots for the choice of 
 a sentinel to guard the camp from Indians, and the 
 lot fell to him. When he located in Oregon, he set- 
 tled on a piece of land, of which he was the occu- 
 pant four years and six months. He made some 
 improvements and fenced a portion of the property, 
 and while he held possession of it was a part of the 
 time at work in the mountains. In 1858 Mr. Edel- 
 man set out to return to his former home in Illinois. 
 He came by way of Panama and New York, landing 
 in May, of the same year. On Aug. 26, 1858, he 
 was married to Lydia J. Miller. Mrs. Edelman is 
 the daughter of Christian and Mary (Brown) Miller. 
 They passed the first year after their marriage on 
 the farm of her father, and the year succeeding was 
 devoted to the care of a rented farm. In 1861 Mr. 
 
 Edelman purchased 40 acres of land in the township 
 in which he now lives. He paid one-half of the 
 purchase money in obtaining a title to his property 
 and on the remainder paid 25 per cent, interest. In 
 1864 he bought too acres on section 33, in the same 
 township, and removed his family to the newly ac- 
 quired farm. He has added to his acreage by later 
 purchase and is at present the owner of 280 acres in 
 North Henderson Township and of 80 acres in Kelly 
 Township, in Warren County. The latter is situated 
 just across the line of the two counties. All the land 
 belonging to Mr Edelman is in first class agricultu- 
 ral condition. It is equipped in the best poss;il>le 
 manner for the business of a successful farmer. Mr. 
 Edelman is giving his attention to mixed husbandry, 
 and raises cattle of an excellent grade. The farm 
 residence of the family is on section 34, of North 
 Henderson Township, on the county line, and a 
 view of it is given in this ALBUM on page 428. 
 
 The record of the births of the children of the 
 Edelman household is as follows : George W., Aug. 
 15, 1864; Frank M., April 4, 1867 ; Alfred A., Oct. 
 3,1869; Eddie L., June 8, 1872; Ida M., Sept. i, 
 1874; Lotta D., March 10, 1878. Mary E.,.the first 
 born child, was born July 7, 1859, and died Dec. 30, 
 1863; Ella E., born Sept. 18, 1861, died Feb. 18, 
 1864. Politically, Mr. Edelman is a Democrat. He 
 is not a member of any cli irch organization. 
 
 F. Guilinger, a successful tiller of the soil, 
 residing on section 23, Tompkins Town- 
 ship, is a son of John L. and Martha M. 
 (Finley) Guilinger, natives of Virginia and 
 Ohio respectively. The parents came to this 
 State in 1856, locating in Mercer County, 
 where the father was engaged in farming for a num- 
 ber of years. He then came to Monraouth, where 
 he resided, retired from the active labors of life, until 
 his death, the date thereof being 1878. His wife, 
 mother of the subject of this notice, departed this 
 life while the family were residents of Mercer County, 
 in 1864. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head of 
 this notice, was born in Muskingum Co., Ohio, in 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1846. He remained with his parents, receiving the 
 advantages afforded by the common schools and as- 
 sisting his father in the maintenance of the family, 
 and thus developed into manhood. When the Union 
 was imperiled by the secession of the Southern 
 States, Mr. Guilinger enlisted in its cause, becoming 
 a member of Co. A, 83d 111. Vol. Inf. He served 
 four months, when he was transferred to Co. E, 6ist 
 111. Vol. Inf., and was with that regiment four 
 months. He received an honorable discharge, Oct. 
 8, 1865, and returned home. On arriving home, he 
 attended school one year and then purchased a farm 
 of 80 acres in Tompkins Township, and entered 
 upon the vocation of an agriculturist, determined to 
 follow the same during his life. The land which he 
 purchased, was on section 23 of the township named, 
 and he at once located upon it and engaged actively 
 and energetically in its improvement and cultivation, 
 and has continued to reside thereon until the pres- 
 ent time. 
 
 Mr. Guilinger was married to Miss Carrie Martin, 
 a native of this State, and a daughter of Josiah and 
 Elizabeth (Sproul) Martin, in rSyi. Of their union 
 three children have been born Albia L., Ralph M. 
 and Charles G. In his political belief, Mr. Guilinger 
 coincides with the principles advocated by the Re- 
 publican party. In religion he and his wife are 
 members of the United Presbyterian Church. 
 
 Arnold Eldred, retired farmer, residing in 
 Roseville, was born in Rensselaer Co., N. 
 Y., in the year 1817. His parents were 
 John and H.innah (Fox) Eldred, natives of 
 Rhode Island, where his father was engaged 
 in the occupation of farming. Their family 
 consisted of 16 children, eight of whom survive. 
 
 Arnold Eldred, whose name heads this article, re- 
 mained under his parents' influence, attending the 
 district schools in the acquisition of an English edu- 
 cation and assisting on the farm, and had charge of 
 the same for a while previous to attaining his 27th 
 year. At that age in life he left home and started in 
 the mill business, which he followed until his emi- 
 gration West in 1852, when he came to Illinois and 
 
 located in Kendall County. He rented a farm in the 
 latter county and entered actively on its improve- 
 ment and cultivation, which he continued for one 
 year, when he came to Roseville Township, Warren 
 County, and purchased 120 acres on section 17, and 
 .there remained for 17 years, making his permanent 
 abiding place thereon. He put the land under an 
 excellent state of cultivation and has it well equipped. 
 In an early day he had to go to Pontoosuc, on the 
 Mississippi River, to have his grinding done, and the 
 nearest market was at Peoria, 60 miles away. In 
 1872 he removed into the village of Roseville, having 
 purchased nine acres of land inside the corporation 
 limits. He built a residence upon the same and is 
 spending the sunset of his years in peace and quiet 
 thereon. 
 
 Arnold Eldred and Miss Eliza Devoe were united 
 in marriage, Jan. it, 1852. She was a native of 
 New York, and the daughter of Abraham and Polly 
 (Walrath) Devoe, also natives of the Empire State, 
 and by occupation farmers. Mr. Eldred is a prom- 
 inent and leading man of Warren County, and, polit- 
 ically, casts his vote with the Prohibition party. He 
 and his wife are members of the Baptist Church. 
 
 ames Campbell, a prosperous and highly 
 respected farmer of Hale township, resid- 
 ing on section 6, is a son of James and 
 Jane (Reed) Campbell. The former was a 
 son of William and Margaret Campbell, and 
 was born in County Antrim, Ireland, in 1799. 
 He married Jane Reed, daughter of John and Mar- 
 garet Reed. The parents were married on their 
 native isle and emigrated to the United States in the 
 autumn of 1850. Soon after, they came to this State 
 and settled in Henderson County, where they lived 
 until their death They both died in December, 
 1874, and only eight days apart, the mother's death 
 occurring on the i2th and the father's on the 2oth. 
 Their children were nine in number, of whom the 
 subject of this notice was the eighth in order of 
 birth. The first-born died in infancy, the next was 
 William B., then Joseph, Elizabeth, Margaret, Maria, 
 James and Jane Ann. Joseph is deceased. 
 
 On his father's side, James Campbell is of Scotch 
 
432 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 descent ; his maternal grandfather was of English 
 descent, his wife, however, was of Scottish ancestry. 
 She was one of the Dan sons of Scotland. Both the 
 ancestors of Mr. Campbell bore arms under William 
 of Orange. The family were among the first Pro- 
 testants of Scotland, but the father and mother of 
 our subject joined the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 shortly after their marriage. All of his children, as 
 they grew up, united with that Church, of which they 
 are still members. 
 
 Six of the elder Campbell's uncles came to Amer- 
 ica prior to the Revolutionary War. They were 
 a strong, stalwart race, over six feet in height, and 
 all of the six brothers enlisted in defense of the Col- 
 onies. 
 
 James Campbell, Sr., set sail for America with his 
 family, Aug. 18, 1850, and were many weeks on their 
 journey to New Orleans, where they landed. They 
 came up the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers to Cuba, 
 when they could go no further by water on account 
 of the river being frozen over. From that point, Mr. 
 Campbell walked to where his brother lived in Hen- 
 (I derson County. He there procured teams and 
 moved his family and effects to Greenville Precinct, 
 Henderson County.- He arrived there Nov. 18, 1850. 
 He remained with his brother's family for a short 
 time, when he bought a quarter-section of land on 
 what was then known as the Lost Prairie, now em- 
 braced in Ball Bluff Township, Henderson County. 
 There was a small log building upon it, in which the 
 family spent the winter, and the following year he 
 erected a frame dwelling. Here the children were 
 reared. The land that the elder Campbell pur- 
 chased when he arrived in Henderson County was 
 from James Fair, the father of Senator James Fair, 
 of Nevada. He came to America some years before 
 Mr. Campbell did, but they were old acquaintances 
 in Ireland. His son, John Campbell, now owns the 
 old home place. When the elder Campbell arrived 
 here he had $500 in gold, which enabled him to pur- 
 chase his place, a team, some farm implements, 
 some cattle and household utensils. 
 
 James Campbell, the subject of this sketch, was 
 born in Shanco, County Fermanagh, Ireland, Oct. 
 28, 1848, and was two years old when his parents 
 emigrated from the land of the shamrock to America. 
 James continued to reside on the parental homestead 
 in Henderson County until the death of his father 
 and mother, when, in the spring of 1877, he came to 
 
 Hale Township, this county, where he purchased a 
 farm of 182 acres, on which he located with his 
 family and at once began the active labors of his vo- 
 cation, which he has followed until the present time. 
 He also owns a farm of 17*5 acres in Henderson 
 County, and, in following the pursuit of his chosen 
 VQcation, is meeting with that success which energy 
 and perseverance are sure to bring. 
 
 April 24, 1877, Mr. Campbell formed a matri- 
 monial alliance with Nancy E., the accomplished 
 daughter of John and Elizabeth (Younger) Williams. 
 John Williams' father was also named John. He 
 was a Virginian, and on his paternal side was of 
 English descent, while through his mother was of 
 Holland-Dutch ancestry. One of Mr. Williams' 
 uncles served in the War of 1812, and the grand- 
 father in the Revolutionary War. They were all 
 farmers. John Williams and wife came to this State 
 in 1846, and the first four years lived in Warren 
 County, when they moved to Henderson County 
 and lived until the spring of 1880, when, on account ' 
 ot old age, they sold out their property and now 
 make their home with their son-in-law, Mr. Camp- 
 bell. 
 
 Mrs. Williams' grandfather was Thomas Younger, 
 a descendant of Scotch ancestry, and was a soldier 
 in the Revolutionary War, and also in the War of 
 1812. His home was in Williamson Co., Tenn., 
 where he was engaged in farming, and continued to 
 reside there until his death. He was a native of 
 South Carolina, a Whig in politics and a member of 
 the Baptist Church. His wife, Mary Knowles, was 
 of English descent. Her father, John Knowles, was 
 a native of North Carolina and a soldier in the Rev- 
 olutionary War. 
 
 Mrs. Campell's parents were natives of Virginia 
 and Tennessee respectively and had nine children, 
 of whom she was the youngest. She was born in 
 Henderson County, this State, June 6, 1857, and has 
 borne her husband three children Ada M., Frank 
 A., and John E. Frank A. died in infancy. 
 
 James Campbell became a member of the Method- 
 ist Episcopal Church in October, 1868, since which 
 time he has taken a prominent part in the work of 
 his congregation. He has been Steward every year 
 since, excepting one, and a part of the time as local 
 and district Steward. He has also been Superin- 
 tendent of the Sunday-school and for a time Class- 
 Leader. In Greenville Township, Henderson County, 
 
fJfc! 
 

 
i 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 435 
 
 where he attends Church, he is Secretary of the 
 township organization of the American Bible Society. 
 
 In political matters, he has held the offices of 
 Highway Commissioner and Justice of the Peace. 
 In politics, he votes with the Republican party. 
 
 A view of Mr. Campbell's home place is shown on 
 page 284. 
 
 
 ufus Ogden, of the firm of R. Ogden & 
 Son, breeders and dealers in full-blood and 
 grade heavy draft horses, resides on sec- 
 i^tion 17, Cold Brook Township. He was born in 
 Oneida Co., N. Y., Oct. 23, 1818. His father, 
 Abraham Ogden, who was a farmer by occupa- 
 tion, and a native of England, was born near Man- 
 chester, and was of middle class in social standing 
 in that country. He emigrated to the United States 
 when about 21 years of age, and was united in mar- 
 riage in New York State to Miss Keziah Huughton, 
 who was born in Pittsfield, Mass., and was of New 
 England parentage and of English descent. They 
 resided after their marriage, until 1839, in Oneida 
 County, N. Y., then removed to Warren County, III., 
 and were among the early pioneers of the county. 
 The father was an inventive genius, and perfected 
 an arrangement to use steam as motive power that 
 was identical in principle with Robert Fulton's and 
 at about the same time. He, however, withheld his 
 papers and his discoveries were not made known 
 until after it was too late to profit by them. 
 
 Our subject was one of a family of nine children, 
 four sons and five daughters. He resided at home 
 until he was 18 years of age, when he came to Illi- 
 nois and located in Warren County, where he was 
 united in marriage, April 25, 1843, to Miss Narcissa 
 C. Wilber. She was born in Madison Co., N. Y., 
 June 20, 1820, and was a daughter of Rev. R. M. 
 Wilber and Harriet (Phelps) Wilber, natives of New 
 York State and of American parentage. Her father 
 was a prominent minister in the Baptist Church, and 
 in 1836 her parents and family came West, locating 
 in \Varren County. The father both prosecuted his 
 ministerial labors and conducted his farm. He sub- 
 sequently went to Henry County, and resided in 
 
 Oxford Township, where he died, in 1860. Her 
 mother died in New York State many years ago, and 
 the father was again united in marriage, the step- 
 mother's demise occurring in Warren County. Mr. 
 Ogden has one son and two daughters living and 
 married, and has buried three infant sons. The 
 record of the children is as follows : Harriet is the 
 wife of O. A. Speckerman, of Maryville, Mo., and is 
 the mother of six children, one of whom is deceased; 
 Aaron A. Elon B. and Arthur died in infancy; 
 Eugene married Ida I. Beldin, daughter of Daniel 
 D. and Rachel (Lockwood) Beldin, residents of 
 Galesburg, 111. They were married Sept. 12, 1882. 
 Eliza O. is the wife of Frank Goodspeed, and they 
 live in Bedford, Taylor Co., Iowa. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Ogden are members of the Baptist 
 Church at Berwick, and Mr. O. is the oldest male 
 member of his Church and has been a member since 
 1841. In politics, he is a staunch Republican. 
 
 About 1866 Mr. Ogden, of whom we write, began 
 to breed full-blooded and grade draft horses, and has 
 since continued in that business with fair success, 
 having raised and sold 35 entire colts, at 18 months 
 average age, for an average price of $470 each, or a 
 total of $16,450. His representation at the fairs i 
 have always carried off many laurels. At the recent 
 State Fair at Chicago, they took eleven first and seven 
 second premiums, and also a large list of premiums 
 at the Iowa State Fair, held at DesMoines. As the 
 above indicates, he has some of the finest Clydes- 
 dales to be found in the West. He is devoted to his 
 calling and is an enthusiastic admirer of the beauti- 
 ful and powerful Clydesdales, of which he has eight 
 full-blooded animals. As an agriculturist and also 
 a dealer in stock, he ranks as high as any gentleman 
 in Warren County, and is meeting with success in 
 his chosen vocation. 
 
 Mr. Ogden is not only one of the early pioneers of 
 Warren County, but is to-day, as he has ever been 
 during his residence here of half a century, one of 
 the most enterprising, highly respected and influential 
 men of the county. Few men within its borders 
 have done as much as he toward the development of 
 the resources of this splendid country, and his devo- 
 tion to the moral interests of the people has been 
 equally demonstrated with his enterprise for its ma- 
 terial prosperity. Thus, so closely allied to both 
 great departments of the well being of a community, 
 he is justly regarded as one of its leading and repre- 
 
43 6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 sentative citizens, and as such, :ind one, too, emi- 
 nently worthy of the place, we give in connection with 
 this brief outline of his life his portrait, engraved from 
 a photograph recently taken. 
 
 (jenry L. Jewell is a life-long resident of this 
 county, and a large land-owner and success- 
 ful farmer. He is a respected and honored 
 citizen of Lenox Township, residing on section 
 24, where he owns 320 acres of land. He is a 
 son of Jacob and Julia A. (Harrison, formerly a 
 Miss Brooks) Jewell, the former a native of York 
 State and the latter of Kentucky. The father of Mr. 
 Jewell came to this county in 1839, and Mrs. Harri- 
 son, his wife, arrived here two years previous in 
 1837. They were married in this county and re- 
 sided for many years in Lenox Township, where he 
 followed the vocation of a farmer. In 1867 they re- 
 moved to Monmouth, where they are at present re- 
 siding, passing the sunset of their lives in peace and 
 quietude. Their children were six in number, the 
 names being as follows : William H., Charles, 
 Henry L., Olive, Dudley and Emily J. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head of 
 this biographical notice was born in Lenox Town- 
 ship, this county, May 19, 1847. His early life was 
 passed in the public schools, where he acquired a 
 rudimentary education, which he afterwards supple- 
 mented by a course of study at Monmouth College, 
 where he remained two years. He has always re- 
 sided in Lenox Township, and has followed the pur- 
 suit of an agriculturist all his life. In 1874 he 
 purchased from his father 80 acres of land, located 
 on section 24, Lenox Township, where he is at pres- 
 ent residing. He has erected on the farm a good 
 set of buildings, and in addition to the cultivation of 
 his land, is engaged to a considerable extent in 
 handling and dealing in stock, and is mee'.ing with 
 success in both departments of his vocation. By la- 
 borious toil and economy, he has added to his original 
 purchase until he is at present the proprietor of 320 
 acres of good farm land, and keeps on an average 
 75 head of cattle. 
 
 The wedded life of Mr. Jewell began on the i4th 
 
 day of September, 1871,31 which time Lydia A., 
 daughter of Richard and Sybil (Armstrong) Cran- 
 dall, natives of New York State, became his wife, the 
 ceremony taking place in Lenox Township. Her 
 parents were married and settled in Pennsylvania, 
 from which State they came to this county in 1861. 
 They located in Lenox Township, where they con- 
 tinued to reside until 1871, when they removed to 
 Monmouth. They are the parents of five children, 
 Melvina J., Emery H., Martha H., Armstrong and 
 Lydia A. Mrs. Jewell was born in Erie Co., Pa., 
 May 20, 1854, and has become the mother of four 
 children whom they have named Inez, Orpha, Irma 
 and Henry R. Mr. Jewell was elected Supervisor 
 of Lenox Township in the spring of 1885 and holds 
 the office at this writing (December, 1885). He was 
 elected Justice of Peace in the spring of 1883 and 
 also still retains that office to the present. He is 
 also School Director and his politics are those of a 
 good, staunch Republican. 
 
 A view of the handsome residence and commodi-. 
 ous farm buildings of Mr. Jewell are shown on an 
 page 404 of this work. 
 
 -4- 
 
 rs. Mary Hall, is a resident on section 
 28, Tompkins Township. Her deceased 
 husband, Henry W. G. Hall, was born 
 Jan. 20, 1825, in New York State, where he 
 resided until 1855, engaged in farming in 
 Lewis County. His younger years were passed 
 in attendance at the common schools and in assist- 
 ing his father in the cultivation of the farm. On 
 coming West, lie decided on making his home in 
 Warren County, 111., and purchased 40 acres of land 
 on section 28, Tompkins Township, upon which he 
 located his family. By hard labor and economy he 
 increased his landed interests in that township to 
 120 acres, on which he resided, engaged in agricul- 
 tural pursuits, until his death, which took place Nov. 
 22, 1877. In politics, he was j. supporter of the 
 principles of the Republican party. Religiously, 
 he belonged to the Methodist Episcopal Church, as 
 likewise did his wife. Mr. Hall was known as a 
 genial gentleman and an enterprising, liberal, spir- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 437 
 
 ited citizen, always willing to aid in any good cause 
 calculated to benefit mankind, and was especially 
 active in any measure which was for the benefit of 
 the community in which he resided. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Hall took place Feb. 10, 
 1852, his wife (the lady whose name heads this 
 sketch) being a Miss Mary Roberts, a native of New 
 York and a daughter of William L. and Margaret 
 (Jones) Roberts. Her father was a farmer and came 
 to Illinois in 1855, locating on section 28, Tompkins 
 Township, this county, and there resided until his 
 decease, which event occurred Feb. 22, 1877. For 
 fourteen years prior to his death he was blind. His 
 faithful wife followed him to the land of the hereaf- 
 ter, Dec. 13, 1882. 
 
 Two children were born of the union of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hall Lillie A. and George H. Lillie A. be- 
 came the wife of Lewis H. Martin, and George H., 
 who was married to Emma Holliday, Dec. 23, 1885, 
 resides on the farm with his mother, where he is en- 
 gaged in its cultivation. Since the death of her 
 husband, Mrs. Hall has managed the farm, and by 
 her economy and good business judgment, has suc- 
 > ceeded in adding 85 acres to the estate left her by 
 her husband's death, and the shadows of the even- 
 ing of life, coming as they do, in the peace and tran- 
 'quility of the dear old homestead, are perhaps even 
 more pleasing than were the golden sunbeams of 
 early youth. 
 
 ohn M. Strong is a resident in the town- 
 ship of Point Pleasant and is located on a 
 farm on section 5. He is a native of the 
 State of Indiana and was born June 28, 1835, 
 in Marion County, eight miles from the capital 
 of the State. Luke Strong, his father, was 
 born in Rutland Co., Vt., in February, 1796. He 
 married Miss Esther Call, a native of the State of 
 New York. 
 
 In 1825, accompanied by two brothers, Luke 
 Strong started on foot to seek a home, or rather a 
 location for one, in the Western country. He walked 
 all the way to Indiana and bought a tract of land, 
 
 which has been designated as the birthplace of his 
 son. After securing the title to his property, he re- 
 turned to Vermont, making the entire journey there 
 the same way in which he had traveled to Indiana. 
 He at once commenced to prepare for a final removal 
 to the West, and in 1827 he set forth with ox teams, 
 accompanied by his family. The household im- 
 plements were carried along, and they camped and 
 cooked their frugal meals on the way. On his ar- 
 rival in Marion County, where he was one of the 
 earliest of the permanent settlers, Mr. Strong pro- 
 ceeded to build a log house. He also gave his vig- 
 orous attention to clearing the land, and lived in 
 Indiana until the year 1839 The stories of the 
 resources of the State of Illinois had awakened in 
 him a desire to take advantage of them for the ben- 
 efit of his growing family, and in the year last men- 
 tioned he came to Illinois and located in Galesburg, 
 which was then a very small place. He had learned 
 the business of a wagon -maker in his younger days, 
 and he bought property at Galesburg and was there 
 occupied at his trade until 1850. In that year he 
 sold his interests there and removed to Warren 
 County. He purchased a small farm in the town- 
 ship of Ellison, on which he resided until his death. 
 That event occurred Sept. 9, 1871. His wife died 
 in 1850. Their three children are all living. Luke 
 is living in Kewanee, Henry Co., 111. Electa is the 
 wife of William Powers, of Brule Co., Dak. 
 
 John M. Strong is the youngest of the children of 
 his parents, and was only four years of age when his 
 father and mother removed to Illinois. He attended 
 school in the city of Galesburg, and the family re- 
 mained there until he was 15 years old. He then 
 removed with them to Warren County, where he 
 passed the remainder of his youth. He was married 
 Sept. 19, t857, to Miss Martha J. Lofftus, a native 
 of Sangamon Co., III., where she was born Sept. 19, 
 1841. Mrs. Strong is the daughter of Andrew J. 
 and Lavinia (Meacham) Lofftus, who were natives of 
 Kentucky. One year and a half after their mar- 
 riage, they located on the farm where they have 
 since resided. 
 
 Mr. Strong enlisted, Aug. 2, 1862, in the 83d 111. 
 Vol. Inf., and was in the military service of his 
 country until the close of the war. Fort Donelson 
 was the most important engagement in which he 
 took part. After obtaining his discharge, he returned 
 to his property in Warren County and resumed the 
 
 a- 
 
438 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 occupation of a farmer. The place is in a condition 
 calculated to reflect credit on his exertions and the 
 quality of his good sense and judgment. 
 
 He is connected in membership with Roseville 
 Lodge A. O. U. W., and with Kirkwood Post, No. 
 81, G. A. R. The five children of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Strong are named J. Arthur, F. Lavinia, Mattie A., 
 George A. and L. Grant. 
 
 If ames H. McQuiston, of Spring Grove, Tp., 
 has been for nearly 30 years a resident in 
 Warren County. He is a descendant from 
 parents who were born in the southern section of 
 the Union. His father was one of the pioneer 
 settlers in Preble Co., Ohio, where James H. 
 was born, May 29, 1829. Joseph G. McQuiston, his 
 father, was born in South Carolina, April 12, 1799. 
 He married Elizabeth Hogue, Sept. 5, 1827. They 
 had four children, two of whom are now living. The 
 son was reared in Preble County, and was brought up 
 to the profession of a farmer, in which vocation his 
 father passed his life principally. He received only 
 the education of the common schools, and, in 1856, 
 he accompanied the family of his father to Warren 
 County. Another brother, William H., came at the 
 same time. The father had made the journey to the 
 county in the previous spring and had bought the 
 northeast portion of section 33, in the township of 
 Spring Grove. The farm had been placed under 
 some improvement by the former owner. It had on 
 it a double log house, and 60 acres had been fenced. 
 There were also about 55 acres under the plow, and 
 these seemingly trifling improvements made quite an 
 item toward getting a start in the way of establishing 
 a home. Among the first things that were done was 
 the construction of a frame house, into which the 
 family moved as soon as it was in readiness for their 
 occupancy. The mother'died there, Oct. 2, 1870. 
 The father survived until July 5, 1879. As long as 
 the parents lived the son was an inmate of the pa- 
 rental household. On the demise of his father, he 
 succeeded to the ownership of the homestead, where 
 he is now the resident owner and occupant. He has 
 a handsome residence and substantial farm build- 
 
 ings, and an abundance of water on the place for 
 stock purposes. Mr McQuiston was united in mar- 
 riage to Laura E. Moore, May 29, 1867. They are 
 the parents of the following children : Frank E., 
 George J., Ada May and Nina M. 
 
 Mrs. McQuiston is a native of Mercer Co., Pa. 
 Together with her husband she is a member of the 
 United Presbyterian Church. Mr. McQuiston is a 
 Republican in political principles. 
 
 A view of his residence appears on another page. 
 
 The grandparents of Mrs. McQuiston were James 
 and Elizabeth (Bell) Ewing. They were both natives 
 of Ireland. They emigrated to America and settled 
 in Philadelphia. The mother of Mrs. McQuiston 
 was born in Juniata Co., Pa., March 6, 1802, and re- 
 sided there until she was 12 years of age. She mar- 
 ried George Moore, Feb. 15, 1823. He was a native 
 of Pennsylvania. His father was a soldier in the 
 Revolutionary War. Mr. Moore and family came 
 West in 1855, and settled in Mercer County, 111., and 
 afterwards became residents of Warren County. Mr.l 
 Moore died Sept. 8, 1885, having attained the ven- I 
 erable age of 89 years. His widow still survives and 
 now resides with her daughter, Mrs. McQuiston. 
 
 
 ames F. Pollock was a settler in the county 
 in which he is a useful and honored citizen, 
 in 1837. He made his first acquaintance 
 with it in 1831, when, accompanied by several 
 t others, he came from Ohio on a prospecting 
 tour. His stay occupied but a few weeks, and 
 he went back to Ohio. The journey was a memora- 
 ble one, from the fact that the going and returning 
 was accomplished by teams overland. 
 
 Mr. Pollock was born in NovaScotia, Dec. 5, 1806. 
 William Pollock, his father, was a native of Scotland. 
 His mother's maiden name was Mary Fulton, and 
 she was of New England birth and parentage. They 
 came to the " States " when their son was four years 
 of age, located in Chillicothe, Ohio, and were among 
 the pioneers of that section. They maintained their 
 residence there nine years. In 1819 they made an- 
 other removal to Greene County, the same State, 
 where Mr. Pollock of this sketch grew to the estate 
 of manhood. He was a farmer by training, and 
 
^&&&yimpfr. ~4gj*^Z&-3SBK!F~s l 
 
 '"&&^^n^M'& a r ^>t^^v^^^?*^c.^?;-v ^. '-55^6 
 
 - 
 
 RESIDENCE OF JAMEB H . NI9 QUI5TDN , SEC. 33. SPRING GROVE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 or MRS. M.E.HAN EY, COR. RENO&.CENTRE STS. MONMOUTH 
 
- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 439 
 
 : 
 
 when he was 22 years of age he set out to acquire a 
 knowledge of the irade of a blacksmith. He served 
 a year and then engaged in the variety of work com- 
 mon to the class known as journeymen and operated 
 in Greene County a number of years. In the spring 
 of 1837 he came to Illinois. He drove across the 
 distance that intervened with a pair of horses, ac- 
 companied by his wife and two children. They man- 
 aged their affairs while on the journey after the man- 
 ner common to emigrants, and which was a neces- 
 sity, from the fact that there being no public route 
 of travel, there were no hotels, even if the travelers 
 were in condition to pay for their entertainment, 
 which was not always the case. After a journey of 
 six weeks, they arrived in Warren County. They lo- 
 cated at Little York, in Sumner Township, and there 
 Mr. Pollock bought a lot and built a house. He also 
 erected a shop and engaged in general blacksmith- 
 ing. There was plenty to do in a new country and 
 he made plows and all small articles, such as his 
 patrons needed and also did shoeing and repairing. 
 He operated in that capacity three years, and then 
 engaged in mercantile business, in which he contin- 
 ued until 1849. He sold out his store and in the 
 last year named became interested in packing pork, 
 in which he engaged four years. In 1853 he decided 
 on a change of base and crossed the plains to Ore- 
 gon. He left home in May, and reached the head 
 of the Williamette Valley in October, passing more 
 than five months on the route. He took with him a 
 large drove of cattle, leaving with 160 head and ar- 
 riving at his destination with 104. He sold his herd 
 after his arrival and remained on the Pacific coast 
 three years. When he returned East he came via 
 what was known in the days when the gold fever 
 was at its height as the " Nicaragua route." After his 
 arrival at his home he again opened a commercial 
 enterprise at Little York, and after prosecuting his in- 
 terests in that direction two years, sold his business 
 and its relations for the purpose of devoting his time 
 to the pursuit of agriculture. His farm is in a loca- 
 tion which increases its value and desireableness 
 and lies on section 36, adjoining the village. He has 
 always maintained a tenant on the place. 
 
 Rebecca McFarland became his wife July 30, 
 1833. She was a native of Greene County, Ohio, 
 and was born Nov. 2, 1815. She died Aug. 14, 1869. 
 Eight of their children are now living. Margery is 
 the widow of George Carpenter, and is a resident of 
 
 Little York. Martha A. married Thomas Steven- 
 son, and they removed to Oregon. Amelia is the wife 
 of H. A. Reynolds, of Little York. John S. and Wil- 
 liam R. are residents of the same place and are both 
 married. Caroline is married to George Davis, and 
 they live in Kansas. Anhur P. is a citizen of Little 
 York. Eulalia M. is Mrs. William McDill, and re- 
 sides in Little York. Esta L is married to Walter 
 Hartley, and lives in Henderson County. 
 
 Mr. Pollock was the first Postmaster at Little York. 
 When he went to Oregon he resigned the position, 
 but was re-appointed on his return, at the time he 
 resumed commercial business. Politically, Mr. Pol- 
 lock has always been a staunch member of the Re- 
 publican party. 
 
 ohn Randolph Webster, M. D., a promi- 
 nent physician and surgeon at Monmouth, 
 was born in Penn Hill Township, Lancas- * 
 ter Co., Pa., July 18, r835, and was the second 
 son and third child of Dr. Samuel and Deborah 
 (Kirk) Webster, natives also of Lancaster 
 County and descendants of the Scotch-Irish. The 
 family came to Monmouth in r837, and here their 
 children grew to men and women. In his profession, 
 Dr. Samuel Webster stood at the head in this com- 
 munity for many years before his death, which oc- 
 curred at Superior City, Wis., in 1858, while there on 
 business. The most, and probably only, important 
 office which he filled was that of State Senator, in 
 1851-52, being elected on the old Whig ticket. His 
 widow lives at Monmouth at this writing (January, 
 1886) aged about 75 years. 
 
 John Randolph Webster was educated at Macomb, 
 111., and at Juniata Academy, in Perry Co., Pa., 
 completing his literary course in 1852-53. He was 
 22 years of age when he began reading medicine 
 with Dr. D. B. Rice, now of Oregon, as preceptor, 
 and soon after entered Rush Medical College, Chi- 
 cago, from which institution he graduated in the 
 class of r858. Returning to Monmouth, he prac- 
 ticed medicine a few years, when he again took to 
 his studies, this time at Jefferson Medical College, 
 Philadelphia. From here he graduated as M. D. in 
 
440 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1864 and returned to Monmouth, where he has for 
 many years held a high rank as physician and sur- 
 geon. He is a member of the United States Med- 
 ical Society, the Military Tract Medical Society, 
 State Medical Society, and local medical organiza- 
 tions. In 1862, he received the appointment of 
 Assistant Surgeon of the 83d 111. Vol. Inf., but was 
 taken sick at Cairo and compelled to return home. 
 
 Though a Republican in faith, he is no politician. 
 He belongs to the Masonic Order. His parents 
 were Quakers, and he leans more to that than any 
 other Church. As a business man he is more than 
 ordinarily brilliant. Beginning life as a poor boy, he 
 has, before reaching the meridian of life, accumu- 
 lated a handsome competency. He was one of the 
 organizers of the Second National Bank, in 1875, 
 and two years later became its Vice-President, a 
 position he has since held. 
 
 Dr. Webster was married at Monmouth, Sept. 23, 
 1858, to Miss Susan Nye, daughter of Mr. Elisha 
 Nye, now of California, and a native of Massachu- 
 setts. The Doctor's children living are Harry B., 
 connected with the Second National Bank ; and 
 Ralph W., a student. Frank, his second son, died 
 when about two years of age. 
 
 William Laferty, deceased, was born at 
 Northumberland Co., Pa., Dec. 9, 1818, 
 and died at Monmouth, Jan. 5, 1877. His 
 father died while he was but a little child, 
 four years old. His mother lived to the 
 green old age of 98 years, her death occurring in 
 July, 1878. He was taught in early life to earn his 
 own bread by the sweat of his brow. His oppor- 
 tunities for education were limited to the winter 
 terms of the Pennsylvania common schools, and as 
 he was but a mere youth when apprenticed to the 
 carpenter's trade, these were but few. 
 
 He came to Monmouth, in 1836, and here worked 
 at his trade about 20 years. In 1856, he was elected 
 Clerk of the Circuit Court and Recorder of Deeds, 
 and filled the two offices for eight consecutive years. 
 
 He was one of the organizers of the First National 
 Bank, and one year later (1865) became its President, 
 a position he held at the time of his death. Prior 
 to his election as Circuit Clerk he held various 
 minor offices, such as Supervisor, Assessor, School 
 Director, etc. He was for several years one of the 
 Trustees of Monmouth College, and held at the 
 same time the positions of Trustee and Treasurer of 
 Warren County Library. He was two years Presi- 
 dent of the Old Settlers' Association of Warren and 
 Henderson Counties and was the Treasurer of that 
 organization at the time of his death. Like most of 
 the pioneers who came to this country at an early 
 day, he had to struggle against the vicissitudes of 
 poverty and obscurity. He landed in Warren County 
 with $60 in money, but being a man of pluck, energy 
 and unyielding integrity, he soon became one of the 
 prominent men of the county and died worth $75,- 
 ooo, all of which he left by will to his widow. In all 
 his relations in life, Mr. Laferty was an honest and 
 honorable, a sterling man, a man whose integrity was 
 never questioned. By his large circle of acquaint- 
 ances he was highly esteemed and it may well be 
 said of him thai those who know him best, loved him 
 most. 
 
 In his death his friends and associates lose a safe 
 and prudent counsellor, the community a valuable 
 citizen, and all public and private enterprises of 
 Monmouth a liberal supporter. 
 
 Jan. 5, 1877, the Board of Directors of the First 
 National Bank, of Monmouth, at a meeting called 
 for the purpose, adopted the following resolutions : 
 
 WHEREAS, it has pleased our Heavenly Father to 
 remove from our number, by the hand of death, our 
 much esteemed President, William Laferty, who has 
 so faithfully filled the office for the past 12 years, it 
 is but just that a fitting recognitron of his many vir- 
 tues be expressed ; 
 
 Resolved, That in his death we lose a friend and 
 companion, a good and faithful officer who was es- 
 teemed by us all ; a citizen whose upright, honest 
 and noble life was a standard of emulation for every 
 one. 
 
 Resolved, That the heart-felt sympathy of this 
 board of directors be extended to his family in this 
 their deep affliction, and that a copy of these resolu- 
 tions be presented to the family of the deceased. 
 
 The Committee of the Warren County Library and 
 Reading Room, upon the same day adopted the sub- 
 joined resolutions in respect to his worthiness : 
 
 WHEREAS, Since our last meeting it has pleased 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 441 
 
 our common Lord to remove from time to eternity 
 our friend and fellow trustee, William Laferty; 
 
 Resolved, That this association, deeply sympathiz- 
 ing with his afflicted widow and relatives, cordially 
 record on our minutes our high sense of his sterling 
 qualities as a man, a husband, a citizen, and of his 
 faithfulness as a member and officer of our Board, 
 who, after years of devotion and liberality for its in- 
 terests, has died respected and lamented by all who 
 knew him. 
 
 Resolved, That the city papers be requested to in- 
 sert the above in their earliest issues. 
 
 J. M. JAMIESON, 
 R. C. MATTHEWS, 
 
 Committee. 
 
 At a meeting of the Faculty and Trustees of Mon- 
 raouth College, held Jan. 6, the following action was 
 taken : 
 
 WHEREAS, In the Providence of God we are called 
 upon to mourn the loss of our honored friend and 
 fellow-citizen, William Laferty; 
 
 Resolved, That we tender to the widow and family 
 our sympathy in this hour of bereavement; that we 
 unite with this entire community in sorrow over the 
 death of one who was everybody's friend and helper, 
 noble, useful, kind and true; and that we sadly feel 
 L, how great is the loss of the College in being deprived 
 of his watchful care and counsels. 
 
 Mr. Laferty was a Republican in politics, and dur- 
 ing the late war was an active supporter of tbe 
 Union cause. 
 
 He was married in Berwick Township, this county, 
 Jan. i, 1844, to Miss Sarah Tiffany, who was born in 
 Oneida Co., N. Y., July 4, 1817. There were born to 
 them three children, aH of whom died in infancy. 
 Mrs. Laferty was the adopted daughter of Henry and 
 Olive (Kingsley) Cable (her mother having died dur- 
 ing her infancy). Mr. and Mrs. Cable were natives 
 of New England and of German and English extrac- 
 tion. She was educated in New York and taught 
 the first school ever opened in Berwick, Warren 
 County. The large fortune left her by her husband, 
 together with its increase, amounting in all to nearly 
 $100,000, was placed by a trusted agent, John Brown, 
 familiarly known as " Deacon Brown," in the hands 
 of the Cashier of the Bank, of which Mr. L. was 
 so long a time President. The conduct of the 
 Cashier, B. T. O. Hubbard, appears to have been 
 limited only by his opportunities and the whole sum 
 of Mrs. Laferiy's money, together with several hun- 
 dred thousands of dollars belonging to other people, 
 was swept away. Suit was brought against both Mr. 
 
 Brown and Mr. Hubbard, which, while pending, was 
 compromised by Brown, so far as he was concerned, 
 by his payiug Mrs. Laferty $10,000, and the cost of 
 the suit. Mrs. Laferty, now in good health, with an 
 adopted daughter, resides at the old homestead. 
 
 M. Capps, a prosperous agriculturist and 
 stock-raiser on section 15, Roseville Town- 
 
 !ship, is a. son of John and Mirain (Cole) 
 iy~ Capps, and was born in Edmonson Co., Ky., 
 in 1835. His parents came to Illinois in 
 1864, locating in Berwick Township. They 
 remained there but four years, when they removed to 
 Creston, Iowa, where the father is living a retired 
 life in peace and quiet with his estimable companion, 
 who assisted him in all his labors and partook of all 
 his trials. They have a family of eight children 
 living. 
 
 I. M. Capps remained at home with his parents 
 until he attained the age of 21 years, assisting in the 
 labors on the farm, and received at their hands a 
 good common-school education. After arriving at 
 his majority, he worked out for one year in his native 
 State, and in 1857 came to Illinois, locating in Lenox 
 Township. During the first summer after his arrival, 
 he hired out by the month, and attended school dur- 
 ing the winter, which course he also followed the 
 ensuing summer and winter, at the enH of which 
 time he rented a farm, and worked for four years 
 solely in his own interest. He then purchased the 
 farm on which he now resides and which contains 
 275 acres. He has made all of the excellent im- 
 provements with which it is now provided. He is 
 also engaged in the stock business. 
 
 March 7, 1861, the marriage of Mr. Capps and 
 Miss Mary S. Dillon was solemnized. Miss Dillon, 
 who was born in Logan Co., Ky., was the daughter 
 of William Dillon, who moved with his family to 
 Illinois and settled in Floyd Township, this county, 
 when Mary was but eight years of age. She became 
 the mother of eight children, namely : John F., 
 Nina C., Edward, Nellie, Winnie, Fannie, Myra and 
 Bertie. The death of Mrs. Capps occurred Oct. 6, 
 1885. She was a lady of estimab'le character and 
 
 
442 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 greatly admired by a large circle of friends and ac- 
 quaintances. She was a devoted Christian lady and 
 a member of the Baptist Church. She was buried 
 in the Union Cemetery. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Capps is a Deirocrat, and has 
 held many of the official positions of his township. 
 He is at present serving as Justice of the Peace and 
 School Director. He belongs to the Order of A. 
 O. U. W. 
 
 
 ohn T. fleed is a farmer on section 22 in 
 \ the township of Point Pleasant, who set- 
 tled in Warren County in 1850. He was 
 born in Morgan Co., Ind., Sept. 4, 1832. His 
 father, Burrus Allen Reed, was a native of 
 Kentucky and was born in 1808. He married 
 Matilda Thomas, who was born in 1807 and died 
 Oct. 27, 1881. ' After their marriage, about 1828, 
 they emigrated from Kentucky to Morgan Co., Ind., 
 on pack-horses, their culinary outfit being only a 
 coffee-pot and frying-pan, and their only mechanical 
 implement an ax. In Morgan County Mr. Reed 
 purchased a tract of timber land, on which he cleared 
 a farm and of which he was the owner and occupant 
 until 1850, when he sold the property and came to 
 Illinois, with his family, consisting of his wife and 
 1 1 children, making the journey with ox and horse 
 teams and consuming three weeks' time. They 
 stopped first in the township of Greenbush, for two 
 years; but Mr. R. made his first purchase of land in 
 Swan Township, where he resided until his death, 
 which took place Oct. i, 1885. His n children are 
 all yet living, and all in this State except James L., 
 who resides in Nebraska, and W. B., who is a farmer 
 in Northwestern Iowa. Matilda E. A. is the wife of 
 Edward Campbell, and they reside in McDonough 
 County, this State. The sons are all Democratic in 
 their political views. 
 
 Mr. Reed was 18 in the same year in which his 
 parents removed to Illinois. He has a clear remem- 
 brance of the incidents of the journey, which was not 
 particularly distasteful, as he had few of the respon- 
 sibilities resting on him and he was at liberty to en- 
 joy what there was of novelty or interest in the trip. 
 
 He obtained employment in Swan Township without 
 any difficulty, and he continued to labor as a farm 
 assistant until 1855. He then began to operate as 
 a renter, and from that time has been independent, 
 carrying on his business in his own interest. He 
 pyssessed energy and good judgment, and conse- 
 quently enjoyed success. In 1858 he became by 
 purchase the owner of the farm on which he has 
 since resided and carried out his plans. The gen- 
 eral appearance and character of his property gives 
 evidence of the quality of the above mentioned char- 
 acteristics. The farm is all enclosed and the por- 
 tion in need of draining has been ditched and tiled, 
 and is in the most valuable condition, as is the case 
 in instances where that process is necessary. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Reed to Sarah E. Jones was 
 celebrated April 17, 1856. She was born in New 
 York, Sept. 9, 1833. Her parents were Edward and 
 Sarah (Hedley) Jones. The oldest of the n chil- 
 dren of Mr. and Mrs. Reed is named George H., 
 and he is a resident of the same township in which 
 his father and mother reside. Albert B., Warren E., 
 Matilda A., Charles T., William C., Chester E., 
 Martha and Mary (twins), Nettie M. and Aquilla 
 are the names of the others. 
 
 In his political faith and connections, Mr. Reed is 
 a Democrat. The parents became members of the 
 Methodist Church in their youth. 
 
 .' 
 
 T I 
 
 onathan Russell, who is at present receiv- 
 ing medical treatment at the insane asy- 
 lum at Jacksonville, where he was confined 
 in 1878, on account of sickness, the same hav- 
 ing caused his partial derangement, was born 
 in Syracuse, N. Y., March 5, 1819. He con- 
 tinued to reside in his native State until 1860, when 
 he came to this county and located in Lenox Town- 
 ship, and there engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
 He followed that occupation until 1878, when a 
 severe case of sickness caused him to become par- 
 tially deranged and he was confined as above stated. 
 The first marriage of the subject of this notice 
 took place in York State Jan. i, 1842, Miss Amanda 
 Lyon becoming his wife. Of their union four chil- 
 
- ' U 
 
 I" ' 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 445 
 
 dren were born Mary A., Amy J., William I), and 
 Thomas W. Mary A. is the wife of Robert L. Mc- 
 Reynolds, a merchant of Roseville Township ; Amy 
 J. married Aaron T. Lewis, a resident of Denver, 
 Col. ; William D. was a soldier in the late war, be- 
 ing a member of the 66th III. Vol. Inf., and died of 
 lung fever, caused by exposure, after the battle of 
 Resaca, Ga., in June, 1864; Thomas W. resides in 
 Nebraska. 
 
 The second marriage of Mr. Russell took place in 
 Warren Co., Pa., Sept. 10, 1852, when Miss Lyda 
 A. Evans, daughter of William and Ann (Gallup) 
 Evans, natives of York State, became his wife. Her 
 father died in Pennsylvania and her mother in York 
 State. Their children were six in number, of whom 
 Mrs. Russell was second in order of birth. She was 
 born in Pennsylvania, Aug. 23, 1829, and of her 
 union with Mr. Russell six children were born 
 Judson B., Amanda C., Charles E. and Myra L. are 
 living; Emma E. and John, who are dead, are buried 
 at Monmouth. Judson B. is a resident of Roseville 
 Township, and a farmer by occupation; Amanda 
 C. became the wife of J. R. Ewan, who is a farmer 
 of Lenox Township; Charles E. also follows the oc- 
 cupation of a farmer in Lenox Township; Myra L. 
 was united in marriage with Oscar H. Ewan, who is 
 engaged in farming in Lenox Township. 
 
 Mrs. Russell, wife of the subject of this notice, is 
 a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 ; athaniel B. Hoornbeek, a practicing phy- 
 sician at Youngstown, Swan Township, is 
 a native of New York, having been born 
 in Ulster County, that State, March 2, 1854. 
 He is a son of Jeremiah Hoornbeek, a prom- 
 inent and well known citizen of th<; county, 
 who was born May 3. 1824, > n Ulster Co., N. 
 Y., and came to this State in 1854, locating in this 
 county. He was married April 2, 1851, to Miss 
 Elizabeth B. Bruyn, also a native of Ulster Co., N. 
 Y., where she was born, Dec. 23, 1827. To them 
 were born seven children Esther, Nathaniel, Ben- 
 jamin, Adelia, Emeline, John W. and Catherine. 
 
 Their son, Nathaniel (Dr. Hoornbeek), formed a 
 matrimonial alliance Dec. 24, i88r, with Miss Jes- 
 sie L. Gilbert, born Sept. 12, 1858. They have three 
 children Lillian, born Oct. 21, 1882; Edwin J., 
 Jan. 7, 1884 (who died July 26 of the same year) ; 
 and Clyde H., June 27, 1885. The parents of Mrs. 
 Hoornbeek were Edwin A. and Jane H. (Loftis) Gil- 
 bert. Her father was born in 1830, in New York, 
 and her mother in 1836, in Kentucky. They were 
 married Dec. 24, 1854, and had eight children 
 Edwin, Ella G., Jessie I., George E., Greely H., 
 Mary B., Harry V., Rose C. and Fannie E. 
 
 The subject of this sketch obtained his early edu- 
 cation in the common schools of Warren County, 
 supplemented by a full course at Monmouth College, 
 of which thorough institution he is a graduate of the 
 class of '77, witli the degree of A. B. The Doctor 
 graduated second in the classical course. 
 
 Dr. Hornbeek commenced the study of medicine 
 under the instruction of Webster and Killgore, at 
 Monmouth, 111., in 1878. He read with them for 
 about three years, then attended one term at the 
 Iowa Medical College, and took a course of lectures 
 at Rush Medical College, Chicago, receiving his di-"* 
 ploma from that institution Feb. 22, 1881. Locating 
 at Walnut Grove, McDonough County, the following 
 year (March 9), he hung out his shingle and at once 
 entered upon the practice of his profession, remain- 
 ing there, however, only six months, removing thence 
 to Youngstown, Warren County, in October, 1881, 
 where lie purchased a fine residence and established 
 himself in the drug business, in connection with his 
 practice of medicine. By careful attention to a cir- 
 cle of patients, which has constantly increased, he 
 has built up a practice which brings him in an am- 
 ple income, independent of which his drug business 
 has proved very lucrative. In religion, the Doctor 
 is a member of the Presbyterian Church, his wife be- 
 ing of the Baptist persuasion. Politically, he votes 
 with the Democratic party. 
 
 Dr. Hoornbeek is a young and enterprising profes- 
 sional gentleman, with a bright future before him. 
 Aside, however, from being a leading and well-known 
 physician, he has won his way to a prominent and 
 influential position as a citizen of the county in 
 which he was reared from early childhood. He is, 
 perhaps, as well known as any of the oldest prac- 
 titioners of the county, and in presenting his portrait 
 
446 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 in this ALBUM, which we do on the accompanying 
 page, we feel that it is in every way worthy to be 
 classed with those given of the leading men of the 
 county. 
 
 : 
 
 esse Catt, a well known fanner located on 
 ' section 34, Berwick Township, where he is 
 engaged in the occupation of an agricul- 
 turist, was born in Columbiana Co., Ohio, Aug 
 27, 1824. He is the son of George Catt, a 
 Pennsylvania farmer, who was born in that 
 State March 5, 1781. The father moved with his 
 parents to Kentucky when a lad, where they re- 
 mained some eight years. The family then removed 
 to Pennsylvania, and resided in that State for some 
 years, when they went to Ohio. From the latter 
 State, George Catt, father of the subject of this 
 notice, moved to Indiana, where he passed the re- 
 mainder of his days, engaged in the vocation of a 
 farmer, and died about 1857, leaving three children. 
 The father's marriage took place about 1808, at 
 which time Miss Mary Smith became his wife. She 
 was born Feb. 6, <T<)o, in Pennsylvania, and died in 
 1864. Their children were John, born Oct. 4, 1810; 
 Rebecca, Dec. 23, 1812; Mary A., Dec. 2, 1815; 
 Hettie E., June i, 1822; Jesse, Aug. 27, 1824. Re- 
 becca and Hettie are deceased. 
 
 Jesse Catt, of whom we write, has followed the 
 vocation of an agriculturist all his life. He is pleas- 
 antly situated on a fine farm of 208 acres, on section 
 24, Berwick Township, of which he is the owner, 
 and is actively engaged in its cultivation. On his 
 place is a good dwelling and barn, 32 x 32 feet in 
 dimensions, and the appearance of his farm to 
 passers by is indicative of that push and energy 
 characteristic of its proprietor. In their religious 
 associations, Mr. Catt and his wife belong to the 
 Christian Church, and have been consistent members 
 of that denomination for six years. In politics, Mr. 
 Catt belongs to that class of Democrats known as 
 Jacksonians. He has been Road Commissioner 
 three years and Township Assessor eight years. 
 
 Mr. Catt formed a matrimonial alliance June 25, 
 1846, with Miss Cyrena Tibbits. She was born Jan. 
 i, 1827, -in Rush Co., Ind., and has borne her hus- 
 
 band ten children William G., born Oct. 2, 1847 ; 
 Martha A., Dec. 25, 1848; George W., Feb. 7, 1850; 
 Mary A., July 18, 1852; Sarah E., May 28, 1855; 
 James A., Oct. 12, 1856; Henry Lewis, Dec. 24, 
 1858; Joel B., Dec. 24, 1860; Cyrus D., Nov. 12, 
 1862; Samuel E., Jan. 7, 1864, all of whom, except 
 James, Henry L. and Joel B., are living. 
 
 The parents of Mrs. Catt were Seth and Mary 
 (Tolbert) Tibbets. They were married about 1824. 
 Her father was born in Maine, in t8oo, and died on 
 the Ohio River in 1842 of yellow fever. He was a 
 farmer by occupation. The mother of Mrs. Catt was 
 born in 1808, and is still living, residing in Indiana. 
 They have nine children Missouri A., Cyrena, 
 Frances L., Martha, William R., George, Elizabeth, 
 Sarah E. and Samuel. 
 
 R. Nevins, who is passing the sunset of 
 his life in retirement in Roseville, and a 
 gentleman whose success in life is attri- 
 butable to his push, pluck and perseverance, 
 was born in Mercer County, this State, Aug. 21, 
 1838. The parents of Mr. Nevins, of this no- 
 tice, William I. and Mary A. (Pierce) Nevins, were 
 natives of New Brunswick, N. J., and Clark Co., 
 Ohio, respectively. The former was born Aug. 9, 
 1801, and was one of the seven children of John W. 
 Nevins. The latter was born Dec. 22, 1774. He 
 has two sisters yet living; Adrianna was -born July 
 28, 1797, and, though living an advanced age, with- 
 out the aid of glasses, she can make as fine a shirt as 
 any one a half century younger. She lives in Louisa 
 Co., Iowa. Eliza was born Feb. 15, 1805, and lives 
 in Millersburgh Township, Mercer County, this 
 State. Mr. William I. Nevins was twice married, 
 the first time being in 1821, to Mary A. Curry, by 
 whom he had five children Nancy E, Sarah A., 
 Hannah M., Rachel A. and James, who died in in- 
 fancy. By his second wife, who was Mary A. Pierce, 
 he had nine children, as follows : Joel F., born 
 April 21, 1831, died Jan. 21, 1833. The family 
 lived at that time, three miles from any other house, 
 and he was taken with the croup after sundown and 
 died before daybreak; Mary E., their second child, 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 447 
 
 born Sept. 24, 1833; Rebecca E., Oct. 24, 1835, was 
 the first white child born in Abingdon Township; 
 John R. Aug. 21, 1838; William D., Sept. 21, 1840, 
 who enlisted in Co. E, Ninth Reg. 111. Vol., and 
 was lost in the battle of Shiloh, April 6, 1862 ; Henry 
 W., born Jan. 9, r843. He was drafted and served 
 nine months in the late War; was taken prisoner at 
 Kingston; marched to Richmond; was paroled in 18 
 days and sent to St. Louis, and was mustered out at 
 Springfield as a prisoner of war. From the time he 
 left camp at Springfield, he was not three days in one 
 place until the first of March, when he arrived at 
 New Berns, N. C., nor had he his clothes off, except 
 to change. During these five months he was in 13 
 different States. David M. was born Feb. 8, 1845, 
 and was drowned at Clarkesville, Tenn., March 6, 
 1865, while serving in Co. D, 83d Vol. Inf. ; Adrianna 
 J., born March 30, 1847 ; Cornelia L.; Jan. 9, 1851. 
 Ten of these have lived to be married and nine are 
 still living. William I. Nevins lived to see 12 of his 
 children united with the Church, and at the time of 
 his death he had 50 grandchildre i and 20 great- 
 gra'id-children. Two of his daughters have borne 
 twins, as also has one of his granddaughters. Three 
 of his sons volunteered in the late War and the 
 fourth was drafted. 
 
 Mr. W. I. Nevins, with his family, came to Illi- 
 nois, Oct. 25, 1832, and "took up" 160 acres of land 
 nine miles north of Monmouth, in Warren County, 
 on which they resided for two years. They were very 
 early settlers here, and when they first came, there 
 were but three houses in Monmouth, one of which still 
 stands on the west side of the square and is used as 
 a blacksmith shop. His wife assisted in digging the 
 first well north of Cedar Creek, turning the windlass 
 in drawing up the dirt. The well was 50 feet deep. 
 When he first came to Illinois, Mr. Nevins had less 
 than $5, one-half of which he gave to building a 
 church at Sugar Tree Grove, Warren County, and 
 at that time had a wife and four children to support 
 and had to walk eight miles to church. He had no 
 stock and money would not buy any. He got his 
 support mainly by working at the carpenter's trade, 
 while his wife attended the crops. 
 
 After passing two years on their claim, the elder 
 Nevins sold his interest in ii and moved to Abingdon 
 Township, Mercer County, where he rented land for 
 two years. At the expiration of that time he pur- 
 chased 320 acres in Ohio Grove Township, Mercer 
 
 County, on which they moved and where the father 
 engaged energetically and vigorously upon its im- 
 provement and continued to reside until his death, 
 which occurred June 9, 1877. He was the father of 
 14 children, and was a gentleman of considerable 
 property, having accumulated the same through his 
 own industry and energy, and was always ready to 
 assist in any and every good cause that tended to 
 benefit the people. He was Provost Marshal for 
 Mercer County during the War and enrolled that 
 county three times, and was generally know as Col. 
 Wm. I. Nevins. He raised a company to go to the 
 Mexican War in 1846, but which was not accepted. 
 William I. Nevins was a gentleman of more than 
 ordinary ability as a business man and died in the 
 faith of the United Presbyterian Church. 
 
 The gentleman whose name heads this article, was 
 an inmate of the parental household umil he attained 
 the age of 22 years. His education was acquired 
 in the district schools, and the major portio;i of his 
 years, prior to that time, were passed on the farm. , 
 After leaving home, J. R. worked out for a year, when 
 he rented land and occupied his time for anoiher 
 year in .its cultivation. His father then gave him 
 acres of land, on which he settled in April and re- 
 mained until Aug. 9, 1862, when he enlisted in Co. 
 D, 83d 111. Vol. Inf., and participated in the battle, 
 of Fort Donelson, Feb. 3, 1863. He was also en- 
 gaged in every battle in which the company took 
 part and served his country for about three years, 
 during which time he was promoted to the rank of 
 Corporal. 
 
 After returning from the War, Mr. Nevins sold the 
 40 acres his father had given him and purchased 80 
 acres in Mercer County. On the latter farm he re-' 
 mained for about three years, when he soil the same 
 and came to Roseville Township, this cninty, and 
 purchased 60 acres on which he resided two and a 
 half years; thereafter sold his 60 acres and pur- 
 chased the 1 20 acres which he now owns and 
 on which, since then, he has been actively engaged 
 in farming or stock-raising. In addition to his 120- 
 acre farm, Mr. Nevins owns a residence and three 
 lots in Roseville. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Nevins took place Nov. 29. 
 1861, when Miss Elizabeth A. Barnes, a native of 
 Indiana, became his wife. They have had no chil- 
 dren. Mr. Nevins who is one of the oldest men liv- 
 ing, born in Mercer County, is a believer in and 
 
 -9- 
 
44 8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 supporter of the principles of the Republican party. 
 He and his wife are members of the Congregational 
 Church. 
 
 emual Wagy is an enterprising and 
 thrifty farmer of the township of Point 
 Pleasant. His father was born July 4 
 1805, in Virginia, and accompanied his parents 
 to Ohio when he was six months old. Abra- 
 ham Wagy was among the earliest of the per- 
 manent white settlers there, and he passed his early 
 life in Ross County. He acquired a knowledge of 
 the business of wagon-making, and married Loieo 
 Cooper, a native of that State, and whose birth oc- 
 curred in 1806. In 1848 Abraham Wagy, with his 
 family, removed to Illinois. He settled on a farm, 
 which he bought in the vicinity of Olena and also 
 became a property owner i. that village. He opened 
 a wagon shop there for the prosecution of his 
 trade and worked at it while his sons in. proved 
 tthe land he owned. He sold his farm after a few 
 years and bought 1 60 acres on Haney Creek prairie. 
 lOn this he resided from that time until 1882 and then 
 removed to his present place of abode, in Gladstone. 
 Mr. Wagy remained in the family of his father and 
 mother until 1864. In that year he caught the gold 
 fever and started with an ox-team for Montana. Af- 
 ter two months of travel he arrived at Virginia City, 
 and was glad to reach his destination after such an 
 experience as he had had of the adventurous career 
 of gypsies, as he had managed his own domestic af- 
 fairs on the road. For a time lie prospected and 
 mined in that Territory, operating in the vicinity of 
 Virginia City. He went thence to Boise City, in 
 Idaho, where he remained a short time only. He 
 returned to Illinois with the intention of going back 
 soon to the Territories, but his father prevailed on 
 him to remain and take ch;irge of the homestead. 
 He yielded to his solicitation and managed the place 
 one year. He then rented a farm in the vicinity and 
 operated on that through the next year. In 1866 he 
 bought the northeast quarter of section 31, in Point 
 Pleasant Township. The section was wholly unim- 
 proved, and the proprietor has applied his time and 
 energies with the best effect and the place is now in 
 
 splendid cultivation; He is now the owner of the 
 entire half-section lying in the north of section 32, 
 which swells his possessions to 480 acres. He is en- 
 gaged in raising fine graded stock horses, hogs and 
 cattle. 
 
 Mr. Wagy has been twice married. March 29, 
 1866, he formed a matrimonial union with Sarah A. 
 Hill. She was born in Vermont and died in 1878, 
 leaving six children. They were named William S., 
 Lemuel F., Elzie, Gracie, Lovisa and Sarah A. In 
 June, 1885, Mr. Wagy was a second time married, to 
 Virginia, daughter of James and Elizabeth Riggs. 
 Mrs. Wagy is a native of Ohio. Mr. Wagy is a mem- 
 ber of Raritan Lodge, No. 727, A. F. & A. M., and 
 of Raritan Lodge, No. 201, A. O. U. W. 
 
 ames Bagley, a former resident of Point 
 j? Pleasant Township, now deceased, was 
 one of the numerous class of citizens of 
 whom the biographer can truly say, " he was a 
 self-made man." He was a native of County 
 Monaghan, Ireland, and was born in May, 
 1835. He was of Scotch-Irish origin and was reared 
 in the Presbyterian Church. He was bor.i and bred 
 a fanner and was wholly educated in the district 
 schools. He remained in his native country until he 
 was 19 years of age, when he sailed for America and 
 landed at the port of New York nearly out of money. 
 He proceeded up the Hudson River until he arrived 
 in Washington County, in the same State, and there 
 he obtained employment as afarm hand. While there, 
 he made the acquaintance of Mary King, who be- 
 came his wife. She was the daughter of James and 
 Margaret King, and was born in the same county in 
 the old country as Mr. B., Dec 29, 1830. Their 
 marriage took place in 1854. Mrs. Bagley came to 
 America in 185 i, and settled in Washington County. 
 After a residence there of several years they came 
 West. They made their first location in Henderson 
 County, where they operated as renters six years. 
 At the end of that time they came to Point Pleasant 
 Township and bought the west half of the southwest 
 quarter of section 7,011 which there were at that 
 time no improvements of any kind. Mr. Bagley 
 
UV" 
 
 U| vp.t 
 
SON,i.Ec,3A. SPRING GROVETOWNSHIP. 
 
 RESIDENCE OF MRS. FLORA SIGAFOOS, SEC. 33. SPRING GROVE TOWNS HI P. 
 

 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 45* 
 
 built a small frame bouse and improved all the land. 
 He also set out fruit, shade and ornamental trees, 
 and lived on the place until the date of his, death, 
 which occurred Jan. 21, 1883. Following is the rec- 
 ord of the three children who are still living : Rob- 
 ert S. lives in Raritan ; M argaret is the wife of Wil- 
 liam Caldwell, of Roseville; the remaining child a 
 daughter, is named Martha E. She resides with her 
 widowed mother on the homestead, which is man- 
 aged by a renter. The place is made beautiful and 
 valuable by a grove of natural timber, and is consid- 
 ered one of the most pleasant homes in the county. 
 The parents of Mrs. Bagley came to America in 
 1858, and located in Henderson Co., 111., where their 
 lives terminated. Of their sons, Joseph F. and Al- 
 exander King live in Henderson County and Samuel 
 resides in Iowa. 
 
 Carles F. P. Yarde, a grocer at Alexis, is 
 a native citizen of Warren County, where 
 he was born in the township of Kelly, Oct. 
 6, 1852. A sketch of his parents will be 
 found elsewhere in this volume. Aaron and 
 Charlotte (Cousins) Yarde, his father and 
 mother, were pioneers of Kelly Township, where the 
 subject of this sketch was reared on the farm. He 
 attended the public schools and at a suitable age 
 became a student at the business college in Gales- 
 burg, whence he was graduated when he was 18. 
 After the termination of his educational course, he 
 passed six months in farming. At the end of that 
 time he came to Alexis and entered upon the duties 
 of a clerkship in the employ of Thomas Leveridge, a 
 merchant of that place. After an experience of 
 three and a half years, he embarked in business in 
 his own behalf, associated with M. G. Bellinger. 
 They bought the grocery establishment of W. A. 
 Elder and conducted their joint business four and a 
 half years. At that time Mr. Bellinger sold his in- 
 terest to Frank Wray, and the firm name became 
 Yarde & Wray. A little less than a year after the 
 change was made, Mr. Yarde bought the interest of 
 his partner and has since managed his affairs alone. 
 Feb. i, 1881, Mr. Yarde was married to Rettie 
 McKelvey. She is the daughter of John and Jane 
 
 (McMillen) McKelvey, and was born in Belmont 
 Co., Ohio, in June, 1860. She is the fourth in order 
 of birth of a family of nine children, viz.: Robert 
 S., Amy I., Mary A., Henrietta (the wife of Mr. 
 Yarde), William S., Vernon, Joseph, and two de- 
 ceased. The parents of Mrs. Yarde were born in 
 Belmont Co., Ohio, the father Feb. 4, 1830, the 
 mother Dec. 16, 1833. On the paternal side, the 
 grandparent? were born in Ireland, in the Counties 
 Tirone and Kerry respectively, and on the maternal 
 side her grandparents are of Irish descent. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Yarde are members of the United 
 Brethren Church. 
 
 rederick Sorenson, a farmer of the town- 
 ship of Spring Grove, is a citizen of the 
 United States of foreign birth, having 
 been born in Schlessvvig-Holstein, Nov. 26, 
 1850. He was reared under the customs of 
 the land of his nativity, and, after completing 
 the time which, by law, he was required to pass in 
 school, he assisted his father on the home farm, until 
 1869, when he determined to seek a fortune in that 
 far more congenial clime, " The land of the free, and 
 the home of the brave." To resolve was to execute, 
 and April 22, 1869, he sailed from Hamburg and was 
 landed in Portland, Maine. He came thence direct- 
 ly to Warren County, where he had been preceded 
 by an older brother, Martin. He had no trouble in 
 obtaining employment at farming, cheerfully going to 
 work for $10 a month. He was wholly ignorant of 
 the English language and when the winter season 
 came he attended school for the purpose of familiar- 
 izing himself with the language of his adopted coun- 
 try. He not only accomplished that purpose but 
 acquired a highly creditable English education. 
 
 In 1870 his parents also immigrated to America, 
 settling in Warren County, where his father bought 
 40 acres of land on the northeast quarter of section 
 21, on which Frederick and a brother went to woik, 
 speedily putting it in a condition for profitable farming. 
 In the succeeding year they became by purchase the 
 owners of the remaining tzo acres of the quarter-sec- 
 tion on which they had located. Mr. Sorenson has 
 always been a part ow?er of the place in company 
 with his parents. 
 
 He was joined in marriage with Catherine John- 
 
- 
 
 452 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 son in 1883. She is a native of the same German 
 province in which her husband was born. Two chil- 
 dren have been born to this worthy couple Carl, a 
 son, and one who died in infancy. The members of 
 the household are connected in membership with 
 the Lutheran Church. In politics, Mr. Sorenson is 
 a Republican. A view of Mr. Sorenson's home- 
 place appears on page 450. 
 
 Andrew C. Sorenson, the father of the gentleman 
 whose biography has just been briefly sketched, was 
 also born in Schlesswig-Holstein, in i8n,and was 
 reared under the lej;al regulations of his native land, 
 receiving the education provided by law. He mar- 
 ried Annie Mathiason of the same province. She 
 was the daughter of a well-to-do farmer, and on his 
 death the son-in-law became the owner of the estate 
 by purchase. It was his homestead and there his 
 children were born and reared, until 1870, in which 
 year the transfer of the entire family to the Continent 
 of America took place, their settlement in Warren 
 County being effected as before mentioned. The 
 elder Sorensons were the parents of eight children, 
 and all save two are still living. Hansine is the wife 
 of Paul Sorenson, and they are settled in Iowa. 
 Martin is a citizen of prominence as a farmer and a 
 friend of good order and progress in Spring Grove 
 Township. Annie is the wife of Peter Hansen,of 
 the same township. Frederick is the next in order 
 of birth. Mary is married to Martin Thuson, of 
 Monmouth. Caroline, who is now a student at Mon- 
 mouth College, lives in the same township where her 
 parents located. 
 
 . ames Owen, of Point Pleasant Township, 
 jjf?- is one of the prominent members of the 
 farming community of Warren County. He 
 is the owner of 400 acres of fine land located 
 on section 12, which is in an exceedingly good 
 condition for successful farming. Mr. Owen 
 is a descendant from ancestors who, by their bravery 
 in the contests with Great Britain, for the liberty of 
 this cou.itry, earned for their succeeding generations 
 the indisputable rights of American citizens. He 
 was born in Tennessee (Hawkins County) Dec. 17, 
 
 1819, and is the son of James Owen. The latter was 
 the son of William Owen, who was born in South 
 Carolina, and was a soldier of the War of the Revo- 
 lution. Among the battles in which he is on record 
 as having been a participant, were King's Mountain, 
 Cowpens, Eutaw Springs and Camden, besides many 
 smaller engagements. He died in Hawkins Co., 
 Tenn. His son, James Owen, was born in Anson 
 Co., N. C., March 25, 1789, and he was only six 
 months old when the family removed to Tennessee, 
 where they were pioneers of Hawkins County. The 
 Indians of that section of the country were still 
 troublesome and for a short time after the arrival of 
 the family in that State, they resided in a fort 
 James Owen, 6r., there reached the years of maturity 
 and was still a young man when the War of 1812 
 again called the citizens of America to defend her 
 from British encroachment. He enlisted and was in 
 the action called the battle of Horse-Shoe. He mar- 
 ried Sarah Lanlor, who was born in Rockbridge Co., 
 Va., about two miles from the Natural Bridge. After 
 marriage, Mr. Owen settled on a portion of the large 
 tract of land which his father had bought in Haw- 
 kins County. Not being a friend to the slave ele- 
 ment, however, he at last resolved to emigrate to 
 some one of the free States, and, accordingly, made 
 preparations to leave the section in which he had 
 been born and reared. He set out with a horse and 
 carriage, containing all his household goods. His wife 
 rode on horseback, carrying the two youngest chil- 
 dren, while the two eldest daughters, aged respec- 
 tively 14 and 1 6, walked the entire distance to their 
 destination, *in the State of Indiana. All else was 
 abandoned by Mr. Owen in his eagerness to retreat 
 from the hated institution, being determined that his 
 children should not grow up within its influence. A 
 location was made in Floyd County, where they set- 
 tled on 80 acres of timber. A " patch " of land was 
 cleared and a log house erected. The heavy timber 
 was removed by hard and persistent labor and there 
 the wife and mother died in 1835. In the year fol- 
 lowing that event, Mr. Owen sold his place and again 
 set forth with his family for a new start in the role of 
 a pioneer. He and his four children rode on horse- 
 back to McDonough Co , 111., at which place they 
 stopped and located, instead of going to Flint Hills 
 (now the city of Burlington), Iowa, where they had 
 originally intended to settle. They made their home 
 in the northwest part of McDonough County, at a 
 
 : 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 453 
 
 point designated as the " Job Settlement," where a 
 tract of land was purchased, on which they resided 
 until 1844. The father then sold out again and went 
 to Missouri, but remained there only a short time, 
 returning to Illinois and locating in Henderson 
 County. There James Owen, the subject of this 
 biography, who had never been separated from his 
 father during the many migrations of the family, 
 bought 80 acres of land on which his father died in 
 October, 1845. 
 
 On the small farm in Henderson County, where a 
 frame house had been built and some other nominal 
 improvements made, Mr. OweV> resided until 1851, 
 when he sold out and came to Warren County. He 
 made his first purchase of land in Swan Township, 
 of which he was the occupant between two and 
 three years. He then sold out and bought the farm 
 upon which he now lives, located on the northwest 
 quarter of section 12, in Point Pleasant Township. 
 No improvements of any character had been made on 
 it, but the owner soon accomplished the necessary 
 work which put it on a footing of equality with the 
 ' numerous farms of value in the county. It is also sup- 
 plied with all the needed outbuildings of substantial 
 structure. Besides 400 acres under cultivation Mr. 
 Owen is the owner of 50 acres of good timber land in 
 Swan Township. 
 
 Mr. Owen had small advantages for obtaining any 
 education in the schools, but his mental calibre is 
 such as to supply all deficiencies of that character. 
 He was fond of reading and possessed the natural 
 sagacity to render it a source of profit and a means of 
 intellectual cultivation. His powers as a natural 
 mathematician are something remarkable, and he 
 probably stands at the head of that class of geniuses 
 in the State. He is a Republican l>y inheritance and 
 inclination and has been a strong adherent of the 
 party since its organization. 
 
 July 23, 1846, Mr. Owen was married to Demarus 
 E. Emerich. She was born in Fayette Co., Ohio, 
 July 14, 1829, and became the mother of 11 chil- 
 dren. They were named James C., Jacob E., Sarah 
 A., John A., Joseph S., Mary J., Lucinda, Mary F., 
 Cassius C , Williim C. and George G. The eldest 
 son (James C.) was born May 6, "1847, and died 
 June 2, 1880, from disease contracted during his ser- 
 vice in the late war as a member of Co. H, 83d 111. 
 Vol. Inf. He left a wife and four children. Mary J. 
 
 died at the age oLnine years. Lucinda died in in- 
 fancy. Mary F. also died in early childhood. Cas- 
 sius C. was born May i, 1861, and died Sept. 21, 
 1885. He left a wife and one child. 
 
 The parents of Mrs. Owen were Jacob and Abigail 
 (Cooper) Emerick, natives respectively of Virginia 
 and Ohio. They removed hither in 1832. The 
 father died March 12, 1855, near Fort Scott, Kan. 
 The mother died Nov. i, 1877. 
 
 errit Paddock ranks among the well-to-do 
 and well known agriculturists, who in 
 early life engaged actively and arduously 
 in the labor incident to a farm, and whose 
 efforts have been crowned with success, thus 
 enabling him to spend the remaining years of . 
 his life in retirement in the peaceful village of Kirk- 
 wood. He is a native of Oneida Co., N. Y., and 
 was born on the igth of September, 1822; his par- . 
 ents are John and Polly (Christian) Paddock. They 
 were natives of the State of New York, where they 
 resided until their death, which occurred in Decem- . 
 ber, 1867, and in April, 1840, respectively. 
 
 Merrit continued a member of the family until he 
 attained the age of 20 years, attending the district 
 schools and working on the farm. After leaving 
 home he worked out for six months, receiving for his 
 salary $10.50 per month, and in 1842 he rented a 
 farm in Oneida Co., N. Y., of 60 acres, which he re- 
 mained on for one year. He then moved to Lewis 
 County, same State, and there worked a farm for two 
 years having only rented it, when he made a pur- 
 chase of some land, a tiact of 50 acres, and began 
 its improvement and cultivation, continuing for two 
 years and then sold it. His next enterprise was to 
 work a farm on shares, also occupying himself in 
 other pursuits, until 1851, when he removed west- 
 ward, locating in Prophetstown, Whiteside County, 
 this State, where he purchased 1 30 acres of land and 
 remained there until 1853. In the latter year he 
 again returned to Lewis County, in his native State, 
 and remained there for a couple of years, when he 
 returned to Prophetstown and purchased 40 acres of 
 improved land and erected thereon a good residence 
 
454 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 and barn, fenced the same, planted trees, etc. He 
 came to Warren County in 1861, and settled in 
 Tompkins Township. He purchased some land and 
 engaged actively and energetically in its cultivation 
 and improvement, and by subsequent purchases has 
 increased his landed possessions until now he is the 
 proprietor of 143 acres. He resided upon the same 
 until 1872, when he came to Kirkwood and there 
 purchased a house and lot where he has since lived, 
 retired from the active labors of life. 
 
 Mr. Paddock was married Feb. 20, 1845, to Miss 
 Alvira T. Hall, a native of New York, the ceremony 
 being performed in Lewis County, her native State. 
 Mr. Paddock is a Republican in political views, and, 
 with his wife, belongs to the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. He is regarded as one of the solid and 
 influential men of Warren County. 
 
 i,apt. Elisha C. Atchison, one of Warren 
 County's successful farmers, and a gentle- 
 man who has followed that vocation more 
 or less all his life, is at present lesiding upon 
 section i, Cold Brook Township. He was 
 born in Sumner County, Central Tennessee, 
 Jan. 20, 1820. The father of Mr. Atchison. whose 
 name heads this notice, Nathan Atchison, was a na- 
 tive of Virginia, having been born in Stafford County, 
 that State, and was a farmer by occupation. He was 
 a soldier in the war of 1812, under command of Gen. 
 Jackson. He was married in Tennessee, after at- 
 taining his majority, his wife being Lucretia Barnard , 
 a native of North Carolina, who moved to Tennessee 
 with her parents previous to her marriage. After 
 their marriage, in 1829, they came to Gallatin Co., 
 this State, from whence they removed to Madison 
 County, where the father died in 1843, at the age of 
 67 years. The mother died in Bunker Hill, Macou- 
 pin County, in 1872, aged 82 years. They were 
 prominent citizens of the communities in which they 
 resided, and her father was successful in his chosen 
 vocation, as an agriculturist. 
 
 The gentleman whose name heads this notice was 
 about nine years of age when his parents came to this 
 State. He continued to reside with them until the 
 death of his father, when he set forth to fight the 
 battle of life alone. He was married in Knox County, 
 
 Nov. 24, 1846, to Miss Nabbie L. Fuller, the accom- 
 plished daughter of Samuel and Hulda (Record) 
 Fuller, natives of Massachusetts and of New England 
 parentage, who, after marriage, moved to. Marietta, 
 Washington County, Ohio, and afterwards, in 1844, 
 came to this State, settling in Knox County, where 
 her father died. Her mother is yet living, with her 
 daughter, Mrs. Atchison, and has attained the ven- 
 erable age of 90 years. 
 
 Mrs. Atchison, wife of our subject, was born near 
 Marietta, Washington Co., Ohio, Nov. 16, 1826. She 
 was educated in the public schools and resided at 
 home, assisting her mother in the household duties, 
 until her marriage to Mr. A. Of their union eleven 
 children have been born, four of whom are deceased. 
 The names of the living are George W., who married 
 Mary Mitchell ; they reside in Cold Brook Town- 
 ship, and are the parents of three children, one of 
 whom is now deceased. Hulda L. married George 
 Harlan and they are the parents of five children, one 
 deceased ; they live at Dallas City, III. John H.,1 
 William E., Fred and Minnie reside at home. Mary 
 M. is attending school at Galesburg. After their, 
 marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Atchison located in this"^ 
 county and have continued to reside here, with the 
 exception of a few years passed in Galesburg and 
 Monmouth, until the present time. In 1856 Mr.- 
 Atchison purchased a portion of the property where ' 
 he now resides. He has, by subsequent purchases, 
 increased his lai.ded interests in the county, until he 
 is at present the proprietor of 240 acres, in Cold 
 Brook Township, the major portion of which is under 
 an advanced state of cultivation He and his wife 
 are members of the Universalist Church. In politics, 
 Mr. Atchison casts his vote with the Democratic 
 party. He has been Assessor and Collector and also 
 Justice of the Peace. 
 
 In September, 1862, Mr. Atchison enlisted in Co. 
 B, load 111. Vol. Inf., as private, and his regiment 
 was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland. Im- 
 mediately after enlistment he was elected Captain of 
 the company, which he organized, and went into 
 camp at Knoxville, Knox County. From there he 
 went to Louisville, Ky , and afterwards did some 
 skirmishing, but was in no active engagements. Mr. 
 A. resigned command of his company at Gallatin, 
 Tenn., and returned home, where he lias since fol- 
 lowed his chosen vocation, agriculture, meeting with 
 success in that avenue of life. 
 
* 3 
 

457 
 
 oseph B. Malony, manufacturer of har- 
 ness and dealer in harness and saddlery 
 goods at Roseville, is a son of James and 
 Margaret (Cairnes) Malony, and was born in 
 Cumberland Co., Pa., Dec. 16, 1818. His 
 parents were natives of Ireland and came to 
 America about the year 1810, locating in the Key- 
 stone State where the father was engaged as contrac- 
 tor for stone work. In 1824 he removed into Ohio 
 and there engaged in farming, also following his 
 trade at stone work, and laid the foundation for the 
 first flouring mill on the Maumee River. He made 
 the Buckeye State his permanent home and died 
 there about 1826-7, his wife's demise occurring in 
 1846. 
 
 Joseph B., the gentleman whose name stands at the 
 head of this biographical notice, went to learn the 
 trade of saddle-maker at the age of 16, at which he 
 L served an apprenticeship of three and a half years, 
 and again ten months under the instruction of 
 another firm. He followed the same in the States of 
 Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, and finally settled down 
 in Canton, Fulton County, this State, and opened a 
 shop, which he carred on for 12 years. At the ex- 
 piration of that time he removed to Vermont, same 
 county, but remained only a year, when he again re- 
 turned to Canton and embarked in the same busi- 
 ness for four years. His next move was to Prairie 
 City, McDonough Co, 111., where he engaged in 
 business and remained until the year i86r. 
 
 In the latter year the call was made for brave 
 hearts and strong arms to defend the Union flag, and 
 Joseph B., a very patriotic gentleman, enlisted in 
 the Seventh Regt. of 111. Vol. Cav., and served two 
 years and four months, having held the position of 
 Sergeant Saddler, but was discharged on account of 
 disability. He then returned to Prairie City and 
 again embarked in business, which he continued 
 until the year 187 2, then coming to Roseville and in- 
 teresting himself in his present enterprise, in which 
 he has met with remarkable success and is doing a 
 constantly increasing business. He has gotten up 
 many new improvements in harness that have come 
 
 into general use. He invented the first pad for a 
 saddle, padding for a saddletree and the roller at- 
 tachment to the "Sensible Combination Buckle." He 
 is also the inventor of a combination halter, which is 
 not only the best in use but cheap and durable. 
 
 In 1841, one of the most important events in the 
 life of Mr. Joseph B. Maloney occurred, it being 
 his marriage to Miss Jane Anderson, and of their 
 union were born four children Richard A., Joseph 
 C., William N. and James M. Mrs. Malony 's de- 
 mise occurred in 1850, and Mr. M. formed a sec- 
 ond matrimonial alliance with a sister of his first 
 wife, Miss Catherine Anderson, and they have be- 
 come the parents of five children, only four of 
 whom survive, as follows: Mary E., Nathaniel L., 
 Margaret J. and Emma. Mrs. Maloney died in 
 1872. Mr. Malony is a Greenbacker in politics. He 
 is a member of the United Brethren Church at Rose- 
 ville. 
 
 ohn Wesley Bolon, Sheriff of Warren ' 
 P County, was born in Harrison Co., Ohio, 
 Sept. 2, 1838. His parents, John and 
 Eliza ( Joyce ) Bolon, natives respectively of 
 Pennsylvania and Virginia, were married in 
 the last named State ; settled at once in Ohio, 
 where their five sons and four daughter were born, and 
 where the senior Mr. Bolon died in 1848, aged about 
 63 years. John Bolon was a son of John and Mary 
 Bolon and a descendant from a long line of English 
 ancestry, who had emigrated to America many years 
 prior to the Revolutionary War. John, the father of 
 Sheriff Bolon, lived in Eastern Pennsylvania, where 
 he was engaged in farming, and during the war of 
 1812, enlisted in the defense of his country. After 
 he grew to manhood he moved to Virginia, where, in 
 London County, he married his wife. During that 
 same year he came to Ohio. His wife was the daugh- 
 ter of Col. Thomas B. Joyce, a native of Ireland. He 
 had come to Virginia prior to the Revolutionary 
 War, and with three of his sons took part in that 
 memorable struggle. He was likewise one of the 
 patriots who assisted in repelling the British invasion 
 during the war of 1812. He was Colonel of a Vir- 
 ginia regiment, and proved himself to be a brave and 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 gallant officer. After the death of his wife, he re- 
 moved to Ohio, and subsequently to Illinois, and re- 
 sided with his daughter, Mrs. Bolon, until his demise, 
 which occurred at the advanced age of 97 years. In 
 politics, he was an old line Whig. Mrs. Bolon 
 brought her children to Warren County in 1855, 
 after living four years in Indiana, and in Floyd 
 Township, this county, spent the rest of her life, 
 dying at the home of the subject of this sketch in 
 1868, aged 76 years. 
 
 John W. Bolon was pretty thoroughly educated at 
 Hillsboro Seminary, in Indiana, where he spent four 
 years, and after coming lo Illinois taught school 
 probably two years, which, for himself, was an excel- 
 lent means of further disciplining and forming his 
 mind. Before leaving Indiana he read law some 
 time with Judge Niblock, who has since served so 
 many years upon the Supreme Bench of that State, 
 but abandoned it and turned his attention to farming 
 and stock dealing, which he followed uninterruptedly 
 for 15 years. He now rents his fine farm of 160 
 acres in Floyd Township. While a resident of the 
 township he served the people 12 years as Road 
 Commissioner, one year as Constable, eight years as 
 Supervisor and 14 years as School Director. He has 
 always been a Republican in politics, is a good stump 
 speaker, and in 1882, as candidate for Sheriff, ran 
 far ahead of his ticket. 
 
 Mr. Bolon was married in Floyd Township, Jan. 
 21, 1857, to Lucinda Sigrnan, a native of Guernsey 
 Co., Ohio, and daughter of Isaac and Julia (Spears) 
 Sigman, a farmer of Floyd Township. His ancestors 
 were German. Mr. and Mrs. Bolon's children are 
 named: Alfred W., Charles M., Emetine, Nettie, 
 Ella, John H. and Roy. The family are all con- 
 nected with the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. 
 Bolo.i, himself, has been a member of that Church 
 for many years and for the last 16 years has had 
 license to preach as a local preacher. He is recog- 
 nized as a fervent and eloquent teacher and is 
 capable of doing great good in the cause of Chris- 
 tianity. 
 
 Some of Mr. Bolon's children have been married, 
 namely: Alfred W. married Minnie, the daughter 
 of Dr. Blair, of Abington, 111. They reside on the 
 homestead in Floyd Township, and carry on the 
 farm; Charles Milton married Mary Ada Goddard, 
 daughter of Henry Goddard, of Floyd Township, this 
 
 county. He is engaged in farming and stock-raising 
 in Berwick Township. 
 
 Whatever of this world's goods, Mr. B. possesses, he 
 has most diligently labored for. He inherited noth- 
 ing in the way of property and when married had 
 only $100 in money. He has been a hard working, 
 frugal man and has won for himself a most enviable 
 position in the estimation of his fellow citizens, as 
 well as a fair conpetency. He is not only a genial 
 gentleman, but possesses most excellent judgment 
 and nerve, and few men in the county are so well 
 fitted for the position he holds. Among the portraits 
 of the leading men of the county given in this 
 book may be found tha.t of Mr. Bolon. He is a truly 
 representative citizen, and honors the work contain- 
 ing his features. 
 
 ohn A. Gordon, notary public, real estate 
 and collecting agent, at Roseville, also a ^ 
 surveyor and engineer, was born Jan. 10, 
 1835, in Mercer Co., Pa., his parents being 
 William and Sarah (Dilley) Gordon, natives of 
 that State. The parents came to this State in 
 1858, and purchased 80 acres of land located on 
 section 32, Roseville Township, on which they lo- 
 cated and where the father followed the occupation 
 of a farmer until his death, in May, 1876 His wife 
 still survives and resides on the old homestead one 
 mile east of the village. The children were six in 
 number, five of whom attained the age of majority. 
 
 John A. Gordon, of whom we write, was the eldest 
 of his parents' children, and remained at home until 
 he attained liis aist year, receiving a good education 
 and assisting in the labors of the farm. He had, 
 prior to attaining his majority, engaged somewhat in 
 surveying and also in teaching school. During the 
 winter of 1855-56, he was engaged in the latter oc- 
 cupation, in New Lebanon, Pa. In September, 1856, 
 he came to Roseville, but previous to that, during 
 the summer of that year, was employed by the Mil- 
 waukee and Missouri River Railroad, in Iowa, mak- 
 ing the preliminary survey. In 1856, the winter of 
 that year, he taught school, and continued in that 
 vocation for three years. He next engaged as clerk 
 
nr; 
 
 WARREN CO UN T Y. 
 
 459 
 
 >i 
 
 and book-keeper for Emans & Woodmansee and was 
 with that firm one year. We next, in 1865, find him 
 in Chicago, where he is taking a regular business 
 course of study at Bryant & Stratton's Commercial 
 College, from which he received a diploma. He 
 then returned to Roseville and was elected County 
 Surveyor, which position he held until August, 1870, 
 when he engaged with the Rockford, Rock Island 
 and St. Louis Railroad as station agent at Roseville, 
 and held that position two years. At the expiration 
 of this time he became interested in the furniture 
 business and continued thus for ten years, when he 
 sold out and opened an office on Penn Avenue, 
 where he is at present located 
 
 Mr. Gordon was married in 1861 to Miss Philena 
 Dilley, a native of Mercer Co., Pa., and a daughter 
 of Stephen Dilley, and he and his wife are members 
 of the Congregational Church. 
 
 In his political views, Mr. Gordon is a strong ad- 
 vocate of prohibition, casts his vote with that party, 
 and was an active and energetic worker in the cause. 
 Mr. Gordon has held the position of Police Magis- 
 trate and Village Trustee. He has quite an interest 
 in the village plat of Roseville, and is regarded as 
 one of the leading business men of that thriving little 
 village. 
 
 r errick Livermore, of Sumner Township, is 
 one of the pioneers of 1839 who settled in 
 Warren County, and is now one of the 
 most prominent of the agriculturists of the 
 township in which he is located. His birth 
 took place Aug. 28, 1830, in Washington Co., 
 Ohio. His father, Andrew Livermore, was a native 
 of Shirley, Middlesex Co., Mass. The latter was 
 the son of James and Polly (Kelsey) Livermore, 
 The ancestral history of the family lias been pre- 
 served in the annals of Shirley, which were compiled 
 by the Rev. Seth Chandler. The first progenitor in 
 this country was John Livermore, who came, at the 
 age of 28, to the New World, sailing from Ipswich, 
 England, in April, r6j4, in the good ship Francis, 
 John Cutting, Captain. John Livermore located in 
 Watertown, Mass., and there his life terminated, 
 April 16, 1684. He was a potter by trade. Oliver 
 
 Livermore, who was the first of the family to settle 
 in Shirley, located in that place as nearly as can be 
 ascertained about 1767. 
 
 Andrew Livermore was but seven years old when 
 his parents removed from the " Old Bay State " to 
 the, then, far distant West. The journey was made 
 in the fashion so often recounted in this and other 
 works of similar character, peculiar to the time, 
 when there were practically no means of public 
 travel. The long and difficult route, however, was 
 safely traversed by team, and the family homestead 
 established in Washington Co., Ohio. Andrew Liv- 
 ermore there attained to the age and condition of 
 manhood, and there he was married to Betsey Ful- 
 ler. Slie, too, was a native of Massachusetts, having 
 been born in Essex County, in 1807. Her parents be- 
 came pioneers of the "Buckeye State" when she was 
 very young. After marriage, Andrew and wife set- 
 tled on the homestead of his father, in Washington 
 County, and resided there until their removal to 
 Warren County, in 1839, that journey also being 
 made in the primitive fashion of the earlier period, 
 the family traveling to Illinois with four horses and a 
 wagon. They brought with them all their portable 
 property, and passed four weeks on the road. 
 
 The senior Livermore bought a farm in township 
 1 1 (now Kelly Township), and there proceeded with 
 the work common to the pioneer residents of a new 
 country. He built a hewed-log house and split 
 " shakes " for a roof and puncheons for a floor. This 
 place was occupied by the family until 1852, when it 
 was sold and they removed to Point Pleasant Town- 
 ship. The father bought a farm, on which there had 
 been a log house erected. Of this structure they took 
 possession until time and circumstances were favor- 
 able for the building of a more suitable and conven- 
 ient abode. The farm was put in the best possible 
 condition and was the home of the father until his 
 death. His demise took place Feb. 30, t88o. The 
 family comprised ten children. Derrick, the subject 
 of this biography, was the eldest. Russell was born 
 April 3, 1832. His death transpired Aug. 28, 1850. 
 Andrew P. was born Aug. 28, 1834, and died Feb. 5, 
 1881. John K. was born Aug. 9, 1836, and is living 
 in Henderson County. Western T. was born Dec. 
 29, 1838. Jonas was born June 19, 1841, and died 
 May 8, 1862. Oliver was born July 29, and died 
 Aug. 28, 1842. Socrates was born Nov. 10, 1843; 
 Charles C., Oct. 24, 1847; William R.,Oct. 6, 1850. 
 
 
 
460 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Derrick Livermore was nine years old when he 
 accompanied his parents to Warren County, and in 
 that county he has ever since made his home. He 
 was brought up on the homestead of his parenis and 
 lived with them until he became the head of a fam- 
 ily of his own. His marriage to Betsey Stevens oc- 
 curred Jan. 8, 1851. She was born in Sangamon 
 Co., 111., Feb. 15, i83r,and is the daughter of James 
 and Nancy (Miles) Stevens. Her father and mother 
 were natives of the State of Kentucky, and joined 
 the early pioneer element of the county where she 
 was born. 
 
 At the time of his marriage, Mr. Livermore bought 
 80 acres of land on section 12, in the township of 
 Cold Brook, in the same county where he had passed 
 the years of his boyhood and youth, and entered 
 upon the duties of manhood and which he has so 
 thoroughly and creditably discharged. He built a 
 small house on the estate and proceeded to the bus- 
 iness of a farmer. There he continued to reside 
 until he sold it and removed to Point Pleas- 
 ant Township, in 1855, where he bought 80 acres 
 situated on section 10, and where he repeated the 
 experience of his former life in the township in which 
 he at first located. He improved the land and made 
 additional purchases, until he became the owner of 
 his present estate of 400 acres, the whole of which is 
 under thorough cultivation. The family of Mr. Liv- 
 ermore includes six children. Andrew J. resides in 
 this (Point Pleasant) township. Joshua resides in 
 Page Co., Iowa. Eugenie L. is married to B. L. Bird- 
 sail, of Point Pleasant. Mary A., Alice E. and 
 Clara are still at home. 
 
 Mr. Livermore is a Republican in politics, and a 
 Universalist in religious belief. 
 
 lohn Nicol Bruen, deceased, was born in 
 Essex Co., N. J., Oct. 25, 1825, and died 
 in Monmouth, Nov. 21, 1884. His father, 
 William Bruen, was a descendant from Scotch 
 ancestry, and his mother, Jane (Williamson) 
 Bruen, from the German. They reared three 
 sons and five daughters, Mr. Bruen being the eldest. 
 John Nicol Bruen was educated at Bloomfield, N 
 
 J., and his father, who was a shoe manufaturer on a 
 small scale, tried to educate him into the Order of 
 the Knights of St. Crispin, but young Bruen protested 
 after a few months' application to the rudiments of 
 the trade, and the year 1844 found him farming in 
 Henderson County, this State. An uncle of his, 
 Mr. Bruen, owned an unimproved farm of 160 acres 
 some ten miles from Oquawka, and it was U|x>n this 
 tract of land that he gave our subject 80 acres if he 
 would settle on it, and here he sought to establish an 
 independency. Before assuming the dignity of a 
 farmer on his own account, however, he hired him- 
 self out to a neighbor who paid him the paltry sum 
 of $7 per month, probably advancing him to $8 per 
 n.onth when he had grown more proficient in the 
 essential departments. He brought with him from 
 New Jersey a squirrel rifle and a silver watch. The 
 first he exchanged for fence rails, and the second for 
 prairie-breaking. His start in life may be accurately 
 surmised from these facts, and it is proper here to 
 state that he left his family a handsome competency. 
 He owned a large tract of land in Mills, Montgomery 
 and Pottawatomie Counties, Iowa, all of which is t 
 now in a good state of improvement. In 1882 lie 
 had between 2,000 and 3,000 acres of corn, 300 acre.' 
 of wheat, 200 of oats and 1,200 head of hogs. He 
 was also President of the Illinois Live Stock Com- 
 pany in Colorado, in which he was a heavy stock- 
 holder. 
 
 His first marriage was in 1848, to Miss Jane Sharp- 
 less, of Henderson Co., 111., who died in 1863, leav- 
 ing three children William S., Charles E. and Ida. 
 Mr. Bruen came into Monmouth in 1875, and lo- 
 cated, bringing with him the accomplished lady now 
 his widow, who kindly furnishes the data from which 
 this sketch is written. Before her marriage to Mr. 
 Bruen, which occurred in Henderson County, Oct. 
 10, 1865, she was Miss Mary A. Martin. Her par- 
 ents were Preston and Ann E. (Taylor) Martin, na- 
 tives respectively of Kentucky and Virginia. They 
 were married in the first named State, came to Illi- 
 nois in 1838 and spent some years in Morgan County 
 but the greater part of their lives was spent in Hen- 
 derson County, where the present Mrs. Bruen was 
 born. Mrs. Martin died Dec. 15, 1881. They had 
 previously, on the 23d of March, 1881, celebrated 
 their golden wedding. Mr. Martin resides at Biggs- 
 ville, 111., now in the 82d year of his age. 
 
 Mcs. Bruen was educated at Knox College, Gales- 
 
RESIDENCE: OF W*. A. MITCHELL. SEC. 3. HALE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 DRUGSTORE or E. D.ALEXANDER ft. C, MAI NST. ALEXIS. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 4<>3 
 
 burg, 111., and taught four years in the public schools 
 before her marriage. Her parents reared six sons 
 and four daughters. Four of her brothers and one 
 brother-in-law were in the Union army during the 
 Rebellion. She is a consistent member of the Pres- 
 byterian Church. Her husband also attended that 
 Church, though not a member. He was always a 
 liberal contributor to the support of the Church. In 
 politics, he was a Democrat, though frequently voting 
 for men identified with other parties. He was for 
 several years a director and stockholder of the First 
 National Bank of Monmouth. The success of Mr. 
 Bruen may be attributed to his energy, perseverance 
 and broad grasp of business enterprises. No man 
 stood higher in the county in which he resided. His 
 word was always as good as his bond. 
 
 Sigafoos, deceased, was formerly a 
 resident on section 33 of Spring Grove 
 Township. He was born in Sussex Co., N. 
 J., Aug. 31, 1832. The death of his father 
 when he was in infancy left him in the sole care 
 of his mother, and he remained with her until 
 he was nine years of age, when she was again mar- 
 ried. He then undertook the management of his 
 own affairs and he gave his attention exclusively to 
 the work of obtaining a good and available educa- 
 tion. He had already made considerable progress 
 and he prosecuted his studies unlil he was qualified 
 to teach in the public schools. He was occupied in 
 that business until his transfer of his interests to Il- 
 linois, which took place in 1853. He was unmarried 
 when he located in Warren County, and, associated 
 with his brother, he bought a farm in Lenox Town- 
 ship. He passed the winters in leaching and through 
 the remainder of the year he devoted his attention 
 to agricultural pursuits. 
 
 March 18, 1858, he was married to Flora Shaw. 
 Mrs. Sigafoos was born in Hartland, Genesee Co., 
 N. Y., Jan. 27, 1840, and was the daughter of Wil- 
 liam and Adeline (Stannard) Shaw. Not long after 
 their marriage, Mr. Sigafoos bought the southeast 
 quarter of section 33, in Spring Grove Township. 
 They moved into a log house which stood on the 
 
 place. There was besides a frame stable and some 
 of the land was already broken to the plow. The 
 new proprietor re -built the stable at once, and in 
 1871 he erected the commodious and good frame 
 house, which has since been the family residence. 
 His death took place April 29, 1881. The four chil- 
 dren of which he and his wife became the parents are 
 as follows : Warren H., residing in this township, 
 born Dec. 2, 1859, and married to Dora Robinson in 
 the same township; Hattie M., born Oct. 20, 1864, 
 and now the wife of Charles Hart of Cameron ; Myr- 
 tle A., born March n, 1870; while the birth of the 
 youngest child, Laura A., took place Nov. 19, 1870. 
 Mr. Sigafoos was always prominent in his interest in 
 educational matters and discharged the duties of 
 School Director for many years. He was a Repub- 
 lican of strong principles. 
 
 William H. Shaw (father of Mrs. Sigafoos) was 
 born in Hudson, N. Y., Oct. 27, 1802. He was 
 reared to the estate of manhood in his native State 
 and was there married to Adeline Stannard, March 
 5, 1829, who was born in Genesee Co., N. Y., July 
 i, 1811. They located their home in Hartland, in 
 the same county, and were there resident until 1841. 
 In the year previous the husband had come to the 
 West alone to seek a suitable location upon which 
 to found a home. He came by the regular route of 
 public travel to Chicago, whence he came to Warren 
 County on foot. He had exchanged his farm in 
 Hartland, Genesee Co., N. Y., for land in this county 
 and on his way thither he went to Whiteside and 
 Henry Counties. He had made the exchange with- 
 out seeing the property in Illinois, but on looking it 
 over he was entirely satisfied with the bargain he had 
 made, and concluded to make the necessary arrange- 
 ments for the accommodation of his family in War- 
 ren County and establish his home in the place of 
 which he had become the owner. The farm was 
 situated on section 1 1, in the township of Monmouth. 
 There was a log cabin on the farm, of which he took 
 possession and passed the winter on it. During that 
 season he built a frame house for Mr. Talbot. He 
 went back to his old home in the spring for the 
 members of his household, and with them returned 
 to Illinois for a permanent settlement. They reached 
 their home in June. The log house was the abode 
 of the family for a time, when the father erected a 
 more suitable and comfortable home. 
 
 Mr.. Shaw died April 13, 1876, his wife having 
 
 - 
 
464 
 
 WARREN COUNTY 
 
 departed this life July 8, 1872. Their family in- 
 cluded seven children in all. Two only are now 
 living. Flora is the widow of Henry Sigafoos and 
 lives in Spring Grove Township. Henrietta is the 
 wife of Barnej Miller and they reside on the Shaw 
 homestead, in Monmouth Township. A view of the 
 home of Mrs. 'Sigafoos appears on page 450. 
 
 and 
 
 ewton P. Bruington, a resident of Alexis, 
 has retired from the turmoil of an active 
 business life. He is a native citizen of 
 Warren County, having been born in the town- 
 ship of Cold Brook, July 16, 1845. Thomas 
 Bruington, his father, was born in Breckenridge 
 Ky., May 13, 1807. He was the son of James 
 Jane (McGlothlin) Bruington. He was of 
 Scotch-English origin, the mother being of Scotch 
 ^descent 
 
 I Thomas Bruington was reared on the homstead of 
 his parents, in the land of handsome women and 
 '.good horses, and on the 22d day of January, 1822, suc- 
 cumbed to the charms of one of the belles of the 
 Blue-Grass country Miss Jane McGlothlin. She 
 was a native of the same county as her husband and 
 was born Aug. 14, 1809. In 1833, the father, de- 
 termining that there was a broader field wherein to 
 rear his growing family, set out for the State of Illi- 
 nois, traveling with his household in the conveyance 
 common to the journeyings of the pioneers of those 
 days. He owned a pair of oxen and a wagon and 
 by their aid the route was made. The method of op- 
 eration was quite after the gypsy pattern and the 
 journey was not wholly without interest and pleas- 
 ure, notwithstanding its tediousness. The cooking was 
 done by the wayside and the family slept in the wagon. 
 Their destination was Warren Co. and on their arrival 
 they made their first location in Barnett's Grove, in 
 what is now Cold Brook Township. Mr. Bruington 
 took a timber claim and built a log house. He 
 placed the structure in the midst of the timber and 
 split logs to make its roof. He cleared a few acres 
 of timber and held possession of the property there 
 about ten years. On selling out he moved to the prairie 
 
 in the same township and built another log house. 
 This the family occupied a few ye.irs and, as their 
 circumstances improved, they erected a frame house 
 for their accommodation. The father improved an 
 entire section of land. About the year 1856 he de- 
 termined to make another change, and on again sell- 
 ing out, he bought a farm in Kelly Township, or 
 rather a large tract of land in the immediate vicinity 
 of the line of Mercer County. There he erected a 
 house, which was one of the first frame buildings in 
 this locality. There he improved another farm and 
 made the common additions of fruit and shade trees 
 to his estate. This remained the homstead while he 
 lived, until a very short time previous to his death 
 he moved to the property belonging to the lady who 
 became his second wife, in the same township. There 
 he passed the latest years of his life. His demise 
 took place Oct 9, 1882. His first wife died Sept. 18, 
 1849. 1 r ^S9 he was married to Mrs. Annie Goff. 
 She is still living. The issue of the first marriage 
 was nine children, and six are yet living. James is 
 a citizen of Kansas ; John M. lives in Texas. Eliza- 
 beth and Jane are deceased. George is a resident of 
 the township of Cold Brook. Thomas lives in Mer- 
 cer County. Newton P. is the subject proper of this 
 sketch and is a resident of the township already 
 named. Eugene lives in Spring Grove Township, 
 and one child not mentioned. 
 
 Newton P. Bruington passed the years of his boy- 
 hood and youth in his native county ; was reared on 
 the farm and educated in the public schools. In 
 1 8*1 he went to Idaho, crossing the plains with his 
 brother John. They had a mule-train consisting of 
 four animals and a wagon. They set out from War- 
 ren County on the rst day of April, of the year 
 named. They made a halt of a few days in Marshall 
 County, Iowa, and with that single exception pushed 
 on to Omaha without pausing. There they replen- 
 ished their stock of provisions and started from there 
 in the latter part of April. They arrived at their 
 destination about the istot August. Mr. Bruington 
 interested himself in mining and continued that ex- 
 citing and delusive occupation about 18 months. He 
 then commenced packing goods from Umatilla Land- 
 ing to the camps in the mountains. In 1863 he re- 
 turned to Warren County. As soon as he was fairly 
 at home he resumed the occupation of a farmer. In 
 1870 he bought land in North Henderson Township, 
 Mercer County, and devoted himself to the rearingof 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 465 
 
 stock. He was the occupant of the farm in North 
 Henderson Township until 1879, when he sold out 
 and came to Alexis. He bought a suitable residence, 
 which has since been his abode. It is located in 
 that part of Alexis which is situated in Suez Town- 
 ship, Mercer Co. Mr. Bruington is still the proprie- 
 tor of 390 acres in North Henderson Township and 
 also of 50 acres in Kelly Township, in Warren 
 County. His acreage is all in first-class condition 
 for farming, and he rents a part of the land ; the re- 
 mainder is stocked and continues under his manage- 
 ment. He belongs to the I. O. O. F., Alexis Lodge, 
 No. 526. He and his wife are members of the Pres- 
 byterian Church. 
 
 His marriage to Nannie Johnston occurred July 
 13, 1872. Mrs. Bruington was born in Breckenridge 
 Co., Ky., March 30, 1854, and is the daughter of P. 
 W. and Martha (Hayes) Johnston. Her parents 
 were natives of Virginia. On the paternal side she 
 is of English origin. The grandfather came to this 
 country at an early day and settled in Virginia. On 
 the maternal side she comes from old Virginia stock. 
 Blanche and Walter are the names of the children 
 )>- that have been born of her marriage to Mr. Bruing- 
 ton. Blanche was born July 22, 1872; Walter was 
 born Aug. 30, 1878. 
 
 , illiam E. Porter, a member of that well 
 known and highly respected pioneer fam- 
 ily of which Joshua Porter was the head, 
 was born Sept. 16, 1839, and is the third 
 child of Joshua and Mary (Tinkham) Porter, 
 of whom a sketcli is given elsewhere in this 
 volume. William F. was born in what is now Spring 
 Grove Township, where his parents had located as 
 early as ^35. They came from New York, but were 
 both natives of Vermont. They were of the agri- 
 cultural class and were highly esteemed residents of 
 Spring Grove Township until their deaths. 
 
 William E. received his early education in the dis- 
 trict schools of the locality where his parents resided. 
 When not attending school, his boyhood days were 
 spent in assisting his father in his farm work. He 
 first set out in life on his own account upon arriving 
 at the age of 21. His father then gave him a farm 
 
 of 80 acres. He subsequently inherited 40 acres 
 more. He now has a well improved farm of 128 
 acres, which is one among the best farms in Spring 
 Grove Township. 
 
 Upon the 2ist of July,- 1867, Mr. Porter was mar- 
 ried to Martha E., daughter of Paul and Maria 
 Hahn. They were residents of Knox County, 111., 
 where Mrs. Porter was born. Her father was of 
 German parentage and her mother a native of Ken- 
 tucky. As the fruits of their union, Mr. Porter and 
 wife had born to them three daughters Altha May, 
 Edna L. and Kate E. Mrs. Porter died at her res- 
 idence, May 13, 1874. In |x>litics, Mr. Porter has 
 always been a believer in and supporter of the prin- 
 ciples promulgated by the Democratic party. 
 
 ohn Hodgson, one of the prominent young 
 business men of Warren County, carrying on 
 the trade of a merchant in Larchland, is a 
 son of George and Margaret (McKinn) Hodg- ^ 
 son, natives respectively of England and Scot- 
 land. They settled in the latter country, where 
 they died. Their family consisted of eight children, 
 John, our subject, being the sixth in order of birth. 
 
 John Hodgson was born in Scotland, on the zist 
 of June, 1843, and when about 14 years of age came 
 to Canada and there remained about two months. 
 He next came to Buffalo, N. Y., and a year later to 
 Henderson County, this State, remaining in the latter 
 place until his enlistment in the army, which occurred 
 in September, 1861, in Co. K, 361)1 111. Vol. Inf. He 
 served three years without receiving any serious in- 
 juries. Upon his return from the war he located in 
 Warren County and immediately engaged in agricul- 
 tural pursuits, which he continued for about eight 
 years, when he bought out the stock of general 
 merch indise where he is at present located, in com- 
 pany with John M. Young, the latter gentleman sell- 
 ing out his interest in 1877; and Mr. Hodgson at 
 present conducts the entire business. He has an 
 excellent trade and it is constantly increasing. Mr. 
 H. has been Postmaster of Larchland for nearly 1 1 
 years. 
 
 His first marriage was celebrated on the 241)1 of 
 December, 1865, in Monmouth, the other contract- 
 
 x- 
 
 t 
 
4 66 
 
 WAKREW CO UNTY. 
 
 ing party being Mary F. Stormont. They became 
 the parents of one child, who died in infancy, and 
 Mrs. Hodgson's demise occurred near Kirkwood 
 about ten months after her marriage. Mr. Hodgson 
 was again married Sept 5, 1872, near Kirkwood, to 
 Ella S. Moore, who was born in Warren County, 
 Dec. 23, 1845. Of the latter union nine children 
 have been born Robert R.., Horace J., Margie M., 
 Ada M., Minnie E., John, Willie, George and one 
 who died in infancy. Mr. H. has been Township 
 Clerk, Justice of the Peace and held other minor 
 offices within the gift of the people of the community 
 in which he resides. Himself and wife are members 
 of the Methodist Protestant Church, and politically 
 Mr. H. affiliates with the Prohibition party. 
 
 . ames S. Byner, a resident on section 21, 
 Spring Grove Township, became an inhab- 
 itant of Warren County in 1838, when he 
 was ten years of age. Jacob Ryner, his father, 
 was born in Montgomery Co., Pa., where he 
 married Rachel Spencer, In the paternal line 
 the family is of German origin and on the other side 
 it is of English extraction. The grandfather of 
 Jacob Ryner was born in Germany. The wife of the 
 latter was a daughter of a Revolutionary soldier. 
 In 1829, Jacob Ryner removed with his wife and 
 children to the State of New York. He passed four 
 years in the State trying to find what he considered 
 a suitable place for a permanent location, and event- 
 ually removed to Lorain Co., Ohio. The family re- 
 mained there until 1*838, when the transfer to Warren 
 County was made. The elder Ryner was well-to-do 
 and he came to Illinois with a couple of two-horse 
 teams and two wagons, and they journeyed all the 
 intervening distance with their aid. They drove a 
 small red cow which supplied the necessary ac- 
 companiment to the corn mush which formed the 
 principal part of the daily bill of fare. After a jour- 
 ney lasting nearly two months they arrived in War- 
 ren County. The father at first rented land of Ban- 
 nister Gates, in Monmouth Tp., and in this manner 
 continued to operate three years. In 1841 he bought 
 a farm of a man named Talbot which was located on 
 
 section i in the same township. This was the home- 
 stead until the death of the father, when 80 acres 
 had been improved. The mother is still living. She 
 has borne 1 1 children, nine of whom still survive : 
 Spencer resides in Alexis. Daniel is a citizen of 
 Wayne Co., Iowa. Josiah lives in Cold Brook Town- 
 ship. Jonathan is a resident of Clinton Co., Iowa. 
 Emmeline married Ethan Cox, of Independence, Ore- 
 gon. James S. is the next in order of birth. Henry 
 lives in Clinton Co., Iowa. Jacob resides on the 
 homestead. Eliza is married to Edward Morrow, of 
 Nebraska. About the year 1845, the parents, Mr. 
 and Mrs. Jacob Ryner, went to Philadelphia on a 
 visit. They journeyed with their own team, making 
 the entire trip with horses and a lumber wagon. 
 They started in August and returned to their home 
 in Warren County in November of the same year. 
 
 Mr. Ryner, of this sketch, was in the first year of 
 his life when his parents removed to New York, and 
 was a small lad when the transfer of the family was 
 made to Ohio. After their removal to Warren County ' 
 he remained with them until 1852, when he joined a' 
 party whose purpose it was to cross the country to 
 the Pacific coast. He drove an ox-team to Oregon, t 
 and arrived there after five months of travel. He "^ 
 remained there two years, and during the time was 
 engaged in farming. In 1854 he started for another 
 overland journey with packed mult across the 
 plains toward the scenes of his early childhood. 
 
 Sept. 14, 1854, he was married to Mary E. Wal- 
 lace. She was born in Kentucky. After their mar- 
 riage they located in Cold Brook Township. They 
 maintained a residence there for i ?. years when they 
 sold their property preparatory to a removal to 
 Monmouth Township. Mr. Ryner bought a farm 
 there on which he was the resident owner two years. 
 He sold out again and went to Iowa and bought a 
 farm in Wayne County. After a residence of six 
 years in the Hawkeye State he returned for a per- 
 manent location to Warren County. He bought a 
 farm of satisfactory location, upon which he is now 
 living. It is in good agricultural condition and is 
 well supplied with farm buildings. 
 
 Mr. Ryner's wife died in July, 1859, leaving two 
 sons, George and Charles. He was subsequently 
 married, Oct. 29, 1859, to Mary E. Gordon, the 
 daughter of William S. and Anna (Wilson) Gordon. 
 The former was a native of Washington Co., Ky., 
 and a son of Rev. Joel and Nancy Gordon. Rev. 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 469 
 
 Joel Gordon was a native of Scotland, and at a very 
 early day emigrated to the United States, and settled 
 in Kentucky, where he lived until his death. He 
 was a minister of the Baptist Church, yet was the 
 owner of slaves. He reared a large family, and his 
 son, William S., became a planter. He married and 
 reared a family often children, of whom Mrs. Ryner 
 was the fourth child. All of the children are living, 
 married, and have families. The following is the 
 record. Elizabeth J., wife of William White, of Stark 
 Co., 111.; Joel W. lives in Oregon; Nancy A., wife 
 of George Taylor, of Harrison Co., Mo. ; Carrie, wife 
 of James Bryner ; Lucinda B., wife of John Gowings, 
 of Burke Co., Iowa ; Melinda, married Milton Bryner, 
 of Warren Co., 111.; Harriet is the wife of Peter 
 Conniff, a resident of Ford Co., 111. ; Joseph lives in 
 Benton Co., Iowa, and John near Youngstown, this 
 County. 
 
 Mrs. Ryner was born Aug. 4, 1838, in McDonough 
 Co., 111., where her parents moved several years be- 
 fore and settled on a farm. Her father and mother 
 were both members of the Christian Church. In 
 politics the former was a Whig in early life, but later 
 became a Republican. He subsequently moved to 
 Cold Brook Township, this county, where his death 
 occurred in the autumn of 1859. His widow now 
 lives with her daughter, Mrs. Carrie Bryner, a twin 
 sister of Mrs. Ryner, at Mt. Auburn, Iowa. Nellie, 
 Eugene, Laura and Ollie are the names of the chil- 
 dren of the household of Mr. and Mrs. Ryner. Nel- 
 lie married Adamson Shriver, and lives in Wayne 
 Co., Iowa. They have one son, Carl. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Ryner are members of the Christian Church *at 
 Gerlaw, and in politics Mr. R. is a staunch Demo- 
 crat. 
 
 ^urney Jones. Among the energetic and 
 IJjlJllE successful farmers of Warren County, is 
 (JpF^' Mr. Furney Jones, who resides on section 
 ?|s 34, Tompkins Township. He was born in 
 yj^ Washington Co., Virginia, on the 131)1 of 
 I April, 1846, his parents being Calvin and Re- 
 becca (McQuown) Jones, natives of the same county 
 and State as their son. They came to the State of 
 Illinois and settled in Henderson County, {111854, 
 where they rented land, on which they remained, 
 cultivating and improving the same for four years. 
 They then came to Tompkins Township, this county, 
 
 where, in 1860, he purchased 80 acres on section 26, 
 which, after living on for six years, he sold and 
 bought land on section 34, to the amount of 160 
 acres, where they still reside. 
 
 Furney Jones, our subject, has always resided 
 with his parents, and now owns 120 acres of the 
 original purchase, and also has 80 acres in Ellison 
 Township. He has all of his land in an advanced 
 state of cultivation, and is well equipped with farm 
 implements. Mr. Jones was married in 1877, to Miss 
 Ellen J., a native of Pennsylvania, and daughter of 
 Peter and Henrietta M. (Habliston) Mundorff. They 
 were natives of the Keystone State, and are at pres- 
 ent settled in Tompkins Township, having come to 
 Illinois in 1858. Mr. and Mrs. Jones' family com- 
 prises four children. Calvin O., Roscoe D., Henrietta 
 and Fanny O. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Jones is a Republican, and belongs, 
 with his wife, to the Methodist Protestant Church. 
 He has served his township as Assessor and School 
 Director, and is one of Warren County's most sub- : 
 stantial and leading men. 
 
 ,r. A. G. Vanhoorebeke, one of the most 
 extensive and widely known importers of 
 French draft horses in America, as well as 
 a distinguished breeder of the famous Bou- 
 lonnais horses, and a veterinarian of wide repu- 
 tation, is a native of France. He was born at 
 Ghent, capital of the French Flanders, Sept. 23, 
 1808. His father, Lucas Pierre Vanhoorebeke, 
 was for over a half century Receiver of Revenues 
 and Customs for the French Government in Bel- 
 gium, and afterward held the same position some 
 years under the Belgium Government. 
 
 The Vanhoorebeke family is one of the oldest in 
 Belgium. They can trace their genealogy back to 
 the 1 3th century, and many of its members have 
 held honorable positions under the Belgium Govern- 
 ment. Ferdinand Vanhoorebeke, brother of Dr. A. 
 G, was a distinguished and most honored lawyer at 
 the court of appeal at Ghent, Belgium, and his 
 cousin, Emile Vanhoorebeke, was also a lawyer and 
 member of the Belgium cabinet in capacity of Secre- 
 taty of Public Works till the time of his death, in 
 1870. Several of the Vanhoorebeke family yet oc- 
 cupy honorable and confidential positions. 
 
47 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Dr. Adolph Gustav Vanhoorebeke was second in 
 the family of four sons, and at the institutions of 
 learning in his native country received a thorough 
 education in the French and Flemish languages. At 
 'he age of 25 he entered the renowned Veterinary 
 College of Utrecht, Holland. From that institution 
 he graduated with distinguished honors in 1831, and 
 immediately afterward entered the French army as a 
 veterinary surgeon, in which capacity he faithfully 
 and honorably served his country for ten consecu- 
 tive years. During this period of his life he traveled 
 all over Continental Europe and carefully studied 
 all the various breeds of horses known to that part 
 of the globe. 
 
 In 1841, he quit the army and located in Antwerp, 
 Belgium, where, for the space of nearly 20 years, he 
 practiced his profession with marked success, and at 
 the same time gave special attention to the heavy 
 equine stocks that are bred in the Netherlands and 
 in Northern France. But being a liberal in his re- 
 
 fligious notions, Dr. Vanhoorebeke became a victim 
 of pious persecution, and having been arrested for 
 
 1 expressing views antagonistic to the dominant Bel- 
 giac theology, he resolved to go where he could 
 breathe the air of freedom and enjoy the right of free 
 speech. It was in the year 1860 Dr. Vanhoorebeke 
 sailed from Europe to the United States and settled 
 in Illinois. Here, in the very heart of the virgin 
 West, he found an ample field for the employment of 
 his rare attainments in veterinary science and his 
 thorough knowledge of the horses of Europe. 
 Throughout a broad area of rich and rapidly grow- 
 ing country, he had not a single competitor, nor has 
 he to this day. His splendid abilities, his vnried 
 experience were, at all points of the compass, in 
 supreme request. It was not long, however, till the 
 growing demand for powerful freight teams in this 
 country literally compelled him to subordinate the 
 practice of his chosen profession to the work of an 
 importer, and in 1865 he brought from France the 
 premium draft stallions Hercules and Lucifer. The 
 former of these was a Boulonnais of bay livery ; the 
 latter was an Anglo-Boulonnais of black livery. Both 
 of them had brilliant reputations as breeders in 
 Europe, and they have fully maintained it in Amer- 
 ica. To the Doctor, therefore, rightfully and un- 
 questionably belongs the honor of being the first 
 importer who ever brought heavy horses directly 
 from France to Illinois. J. W. Edwards, who was a 
 
 co-operator with James A. Perry, made, in 1868, the 
 second importation from France to Illinois, which 
 importation consisted of Success and French Emp- 
 eror. The latter animal soon died and Mark W. 
 Dunham is the present owner of the former. 
 
 E. Dillon & Co. made the third importation from 
 France to Illinois, and Mark W. Dunham, in 1872, 
 made the fourth importation from France to Illinois. 
 
 It will thus be seen that it is certainly meet that 
 Dr. Vanhoorebeke should have been the pioneer im- 
 porter and breeder of French draught horses in 
 Suckerdom ; for it is perfectly safe to say that he 
 knows vastly more about those animals than any 
 other horseman in the United States. For nearly 
 50 straightforward years, he made a close, intelli- 
 gent study of the powerful equine motors of France 
 and the Netherlands, right in the regions where they 
 originated, and where the very best specimens of 
 them have always been produced. He published 
 several books on the subject, having in view the im- 
 provement of this useful breed of horses, and has 
 without any doubt been one of the most active con- 
 tributors to the desired result. Any man at all 
 acquainted with the history of French heavy horses 
 knows that the most ex .client of them are ever to 
 be found in Bologne and French Flanders. So say 
 Moll, Magne, Gayot, Lefour, and all other standard 
 authorities of France. Dr. Vanhoorebeke, being 
 himself a French veterinarian, who always ranked in 
 Europe with the great authors just named, and hav- 
 ing an experimental knowledge of more than 
 half a century's careful observation and comparison 
 in the field of French horse production may, without 
 egotism, claim to be a full head and shoulders above 
 all other men in America, who are now or ever have 
 been engaged in the introduction of the draught blood 
 of France into the United States, and his residence 
 in Illinois is an honor to the State. 
 
 While yet he was at New Boston, he imported, in 
 1868, Brilliant, a Boulonnais bay; Pakolet, a Bou- 
 lounnais bay; ard Leon, a Boulonnais gray. All 
 these were prize breeders in France, having received 
 both first and second premiums of the French Gov- 
 ernment. 
 
 In 1869, he moved to Monmouth, where he soon 
 obtained the confidence of the best men of that 
 section of the country, who seeing the usefulness of 
 his enterprise patronized his work. Here he en- 
 tered fully upon that career of importing and breed- 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 47' 
 
 ing which will constitute one of the brightest and 
 most indelible pages of the agricultural history of the 
 West. Almost every year since he located in Mon- 
 mouth he has made an importation from France, 
 having brought the last one in 1880. It has ever 
 been his motto not to excel in numbers but in qual- 
 ity. That motto he has abundantly verified. He 
 has never dazzled the American eye with his scores 
 or his hundreds at one draw, but he has imported to 
 the United States more horses that have stood A 
 No. i in France than have all his competitors put 
 together. Of the 85 stallions (all either pure Bou- 
 lonnais or Belgium Boulonnais) which he has brought 
 over, every one of them was a prize animal most of 
 them first-prize animals in the land of their na- 
 tivity. Many of his imported horses were awarded 
 prizes at the great expositions of Paris, 1878, Lon- 
 don, 1879; Amsterdam, 1883, and Antwerp in 1885. 
 These horses were the very cream of the Boulonnais 
 (the horses of Bologne), and the Boulonnais are the 
 very cream of French draught animals, if the ac- 
 knowledged equine standards of France may be pre- 
 sumed to know anything upon the subject. 
 
 Dr. Vanhoorebeke has now 40 head of his cele- 
 brated horses at his beautiful place in the environs 
 of Monmouth. Since engaging as an importer of 
 these anin als, he has crossed the Atlantic Ocean 49 
 times. 
 
 He was first married in his native country, when 
 about 35 years of age, to Hortense Adelaide Wouwer- 
 mans, who died in 1855, leaving four children, one 
 of whom, a son, has since died; another, a daughter, 
 is in Europe, and two are now living in the United 
 States. At Kingston, Mo., the Doctor was again 
 married, Aug. 18, 1866, to Mmle. Henriette Biart, a 
 highly educated and accomplished young lady, native 
 of Belgium, and daughter of French parents. Their 
 three children are named respectively, Adolphe, 
 Florence and Alida. Adolphe has been attending 
 school in France for the past four years, but is now 
 a student at Monmouth College. 
 
 Mrs. Vanhoorebeke was born at Antwerp, Jan. 
 28, 1849, and belongs also to a distinguished family 
 whose several members occupy high and honorable 
 positions. Mr. Constant Biart, the cousin of Mrs. 
 A. G. Vanhoorebeke, is a learned lawyer, a Senator, 
 and President of the aim houses and orphan asy- 
 lums at Antwerp, Belgium, and is much honored ; 
 and many of this family occupy in France and Bel- 
 
 gium places of honor and distinction. Mrs. Van- 
 hoorebeke was the third in order of birth of a 
 family of ten children. Her parents came to this 
 country in 1864, and settled in Iowa, where they re- 
 mained about a year. They then came to this 
 State, and after a stay of two years moved to Kan- 
 sas, where they remained one year and then re- 
 turned to Europe. After remaining in the land of 
 their nativity for a period of two years, they again 
 set sail for America. Since then the family have j 
 resided in various places in this country, and at this 
 writing (January, r886) the father is in California ' 
 with one of his sons, Victor, who is a surgeon in the ! 
 regular army, but now on a leave of absence. Dr. 
 Biart is a graduate of the St Ix>uis Medical College. 
 The mother of Mrs. Vanhoorebeke is of Holland ex- j 
 traction and is now living in Omaha with one of her 
 daughters. Of the ten children born to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Biart, four are deceased. Of the others, Celina 
 married Herman Hoffman and resides in Leaven- 
 worth, Kan. ; Hortense married Joseph Haag, and, 
 also lives at that place; Charlotte married Dr. 
 Charles Biart and resides in Omaha; Henry is now 
 living at Honolulu, Sandwich Islands. 
 
 Dr. Vanhoorebeke, as we see, is a believer in orig- 
 nal qualities, and has in every circumstance applied 
 this immutable principle. 
 
 The portrait of Dr. Vanhooreb.eke, appearing on a 
 preceding page, will be welcomed by the patrons of 
 the Warren County ALBUM with as much satisfac- 
 tion as the publishers experience in adding it to the 
 unexceotional collection presented in this \vork. 
 
 . 
 
 _dward L. Blodgett, a farmer of this 
 county, having a good title to 280 acres 
 of land, located on sections 4 and 9, Hale 
 2y- Township, where he resides and is engaged in 
 its cultivation, was born in Orleans County, N. 
 J Y., Feb. 4, 1834. He received a common 
 school education in Indiana, his parents having re- 
 moved to that State when he was but six years of 
 age. In the latter State, Edward L. lived, labored 
 and developed into manhood. One year after at- 
 taining his majority, in 1856, he came to this State, 
 
 
472 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 locating in Henderson County, where he resided for 
 upwards of a year, engaged in farming, then return- 
 ed to Indiana. Two years he remained in the Hoos- 
 ier State, and in the spring of 1860 came back to 
 Illinois, this time locating in Warren County. 
 
 On coming to this county, Mr. Blodgett worked 
 out for about four years, when he settled in Hale 
 Township. He was a soldier in the late civil war, 
 having enlisted Feb. 20, 1864, in the Tenth 111. Vet. 
 Inf., and served his country for about 18 months. 
 He was engaged in all the battles in which his com- 
 pany took part, participating in the grand review at 
 Washington; was with Sherman in his march to the 
 sea, and received an honorable discharge at the 
 close of the war. He then returned to Warren 
 County, and engaged in the vocation of agriculture, 
 and has lived here following that occupation until 
 the present time. The major portion of his land is 
 under an advanced state of cultivation. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Blodgett dates July 3, 1866, 
 
 at which time, -in Henderson County, Miss Dolly 
 Vanwinkle became his wife. She was born in Jeffer- 
 son Co., Iowa, and has borne her husband eight 
 
 > children, whose names are recorded as follows : 
 
 .Wilson M., Joseph R., Margaret, Mary B., Edward 
 L., Clara, James A. and Emma. 
 Mrs. Blodgett is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church, and her husband politically is a be- 
 liever in and a supporter of the principles advocated 
 by the Republican party. 
 
 leri Rodgers Graham, M. D., a medical 
 practitioner at Little York, was born in the 
 township of Hale, in Warren County, Aug. 
 24, 1854. His parents are pioneers of the 
 township where he was born, and are John 
 R. and Mary (Rodgers) Graham. 
 Dr. Graham obtained a good common-school edu- 
 cation as a foundation, in his boyhood, and after- 
 wards attended Monmouth Academy one year. In 
 1878, he commenced the study of medicine under 
 the preceptorship of the medical firm of Hamilton, 
 Marshall & Holliday, at Monmouth. After leaving 
 their office, he matriculated at Rush Medical College 
 
 in Chicago, and took his degree as M. D. at that 
 institution in 1881. 
 
 He inaugurated his careeer as a physician and 
 surgeon at Cameron, in his native county, and oper- 
 ated there two years. Since 1883, he has prosecuted 
 the business of his profession at Little York. He is 
 building up a popular and prosperous practice, and 
 his thorough preparation for the responsibilities of 
 the calling to which he has devoted his life, is fast 
 winning for him the confidence of a substantial pat- 
 ronage. 
 
 In political belief and relations, Dr. Graham is a 
 Democrat. 
 
 The marriage of Dr. Graham to Miss Emma 
 Alcock, was celebrated Feb. 14, 1880. They have 
 one child, named Frederick. The mother was born 
 in Suffolkshire, England. The Doctor and his wife 
 are members of the United Presbyterian Church. 
 
 'ohm Coddington, holding a good title to 
 200 acres of A No. i land, located on sec- ! 
 tion 15, Berwick Township, where he re- 
 sides and is engaged in the vocation of an 
 agriculturist, was born in Warren County, Ohio, 
 Aug. 9, 1828. He is a son of Win. Codding- 
 ton, born in the State of Maryland, and who married 
 Miss Naoma Ervin. She died in 1828, after having 
 borne her husband nine children Anner, Polly, 
 Sarah, Angeline, Eliza, Benjamin, Samuel, James and 
 John. 
 
 John Coddington, the subject of this notice, was 
 married to Miss Emily Whitman, in 1851,111 this 
 State. She was born in Warren County, Dec. 23, 
 1834, and was the daughter of VVm. Whitman, a 
 pioneer settler of this county. She died March 30, 
 1880, and of her union with Mr. Coddington the fol- 
 lowing children were born: Naoma, March 17, 1852 ; 
 Wm. C., Aug. 9, 1854; Harriet A., Nov. 12, 1856; 
 Ella M., Oct. 7, 1858; Etta, March i, 1860; Elmer 
 E., Jan. 6, 1862 ; Mattie, March 25, 1866; Frank B., 
 Aug. 23, 1869; Cora B., July 22, 1872. Three of 
 whom are deceased, namely : Naoma, who died April 
 20, 1854; Wm. C., July 31, 1855, and Harriet A., 
 Sept. 29, 1857. 
 
 The second marriage of Mr. Coddington occurred 
 
RESIDENCE OF M . S. REES , SEC. 32., KELLY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 RESIDENCEOF AARON YARDE, ALEXIS. 
 

WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 47S 
 
 April 26, 1883, at which time Mrs. Julia Williams, 
 born Jan. 9, 1850, became his wife. They have one 
 child, Roy, born April 19, 1884. 
 
 Mr. Coddington is pleasantly situated on a fine farm 
 of 200 acres, and he has the same under an advanced 
 state of cultivation. On the place is a good resi- 
 dence, two stories in height, surrounded by good sub- 
 stantial outbuildings. In addition to the cultivation 
 of his land, Mr. Coddington is devoting considerable 
 of his time to the raising of fine stock, his specialty 
 being the Short-horn, of which he has 27 head ; and 
 in the raising of fine horses, his specialty is the Nor- 
 man. 
 
 He and his wife are members of the Christian 
 Church, and in politics Mr. Coddington votes with 
 the Republican party. 
 
 aron Yarde, a well-known and highly re- 
 spected resident of Alexis, is a pioneer of 
 Warren County of 1847. He is a native of 
 Somersetshire, England, and was born Nov. 
 n, 1810. His father was a farmer and he 
 was brought up on the same place where his 
 ancestors had lived for many years. He was the 
 second in order of birth of a family of five children, 
 namely: John, who was married to Mary A. Cle- 
 ment, a native of Somersetshire, England, and the 
 mother of four children ; Mary A. became the wife of 
 Isaac Hooper, and was the mother of eight children ; 
 she is now deceased. Moses died at the age of 23 
 years; Daniel resides in his native place and is 
 married to Miss Mary Rowlaud. They have a family 
 of nine children. 
 
 The maiden name of Mr. Yarde's mother was Ann 
 Cousins, who was the daughter of Bartholomew and 
 Mary (Hawkins) Cousins, both of whom were born 
 in 1778. The father died when Aaron was 17 years 
 old, and he was then at liberty to choose a business 
 in which he hoped to do better than as a farmer. He 
 apprenticed himself to learn the trade of a stone- 
 cutter and a general stone-mason, and followed that 
 business 12 years, in his native shire. After that, 
 until 1843, he was occupied in farming. In April of 
 the year named he sailed for this country. He 
 
 was accompanied by his wife and five children, and 
 the family took passage from Plymouth. They 
 crossed the ocean in a merchant vessel and landed 
 at the port of New York after a voyage of six weeks. 
 From New York they went direct to Geauga Co., 
 Ohio. Mr. Yarde bought a farm of 45 acres at the 
 rate of $8.50 per acre. About one-third was under 
 the plow, and the remainder was not cleared of the 
 natural forest. Mr. Yarde built a small frame house 
 sufficient for the accommodation of his household 
 and proceeded to the work of removing the forest 
 growth. He cleared 15 acres. In the spring of 
 1847 ne ^d hi s place for $ro an acre. While he 
 lived there, in addition to the work of clearing the 
 acreage mentioned, he had been engaged in work at 
 his trade also. After making sale of his land he 
 came to Warren County. He bought 80 acres of 
 land on section 3, on what was then designated Town- 
 ship 12, and is now named Kelly Township. The 
 whole place was entirely without improvements and 
 the proprietor proceeded first of all to erect a struc- 
 ture for the shelter of his family. He built a small 
 log house and stables, and broke and fenced 25 acres. 
 He retained the ownership of the place until 1850, 
 when he sold out and bought a farm on section 10, 
 in the same township. It had been "improved to 
 some extent, a frame house had been built on it, and 
 it was all fenced. Mr. Yarde built a good barn and 
 other farm-buildings and planted fruit and shade 
 trees. The place contained 160 acres, and at trie 
 time he determined to sell it, it was in an excellent 
 condition for profitable operations. 
 
 In 1872 Mr. Yarde came to Alexis and took pos- 
 session of the residence which is now occupied by 
 his family. He is still an extensive landholder and 
 the proprietor of a farm comprising 160 acres in 
 Mercer County, situated two and a half miles from 
 the village of Alexis. He also owns 17 acres of valu- 
 able land adjoining the place where he resides. 
 
 Mr. Yarde was married May 7, 1835, to Charlotte 
 Cousins. She was the daughter of Bartholomew and 
 Jane (Sweet) Cousins, and a native of Somersetshire. 
 England. She was born Nov. 12, 1806. Of the 
 eight children of whom they became the parents, six 
 are yet living. Caroline H. is married to John M. 
 Richardson, now deceased. She resides in Iowa 
 and has seven children. Jessie, the widow of Charles 
 Pine, resides in Kelly Township, and has a family 
 of six children. Lucy is the wife of Isaac R. Greene, 
 
-* 
 
 47 6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 " 
 
 of Galesburg, 111., and has a family of seven chil- 
 dren. Albert lives in Kelly Township, on the old 
 farm and was married to Eliza Lyddon ; they have five 
 children. Charlotte is married to B. F. Gilmore, of 
 Nodaway Co., Mo. Charles F. P. is a citizen of 
 Alexis, and a sketch of his business relations appears 
 on another page. Mrs. Yarde died Oct. 6, 1870, on 
 the old homestead in Kelly Township. Mr. Yarde 
 contracted marriage a second time with Patience M. 
 (Fraber) Allen, March 7, 1872. They were married 
 in Knox Co.,111. She was the widow of Nelson 
 Allen. Mrs. Yarde is a native of Saratoga Co., N. 
 Y., where she was born July 4, 7810. She is the 
 daughter of Jacob and Rebecca (Herrick) Fraber; 
 the former was a native of Germany and came to this 
 country when quite young. The mother was born 
 in New York, of English ancestry. Mrs. Yarde was 
 the mother of three children by her first husband, 
 all of whom died in infancy. She has a great fond- 
 ness for children, and has reared no less than five, 
 whom she has taken by adoption. 
 
 Among the many views of residences given in the 
 pictorial department of this ALBUM may be found 
 that of Mr. Yarde on page 474. 
 
 Joseph W. Vorwick. The only manufac- 
 turer of the Vorwick celebrated road-cart 
 is located at Monmouth, where he began 
 in a limited way to operate a shop upon his 
 own responsibility in 1879. He first opened 
 out as a repairer of all sorts of vehicles, his 
 capital consisting of his strength and skill, but from 
 the very beginning, almost, the capacity of his shop 
 showed increasing business, until he now stands at 
 the head as a manufacturer in his line in this coun- 
 try. 
 
 The patent of Mr. Vorwick, being an anti-horse 
 motion road-cart, is the nearest a perfect success 
 that has ever been reached in that most useful and 
 economical of all vehicles. Mr. Vorwick was born 
 at Fort Madison, Iowa, Feb. i. 1849, and was the 
 eldest of five sons born to Joseph and Elizabeth Vor- 
 wick, natives of Germany. He was schooled at Fort 
 Madison and Burlington, Iowa, and at the latter 
 
 place, when about 1 6 years of age, began the trade 
 of carriage painter, which he perfected at Galesburg, 
 III , some ihree years later. From 21 to 29 years of 
 age, Mr. Vorwick did "jour" work through the vari- 
 ous cities of the country, and in 1875 planted him- 
 self at Monmouth, with the determination to man a 
 shop of his own by the time he should arrive at the 
 age of 30 years. That he succeeded has already ap- 
 peared. In addition to the Vorwick Road-Cart, he 
 manufactures all sorts of first class carriages and 
 buggies, and the truth compels us to place his name 
 in the ALBUM as the representative man, in his line, 
 at the city of Monmouth. 
 
 Mr. Vorwick was married at Monmouth, in 1876, 
 to Miss Jennie Eilenberger, daughter of Daniel Eil- 
 enberger, who died while a soldier in the Union 
 army. Mr. and Mrs. Vorwick have two children 
 Ida and Maudie. 
 
 [illiam S. Paxton, a pioneer carpenter, 
 contractor and builder, at Monmouth, was 
 born at Rock Bridge Co., Va., Dec. 22, 
 i8n. His fathe-, William Paxton, was a 
 native of Pennsylvania, and of Scotch- 
 Irish ancestry. His mother, Margaret 
 (Struthers) Paxton, was born in Scotland. The sen- 
 ior William Paxton was a farmer, and brought his 
 four sons up to that occupation. The family removed 
 from Virginia to Ohio in 1812, and resided there up 
 to 1831, at which time they came to Monmouth, set- 
 tling soon afterward on a farm six miles northwest 
 from town, where the old gentleman died in March, 
 1 86 1, in the 82d year of his age. His wife died 
 in 1845, vv hen about 62 years of age. 
 
 William S. Paxton received a fair education at 
 Xenia, Ohio, and from 16 up to 18 years of age, 
 worked at milling. He then learned the carpenter's 
 trade and followed it almost without interruption un- 
 til 1854. Since the latter date he has been engaged 
 in wagon making. As a carpenter and contractor he 
 erected the first court house in Warren County, 
 and roofed the first hotel. He returned to Ohio, in 
 1854, and lived in Erie County ten years. While 
 there he enlisted in the Third Ohio Cavalry, but be- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 477 
 
 fore muster was disabled by falling off his horse, and 
 consequently saw no service in the war. 
 
 The subject of our sketch was married in Erie 
 County, Ohio, to Almira Harrison, who was born in 
 Amsterdam, Montgomery Co., N. Y., April 7, 1815, 
 and their only child, a daughter, Ella, is now (Octo- 
 ber, 1885) an accomplished teacher in the public 
 schools of Nebraska. 
 
 Mr. Paxton has long been a member of the Pres- 
 byterian Church. Was an old line Whig, from the 
 the funeral of which party he joined the Republican 
 procession. 
 
 It will be seen by the date of his arrival here, that 
 he was indeed an early settler, and he probably had 
 more to do with the very inception of the town of 
 Monmouth than any other man living. In fact his 
 brother and F. B. Talbot, now living in Iowa, broke the 
 first ground for the erection of the first building at 
 this place. We should not forget to mention that he 
 was Adjutant of the First Warren County regiment 
 of Illinois Militia, in r834, and was connected with 
 the organization until it was disbanded. 
 
 >rs. Mary Osborn is a pioneer of Warren 
 County, and is one of the oldest living of 
 v the early settlers of Sumner Township. She 
 was born in Gallia Co., Ohio, Oct. 5, 1810, 
 and is the daughter of Daniel and Annie 
 (Thorp) Moler. She is the daughter of pioneer 
 parents, who located in the earliest period in the 
 county in which she was born, and they lived there 
 until 1825. In that year they went to Indiana and 
 located about six miles from La Fayette. There 
 their daughter was married to James Moffit. Their 
 union took place Oct. 16, 1828. Her husband was 
 born in the vicinity of Zanesville, in the Buckeye 
 State. They lived in Indiana until the fall of 1832, 
 and started thence for Illinois with an ox-team. They 
 had at that time two children. They took with them 
 the machinery for housekeeping and performed all 
 the duties relating to the business of living on the 
 route. When they arrived at the Illinois River, on 
 their way, they determined to pitch their tent there 
 for the winter. They moved into a vacant log house 
 
 and when the spring opened they again yoked their 
 oxen and pushed forward to Warren County. Mr. 
 Moffit made a claim on the northwest quarter of sec- 
 tion 19, in the (then) township 12, now Sumner 
 Township. He proceeded to cut logs, and built a 
 shelter of the primitive kind, common to pioneers. 
 They were well off for cows, having driven three from 
 Indiana. These furnished a good portion of their 
 living while on the road and after their arrival at the 
 places where they took up their abode. 
 
 On the 8th day of June, 1832, Mr. Moffit suddenly 
 died. In the midst of the newly made widow's dis- 
 tress, the Indian difficulties that preceded the out- 
 break of the Black Hawk War made it necessary to 
 put aside every other consideration. A block-house 
 was erected for the protection of the settlers and for 
 some time the women and children were kept in it 
 for safety, while the men were in the fields. They 
 were there when the murder of William Martin oc- 
 curred, and saw the savages when they rushed from 
 the field where their victim had been at work, bear- 
 ing aloft the scalp. Mrs. Moffit was terrified and 
 took one of her children in her arms and fled into 
 an adjoining corn field. Her sister took the other 
 and followed her. They ran into a field of buck- 
 wheat, where they laid down. They were in terror 
 lest the children should cry out and reveal their hid- 
 ing place. But the little ones kept still, and when 
 the other men of the settlement returned from the 
 fields they went back to the block-house. 
 
 Many of the women remained in the block-house 
 until the termination of the Black Hawk War, and 
 the defeat of the haughty chief who instigated it 
 converted the Indians into fiends and made them 
 subservient to the whites for personal considerations. 
 Mrs. Osborn remained in the block-house until the 
 fall of the year, when she again took possession of 
 her cabin home. She was its occupant until her 
 second marriage, but the land was managed by rent- 
 ers. 
 
 Aug. 21, 1834, she became the wife of John C. 
 Osborn. He was born in North Carolina, Mar. 30, 
 1804. He passed the early years of his life there, 
 and was married while he remained in the State of 
 his nativity. His first wife survived her marriage but 
 a short time. In 1 832 he came to Warren County. 
 He made his first location near Monmouth. When 
 he married his second wife he became the manager 
 of her estate and continued to attend to its interests 
 
 : 
 
478 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 until his death. Under his care it greatly increased 
 in value and he erected a fine set of farm buildings 
 on it. He died March 18, 1874. 
 
 The children of Mrs. Osborn by her first husband 
 are both deceased. George P., Permelia A., Mary 
 Jane, John M., Sarah E and Maria are the names 
 of those who were born of the second marriage. The 
 oldest is the manager of the homestead of his mother 
 
 iilliam A. Mitchell. Among the promi- 
 nent citizens of Hale Township, as well as 
 successful farmers, we place the name of 
 William A. Mitchell. He has a clear title 
 to 240 acres of good farm land, in an ad- 
 vanced state of cultivation, located on section 
 3, Hale Township, where he is engaged in the voca- 
 tion of his life. He is a native of Ohio, having been 
 born in Greene County, that State, July 13, 1838. 
 
 When William A. Mitchell was about five years of 
 age, his parents moved to this county, and here, in 
 the public schools, he received his education, alter- 
 nating his studies therein with labor on the farm. 
 We say his education was acquired in the public 
 schools, but it was only the rudimentary portion of 
 the same, for he supplemented it by a course of two 
 years' study at Monmouth College. 
 
 Soon after the Southern States had seceded and 
 had demonstrated their intent,.by firing on Sumter, 
 and President Lincoln had called for troops to aid in 
 the perpetuity of the Union, Mr. Mitchell responded. 
 He enlisted in August, 1861, in the 361)1 111. Vol. 
 Inf., and for four years and three months did valiant 
 service in the Union Army. He enlisted as a pri- 
 vate in Co. C, and was promoted to Second Lieu- 
 tenant of the same company. After participating in 
 all the battles in which his regiment engaged, Mr. 
 M. was mustered out of service at New Orleans, 
 Oct. 8, 1865, whereupon he returned to this county, 
 entered upon the peaceful pursuits of a farmer and 
 has continued to reside here until the present time. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Mitchell to Miss Sarah E. 
 Caldwell, was solemnized in Sumner Township, 
 March 8, 1866. Mrs. Mitchell was born in the 
 township in which she was married, Sept. 5, 1848. 
 
 The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell are: 
 Frank M., Robert J., Mary E., Effie D. T., Fred- 
 retta I. and Minerva J. 
 
 Mr. Mitchell, in politics, votes with the Republi- 
 can party. He has held the office of Highway 
 Commissioner and School Director, and, socially, is 
 a member of Post No. 81, G. A. R., at Kirkwood. 
 He and his wife are members of the United Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 The parents of Mr. Mitchell, Robert K. and 
 Rachel E. (Townsley) Mitchell, were natives of 
 Ohio. They came to this county in 1843, and the 
 mother died in Hale Township, July 14, 1851, and 
 the father in the same township, Jan. 5, 1865. Their 
 family comprised four children, of whom William A. 
 is the eldest. The parents of Mrs. Mitchell, Thomas 
 J. and Mary (Allen) Caldwell, were natives of Ohio 
 and Illinois respectively. They were married and 
 settled in this county, where her mother died July 
 29, 1868. Her father yet survives and lives in Sum- 
 ner Township. We give a view of the residence and i 
 farm building on page 474. 
 
 The grandfather of Mr. Mitchell was of Scotch- 
 Irish origin. The grandmother was of English 
 origin. 
 
 E. Lamphere a successful farmer, resid- 
 ing on section 36, Tompkins Township, 
 where he is.the owner of 180 acres of good 
 farm land, was born in Oneida Co., N. Y., 
 April 7, 1843, and is the son of Washington 
 and Mary (Hall) Lamphere. The parents 
 were natives of New York, from which State they 
 came to Illinois, settling in Greenbush Township, 
 where they remained for two years and where the 
 faiher was engaged in far.ning. From the latter 
 place the father moved to Tompkins Township and 
 became the owner of 80 acres of land located on sec- 
 tion ii. He settled on this land with his family 
 and entered actively upon his labors as an agricul- 
 turist, and, by economy an-i laborious effort, suc- 
 ceeded in accumulating sufficient to purchase an 
 additional 240 acres. He, with his family, continued 
 to reside on his land in Tompkins Township until 
 
|3MVttt*lH vi ^H 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 481 
 
 he passed to the land beyond the river, his demise 
 occurring in 1872. 
 
 J. E. Lamphere, the gentleman of whom we write, 
 assisted his father on the farm, and received the ad- 
 vantages afforded by the common schools, develop- 
 ing into manhood. On arriving at the age of 25 
 years, he left the parental homestead and purchased 
 80 acres of land on section 36, where he is to-day 
 residing, actively engaged in following his chosen 
 vocation, that of an agriculturist. Possessing the 
 same qualities as his father before him, of saving 
 what he made, he has been enabled to add to his 
 original purchase until he is at present the owner of 
 180 acres in Tompkins Township. He has just 
 completed a fine residence, costing $2,200, and in 
 addition to the cultivation of his land he is engaged 
 to some extent in stock-raising. 
 
 Mr. Lamphere was united in marriage in 1867, 
 with Miss Emma, the accomplished daughter of A. 
 B. Billings, by whom he had two children Ralph, 
 who was born March 12, 1867 ; and Grant, who was 
 born Feb. 5, 187 t. At the present writing they both 
 are living at home. The wife and mother died in 
 1880, and Mr. Lamphere was a second time married, 
 the lady chosen to share his joys and sorrows, suc- 
 cesses and reverses, being Miss Mary Efnor, a native 
 of this State and a daughter of George and Harriet 
 Efnor. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Lamphere votes the Republican 
 ticket, and, in religion, he and his wife are members 
 of the Methodist Protestant Church. 
 
 fjljgenjamin H. Gardner is a pioneer of War- 
 j|i ren County of 1834. He is a native of 
 Virginia, and accompanied his parents to 
 Kentucky when he was a mere lad. In the 
 fall of the year named, in company with a 
 considerable number of persons who, with 
 himself, were desirous of finding a location in a free 
 State, he came to Illinois. They came with ox 
 teams and wagons, brought their provisions with 
 them, and lived while en route in the Gipsy fashion. 
 They arrived in Monmouth, Warren Co. Nov. 3, and 
 
 Mr. Gardner built his own cabin in township 1 2, range 
 i, (Kelly Township) and in March, 1835, went to this 
 township and made a claim of 125 acres of land on 
 section 30. When the land came into market, he went 
 to Quincy and secured it by purchase from the Gov- 
 ernment. He built a log cabin on the place the 
 same season, and the farm has been his property 
 ever since. He has been, meanwhile, a resident of 
 Abingdon in Knox County, but has never relin- 
 quished the management of the farm. He removed 
 to Knox County to give his children the benefit of 
 the schools there. He has been the owner of other 
 tracts of land and at one time was the proprietor of 
 more than 400 acres in Kelly Township. His prop- 
 erty is well improved and supplied with excellent 
 farm buildings. 
 
 The year after he settled in Kelly Township, Mr. 
 Gardner went on horseback to Greenbush, a dis- 
 tance of 25 miles, to procure iron to make a plow, 
 and brought the material back with him in a sack. 
 He then obtained the services of a blacksmith in 
 making a " barshare " plow. In 1836 he opened one 
 of the first coal banks in Warren County. It is lo- , 
 cated on section 30, and the blacksmiths for a dis- 
 tance of 25 miles around came there for their 
 supplies of coal. 
 
 Mr. Gardner was born July 14, 1811, in Louisa ' 
 County in the "Old Dominion." He is the fifth son 
 of William and Catherine (Hollen) Gardner, both 
 of whom were born in the same State in which their 
 son first saw the light of day. Their parents were of 
 English origin. They removed to Kentucky in 1815, 
 crossing the intervening mountains with their 
 team of four horses. They located in Warren Co., 
 Ky., and were among the first of the settlers there. 
 Two of the uncles of Mr. Gardner, Asa and Reuben, 
 were soldiers in the War of 1812. The former was 
 a lieutenant. 
 
 The advantages for the education of children in 
 Kentucky were then very limited, and consisted of 
 such as the common schools of that State at that 
 time afforded. Mr. Gardner went from three to 
 four miles on foot daily for the few months yearly in 
 which it was possible for him to do so, and studied 
 in a log school-house which had no windows. He 
 was 23 years old when he started from his home for 
 the purpose of finding a place to live beyond the 
 line of slavery, which he believed to be the " sum of 
 
 - ' 
 
 
482 
 
 -"V T 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 all villanies." He was a Democrat, but nevertheless 
 an abolitionist of the most decided type, and a Free- 
 State man. He left home on the 7th of October, as 
 has been stated, and arrived in Monmouth Nov. 3 
 following. 
 
 His marriage to Jemima R. Wallace took place 
 Jan. i, 1835. She was born in Warren Co., Ky., 
 April 27, 1816, and was the daughter of William and 
 Nancy (Smith) Wallace. She died Feb. 4, 1861, 
 after giving birth to nine children. Nancy C. is the 
 wife of H. J. Adcock, of Kelly Township; William 
 is deceased; Mary A. married A. M. Johnston, of 
 Nodaway Co., Mo.; Robert is a citizen of Fremont 
 Co., Iowa; Amanda is deceased; George W. lives 
 in the township of Cold Brook; Rebecca is not liv- 
 ing; Benjamin F. has been dead some years; Ben- 
 jamin E. lives in Kelly Township. 
 
 Aug. 23, 1864, the father was again married, Mary 
 A. Deatherage becoming his wife. She was born in 
 North Carolina, in Stokes County, March 28, 1824. 
 She was the daughter of Achillis and Susan (Death- 
 erage) Deatherage, who were of English ancestry, 
 |l and was third in order of birth of a family of 13 chil- 
 dren, six of whom are living. She came to this 
 county with her parents, who first settled in Mc- 
 Lean Co., 111., in 1832. Here they remained for 
 four years, when they pushed further northward and 
 found a desirable location _in Knox County. Mrs. 
 Gardner was first married Oct. 14, 1841, to Samuel 
 F. Patton, and by him became the mother of four 
 children, two of whom are now living George W., 
 one of the county officials of Johnson County, and 
 Julia, the wife of G. W. Gardner, of Cold Brook 
 Township. Myra is the name of the only child of 
 the second marriage. She married Emmet Barnett 
 and now lives in Cold Brook Township. Mr. Gard- 
 ner is a member of the Christian Church at Talbot. 
 
 There are few men in Warren County more widely 
 known or highly esteemed than " Uncle Benjamin 
 Gardner." He is one of the venerable pioneers who 
 located here before the hand of civilization had dis- 
 turbed the magnificent scenery of prairie and wood- 
 land. The green flowery carpet which covered the 
 undulating surface of the broad prairies, skirted by 
 forests and groves, must have formed a delightful 
 aspect. The beautiful native flowers and the tall 
 prairie grass have given place to fertile fields. All 
 is changed, and no doubt the pioneers often long to 
 behold the unsurpassed beauties of the scenery so 
 
 common to them for a long time after they came 
 here. As one of the most worthy of the pioneers, 
 and a truly representative citizen of Warren County, 
 the portrait of" Uncle Ben" Gardner is presented in 
 this volume. 
 
 ndrew W. Simmons, owner of 479 acres of 
 land, all of which is located in Greenbush 
 Township, except a tract of 80 acres, which 
 lies in Berwick Township, resides on section 
 8, of the former township. He is a native of 
 Kentucky, having been born in Warren Co., 
 that State, Sept. 2, 1816. He came to Illinois with 
 his parents in October, 1816. The father of Mr. 
 Simmons, James Simmons, married Miss Sarah Slice, 
 in 1815, in Kentucky. She was born in 1798, in. 
 that State, where her husband also first saw the 
 light, in 1795. They both died in this township, the 
 father in 1873 and the mother in 1855. Of their 
 union 12 children were born Andrew W., Sally, R. 
 M., Alfred W., Francis M., C. R., William J., Nancy, 
 Joanna, Diana, Arminda and M. V. W. Of this 
 large family, eight survive; W. J., Sally, Nancy and 
 Martin having passed to another world. 
 
 James Simmons came to Illinois in 1816, and set- 
 tled in Madison County, near Troy, remaining there 
 till 1833, when he removed to Warren County and 
 located on what is now known as Greenbush Town- 
 ship, on section 5. He is credited with building the 
 third house in that section of the county. Mrs. Sim- 
 mons was the daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth 
 (Lee) Brooks. Her father was born in the State of 
 Virginia, Feb. 22, 1791. The family came to War- 
 ren County in r836, settling in Berwick Township, 
 where they both died, the father Sept. 19, 1842, and 
 the mother Feb. 19, 1847. The fruits of their union 
 were six children, four of whom survive. 
 
 The subject of this biographical notice formed a 
 matrimonial alliance March 2, 1848, with Miss Ase- 
 nath Brooks. She was born in Warren County, Ky., 
 Jan. 7, 1825, and has borne her husband seven chil- 
 dren, namely : Thompson F., Alfred, James, William 
 W., Amanda, Freeman and Rowland. Of the chil- 
 dren of Mr. and Mrs. Simmons, Thomas F. married 
 
WARREN. CO UNT Y. 
 
 483 
 
 Emily Hahn, and two olive-branches have blessed 
 their union. Alfred lives at home. James is a farm- 
 er in Berwick Township, and the head of a family, 
 his wife's maiden name being Margaret Holeman. 
 Amanda, the eldest daughter, is the wife of Charles C. 
 Ray, and has borne him one child. Wm. W., Alfred 
 Freeman and Rowland M. reside on the old home- 
 stead. Mr. Simmons is the owner of 479 acres of 
 land, 80 of which is located in Berwick Township, 
 and the remainder in Greenbush. All of this large 
 tract is under an advanced state of cultivation. He 
 has a brick front residence on his home farm, 60 x 40 
 feet in dimensions and two stories in height, which 
 was built in 1848. The place is also improved with 
 a good barn, of commodious dimensions, which is 
 36 feet long by 30 feet in width. In addition to the 
 cultivation of his land, he is interested in the propa- 
 gation of a superior grade of cattle. 
 
 Mr. Simmons and wife are members^of the old 
 school Baptist Church. Mr. Simmons was elected 
 Supervisor from Greenbush Townsnip, and has held 
 that office for the past 17 years, being re-elected to 
 the position last April by a large majority. He has 
 also served 16 years as Justice of the Peace; as 
 Collector, 1 1 years, and has held minor offices in his 
 township for the past 25 years. 
 
 In his politics, he supports the Democratic plat- 
 form. Considering that his accumulations are the 
 reward of his own indomitable energy and persever- 
 ance, and that he is to-day the possessor of a com- 
 petency, we are enabled in this work to justly record 
 that the subject of our sketch is a model representa- 
 tive of his class, not only in Greenbush, but also in 
 Warren County. 
 
 Terpenning, is a citizen of Kelly 
 Township, and came to Warren County 
 within the first year of his life, with his par- 
 ents, of whom an account is given on other 
 pages of this work in connection with the 
 sketch of another son. (See sketch of John 
 P. Terpenning.) 
 
 He was born Dec. 23, 1835, in the township of 
 Clifton Park, in Saratoga Co., N. Y. He came to 
 
 this township and county in 1836, and grew to the 
 age of manhood within its limits. He lived with his 
 father and mother until he was 31 years of age, and 
 was most of the time, particularly at first, engaged 
 in the pursuits of the farm. He was occupied also 
 in the capacity of a collector, and traveled in the 
 States of Illinois and Iowa. 
 
 His marriage to Catherine J. Kiger took place Feb. 
 25, 18156. Their children are named Albert L., Jes- 
 sie A., Ulysses G., Parley D., Mindwell E., Jennie 
 M. and Daisy R. 
 
 Mrs. Terpenning was born Oct. 17, 1836, in Gal- 
 ia,O., and removed from there to Stark Co., in 1839. A 
 few years later another removal of her family was ef- 
 fected to Knox County. At the time of their marriage 
 Mr. and Mrs. Terpenning settled on the farm on 
 which they are now living. It is a part of the home- 
 stead of his father, and is in good agricultural con- 
 dition. In 1875 his buildings and the timber stand- 
 ing on his farm were badly injured by a tornado 
 which swept over the place. His loss was estimated 
 at $3,000. 
 
 llliam Meachum, the possessor of a good 
 title to 1 60 acres of land located on section 
 21, Berwick Township, is a native of Liv- 
 ingston Co., N. Y., where he was born Aug. 
 22, 1843. He came to this State with his 
 parents in 1854, and since that time has been 
 actively engaged in agricultural pursuits. In fact, 
 we may say he has spent his life until this date in 
 that vocation. 
 
 Mr. Meachum was married Jan. 26, 1870, to Miss 
 Mary M. Griffith, who was born in Indiana, July 23, 
 1840. She was the daughter of Judah Griffith, a 
 native of New York, where he was born in 1796. 
 Her father was of Scotch ancestry and moved from 
 New York to Amherst, Lorain Co., Ohio, with his 
 brother, where he remained until 1839, when, in 
 company with his brother and some six other fam- 
 ilies, he moved to a small town in Indiana, called 
 Cadiz. At the latter place he remained some three 
 years, working at the boot and shoe trade, and then, 
 in 1842, came to this State and located near La 
 Harpe, Hancock County. In 1848 he left that sec- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 tion and came to Warren County, where he resided 
 until 1876, when he moved to Fremont Co., Iowa, 
 and there followed his chosen vocation, agriculture, 
 until the date of his death, in 1881. He was mar- 
 ried to Miss Maria Rockwell, who was born in York 
 State in 1808. She died in 1851, in this county, 
 leaving to the care of her husband nine children 
 namely : Patterson, Griffith, Eveline, Armina, Ma- 
 linda, Carlos, Mary M., Ardin, Ambrose, Ansel and 
 Phebe. 
 
 William Meachum and his wife are the parents of 
 four children Riley, born Sept. 8, 1871 ; Pearl P , 
 April 21, 1873; Lucina E., Dec. 22, 1875; and 
 Laura B., Oct. 21, 1877. Mr. Meachum is pleas- 
 antly situated on his fine farm of 160 acres on sec- 
 tion 21, Berwick Township, and in addition to his 
 agricultural duties, is devoting considerable of his 
 time to the raising of Norman horses. In politics, 
 he votes with and endorses the principles advocated 
 by the Greenback party. 
 
 
 
 ohn E. Alexander, attorney and counsellor 
 at law, at Monmouth, was born in Freder- 
 ick Co., Md., March 4, 1833. His parents 
 were John and Elizabeth (Beckenbaugh) Al- 
 exander, natives of Maryland and Pennsyl- 
 vania respectively and of English and German 
 extraction. They reared seven sons and one daugh- 
 ter, John E. being the third in order of birth. The 
 senior John Alexander, whose father, Jacob A., was 
 a Colonel in the American Army in the War of 
 1812, was a carpenter by trade, but he failed to 
 transmit any great deal of love for hard labor to the 
 junior John. In fact, it is not known that he wished 
 to, for it appears that the youth was kept pretty 
 closely at school. He received a good preparatory 
 training in the High Schools at Middletown, Md., 
 and graduated with honors from Franklin and Mar- 
 shall College, at Lancaster, Pa., in the class of 1853. 
 For ten years succeeding his graduation he taught 
 school as a profession, the two years of 1853-54 be- 
 ing as Professor of English Branches at the Landon 
 Military Academy at Urbana, Md. The dis- 
 tinguished General John R. Jones, afterwards of 
 
 Confederate fame, was the founder of the academy 
 and was its principal. Col. John F. Keenan, Pro- 
 fessor of Languages and Tactics, was in the Mexican 
 War and served on Gen. Butler's Staff. Col. 
 Keenan was also the author of the 39 articles or the 
 " Code of Honor." 
 
 In 1857-8, Prof. Alexander was Principal of the 
 Mercersburg (Pa.) Female Seminary, and in May, 
 1859, came to Monmouth and taught school for 
 about a year in the basement of what is now Unity 
 Church. From 1860 to r863, he clerked for E. S. 
 Sweeney in the County Clerk's office, and in 1863-4 
 had charge of the Sheriff's office, under Riggs. 
 
 In 1864-70 he was engaged in the hardware trade, 
 and in the latter year, in company with Col. Robert 
 Holloway, laid out the town of Alexandria, now 
 known as Alexis. He was the first inhabitant of the 
 place and first agent there of the Rockford, Rock 
 Island & St. Louis Railroad. While in the County 
 Clerk's office he began the study of law, which he 
 dropped for a few years ; took it up again, was ad- 
 mitted to the Bar in 1877, and began practice at 
 Alexis, from whence he came to Monmouth in 1883, 
 and has occupied a most honorable position at the " 
 
 District Bar. Though coming late into the practice, 
 his superior education and most thorough business 
 training made the otherwise devious roads to an 
 elevated position in the first profession in the land, 
 to him one of comparative ease. He is regarded as 
 a painstaking, careful lawyer, and an able advocate. 
 He has been the recipient of no gratuities ; whatever 
 of this world's goods he has acquired, and his pos- 
 sessions are ample, he has earned by individual 
 effort and energy. 
 
 In politics, he is a staunch adherent to the prin- 
 ciples of Democracy, and while an active worker in 
 the interests of that great party, he is in no wise an 
 aspirant to any official preferment. He was one of 
 the founders of the Warren County Library, and is 
 at this writing a Director in its Board. 
 
 Mr. Alexander was married in Washington Co., 
 Md., Feb. 24, 1857, to Miss Mary C. Reichard (see 
 biography of J. T. Reichard in this volume), and has 
 had borne to him three children, namely: Bertha 
 (Mrs. C. T. Page), Edward D. and Anna M. To- 
 gether with his family, he is a member of the Pres- 
 byterian Church, and in Masonry, Mr. A. is a 
 prominent member of the Chicago Consistory. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 aj. William G. Bond, a citizen of Mon- 
 mouth, retired from- active business, was 
 born in Jackson County, Ala., April 2, 
 1823, and is a son of Major John C. and 
 Mary (Grimsley) Bond, natives of Tennessee, 
 who combined in their make-up the blood of 
 Celt and Teuton. (See biography of John C. Bond). 
 
 The subject of this sketch accompanied his father 
 to Warrerk County in 1834, and grew to manhood 
 upon the farm; in fact, he followed farming uninter- 
 ruptedly up to 1862, and left it only to join the army 
 in defense of his country. Aug. 26, 1862, Mr. Bond 
 became Captain of Co. H, 8$d 111. Vol. Inf. In Feb- 
 ruary, 1863, he was promoted to Major of the same 
 regiment and was in full command thereof from 
 June, 1863, until he was mustered out of the ser- 
 vice, at Nashville, Tenn., June 23, 1865. His first 
 battle was at Garrettsburg, Ky., in November, 1862; 
 ,^-his second, Fort Donelson, February, 1863 ; next was 
 with Wheeler, along the Great Louisville & Nash- 
 ville Railway, in 1864, where they were engaged ev- 
 ery day and sometimes twice a day for a month or 
 more ; later on at Franklin and the six weeks' fight- 
 ing of that campaign. The Major was twice wounded 
 at Fort Donelson, once by a minnie ball and again by 
 a shell, both times in the leg, but neither proved se- 
 rious. From February to August, 1864, he was seri- 
 ously ill from an attack of pneumonia, which seized 
 him at Nashville and left him at Clarksville. While 
 at the latter place and before sufficiently recovered 
 to report to his command for duty, he acted as Pres- 
 ident of the Military Course. 
 
 Leaving the regular service, he went into the 
 Quartermaster's department at Fort Donelson, and 
 was there employed up to 1868, hunting up the dead 
 and depositing their remains in the National Ceme- 
 tery at that place. From here he entered the Reve- 
 nue department and was employed as store-keeper 
 on the Cumberland River for twoyears, going thence 
 into the secret service of the Government, with head- 
 quarters at Clarksville, Tenn., up to 1873. In Janu- 
 ary, 1874, he returned to Monmouth, and the follow- 
 ing December received the appointment of Deputy 
 Sheriff, a position he filled for two years. His next 
 
 and last official duty was performed as Sheriff of 
 Warren County, being elected to that office three 
 times in succession, namely : 1876-78 and '80, clos- 
 ing his services in 1882. 
 
 With such a record any man might be content to 
 retire to private life. Wherever Maj. Bond has been 
 placed, either by force of circumstances or of his vo- 
 lition, he has done his duty, and there is in neither 
 his military or civil career any skeleton to haunt the 
 closet of his prosperity. Maj. Bond was first united 
 in marriage in Joe Daviess County, this State, when 
 about 22 years of age, to Miss Elizabeth Henry, who 
 died in 1863, while the Major was in the army, and 
 left four children Clarissa Ann, Looney M., Jesse 
 W. and George C. To his present wife, Mrs. Mary 
 E. Moore, nee Taylor, he was married at Dayton, 
 Ohio, in 1868. 
 
 Maj. Bond went into the army a Democrat, but 
 came out a Republican. He is a member of the Ma- 
 sonic fraternity and is an officer in the G. A. R., and 
 one of the respected and well-to-do citizens of Mon- 
 mouth. 
 
 'artin Sorenson is a farmer in the town- 
 ship of Spring Grove. His farm is lo- 
 cated on section 9, and contains 80 acres. 
 He is the son of Andrew and Anna (Ma- 
 thaison) Sorenson, and he was born in Schles- 
 wig-Holstein, Denmark, now a province of 
 Germany, March 25, 1844. He is the oldest son of 
 his parents, of whom an account is given on another 
 page of this work in connection with that of the 
 son and brother Frederick Sorenson. His father 
 was a farmer in Denmark, where he was the owner 
 of a tract of land, and the son was brought up to a 
 knowledge of the business. He received the edu- 
 cation common in that country. 
 
 In 1867 Mr. Sorenson came to the United States. 
 He left the ship on which he made the voyage at 
 Quebec, and came thence at once to Illinois. He 
 first found employment with a farmer in Henderson 
 County, and worked there through the first summer 
 after his arrival. In the succeeding fall he came to 
 Warren County and operated as a farm assistant un- 
 til, in 1871, he went to Burlington, Iowa, and ob- 
 
486 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 tained a position to work in the railroad shops at 
 that place. After a year there he came back to 
 Warren County. In 1874 he bought land on section 
 30 in the township of Spring Grove, on which he was 
 six years resident. He then sold the place and 
 bought the farm on which he is now living. It con- 
 tains 80 acres, and is all practically under cultiva- 
 tion. The buildings are good and substantial. 
 
 The father of Mrs. S. died July 25, 1864. The 
 mother is now in this country, and living with her 
 daughter. She was born March 20, 1818. There 
 were two children in the family ; the name of the 
 other sister is Maggie. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Sorenson, have three children An- 
 drew, Annie and Thora. The mother was born in 
 Schleswig-Holstein. Mr. Sorenson is a Demo- 
 crat. 
 
 uther C. Hibbard, a farmer on section 16 
 in the township of Kelly, comes of some of 
 the best New England Stock. His ances- 
 tors on the paternal side distinguished tueir 
 names in the first great struggle for their rights 
 and carried the sign manual of their bravery 
 from more than one battlefield of the Revolution. 
 Luther Hibbard, his father, was born in the State of 
 Vermont, or what became such, in 1791. About 
 1800, accompanied by his father and three brothers, 
 he went from his native State to New York. They 
 made the journey there with ox-teams and took with 
 them all their belongings. They were among the 
 earliest of the settlers where they located. Luther 
 Ethemer Hibbard, the father of Luther Hibbard, 
 was an officer in the Revolution. His sons, Luther, 
 Harry, Shubal and Henry, bought land in the cele- 
 brated " Holland Purchase " in Erie Co., N. Y. The 
 Holland purchase included an immense tract of 
 land in the central part of the State of New York, 
 which the government gave to Robert Morris to re- 
 imburse him for money advanced to defray the ex- 
 penses of the Revolutionary War. When the second 
 war with Great Gritain succeeded, father and sons all 
 enrolled in the military service of their country. 
 Henry became a Captain and the father a Major. A 
 son-in-law of Major Hibbard, and Uncle by mar- 
 
 riage of Mr. Hibbard of this sketch, was a Colonel 
 and was killed by Indians in the same war. Shubal 
 Hibbard was wounded in the arm and underwent 
 amputation. Major Hibbard died in Erie County, 
 about 1825. His Son Luther cleared a farm in the 
 same county and lived there until 1832. In that 
 year he sold out and went to Pennsylvania. He lo- 
 cated in Warren County and remained there until 
 1 840. His wife had died and he started thence for 
 Illinois alone, on horseback. He came direct, as 
 nearly as he could, crossing the State of Michigan. 
 He passed the first winter at Rock Island and in the 
 spring came to Warren County. He was an inmate 
 of the home of his son, the subject of this account, 
 until his death, which took place Aug. 7, 1847. The 
 wife of Luther Hibbard was Sarah Yaw, before her 
 marriage to him. She was a native of New England 
 and was the mother of a son and a daughter. The 
 latter died at the age of 18 years. 
 
 Luther G. Hibbard was two years old when his 
 mother died. He was cared for by his grandmother - 
 until her death, at which time he was 15 years old. 
 After that event he was again under the care of his 
 father. He was born May 20, 1816, and was there- ' 
 fore 24 when, in 1840, he determined to find a home 
 and a field for operation as a business man in the 
 West. He set out for Illinois on a raft on the Alle- 
 gany River, and proceeded in that manner to Pitts- 
 burg. He made his way thence on the Ohio and 
 Mississippi Rivers to Rock Island, and from there 
 to Warren County. He rented land in the township 
 of Spring Grove, which was situated on section 25, 
 and passed two or thtee years as a farmer. He went 
 next to Galena, where he became interested in the 
 business of a butcher. He had previously operated 
 somewhat as a buyer of groceries and leather, which 
 he disposed of to the farmers for hides, which he 
 sold in Chicago. He took his first crops to that city 
 with ox-teams, and sold his wheat for 50 cents a 
 bushel. He took his provisions with him and camped 
 on the route. He was in business at Galena two 
 years, and at the end of that time returned to War- 
 ren County. 
 
 In 1850, Mr. Hibbard bought 40 acres of land on 
 section 16 in Kelly township, where there were a 
 few acres under the plow. He found a small frame 
 house, which he bought and removed to his farm, 
 and he then entered upon the further improvement 
 of his land. His estate no\v includes 260 acres, 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 487 
 
 which is in an advanced state of cultivation. In 
 1870 he built a large and substantial farm house, 
 which is now the home of the family. 
 
 His marriage to Esther Presson took place Feb. 
 26, 1848. Her father, Samuel Presson, was born in 
 Vermont, and the birthplace of her mother was in 
 Massachusetts. The name of the latter before her 
 marriage was Esther Wisvvell. Mrs. Hibbard was 
 born in Windham Co., Vt., April 20, 1825. After 
 their marriage, herself and husband located in Che- 
 nango Co., N. Y., fixing their abode there about 
 1830. In 1844 they came to Warren County and 
 settled in Kelly Township. The life of the father 
 terminated in 1852; that of the mother ended in 
 1854. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Hibbard are 
 now five in number. Scoville L. is a resident in 
 Kelly Township. Fannie is the wife of William 
 McCulloch, of the same part of Warren County. 
 Lucy A. is a teacher and resides at home. The two 
 youngest are named Clark G. and Charles L. The 
 first-born child, Edwin L., died at the age of two 
 months. George, the second in order, died at four 
 months of age. Henry Samuel was born July 4, 
 1852, and died Feb. 27, 1883. 
 
 Mr. Hibbard was Postmaster at Ionia ten years, 
 and his daughter Lucy was his successor. She 
 served two years. He has always taken an active 
 interest in the cause of education and has give.- his 
 children the advantages of the colleges at Abingdon 
 and Galesburg. He has acted as Director, and has 
 assessed the township twice. In political affinity 
 and belief, he is a Democrat. The members of the 
 family belong to the Advent Church. 
 
 : 
 
 tenry L. Harrington, M. D., at Mon- 
 mouth, was born at St. Johnsbury, Vt., Dec. 
 28, 1846. His parents, Jubal and Harriet 
 (Locke) Harrington, were natives of Massachu- 
 setts and New Hampshire respectively, and 
 were descended from Irish ancestry. They had 
 two sons and one daughter, and Mrs. Harrington died 
 when the subject of our sketch was about five years 
 of age. His father died at Vineland, N. J., in 1869, 
 at the age of 64 years. 
 
 Dr. Harrington received his literary education at 
 
 Brookfield (Mass.) Academy, and began the 
 study of medicine when 24 years of 
 age, at Toulon, 111. He graduated from Rush 
 Medical College, in the spring of 1875. After 
 graduating he spent 1 8 months as resident physician 
 at Cook County Hospital. He came to Warren 
 County, in 1877, and located for the practice of his 
 profession at Little York, where he remained upward 
 of four years. In the spring of 1882, he went to 
 Europe and spent one year in the various great hos- 
 pitals of London, traveling through France and Italy. 
 His numerous certificates and diplomas from the 
 several distinguished institutions in which he prac- 
 ticed and studied while abroad, attest his industry 
 and energy in the pursuit of professional knowledge. 
 He returned to Monmouth in 1833, and at once took 
 a prominent position in the very foremost ranks of 
 the profession. 
 
 Dr. Harrington does not figure in politics; he be- 
 longs to the United Presbyterian Church, and is de- 
 voted to the welfare of his patients. 
 
 He was married at Little York, Warren County, 
 Nov. 17, 1870, to Miss Martha Taylor, daughter of 
 Dr. A. Taylor, and a native of Indiana. His four - 
 children bear the names of Mabel, Grace, Paul and i 
 Marion. 
 
 |.enry H. Kidder, engaged as an agricultur- 
 ist on section 23 of Swan Township, where 
 he is enjoying success in his vocation and 
 is regarded as one of Warren County's substan- 
 tial and well-to-do citizens, was born May 25, 
 1841, in this county. He is the son of Larnard 
 Kidder, a native of Connecticut, having been born in 
 that State in March. 1806, and emigrated to the 
 State of Illinois in the year 1837. He located south 
 of Youngstown. Before leaving his native State, 
 in the year 1837, March 22, he was united in the 
 holy bonds of matrimony with Miss Mary A. Hoising- 
 ton, and they became the parents of seven children, 
 as follows : Almon, William O., Henry H., Benja- 
 min H., Nathaniel, Olive M. and Eliza A. 
 
 Henry H. married Miss Elizabeth Woods, Dec. 10, 
 1868 ; she was born June 20, 1838. Of this union four 
 children have been born, namely: Lora D., born 
 
4 88 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Nov. 29, 1869; Melvin A., Oct. 3, 1871 ; Robert L., 
 June i, 1876; and Henry W., Jan. 3, 1879. Mrs. 
 Kidder's parents were named Robert and Martha 
 (Morford) Woods. Robert Woods was born Aug. 
 19, 1802, and died Feb. 10, 1883; and Martha Woods 
 was born Jan. 31, 1806, dying March 12, 1876. Of 
 their union, four children Seth, Elizabeth, Nancy 
 A. and Adeline were born. 
 
 Mr. Kidder is the proprietor of 218 acres of land, 
 upon which he resides and is engaged in raising 
 horses, hogs and cattle, making hogs a specialty. 
 He has been very successful in his chosen vocation, 
 agriculture, attributing it all to his own indomitable 
 energy, economy and perseverance. 
 
 Mr. Kidder purchased 80 acres of land on section 
 23 of Swan Township. He moved here in 1867 and 
 has resided here until the present. Under the 
 second call for 300,000 troops to put down the Re- 
 bellion, by Abraham Lincoln, issued in July, 1861, 
 Mr. Kidder responded by enlisting in Co. H, Second 
 111. Cav. The Company was organized at Macomb, 
 111., Capt. Walker commanding. The regiment was 
 organized Aug. 12, and mustered into service; went 
 into Camp Butler, at Springfield, 111. The regiment 
 was ordered to the southern part of the State in Sep- 
 tember of the same year. Picketing along, the regi- 
 ment was not attached to any brigade, but was 
 under the immediate command of Lew Wallace ; 
 then was attached to the 131!! Army Corps. The 
 first engagement in which the regiment participated 
 was at Union City, Tenn., then under command of 
 Gen. Buford when that place was captured, and 
 they acted as scouts, and skirmishers on the Black 
 River; were at Vicksburg during the charge on the 
 23d of May, 1863, after which they were ordered to 
 the department of New Orleans. 
 
 The subject of our sketch was furloughed for 
 60 days after the battle of Vicksburg. He re- 
 ceived a wound in the left thigh at Mansfield, on the 
 Red River expedition, when he was compelled to re- 
 main in the hospital for two months, being mustered 
 out Aug. 12, 1864, at Baton Rouge, La. Coming to 
 Springfield, he was paid off, and then returned home. 
 Mr. Kidder now draws a pension on account of the 
 wound received while fighting for his country. Since 
 1864, the time of his return home, he has been en- 
 gaged in farming, principally raising stock 
 
 Mr. Kidder received opportunities for acquiring a 
 fine education, having attended College at Lombard 
 
 University, Galesburg, for two years, besides other 
 excellent schools of learning. He studied the arts 
 and sciences, and is a well educated man, as well as 
 one of the prominent and representative citizens of 
 this county. Politically, Mr. Kidder is identified 
 with the Republican party. 
 
 avid B. Stewart is a farmer on section 6 
 of the township of Kelly. In 1855 he 
 started from his home in Pennsylvania to 
 seek a suitable place for a permanent loca- 
 tion, and visited the States of Illinois, Mis- 
 souri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. He 
 concluded to locate in Illinois, and returned to his 
 native State to make the necessary preparations. 
 In the spring of 1856 he came to Warren County, 
 and entered eighty acres of land on the south 
 half of section 15 in Spring Grove Township. He, 
 also bought 40 acres adjoining, where he built al 
 house and proceeded to improve the property. He 
 lived on that place until the winter of 1872, when he 
 sold out and bought the property where he is at, 
 present located. He is the owner of 151 acres of 
 excellent land, all of it being in a good state of till- 
 age and supplied with the requisite farm implements. 
 The place is beautified by several varieties of trees. 
 We are pleased to be able to present a view of the 
 home place in this ALBUM on page 428. 
 
 Mr. Stewart was born Sept. 30, 1826, in Washing- 
 ton Co., Pa. Thomas Stewart, his father, was born 
 in County Armagh, Ireland, and was a Presbyterian 
 of Scotch descent. The latter was nine years of 
 age when he accompanied his parents, Robert and 
 Mary Stewart, to America. He was reared in Ad- 
 ams and Washington Counties in the Keystone 
 State, and was married in the county last named. 
 The lady whom he made his wife, Miss Mary Welch, 
 was born in Adams Co., Pa., and they resided there 
 until 1835, when they went to Moundville in West 
 Virginia. Mr. Stewart bought a farm and was a 
 resident there as long as he continued to live. His 
 wife afterwards came to Illinois to see her children 
 and died while in this State, in 1856. They had ri 
 children, and five of them are still living : Robert 
 
 
 
J^ 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 491 
 
 is a citizen of Kirkwood. William lives at Little 
 
 1640, and from him sprang the Hardings of this 
 
 York. Joseph lives in Elmwood, Peoria Co., 111. ; 
 
 country. His grandson, Chancy Harding, named as 
 
 he is a retired merchant and is holding the office of 
 
 the immediate ancestor of the subject of this sketch, 
 
 Police Magistrate. Mary is the widow of James 
 
 was born in Middle Haddam, Conn., Jan. 8, 1775, 
 
 Graham, and lives in Page Co., Iowa. 
 
 and died at Iowa Falls, Dec. n, 1876 ; his first wife, 
 
 Mr. Stewart is the youngest. He was nine years 
 
 mother of H. G. Harding, was also born at Middle 
 
 of age when his parents removed to West Virginia, 
 
 Haddam, r i years later than Chancy, and died while 
 
 where he was reared on the farm. He was educated 
 
 yet a young woman, at Richfield, Otsego Co., N. Y., 
 
 in the school which was maintained by its patrons 
 
 April 6, 1819. The Chancy Harding here mentioned 
 
 and called the subscription school, because its ex- 
 
 married a second time, his last wife being Sally Mar- 
 
 penses were defrayed by subscription. When he 
 
 tin, who was born at Richfield, Otsego Co., N. Y., 
 
 attained the period of his legal freedom, he went to 
 
 Nov. 3, 1794, and died at Iowa Falls, in April, 1885. 
 
 Somerset Co., Pa., and, associated with another 
 
 Thus it will be seen the families upon both sides 
 
 young man, he engaged in the manufacture of farm 
 
 have been uniformly long lived. Chancy 's first mar- 
 
 implements. He operated there four years, and 
 
 riage occurred at Chatham, Conn., and he removed 
 
 went thence to Bedford County and was similarly 
 
 thence to Otsego County, N. Y., probably in 1809. 
 
 occupied there until the year in which he made his 
 
 From there he removed to Iowa Falls, Iowa, after 
 
 prospecting tour in the West. 
 
 having buried his wife, who died April 6, 1819. She 
 
 Aug. 6, i86r, he was married to Sarah Pilkington, 
 
 bore him two sons, H. G., the eldest, and his brother, 
 
 and they had eight children. They are named Jen- 
 
 Chancy. 
 
 ' nie B., Orlando P is a teacher in the High School at 
 
 He was brought up to farming, an occupation he i 
 
 Keithsburg, Harry J., Archie G., Guy, Fred G., 
 
 has claimed all his life. The common schools of 
 
 Erma and Erla (twins). The third child born to 
 
 Otsego Co., N. Y., and an academy at Hamilton sup- 
 
 1 Mr. and Mrs. Stewart died when about a year old, 
 
 plied him a good education, and from 16 to 26 years < 
 
 in 1867. 
 
 of age he alternated the seasons with farming and 
 
 Mr. Stewart was formerly a Democrat but is now 
 
 teaching. In 1857, he came to Warren County, 
 
 a prohibitionist in political principles. He was Jus- 
 
 bought a farm, now part of the city of Monmouth, J 
 
 tice of the Peace for 12 years while a resident of 
 
 laid a portion of it off as Clark's addition to the 
 
 Spring Grove Township. His wife was born in 
 
 town, and later on, in 1859, he purchased a 4o-acre 
 
 Somerset Co., Pa, May 26, 1838. She is the daugh- 
 
 tract in connection with Gen. Harding and laid out 
 
 ter of Benjamin W. and Jane (Henry) Pilkington. 
 
 Haley's addition. At this writing (October, 1885), 
 
 Mr. Pilkington was born in Adams Co., Pa. He 
 
 he lives upon a part of his original purchase, owns 
 
 died May 24, 1844, in Somerset County. 
 
 several hundred acres of the finest farms in the 
 
 
 county, and has given his children a handsome com- 
 
 . v ^ . 
 
 petency. He was one of the organizers of the Mon- 
 
 . 
 
 mouth National Bank, in 1870; was a director therein 
 
 ^'..VnW^tf 
 
 up to 1874; sold out, and, assisted by his brother, 
 
 Nfearry G. Harding, one of the best known 
 
 Chancy, and others, in January, 1875, organized the 
 
 ej^JIpg!^ men in Warren County, and whose portrait 
 
 Second National Bank of Monmouth, with which he 
 
 v\ is given on the opposite page, resides on a 
 
 is now connected as a director. Mr. Harding has 
 
 W fine place, in the suburbs of Monmouth. He was 
 
 long been one of the wealthiest men of Warren 
 
 * 
 
 : born in Otsego Co., N. Y., Aug. 25, 1811, and 
 
 County, and yet, aside from a few hundreds inher- 
 
 was a son of Chancy and Anna (Gates) Hard- 
 
 ited from his father, he has acquired it by his indi- 
 
 ing,* natives of Connecticut and of old English de- 
 
 vidual effort and industry. 
 
 scent. Nathan Harding landed at Cape Cod, in 
 
 ' 
 
 Away back in 1844, before leaving New York, Mr. 
 
 
 Harding was elected lo the State Legislature from 
 
 "The father of Mr. Harding used the ({?) in his name 
 in the early part of his life, but left it off about the same 
 time as did his son. Chancy (see sketch), who is the only 
 
 Otsego County, but, to his credit, it must be written 
 that he was wise enough to profit by his first lessons 
 
 brother of Harry G. 
 
 and to steer clear of such a fate in Illinois. The 
 
 r! 
 
492 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 most the people here have been able to get out of 
 him, in the way of public service, has been to push 
 him into an aldermanship, and twice into the mayor- 
 alty. He has always been an ardent Republican and 
 during the war he was an active supporter of the 
 cause of the Union and good government. 
 
 After returning from the Legislature in New York, 
 he resumed his farming operations. He was soon 
 thereafter elected Justice of the Peace, and served 
 the people in that capacity for several years. He was 
 a member of the Board of Education for about 15 
 years, during his residence in Otsego County, and 
 contributed to the best of his ability in fostering and 
 encouraging general education. He was also a mem- 
 ber of the Board of Education in, Monmouth for 
 about 15 years. 
 
 At the time of the laying out of what is known as 
 Haley's addition to the city of Monmouth, in con- 
 nection with General Harding, the lots were di- 
 vided and Mr. Harry G. Harding adopted what was 
 'then a new plan in this Western country, in get- 
 ting his property into market. This was by selling 
 lots and assisting many poor people to build small 
 houses thereon, with the understanding that they 
 should become owners after complying with the spec- 
 ified agreement. This was, that they should pay 
 him a monthly installment of but little more than 
 ordinary rent. By this arrangement the prudent and 
 economical mechanic was enabled to secure a home. 
 Mr. Harding in this way disposed of about roo lots, 
 at prices ranging from $150 to $300 each, and also 
 contributed largely to the building up of the city 
 of Monmouth, as well as performing a most com- 
 mendable act towards his fellow townsmen and neigh- 
 bors. Careful business methods like these will nat- 
 urally bring a fair financial return to their projectors. 
 Mr. Harding also furnished most of the lumber with 
 which to construct the dwelling, and in exceptional 
 cases, where the man was very poor, he furnished 
 all the lumber and gave long time for payment. 
 
 May 17, 1838, he was married, at Exeter, N. Y., to 
 Salinda Brainard, a native of Otsego County, and 
 daughter of Nathan Brainard. She died at Exeter, 
 Aug. 15, 1843, leaving two sons Delavan, who died 
 soon after hr;r, and De Lloyd. On Nov, 17, 1844. 
 Mr. Harding, at the same town, married Elvira C. 
 Hubbard, daughter of Seth and Lucy (Swan) Hub- 
 bard, and had borne to him four children. Of his 
 children, De Lloyd, the eldest son, married Mary 
 
 Bacon; they have one daughter, Elvira, now a young 
 lady, who has been educated at Knoxville. The son 
 resides near his parental home and owns a splendid 
 farm of 225 acres, a mile from the city limits. He is 
 principally engaged in stock dealing and farming. 
 Fred E. was born Sept. 20, 1847, attended Mon- 
 mouth College and completed his business education 
 at Schenectady, N. Y. He is now Cashier of the 
 Second National Bank of Monmouth. He was mar- 
 ried to Lucy Nye, of that city. Frank W. was born 
 March i, r84g, and was united in marriage with 
 Nannie Davenport, of Monmouth. They have three 
 daughters. He was educated at Monmouth College 
 and is the Assistant Cashier of the Second National 
 Bank, at Monmouth. Jennie I., born Sept. 4, 1885, 
 died June 2, 1861. Willie, the youngest, was born 
 Oct. 22, 1857, died Sept. 6, 1858. 
 
 Mr. Harding's life has been devoted to the prose- 
 cution of his business and the education of his chil- 
 cren. He has ever been careful and methodical in 
 all his operations, and his course has won the esteem 
 and respect of his neighbors. He is public-spirited 
 and liberal, and any object having for its aim the ad- 
 vancement of the material or moral development of 
 Monmouth or Warren County, finds in him an able and 
 earnest supporter. We are pleased in being able to 
 present a portrait of this good and prominentcitizen. 
 
 'illiam M. Lair, a well known farmer of 
 Kelly Township, is the son of William 
 Lair, one of the earliest pioneers of Warren 
 County. The senior Lair was born in War- 
 ren County, Ky., April 3, 1797. His father 
 was a German by birth and his mother was 
 born in North Carolina. They were among the 
 very first settlers in Warren Co., Ky., and their son, 
 the father of the gentleman who is represented in 
 this sketch, was the first white child born there. He 
 was reared to be a farmer, and passed the whole of 
 his youth in his native county. He was married 
 there, Feb. 5, 1827, to Sarah R. Wallace. She was 
 the daughter of William and Nancy (Smith) Wallace 
 and was also a native of Warren Co., Ky. Her grand- 
 father, Robert Wallace, came from Ireland. She was 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 493 
 
 born May 8, 1809. In 1832 they left their native 
 county with their family, setting out with their own 
 conveyance, for the State of Illinois. They brought 
 with them their household appurtenances and camped 
 and cooked by the wayside. They were four weeks 
 on the road. They passed a year on the Spoon 
 River, in Knox County, and after reaching Warren 
 County settled for a summer in Monmouth. Mr. 
 Lair then bought land on section 30, in " Township 
 12, Range i,"now Kelly Township. He set about 
 perfecting the arrangements common to pioneers, 
 built a log house for the temporary accommodation 
 of his household, and proceeded with all possible 
 dispatch to the work of improving his claim. Soon 
 after, the first log cabin was replaced by a double- 
 hewed-log structure of goodly dimensions, which 
 constituted their home until 1858. In that year 
 the family removed to the southeast quarter of the 
 same section and once more lived in a pioneer's 
 cabin. This they inhabited until 1861. They then 
 removed to a school-house, in which they lived six 
 weeks, while their own house was in preparation. 
 The new house was a commodious frame building, 
 and was the home of the senior Lair during the re- 
 maining portion of his life. His demise took place 
 April 7, 1872. Six of the children born to him and 
 his wife (thirteen in all) are still living. They are 
 Robert W., who married Mary A. Quinn, and to 
 them were born four children, viz. : Annie, William, 
 Addison and Fannie. Addison is deceased. Robert 
 lives in Spring Grove Township. Harriet is the wife 
 of Dvvight Corning, and is the mother of ten children; 
 the names of the six living being Benjamin, Jennie, 
 Jessie, Clark, Helen and Alice. The family reside 
 in Crawford County, Kas. Helen is the wife of Sam- 
 uel McKahan, and they are also residents of Craw- 
 ford County, and the parents of five children, name- 
 ly : Charley, May, Hattie, Aide and an infant de- 
 ceased. Sarah E. married R. B. Ball. Rosa and 
 Fielding F. are the names of their children. They 
 reside in Rice County, Kas. Ella J. is the wife of 
 Ferdinand Burtschy, a resident of Nodaway County, 
 Mo. Four children were in their family Etta, Ada, 
 Freddie and Gracie. Freddy is deceased. The next 
 in order of birth was William M., the subject of this 
 notice. Catherine, who is now deceased, was the 
 wife of James T. Gilmore. Fielding A. is also de- 
 ceased, but had married Margaret S. Pedigo. Anna 
 E., who is also deceased, became the wife oflrvin 
 
 Robinson. The remaining five children died while 
 young. 
 
 William M. Lair was born on the homestead of 
 his father, in Kelly Township, Feb. 5, 1853. He had 
 the training and education of the farmers' sons of 
 that period and, in connection with his mother, ably 
 manages the estate left by his father. A view of the 
 old homestead is given on page 428. He was 
 married Aug. 2, 1876, to Nancy A. Pedigo. Their 
 family now includes four children Florence, Clark, 
 Maggie and Robert. Mrs. Lair was born in Ken- 
 tucky, in the same county in which her husband's 
 parents were early settlers. The date of her birth 
 was Sept. 4, 1857. She was the daughterof William 
 and Elizabeth (Millegan) Pedigo, who were natives 
 of Warren County, Ky. They came to this county 
 about 1860, and settled in Kelly Township. The fa- 
 ther died in 1872. His widow is still living and re- 
 sides in Iowa. Mr. Pedigo had previously been 
 married, by which union he had five children, and 
 by his second marriage had ten children. Three of 
 the fifteen are deceased. 
 
 ^amuel Marvin Eldred. was born in Fulton 
 County, N. Y., Dec. 19, 1828. His parents 
 John and Hannah (Fox) Eldred, were na- 
 tives of Rhode Island. They spent most of their 
 married life in New York. The father came 
 to Illinois to see his children, and died while 
 here at the advanced age of 75 years. The death of 
 the mother occurred in 1864, at the home of her 
 daughter in Michigan. Marvin Eldred remained at 
 home until he was 21 years old, receiving, meantime, 
 a good common-school education. He spent a few 
 years in a lumber mill at Inghams' Mills, New York, 
 until he decided to come West. He came to Illi- 
 nois in 1852 and located in Roseville Township. He 
 purchased 160 acres of land, and by subsequent in- 
 vestments increased his landed interests, making him 
 the owner of 360 acres of good, valuable land. 
 
 In 1864 Mr. Eldred was united in marriage to Miss 
 Sarah Chase, who was born in Princeville, Peoria 
 County, Oct. 4, 1843. She was a daughter of S. P. 
 and Ann (Houston) Chase, who were nativesof New 
 
 ; > 
 
494 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Hampshire. They removed to Peoria County, this 
 State, in 1842, where they bought wild land. They 
 succeeded in cultivating it and making a comfortable 
 home, where the family remained until the death of 
 Mr. Chase, which occurred in 1870. The demise 
 of the mother occurred in 1875,31 the residence 
 of her daughter, Mrs. Eldred. 
 
 The issue of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Eldred 
 was one daughter, Anna May, born Oct 14, i86fc. 
 The family lived upon the farm until 1874, when they 
 removed to Roseville and the ensuing year pur- 
 chased a lot on Main Street, and erected a resi- 
 dence upon it. Here Mr. Eldred resided until his 
 death, which occurred Jan. 5, 1885. 
 
 Mr. Eldred was interested quite extensively in 
 buying and feeding cattle for the market. He served 
 his township as Supervisor and his village as Trus- 
 tee. He was careful of his financial standing, and 
 valued his word or any contract or verbal agree- 
 ment as thoroughly binding as his bond, and, as was 
 remarked, he" always paid 100 cents on the dollar." 
 He was a strong Republican, and as a citizen and 
 neighbor always kind to the poor and enterprising, 
 and was recognized as one of the leading men in this 
 part of Warren County. 
 
 eorge Jacob Kobler, born in Rhine, Bava- 
 ria, Germany, July 6, 1836, came to Amer- 
 ica in 1853. His parents, Henry and Anna 
 Mary (Faath) Kobler, reared two sons and 
 two daughters, George J. being the second in 
 order of birth. Mr. Kobler, of this sketch, 
 was fairly educated in his native country, where he 
 learned the trade he has since so successfully fol- 
 lowed, that of butchering. Landing first in New 
 York city, Mr. Kobler proceeded at once to Buffalo, 
 and thence to Cincinnati, where he spent one year, 
 going from there to Louisville, St. Louis and 
 Burlington, Iowa, and stopping some time in each 
 place, up to the one last named, which claimed him 
 as a citizen some three or four years. He was next 
 in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, probably two years, and the 
 year 1860 found him in Monmouth. While at Mt. 
 Pleasant, Mr. Kobler was married. Dec. 9, 1859, tp 
 
 Anna Mary Stenz, a native of Germany, and a daugh- 
 ter of Philip and Anna Mary (Myers) Stenz, who 
 came to America when the daughter was only 6 years 
 of age. Anna Mary grew to womanhood in Utica, N. 
 Y., and from there accompanied her parents to Iowa. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Kobler have had six children Mena, 
 wife of Mr. E. Alexander, D.D., druggist at Alexis, 111.; 
 Henry, Ella, Lula and Frederick, at home, and Ma- 
 mie, deceased. 
 
 Mr. Kobler ranks among the substantial and high- 
 ly respected citizens of Monmouth. He has been 
 strictly honest and upright in all his transactions, and 
 has conducted his business so successfully that he 
 possesses a competency for himself and family. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Kobler votes with the Republicans. 
 
 J. Cayton, whose homestead com- 
 prises 360 acres of excellent farm land 
 on sec t' on 2I > Swan Township, was born in 
 Edmonson Co., Ky., Sept. 22, 1830. His 
 widowed mother came to Illinois when Andrew 
 was three years old, and after residing one 
 year in Morgan County, located in Swan Township, 
 on section n. Abel Cayton, the father of our sub- 
 ject, was a native of Tennessee, his demise having 
 occurred in Kentucky. He married Miss Lively 
 Harrington, who was born in the State of Kentucky 
 in 1808. They became the parents of four children, 
 Nancy, George, Andrew J. and Maranda. George 
 and Nancy are deceased. 
 
 Mr. Andrew J. Cayton belongs to the pioneers of 
 Warren County, having passed his boyhood and ma- 
 ture years in this county. In 1856 he purchased 60 
 acres on section 21, on which was built a small frame 
 house. All the improvements that are now upon his 
 land, are the result of his own industry and skillful 
 management. He married Miss Nancy C. Lieur- 
 ance, Nov. 12, 1857, She was a native of Illinois, 
 where she was born in 1837, and bore her husband 
 three children, Clarence A., born Jan. 14, 1859; 
 Jed. O., in i86i,and Lewis Grant, in 1863. Clar- 
 ence is the only survivor. He is in the mercantile 
 business in Youngstown. He married Miss Abby 
 Johnson. Mrs. Cayton died in December, 1862, and 
 Mr. Cayton married a second wife, Miss Mary Eliza 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 495 
 
 Clevenger, in 1865. She bore him one child, Mary 
 Eliza, who died in infancy, and in 1866, the mother 
 also was carried to her final resting place. 
 
 Mr. Andrew J. Cayton formed a third matrimonial 
 alliance, Feb. 15, 1873, with Miss Ruby L. Bond, 
 who was born June 30, 1827, in Morgan Co., 111. 
 She is a daughter of Major John C. Bond, a native of 
 South Carolina, where he was born in December, 1799. 
 He died May 22, 1882. In 1827 he came to Illi- 
 nois, and located in Morgan County, and was mar- 
 ried to Miss Mary Grimsley,in 1817, she also being 
 a native of the Sunny South, where she was born in 
 1790. Of their union, five children were born, 
 Susan C., born August, 1819; William G., April 2, 
 1821 ; Ann, who died in infancy; Jesse W., born in 
 September, 1826, and Ruby L., born June 30, 1827. 
 Mrs. Bond died in Morgan County, this State, in 
 1828. Mr. Bond was a Democrat in political affilia- 
 tions. Religiously, he was a member of the Chris- 
 tian Church. 
 
 Mr. A. J. Cayton's farm of 360 acres is under the 
 finest improvement and cultivation. He has 15 head 
 of thoroughbred Short-horn cattle; has a fine house 
 and barn, with other necessary outbuildings upon 
 his land, his house being a two story, 45 x 50 feet in 
 dimensions, with a good cellar under the entire build- 
 ing. Owing to his own indomitable energy, perse- 
 verance and economy, Mr. Cayton has now sufficient 
 of this world's good to enable him to spend the sun- 
 set of his life in ease and comfort. Besides his farm, 
 to which he devotes considerable of his time, he owns 
 a fine vein of coal about 36 inches thick. Religiously, 
 Mr. Cayton is a member of the Christian Church, 
 and in his political opinions, he affiliates with the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 ^lizabeth Van Tuyl, residing upon section 
 3, Tompkins Township, this county, is the 
 widow of Isaac Van Tuyl. He was born 
 in New Jersey, May 31, 1808, and his parents 
 were Michael and Sophia (Coberly) Van Tuyl, 
 natives of New Jersey. Michael Van Tuyl 
 was born March 17, 1775. Sophia Coberly was born 
 Nov. 10, '1782; they were married Dec. 9, 1797. 
 
 The parents moved from their native State to Ohio 
 in 1814. The father was a farmer by occupation 
 and was the proprietor of 1,280 acres of land, be- 
 sides a saw and grist mill, in the Buckeye State. 
 There he resided, following his chosen vocation, un- 
 til his death, in 1848 ; the death of his wife occurred 
 in March, 1857. 
 
 Isaac Van Tuyl, husband of the subject of this no- 
 tice, remained at home until 1847, where, in his 
 younger years, he attended the common school and 
 assisted his father, and later became a partner with 
 his father and elder brother. In the year mentioned, 
 he sold his interest and moved northeast of Dayton, 
 Ohio, where he purchased 160 acres of good farm 
 land, on which he located and for six years was en- 
 gaged in its cultivation. He then sold it, and, in 
 1854, came to this State and settled in Biggsville 
 Township, Henderson County, where he became the 
 owner of 200 acres of land. On this latter tract he 
 lived for 12 years, cultivating and improving it, and 
 then sold the same and came to this county, where 
 he purchased 15254 acres on section 3, Tompkins 
 Township, which acreage he afterward increased by 
 an additional purchase of 480 acres in the same 
 township and 160 acres in Henderson County. He 
 moved on his land in Tompkins Township and was 
 engaged in its improvement and cultivation until his 
 death, which took place in 1880. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Van Tuyl was with Miss 
 Sarah A. Williams, and they had five children, three 
 of whom are living, and named, Michael, Anna and 
 Sophia. The deceased are Lewis W. and Sarah. 
 Lewis enlisted in the loth 111. Vol. Inf., August, 
 1 86 1. He remained in the service during the war, 
 and participated in 13 different engagements. Among 
 the most noticeable was Island No. 10, Lookout 
 Mountain, Nashville, and he was with Gen. Sher- 
 man when he made his great march to the sea. He 
 enlisted as a private and was mustered out as First 
 Lieutenant, passing through the whole period of the 
 war and not receiving a wound. He was accident- 
 ally killed by being shot with a gun while in Texas, 
 in 1869. Asher D. and John I. were both in the 
 service, John I. serving three years in the 83d 111. 
 Vol. Inf. He was wounded at Fort Donelson. As- 
 her D. was in the 1041)1 Ohio Vol. Inf., Co. F, and 
 served one year, participating in several battles, the 
 most notable being the battle of the Wilderness. 
 James Morgan, the husband of Anna VanTuyl, was 
 
* 
 
 49 6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 
 also engaged in the war, as First Lieutenant of Co. 
 F, 83d 111. Vol. Inf. He participated in the battle of 
 Fort Donelson, serving his country three years. 
 Henry Francis, husband of Addeliza Van Tuyl (child 
 of second wife), was in the 83d 111. Vol. Inf., serving 
 three years. Geo. M. Jamison, husband of Sophia 
 Van Tuyl, was a member of Co. K, 84th 111. Vol. 
 Inf., having served one year and being discharged on 
 account of sickness. 
 
 The second wife of Mr. Van Tuyl was Mrs. Eliz- 
 abeth A. bhauman, formerly the wife of Isaac Shau- 
 man, by whom she had two children, both sons 
 Asher D. and John I. By her union with Mr. Van 
 Tuyl eight children were born, namely : Addeliza, 
 Henry, Lucy B., Ella K., William E., Alexander H., 
 May and A. Elmer. Michael Van Tuyl, son by the 
 first marriage, married Fannie Phillips, and they had 
 three children, two of whom survive Luella and 
 Frank R. Lewis Edward died July 31, 1880; 
 Anna, daughter of the first marriage, became the 
 wife of James Morgan, and to them two children 
 have been born Flora and Lewis H., both of whom 
 are deceased, the former dying June 13, 1885, and 
 the latter Oct. 7, 1869. Sophia, second daughter of 
 the first marriage, became the wife of George M. 
 Jamison, and to them five children have been born. 
 Their oldest child, Lewis, died April 27, 1863, and 
 those remaining are Frederick, Blanche, Herbert and 
 Howard. Asher D. Shauman, first son of Mrs. Van 
 Tuyl's first marriage, was united in marriage with 
 Laura Swihart, and to them four children were born 
 Hallie, Harry, Harvey and Willie. The first wife 
 of Asher died in April, 1882, and he was again mar- 
 ried, to Miss Mary Brown. John I. Shauman, sec- 
 ond son of the first marriage of Mrs. Van Tuyl, 
 formed a matrimonial alliance with Emily Claybaugh, 
 and to them four children have been born. Their 
 eldest child, Birdie, is deceased, and the names of 
 the others are William W., Lewis V. T. and Emma 
 A. Addeliza Van Tuyl was united in marriage with 
 Henry Francis, and their family comprised seven 
 children. The demise of their eldest, Nellie M., oc- 
 curred Jan. 28, 1869. Lewis V. T., Ralph, Lucy B., 
 Laura, May E. and Henrietta still survive. Henry 
 Van Tuyl married Sophronia A. Reed, by whom he 
 had four children George, Olive M., William and 
 Lewis H. William is deceased. Ella K. Van Tuyl 
 married Henry Boston, and they became the parents 
 of seven children John I., Eugene, Ann E., Ira L., 
 
 May, Ono and Otis are their names. William Van 
 Tuyl married Hannah M. Wilkins, and they have 
 one child, Chester. 
 
 Mrs. Van Tuyl was born Jan. 15. 1824, in Ger- 
 mantown, Montgomery Co. Ohio. Since the death 
 of her husband she has remained on the old home- 
 stead and, with the assistance of her four youngest 
 children, two sons and two daughters, manages and 
 cultivates the same. The parents of Mrs. Van Tuyl 
 were Asher and Catherine (Cox) Davis. Mr. Davis 
 was born in 1797 and Mrs. D. in 1800. They were 
 natives of New Jersey and Maryland respectively, 
 and were married in 1819. They came to this State 
 in 1865 and settled in Henderson County, where 
 they continued to reside until their deaths, which oc- 
 curred in February, i88r, and June 9, 1875, respect- 
 ively. 
 
 illiam R. Thorn, a settler in Warren Coun- 
 ty of 1855, is a resident on section 9 of 
 Spring Grove Township. He is a native 
 of Indiana and was born in Jennings County 
 July 24, 1819. He is of Scotch-Irish origin. 
 William D. Thorn, his father, was a native of 
 the State of Kentucky. He removed from Scott 
 County to Indiana in 1818. He was a pioneer in 
 Jennings County in the Hoosier State and bought a 
 large tract of land which was covered with timber. 
 He built a log house and improved a farm. In that 
 pioneeer home the subject of this sketch was born. 
 In 1832 the family removed to Jefferson County and 
 later to Rush County, where the father died, in 1860. 
 The maiden name of the mother of Mr. Thorn was 
 Elizabeth Rankin. She was born in Woodford Co., 
 Ky., and after she was widowed by the death of her 
 husband, she came to Warren County and passed 
 the remaining years of her life in the care of her son. 
 Her death took place in 1869. Three of the seven 
 children of whom she became the mother are still 
 living. Ann Eliza is the widow of M. A. Thompson, 
 who lost his life in a skirmish in the Civil War, in 
 the vicinity of Fort Donelson. John D. lives in 
 Spring Grove Township. 
 
 Mr. Thorn was reared and educated as a farmer 
 in Indiana. In 1846 he became the husband of 
 Susan H. Matthews. She was born in Fleming Co., 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 497 
 
 Ky. The newly married people located on land 
 owned by the senior Thorn in Rush County, and 
 that was his field of operation until 1851, when he 
 engaged in mercantile business in Mill Roy in the 
 same county. After a commercial experience of 
 three years, he resumed the profession of a farmer. 
 In the autumn of 1855 he removed to Illinois. He 
 passed the first winter in the west part of the town- 
 ship in which he now resides, where he obtained the 
 use of a vacant house. Meanwhile he bought a por- 
 tion of prairie land on section 9, and in the course 
 of the winter erected a frame house on his place. In 
 the spring of 1856, he and his family removed to 
 their own home, and it has since been the family 
 homestead. The farm is favorably situated for 
 farming purposes and is watered by flowing streams. 
 It has also natural groves. Mr. Thorn raises stock 
 and grain. 
 
 Seven children were born to him and his wife, and 
 of the number four are now living. Mary A. is mar- 
 ' ried to Robert F. Mulinx and they settled in Taylor 
 Co., Iowa. George W. resides in Page Co., Iowa. 
 Lizzie H. is the wife of William L. Douglass, also of 
 Page Co., Iowa. Alma A. is the wife of Frank N. 
 White, also of Taylor County. The parents are con- 
 nected in membership with the United Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 The father and mother of Mrs. Thorn, George and 
 Esther (Palmer) Matthews, were born respectively 
 in Washington Co., Pa., and the State of New Jersey. 
 They were among the earliest settlers of Fleming 
 Co., Ky., and removed about 1850 to Boone Co., 
 Ind., where they passed the remaining years of their 
 lives. She is of Irish extraction. 
 
 fohn Miles, deceased, was a pioneer of Kelly 
 Township of 1830, being one of the first to 
 locate in that township. He. made his 
 claim on section 25. He was more fortunate 
 than many of the pioneers in that he possessed 
 both oxen and horses, and after building his 
 cabin of logs he proceeded to the work of improving 
 his claim. During the first year he broke quite a 
 quantity of land, and succeeded in raising a good crop 
 
 of corn and a fair quantity of vegetables. When the 
 Black Hawk War broke out, he joined the " Regu- 
 lators.'" For the services he rendered in that de- 
 cisive conflict, the Government of the United States 
 gave him a patent of 160 acres of land. 
 
 Mr. Miles was born in Hardin Co., Ky., Oct. 2, 
 1794. His parents removed to Harrison Co., Ind., 
 when he was 1 2 years of age, and there he passed 
 the remaining years of his youth. On attaining to 
 the age of manhood, he studied law, and was admit- 
 to the Bar of Indiana, at Corydon in Harrison 
 County. He went to New Albany, in Floyd County, 
 and opened his career as an attorney there, where 
 he remained and engaged in his profession until 
 1829. He came then to Illinois and passed the. first 
 winter in that part of Sangamon County which now 
 belongs to the county of Menard. He remained 
 there until the spring of 1830, when he came to 
 Warren County as has been stated. 
 
 After the termination of the hostilities of the Black 
 Hawk War, he was at once admitted to the Bar of his 
 adopted State and practiced law to a limited extent, 
 at the same time giving his attention to the improve- 
 ment of his land. He was prominent in local affairs * 
 from the first, and was elected the first Justice of the 
 Peace in the part of the county where he resided. 
 He was the first Supervisor of the township. He 
 was active and energetic, and always accomplished 
 a great amount of other business while improving a 
 large farm and erecting a good set of frame buildings 
 thereon. He died May 23, 1872. 
 
 In 1822, Mr. Miles was married to Sarah Froman. 
 She was born Jan. 21, 1800, in Indiana. Their 
 children numbered 1 2 and nine of them are now liv- 
 ing. Harriet married Samuel Brown, and they lo- 
 cated in Vancouver, Washington Territory. Mary 
 is the wife of J. I. Myers, a citizen of Marshall, 111. 
 Evaline is the widow of George Weir, a resident of 
 Bourbon Co., Kan. Henry C. is a farmer and busi- 
 ness man of the township of Cold Brook : a full ac- 
 count of his connection with the development of this 
 part of the State of Illinois is given on other pages 
 of this volume. Joseph W. and Fielding are resi- 
 dents of Willes, Kan. James F. lives in Brunson in 
 that State. John J. is an attorney-at-law in Ash- 
 land, Wis. Sarah J. is the wife of Theodore F. Bull- 
 man, who is the manager of the Miles homestead. 
 (See sketch.) Their mother died June 14, 1855. 
 
 
49 8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 \ alvin W. Postlewait, is a prominent mer- 
 chant of Alexis, and has lived in or near 
 that place since he was a small child. He 
 was born Oct. 8, 1845, in Huntington Co., 
 Pa., and in nationality is of mixed extrac- 
 tion. His father, Matthew F. Postlewait, was 
 of German and English parentage, and the paternal 
 grandmother was a Campbell and of Scotch-Irish 
 descent. His mother, Mary J. Yocum, was of Irish 
 descent on the maternal side,and German on the pa- 
 ternal. Both parents were born in Pennsylvania. On 
 coming to Mercer County in 1847, the family located 
 in the township of Suez. They settled on a farm, 
 and were among the first of the permanent settlers 
 in that locality. 
 
 At the time the father purchased the farm but 10 
 acres had been placed in tillage, and there was a 
 small log house on the place. The small acreage 
 that had been broken was also fenced. The new 
 owner broke a few acres additional, and was the oc- 
 cupant of the place until 1856. He then sold it and 
 bought another in the township of Rivola, in the 
 same county, and is yet the occupant of the place. 
 It includes 145 acres, all under excellent tillage. 
 The senior Postlewait is also owner of 80 acres in 
 the township of North Henderson. 
 
 The son, who is the subject of this sketch, is the 
 oldest of the male children in the father's family, 
 and he was reared on the farm after the manner com- 
 mon to the training of the sons of farmers in a new 
 country. He obtained a fair education in the public 
 schools, and was afterward sent for a time to a select 
 school in the same township where he lived. At the 
 age of 20 he commenced teaching. He followed 
 that business principally for five years, and then ob- 
 tained employment in a store as a clerk. 
 
 He held his position at New Windsor until 1874, 
 when he was appointed Deputy County Clerk, and 
 removed to Aledo. He continued to reside in that 
 place two years, and in 1876 formed a partnership in 
 business with S. T. Gibson and H. R. Gilliland. 
 They established themselves as general merchants 
 at Alexis, under the firm name of Gibson, Postle- 
 wait & Co. The senior member of the firm was the 
 
 gentleman with whom Mr. P. clerked. They con- 
 ducted their affairs jointly until 1879. In that year 
 Mr. Gibson sold his interest, and the style of the 
 reconstructed house was C. W. Postlewait & Co., 
 until r882, when another change was effected by the 
 sale of his interest by Mr. Gilliland to William Durs- 
 ton. In March, 1885, Mr. Postlewait became sole 
 proprietor by the purchase of the claim of his part- 
 ner, and has since managed the business alone, in 
 which he is now engaged extensively and prosper- 
 ously. 
 
 Matilda E. Durston became the wife of Mr. Pos- 
 tlewait May 22, i876,and they haveone child, named 
 Orion. The mother was born in Mercer County, 
 and is the daughter of James and Philadelphia 
 (Bridger) Durston. Her parents were pioneers of 
 Mercer County in 1837. They /were both natives of 
 England, and removed to Mercer Co., 111., in 1837, 
 and they both died there. 
 
 Mr. Postlewait is independent in his political prin- 
 ciples. 
 
 He is a member of the A. F. & A. M., and holds 
 membership of Alexander Lodge, No. 702, and has i 
 been W. M. for the past three years. 
 
 h 
 
 arker S. Jones, owning 80 acres of land 
 on section 35, Tompkins Township, where 
 he is following the vocation of an agricul- 
 turist, was born in Washington County, Vir- 
 ginia, July 28, 1848, his parents being Calvin 
 and Rebecca (McQuown) Jones, natives of 
 the same county and State in which their son was 
 born. They moved from their native State to Illi- 
 nois, and located in Henderson County, on a farm, 
 in 1854, and at present reside on section 34, Tomp- 
 kins Township, this county. 
 
 Parker S. Jones, whose name heads this notice, 
 received a fair education in the common schools, 
 and remained with his parents until six years after 
 attaining his majority. After leaving home he con- 
 tinued the occupation which he had followed from 
 boyhood, and soon thereafter bought 80 acres of land 
 on section 32, Tompkins Township, and on which he 
 was located some seven years. He then sold the 
 
 ' ' 
 

WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 married Emma Wealing. Stephen H. was born July 
 2, 1844; he died two days alter birth. Mary E., 
 was born Aug. 28, 1846; she married Joseph Gates 
 and lives in Wisconsin. Jeremiah was born Aug. 28, 
 1848, and lives in Henderson County; he married 
 Clara Thompson. Royal F. was born in December, 
 1850, and died on the 3oth day of the same month. 
 Joseph was born Nov. 29, i85r, and died Dec. 30, 
 1855. Royal G. was born Sept. i, 1854. 
 
 Mr. Ranney is a Republican in his political views 
 and relations. He and his wife are members of the 
 Methodist Church. 
 
 The Ranney family are of English origin, coming 
 to this country about the year 1750. They were quite 
 prominent during the Revolutionary War, three of 
 the family taking part. One was killed at the storm- 
 ing of Stony Point, under the command of General 
 Wayne. (See history of the revolution). Stephen 
 Ranney was made Colonel of the militia after the 
 Revolutionary War. At the breaking out of the war 
 of 1812 he was commissioned General. He also had 
 a son, Johnson Ranney, who took part in the same 
 war. 
 
 Mr. Ranney 's son, R. G. Ranney, is an extensive 
 dealer in fine stock. He has the finest herd of Here- 
 ford Cattle in the several surrounding counties. It 
 consists of over 80 head of thoroughbreds and grades. 
 His bull, Favorite, at the head of his herd, No. 
 6,952 English Herd Book; 12,507, vol. 4, American 
 Herd Book, was imported by George Morgan, in the 
 year 1882, from Herefordshire, England, and to-day 
 is considered one of the finest animals in this coun- 
 try. 
 
 eorge G. McCosh, the editor of the Even- 
 ing Gazette came to Monmouth in 1872, 
 after serving an enlistment of about four 
 years in the volunteer service and in the 
 United States army. From the date of his 
 honorable discharge from the army until the 
 time of his arriv.,1 in Monmouth, he worked at the 
 printer's case in the offices of several prominent 
 journals, including the Galveston (Texas) Daily 
 News. His first employment in Monmouth was in 
 the capacity of a journeyman printer, the greater 
 
 part of the next three years being passed in one of 
 the printing offices of Monmouth. 
 
 The Roseville Gazette, a weekly paper, was 
 founded by Mr. McCosh May 24, 1876, and pub- 
 lished without interrupticn until about a year from 
 that date, when it was changed to the Monmouth 
 Gazette, also a weekly. For four or five months in the 
 fall of 1880 there was published in connection there- 
 with a daily, which at the time of its suspension con- 
 tained the statement that it would be resumed at an 
 early date. The fulfillment of this announcement 
 was accomplished Jan. 23, r883, the date of the first 
 issue of the Evening Gazette, the Monmouth Gazette 
 being continued as a weekly. 
 
 The success of the new daily was immediate and 
 decided, and its prosperity has been uninterrupted. 
 Considering its age and location, its career has been 
 phenomenal. Its excellent reputation, large circula- 
 tion and prosperous condition in every respect, are 
 results that have been attained through the vigor, 
 perseverance, sound judgment and fixed purpose of 
 its founder. The Evening Gazette has been from 
 the start an independent journal. The best verdict 
 regarding the propriety of its course is the general 
 confidence of the people which it has continually 
 enjoyed and which is to be won only by frankness 
 and honesty. In the short period of three years, its 
 circulation rose to between 10,000 and 12,000 a 
 week, its influence increasing with its circulation. Mr. 
 McCosh has directed its course without once losing 
 sight of the object to be attained, in which enter- 
 prise he has been seconded at every move by the 
 people of Warren and neighboring counties, and he 
 is able to furnish the readers of the Evening Gazette 
 as good a daily as is published in any city of less 
 than 25,000 population in the United States. In 
 the work of building up the Evening Gazette, Mr. 
 McCosh has been ably assisted by his associate 
 editor, Mr. Cyrus J. Wood, formerly of the Rochester 
 (N. Y.) Herald, who removed to Monmouth in the 
 autumn of 1883. 
 
 Mr. McCosh was born in Pittsburg, Pa., April !, 
 1846, and was seventh in order of birth of a family 
 of six sons and three daughters, the children of 
 Robert and Margaret (Armstrong) McCosh. The 
 McCosh family is of Scotch descent. George Mc- 
 Cosh entered the printing office of W. S. Haven, at 
 Pittsburg, as an apprentice, in 1859, and served 
 while there under the direction of Mr. George Nor- 
 
 
-3- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ns, ST., to whos fatherly oversight and kind advice 
 he frequently refers in terms of gratitude. 
 
 Religiously, Mr. McCosh was reared a United 
 Presbyterian, of which Church his mother, at the 
 advanced age of 76 years, is a devout member, in 
 the city of Burlington, Iowa. Mr. McCosh's father 
 was a carpenter of limited means, strictly honorable 
 and upright in all his dealings, and he taught his 
 children like principles of conduct. He died at Pitts- 
 burgh in 1863, bequeathing to his children the rich 
 legacy of an unsullied name. His son George, 
 received only a meagre school education, the ad- 
 vantages of which have of necessity been supple- 
 mented by close study at the printer's case and in 
 the office. 
 
 George McCosh was married April 14, 1875, to 
 the daughter of .Deputy-Sheriff C. Coates, Miss Cora 
 Coates, by whom he has two children Nettie Hard- 
 ing and Harry Thomson McCosh. 
 
 Mr. McCosh is not only one of the leading journ- 
 alists of the State, but is one of Warren County's 
 most enterprising and valuable citizens. He is an 
 earnest and fearless advocate of what he feels is 
 * right, and his able efforts, both through the columns 
 of his paper and personally, are faithfully devoted 
 to upbuilding his city and the prosperity of Warren 
 County. As a prominent representative, both of his 
 profession and of the business element of this county, 
 the publishers take pleasure in presenting the por- 
 trait of Mr. McCosh in this ALBUM. It is engraved 
 from a photograph recently taken. 
 
 illiam A. Allen has been from childhood 
 a resident of the township of Sumner, in 
 Watren County. He came here with his 
 parents in 1839, and was then nine years of 
 age. He was born in Preble Co , Ohio, Feb. 
 22, 1830. Andrew Allen, his father, was a 
 native of South Carolina and was born in 1801. He 
 was of Scotch-Irish descent, both his parents being 
 the children of parents of that race of people. Their 
 respective families located in South Carolina, where 
 they were married. They were dissatisfied in a com- 
 munity where slave-holding was prevalent, and they 
 removed to Ohio early in the igth century. Their 
 
 son Andrew was then very young. The family were 
 among the earliest of the permanent settlers in 
 Preble County. The grandsire of Mr. Allen, of this 
 sketch, was a soldier in the war of 1812, and died in 
 Monroe County, Ind. Andrew Allen, his son, was 
 reared to manhood in Ohio, and married Sarah Giles. 
 She was also a native of the State of South Carolina. 
 After their marriage they located in Preble County, 
 and were there resident until 1832. In that year 
 they emigrated to Indiana. They located in Clinton 
 County, where they were pioneers. Mr. Allen bought 
 Government land, which was covered with heavy 
 timber, built a hewed-log house and began the work 
 of clearing a farm. He was convinced that there 
 were better opportunities farther West, and, accord- 
 ingly, in 1839, started with his wife and five children 
 for Illinois. The party had one wagon and three 
 horses and they traveled after the gypsy fashion, 
 which was then the prevalent method. They halted 
 on the Sabbath and held religious services. A jour- 
 ney of four weeks brought them to \Varren County. 
 Mr. Allen bought the northeast quarter of section 10, 
 township 12, range 3, which is now named Sumner 
 Township. The place was in a state of nature, and 
 the new proprietor erected a log house and com- 
 menced the work of improving the land. A good 
 frame house replaced the primitive cabin of the pio- 
 neer, and the whole farm was transformed into a de- 
 sirable and valuable homestead, and such was its 
 office until the death of the wife and mother, when 
 Mr. Allen sold the place and went to live with his 
 daughter, Mrs. Mary S. Rogers. His wife died in 
 August, 1857, and his demise occurred Feb. 7, 1881. 
 Following is the record of their children: John H. 
 lives in Monmouth ; William A. is the second child ; 
 Margaret C. is the wife of Marion Jamison, of Fur- 
 ness Co., Neb.; Nancy A. and Robert B. are de- 
 ceased ; Mary S. married Nicholas Rogers, of Sum- 
 ner Township. 
 
 Mr. Allen, of this sketch, was nine years of age 
 when his parents removed to Illinois. He passed 
 the years of his minority in the manner common to 
 the sons of pioneer farmers and made his home with 
 his parents until his marriage, when he located on 
 seciion 4, of Sumner Township. 
 
 Eliza J. Stewart became the wife of William A. 
 Allen April 6,1852. She was born in Washington 
 Co., Pa., and is the daughter of Robert C. and Mary 
 A. (Kirk) Stewart. Five of their children are still 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 S'3 
 
 living. Florence E. is married to James C. Robb, 
 of Mercer County ; Mary is the wife of Kenneth 
 Whitman, a resident of Keithsburg ; Robert lives in 
 Sumner Township; he married Mary R. Choat, and 
 they have one child ; Elizabeth Y. and William Linas 
 are the youngest two. Jennie, the fourth child in 
 order of birth, was removed by death at the age of 
 two years. Emma was the last born and died at the 
 age of two years. The father and mother and all the 
 children, with the exception of the youngest, are 
 members of the United Presbyterian Church. 
 
 Mr. Allen entered the military service of his coun- 
 try during the war of the Rebellion. He enlisted in 
 September, 1862, in Co. I, 501)1 111. Vol. Inf., and ac- 
 companied the regiment to Missouri. He was in the 
 battle of Fort Djnelson. He was in the service a 
 year and was discharged on account of disability to 
 do military duty, in September, 1863. He has never 
 recovered the former vigor and strength which was 
 once his best possession. 
 
 The parents of Mrs. Allen were of Scotch-Irish or- 
 igin, the grandparents coming to this country when 
 quite young and settling in Washington Co., Pa. 
 
 "ohn A. Miller is a farmer and breeder of 
 stock in Kelly Township, and is located on 
 section i. He is a native citizen of the 
 township of which he is an important business 
 factor and in which he was born Aug. i, 1842. 
 Christian Miller, his father, was born in East 
 Tennessee, Aug. 31, 1807, and removed with his 
 parents to Indiana when he was in his youth. His 
 father, George Miller, bought a quantity of land sit- 
 uated about three miles from Crawfordsville, where 
 he cleared a farm and lived until 1832. In that 
 year he removed to Illinois and was the pioneer set- 
 tler at Sugar Grove in Mercer County. Millersburg, 
 which bears the family name, was named for the 
 first settler in that part of Mercer County. In 1850, 
 George Miller again yielded to the inspiration of the 
 pioneer spirit which controlled him throughout his 
 life, and turned his face toward the setting sun. He 
 crossed the plains to the Pacific Coast and was a 
 pioneer in the valley of the Willamette in that ter- 
 
 ritory. He lived there a few years and went into 
 the interior of Oregon, where he remained until his 
 death, at the age of 96. He was a nimrod of more 
 than ordinary pretensions, and killed deer with his 
 rifle after he was a nonogenarian. Abraham Miller, 
 one of his sons, now 90 years of age, was the first 
 Clerk of Mercer County. 
 
 Chrislian Miller passed the major portion of his 
 boyhood and youth in Indiana. He was married 
 there Sept. 6, 1833, to Mary Brown. He came to 
 Illinois in 1832, and located for a short time at Hen- 
 derson's Grove, in Knox County ; afterwards he re- 
 moved to Edwards' River in Mercer County, where 
 he continued to reside until 1839. The removal of 
 his family to Warren County was then effected, and 
 he made a settlement on section i, Kelly Township, 
 where he erected a log house and occupied the 
 pioneer cabin while he put his land in shape for 
 profitable cultivation. He afterwards built a good 
 frame house, which was his home as long as he lived. 
 He died July 28, 1869. Five of the children born 
 to him and his wife are still living: Jane is the wife 
 of Leonard W. Edelman, who resides in the town- 
 ship of North Hendersou, Mercer County, and of 
 whom a sketch is given on another page; Samuel 
 Miller lives at Alexis ; George is a resident of Atchi- 
 son, Kan. ; John A. is the manager of the home- 
 stead; B. Frank lives in Alexis. Mrs. Miller died 
 in 1856. She was bo_rn in Ohio, Sept. 6, 1812. Af- 
 ter the death of his first wife, the father married 
 Mrs. Sarah Dean, who was a native of Indiana and 
 is now living in Page Co., Iowa Samuel and Jane 
 Brown, the maternal grandparents of Mr. Miller of 
 this sketch, were pioneers of Knox County. 
 
 John A. Miller passed the entire period of his 
 youth in the township where he was born. He was 
 reared on the family homestead and received his 
 education in the common schools. He was among 
 the first to enroll himself in the military service in 
 the first year of the Rebellion, and enlisted Aug. 6, 
 1 86 1, in Co. A, load 111. Vol. Inf. The command 
 joined the army in Kentucky and also went into 
 Tennessee. Feb. 18, 1862, Mr. Miller was dis- 
 charged on account of inability to perform military 
 duty. He returned to his home and resumed his 
 former vocation of farmer on the homestead, of which 
 he has since been the continuous occupant, with the 
 exception of a single year passed at Galesburg, 
 where he was for that time variously occupied. He 
 
514 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 is now owner of the homestead and also the owner 
 of 80 acres formerly included in the farm known as 
 the Allen Brojvn estate in the township of North 
 Henderson, Mercer County. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Miller to Mary, daughter of 
 Harvey and Mary (Lofton) Gregg, of Knox County, 
 took place Sept. 29, 1869. Mabel, their only child, 
 was born May n, 1881. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have 
 had four children ; the three first-born died within 
 one year. Maud was eight years old at the time of 
 her decease; Ethel died at 18 months; an infant 
 died unnamed. 
 
 Mr. Miller is an adherent of the Democratic party. 
 
 ton Calvin M. Rodgers. In presenting 
 this biographical notice of the career of 
 one of the leading men of Warren County, 
 and a gentleman who is thoroughly representa- 
 tive of its progressive elements, we deem it our 
 duty to first briefly advert to the life-story of 
 those from whom he draws his origin. 
 
 Rev. John Rodgers, the grandfather of our sub- 
 ject, was born in Scotland, about the year 1735. 
 
 When about 35 years old he emigrated to this 
 country with his wife and settled in Pennsylvania. 
 Soon after his arrival in the country of his adoption 
 his wife died, and he was re-married to Isabel Ire- 
 land, a lady of Irish origin. One child was the 
 offspring of the first union, a boy, Thomas. His sec- 
 ond wife bore to him a large family, seven in number, 
 namely : John, Aleri, Aniel, William, Alexander, 
 Samuel, Margaret and Irene. 
 
 Aleri, the third son of John Rodgers, was the 
 father of the subject of this notice, and was born in 
 Rockbridge Co., Va., in 1785, whence his father had 
 removed from Pennsylvania a few years previously. 
 He grew to manhood at home, and after his marriage 
 still remained under the parental roof-tree, and was 
 thenceforth never separated from his parents, who 
 passed the declining years of their lives under his 
 protection. In his will, the grandfather of our sub- 
 ject, who was a man of some pretensions to scholar- 
 ly attainments, bequeathed his library, which was 
 considered in those days one of the best in Virginia, 
 
 and consisted largely of classical works, to Washing- 
 ton and Lee Colleges, of Virginia. Some of his books 
 of which he made special bequests are still treas- 
 ured by his descendants. 
 
 The father of our subject married Mary Davidson, 
 a native of Rockbridge County, and the daughter of 
 John and Mary Davidson, people of Scotch-Irish 
 descent. Four children were born to them in Vir- 
 ginia, John, William, Andrew and Alexander. 
 
 During the year 1814, Aleri, with the rank of First 
 Lieutenant, together with Aniel and one other broth- 
 er, entered the service of their country, and remained 
 until the close of the war. 
 
 In the year 1822, the father of our subject, with 
 his family, emigrated to the West, settling in Monroe 
 Co., Mo. The journey was performed overland in 
 their own conveyance, and, passing through the 
 States of Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky and Illinois, 
 they reached St. Louis, at that remote period but a 
 small village, finally arriving at their destination af- 
 ter a long and tedious journey of three months. The 
 father of the family settled with his little flock on a 
 half section of land near Florida, Monroe Co., which 
 had previously been entered by Col. Benton, of St. ] 
 Louis. He soon increased his domain to 600 acres, 
 but with the many disadvantages attendant upon 
 wresting a living from the soil in that very early day, 
 he became dissatisfied with his location and deter- 
 mined to seek a new one. His family had in the 
 meantime been increased by six children, who were, 
 Mary, Joseph, Phcebe, Isabel, Samuel and Calvin 
 M. In the year 1836, we accordingly find him set- 
 tled in Hale Township, Warren County. Here he 
 had purchased a tract of 400 acres, upon which he 
 erected a home, where the remaining years of his 
 life were passed, his death occurring in December, 
 1863. The mother of our subject survived until the 
 year 1880. 
 
 In this connection it is proper to say that to Aleri 
 Rogers, along with his brother Andrew, especial 
 honor and credit is due for having introduced the 
 first reaping machine brought West of the Alleghe- 
 nies. It was of the McCormick pattern, and was 
 shipped from Lynchburg, Va., via Richmond, New 
 Orleans and up the Mississippi to Oquawka, 111., and 
 thence by wagon to the old Rogers homestead in 
 Hale Township. The day of its trial was a memor- 
 able one in the annals of the community, as well as 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 of agriculture in the entire West, and its first work- 
 ings were voted a grand success. 
 
 Hon. Calvin M. Rodgers, the subject of this sketch, 
 was born on the isth of February, 1835, in Monroe 
 Co., Mo. He remained under the parental roof-tree 
 until he had attained his majority, when he was mar- 
 ried. After this event he took charge of the 
 homestead, and also entered into the active man- 
 agement of his father's affairs. The early days of 
 Mr. Rodgers were passed much as those of the or- 
 dinary farm boy of the period, working hard during 
 the busy season of the summer, and acquiring such 
 limited educational facilities as the district school af- 
 forded, during the dull winter months. During the 
 winter months of 1853 and 1854)16 attended Knox 
 College. 
 
 He was married to Miss Eliza A. Paine, Nov. 27, 
 1858. She is the daughter of Charles and Parthe- 
 nia (Mason) Paine, her mother being a near relative 
 . of ex-President Garfield's wife. To the parents of 
 Mrs. Rodgers were born six children : Amanda mar- 
 ried Robert Gibson, and is living at Monmouth ; 
 their second daughter, Emily, who is the widow of 
 Nathaniel Brownlee, also resides there ; Lucretia is 
 the wife of H. F. Murrell, and lives in Avon, Ful- 
 ton Co., 111. ; Charles H. married Sophia Hopper, 
 and removed to the far Northwest, where he is now 
 settled in Kings Co., Washington Territory ; the 
 second son, John E., married Miss Ann Turnbull, 
 and is settled in Sumner Township, this county ; Eli- 
 za, the youngest child, and the wife of the subject 
 of this notice, was born in Sumner Township, Nov. 
 n, 1837. 
 
 Eight children have blessed the union of Mr. 
 Rodgers and wife, namely : Rornaine M., born May 
 21, 1861 ; Charles H., Dec. 7, 1863; Aleri, Oct. 19, 
 1865 ; William D., Oct. n, 1867 ; Alexander, Jan. 
 26, 1870; Emily I., Dec. 16, 187 i; Frederick M.,June 
 2, 1874, who died Aug. 1 1 following, and one son who 
 died in infancy. 
 
 The subject of this notice has for thirty years been 
 a leading citizen of Warren County. He was elected 
 to his first office in 1856, when but 21 years of age. 
 He has been School Trustee of his Township almost 
 continuously up to the present time. For two terms 
 he has served as Commissioner of Highways, repre- 
 senting Hale Township and for five years has been 
 Supervisor. In 1882 he was chosen by the Repub- 
 
 lican party as their candidate for the Legislature, 
 from the 27th District, comprising Warren and Mc- 
 Donough counties. Mr. Rodgers' position in this 
 contest was unique. Unlike the majority of political 
 aspirants, he was not a seeker for office, but submit- 
 ting to the unanimous desire of his constituents he 
 became a candidate. He was elected by a hand- 
 some majority. He was again elected to the 34th 
 General Assembly in 1884. 
 
 Mr. Rodgers was one of the memorable 103 who 
 stood by John A. Logan during the Senatorial con- 
 test of that session, and was a stanch supporter of 
 his candidate from the beginning until he finally re- 
 ceived the necessary majority. 
 
 The subject of this sketch claims that his success 
 in life may be credited to a kind Providence, good 
 parents, a discriminating public and clever friends, 
 along with some persistent effort of his own. 
 
 .ori Isaac L. Christie, retired farmer and a 
 resident of Monmouth, is a native of Jef- 
 ferson Co., Ind., where he was born Dec. , 
 n, 1825. His father, James Christie, was a 
 Virginian, and served his country valiantly dur- 
 ing the war of 1812. His great ancestor was 
 James Christie, who came to America from Ireland, 
 and settled in Lancaster, Lnncaster Co., Pa., in the 
 early part of the i8th century. Like 90 per cent, 
 of his countrymen, his dislike for the British admit- 
 ted of no discussion when it came to the question of 
 loyalty to the crown or to the colonies. But when 
 the great struggle came, that struggle which was to 
 mark the beginning of a new era, the elder Christie 
 had grown too old to participate, and to his only child, 
 named for himself, he said "Go," and the son, James 
 Christie, went forth, and from the beginning to the 
 ending of the Revolutionary War, he fought against 
 the "red coats." 
 
 Isaac L. Christie was educated at the common 
 schools of Indiana, where he was brought up to 
 farming. He came to Warren County, in 1864, and 
 lived upon his farm in Lenox Township up to 1877, 
 when he retired from agricultural labor and took up 
 his abode in the city of Monmouth. Since coming 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 here he has sold his farm and was for a year or two 
 engaged in the flour and feed business. 
 
 Before leaving Indiana he held some minor offices, 
 but he was never termed a politician. In 1874, he 
 was elected as an Independent to represent Warren 
 and McDonough counties in the Illinois Legislature, 
 being nominated atBushnell without even his knowl- 
 edge or consent. During the Legislature of 1875- 
 76, the Independents held the balance of power in 
 that body, and as Mr. Christie was one of the lead- 
 ers ofi that delegation it may be presumed that the 
 two old parties found occasion to wish he had re- 
 mained on the farm. Formerly he was a Republican, 
 but in 1878 he identified himself with the Inde- 
 pendents, and has since voted and worked as best 
 suited his fancy. 
 
 The engraving upon a heavy silver-headed cane in 
 Mr. Christie's possession tells the following history, 
 and is well worthy mentioning in this connection. 
 The John Hanks mentioned was a relative of Mr. 
 
 I Lincoln : 
 " JOHN HANKS " 
 to 
 I. Li. Christie. 
 Cane made by John Hanks and Gov. Oglesby. 
 
 1860. , 
 
 from Rail Split by A. Lincoln, in 
 1830." 
 
 Mr. Christie was married at Madison, Indiana, 
 May 20, 1852, to Miss Louisa Wilson, and has had 
 born to him six children : George P., connected with 
 the United States army as a printer; Sarah Anto- 
 nette; Ann Elizabeth; Fannie, born Dec. 12, 1869, 
 died Dec., 1878; Clara Louisa, born June 25, 1875, 
 died Dec., 1878; and Mary Emma, who was the sec- 
 ond child in order of birth, was buried in July, 1857, 
 less than one year old. 
 
 Charles T. Page is senior member of the 
 firm of Page & Pinkerton, dealers in hard- 
 ware, stoves and furniture, and manufac- 
 turers and jobbers of tinware, at Monmouth 
 himself and partner being the successors to a 
 business established by Chancy Hardin in 
 the early history of Monmouth. Mr. Hardin sold 
 out to M. C. Churchill, who sold the business to Mr. 
 
 Page in 1874. Mr. Pinkerton came into the firm in 
 1876, at which time the trade was simply in hard- 
 ware and stoves. In 1879 they added furniture and 
 at this writing their business in that line is the larg- 
 est in the city. 
 
 Mr. Page was born at Hillsdale, Mich., April 18, 
 1849. His parents. Rev. William and Frances (Du- 
 rand) Page, natives of Connecticut, were married in 
 York State, removed to Michigan and subsequently 
 to Rockford, 111., where the senior Mr. Page died, in 
 1856. His widow resides at this writing (October, 
 1885), with her eldest son at Ft. Wayne, Ind. 
 
 Charles T. Page was educated at Rockford, and, 
 when about 19 years of age, was employed by 
 the Winnebago National Bark, at that place, as 
 bookkeeper. He remained there four years and went 
 to Chicago as assistant cashier of the Home National 
 Bank, a position he filled two years, coming thence 
 to Monmouth. ' 
 
 He married at Alexis, this State, Sept. 18, 1876, 
 Miss Bertha Alexander, daughter of John E. Alex- 
 ander, and the two children born of this union are 
 named respectively Mary Florence and Edna. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Page are members of the Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 illiam St. Glair Matson is a farmer on 
 section 2, of Sumner Township, and came 
 to Warren County in 1865. He is a na- 
 tive of the State of Maryland and was born 
 in Fredericktown, Aug. 31, 1823. His par- 
 ents, George and Jane (Barr) Matson, came 
 West when he was but two years old and located in 
 Ohio. They were early settlers of Muskingum 
 County and were both of English descent. The 
 mother died when William was 12 years old and he 
 afterwards resided with a neighbor named Robert 
 Linn, who entered into an agreement to clothe, board 
 and send him to school. The opportunities he had 
 for the latter were of practically no account and af- 
 ter five years he terminated the relations he held 
 with Mr. Linn. During the chief portion of the suc- 
 ceeding year he attended school. After that, until 
 he was 20, he was variously employed, and he then 
 engaged with a merchant tailor, of Bridgeville, Ohio, 
 
 H- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 and Mr. Matson remained with him 18 months. 
 When he had acquired a sufficient knowledge of the 
 business to warrant making a venture he went to 
 Chandlersville, where he opened a shop in partner- 
 ship with another man. Their joint operations con- 
 tinued 1 8 months, and Mr. Matson afterward con- 
 tinued alone. After a time he became interested in 
 the business of buying and shipping horses to East- 
 ern markets, and on one occasion, when he accom- 
 panied his property in horse flesh to the East, he 
 purchased a stock of goods common to the estab- 
 lishment of a gentlemen's furnishing store, and on 
 his return increased the facilities for his business. In 
 1850 he removed to Cumberland, in Guernsey Co., 
 where he opened traffic in the same line. From that 
 time forward, as long as he stayed in that place, he 
 continued to go East with horses twice a year and at 
 the same time attended to his semi-yearly purchase 
 of goods for his store. Four years later he brought 
 his affairs in Cumberland to a close and turned lo 
 Muskingum County. He bought a farm in Salt 
 Creek Township, in that county, and combined the 
 business of trading in horses with that of the pursuit 
 of agriculture. He operated in those vocations until 
 the year in which he removed to Warren County. 
 
 On arrival in the township where he cast his lot for 
 a permanency he bought 150 acres of land, of which 
 he has since been the owner. The place is at pres- 
 ent in as good condition for profit as any in the 
 county of similar dimensions, and is fitted with all 
 necessary and suitable farm buildings. He has since 
 become by purchase the owner of the property known 
 as the Andrews farm, which lie purchased in 1881, 
 and which is situated on section 3. 
 
 In 1847 Mr. Matson, in company with his wife, 
 Miss Nina L. Chandler before her marriage to him, 
 set up their domestic establishment, which still re- 
 mains intact. Mrs. Matson was the daughter of 
 Zacharias and Fannie (Bingham) Chandler, who were 
 natives of Vermont and New Hampshire respective- 
 ly. Mrs. Matson's grandfather's brothers, two in 
 number, were soldiers in the war of the Revolution ; 
 one, Jesse Chandler, was killed at the battle of Ben- 
 nington. The grandfather was a native of Vermont. 
 On the Bingham side of the house Mrs. Matson is a 
 lineal descendant of Miles Standish, who came over 
 on the Mayflower, in 1629. Mrs. M. has a silk dress 
 that her mother, her grandmother and her great- 
 grandmother were married in. It has been in the 
 
 family over 200 years. The family had in its pos- 
 session a pewter basin that belonged to Sarah Stand- 
 ish, the wife of Miles Standish. Owing to the scarc- 
 ity of lead, it was brought to Ohio and melted into 
 bullets. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Matson have four children Lena is 
 the wife of William Robb, of Mercer County ; Arthur, 
 Gertrude and Harry are the three younger who sur- 
 vive. The mother was born in Salt Creek Town- 
 ship, in Muskingum Co., Ohio. 
 
 
 eorge M. Sallee, farmer and stock raiser, 
 residing on section 5, Cold Brook Town- 
 ship, is a life-long resident of that town- 
 ship, having been born there March i, 1858. 
 Henry Sallee, father of George M., was a 
 native of Virginia, and a farmer by occupa- 
 tion, and came to the undeveloped West when a 
 young man, with his parents, settling in Cold Brook 
 Township, where his father died some years ago. Af- 
 ter that event Henry was married to Miss Minerva 
 Wright, a daughter, of Jacob Wright, a farmer and 
 old settler in Cold Brook Township, where he died 
 in January, 1876. (See sketch of Mrs. Lewis B. 
 Davis.) 
 
 The mother of George M. Sallee was bom in 
 Monmouth, Sept. 3, 1836, and is at present residing 
 with her son, the subject of this notice. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Sallee, parents of George M., were married, and 
 they located in Monmouth Township, where his 
 father was engaged in farming and also as Collecting 
 Agent for the George W. Brown Manufacturing Com- 
 pany for some time. He died at his home in Cold 
 Brook Township when the subject of this sketch was 
 but one year old. 
 
 George M. Sallee was the only child of his par- 
 ents, Henry and Minerva Sallee, and after the deatli 
 of his father, which occurred when he was an in- 
 fant, as already stated, continued to reside with his 
 mother on the old homestead. He alternated his 
 labors on the farm with attendance at the common 
 schools, and after he had attained a sufficient age he 
 cultivated the homeslead, and has continued thereon 
 until the present time. His mother owns i 60 acres 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 of good land, under an advanced state of cultiva- 
 tion, together with ten acres of timber, and George 
 M. is the proprietor of 34 acres of timber land in 
 Kelly Township. 
 
 The homestead on which Mr. Sallee resides, and 
 which is under his control, is one of the best farms 
 in Cold Brook Township, and he is meeting with suc- 
 cess in the vocation which he has followed during his 
 entire life. 
 
 Socially, he is a member of the I. O. O. F., and 
 in politics he casts his vole with the Democratic 
 party. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Sallee to Miss Josie Frymire, 
 the accomplished daughter of William and Mary 
 (Barnum) Frymire, took place March 28, 1879, at the 
 residence of the bride's parents, in MonmouthTown- 
 ship. Her father, whose calling was a farmer, died 
 in that township. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Sal- 
 lee has been blessed by the birth of three children, 
 one of whom is deceased ; Myrtle I. and Lucy A. are 
 the living, and Ruth died in infancy. 
 
 W. Burt, a grain dealer at Alexis, is 
 practically a native of the State of Illinois, 
 having been brought hither by his parents 
 when less than two years old. He was born 
 
 in Granger, Medina Co., Ohio, May 3, 1839. 
 
 John Burt, his father, was born in Cayuga Co., 
 N. Y. The latter went in his young manhood to 
 Ohio, and was a pioneer of the county where his son 
 was born. He became a landholder in the heavy 
 timber district of the Buckeye State, and built a log 
 house for his individual use, as he was still outside 
 the bonds of matrimony. Soon after he had pre- 
 pared a residence he was joined by his widowed 
 mother and his brothers and sisters. After establish- 
 ing them in comfort he returned to the State of New 
 York, whence he came back to his home in the forest, 
 accompaned by his bride. This is a story quickly 
 related, but when one reflects that the journeyings 
 were made with horses, it will be perceived that they 
 were of much greater moment and consumed more 
 time than would at first be suggested. The wife 
 lived but eight months. In due time the husband 
 
 took a second wife, Miss Lucinda Hammond. She 
 was the daughter of pioneers of the township of 
 Bath, in Medina Co., Ohio, and was born in Tolland 
 Co., Conn., whither her parents removed to Ohio. 
 The senior Burt cleared a farm of 160 acres in the 
 primeval forest, where he located, and also became 
 extensively interested in the lumber trade. He built 
 a saw mill and engaged in all the relations of the 
 business in a new country. 
 
 In 1839 he came to Illinois for the purpose of 
 prospecting. He visited Knox and DeKalb coun- 
 ties, and liking the appearance of the former best, 
 he resolved to pitch his tent within its borders. Re- 
 turning to Ohio, he lost no time in carrying his res- 
 olution into effect. He sold his property there, and 
 all preparations were complete, when the wife and 
 mother was seized by fatal illness. She died in the 
 summer of 1840, and, after all was over,the bereaved 
 husband and five motherless children set out for their 
 new home. At the time of the death of Mrs. Burt, 
 all of the household goods were packed and ready for 
 removal. 
 
 The journey was made with two two-horse teams, 
 and the household camped and cooked by the way. 
 Mr. Burt bought land on the west line of the town- 
 ship of Ontario, in Knox County, and his family 
 lived there seven years. At the end of that time the 
 father sold the place and bought another tract of un- 
 improved land in the same township. The entire 
 acreage was prairie, and the owner improved a fine 
 farm. 
 
 In the spring of 1855 he went to Oneida, where 
 he established himself as a grocer, and was the third 
 to interest himself in a business enterprise there. 
 He continued his operations there until his death, 
 which transpired March 16, 1857. 
 
 He was a pioneer by nature. His enterprise and 
 abilities fitted him for a business leader, and his 
 judgment of the propriety of a location was unerr- 
 ing. He was prominent in offices of trust in the gift 
 of his fellow-men, and acted as Supervisor, Assessor, 
 Collector and Justice of the Peace. He was also 
 School Director. While in Ohio he was Colonel of 
 the State Militia, and officiated as Postmaster. 
 
 Mr. Burt, of this narrative, was reared on his 
 father's farm, until he attained the age of 16 years. 
 He then assisted in the mercantile business of his 
 sire at Oneida, until the death of the latter in 1857. 
 
 ' 
 
 . 
 
 ' ' 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 After that event threw the responsibility of the fam- 
 ily and estate on him and an elder brother, they 
 together managed the farm for a period offiveyears. 
 After that they went to Oneida. There Mr. Burt 
 bought an elevator preparatory to engaging in the 
 business in which he is interested at present. He 
 operated as a buyer and seller of grain ?t that place 
 three years, and then turned his attention to farm- 
 ing. 
 
 After an experience of a year as farmer, he went 
 to Windsor, in Mercer County, and again operated as 
 a grain broker. He continued this seven years, and 
 at the expiration of that time removed to Alexis. 
 He passed a year there, occupied in the milling bus- 
 iness, and went thence to Yates City, in Knox Co. 
 In the spring of 1880 he returned to Alexis and es- 
 tablished the business in which he has since been 
 engaged. He is the sole representative of that line 
 of traffic at Alexis. 
 
 Sarah A. Fraser became the wife of Mr. Burt 
 Nov. 15, 1860. She was born Dec. 25, 1839, in New 
 Haven, Conn. To them four children were born, of 
 whom three are now living: Katie is married to 
 Perry Anderson, of Alexis; Jessie is the third child ; 
 F rankle, the second child, died at the age of two 
 years ; Bertha is the youngest. The mother passed 
 from this world, July 2, 1879. 
 
 Mr. Burt was again married, March 17, 1882, to 
 Bertha E. Leonard. She is a native of Pennsylva- 
 nia. Ellen L. is the name of the sole daughter and 
 child of the second marriage. 
 
 Mr. Burt is a Republican of decided principles. 
 He and Mrs. Burt are members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. 
 
 . ames Harvey Wallace, M. D., a promi- 
 nent physician and surgeon, residing at 
 Monmouth, and whose portrait is given on 
 the opposite page, traces his ancestry back to 
 Scotland. Robert Wallace was driven from 
 Scotland and fled into Ireland during the per- 
 secution of the Presbyterians. His son, William, 
 was born in Ireland, and lived many years in the 
 County Tyrone, in which place he was married, and 
 
 while there had a son, James, born in 1771. James 
 married Mary Barfit, in Tyrone, and the eight chil- 
 dren born to them were named respectively : Will- 
 iam, Eliza, Benjamin, Mary Ann, James, Robert, 
 John and Margaret Jane. Robert was the father of 
 our subject and came with his parents from his na- 
 tive country, Ireland, in the year 1810, then being 
 three years of age. The Wallaces spent their first 
 year in America in the city of Baltimore, removing 
 thence to Juniata Co., Pa , where Robert grew to 
 manhood and married Eleanor Shaver, a native of 
 the Keystone State, of German extraction, tracing 
 her ancestry back to an early product of the two 
 very distinct races, the Scotch and the German. 
 
 Robert Wallace, born Feb. 21, 1807, was by oc- 
 cupation a farmer before retiring from active life, 
 and at this writing (October, 1885) resides on a fine 
 farm in Wayne Co., Ohio, where he removed in the 
 year 1854. He is 78 years of age and his wife is 
 74 years. They reared six sons and two daughters, 
 James Harvey Wallace being the second in order of n 
 birth. One of the brothers, W. W. Wallace, is 
 Professor of Mathematics at Westminister College, 
 Pa. ; and John C. is an M. D. at Port Austin, Mich. 
 The other three are farmers in Wayne Co., Ohio. 
 
 The present Dr. J. H. Wallace, who was born in 
 Juniata Co., Pa., Nov. 16, 1834, spent the first 19 
 years of his life upon the farm and at the common 
 schools, completing his literary education at Ver- 
 million Institute, Hayesville, Ohio. In 1857, he be- 
 gan reading medicine at Wooster, Ohio, with Dr. T. 
 H. Baker; attended lectures at Buffalo University 
 (medical department) in 1861, and graduated from 
 the Ohio College of Medicine, Cincinnati, in 1862. 
 Directly after receiving his diploma he began prac- 
 tice at Lakeville, Ohio, in partnership with a Dr. 
 McKee, and at the end of 15 months removed to 
 Canaan, that State, where he practiced with much 
 success for about 1 1 years, in the meantime taking a 
 post-graduate course at Jefferson Medical College, 
 Philadelphia. He went next to Smithville, Ohio, 
 where he remained till his removal to Monmouth 
 in April, 1876. Here he was associated with Dr. 
 S. K. Crawford about one year and has since been, 
 for the greater part of the time, without a partner. 
 At the present time, however, Dr. John Troutman is 
 associated with him. 
 
 After the battle of Pittsburg Landing, in 1862, the 
 Doctor was there as a volunteer surgeon, and as- 
 
5*2 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 sistecl with his skill in caring for the sick, wounded 
 and dying, so, also, at Vicksburg, from which place 
 he brought home his invalid brother, who was a sol- 
 dier in Co. H, i zoth Regt. Ohio Vol. Inf. Dr. Wal- 
 lace is devoted to the profession he so aptly adorns, 
 and the good people of Monmouth amply attest their 
 appreciation of his skill as a physician, and of his 
 high merit as a citizen. 
 
 Dr. Wallace was married at Wooster, Ohio, Oct. 
 1 6, 1862, to Miss Sarah J. Troutman, daughter of J. 
 G. and Caroline (Frybarger) Troutman. Of their 
 children, we make the following mention : George 
 E., druggist at Monmouth; Charles R., born in 
 November, 1865, died at the age of five years 
 and five months; Franklin E., student; Carrie L., 
 student; Anna May and Lewis E., at home; and 
 LeRoy, born in 1875, died in 1877. 
 
 Bath the Djctor and his wife are members of the 
 Presbyterian Church and active workers in various 
 benevolent organizations. He is a member of the 
 Independent Order of Mutual Aid, and also a 
 member of the Knights of Honor, a charter mem- 
 ber of the Order of the " Golden Rule," and a Di- 
 rector in the Monmouth Loan and Homestead 
 Association. Republican ' in politics, he cast his 
 first vote for John C. Fremont in 1856, and from 
 that time to the present has remained firm to his first 
 convictions, but takes no active part in politics. 
 
 j{; ev. Robert Clayton Matthews, D. D., late 
 Pastor of the Presbyterian Church, Mon- 
 mouth, and son of the Rev. John Mat- 
 thews, was born at Shepherdstown, Va., April 
 i, 1822, and died at Monmouth, Nov. 15, 
 1 88 1. He graduated with honors from Han- 
 over (Va.) College in 1839; studied law, and after 
 emigrating to Iowa practiced awhile at Fairfield. 
 From Iowa he removed to Mississippi, and was there 
 for some years engaged in teaching. 
 
 Returning North, probably for that purpose, he 
 was, on the i2th of February, 1846, married near 
 Lavonia, Ind., to Miss Louisa M. Martin, who ac- 
 companied him again to the South, where she died 
 in January, 1849. While at the South, he became 
 
 converted to the Christian religion, and soon after 
 the death of his wife, entered the New Albany (Ind.) 
 Theological Seminary, from which institution he was 
 licensed to preach the following year. He preached 
 his first sermon at Monmouth, Dec. 20, 1851, and in 
 March, 1852, was regularly ordained and installed 
 by the Presbytery ; and he held the Monmouth 
 charge until the day of his death. He was the eld- 
 est settled Presbyterian Pastor in Illinois when he 
 died, and not one stood higher in the estimation of 
 the people. He was in every particular the true, 
 straightforward, consistent gentleman and most richly 
 honored and adorned his profession and the cause of 
 the Master. During the years of his ministry at this 
 point, and they numbered nearly a third of a cen- 
 tury, his reputation far outstretched the petty limits 
 of a diocese, and he was several times offered in- 
 ducements to accept a different charge, but he 
 steadily stood by the congregation that first received 
 him as their Pastor. 
 
 At one time, the fact of his receiving from a for- 
 eign Church an offer amounting to something nearly 
 commensurate with his worth as a Pastor, reached 
 the ears of the late Ivory Quinby. Though not a 
 member of Mr. Matthews' Church at all, Mr. Quinby 
 at once proclaimed against the people tolerating 
 such a step, and declared " that sooner than Dr. 
 Mat'hews should leave the town, he would personally 
 pay his salary for the sake of seeing him walk the 
 streets ; that his daily life in Monmouth had done 
 more to elevate the youth and advance morality than 
 all the other preachers of the place combined." 
 
 Dr. Matthews was a preacher of remarkable unc- 
 tion and power, and possessed the great faculty of 
 winning the respect and admiration of even the un- 
 godly. He was connected with Monmouth College 
 from its foundation up to 1870, as a Director, and 
 afterward as a Trustee. 
 
 The new Presbyterian Church begun by him, and 
 under his eye grew almost to completion, but he was 
 never allowed to occupy it. He preached two elo- 
 quent sermons the Sunday before his death, and in 
 speaking of the anticipated removal at an early day 
 from the old into the new edifice, he said, as if in- 
 spired unto prophecy, " the old church and its old 
 Pastor will pass away together." 
 
 Dr. Matthews was married again to Miss Isabella 
 M. Ickes, of Bloomfield, Pa., Aug. 16, 1852, and their 
 

WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 5*3 
 
 children are mentioned as follows : Mary (Mrs. Rob- 
 ert Woods); Susan H. (Mrs. William Vaughn), de- 
 ceased; Ida C. Ruth, deceased; Henry, deceased; 
 Robert, deceased; Abner, Edward and Charl'e. By 
 his first wife he had two children John W., whose 
 biography appears in this work; and Betty Louisa, 
 a missionary of the Presbyterian Church, at Sitka, 
 Alaska. 
 
 iklark M. Young, a general farmer, and also 
 ' engaged in fish culture, on section 5, Cold 
 Brook Township, was born in Medina Co., 
 
 Ohio, June 7, 1850. The father of Mr. 
 
 Young of this sketch, Lyman H. Young, was 
 
 a native of Connecticut, in which State he re- 
 sided until he developed into manhood. He was 
 married to Emeline A. Cole in Ohio, and is at pres- 
 ent residing in Cold Brook Township, where he is 
 engaged in the occupation of farming. 
 
 Clark M. Young was next to the eldest in order of 
 birth of seven children, all sons. Three of them 
 were born in Ohio and four in this county. Clark 
 M. was only four years of age when his parents came 
 to this county and located on the farm on which 
 they are at present residing. He continued to re- 
 side on the parental homestead, assisting in the la- 
 bors thereon, until he attained his majority, having 
 received his education in the district schools and at 
 Monmouth College. On becoming his own man, he 
 began teaching in the district schools, and followed 
 that vocation for about ten years. While thus en- 
 gaged, he formed the acquaintance of Miss Annetta 
 Wallace, to whom he was married March 27, 1877. 
 She is the daughter of John and Sarah (McFarland) 
 Wallace, who at present reside on a farm in Mon- 
 mouth Township and rank among the respected and 
 well-to-do citizens. Mrs. Young was born in Mon- 
 mouth Township, Nov. 5, 1854. She received a 
 good education in the public schools and resided 
 under the care of her parents until her marriage with 
 Mr. Young. Of their union one child has been born 
 Lena M., Jan. 9, 1880. 
 
 In 1875, Mr. Young, in company with his brother, 
 purchased 101 acres of land, six acres of which they 
 afterward sold, and Mr. Young, of this notice, is at 
 
 present the proprietor of the balance, which is im- 
 proved, and also ten acres of limber. The farm on 
 which he resides and which he owns is under an 
 advanced state of cultivation, with good residence, 
 barn, etc., and Mr. Young is meeting with success in 
 his chosen vocation. 
 
 In 1884, in addition to the cultivation of his land, 
 he engaged in Pisciculture and has since con- 
 tinued the same. He is raising German carp, and 
 his success in his new venture at this writing seems 
 to be assured. 
 
 He and his wife are members of the Christian 
 Church at Talbot Creek, of which denomination Mr. 
 Young is one of the Elders. He has held the office 
 of Assessor of his township, and at present is Road 
 Commissioner and School Trustee. In politics, he 
 votes with the Republican party. 
 
 The Farmers' Mutual Insurance Company was 
 organized in March, 1875, and to Mr. Young is at- 
 tributed the honor of aiding in its formation. It was 
 their idea that the company should embrace six town- 
 ships only, but it finally embraced the entire county. 
 Upon the organization of the company, Mr. Young 
 was made Secretary and has continued to hold that 
 office to the present time. The company consists of 
 nine Directors, elected annually by those insured, 
 and their policies are out for nearly a million dollars. 
 Lyman H. Young is the President of the Company, 
 and since its organization it has met with continued 
 success. 
 
 
 illiam McCoy, a retired farmer, stock buy- 
 er and shipper, residing at Kirkwood, is a 
 , native of Ohio, having been born in the 
 9 Buckeye State Dec. 10, 1836. The parents 
 of Mr. McCoy, James and Mary (Creswell) 
 McCoy, were natives of Pennsylvania, in which 
 State the father followed the occupation of a farmer. 
 The gentleman whose name we place at the head 
 of this biography, was an inmate of the parental 
 household until 1859. His years prior to that date 
 were passed in the common schools and in assisting 
 his father on the farm. After acquiring an educa- 
 tion, he continued to work on the farm summers, 
 and during the winter of 1856-7 taught school. 
 
524 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 In the fall of 1858 Mr. McCoy came to this State 
 and taught school that winter, and the next spring 
 again returning East. In 1859, he again returned 
 to this State and stopped with an uncle in Henry 
 County, Henry Creswell by name. He remained 
 with his uncle for seven years, engaged in working 
 on his farm and a part of the time in managing the 
 same. In 1867, he rented a farm in Warren County, 
 three miles west of Kirkwood, and for seven years 
 was occupied in its cultivation, at the expiration of 
 which time he purchased a farm of 240 acres in 
 Henderson County, on which he resided for a time 
 and then moved into the village of Kirkwood. Pre- 
 vious to this, however, Mr. McCoy had purchased 
 130 acres of land in this county, the date of his pur- 
 chase being in the fall of 1874. He has a fine resi- 
 dence and three-quarters of an acre of land where 
 he is at present residing. In politics, he is inde- 
 pendent. He is one of the Highway Commissioners 
 and a gentleman possessed of far more than ordinary 
 business ability. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. McCoy to Miss Samantha S. 
 Hutchison, a native of this State, took place in 1868, 
 and to them have been born two children Lora E. 
 and Martha A. 
 
 Norwood S. Woodward, the represen- 
 tative Doctor of Dental Surgery at Mon- 
 mouth, was born in Armstrong Co., Pa., 
 May 3, 1842. His parents, John S. C. and 
 Caroline (Barclay) Woodward, natives of Penn- 
 sylvania and Maryland, and of Scotch and Irish 
 extraction, reared seven sons and four daughters, and 
 the subject of our sketch was next to the last born. 
 Dr. Norwood S. Woodward is the only son living. 
 His father was a merchant and stock dealer and 
 while absent from home with oneof his sons, in 1847, 
 they were both taken ill and died suddenly, at Un- 
 ionville, Pa., After a pretty thorough education, he 
 began at the age of 17. years to study dentistry with 
 Doctor Barcroft, at Elderton, and came to Monmouth 
 in 1863. Here he at once took rank as one of the most 
 skillful and successful operators in the city, and, as 
 time has increased his experience in this delicate and 
 
 useful profession, he has found no difficulty in hold- 
 ing his position well, if not entirely, to the front. 
 
 Jan. i, 1868, he was married, at Monmouth, to 
 Miss Maria Crawford, native of Warren County, and 
 daughter of James C. and Esther (Sloan) Crawford, 
 Esq., now of Henry Co., Mo. Their two sons are 
 named respectively Charles N. and Clifford C 
 
 In politics, Dr. W. is a Democrat, in whom there is 
 no guile, and that his friends, regardless of party, 
 appreciate him as a citizen, is attested by the record. 
 He has represented his ward in the city council four 
 consecutive years and has served the city one year 
 as its Treasurer. He has been several times the 
 delegate of his party to State conventions, and has 
 been prominently identified with the Warren County 
 Central Committee for years. 
 
 He belongs to the Masonic fraternity, is an active 
 member of the Fire Company, and holds an official 
 position in the County Agricultural Society. 
 
 Holliday, M. D., physician and sur- \ 
 geon, at Monmouth, son of Alexander and 
 Nancy (Mitchell) Holliday, natives of j 
 County Antrim, Ireland, was born in Lucas- 
 ville, Ohio, Dec. 4, 1850. His parents were 
 married in the Green Isle, in 1838, came to 
 America two years later, resided five years in Pitts- 
 burgh, Pa., removed thence to Lucasville, Ohio, where 
 the senior Mr. Holliday died in 1855, at the age of 
 46 years. The widow, and children consisting of 
 seven sons (a daughter having died in infancy), re- 
 mained in Ohio several years, William S. coming to 
 Monmouth in 1867, where his two brothers, Mathew 
 and John had preceded him, the first arriving here 
 in 1861, and the latter in 1865. (John, James and 
 Daniel were soldiers in the late war. The first and 
 the latter were members of Co. C, gist Regt. Ohio 
 Vol. Inf., and James enlisted in Co. F, 56th Ohio 
 Vol. Inf. James and Daniel enlisted when they 
 were but 13 years of age.) The balance of the family 
 came in 1875. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was pretty thoroughly 
 trained in the common schools of Ohio ; pursued his 
 studies after coming to Monmouth ; entered the 
 academic department of Monmouth College and 
 
 ' ' 
 
-3- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 5 2 5 
 
 spent one year in the College proper ; began reading 
 medicine with Doctors Webster and Crawford when 
 about 21 years of age, and, in 1872, entered Louis- 
 ville, (Ky.) Medical College, from which institution 
 he graduated in February, 1874, with the degree of 
 M. D., taking two prizes, and the clinics, surgery and 
 anatomy medal. He began practice in May following 
 at Monmouth, and though among the very youngest 
 of his profession in the place, he has long enjoyed a 
 reputation that might be justly envied by many mucli 
 older. 
 
 Dr. Holliday was some time associated with Dr. 
 Crawford, six years with Doctors Hamilton and Mar- 
 shall, and since 1884 with Dr. Linn. Dr. Holliday 
 has held the offices of Alderman, County Physician 
 and Coroner, his choice for the latter office devolving 
 finally upon the unusual method of "drawing straws" 
 with his opponent. It was in 1882, the opposing 
 candidate was a physician in the city, and when the 
 votes were counted they were found to be evenly 
 divided. This led to the drawing of straws and re- 
 sulted in favor of Dr. Holliday. 
 
 The Doctor is a member of the State Medical 
 
 I Society, Military Tract Medical Society, and the 
 American Medical Association. He is also a mem- 
 ber of the Order of Modern Woodmen of America; 
 a Mason of high rank ; a Democrat politically, and 
 prominently identified with the Baptist Church. He 
 is a member of Galesburg Commandery, No. 8, K.T., 
 and has been for the last two years a member of the 
 City Council, representing the First Ward. 
 
 On April 29, 1875, the Doctor was married, at 
 Monmouth, to Miss Emma Jewell, a native of War- 
 ren County, daughter of Jacob Jewell, Esq., and his 
 three children are named respectively, Jessie Mabel, 
 Alexander Gaillard and Charles Jewell. 
 
 imothy P. Perry, Junior, retired farmer at 
 Monmouth, son of Timothy P. and Mary 
 (Clark) Perry, natives of Connecticut, and 
 of English descent, was born in Windham Co., 
 Conn., Jan. 19, 1826. T. P. Perry, senior, 
 reared three sons and five daughters, viz. : Ol- 
 iver H., who lives in South Windham, Conn. ; Mary 
 Ann, who married Asa Burgess, and is now deceas- 
 
 ed ; Elizabeth L. married Joseph Lillie and now re- 
 sides in Lebanon, Conn. ; Susan -married Henry 
 Loomis and is deceased ; Timothy P. is our subject ; 
 Silas C. now lives in Almakee Co., Iowa ; Eunice 
 married William Huntington, and she is now num- 
 bered with the dead ; and one child died in infancy. 
 Mr. Pevry, Sr., was in the war of 1812, and related 
 to Commodore Perry. 
 
 Mr. Perry of this sketch was the second son and 
 fifth child. The old gentleman was a farmer in his 
 native State, where he died, in 1839, aged 48 years. 
 His widow survived him until 1884, and to the 8gth 
 year of her age. 
 
 The subject of this notice was brought up a farm- 
 er and in youth acquired at the common schools a 
 fair education. At the age of 19 years he began the 
 machinist's trade at South Windham, and followed it 
 about 14 years. The year 1856 brought him to 
 Warren County, and he lived awhile in Tompkins 
 Township, removing thence to Lenox Township, 
 where he secured a fine farm, upon which he resided 
 until 1878. By this time he had accumulated suffi- 
 cient property to enable him to retire to a life of 
 ease, and he forthwith came to Monmouth. Such is 
 the compass in outline of one of Warren County's 
 most solid and respected citizens. Not a soldier, not 
 a statesman ; not great in the eyes of the hero and 
 mammon-worshiping people of the world, but as a 
 factor in the substructure of a republic that makes it 
 possible to be great. They subdue the forest, till the 
 soil, build the homes, and around their unpreten- 
 tious hearthstones kindle not only a love of home, 
 but a love of country that warms and develops into 
 patriotism, and in the multiplicity of its increase be- 
 comes so great that the superstructure is wholly de- 
 pendent upon it in times of imminent danger. When 
 a nation becomes imperiled, then the common peo- 
 ple are great, and the Shylocks and the money 
 king and the railroad princes flee from the presence 
 of those that have served as lackeys, and cry out to 
 the factors of the substructure, the yeomanry, to 
 arise and save the country. Thus it is, of a citizen, 
 plain and unpretentious, that we write. 
 
 Mr. Perry was married in Connecticut, May 13, 
 1856, to Miss Ellen A. Armstrong, daughter of John 
 and Lucinda (Tenney) Armstrong. She was the 
 I2th in order of birth of a family of 13 children. The 
 father was of English descent and the mother Scotch. 
 The father was born in Franklin, New London Co., 
 
526 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Conn , in the year 1775, and died in 1839. The 
 mother was born in the above place in the year 1793 
 and died in South Windham, Conn., in 1876. Out of 
 the family of thirteen, seven are now living and the 
 balance are deceased. The names of those living 
 are Wolcott, and he lives in Milford, Oakland Co., 
 Mich.; Zacheus lives in Franklin, Conn. ; Jackson 
 lives in the same place; Martin lives in Petaluma, 
 Cal. ; Alma married Jonathan Hutch and resides in 
 South Windham, Conn. ; Cornelia married Charles 
 Smith and resides at Ellington, Conn.; Ellen is the 
 wife of Mr. Perry, the subject of this sketch. Mr. 
 Armstrong served in the war of 1812. They have 
 one child, Kate. 
 
 Mr. Perry is a Republican, but such for " revenue 
 only. ' He is one from principle, and asks no fat of- 
 fice to preserve his loyalty. The only office he ever 
 held was that of Township Assessor of Lenox Town- 
 ship. 
 
 [ifred Lewey is a settler of 1857, in the 
 county of which he is still a resident. He 
 is an agriculturist on section 25, Kelly 
 Township. He was born Aug. 9, 1826, in 
 Guilford Co., N. C. John Lewey, his father, 
 was a native of the same State and was born 
 in Orange County, of German parentage. He married 
 Phebe Clap, of the same county and nativity ; they 
 had 12 children, all of whom lived to rear families. 
 They located after their marriage in Guilford County, 
 on a farm situated eight miles east of Green sborough, 
 which was their home as long as they survived. 
 
 Mr. Lewey was reared to manhood on the home 
 estate,_and was educated in the subscription school, 
 which was the only means of education then availa- 
 ble. In the fall of 1846, he came from his native 
 State to Illinois. He found a place to locate in 
 Montgomery County, where he operated as a farm 
 assistant four years. He then returned to North 
 Carolina and fulfilled a long cherished purpose to 
 connect himself in marriage with Sarah Forbis. She 
 was born in the county where her husband was 
 brought up, July 20, 1829. Mr. Lewey had invested 
 his earnings in land in Montgomery County, and he 
 returned to it and with his bride prepared to enter 
 
 upon life in earnest. He built a house and pro- 
 ceeded with the work of improvement, breaking the 
 soil and enclosing his fields with suitable fences. In 
 January, 1855, his wife died, and Mr. Lewey put an 
 end to housekeeping temporarily. He then went 
 back to North Carolina and passed the ensuing sum- 
 mer. In the autumn he returned to Montgomery 
 Co., 111., and was there a resident until 1857, when 
 he came to Warren County as has been stated. 
 
 In March of that year he was married to Janiza 
 (Brown) McDavid. She was the widow of Jesse 
 McDavid and is the daughter of James Brown, a 
 pioneer of Warren County. She was born in Indi- 
 ana. In the fall of 1857 Mr. and Mrs. Lewey set- 
 tled on the homstead farm of her father, on section 
 25 of Kelly Township, which is now their property 
 and which they still occupy. 
 
 William R. and Elizabeth, the children of the first 
 marriage of Mr. Lewey, are both deceased. They 
 died in infancy. The children of the second mar- 
 riage are two in number. Eva E. is the wife of " 
 George Gregg, of Knox County. Florence L. is the 
 younger. Mr. Lewey is a Republican in political 
 belief and connections. 
 
 Mrs. Lewey had one child by her former marriage, 
 named James T. McDavid, who ;narried Ella Pugh ; 
 they have three children. He is a resident of Gales- 
 burg. 
 
 Mrs. Lewey was born Jan. 7, 1830. Her father 
 was a native of Pennsylvania and her mother of 
 Kentucky. They were married in Kentucky, moved 
 to Indiana and then to Illinois. They came to this 
 point at an early date and were among the first set- 
 tlers here. Isaac, the third son, was a soldier in the 
 Mexican War ; William A., the youngest brother, 
 served for three years in the late war. 
 
 amuel Diffenbaugh, retired citizen of Mon- 
 mouth, where for many years he was en- 
 gaged in active business, was born in 
 Lancaster Co., Pa.. March 12, 1828, and was 
 the second in order of birth of a family of six 
 sons and one daughter, the progeny of Chris- 
 tian and Nancy (Doner) Diffenbaugh, who were also 
 natives of Lancaster County and descended from the 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 527 
 
 German. The senior Mr. Diffenbaugh was a farmer, 
 distiller and tanner, and brought his sons up to a 
 thorough acquaintance with these various industries. 
 
 Mr. Diffenbaugh of this notice received a fair 
 English education through the common schools, and 
 when about 18 years of age began clerking in a store 
 at New Providence, Lancaster Co., Pa., and followed 
 the same for eight years. He then removed to York 
 Furnace and there farmed, kept hotel and carried on 
 a foundry, and was general manager at iron works 
 and all kinds of business for about 20 years. In 
 1863 he came to Monmouth and engaged in the res- 
 taurant, confectionary and notions business, which 
 received his attention up to the year 1881. In 1882 
 he built the Diffenbaugh Block, corner of Main and 
 We t Streets, now occupied by the Monmouth Daily 
 Gazette, a restaurant and the Hayden gun store. 
 Mr. Diffenbaugh inherited probably $1,500. The 
 rest of his valuable property has been acquired by 
 his individual efforts and industry. He is a stock- 
 holder in the Monmouth National Bank and owns 
 land in the West. 
 
 Mr. Diffenbaugh was married in Lancaster Co., 
 Pa., to Miss Fanny Groff, who died at Monmouth, 
 June i, 1876, at the age of 37 years, leaving five 
 children Annie (Mrs. J. R. Hickman), born Feb. 
 26, 1857; Robert B., born Oct. 16, 1859, died May 
 3, 1861 ; Naomi (Mrs. Harry Hodgins), born March 
 26, 1862 ; John D., a job printer, born Nov. 8, 1865 ; 
 Harry R., student, born Oct. 14, 1869; and Lillie, 
 born Sept. n, 1871, died Nov. 3, 1878. 
 
 Mr. Diffenbaugh has long been a consistent mem- 
 ber of the United Presbyterian Church. Two of his 
 brothers were in the Union Army and one of them 
 was killed at Gettysburg. 
 
 oseph, B. Malony, manufacturer of har- 
 ness and dealer in harness and saddlery 
 goods at Roseville, is a son of James and 
 Margaret (Cairnes) Malony, and was born in 
 Cumberland Co., Pa., Dec. 16, 1818. His 
 parents were natives of Ireland and came to 
 America about the year 1810, locating in the Key- 
 stone State where the father was engaged as contrac- 
 
 tor for stone work. In 1824 he removed into Ohio 
 and there engaged in farming, also following his 
 trade at stone work, and laid the foundation for the 
 first flouring mill on the Maumee River. He made 
 the Buckeye State his permanent home and died 
 there about 1826-7, n ' s w ife' s demise occurring in 
 1846. 
 
 Joseph B., the gentleman whose name stands at the 
 head of this biographical notice, went to learn the 
 trade of saddle-maker at the age of 16, at which he 
 served an apprenticeship of three and a half years, 
 and again ten months under the instruction of 
 another firm. He followed the same in the States of 
 Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, and finally settled down 
 in Canton, Fulton County, this State, and opened a 
 shop, which he carred on for 12 years. At the ex- 
 piration of that time he removed to Vermont, same 
 county, but remained only a year, when he again re- 
 turned to Canton and embarked in the same busi- 
 ness for four years. His next move was to Prairie 
 City, McDonough Co., 111., where he engaged in 
 business and remained until the year 1861. 
 
 In the latter year the call was made for brave 
 hearts and strong arms to defend the Union flag, and 
 Joseph B., a very patriotic gentleman, enlisted in 
 the Seventh Regt. of 111. Vol. Cav., and served two 
 years and four months, having held the position of 
 Sergeant Saddler, but was discharged on account of 
 disability. He then returned to Prairie City and 
 again embarked in business, which he continued 
 until the year 187 2, then coming to Roseville and in- 
 teresting himself in his present enterprise, in which 
 he has met with remarkable success and is doing a 
 constantly increasing business. He has gotten up 
 many new improvements in harness that have come 
 into general use. He invented the first pad for a 
 saddle, padding for a saddletree and the roller at- 
 tachment to the ''Sensible Combination Buckle." He 
 is also the inventor of a combination halter, which is 
 not only the best in use but cheap and durable. 
 
 In 1841:, one of the most important events in the 
 life of Mr. Joseph B. Malony occurred, it being 
 his marriage to Miss -Jane Anderson, and of their 
 union were born four children Richard A., Joseph 
 C., Willia.n N. and James M. Mrs. Malony 's de- 
 mise occurred in 1850, and Mr. M. formed a sec- 
 ond matrimonial alliance with a sister of his first 
 wife, Miss Catherine Anderson, and they have be- 
 come the parents of five children, only four of 
 
 
 
5*8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 whom survive, as follows: Mary E., Nathaniel L., 
 Margaret J. and Emma. Mrs. Malony died in 
 1872. Mr. Malony is a Greenbacker in politics. He 
 is a member of the United Brethren Church at Rose- 
 ville. 
 
 eorge F. Bruner, a thrifty and well-to-do 
 farmer of Kelly Township, is a resident on 
 section 32. The family from which he is 
 a descendant in the paternal line belongs to 
 two ancestral stocks, that located in the early 
 history of this country in the States of Mary- 
 land and Pennsylvania. The grandfather of John 
 Bruner, the father of the subject of this personal nar- 
 rative, was the son of parents who emigrated from 
 Maryland to Breckenridge Co., Ky., where he was 
 born. (The great-grandfather of John Bnmer came 
 from Germany). On the maternal side the family is 
 of Scotch origin. He grew up under the influence 
 that prevailed in the days of Daniel Boone, and left 
 a notable record as a hunter. In one year the ac- 
 count of his exploits relates that he shot 300 deer. 
 John Bruner was born in Breckenridge County, in 
 the Blue Grass country, March 1804. He was rear- 
 ed in the same county, and married Susan Prance. 
 She was born near the capital of Virginia. The elder 
 Bruner remained with his family in Kentucky for a 
 long time and in 1846 removed to Warren County. 
 When they made their journey they came by the 
 river route, traveling on the Ohio and Mississippi to 
 Oquawka, whence they came to Monmouth. Mr. 
 Bruner rented land in what is now Cold Brook Town- 
 ship, on which he operated a few years and then 
 bought a place in the same township. He remained 
 there about 30 years and in 1884 located in Kelly 
 Township. The wife and mother was removed by 
 death in 1879, her demise taking place on the old 
 homestead in Cold Brook Township. Three only of 
 their eight children are now living. Anzeler, now 
 deceased, was married to Amon S. Gilbert, and two 
 children mourn her loss. John H. resides in the na- 
 tive county of his parents, in Kentucky; he married 
 Sally Frymire and has one child. Frank is a resi- 
 dent of Salem, Oregon ; he married Mary E. Park- 
 er and has five children. Mr. Bruner of this sketch 
 
 is the youngest of the survivors. He was born in 
 Breckenridge Co., Ky., Oct. 14, 1844. He was a 
 child of tender years when the family came to War- 
 ren County, and he has known no other home, as his 
 acquaintance with this county began with his exist- 
 ence. He grew up in Cold Brook Township and 
 was educated in the common schools. He resided 
 on the homestead, which he sold in 1863 and re- 
 moved to section 4, in the same township. He was 
 the owner of his property there until 1884, when he 
 placed the farm in the hands of a renter and came 
 to Kelly Township. In that he owns a farm of 126 
 acres, which, like the farm in Cold Brook Township, 
 is all in good agricultural condition. 
 
 The marriageof Mr. Bruner to Miss Mary A. Clay- 
 ton, took place Dec. 24, 1895. She was born in Warren 
 Co., Ky., Oct. 29, 1845, and is the daughter of John 
 and Elizabeth (Pedigo) Clayton. She was the eldest 
 of two children. Her mother died about 1849. Her 
 father was again married lo Miss Ceny Mitchell and 
 by the last marriage six children were born. Five 
 children are now living of both marriages. Mrs. B. j 
 came to this county with her parents in the fall of 
 1855. The names of the children of G. F. Bruner 
 are Harden F., born March 28, 1871; and Clara, 
 born Sept. r4, 1882. 
 
 Mr. Bruner is a Democrat in his political proclivi- . 
 ties. Mrs. Bruner is a member of the Christian 
 Church. 
 
 5- 
 
 
 D. Day, farmer, residing on sec- 
 tion 34, Berwick Township, was born in 
 Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., Sept. 25, 1819, 
 and is a son of Stephen Day, born in 1785, 
 and who died in Huron Co., Ohio, in 1825. 
 The father of the subject of this sketch was 
 united in marriage with Miss Annie Ransom, about 
 1808, in the State of New York. She was born in 
 1790, in Vermont, and they moved to Ohio in 1821, 
 where she died in 1860. Of their union eight chil- 
 dren were born Lucinda, Alzina, Ransom, David 
 R., Electa, Coridon, Hiram and Sarah. 
 
 Coridon D. Day married Miss Lorena Louk, in 
 January, [845, in Fulton County. She was born in 
 New York in 1823, and died in 1852. By their 
 union four children were born David R., Clara A. 
 
 
 
It Rk 
 
 UNIVUtttll -MM... 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 S3' 
 
 (twin sister of David R.), Hannah M. and Jefferson. 
 The wife and mother died and Mr. Day was again 
 married to Mrs. . Lucinda Griffin, nee Bante. She 
 was born July 23, 1839, in Indiana, and bore her 
 husband seven children, namely : Mary S., Lucinda 
 E., Jason, Silas and Sarah (twins), Stephen and 
 Sophronia. The father of Mrs. Day, Jacob Bante, 
 was born in 1802, and died in Kansas in 1880. 
 He was married to Salida Wilder, in 1826. She 
 was born in 1806 and is still living. Of their union 
 14 children were born David H., Lucinda, Isaac 
 Jackson, Daniel Jefferson, John B., Mary J., Benoni 
 S., Lurana, Sally Ann, Jacob, Jessie, Minerva, 
 Amelia and Cylinda. 
 
 Mr. Day and his family are pleasantly situated on 
 his fine farm of 240 acres on section 24, Berwick 
 Township, and is there actively engaged in the voca- 
 tion of an agriculturist. He has a good residence 
 upon his place, 40 x 40 feet in dimensions; and two 
 stories in height, also a good barn, 24 x 30 feet, of 
 brick. In addition to the cultivation of his land, he 
 is to a considerable extent turning his attention to 
 the raising of high grade Short-horn cattle and Nor- 
 man horses, having of the former about 35 head. 
 He also has some 25 sheep upon his place. In pol- 
 itics, he is a Jacksonian Democrat. His father and 
 grandfather were in the Revolutionary War, and his 
 father was also a soldier in the War of 1812. 
 
 i ilson Sheldon, deceased. The Sheldon 
 family are among the pioneer settlers of 
 Warren County. It is of English ances- 
 try, and the founder of the family in this 
 country settled in Dutchess County, N. Y., 
 where George Sheldon, the paternal grand- 
 father of Wilson, was born, Of his offspring was 
 Wilson Sheldon, the father of the present family. 
 He was born in New York, Feb. 3, 1808, and died 
 in the city of Monmouth, Sept. 13, 1873. He came 
 to VVarren Co., in 1837, and settled in Floyd Tp. 
 When Wilson Sheldon came to Warren County, in 
 the year stated, it was almost a wilderness; but little 
 had been done in any part of the county towards its 
 settlement. Here and there, however, on some 
 
 points of timber, might be seen the beginning of the 
 labors of some venturesome pioneer. He finally found 
 a suitable location on the northwest quarter of sec- 
 tion 32, in what is now Floyd Township. This he 
 immediately began to improve, and ere long was 
 known far and wide as one of the most prosperous 
 and enterprising farmers in all that section. 
 
 Mr. Sheldon was the pioneer cattle-feeder of War- 
 ren County, embarking in this department of farming 
 as early as 1840. In the early part of 1846, he took 
 his eldest son, Hiram, and went to where Fairfield, 
 Iowa, now stands, and bought a drove of two-year- 
 old steers, at $7 per head, which they drove to their 
 farm in Warren County, where they were fattened 
 with others. This was the first drove of cattle ever 
 brought east over the Burlington Ferry. After hav- 
 ing put them in a proper condition for the market, 
 he sold them to be driven across the Alleghanies to 
 the Philadelphia or Baltimore market. After Chi- 
 cago had become a market for stock, which was prior 
 to the building of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy 
 Railroad, he drove his cattle there. His enterprise 
 was again displayed on the opening of that road, for 
 we find him, in company with D. C. Gale of New- 
 burg, N. Y., the first to build loading-pens and also 
 the first to ship stock from Monmouth over the new 
 railroad. The arrangement then constructed for 
 loading was but temporary. He and Mr. Gale con- 
 tinued shipping together until the death of the latter, 
 which occurred several years after their first ship- 
 ment. Mr. Sheldon worked energetically and used 
 all of his influence to have the Quincy division of 
 the Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad built 
 through Berwick, but was defeated by the Bushnell 
 Land Company. 
 
 The subject of this sketch married Sarah Matte- 
 son, Feb. 14, 1830. She was a native of New York, 
 and the daughter of Captain Peleg Matteson, a na- 
 tive of Vermont, where he was born, April i, 1778. 
 Capt. Matteson married Martha Downer, Jan. 17, 
 1802, the latter being born March 19, 1779. Peleg 
 Matteson was a Captain in the war of 1812, and 
 commanded a company at the defense of Sackett's 
 Harbor. In 1838 he came with his family to Illinois 
 and settled in Floyd Township, where he died, Feb. 
 7, 1860. His wife, the mother of Mrs. Sheldon, died 
 Aug. 27, 1857. They were the parents of six chil- 
 dren, of whom Mrs. Sheldon is the only survivor of 
 the original family. She was born Feb. 26, 181 1, and 
 
532 
 
 WARREN COUNTY, 
 
 resides at Monmouth, in company with her daughter, 
 Mary. 
 
 There were nine children born to Wilson and Sa- 
 rah Sheldon, six of whom are living. The sketches 
 of Hiram and Burr will be found in another place in 
 this volume. Martha married W. Wisvvell, and is 
 the mother of three children. George married Mary 
 Dolph, and they have five children. Seneca M. mar- 
 ried Mary Williams, and they have one child. He was 
 remarried April 6, 1885, to M. E. Balcolm. Alma 
 married David Van Winkle; they have two sons. 
 
 It will be seen from the brief, outlined history 
 of the life of Mr. Sheldon, that he was a very impor- 
 tant figure in the history and settlement of Warren 
 County. His enterprising spirit was felt in almost 
 every undertaking that had for its tendency the de- 
 velopment or progress of the county. He acquired 
 considerable property, owning as much as 1,100 
 acres of excellent land, which he divided among his 
 children. In his religious belief, he was a Baptist, 
 and politically, a Democrat. In presenting his por- 
 trait in connection with this sketch, we know that it 
 will be welcomed by our readers and that his mem- 
 ory will be cherished as one of Warren County's most 
 reputable and enterprising citizens. 
 
 likapt. George C. Rankin, Clerk of the War- 
 ' J ren County Circuit Court, and Recorder 
 
 of Deeds, was born at Monmouth, Aug. 
 29, 1850, and is the son of N. A. Rankin, 
 whose biography will be found in another part 
 of this volume. He was about 22 years of 
 age when he graduated from Monmouth College, 
 receiving the A. B. degree, and in due course of time 
 the degree of A. M. He was the poet of his class; 
 editor of the College Courier from 1870 to 1872; 
 editor of the Beta Theta P. monthly during 1877-8 ; 
 city editor of the Council Bluffs (Iowa) Daily 'J ri- 
 bune, in 1873; and city editor of the Monmouth 
 Atlas from 1873 to 1880. In the meantime he held 
 twice (1876-77 and 1879-80) the office of City Clerk 
 of Monmouth. In June, 1880, he was appointed 
 Circuit Cleik of Warren County, to fill out the unex- 
 pired term of J. L. Dryden, resigned; was elected 
 Circuit Clerk in November following, and re-elected 
 
 in 1884, receiving a larger majority than any other 
 candidate on the ticket. Capt. Rankin is Secretary 
 of the Association of Circuit Clerks of Illinois, and 
 Secretary of the Warren County Agricultural Society, 
 having been elected in 1877 and unanimously re- 
 elected annually ever since. 
 
 April 29, 1 88 1, he enlisted as a private in Co. H, 
 Sixth Regt. I. N. G. ; promoted to Sergeant Aug. 8, 
 i88r ; elected First Lieutenant Nov. 2, 1882, and 
 commissioned Captain Aug. 16, 1883. 
 
 
 ames Galbraith. a prominent banker and 
 ^ merchant of Warren County, located at 
 Kirkwood, was born in Washington Co., 
 Pa., in 1838. His parents, Robert and Jane 
 (McCrea) Galbraith, were natives of Ireland 
 and Pennsylvania respectively, the latter hav- 
 ing been born in Washington County, where their 
 marriage occurred. In 1840 the elder Galbraith of 
 the family moved to Ohio, where he remained until 
 1870. He was by occupation a farmer and owned 
 1 60 acres of land in Ohio. For some years after his 
 marriage, however, he was engaged in teaching. In 
 1870, he moved to Johnson Co., Kan., where he 
 purchased land and made his home until his death, 
 which event occurred Dec. 2, 1882, in the 75th year 
 of his age. His widow still resides on the farm, in 
 company with a son and daughter. 
 
 At the early age of 13 years, James evinced that 
 love for business life that has since characterized 
 him, for at that period we find him engaged in clerk- 
 ing in a dry-goods store at New Concord, Ohio. 
 Here he remained five years. He had, however, 
 received a liberal education, and was well fitted for 
 business life. At the end of his five years' engage- 
 ment, he enlisted, in 1862, in Co. E, 88tli Ohio Inf., 
 and did faithful service until the close of the war. 
 Most of the time he acted as clerk for Regimental 
 and Brigade officers. He was honorably discharged 
 in 1865 and returned to his home. He soon came 
 West to visit a brother who had located in Kirk- 
 wood, 111., and who at that time was Postmaster. 
 James accepted a position as assistant Postmaster, 
 from which position he was ousted by Andy John- 
 
 ' 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 533 
 
 son, and has since that time, 1865, been a resident 
 of Kirkwood. During these years he has grown into 
 prominence and influence, until he has long been 
 recognized as one of the leading business men of the 
 place, and, in fact, of the county. After leaving the 
 postoffice, which he did in 1866, he accepted a posi- 
 tion as clerk in the lumber-yard at Kirkwood, where 
 he remained until March, 1875. Afterwards he en- 
 gaged with the firm of Chapin, Houlton & Davis, as 
 clerk in their establishment. He remained in this 
 capacity until 1883, when he and Mr. Carmichael 
 bought out Mr. Davis' interest, and, with Mr. Car- 
 michael, in February, 1885, bought out the interest 
 of Mr. Houlton. The firm is at present known as 
 Chapin, Houlton & Co., and does a general bank- 
 ing and mercantile business. 
 
 Mr. Galbraith was married in May, 1869, to Miss 
 Jennie S. Speer, a native of New Concord, Ohio. 
 Mamie J., who was born Feb. 3, 1879, is their only 
 child. Mr. Galbraith is a Republican in his political 
 belief, and, with his wife, belongs to the United 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 i illiam Gallaugher is one of the leading 
 citizens of the township of Spring Grove, 
 yet he came to Warren County with no 
 outfit in life save his manhood's strength and 
 a laudable purpose to carve out a home from 
 the resources that had proved so available in 
 many well-tested instances. He is of foreign birth, 
 and brought from Scotland, his native land, the hardy 
 endurance, perseverance and energy that has made 
 his country the representative of all that is noble 
 and good in the scale of humanity, notwithstanding 
 her political status. The pure, bright record of the 
 Scots gives to all the emigrants from her shores 
 a passport to respectability and position. Mr. Gal- 
 laugher was born in Ayershire, Western Scotland, 
 Jan. 7, 1824. His father, Charles Gallaugher, died 
 when William was but two years old, and before he 
 was nine he was obliged to earn his own living. His 
 mother, Janet (Good) Gallaugher, died in 1855. 
 Young William, at that tender age, was placed in the 
 
 mines where there is a variety of work that can only 
 be done by small children, and he became a "pusher." 
 That labor is performed by persons of under size 
 because the coal-veins are so narrow in extent that 
 in some localities mules or horses cannot pass 
 through to do the necessary work. Consequently the 
 small cars conveying the coal must be pushed over 
 the "trams" by children. As soon as Mr. Gal- 
 laugher was sufficiently grown he became a miner in 
 the full sense of the term and wielded a " pick." He 
 followed the same vocation in his native shire until 
 1852. 
 
 In April, 1852, he started from Scotland for 
 America. He took passage on "Zion's Hope," a sail 
 vessel from the river Clyde and crossed the ocean, 
 landing at Philadelphia. He was on the water six 
 weeks and two days, and after landing at the City of 
 Brotherly Love he proceeded to Alleghany Co., Md., 
 to enter upon a situation as a miner. He passed 
 three years in the same locality and went thence to 
 Virginia. He operated as a coal miner there until 
 18^7, when he came to Warren County. He remained 
 at that time but a few months and went to Mercer 
 County, where he became a coal miner in the town-i 
 ship of Greene^ He continued in that employ there 
 until 1864, when he invested the money he had saved 
 in 80 acres of land situated half a mile from Nor-, 
 wood. There was a vein of coal running through 
 the farm, and he employed laborers to perform the 
 agricultural work while he gave his attention to the 
 business of developing the treasures of the mine. In 
 1871 he sold the place and removed to the property 
 he now holds. He is the owner of 280 acres of ex- 
 cellent land, which is located on sections 15 and 22. 
 The farm buildings are all of good style and the 
 entire place is in splendid condition, with a sub- 
 stantial and handsome frame residence. He has 
 sp;nt about 4: years of his life in making a living at 
 coal-mining, but is new prepared to enjoy the fruits 
 of an energetic life. 
 
 In his political profession Mr. G. is a Republi- 
 can, and during the late war was a strong Union 
 man. 
 
 Mr. Gallaugher was united in marriage with Mar- 
 garet Muir, in Ayershire, Scotland, O< t. 22, 1848, 
 where she was born May r, 1825. She was 
 the daughter of Michael and Janet (Montgom- 
 ery) Muir. The name Muir was of the oldest 
 
534 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 in the county of Ayrshire. They have had ten 
 children. Margaret married Robert Henderson and 
 they settled in Ringgold, Iowa. Janet is the wife of 
 Francis Hogue, who is a citizen of the same place, as 
 is Charles, who married Alice Palmer, the next 
 child and eldest son. Agnes is married to Stewart 
 Leonard, of Monmouth. Michael married Minnie 
 Thompson and is farming in Spring Grove Town- 
 ship. Mary and her husband, Car Harper, live 
 in Ringgold County, Iowa. Isabella, William, James 
 and Anna are the children at home. Besides their 
 own circumstances of comfort the parents have given 
 their children a thorough training in the common 
 schools and now have the satisfaction of seeing their 
 children who are settled in life, in the enjoyment of 
 a reasonable share of the goods of this world. 
 
 "ohn C. Blayney is a prosperous and prom- 
 inent merchant at Alexis. He has been 
 connected with the business of the place 
 since 1872. He is the son of John and Fannie 
 (Alcorn) Blayney. He is a native of Ireland 
 and was born Oct. 14, 1834, in County Tyrone. 
 He was brought up to the business of a farmer in his 
 native island, as his parents belonged to the agricul- 
 tural class. He also attended the common schools 
 while he remained there, and was but 14 when the 
 family emigrated to America, in 1848. They set- 
 tled in Wheeling, W. Va., and there young Blayney 
 pursued the same routine of life attending the pub- 
 lic schools and operating as his father's assistant. 
 He also became clerk in a store, where he obtained 
 familiarity with the details of business. The family 
 remained in Wheeling four years. 
 
 In 1853, the son came West, determined to estab- 
 lish himself in a congenial and profitable business. 
 He first stopped in Peoria and there operated as a 
 farm assistant for a year. He then returned to 
 Wheeling and remained there the same length of 
 time. He revisited Illinois and was interested in 
 farming until 1860. In the fall of that year he went 
 to Washington Co., Pa., and opened a store in West 
 
 Alexandria. After conducting a general store there 
 a year, he sold his interest and came to Mercer 
 County in this State. He engaged in the purchase 
 of stock for the Chicago market about the space of a 
 year. At the end of that time, associated with G. 
 M. Evans, he went to Norwood in Mercer County 
 and embarked in trade under the style of Evans & 
 Blayney. 
 
 The branch establishment at Alexis was instituted 
 in 1872. Mr. Blayney took charge of the new enter- 
 prise and Mr. Evans remained to conduct that at 
 Norwood. Their relations were maintained until 
 1882, when Mr. Blayney sold his interest at Norwood 
 to his son, Edward D. Blayney, and Mr. J. E. Laff- 
 erty purchased that of Mr. Evans in the store at 
 Alexis. The firm name is now Blayney & Lafferty. 
 However, the individual partnership has been 
 changed by the substitution of the son of the first 
 Mr. Lafferty, Mr. W. A. Lafferty. The house carry 
 a large and well assorted stock of all lines of mer- 
 chandise suited to the demands of their patronage, 
 and are doing a thriving business. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Blayney to Catherine Brown- 
 lee, of Washington Co., Pa, took place in the fall of 
 1860. bhe was the daughter of William Hutchison 
 Brownlee. They came to Norwood, Mercer County, 
 in 1851, and Mr. Blayney married his wife there. 
 She is of Scotch descent. They have four children : 
 Edward D. is a merchant at Norwood. Charles C. 
 was born in Mercer County; he received his ele- 
 mentary education in the common schools and later 
 entered the college at Monmouth as a student. He 
 lost his health and died after an illness of 12 months, 
 in his zoth year. Lizzie L. and Fred H. are the 
 names of the younger children. 
 
 Mr. Blayney is a Democrat. He has taken a 
 prominent part in local political matters and has 
 served as a member of the Village Board. He acted 
 as the President of that body during the time of his 
 membership. He has also been active in the matter 
 of education and has served as a member of the 
 School Board several years. He has been Super- 
 visor of his town one year. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Blayney are members of the Pres- 
 byterian Church. 
 
 John Blayney, father of the present family, mar- 
 ried Fannie Alcorn, daughter of William and Janet 
 (Fatten) Alcorn, all of the County Tyrone, Ireland. 
 They emigrated to America in 1848, and settled in 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 535 
 
 Wheeling, West Virginia. He came West about 
 1857, and remained here until the death of his wife, 
 in 1882. She died in Washington Co., Pa., while on 
 a visit there. Mr. Blayney has since that time 
 made his residence with his daughter, who is the 
 wife of Cadwallerder Blayney. He is now in the 
 86th year of his age and is yet hale and vigorous 
 and bids fair to live for many years. 
 
 ohn S. Spriggs, Jr., pharmacist at Mon- 
 mouth, is a son of James H. and Elea- 
 nor J. (McCune) Spriggs, and was born in 
 Cumberland Co, Pa., April 3, 1850. (See 
 biography of J. H. Spriggs, this volume). He 
 was educated at Monmouth College, and when 
 about 1 8 years of age began the drug business as 
 rclerk in the drug house of his father and uncle, Dr. 
 John S. Spriggs, at Monmouth. At the end of an 
 apprenticeship of four .years here, he attended the 
 ^Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and graduated in 
 
 "1873- 
 
 March 25, 1877, he was married at Chicago to 
 
 ,Miss Annie L. Thome, the accomplished daughter 
 of Stephen and Lydia Thorne, and a native of St. 
 Johns, N. B. Mrs. Spriggs is a member of the 
 Episcopal Church. In politics, Mr. Spriggs is a Re- 
 publican. 
 
 lohn C. Wallace, proprietor of a fashiona- 
 ble restaurant and fancy grocer, also whole- 
 sale and retail dealer in fruits, vegetables, 
 oils, etc., of Monmouth, was born in Guernsey 
 Co., Ohio, July 4, 1848, and was the fifth child 
 in the order of birth of six sons and two daugh- 
 ters of Thomas and Jane (Hutchinson) Wallace, na- 
 tives of the Buckeye State, and descended respect- 
 ively from Scotch and Irish ancestry. The senior 
 Mr. Wallace was by occupation a farmer; emigrated 
 from Ohio to Iowa in 1867, and there died in 1878 
 or '79, aged 61 or 62 years, surviving his wife proba- 
 bly about three years. 
 
 John C. Wallace was brought up as a farmer's boy, 
 
 and at the common schools, supplemented by two 
 years' attendance at Monmouth College, acquired a 
 fair English education. After clerking awhile in a 
 grocery house, he, in 1871, bought the interest of 
 Hurdman, of the firm of Wallace & Hurdman, and 
 for three years, or thereabouts, the house existed un- 
 der the style and firm name of Wallace Bros. Since 
 the retirement of his brother, Mr. Wallace has been 
 alone in the business, and that he has been more 
 than ordinarily successful is fully attested by the 
 brief record here published of him. In 1875, after 
 sustaining a severe loss by fire, he built the brick 
 block now occupied by him. He owns one of the 
 finest residences in the city, is a large stock-holder 
 in a banking house at Greely, Colo., and an exten- 
 sive ranch owner in both Texas and Kansas. All 
 this, and more, and yet it is but the product of his 
 individual effort and industry. 
 
 He was married in Henderson Co., 111., Dec. 28, 
 1871, to Miss Mary A. Hutchinson, and their only 
 child is named Clyde. 
 
 F. Lowther, of Kirkwood, was born in 
 Columbus, Ohio, April 14, 1826. His 
 father, Thompson F , and his mother, Sarah 
 Lowther (nee Black)', were natives of Penn- 
 sylvania. They were married and came to 
 Illinois in 1835, locating in Schuyler County, 
 where they resided until 1841. During the latter 
 year he came to Warren County and settled in Hale 
 Township, where he purchased 96 acres of land on 
 which he lived, following his vocation until April, 
 1869. At that date he purchased a house and lot 
 in Kirkwood, and in company with J. H. Gilmore 
 engaged in the grocery business, which he continued 
 for about ten years. About three years prior to his 
 death he retired from active business, his death oc- 
 curring in 1885, and that of his wife in 1876. 
 
 The gentleman whose name we place at the head 
 of this notice, lived with his parents until he was 23 
 years old, having received a fair education in the 
 common schools. After leaving home Mr. Lowther 
 purchased 80 acres of la id in Hale Township, on 
 which he resided for one and a half years, when he 
 
536 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 sold it and removed to Lenox Township, and there 
 purchased another 80 acre tract, and for two years 
 was engaged in its cultivation. He then returned to 
 Hale Township, and lived until 1869, when he came 
 to Kirkwood and purchased property, since which 
 time he has continued to reside there. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Lowther took place July 19, 
 1849, at which time Miss Julia A. M. Robinson, a 
 native of Virginia, became his wife. There were 
 seven children of this union, all dead, but they 
 took an orphan boy, J. H. Sterling^ at the age of 18 
 months, whom they reared to manhood, and since he 
 has attained his majority have assisted him in ob- 
 taining a foothold, whereby he may acquire in this 
 busy world of strife a competency. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Lowther affiliates with the Demo- 
 cratic party, and he and his wife belong to the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. He has also been a 
 member of the Town Board in Kirkwood. 
 
 T. Hole-hard, the leading dry-goods 
 merchant at Monmouth, was born in Wash- 
 ington Co. Md., Nov. i, r842. His parents, 
 Daniel and Maria (Brewer) Reichard, natives 
 respectively of the States of Maryland and 
 Pennsylvania, and dating their ancestry back 
 to Germany, reared six sons, and they were all 
 brought up to the occupation of the father, farming, 
 but, judging from the memorandum before us, while 
 they inherited any quantity of industry and native 
 ability, the love of labor in the fields was one charac- 
 teristic the old gentleman failed to transmit. Two of 
 the sons became prominent physicians, one a druggist 
 and three dealers in merchandise. 
 
 The father removed to Warren County, in 1863, 
 and located on a farm in Coldbrook Township, where 
 he lived and labored until his death, in 1866, aged 
 55 years. His widow survived him until 1873, 
 when she died in Monmouth, at the age of 63 years. 
 John T. Reichard was educated in Maryland, and 
 was at Hagerstown College when his patriotism over- 
 came his desire for classics, and August i, 1862, saw 
 him " right dress " as a private in Co. A, 7th Mary- 
 land Vol. Infantry. There is no reason in the world 
 to believe that he asked for the change, but the writer 
 
 knows a great many reasons why he should have 
 been very glad of the transfer from the ranks to clerk 
 in the Quartermaster's department. He had been 
 out only about two months when this occurred, and 
 the fact that he was retained in the position until the 
 close of the war, proves that he was as efficient as 
 clerk as it is known he would have been as a soldier. 
 
 Leaving the service at Baltimore. Md., he came at 
 once to Monmouth and engaged in farming with his 
 father, and at the death of the latter administered 
 upon the estate and closed it up. In February, 1868, 
 he embarked in mercantile business, and the story of 
 his success was told us by his rivals. Mr. Reichard 
 is a man who would succeed in anything, except that 
 of being ungentlemanly. This no sort of training 
 could induct him into. 
 
 When the Monmouth National Bank changed 
 hands, in 18 , Mr. Reichard became one of its Di- 
 rectors, and subsequently Vice-President, a position 
 he filled up to January r, 1885. He is largely inter- 
 ested in agriculture and stock-breeding, and has 
 been for some years President of the Warren County 
 Agricultural Society. He is a popular Mason, and 
 member of the largest Consistory in the world, that 
 of the Oriental, of Chicago. July 15, 1875, Mr. 
 Reichard was married at Newcastle. Ind., to Miss 
 Jeane Elliott, daughter of Hon. J. T. Elliott, late 
 Judge of the Supreme Court of Indiana, and his 
 children are named Lillian, George, Marie and 
 Elliott. 
 
 y f iram Baldwin, proprietor of the Baldwin 
 House and one of the pioneers of Mon- 
 mouth, was born in Chester Co., Pa., Dec. 
 9, 1808. His parents, Wathel and Catherine 
 
 I(Barr) Baldwin, were married, reared their six 
 sons and four daughters, and died in Chester 
 County. Hiram Baldwin was brought up on his fa- 
 ther's farm and fairly educated at the subscription 
 schools. 
 
 March 28, r832, he was married in his native 
 county to Miss Mariah Mackey, a native of Lancas- 
 ter Co., Pa., and of Irish and Dutch parentage. 
 Their two sons, James W. and George W., were born 
 in Lancaster County, the first in 1833 and the latter 
 in 1835. They are both connected with the man- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 537 
 
 agement and direction of the hotel and have been 
 for many years. The Baldwins originally came from 
 England, probably in 1645, and settled in Massa- 
 chusetts The Barrs came from Germany, in 1683, 
 and settled at Germantown, Pa. 
 
 The family came to Monmouth in the spring of 
 1840, and here Mr. B. began the manufacture of 
 wagons and plows, and followed it about 15 years. 
 In 1846 he moved upon the spot now, and since 
 1855, known as the Baldwin Hotel. It was origin- 
 ally a two-story, 20 room building; in 1876 it was 
 remodeled and converted into a three-story, 40 room 
 house. Mr. B. learned the trade of carriage maker 
 in Lancaster Co., Pa. He farmed some since com- 
 ing to Illinois, but for 20 years has devoted his time 
 to hotel business. His house, for many years the 
 best in Monmouth, was for many years the rendez- 
 vous of the famous Lincoln and his friends. The 
 room the great man occupied is now No. 17, and 
 contains the furniture he so often used. Mr. Doug- 
 lass, when at Monmouth, stopped at the old Warren 
 House, when not with his friend, Hon. J. W. David- 
 son. Mr. B. is a member of no church ; has never 
 sought office, but the history of Warren County must 
 in truth print his name upon its pages as one of the 
 best men the county has ever claimed as a citizen. 
 
 (jenry H. Pattee, secretary and treasurer of 
 the Pattee Plow Company, of Monmouth, 
 was born at Canaan, Grafton Co., N. H., 
 April 17, 1840, and was the youngest son living 
 of Daniel and Judith (Burleigh) Pattee. natives 
 of New Hampshire, and descended from the 
 French. The senior Mr. Pattee was by occupation a 
 farmer, and brought his four sons up to that voca- 
 tion, though none of them followed it any great 
 length of time. The father and mother both died in 
 New Hampshire, he in 1875, aged 76 years, and she 
 in 1883, aged 83 years. 
 
 Henry H. Pattee was educated at the common 
 schools of his native State, and after learning the art 
 of telegraphy repaired to Canada, in 1862, as man- 
 ager of the Vermont and Boston Telegraph Co. He 
 left Canada in 1866, and came to Galesburg, 111., 
 
 where for threeyears he was engaged in millingbusi- 
 ness. In 1869 he came to Monmouth, and in com- 
 pany with his brother ran the Star Flouring Mill 
 four years. In 1873, he engaged in the manufacture 
 of agricultural implements. (See Pattee Plow Com- 
 pany.) The stock company was organized in 1881, 
 and Mr. Pattee has since been its secretary and treas- 
 urer. 
 
 He was first married at Canaan, N. H., in 1867. 
 His wife, nee Miss Lizzie R. Morgan, daughter of 
 Dr. Arnold Morgan, now deceased, died in her na- 
 tive town (Canaan) in 1879. 
 
 Aug. 25, i88r, Mr. Pattee married Miss Anna E. 
 Willets^ daughter of the late Hon. Elias Willets. 
 (See biography of Judge Willets, this volume.) 
 
 ohn W. Matthews, State's attorney for 
 Warren County, resident at Monmouth, is a 
 son of the late Rev. Robert C. and Louisa 
 Matilda (Martin) Matthews, and was born at 
 Macon,Noxubee Co., Miss., July 7, 1848. (See [ 
 biography of Rev. Robert Matthews, D.D., this 
 volume.) John W. Matthews was educated at J 
 Monmouth College, graduated and in the class 
 of 1871, with the degree of A.B. Immediately 
 after leaving college he began reading law with John 
 J. Glenn, and two years later in the office of Hard- 
 ing, McCoy & Pratt, Chicago. He was admitted to 
 the Bar at Ottawa, in September, 1874, and returned 
 to Monmouth, where he became the junior member 
 of the firm of Glenn & Matthews, for a year, .which 
 then became the firm of Glenn, Kirkpatrick & Mat- 
 thews. At the end of one year Mr. M. withdrew 
 from the firm, and was one year alone in practice, 
 and having satisfied himself that he was able to hold 
 his own at the Warren County forum, he formed, in 
 1880, the -ixisting partnership, Matthews & Peacock, 
 Mr. T. G. Peacock being a talented young attorney, 
 and the junior member of the firm. 
 
 In the fall of 1880, Mr. Matthews was elected 
 State's Attorney, which office he filled with such sat- 
 isfaction to the people, that four years later they 
 placed him again at the helm as a pilot of the pleas 
 of the commonwealth. 
 
 May 30, 1864, he made up his mind that the re- 
 
538 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 bellion had gone on long enough, so offered his coun- 
 try his service as a " backbone breaker " and high 
 private in Co. A, 1381!! III. Vol. Inf., for the term of 
 100 days. Serving out his term in the 138111, he was 
 discharged Oct. 14, 1864, at Springfield, 111., and on 
 the 1 8th of February following enrolled as a musi- 
 cian in Co. H, 47th 111. Vol. Inf., and served until 
 August 17, 1865. With the 47th he penetrated well 
 into "Dixie," and his experience in that country will 
 be remembered by him for many a long year. He 
 left the service to accept a scholarship at Annapolis 
 Naval Academy, but ill health forced him to aban- 
 don it. 
 
 He was married at Monmouth, in 1876, to Miss 
 Mary G. Stevens, a native of New York, an8 his son 
 is named Robert C. A daughter, Anna Louisa, died 
 in infancy. 
 
 Mr. Matthews is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church, and also of the A. O. U. W. and I. O. O. F. 
 
 A. Carmiehael, banker and merchant at 
 Kirkwood. Among the early pioneers 
 who came into Warren County in 1836, were 
 Arthur P. Carmiehael and Jane Henderson, 
 both natives of South Carolina. Two year s 
 after their arrival they were united in marriage, 
 which was a prominent event among the pioneers of 
 that day. The newly married couple " settled down" 
 in Warren County, but shortly afterward moved into 
 Henry County, where they lived for 15 years. 
 They at present reside at Red Oak, Iowa. The 
 elder Carmiehael was for many years engaged in the 
 mercantile business, but since 1877 has been a grain 
 dealer. They had a family of six children C. A. 
 being their eldest, who was born in 1840 while his 
 parents were living in Henderson Count.-. When 
 he was a young man of 21 years of age, the late war 
 had just broken out, and with his brave heart and 
 love for his country he enlisted in Co. F, i7th 111. 
 Vol. Infantry, and for three years and three months 
 did valiant service in behalf of the Union. He was 
 twice wounded, but slightly, however. His first bat- 
 tle was at Frederickstown, Mo ; then he was at the 
 terrible conflict at Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth, 
 
 LA: 
 
 Vicksburg, and many of the other desperate engage- 
 ments of the war. He held the position of Sergeant 
 and at the end of a long service was honorably dis- 
 charged. 
 
 After the war had closed and Mr. C. had returned 
 home, he found a situation as clerk in a mercantile 
 house at St. Louis. Here he remained only one 
 year, however, when he came to Kirkwood and se- 
 cured a position as clerk for Carr & Beers. At the 
 end of a year they sold out to A. P. Brown, with 
 whom he remained for a year and a half. He then 
 engaged with Chapin, Houlton & Davis, with whom 
 he remained for 15 years. At the end of this long 
 service, in 1882, he bought an interest in the firm, 
 since which time the firm name has been Chapin, 
 Houlton & Co. He is an enterprising, pushing 
 business man, and has long held the confidence and 
 esteem of a large circle of friends. Politically he is 
 a Republican, and with his wife belongs to the Uni- 
 ted Presbyterian Church, of which denomination he 
 is a Trustee. He is also a member of the Villagei 
 Council, and of the Masonic Lodge, and of the G. A.I 
 R., in fact is an active worker in everything which| 
 has for its tendency the building up of the commu-^ 
 nity and doing good. 
 
 Mr. Carmiehael was married to Miss Jennie, the 
 daughter of Nelson and Sarah J. Carr, of Kirkwood 
 both natives of New York, Jan. 21, 1869. Nellie, 
 their only child, was born Dec. 17, 1869. 
 
 ,ilton C. Robison, general farmer and 
 stock raiser, residing on section 6, Cold. 
 Brook Township, was born in Kelly 
 Township, this county, on section 32, Oct. 
 2 S> '835- His father, Andrew Rcbison, a 
 farmer by occupation, and a native of North 
 Carolina, came thence to Ohio, where he was mar- 
 ried to Miss Nancy Stitt, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 who was reared in Kentucky, and of Irish parent- 
 age. She came to Ohio when a young woman. In 
 that State three children were born to them : Isa- 
 bella, Mary and Robert G., the latter being the only 
 survivor. They afterward settled in Warren Co., 
 Ind., and while residing there three more children 
 
(.it-'-- 
 
 1-. rtt 
 

WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 54i 
 
 were added to their family : John, Martha and Wil- 
 liam, the latter now deceased. 
 
 In the year 1829, the family came to Illinois, ad 
 settled in Wairen County, while it was unsettled, and 
 there the father secured a tract of wild land. His 
 demise occurred in Cold Brook Township, where the 
 son, our subject, now resides The mother died at 
 the same place in 1875. 
 
 Of the three children born in Illinois, our subject, 
 Milton C. L., was the youngest, and also youngest of 
 a family of nine children. He resided at home until 
 he reached his majority, in the meantime assisting 
 his father in the duties of the farm, and alternating 
 his labors thereon by attendance at the common 
 schools, at which he acquired a fair English educa- 
 tion. When he reached man's estate his father died, 
 and he began fanning on his own account. 
 
 The m;irnage of Mr. Milton C. L. Robison and 
 Miss Dru&illa Hennen was celebrated on the 22d of 
 February, 1860, in Momnouth Township, the latter 
 being a native of Ohio. She came to Illinois with 
 her parents when a young woman, and they engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits to a small extent. Mrs. Rob- 
 ison died at her home in this township, March i, 
 i86r, after having borne to her husband one child, 
 Drusilla, who lived only 17 days, and whose death 
 occurred the same day as that of the mother. 
 
 Mr. Robison is the possessor of 122 acres of im- 
 proved land, on which he now resides ; in his chosen 
 vocation, agriculture, he has met with decided suc- 
 cess. 
 
 In politics, he is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 wjKSft en - Abner C. Harding, deceased, was born 
 I ISat at East Hampton, Conn., Feb. 10,1807. 
 He removed with his parents to Plainfield, 
 Herkimer Co., N. Y., in 1815, and soon after 
 that date he engaged in working at a carding 
 machine, but did not continue at that long. 
 He began teaching at 15 years of age. The educa- 
 tion of Mr. Harding was acquired at the schools of 
 Hamilton, N. Y. 
 
 In 1821 young Harding enlisted as midshipman in 
 the United States Navy, but was rejected for want 
 
 ot proper stature. The next year, in i^f?, he en- 
 gaged in peddling tin ware and also taught school. 
 In 1823 he followed the vocation of a drover and 
 was also engaged in teaching school. In 18^4-5 his 
 occupation was that of a school teacher. In 1826-7 
 he read law at Bridgewater, N. Y., and the following 
 year, 1828, removed to Pennsylvania, and was ad- 
 mitted to the Bar, at Lewisburg, that State. Jan. 30, 
 1829, Mr. Harding was united in marriage with Mrs. 
 Rebecca L. Byers, nee Leibricks, who died at Bloom- 
 field, Pa., in 1833, leaving two children George F., 
 born in 1830, and Mary R., born in 1833. The for- 
 mer lives in Chicago, and the latter is the wife of 
 George Snyder, a resident of Momnouth. In 1835 
 Mr. Harding was elected to the Constitutional Con- 
 vention of Pennsylvania. Also, during that year, he 
 formed a second matrimonial alliance, at Bloomfield, 
 that place, with Miss Susan A. Ickes, a native of Perry 
 Co., Pa., where she was born, July 28, 1815. Their 
 marriage took place June 30. During the year 1837 
 Mr Harding served in the Constitutional Conven- 
 .tion of Pennsylvania, where he became acquainted 
 with Thad. Stevens, and in 1837 followed his profes- 
 sion, the law. Miss Ickes, to whom Mr. Harding 
 was married, was a daughter of Dr. Jonas Ickes, who 
 at present resides with Mrs. Harding, near Mon- 
 mouth. He was born in Montgomery Co., Pa., Feb. 
 3> '793. an d ls therefore, at this writing (November, 
 1885), nearly 93 years of age. He has lived in Illi- 
 nois since 1856. His wife, nee Mary Duncan, to 
 whom he was married in Perry Co., .Pa., June 24, 
 1814, bore him four sons and five daughters, and 
 lived to be 76 years of age, departing this life in July, 
 1868. 
 
 In June, 1838, Gen. Harding removed to Mon- 
 mouth and at once engaged in the practice of his 
 profession. He was a good lawyer and a better bus- 
 iness man. He became interested in politics, acting 
 with the Whigs in all matters of interest in his 
 county and State. In 1847-48 and '49, Gen. Hard- 
 ing continued to follow the practice of his profession 
 at Monmouth. During this time he also became in- 
 terested in railroading and built and supervised the 
 building of the road running between Peoria and 
 Burlington, now a part of the Chicago, Burlington & 
 Quincy Railroad. In 1848 he was chosen delegate 
 to the Constitutional Convention ; was a member of 
 the Illinois Legislature in 1848-49 and '50. In 1851, 
 while Gen. Harding was actively engaged in railroad 
 
54* 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 matters, his eyesight began to fail him, and from that 
 time he ceased to practice law. From 1852 to 1860, 
 he spent a portion of his time traveling for his health 
 and when not engaged in traveling he was occupied 
 in railroad matters. 
 
 In 1851, Gen. Harding, in partnership with Chan- 
 cy Hardin and Judge Ivory Quinby, under the style 
 of C. Hardin & Co., engaged in the construction of 
 what was then known as the Peoria & Oquawka 
 Railroad. Gen. Harding having procured the char- 
 ter some time previous to the above date, the right 
 of way was procured by the above named gentlemen 
 and they changed somewhat the original route and 
 built the road from Burlington to Knoxville and from 
 the latter place it was to be continued by Kelly, 
 Moss & Co. The latter firm proved unable to com- 
 plete the road, and Gen. Harding bought out their 
 contract and completed the same in 1856, and for a 
 short time the road was operated by the above com- 
 pany, they subsequently selling the same to the Chi- 
 cago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company. 
 
 Gen. Harding enlisted as private of the 83d 111. 
 Vol. Inf., in 1862. He was elected Colonel, and 
 mustered into service Aug. 21, of that year. As in 
 civil life, so he was in war, bound to rise. In shoit, 
 he was one of the few men born to command. On 
 March 23, 1863, he was promoted to Brigadier Gen- 
 eral of volunteers. Another writer has said that this 
 promotion was a reward for his gallant conduct in de- 
 fending Fort Donelson so successfully after it fell 
 into Federal hands, and against an attack of the 
 Confederate Generals, Wheeler, Forrest and Whar- 
 ton, with a command of over 8,000, while Harding 
 had only 800. For the truth of history, it might be 
 well to say that Gen. Harding was at that time al- 
 ready in the line of promotion, though his conduct 
 on the occasion mentioned may have hastened his 
 commission. The true history of that, lo Harding, 
 most important engagement shows that on Feb. 3, 
 1863, a portion of Gen. Forrest's command, under 
 Gen. Wheeler, left Palmyra and advanced on Fort 
 Donelson, then garrisoned by Col. Harding, in com- 
 mand of some nine companies of the 83d 111. Vol. 
 Inf., a battalion of the Fifth Iowa Cav., and Flood's 
 Battery, consisting of four rifled guns and one 32 
 pounder siege gun, mounted on a pivot on the north- 
 west corner of the fort. Gen. Harding, learning that 
 the enemy was approaching, telegraphed to Colonel 
 Lowe, at Fort Henry, asking for reinforcements. 
 
 That officer sent word back for Harding to send out 
 scouts and learn the exact course of the rebels, 
 which was done. Lowe could send no aid, but tel- 
 egraphed the gun-boats, then pushing up the river, 
 that Donelson was in a tight place, and at the same 
 time telegraphed to Col. Harding to "hold the place 
 at all hazards until dark, when help would arrive. " 
 At 2 o'clock p. m., the fort was attacked from the 
 eastward, and an effort made to carry the works. 
 The ammunition of the garrison was low, but it was 
 skillfully and economically handled. Col. Harding 
 was everywhere encouraging his men. Wherever 
 the fight was most severe or the danger most immi- 
 nent, there he was, swowd in hand, advising and 
 commanding his men. Night came on, the enemy 
 had surrounded the three sides of the fort, and Gen. 
 Wheeler under a flag of truce demanded a surrender 
 of the garrison or to take the consequences. Gen. 
 Harding sent back word that they "would take the 
 consequences." The fight was renewed; a second de- 
 mand to surrender made, and again refused. It was 8 
 o'clock, and Capt. Fitch's fleet astounded the eneiry 
 with well directed broadsides from his several gun- 
 ) boats, and in 20 minutes not a healthy rebel was in 
 sight. Col. Harding had obeyed orders unnecessary to 
 be given. With the information that help was assured 
 any time within a week, Harding would have held the 
 fort against all such generalship as that manifested by 
 Wheeler in that attack. Why a General, with a super- 
 ior force would hang around a small garrison 6 hours, 
 and in just such position as to have 250 of his men 
 killed, 600 wounded and 105 taken prisoner, might 
 be explained by Wheeler, but by no one else. Col. 
 Harding lost 13 killed, 51 wounded and 20 taken 
 prisoners. It was certainly a successful defense. 
 
 In r864 Gen. Harding was elected as the candi- 
 date of the Republican party to represent his dis- 
 trict in. the United States Congress, and served in 
 the ^gth and 4oth Congresses, being re-elected in 
 1866. While in Congress, Gen. Harding served on 
 the Committees on Manufactories and Militia in the 
 39th, and on the Committees on Union Prisoners' 
 Claims and Militia in the 4oth Congress. While in 
 Congress, he secured the charter, in his own name, 
 to build the railroad bridge over the Mississippi River 
 at Burlington, Iowa. The ownership of the charter 
 proved to be very valuable property, which he after- 
 ward sold to the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy 
 Railroad Company, who built the bridge. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 543 
 
 In 1869 the health of Gen. Harding began to fail, 
 and in May, 1871, he went to Europe, where he re- 
 mained until the October following, when he again 
 returned to his home at Monmouth. Here he contin- 
 ued to reside an invalid during the years 1872-3, 
 and July 19, 1874, at nine oclock p. m., he passed 
 away. The foundation of Gen. Harding's fortune 
 may be said to have been laid in his judicious in- 
 vestment in real estate and the consequent rise of 
 the same in value. As 3 lawyer he ranked high, es- 
 pecially in the branch pertaining to the laws relating 
 to titles and real estate. As a pleader, his papers 
 were prepared with consummate skill, resulting from 
 a broad and comprehensive knowledge and applica- 
 tion of the law bearing on the case in hand. As an 
 advocate, he was a clear, terse and powerful reas- 
 oner, and frequently very eloquent. He participated 
 during his extended practice in some of the most im- 
 portant cause celebra which have shed lustre upon 
 the jurisprudence of Illinois. 
 
 I He began life a poor boy, but as an accumulator 
 of wealth he certainly proved the greatest success 
 known to Warren County. He died leaving a very 
 large fortune. As a gentleman, worthy to be recog- 
 nized in this work as one of the leading citizens of 
 Warren County, in the'days that are past and gone, 
 we take pleasure in being enabled to present to the 
 reader a true likeness of one of the County's self- 
 made, respected and honored citizens. 
 
 evi Maley, now deceased, was one of the 
 pioneers of 1837, in the township ofSumner. 
 He was born March 22, 1822, in Ritchie 
 Co., West Virginia. His father, William Maley, 
 was born in Lancaster Co., Pa., Aug. r, 1780. 
 The family is of Irish origin, the father of Mr. 
 Maley last named having been born in that country, 
 whence he came to America about the time of the 
 War of the Revolution. He entered the Colonial 
 military service, and after his enrollment, while on 
 his way to join his command, in company with the 
 organization to which he belonged, was surprised by 
 a detachment of British dragoons, taken prisoner and 
 confined for some time on board a prison ship, in the 
 
 harbor of New York. After the close of the war, 
 about 1796, he went to West Virginia. He had be- 
 come the possessor of a tract of land in that part of 
 the Old Dominion which was located in Wood Coun- 
 ty, and by a subsequent municipal division was set 
 off to Ritchie County. The condition of the route 
 thither from the then limited bounds of civilization 
 can better be imagined than described. The way 
 was literally trackless from the county of Rockbridge, 
 in Virginia, where he was warned of the insecurity 
 of the place where he purposed to settle, on account 
 of the Indians there. He heeded the advice and lo- 
 cated in Rockbridge County, among the mountains. 
 Their stay continued four or five years and then 
 three of the sons, one of whom was the subject of 
 this personal narration, pushed their way to Wood 
 County. They took possession of their father's 
 claim, erected a log cabin and proceeded to clear 
 the land from the heavy growth of timber. As soon 
 as the work of improvement was fairly under way 
 they were joined by their parents and the remaining 
 members of the family. The grandparents were in- 
 cluded in the household, and their lives came to a 
 close in Wood County, on the frontier farm. 
 
 William Maley married Nancy Wells. She was a 
 native of Pennsylvania, and her father was one of 
 the pioneers of Wood County. From him she re- 
 ceived a tract of land which comprised 320 acres. 
 Her husband cleared it and placed it in profitable 
 condition for agricultural purposes. It was their 
 home for many years and was the birthplace of their 
 13 children. In 1837 the household, including 15 
 persons, started for an overland trip to Illinois ; the 
 party made quite a little procession with their eight 
 horses, two wagons and a carriage. They cooked 
 and ate, and slept on the way in their wagons, and 
 after a journey of four weeks arrived in Warren 
 County. In the vicinity of Little York they found a 
 vacant cabin, which they took possession of, and 
 which was their home through the first winter. 
 Meanwhile the father bought land in the Township 
 of Summer, on Section 31. It had no house and the 
 family found shelter in a log house which stood on 
 another farm in the immediate vicinity, of which 
 they were the occupants until August of that sum- 
 mer, when their own house was in readiness for 
 them. With the assistance of his sons the senior 
 Maley improved a farm, and on it he passed the re- 
 mainder of his life. He died in 1858. His wife's 
 
544 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 death transpired in 1838. She was a member of the 
 Presbyterian church. He belonged to the seceding 
 branch of the same denomination. 
 
 Lev! Maley came to Warren County with his fa- 
 ther, and was an inmate of the parental home until 
 his marriage, Dec. 6, 1841, to Margaret F. Paxton. 
 She was the daughter of William and Margaret Pax- 
 ton, and was born May i, 1829, in Greene Co., Ohio. 
 Her parents were pioneers of Warren County. Her 
 husband, associated with two brothers, bought land 
 on section 20 in Sumner Township, on which they 
 located at the time^f their marriage. Their home 
 was at first the pioneer log cabin, but this in time 
 gave way to a laree frame house, and soon after the 
 other buildings on the place were made to correspond 
 in value and appearance. Mr. Maley died July 15, 
 1866. His five children were born in the following 
 order: William, born Junes, 1852; died Dec. 23, 
 1876, leaving a wife and three children. Margaret 
 A. is the wife of William Berry. They live at Little 
 York. Clarissa married B. S. Dodson, and they are 
 residents of the same place, as is John P. Elizabeth 
 married J. Alison. Mr. Maley united with the Uni- 
 ted Presbyterian church, to which his wife belonged 
 before her marriage. Mrs. Maley is a resident of 
 Little York, with her son John P., who is a stock 
 dealer. 
 
 rus Bute, resident of Kirkwood,at which 
 place he is the Police Magistrate, was 
 born in Fayette Co., Pa., Sept. 26, 1929, his 
 parents being John and Mary (Morrison) 
 Bute, natives of Virginia and Pennsylvania 
 respectively. His father was a farmer in his na- 
 tive State, and continued to reside there with his 
 wife until his death, which occurred in 1855, that of 
 his wife occurring two years later, in 1857. 
 
 Cyrus Bute, a sketch of whose life we give in this 
 volume, remained under the family roof-tree until he 
 attained the age of manhood. He received a com- 
 mon school education in his native county, and as- 
 sisted his father on the farm up to the time he left 
 the old homestead. After leaving home he was 
 engaged in running his father's flour mill, and con- 
 
 tinued in that vocation until 1850. He then came to 
 this State and located in the neighborhood of Mon- 
 mouth, where for four years he was engaged in culti- 
 vating a rented farm. At the expiration of this time 
 he purchased 75 acres of good farm land, located on 
 section 9, Tompkins Township, where he has since 
 resided. 
 
 In 1862, Mr. Bute enlisted in the S^d 111. Vol. 
 Inf., Co. A, and served in the Union army until the 
 close of the war. He was appointed 3d Sergeant of 
 the company, and served in that capacity until Feb. 
 3, 1863, when, after the battle of Fort Donelson, he 
 was promoted to Second Lieutenant, continuing to 
 hold that position until he was honorably discharged 
 at the close of the war, in July, 1865. He was en- 
 gaged in many battles and skirmishes, and received 
 but one wound, although he had his clothes pierced 
 with the enemies' bullets in many places. His com- 
 pany gave him the control of a large amount of prop- 
 erty to deliver at Fort Henry, and while on the way 
 he was attacked by guerillas and had two of his men 
 shot, but by killing the leader of the band they suc- 
 ceeded in safely delivering the property at Fort 
 Henry. 
 
 After the war was over, Mr. Bute returned to War- 
 ren County and was elected Sheriff in 1868, and 
 served a term of three years. In 1873 he was elect- 
 ed to the position that he at present occupies, Police 
 Magistrate. 
 
 His marriage took place in 1841, at which time 
 Miss Margaret Gibson, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 became his wife. Of their union four children were 
 born, all of whom are living, and named as follows: 
 Mary E., Achsa J., Margaret E. and John M. The 
 last named enlisted in the war for the union at the 
 age of 13 years, having joined Co. L. i2th Cav. He 
 participated in quite a number of skirmishes and 
 engagements, never receiving any wounds. After the 
 war was over he continued in the service over a year 
 (being under the command of the late lamented 
 Gen. Custer) doing service in Texas. He was mus- 
 tered out of the service at Houston, Tex. Mr. Bute 
 had one son killed in the army, M. DeLafayette. He 
 enlisted in Co. C, 36th 111. Vol. Inf., and was killed at 
 the battle of Chicamauga, Sept. 20, 1863. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Bute is a stanch Republican, and 
 socially he is a member of the Order of Masons. 
 
 Mr. Bute is regarded as one of the representative 
 men of this county, always aiding any laudable en- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 545 
 
 terprise that is calculated to benefit the community 
 in which he resides. 
 
 The children of Mr. Bute are settled as follows: 
 Mary E., married Dr. E. Hicks, of Greenfield, Iowa ; 
 Achsa J., married L. D. Earp, and resides in Mon- 
 mouth, and has two children, Effie and George ; 
 Margaret E. married Mulford Sewell, and now re- 
 sides in Huntington, Indiana; John M. married Car- 
 rie Hall, and has one child, Thadeus. 
 
 
 
 }&- 
 
 iram Sheldon, one of the successful and 
 prominent agriculturists of Warren County, 
 residing upon section 33, Floyd Township, 
 is a native of Oneida Co., N. Y., at which 
 place, on the zoth of November, 1831, he was 
 born, being a son of Wilson Sheldon, who was 
 born in New York city, Feb. 3, 181 1. He died Sept. 
 r 3i '873, in the city of Monmouth. 
 
 In 1837, Wilson Sheldon, the father of our subject, 
 came to Illinois and located in Floyd Township. He 
 married Miss Sarah Matteson, a native of New 
 York, Feb. 14, 1830. She was born Feb. 26, 1817, 
 and still survives, residing in Monmouth, enjoying 
 good health. Of this union nine children were born, 
 namely : Hiram, Martha, George, Seneca, Burr, Al- 
 ma, Aurilla, Mary and Jerome. With the exception 
 of Jerome and Aurilla, all of the above are living. 
 Martha is the wife of Wyram Wiswell ; they reside 
 in Galesburg. Alma married David Van Winkle, 
 and lives in Chicago. Mary resides with her mother 
 at Monmouth. George is married and lives in Ne- 
 braska. The balance reside in this county. 
 
 Hiram Sheldon married Miss Emma J. Aylsworth, 
 Jan. 29, 1862. She is a native of Warren County, 
 and was born in Berwick Township, April 6, 1841. 
 She was a daughter of Hiram Aylsworth, a native of 
 Connecticut, born in the year 1816, and about the 
 year 1836 came to Illinois, and two years later mar- 
 ried Miss Harriet Roberts. She was born on July 
 1 6, 1817. They became the parents of two chil- 
 dren, viz. : Norman and Emma J., who is the wife of 
 our'subject. Mr. Aylsworth came from Otsego Co., 
 N. Y., to this State, his demise occurring in 1846, 
 and that of his widow Sept. 4, 1885. Afterthe death 
 
 of the first husband, Mrs. Aylsworth married An- 
 drew Whitenack, who still survives her. 
 
 Mr. Hiram Sheldon is the proprietor of 800 acres 
 of good land in this county. His home dwelling is a 
 substantial residence, two stories in height. His 
 barn is 36 x 48 feet, with 2O-foot posts. 
 
 Mr. Sheldon is largely engaged in shipping and 
 feeding stock, and has made this business a very 
 profitable one. Besides this he is one of the Direc- 
 tors of the Monmouth National Bank, having been 
 connected therewith for about 12 years. He has 
 served in the capacity of School Director and 
 Road Commissioner. Mr. Sheldon is considered 
 one of Warren County's solid and substantial cit- 
 izens, besides being a well-to-do and well known ag- 
 riculturist of Floyd Township. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon have a family comprising 
 four children : Wilson J., born Oct. 28, 1862; Irene, 
 Jin. to, 1864; Doana L., Sept. 5, 1868, and Ken- 
 neth R., Oct. 28, 1876, all now residing at home. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon, with three of their children, 
 are members of the Baptist Church, and politically, 
 Mr. S. is a Democrat. 
 
 -43 
 
 It;" ames Henry Spriggs, of the firm of Spriggs 
 & Bro., prominent druggists and pharma- 
 'cists at Monmouth, was born in the city of 
 Philadelphia, Sept. 15, 1822, and was the eld- 
 est son of his parents. (See biography of James 
 S. Spriggs, this volume.) After the death of 
 his father, James H. had largely the care and sup- 
 port of his mother and the younger children, a trust 
 ever discharged by him with the utmost degree of 
 good faith and filial devotion. As with the boy, so 
 with the man, true to the instinct of that high order 
 of humanity that springs naturally fron. a heart un- 
 incumbered by any of the passions that mark and 
 mar the lower class. 
 
 James H. Spriggs, in his dealing with people has 
 been purposely the cause of no pang of pain or sor- 
 row to any one. With this small tribute the com- 
 ment of the historian ends, and by a brief recital of 
 minor events will conclude the biography of jne of 
 Monmouth's best citizens. He was educated as op- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 portunity offered at the common schools and acad- 
 emies of his neighborhood, and from the age of 22 
 to 35 was conducting a farm in Cumberland Co., Pa. 
 He came to Monmouth in 1857, and in partnership 
 with his brother, engaged at once in the drug busi- 
 ness. This has since received his attention, varying 
 its duties somewhat occasionally by outside ven- 
 tures. For instance, he was one of the organizers 
 of the Monmouth Mining & Manufacturing Co., and 
 was for two years its President. He was also a stock- 
 holder and director of the First National Bank of 
 Monmouth, but when the limitation of the charter 
 expired he sold his stock and severed his connection 
 therewith. He also represented his Ward three or 
 four times in the common Council. Politically he is 
 identified with a preference for the time-honored 
 principles that made the old Republican party. His 
 first vote was cast for Henry Clay. 
 
 . Mr. Spriggs was married in Cumberland Co., Pa., 
 Dec. 23d, 1845, to Miss Eleanor J. McCune, native 
 of that county, and has had borne to him five chil- 
 dren, as follows : Mary E , born January, 1847, died 
 1851 ; Ellen M., born Sept., 1848, died 185 i ; John 
 S. was born April, 1850; Albert, formerly Secretary 
 of the Mining & Manufacturing Co., was born in 
 April, 1852, and William Henry, born March 16, 
 1854, died April, 1866. Since 1854 Mr. Spriggs and 
 wife have been members of the Presbyterian church. 
 
 C. Twitchell, one of the most prominent 
 young business men of Roseville, where he 
 is engaged quite extensively in the business 
 of a merchant, was born in Delaware Co., N. 
 Y., April 22, 1856, his parents being Perry and 
 Belarma (Woodmansee) Twitchell, natives of 
 the Empire State. Mr. Perry Twitchell, the father, 
 was a soldier in the late civil war, having enlisted in 
 r86z, and served within two months of its close. 
 He was a member of Co. C, i2th Conn. Vol. The 
 1 2th was a part of the army of the Potomac, subse- 
 quently transferred to Butler's command at New Or- 
 leans. He is at present a resident of Wallingford, 
 Conn. His wife died April 25, 1878. 
 
 J. C., our subject, remained companion to his par- 
 
 ents until he had attained the age of 22 years, hav- 
 ing worked in the meantime with his father at the 
 carpenter's trade, and attended the public schools, 
 receiving a fair education. 
 
 He arrived in Roseville Dec. 8, 1877, and began 
 clerking for J. L. Woodmansee, his uncle, remaining 
 with him until 1881. He then bought out the busi- 
 ness, and has continued to conduct the dry goods, 
 grocery and boot and shoe business, in which he has 
 met with splendid success, with a trade constantly 
 increasing. 
 
 Mr. J. C. Twitchell and Miss Margaret Harbaugh 
 were married in 1882, she being a native of Illinois, 
 and a daughter of Peter Harbaugh. 
 
 Mr. Twitchell is a member of the Methodist 
 Church, and regarded as a representative and solid 
 business man of Roseville. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Twitchell affiliates with the Re- 
 publican party. 
 
 rank J. Pine is the senior member of the 
 firm of Pine & Porter, hardware merchants 
 of Alexis. HL- was born in Kelly Town- 
 ship, Warren County, Sept. 14, 1855. He is 
 the son of Joseph and Letitia (Watson) Pine, 
 and the parents were pioneers of the township 
 where the son was born. They were farmers, and 
 reared their children to the same calling. Mr. Pine 
 was educated in the common schools of the pioneer 
 period of Warren County, and obtained a fair degree 
 of knowledge of books, although the facilities of the 
 schools of thai day were in no sense like those of the 
 present. It is an open question whether the latter, 
 with their attendant ease, are of greater benefit as 
 a means of mental discipline. At a later date Mr. 
 Pine passed 18 months at Knox College, where he 
 took advantage of all that institution afforded in the 
 way of advancement, for the limited time that he was 
 within its reach. 
 
 In 1877 he entered the employ of Messrs. Gibson, 
 Postlewaite & Co., as a clerk, and continued in their 
 service one year. The next year he passed in Gales- 
 burg, and he returned from there to the township 
 where he was born, and interested himself in farm- 
 
; y . ~ "~~ 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 547 
 
 ing. He indulged in that calling until he had raised 
 two crops. In 1880, in company with R. T. Wray, 
 he opened a hardware store at Alexis, and establish- 
 ed a popular and profitable business. The firm was 
 known in business circles as R. T. Wray & Co. In 
 addition to the lines of goods common to the trade, 
 they were agents for agricultural implements, 
 in which line of traffic they did a prosperous busi- 
 ness. 
 
 In the spring of 1881 Mr. Wray was killed on the 
 railroad, and the father of Mr. Pine bought the in- 
 terest of the deceased man in the business, which 
 father and son managed together until 1884. In that 
 year the change was effected by which the firm be- 
 came as now. The business is the same as when the 
 firm was first established, and is operated with satis- 
 factory results to all concerned. 
 
 In the spring of 1882 Mr. Pine was married to 
 Louisa Thierne, a native of Chicago, and they have 
 one child Ethel. 
 
 R. Gilliland, of the mercantile firm of 
 F. S. Talbot & Co., at Alexis, has been a 
 resident of the county in which he is a 
 prominent business man, since 1852. He is a 
 citizen who has made a creditable record in 
 point of manly worth and probity, and has the 
 satisfaction of realizing that he has advanced in ex- 
 act proportion to his merits and abilities. 
 
 He was born Oct. 22, 1828, in Barre Township, 
 Huntington Co., Pa., and is the oldest son of John 
 and Margaret Gilliland. His parents were worthy 
 people, bat for good and honorable reasons had not 
 been successful in storing an abundance of the 
 world's surplus. This was not the worst condition 
 in which the oldest son of a family might be placed, 
 as riches do not always exert the best influence on 
 the young, and whatever might have been the result 
 to Mr. Gilliland of a different state of affairs, it is 
 quite certain that he had little opportunity of specu- 
 lation about possibilities, as necessity compelled him 
 to take a practical view of the situation at an early 
 date in his life. He was 16 when the privilege of 
 providing for his own wants was accorded to him, 
 
 and he went to Mifflin County in his native State to 
 accept a situation on a farm, where he earned $4 
 per month. He passed eight months in the same 
 employ at the same wages. His pay increased until 
 he could command nine dollars a month, which was 
 the largest amount he received until after he was 
 21. The discontents and strikers of the present day 
 have forgotten, those times when the consideration 
 was to obtain work without much reference to the 
 remuneration, and when the quality of service a man 
 could render was also considered. The winter suc- 
 ceeding his arrival at the age of manhood he taught 
 school in his native county, and received $18 a 
 month and boarded himself. He officiated as ped- 
 agogue in the same school-house where he first at- 
 tended school. 
 
 He remained in Huntington County two years and 
 then came to Warren County, as has been stated. 
 He passed the first season in Hale Township as a 
 farm assistant. In the ensuing fall he went to 
 Spring Grove Township, where he passed the winter 
 and labored at 50 cents a day, husking corn, taking 
 his pay in corn at ten cents a bushel. 
 
 His marriage to Rebecca E. Campbell occurred 
 March i, 1853. This event, transpiring at this 
 period in the history and fortunes of Mr. Gilliland, 
 proves the material of which he is made, as he is 
 not a man to assume a responsibility to which the 
 test would be likely to prove him inadequate. The 
 young couple took possession of a rented farm, 
 managed on shares. It was situated in Suez Town- 
 ship in Mercer County. They rented land in the 
 same township in the following year, and were its 
 occupants until the fall of 1854, when they took pos- 
 session of a tract of 40 acres which had been located 
 by Mr. Gilliland in 1853. The land was on section 
 4 in Spring Grove Township, and was in unimproved 
 condition. The proprietor built a house on his 
 property and lived there until 1872. In the mean- 
 time he bought additional land, until he was the 
 owner of 120 acres. He put the place in tillable 
 condition and in the year named rented it, and re- 
 moved to Alexis. He bought a lot and built a house. 
 In January, 1874, he bought a drug business and 
 managed it until the spring of 1876. He closed his 
 affairs in that line and went to the Centennial at 
 Philadelphia, and also visited his old home and 
 friends in Mifflin County, where his father still lived. 
 He returned to Alexis in the fall and formed a part- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 nership in the mercantile business under the name 
 of Gibson, Postlewait & Co. At the end of six years 
 the firm dissolved, and Mr. Gilliland bought an in- 
 terest in the general store of F. S. Talbot & Co., 
 which is still in existence. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Gilliland was formerly a Democrat, 
 but has latterly cast his fortunes with the prohibition 
 element. While a resident of Spring Grove Town- 
 ship, he officiated as Assessor several terms, and as 
 Collector. 
 
 Mrs. Gilliland was born in Huntington Co., Pa., 
 and is the daughter of Matthew and Hannah Camp- 
 bell. She is the mother of two daughters. Maggie 
 H. is the wife of F. S. Talbot, her father's business 
 associate. The younger is named Mary E. 
 
 
 eorge W. Claycomb, Supervisor of Mon- 
 mouth, and a retired farmer living there, is 
 a son of Frederick and Mary Ann 
 Claycomb. (See biography of Andrew Clay- 
 comb in this volume of family history). He 
 was born in Breckenridge Co., Ky., Feb. 4, 
 1828, and came with his parents to this State in 
 1836. He was brought up on his brother's farm and 
 educated at the common schools. 
 
 At the age of 21 years Mr. Claycomb began busi- 
 ness for himself. He bought an 8o-acre tract of 
 land in Cold Brook Township and improved it. He 
 then traded it for a I2o-acre tract in the same town- 
 ship, which he now owns and which is occupied by 
 his son ; and from this comparatively small begin- 
 ning he owns at this writing (Oct. 18, 1885) one of 
 the best farms in the county. It contains about 415 
 acres and lies about eight miles northeast from Mon- 
 mouth Court House. 
 
 He was united in marriage in Floyd Township, 
 Dec. 17, 1851, with Miss Sarah A. Godard, a native 
 of Indiana, and daughter of Francis Godard, one of 
 the pioneers of Warren County, whither he removed 
 from Indiana at an early day. He was a native of 
 Kentucky and died at the age of 84 years. Mr. Clay- 
 comb retired from active farming in 1882, and in 
 April, 1885, was elected Supervisor. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs Claycomb have had born to them 
 
 four children Laura E. (Mrs. P. H. Shelton), Al- 
 bert R., born Nov. 7, 1853, died aged seven years; 
 Frank E. and Alta M. The family belongs to the 
 Christian Church, and Mr. Claycomb, socially, is a 
 member of the Order of Masonry. 
 
 ohn Salter who, in his 7oth year, is resting 
 from the labors of the past, enjoying the 
 comforts which a life of toil, energy and 
 economy have brought him, at his resi- 
 dence, one-half mile from the village of Kirk- 
 wood, was born in New Jersey, Aug. 24, 1815. 
 
 The parents of Mr. Salter, Paul and Elizabeth 
 (Culberly) Salter, were natives of New Jersey. They 
 came to this State in 1845, his father settling in Hen- 
 derson County, where he purchased 800 acres of 
 land, which he subsequently supplemented by 400 
 acres more, and on which he resided until a few 
 years prior to his death, when he purchased a resi- 
 dence and lot in Kirkwood village. He continued 
 to reside at the latter place until his death. 
 
 The gentleman whose name we place at the head 
 of this notice remained with his parents until he at- 
 tained his majority, receiving a good common-school 
 education. Prior to the age named, when 18 years 
 old, he engaged in the oyster and fish trade, and, 
 after leaving home, he continued in the same busi- 
 ness until 1855. During that year he came to this 
 State and located in Henderson County, on 160 
 acres of land, which he had purchased. He per- 
 chased ten acres one-half mile from the village of 
 Kirkwood, which he sold and bought another house 
 and lot, where he is at present living. He remained 
 on his farm until 1883, following the vocation at 
 which he passed the major portion of his life and 
 meeting with success, when he moved to his present 
 residence, as stated. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Salter was solemnized in 
 1839, at which time Miss Jane Vreeland, a native of 
 New Jersey, became his wife. She was born Oct. 
 17, 1821, and has borne her husband eight children 
 seven of whom survive Eliza J., Henry V., Lucin- 
 da, Mary A., John, Sarah T. and Emma. Rachel, 
 
 ' 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 55' 
 
 C. was drowned in Peoria Lake, at the age of 13 
 years and 4 months. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Salter affiliates with the Republi- 
 can party, and he and his wife attend the Presbyte- 
 rian Church. Mr. Salter is one of the representa- 
 tive citizens of Warren County, and although his 
 hair is silvered by the lapse of time, he is yet in 
 comparatively good health, and taking a retrospect- 
 ive view of the past, he can call to memory no acts of 
 injustice to his fellow-man, and lives in the knowl- 
 edge that his accumulation of this world's goods is 
 the outgrowth of no legacy, but of his own energy 
 and perseverance, coupled with the active co-opera- 
 tion of his good helpmeet and children. 
 
 ' 
 
 ohn P. McClanahan, M. D., is a well known 
 j? and highly respected physician of Warren 
 County, his reputation extending far be- 
 yond the bounds of Alexis, where he resides, 
 or of the northern part of the county. John P. 
 McClanahan is the sixth son of John McClan- 
 ahan, whose sketch is given in this volume and to 
 which we refer for the record of the family of Dr. 
 John P. The latter was born Nov. 5, 1831, in 
 Adams Co., Ohio. He was six years of age when 
 his parents with their family removed to Brown 
 County of the same State, and there the remaining 
 years of his minority were passed, not only in ac- 
 quiring a knowledge of books, but in learning to suc- 
 cessfully labor in business and agricultural pursuits. 
 He at first attended the schools in his immediate 
 neighborhood, taught mainly by his father or one of 
 the older members of the family. He next had the 
 advantages of the high school at Ripley, which was 
 the adjoining town, and later attended a select school 
 at North Liberty, Ohio. In 1851 he began the 
 study of his profession, in the office and under the 
 preceptorship of Dr. Alexander Dunlap of Ripley. 
 
 The Doctor attended his first course of medical 
 lectures at the Western Reserve Medical College, of 
 Cleveland, Ohio, and his second course at the Jeffer- 
 son Medical College of Philadelphia. He gradu- 
 ated from the latter institution in the spring of 1854. 
 Soon thereafter he located at Ashland, Ky., where he 
 
 practiced for two years. In the spring of 1856, he 
 determined on making a move, and having heard 
 favorable reports from Illinois, he made this State 
 his objective point. He located at Norwood, Mercer 
 County, where he remained practicing his profession 
 until 1862, when he entered the army, as First As- 
 sistant burgeon of the 83d 111. Vol. Inf. Upon his 
 return from the service of his country, he resumed 
 his practice at Norwood. 
 
 In 1872, the Doctor decided to change his location 
 from Norwood to Alexis, on account of better rail- 
 road facilities, and with this aim in view, purchased 
 a building site adjoining Alexis on the Mercer County 
 side. Here he erected a dwelling, with the neces- 
 sary accompanying structures. To the original site 
 he subsequently added several acres adjoining, thus 
 combining with his village property that of the farm. 
 
 During the trying times of the late Rebellion, in- 
 spired with like patriotism of many of his friends and 
 neighbors, he responded to his country's call, and 
 was commissioned First Assistant Surgeon of the S^d 
 111. Vol. Inf., which was organized at Monmouth in 
 1862. He served faithfullyMn this capacity for two 
 years, when, in 1864, on account of failing health, 
 he resigned and returned to his Illinois home, where, t 
 even before his health had been no more than slightly 
 improved, he took up his old line of practice, in j 
 Warren and Mercer Counties. This arduous labor 
 he has faithfully performed to the utmost extent of 
 his limited physical ability to the present time (Jan- 
 uary, 1886), though never equal to the call for his 
 services. 
 
 Dr. McClanahan was married Nov. 14, 1854, to 
 Margaret J. Jones, daughter of Richard Jones, of 
 Ashland, Ky. Mrs. McClanahan is a lady of 
 refined taste and culture, and a prominent figure in 
 the social circles of the community. She had not, 
 however, the advantages of either a collegiate or 
 academical course during her school days, but im- 
 proved such early opportunities as she enjoyed in 
 such a way as to have made of herself an excellent 
 scholar. She has, also, daily added to the accumu- 
 lations of earlier years by constant, careful reading, 
 when leisure from household cares permitted. Mr. 
 and Mrs. McC. have three children the eldest, H. 
 M. McClanahan; the second, A. A. McClanahan; 
 the third, Alice M., sole daughter of the home, is a 
 graduate of the Morgan Park Female College in the 
 class of 1884. Dr. H. M. McClanahan, who is prac- 
 
 -A 1 
 
552 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ticingliis profession at Woodhull, 111., received his 
 collegiate education at Monmouth College, and grad- 
 uated in his profession from the Jefferson Medical 
 College, of Philadelphia, in 1878. The second son, 
 also a Monmouth College student, is a practicing 
 attorney located at Omaha, Neb. He attended the 
 law school at Chicago the first year, and the second 
 at Bloomington, 111 , and was admitted to the Bar at 
 Springfield, 111., in May, 1885. 
 
 The Doctor is a Republican in political principles, 
 and the entire family are Presbyterians in religious 
 belief. 
 
 As orie of the leading professional men of this 
 portion of the State, as well as an esteemed and en- 
 terprising citizen, the publishers take pleasure in 
 presenting to their patrons the portrait of Dr. Mc- 
 Clanahan, which is done in connection with this 
 sketch. 
 
 |j amuel Graham, retired farmer, residing at 
 Monmouth, was born in Washington 
 Co., Pa., April 10, 1806, and was the son 
 of John and Martha (Hutchinson) Graham, 
 natives also of Pennsylvania, and of Scotch 
 and Irish descent respectively. Of the seven 
 sons and three daughters reared to men and women 
 by John and Martha Graham, Samuel, of whom we 
 write was the seventh in order of birth, and the fourth 
 of the sons. At this writing (September, 1885) 
 three sons and two daughters only are living. 
 
 The senior Mr. Graham was a farmer by occupa- 
 tion in his lifetime, and brought up his sons in that 
 honorable calling. He and his wife spent the last 
 years of their lives in Washington Co., Pa., and there 
 their remains were laid to rest. 
 
 Samuel Graham has himself grown old. He was 
 born when the present century was but an infant, 
 and his memory runs back to events in the history of 
 our country that to nearly all of us, as we read of 
 them, sound as remote as the wars of the Medes and 
 Persians. He heard the beat of the drums that 
 marshalled again the defenders of a new and unde- 
 veloped country against an ancient foe, and he clap- 
 ped his childish hands in glee as the bells from the 
 tops of the little white churches pealed forth their 
 
 chimes of victory. He was a man of family when 
 Taylor's army trod the streets of Mexico; and he 
 had grown almost too old for service when the late 
 war between the States cast a shadow of gloom 
 across the threshold of every family in the land. 
 
 The common schools at best in his day offered but 
 comparatively small opportunity for education, and 
 his circumstances were such as deprived him even 
 of much of that. He came to Warren County, in 
 1839, and settled in Suinner Township, where he 
 spent many years of his life, coming to Monmouth in 
 1863. For about two years after coming to town 
 he was engaged at milling, since which time he has 
 taken life easy. 
 
 Mr. Graham was first married in Washington Co., 
 Pa., April 21, 1831, to Margaret Eaton, who died in 
 Warren County, Dec. 14, 1854, leaving two children : 
 Mary Jane, now Mrs. Thos. W. Smiley, and Lucin- 
 da M., who died Jan. 24, 1835, at the age of 16 
 years. Six of her little ones preceded her to the 
 other world, viz. : John, who died June to, 1841, 
 aged five years, and five infants, not named. In 1856 
 Mr. Graham returned to Washington Co., Pa., and 
 there, on Sept. 15 of that year, he was married to 
 Ann Wright, who died Sept. 20, 1871, leaving one 
 child, which lived but a few months. In Scott Co., 
 Iowa, Nov. 21, 1872, Mr. Graham was married to. 
 the excellent lady who presides over his household at 
 this writing. Her name was Mary Ann McConnell, 
 a native of Allegheny Co., Pa., and daughter of 
 George and Jaennette (Stark) McConnell, who came 
 respectively from Virginia and Pennsylvania, and 
 who spent the last years of their lives in Scott Co., 
 Iowa. 
 
 Below will be found the record of the parents of 
 Mrs. Graham: Thomas McConnell, her grandfather, 
 was born Sept. i, 1759; Mary Ann (Watt) McCon- 
 nell, his wife, was born April 23, 1765. They were 
 married Sept. 4, 1791, and on the i4th of June, 
 1795, they set sail for America on the ship Cincin- 
 nati, arriving in this country after a long and tedious 
 voyage of 47 days. Upon landing they went direct 
 to Richmond, Va. Of their union nine children were 
 born. The father of Mrs. Graham, George McCon- 
 nell, was married to Jaenette Stark, Aug. 23, 1825, 
 in Pennsylvania. The latter was the daughter of 
 John and Jaenette (Morton) Stark, natives of Penn- 
 sylvania. Their parents were born and married in 
 Scotland. George McConnell had 10 children, six 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 553 
 
 sons and four daughters eight of whom are living. 
 After his marriage, Mr. McConnell remained in 
 Pennsylvania until 1850. when he removed to Scott 
 Co., Iowa, where he purchased a farm and remained 
 thereuntil his demise. He was born Dec. 31, 1795, 
 and died April 5, 1865. His wife was born Nov. 24, 
 1800, and died in 1873. 
 
 Whatever of this world's goods Mr. Graham pos- 
 sesses and enjoys, he has acquired by his individual 
 effort and industry. He began life a poor boy, but a 
 ripe old age finds him in the enjoyment of a hand- 
 some competency. 
 
 In politics he is a Republican, and his religious 
 faith is founded upon the tenets of the scriptures as 
 expounded in the United Presbyterian Church. 
 
 losephus Wray, residing on five acres ad- 
 joining the village plat of Kirk wood, where 
 he is passing the closing days of his life in 
 peace and quiet retirement, having the greater 
 portion of his years followed the vocation of an 
 agriculturist, was born in Kentucky, June 6, 
 1822. The parents of Mr. Wray, Isaac and Mary 
 (Carlton) Wray, were natives of Virginia. They 
 moved from their native State to Kentucky, and from 
 Kentucky to Indiana in 1827, where his father was 
 engaged in farming until 1837. During that year, 
 in company with his family, he came to this State and 
 located on section 7, Tompkins Township,, where 
 the parents resided until their death, that of the 
 father occurring Oct. 14, 1844, and that of the 
 mother Oct. 16 of the same year, only two days 
 apart. They were buried in one grave in the beau- 
 tiful cemetery at Monmouth. 
 
 Josephus Wray, their son, and the subject of this 
 notice, with his brother John, purchased 160 acres 
 of land on the same section on which his parents 
 resided. Josephus lived on that land, engaged in 
 the occupation of an agriculturist, until 1878, when 
 for the purpose of educating his children, he moved 
 to Kirkwood and located, as stated at the com- 
 mencement of this notice. He has a fine residence 
 on his five acres, and is living in the enjoyment of 
 the accumulations of a life of labor, coupled with 
 that of energetic effort and determination. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Wray to Miss Rebecca J. 
 Woods, a native of Pennsylvania, was solemnized in 
 1861, and their union has been blessed by the birth 
 of two children Samuel W. and Mary C. After 
 nine years of married life, the wife was called to the 
 better land, and Mr. Wray is living with his chil- 
 dren. 
 
 He is Republican in politics, and one of those gen- 
 tlemen of Warren County whose veracity in business 
 matters, or socially, is never doubted. 
 
 [elville C. Soule, real estate dealer at Mon- 
 mouth, is a son of Rev. Justus and Mary 
 'Ann (Harding) Soule, natives of New York, 
 3> and of mixed French and Irish ancestry. Mr. 
 Soule was born in New York State, April 10, 
 1847, and was the second in order of birth of a 
 family of two sons and one daughter. 
 
 The late Rev. J. Soule was 19 years a minister of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. He came to Mon- 
 mouth in 1856, preached here awhile, itinerated 
 to Geneseo, 111., and from there, at the end of a 
 couple of years, to Moline, where he died Oct. 21, 
 1859, aged 50 years. His widow reared the family, 
 saw the children all settled in life, and has since 
 made her home with them. Her eldest son, E. O. 
 Soule, is Division Superintendent of the Burlington, 
 Cedar Rapids and Northern Railroad, and her 
 daughter, Ella F.,is the wife of the Rev. Reed Stu- 
 art, of battle Creek, Mich. In the year 1867, at the 
 age of 20 years, he embarked in the book, stationery 
 and music business at Monmouth, under the firm 
 name of Clark & Soule. 
 
 Melville C. Soule was educated at Monmouth Col- 
 lege. At the age of 21 years he became a local 
 preacher of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Dur- 
 ing a part of the year 187 i and '72 he had charge of 
 a congregation at Groveland, 111. Failing health 
 compelled him to give up the active work of the 
 ministry, and, much to the regret of the people of 
 Graceland, he returned to Monmouth, where, in 
 1872, he engaged in the lumber business, under the 
 firm name of W. F. Smith & Soule, afterward Soule 
 & Graham, While in this line they did a very large 
 
554 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 and lucrative business, running two large lumber 
 yards and taking contracts for building, having at 
 times 27 or 30 men in their employ. Mr. Soule sold 
 out in 1877, and for two years was engaged in the 
 boot and Shoe business. During all these years, he 
 was interested more or less in real estate, which has 
 since 1880 occupied all his time. He is also inter- 
 ested in banking, but notwithstanding all the labor 
 incident to these various interests, he gives much 
 time to temperance, church and Sabbath-school 
 work. For 15 years he has been Recording Steward 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church, atMonmouth; 
 for six years a member of the Board of Trustees of 
 Wesleyan University, at Bloomington, 111. ; and dur- 
 ing the same period has been a member of Hedding 
 College( at Abingdon, III.) Board of Trustees ; and 
 for the past three years President of the Board. Mr. 
 Soule was married at Monmouth, April 12, 1869, to 
 Miss Ina Belle Smith, daughter of W. F. Smith, 
 whose biography appears in this work, and has had 
 borne to him seven children Edwin Olin, born 
 Feb. 1 6, 1870; Francis J., May 19, 1872; Melville 
 Glenn, July 6, 1874; Elbert Earl, Nov. 23, 1876; 
 Mary Ella, Nov. 23, 1876, died Aug. 25, 1882 ; Ina 
 Aleta, born March 13, 1880; Myrta L., born May 
 13, 1883. 
 
 J- 
 
 
 ,rank L. Hall, general farmer and stock- 
 grower, section 17, Cold Brook Township, 
 was born in this township, June 10, 1865. 
 He is a son of W. M. Hall (see sketch), now 
 residing in that township, and who is one of 
 the most extensive land owners there. Our 
 subject resided under the home roof with his parents 
 until he entered college at Abingdon, in 1881. While 
 there he took a special course in the college, and 
 there met his present wife. After she had completed 
 her regular course, June 6, 1884, they were united in 
 marriage, at St. Louis, Mo., Dec. 31, 1884, the lady 
 being Miss Minnie M. Younkin, daughter of Dr. E. 
 Younkin, Professor of Surgery in the American Med- 
 ical College, at St. Louis, since about the year 1872. 
 Her mother was Mattie Hart, native of Ohio, and her 
 father a native of Pennsylvania, both of whom are of 
 American parentage, and the father of German an- 
 
 cestry. They both in their younger days attended 
 college at Abingdon, and there formed the acquaint- 
 ance which afterwards resulted in marriage. The fa- 
 ther completed his education in surgery at Cincin- 
 nati, Ohio, and they are now residents of St. Louis, 
 where they occupy a high position in society and 
 Prof. Younkin takes first rank in the school of medi- 
 cine. Mrs. Hall, of this notice, was born in West 
 Liberty, Iowa, Dec. 21, 1863. Afterward the parents 
 moved to Abingdon, 111., thence to Leavenworth, 
 Kas., and afterward to St. Louis, Mo., where they 
 have since lived. Mrs. Hall received her early ru- 
 dimentary education principally in St. Louis. Since 
 their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Hall have resided in 
 Cold Brook Township. 
 
 They are both members of the Christian Church, 
 and politically, Mr. Hall is a supporter of the princi- 
 ples advocated by the Democratic party 
 
 ames C. Blythe, of the firm of D. B. 
 Blythe & Co., dealers in hardware, at Kirk- J 
 wood village, is a native of Pennsylvania, 
 where he was born, June 14, 1850, his parents 
 being David B. and Mary M. (Finley) Blythe, 
 natives of the same state. The father of Mr. 
 Blythe came to Illinois in 1865 and settled at Knox- 
 ville, Knox County, where he engaged in merchan- 
 dising. At the present time he resides in Tompkins 
 Township, this county, on 400 acres of land, and is 
 also the senior member of the firm of D. B. Blythe & 
 Co., at Kirkwood. His wife, the mother of our sub- 
 ject, died in Pennsylvania in 1865. 
 
 The gentleman whose name we place at the head 
 of this notice was under the care of his parents until 
 he attained his majority, receiving in the common 
 schools a good education, which was supplemented 
 by a thorough business course at the Keokuk Busi- 
 ness College, Iowa, from which institution he grad- 
 uated in 1877. In 1878 he engaged in the drug bus- 
 iness at Woodburn, Clark Co., Iowa, and was thus 
 occupied until 1882. During that year he sold his 
 interest in the business mentioned and came to Kirk- 
 wood, where he embarked in the hardware business, 
 and has continued the same until the present time. 
 By strict attention to business, honest and fair deal- 
 
 : 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 555 
 
 ing with his customers and quick sales, he has built 
 up a business, which is a profitable and constantly 
 increasing one. 
 
 Mr. Blythe was united in marriage with Miss Lau- 
 ra A. Randolph, April 2, 1879. She was the accom- 
 plished daughter of D. W. Randolph, of Woodburn, 
 Iowa, and has borne her husband three children, all 
 sons, namely: Charles B., Harry R. and Edward F. 
 In political matters, Mr. Blythe is an active worker 
 in the interests of the Republican party. Socially, 
 he is a member of the I. O. O. F. He is also Presi- 
 dent of the School Board, is Fire Marshal at Kirk- 
 wood and a member of the Board of Health. He 
 carries the largest stock of hardware in Kirkwood 
 village, and is one of the leading business men, as 
 well as respected citizens, of that thriving little place. 
 
 amuel T. Shelton, the subject of this bio- 
 graphical notice, is one of the most prom- 
 inent agriculturists of Warren County, as well 
 as one of its old pioneers and leading citizens. 
 He was born Sept. 6, 1821, in the vicinity of 
 1 Mammoth Cave, near Pruett's Knob, Barren 
 Co., Ky. He attended school in the old log school- 
 house of that early day, which was sustained by sub- 
 scription. His lessons were learned by the feeble 
 light which struggled through window panes made of 
 greased paper. There was only one arithmetic in the 
 school, the lessons being given out on slates and then 
 copied into books. 
 
 Mr. Shelton, accompanying his father's family, left 
 his native place Oct. 27, 1837, and emigrated to 
 Warren Co., where he arrived November 24, of that 
 year. The outfit for moving was a large Kentucky 
 wagon, with a yoke of oxen by the tongue and a span 
 of horses in the lead. The family stopped on the 
 way with the early settlers, and were feasted on ven- 
 ison and wild turkey. Arriving at their destination, 
 the whole family of 12 persons wintered in a log 
 cabin, in size about 16 feet square. The cooking 
 utensils consisted of skillet, oven, pot, frying-pan and 
 coffee-pot. Stoves were unknown at that time, as 
 well as matches, and fire had to be " borrowed " from 
 neighbors. 
 
 Mr. Shelton worked on his father's farm in his na- 
 
 tive slate until the family arrived in Illinois, when 
 his first labor in this state was to assist his father in 
 splitting rails, for sustenance, meanwhile attending 
 school winters, and studying evenings by the light of 
 a log fire. On April ist, 1838, he commenced for 
 himself as a farmer, renting his labor to his uncle, 
 Isaac Murphy, at $15 per month and board, and his 
 earnings being paid principally by his obtaining a 
 horse and partly in goods from the store. Payment 
 for labor was largely made in pork, which was quite 
 a circulating medium in those days. Payment was 
 also made in wheat at the rate of two bushels per 
 day in exchange for an individual's labor, in harvest 
 time. The wheat so obtained was then often hauled 
 to Peoria, a distance of 60 miles, which occupied a 
 week's time, and was there sold in 1846 at 40 cents 
 per bushel, pay being taken in salt at 50 cents a 
 bushel, which was hauled back home and peddled 
 out in exchange for something else. Mr. Shelton 
 continued to work out until about the time of his 
 marriage, and in the meantime was engaged in teach- 
 ing about six months. 
 
 About this period in Mr. Shelton's life he ran in 
 debt for 80 acres of land in Floyd Township, the 
 same being purchased in the Fall of 1847, but not 
 paid for until 1851. He remained on that land, en- 
 gaged in following the vocation of an agriculturist for 
 about 30 years, then moved to Cold Brook Township 
 March 27, 1876, and purchased 70 acres of land ly- 
 ing in Cold Brook Township, and a portion of the 
 same being within the corporate limits of the town 
 of Cameron, in which he now lives. He is also the 
 owner of the old homestead of 400 acres, and 240 
 acres elsewhere, and in 1839 located a claim in 
 Washington Co., Iowa, which he afterwards sold. 
 
 Until he left his old home in Floyd Township, Mr. 
 Shelton had been a practical and successful farmer, 
 stock-raiser and dealer. He became School Director 
 about 1850, and successfully served as Trustee, 
 Township Treasurer, Assessor and Collector, and was 
 also Supervisor from 1863 to 1870. He was elected 
 a member of the State Legislature, in 1870, serving 
 out his term, during which time there were four ses- 
 sions to revise the laws under the New Constitution, 
 and Mr. Shelton also had the pleasure of assisting in 
 the election of John A. Logan the first time he 
 ever became Senator from the great Commonwealth 
 of Illinois. Mr. Shelton has always been active in 
 politics, and has gained no inconsiderable reputation 
 
556 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 as a public speaker. He was for many years a Re- 
 publican, but is now an Anti-Monopolist Greenback- 
 er and Prohibitionist. At present he holds the office 
 of Justice of the Peace. 
 
 Mr. Shelton was united in marriage in Cold Brook 
 Township, June 16, 1846, with Miss Eliza Murphy, 
 Rev. John G. Haley officiating. She was born March 
 10, 1824, in Northumberland Co., Va. They have 
 four children, namely: Patrick H., born Oct. 30, 
 1848; Melissa F., Dec. 17, 1849; James M., Feb. 2> 
 1852; Ophelia E., March 27, 1855. Patrick H. mar- 
 ried Laura E. Claycomb, Nov. 14, 1871, and resides 
 near Cameron; Melissa F. became the wife of Zach- 
 ariah T. Nelson, June 12, 1870, and resides in David 
 City, Neb. ; James M. married Julia E. Sayles, Feb. 
 4, 1874, and resides near Cameron; Ophelia E. be- 
 came the wife of Eugene M. Clay, Jan. 30, 1876, and 
 resides on the old homestead, near Cameron. 
 
 David Shelton, father of Samuel T., was born near 
 
 Danville, Ky., Dec. 23, 1792, and was one of the 
 
 (veterans of the War of 1812. He died March 16, 
 
 1847. His mother, Patsey, was born June 12, 1795, 
 
 I in Virginia, and died Nov. 30, 1883, after a remark- 
 
 = bly strong and healthy life of over 80 years. All the 
 
 1 family were long-lived and marvelously healthy. 
 
 The descendants of David and Patsey Shelton in- 
 L creased during a period of 70 years, two months and 
 two days, from the birth of their first child, Sept. 28, 
 1813, to the death of Patsey Shelton, Nov. 30. 1883, 
 in numbers as follows: 14 children, eight males, six 
 females; eight living and six dead ; 95 grandchildren, 
 55 males, 40 females; 74 living, 21 dead; 150 
 great grandchildren, 75 males, 75 females; 124 living, 
 26 dead; 15 great great grandchildren, six males) 
 nine females, to living, 5 dead, and making a total of 
 274 children, 144 males and 130 females, 216 living 
 and 58 dead. Also six sons-in law and nine daugh- 
 ters-in-law, 26 grandsons-in-law, and 27 grand- 
 daughters-in-law ; 4 great grand-sons-in-law and 
 three great daughters-in-law, making a total of sev- 
 enty-five which, added to their descendants enumer- 
 ated, makes a grand total of 349. There are twen- 
 ty-eight different names among the 274 descendants, 
 as follows : [05 Sheltons, 29 Freemans, 20 Whit- 
 mans, 16 Robinsons, 15 Norrises, 9 Means, 9 Clay- 
 tons, 7 Otises, 6 Haleys, 6 Mills, 5 Loafmans, 5 
 Bradleys, 5 Goddards, 4 Clays, 4 Durhams, 4 John- 
 sons, 4 Smiths, 3 Legerwoods, 3 Riggles, 3 Nelsons, 
 3 Reisers, 2 Hascalls, 2 Sayles, i Thompson, i 
 
 Jones, i Seals, i Vesser and i Cutler. The above 
 named live in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Mis- 
 souri and California, the larger portion living in the 
 state first named. A newspaper containing the 
 above summary relative to David and Patsey Shel- 
 ton was placed in the corner-stone of the Presbyte- 
 rian Church at Monmouth, 111., which was laid in 
 1882. 
 
 Mr. Shelton and his wife belong to the Christian 
 Church, in which he bears the title of Rev., having 
 been ordained an Elder by the congregation, and has 
 served 30 years or more; also as an Evangelist since 
 1860. 
 
 sal P. Randall, residing on Section 21, Ber- 
 wick Township, where he is engaged in ag- 
 ricultural pursuits, and on which section he 
 owns an excellent farm, was born in Jefferson 
 County, N. Y., May 6, 1812. His father was 
 Thomas Randall, a native of Vermont, born in 1787. 
 The father participated in the War of 1812, and was 
 engaged in the battles of Brownsville and Sackett's 
 Harbor, and remained in the army until the close of 
 the war, dying in Jeffe-s-in Co., N. Y., in 1838. He 
 married Miss Hannah Field, also a native of Ver- 
 mont, born in 1791. She also died in Jefferson Co., 
 N. Y , in 1882. Their children were seven in num- 
 ber, namely: Betsey, Elijah, Alvira, Asal, Alfred, 
 Deborah and Ardelia, all of whom are deceased ex- 
 cept three. 
 
 Asal P. Randall formed a matrimonial alliance 
 with Jane A. Brown, at Watertown, Jefferson Co., N. 
 Y., in 1836. She was born in that county in 1816, 
 and bore her husband two children, Dilly E., born in 
 1837, and Orlando T., in 1843. The wife and mother 
 died in 1852, in Wisconsin, whither Mr. Randall had 
 removed with his family one year previous. 
 
 After the death of his wife Mr. Randall again re- 
 turned to York State, where, in 1856, he was again 
 married, to Miss Mary Ann Mather, at Brownville, 
 that state. She died June 9, 1878, in Berwick Town- 
 ship, this county, having borne her husband seven 
 children: Edgar, born 1849; Emma, 1851; Eva, 
 1855; Francis, 1859; William, 1861 ; Homer W 
 1863 and May A., 1865. Four of Mr. R.'s children 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 557 
 
 are married, namely : Orlando, Edgar, Dilly and 
 Francis. Mr. Randall is pleasantly situated on 70 
 acres of good land, which he has under a good state 
 of cultivation, and there, with his devoted daughters 
 and sons, is passing the sunset of his life in peace 
 and quiet. He and his family are Close Communion 
 Baptists, and in politics Mr. Randall is, and always 
 has been, a Republican. 
 
 s apt. John P. Higgins, of Monmouth, was 
 born in Cumberland Co., Ky., Aug. 8, 
 1830, and his parents were Durrett and 
 Mary (Graves) Higgins, who reared seven 
 sons and four daughters, John being the third 
 son in order of birth, ,and one of the three 
 sons now living. The sons were brought up as 
 tillers of the soil upon the farm of their parental 
 ancestor. The family came to Illinois in 1835, and 
 the parents spent the rest of their lives in Tazewell 
 County, the father dying in 1851, at the age of 62 
 years, and his widow in 1860, at the age of 62 years. 
 
 From the common schools of Tazewell County, 
 the subject of our sketch took a scientific course at 
 Galesburg Liberal Institute (now known as Lombard 
 University), and in 1855 began teaching school. 
 For nearly 20 years he taught in Warren County. 
 His home was in Swan Township, where he held the 
 office of Supervisor for four years, beginning in 1879, 
 and was also holding the office of Justice of the 
 Peace at the same time. In 1881 he removed to 
 Monmouth, where he was at once appointed County 
 Superintendent, to fill out an unexpired term of that 
 office. 
 
 Capt. Higgins has always been a Democrat, and 
 as such has held several minor offices in the county. 
 In 1883, he was the candidate of that party for 
 Sheriff, but was defeated, almost as a matter of 
 course in a county so radical in its blind following of 
 party as to exclude the possibility of recognition of 
 the claims of even a battle-scarred veteran when he 
 chose to assert a conviction contrary to their own. 
 
 At Macomb, 111., in July, 1862, Mr. Higgins en- 
 rolled as a private soldier in the service of the 
 United States, and at the organization of Co. A, 84th 
 
 111. Vol. Inf., he was chosen Captain, a position he 
 filled until Jan. 25, 1865, when, on account of i 
 health he was forced to resign. Up to that time he 
 was with his regiment all the time, and partici- 
 pated in its numerous engagements. In March, 
 after leaving the army, he came to Warren County 
 and has since made this his home. Capt. Higgins 
 inherited nothing in the way of a fortune. What he 
 has he has earned by the sweat of his brow. 
 
 He was married in Swan Township, Dec. 4, 1856, 
 to Miss Zoa A. Simmons, and their three children 
 were named respectively, Hezekiah D., who died in 
 1871; Robert P. and Nellie C. The Captain is 
 Past Master in Good Hope Lodge in Masonry, and 
 for two years was first Commander of the G. A. R. 
 Post at Monmouth. 
 
 .ichael W. Hall, residing in Cold Brook 
 Township, a gentleman of more than 
 ordinary business ability, owning 1,500 
 acres of land in Warren County, and a suc- 
 cessful farmer and stock-raiser, was born in 
 Barren Co., Ky., April 30, 1837. The father 
 of Mr. Hall, Robert S. Hall, was also a native of 
 Barren Co., Ky., and followed the occupation of a 
 farmer during his life time. He was married in the 
 county of his nativity to Julia Harber, and six chil- 
 dren were born of their union, in Kentucky. After 
 the demise of his wife he was again married to Julia 
 Madden, a native of Ohio. Of both marriages of 
 Mr. Hall, senior, nine children were the result six 
 by the first marriage and three by the second, with 
 record as follows: Susan married A. B. Miller and 
 resides in Kansas : six children have been born to 
 them, of whom two are deceased. Mildred became 
 the wife of Alick Anthony, and the mother of five 
 children : she is now deceased, as also are two of the 
 children. Mary Jane married Edward Grover, and 
 they reside in Mercer County and have a' family of 
 five. Michael W. was fourth in order of birth. John 
 D. married Phcebe Airsmith, and they became the 
 parents of two children : father and mother are both 
 deceased. Joseph lives in Texas. Kate is married 
 and resides in Michigan. Robert S. lives in Mon- 
 
558 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 mouth. The three latter are by the second mar- 
 riage. 
 
 Michael W. Hall came with his parents to this 
 county and located in Monmouth Township. His 
 father purchased partly improved land, whose value 
 he augmented by cultivation, and at the date of his 
 death was the owner of 400 acres. His death oc- 
 curred in Monmouth Township at about the begin- 
 ning of the War for the Union, his wife, the mother 
 of Michael W., having departed this life some five 
 years previous. She was killed near the city of 
 Jeffersonville, Ind., by the train on which she was 
 riding being thrown from the track. The cause of 
 the accident was a bovine, who obstinately refused 
 to give way to the " iron horse." She was at the 
 'time on a visit to her former home in Kentucky, and 
 the accident she received was so severe that, al- 
 though she reached her native State, she lingered 
 but a short time, and then, in Louisville, Ky., de- 
 parted this life. 
 
 After the death of his mother, Mr. Hall engaged 
 in farming on his own account. He had previously 
 purchased about 50 acres of land in Monmouth 
 Township, and on this he began the occupation 
 which he has continued during his entire life. Sept. 
 8, 1859, at the residence of the bride's parents in 
 Monmouth Township, Mr. Hall was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Candis, the accomplished daughter 
 of John and Permelia (Tapscott) Miller natives of 
 Barren Co., Ky. Her parents were married in Glas- 
 gow and were of Virginia parentage and Scotch ex- 
 traction. Her father was a cabinet-maker, and for 
 some years after marriage resided at Glasgow Ky., 
 at which place Mrs. Hall was born, Dec. 16, 1843. 
 She was next to the oldest in order of birth of 
 four children, viz. : Charley, who was married to 
 Adaline Parker, now deceased ; Candis the wife 
 of Mr. Hall; and two who died in infancy. In 
 1845, when but two years of age, Candis, now Mrs. 
 Hall, was brought by her parents to this State. They 
 located in Monmouth Township, where her father 
 followed his trade up to within a short time before 
 his death, which occurred June 7, 1854. Her mother 
 was again married, and died in Cold Brook Town- 
 ship Dec. 22, 1876. 
 
 After Mr. and Mrs. H. were united in marriage, 
 they located upon a farm in Monmouth Township, 
 which Mr. Hall had previously purchased. Six 
 months later they moved on a farm in Cold Brook 
 
 Township, consisting of 124 acre's, to which Mr. H. 
 has since added tracts located in Cold Brook and 
 Monmouth Townships to the extent as heretofore 
 mentioned and most of which is under an advanced 
 state of cultivation, with the exception of 125 acres 
 which is timber. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hall are members of the Christian 
 Church located at Talbott Creek, to which denomi- 
 nation they have belonged for some 25 years. The 
 issue of their union has been seven children. The 
 living are Frank (see sketch), George C., Addie B., 
 Ella M., James B. and George M., all of whom are 
 living at home and have received good educations. 
 Edison G. is deceased. 
 
 obert S. Patton, Treasurer of Warren 
 \ County, was elected first in 1879 and re- : 
 
 elected in 1882, term to expire in Decem- 
 ber, 1886. The gentleman whose name heads 
 this notice was born in Adams Co., Ohio, 
 Jan. 1 6, 1837, and was the first child of five 
 born to John S. and Sarah (Morrison) Patton, na- 
 tives respectively of Virginia and Ohio. They were _ 
 of Irish extraction. The father was married before 
 to Miss McCague, and by that marriage four chil- 
 dren were the result George A., Mary J., 
 Nathaniel T. and Martha. Of this marriage all are 
 deceased except Nathaniel T. He married Esther 
 Stevenson, she being a native of Ohio and now de- 
 ceased. The five children of the second marriage 
 are Robert S., Carrie S., Eliza M., John H. and Sa- 
 rah; the latter died while young. Gary S. married 
 Miss Lizzie Harsha; Eliza married J. B. Woods; 
 John H. married Sarah M. Woods. Judge Robert 
 Morrison, grandfather of Mr. P., on the maternal 
 side of the house, was an officer in the war of 1812. 
 His grandfather, Nathaniel Patton, on the paternal 
 side of the house, was one of the first defenders of 
 his country. 
 
 Mr. Patton settled in Hale Township in 1860. 
 His parents came the next year and in that town- 
 ship spent the rest of their lives, the senior Mr. Pat- 
 ton dying in 1863, aged 64 years, and his widow in 
 1876, at the same age. 
 
 Robert S. Patton lived on his father's farm in Hale 
 
 
 
UMVUtth i v 
 
/ /o 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Township, which he had previously bought from the 
 heirs, until the spring of 1880, when he removed to 
 Monmouth to take charge of the office that he was 
 elected to fill. He has always been a consistent 
 Republican, but his selection for the office which he 
 so ably filled was made not so much on account of 
 his politics, as his fitness. With the exception of 
 the School Treasury of his township, which he han- 
 dled for 12 years, the present is the only official po- 
 sition he has ever filled or sought to fill. 
 
 Mr. Patton was married in his native county to 
 Miss Sarah Ann Sheppard, on the zd of February, 
 1860, and of the seven children born to him, Anna 
 S., George, John and Guy are living, and three were 
 buried in infancy. Mrs. Patton was the daughter of 
 Johnston and Mary (Henry) Sheppard. She was 
 born in Adams Co., Ohio, June, 1839. Her parents 
 came from Ohio. Her parents are of American or- 
 igin as far back as known. 
 
 Mr. Patton belongs to no secret order, but has been 
 many years a consistent member of the United Pres- 
 byterian Church. 
 
 " ohn P. Terpening, a well known resident 
 - of Kelly Township, is a settler of Warren 
 County of 1836. He is a native of Sara- 
 toga Co., N. Y., and accompanied his parents 
 to Illinois in 1835. His father, Ezekiel Ter- 
 pening, was born in the town of Clifton Park, 
 Saratoga Co., N. Y., in 1781. The great-grandfather 
 of John P. came from Holland and settled in New 
 York after i's capture by the English. From there 
 he moved with his family to Ulster County, that 
 State, where he died. One of his sons, Peter, moved 
 to Saratoga County, to what is now called Clifton 
 Park, where he passed the remaining years of his 
 life. He served as a soldier during the war of the 
 Revolution. His son, who was the father of our sub- 
 ject, was a soldier in the war of 1812. His grandfa- 
 ther, on the maternal side, assisted in defending the 
 rights of the colonies, and died from the effects of 
 the hardships that he endured while in the service. 
 His name was Peake, and he was of English ances- 
 try. 
 
 Ezekiel Terpening had learned the trade of a 
 
 blacksmith. He gave his attention to that business 
 until the proceeds of his labor enabled him to buy a 
 farm, after which he abandoned his trade for the 
 pleasures of agriculture. In 1835, accompanied by 
 his family, he set out to seek a home in the West. 
 They started on the Erie Canal, by which they 
 reached the city of Buffalo, whence they took a steam- 
 boat to Cleveland. From that city they again took 
 passage on a canal extending from that place to 
 Portsmouth, on the Ohio River, where they embarked 
 on a steamboat on the same river and reached the 
 Mississippi River, on which they journeyed to St. 
 Louis. The freezing of the river detained them there 
 a month, and at the end of that time they proceeded 
 to Quincy, where they arrived on the ist day of Jan- 
 uary, 1836. No vacant house could be found at 
 Quincy, and, in company with other emigrants, they 
 took possession of a camp three miles from the city, 
 where they remained a month. About the ist of 
 February, the father and son (the latter the subject 
 of this sketch) set out for Rock Island County to see 
 the claim J. P. had previously bought, but met a man, 
 who was then living where Moline is now located 
 and whom he knew was living near the place he had 
 purchased. Mr. T. learned from him that the claim 
 had again been sold, the man getting only $5 more 
 than Mr. T. was to give. He had agreed to pay 
 him $450 on taking possession, the ist of March. 
 They were then some 30 miles south of Monmouth, 
 but thought best to go to Hendersonville, Knox 
 County, and look around. They finally found a de- 
 sirable location, on section 33, in township 12 north, 
 of range i west (Kelly Township). Previous to 
 starting, the family had removed to a vacant house 
 in Quincy, where the remaining members were com- 
 fortable situated while the father and son were away 
 seeking a place for their future home. They re- 
 turned to Quincy and remained in that city until 
 spring, when, with a pair of horses and a wagon they 
 drove to their new home. There were a few im- 
 provements on the place, consisting of a log hous: 
 and stable and four acres of prairie broken. This 
 was the homestead during the remaining years of the 
 life of the father, and he also bought additional land, 
 until he was the owner of 480 acres. He died July 
 16, 1864. The wife and mother died Feb. 8, 1867. 
 Their family included 1 1 children. 
 
 Mr. Terpening of this sketch is the third in order 
 
562 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 of birth. He was born in the same town in which 
 his father was born, April 12, 1811. He was reared 
 on the homestead in Saratoga County and received 
 a good common-school education. At the age of 21 
 he became a clerk in a grocery, at Rexford's Flats, in 
 the county of his nativity. In May, of that year 
 (1835), he set out for Illinois. He stopped in vari- 
 ous places in the intervening States of New York 
 and Ohio, and after he reached Jackson, in the Buck- 
 eye State, he came the remainder of the distance to 
 Illinois on foot. In September of the same year he 
 returned to Saratoga County for the sake of fulfilling 
 a promise to a young lady named Mindwell Smith, 
 to whom he was joined in marriage, Sept. 24th after 
 he arrived home. She is the daughter of Richard 
 and Sally (Peck) Smith, and was also born in Clifton 
 Park Township, Saratoga County, April 2, 1813. 
 
 Mrs. Terpening was the eldest of a family of eight 
 children, namely : Abijah, Eliza, Nathan, Richard 
 P., Samuel, Solomon P. and one who died in in- 
 fancy. Eliza married Solomon Waite, and now lives 
 in St. Clair Co., Mo. Samuel now lives in Pettis 
 Co., Mo. Solomon C. resides at Waterford, N. Y. 
 He was a Colonel in the late war, in which he lost 
 one of his arms. Of the paternal side, as far back as 
 she can trace, Mrs. T. is of American ancestry, and 
 on the maternal side is of English origin. 
 
 Upon the 2d of November, 1835, the elder Ter- 
 pening and liis family, including the bride of his son, 
 set out for the journey to Illinois that has been re- 
 lated in detail in connection with what has been told 
 above concerning the fortunes of the father. The ar- 
 rival of the entire party in what is now Kelly Town- 
 ship, occurred March 9, 1836. The elder Terpen- 
 ing bought the southwest quarter of section 33 of L. 
 W. Billups. Upon this was a log cabin, 18 x 20 feet 
 in size, and Mr. Billups and his family of ten and 
 Mr. Terpening's family of twelve, twenty-two in all, 
 lived in it for three weeks. Mr. Terpening says that 
 " we were thicker than three in a bed, as the floor, 
 our only bed, was covered. " At the end of three 
 weeks, Mr. B. had completed his house in the vi- 
 cinity and moved out. (It should have been stated 
 that the elder Terpening assisted a man and his fam- 
 ily to come with himself. This man settled in Scuy- 
 ler Co., Ill) 
 
 The first year of his stay in Warren County, Mr. 
 Terpening rented a farm on section 28, and in 1837 
 he bought 80 acres of land on section 26. It was 
 
 nearly all covered with timber, but a small log cabin 
 had been erected, of which he and his wife took pos- 
 session for a short time, until a more comfortable 
 and convenient dwelling could be prepared for their 
 use. The new house was built of logs, but it was 
 the home of the household for seven years. At the 
 end of that time, Mr. Terpening bought a farm on 
 the southwest quarter of section 34, to which he re- 
 moved. They were there resident five or six years, 
 after which the proprietor bought and removed to the 
 place a frame house. He continued to manage the 
 place until he had broken and fenced about 50 acres, 
 when he again sold his farm and bought a place on 
 section 2, of the township of Cold Brook. The family 
 were the occupants of this until 1851, when Mr. 
 Terpening bought the farm on which he is at pres- 
 ent residing. It was then unbroken prairie. He 
 moved a log house to it and commenced to improve 
 his property. He has placed it in a condition which 
 will compare favorably with others in the township of 
 similar pretensions. . 
 
 Mr. Terpening's household included eight chil- 
 dren. Smith, the eldest son, resides in Galesburg, 
 111. ; J. Wesley is a resident of Marion Co., Mo. ; , 
 Sarah is the widow of William M. Arnibtrong, who ' 
 was a soldier in the war of the Rebellion and Cap- 
 tain of Company B, io2d 111. Vol. Inf., to which ref- . 
 erence has so often been made in the course of these 
 records. At the battle of Averysburg he was se- 
 verely wounded and never recovered from the con- 
 sequences of the injury. After his return he was 
 elected Sheriff of Warren County, but did not live to 
 fill his term of office. Harrison P. is a resident of 
 Marion Co., Mo.; Olive is the wife of W. B. Arm- 
 strong, and they are settled in Vernon Co., Mo. ; 
 Nathan is a citizen of the same county ; Charles is 
 the manager of the homestead ; Edwin lives in the 
 township of Cold Brook. The son, Harrison, was a 
 soldier in the Rebellion, and served in the 59th 111. 
 Vol. Inf. William, Wesley and Nathan were soldiers 
 in the same company and regiment of which their 
 brother-in-law was the chief officer. All served 
 through the war. 
 
 The record of the brothers and sisters of Mr. Ter- 
 pening is as follows : Maria T. is the wife of George 
 W. Brown, of Galesburg, the inventor of the corn 
 planter that bears his name ; Olive is Mrs. Boswell ; 
 Peter lives in Vernon Co., Mo. ; George is a resident 
 on section 28, in Kelly Township; David lives on 
 
 >.' 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 563 
 
 section 33, of the same; William H. is a citizen of 
 Pettis Co., Mo. 
 
 Mr. T. has held various township offices, such as 
 Collector, Assessor, School Director and Superintend- 
 ent of Highways. He was appointed Postmaster of 
 the office at Utah, under the administration of Zach- 
 ary Taylor, and held the office for eight years. Dur- 
 ing the late war, he was enrolling officer. He wanted 
 to enlist himself and follow the fortunes of his three 
 sons in the service of his country, but owing to his 
 age the recruiting officer would not accept him. His 
 friends very justly thought he had already shown 
 sufficient patriotism and done enough by sending to 
 the front three of his sons, two 'of his sons-in-law and 
 one brother, Samuel Terpening. Politically, he is a 
 Republican, and he was elected President of the 
 Union League. His wife is a member of the Meth- 
 odist Church. 
 
 As one of the best known of the early pioneers of 
 this part of the State, as well as a venerable and 
 highly respected citizen of the county, the portrait of 
 John P. Terpening will be regarded as one of the 
 most valued in this ALBUM. 
 
 illiam D. Miller, of Berwick Township 
 Warren County, who is the owner of a fine 
 farm, with beautiful surroundings, on sec- 
 tion 10, was born in Pefry Co., Ihd., Feb. 
 16, 1848. John Miller, father of the sub- 
 ject of this notice, was born in Kentucky, in 
 January, 1805, and came to Illinois in 1851. 
 He was a farmer by occupation and died on his home 
 farm, in this county, Oct. 8, 1878. He was married 
 to Miss Lucy Carrin 1830. She was born in Ken- 
 tucky, in 1807, and died in this county, Nov. 21, 
 1861. To Mr. and Mrs. Miller eight children were 
 born, five of whom still survive them. 
 
 William D. Miller is the present Supervisor of 
 Berwick Township, and has faithfully served the 
 township in that capacity for seven years. He has 
 also served as School Director for ten years, and as 
 Assessor for three years. By industry , enterprise 
 and frugality he has accumulated a handsome prop- 
 erty, and has beautified his farm with a neat resi- 
 dence and inviting surroundings. In addition to his 
 
 agricultural pursuits, he has devoted considerable 
 time to raising stock and dealing in graded cattle. 
 
 May 21, 1873, Mr. Miller was united in marriage 
 with Miss Georgia Cable. She was born Sept. 27, 
 1851. To them a son, Walter, was born, Dec, 19, 
 1879. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Miller, like his .father before him, 
 affiliates with the Democratic party, and is one of 
 the recognized leaders of the democracy of Berwick 
 Township. His wife united with and is a-memberof 
 the Baptist Church of Berwick. 
 
 "urr Sheldon, owning 304 acres of good 
 farm land, located on section 3 2, Floyd 
 Township, where he resides and is active- 
 engaged in its improvement and cultiva- 
 tion, was born Nov. 8, 1838, in the same 
 township, and is a son of Wilson Sheldon, 
 born in New York city, Feb. 3, 1811, and now de- 
 ceased. 
 
 The father, who was a farmer by occupation, came 
 to this State in 1837, located on the northwest quar- 
 ter of section 32, Floyd Township, and became the 
 owner of 640 acres of land, where he resided, follow- 
 ing the vocation of a farmer, until 1868, when he 
 moved to Monmouth and lived there until his death, 
 Sept. 13, 1873. He was married to Sarah Matteson 
 in 1831. She was born in Rhode Island, in 1813, 
 and when eight years old her parents removed to 
 Onetda Co., N. Y., where she continued to reside un- 
 til the fall of 1837, when she came to this State with 
 her husband, the subject of this notice. Of their 
 union nine children were born Hiram, Martha, 
 George, Seneca M., Burr, Alma, Aurilla (who died 
 on attaining her 2ist year), Mary and Jerome, the 
 latter dying in infancy. 
 
 Burr Sheldon was married to Miss A. J. Morey, 
 Oct. 13, 1869. She was born Dec. 10, 1845, in Knox 
 Co., 111., and bore her husband two children Clar- 
 ence M., born Jan. 18, 1871 ; and Carrie, Jan. 16, 
 1879. The father of ?j[rs. Sheldon, Hiram T. Morey, 
 was born in New York, about 1820; married Miss 
 Caroline I. Patrick, a native of Kentucky, January, 
 1845. She was born in 1825, and bore him five chiU 
 
5 64 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 dren Anna J-> Caroline, William F., Hiram and 
 Jane. He came to this State about 1840, and lo- 
 cated at Knoxville, Knox County, where he contin- 
 ued to reside for 20 years, during which time he 
 served as Circuit Clerk four years. He then moved 
 to Monmouth, where he is at present residing, and is 
 keeping books for his son, Hiram Morey, engaged in 
 business on Main Street. 
 
 The farm of Mr. Sheldon of this notice is under an 
 advanced slate of cultivation, and in addition to the 
 tilling of his land, he is to a considerable extent en- 
 gaged as a stock -dealer, and lias also added to these 
 interests the baling and shipping of hay. He has a 
 fine hay press and is doing a very extensive business 
 in that line. 
 
 Socially, Mr. Sheldon is a member of the A. F. & 
 A. M. Lodge, No. 619, Berwick. In religion, he and 
 his wife are members of the Baptist Church, and in 
 politics, Mr. Sheldon always casts his vote with the 
 Democratic party. He served his township as School 
 Director for a number of years. 
 
 yman H. Young. The subject of this 
 sketch is among the substantial and pro- 
 gressive farmers of Warren County. He 
 was born in Litchfield, Conn., Feb. 25, 1822, 
 and is the son of Stephen and Annis (Smith) 
 Young. The former was a native of the above 
 named county, but his father was born in Scotland. 
 He came to America and settled in Connecticut, 
 while it was yet under colonial government. There 
 he lived, and when Stephen was but five years old, 
 died. The maternal grandfather of our subject, Joel 
 Smith, was of English nativity. He came to Con- 
 necticut, where he followed the vocation of a farmer. 
 Thus it will be seen that Mr. Young is descended 
 from the best English and Scotch ancestry. 
 
 Mr. Young was reared and educated in his native 
 state, attending the excellent schools, and also re- 
 ceiving a good academic education, which he has 
 supplemented with a careful and extensive course of 
 reading, and is not only well informed on general and 
 current topics, but has a mind stored with valuable 
 and practical information. After leaving school he 
 
 engaged in teaching for the next six months. He 
 ventured West in the Spring of 1854, and settled in 
 Cold Brook To.vnship, Warren County, where he 
 purchased land on Section 7. Here he has since 
 followed farming and stock raising, in both of which 
 departments he has been more than ordinarily suc- 
 cessful. 
 
 Mr. Young was united in marriage Oct. n, 1846, 
 with Miss Emeline A., daughter of Walker and Con- 
 stant (Humaston) Cole. The ceremony was per- 
 formed in Medina Co., Ohio, where Mr. Cole and 
 family resided. They were also natives of Connect- 
 icut, but had settled in Ohio, at an early day. There 
 have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Young seven chil- 
 dren, whose names in the order of birth, are as fol- 
 lows: Stephen Nelson, who is married and living in 
 Nodaway Co.. Mo.; Clark Milton, a farmer of Cold 
 Brook Township, and a sketch of whom is given else- 
 where in this Album. Clarence is married and a 
 farmer of Kelly Township. George L. is also mar- 
 ried, and is a resident of Nance Co., Neb. Elmer 
 died at the age of four years. Levi E. is married, 
 and also a resident of Nance Co., Neb. Dr. Arthur 
 Young, now a student of Monmouth College, is the - 
 youngest of this family. Mr. Young has given all 
 his children the benefits of a thorough practical ed- 
 ucation, and they have gone forth into the world fully 
 equipped to meet the responsibilities of life. 
 
 In 1876 Mr. Young organized and put into suc- 
 cessful operation the Cold Brook Rural Mutual In- 
 surance Company, and was elected its President. 
 About two years afterwards the State Legislature 
 passed an Act permitting mutual companies to or- 
 ganize, and under that Act a re-organization was ef- 
 fected which includes the entire County of Warren. 
 It then took the name of the Monmouth Farmers' 
 Mutual County Insurance Company. Mr. Young 
 was elected its President, which position he has 
 since held. Under his fostering care and guidance 
 the Company has grown to be second to none of sim- 
 ilar character. The volume of business or amount 
 of policies carried last year aggregated $960,000. 
 The benefits accruing to the farmers of the county 
 can be easily estimated. Much credit is due Mr. 
 Young for inaugurating and carrying forward this en- 
 terprise, which has been of great advantage as secu- 
 rity from loss in case of fire, in the farming districts. 
 Mr. C. M. Young, son of the President, is the Secre- 
 tary of the Company. Father and son perform the 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 565 
 
 duties of their respective offices for a mere nominal 
 consideration, having the general good of the Com- 
 pany at heart. Mr. Young has held the office of 
 School Trustee and Road Commissioner. In politics 
 he was formerly a Whig, but since the organization of 
 the Republican party has been a staunch supporter 
 of it. 
 
 & 
 
 t rville Ray, engaged in stock-raising and ag- 
 ricultural pursuits, on section 8, Berwick 
 Township, where he resides and owns 200 
 acres of land, was born in Kentucky, Feb. 18, 
 1819, and is a son of Hickerson Ray, a native of 
 Virginia, who emigrated to this State in 1845, 
 locating in Roseville Township, this county, where 
 he died about 1855. 
 
 The father was married to Miss Sarah Kelly about 
 1815. She was born in Virginia, about 1800, and 
 died in 1881, in this county. Of their union the 
 > following children were born : Wyatt, Orville, William, 
 ' Thomas and Elizabeth, twins, Hickerson, John C., 
 
 Jane, Emily, Harriet and Paradine. 
 I Mr. Ray came to Warren county as early as 1840, 
 for a time worked by the month. By using economy 
 and diligence, for which he is noted, he had put him- 
 self in such shape that by 1845 he was able to pur- 
 chase some land, and began farming for himself. At 
 that time he located in Roseville Township. He 
 moved from there to Floyd Township, where he 
 lived until 1870. 
 
 Orville Ray was united in marriage with Miss 
 Jane Smith, Feb. i, 1845. She was born in March, 
 1827, in Kentucky, and has become the mother of 
 seven children, six of whom are living, namely, 
 Archie M., Ira T., Harvey L., Eliza, Victoria and 
 Silas O. John H. died in infancy. Archie married 
 Elizabeth Welch, who died leaving two children, 
 Charles and Mary. Ira T. married Miss Millee 
 Ayers, and they have one child. They live in Gage 
 County, Neb. Harvey selected for a wife Milinda 
 Jane Carr : the names of their two children are Mary 
 E. and Mable. Eliza became the wife of John W. 
 Smith, of Ringgold County, Iowa, and is the mother 
 of four children Nora, Henry, Arthur and Lena. 
 Victoria is the wife of Joshua Roswell. They have 
 
 four children living, as follows : Arnold N., Charles, 
 deceased, Mina Ester and Harvey. Silas O. lives 
 with his parents. 
 
 Mr. Ray is the owner of 260 acres of land where 
 he resides, and in addition to its cultivation, is de- 
 voting a considerable part of his time to raising and 
 dealing in fine horses. He has some fine roadsters 
 and heavy draught horses, 23 head in all, and in 
 this branch of his vocation he is meeting with marked 
 success. In religion, Mr. and Mrs. Ray are mem- 
 bers of the Baptist Church, and in politics Mr. R. 
 votes with the Democratic party. 
 
 The father of Mrs. Ray, wife of the subject of this 
 notice, John Smith, was born in Kentucky in 1800, 
 and died in this State in 1839. He was married in 
 1822, to a Miss Usurla Hendricks, who was born in 
 Virginia, in 1800. She died in April, 1873, in this 
 State, after having borne her husband eight children, 
 namely : Elizabeth, David, Nancy, James A. J., 
 John T., William H., Brison B. and Keziah Jane. , 
 The parents came to this State during the Black 
 Hawk War, in 1832. They were consistent mem- 
 bers of the Baptist Church, and in politics her father 
 was a strong supporter of the principles advocated by 
 the Democratic party. 
 
 -iH 
 
 ohn A. McKnight, of the township of 
 Spring Grove, is a descendant from a fam- 
 ily that became associated with the history 
 of this country previous to the War of the 
 Revolution. His first ancestor on the Amer- 
 ican Continent was James McKnight, who 
 was born in the north of Ireland of Scotch progeni- 
 tors, and therefore belonged to the class of people 
 distinctively known as the Scotch Irish. Their na- 
 tionality as Scotch is practically intact, as in few 
 instances did they intermarry with the native people 
 of Ireland. They were all Protestants of decided 
 type. The first of the family in this country, who 
 has been referred to, settled in Adams Co., Pa., 
 where he continued to reside until 1808. He then 
 went to Crawford County in the same State, and 
 there, by the purchase of a large acreage, became an 
 extensive landholder. The land was covered with 
 A *~ ' - 
 
566 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 timber and he passed his life in its improvement. 
 Captain James McKnight, his son, became noted for 
 his predilection for military affairs, and at the age of 
 1 8 he was made Captain of a militia Company, which 
 he commanded in the War of 1812. His father gave 
 him a tract of land, on which he settled at the close 
 of the war and which he cleared from its original 
 condition. He remained thereon resident until 
 1864, when he came to Illinois. He located in-War- 
 ren County and bought the southwest quarter of sec- 
 tion 31 in Spring Grove Township and lived there 
 until the date of his death. His wife, previous to 
 her marriage to him, was Miss Lucinda Adams. She 
 was born in Virginia, April 17, 1799. They had 
 nine children : Mr. McKnight of this sketch is the 
 oldest; Mary Ann is deceased; James C. lives in 
 La Bette Co., Kan.; William lives in Mercer Co., 
 111. ; Margaret is deceased ; Elizabeth is the wife of 
 Allen Dunn-, a farmer of Spring Grove Township; 
 Thomas resides in the township of Monmouth; 
 David S. lives in Alexis; Lucinda, the youngest, 
 who was the wife of Jeff Calvin, of La Bette Co., 
 Kan., is deceased. 
 
 John A. McKnight was born in Mead Township, 
 Crawford Co., Pa., July 10, 1823. His father, of 
 whom an account is incorporated in this sketch, was 
 born in Adams Co., Pa., April i, 1786. Mr. Mc- 
 Knight was brought up in the county where he was 
 born and was reared in the calling in which all his 
 ancestors had been engaged. He received such ed- 
 ucation as could be obtained in the district schools. 
 On arriving at the age of independent manhood, he 
 fitted himself for the business of a carpenter, which 
 he followed eight years. 
 
 Mr. McKnight was married to Elmina C. Dunn, 
 Sept. 28, 1854. She was born in Erie Co., Pa., 
 March 13, 1835. On making ready to locate in life, 
 Mr. McKnight bought a farm in Hayfield Township 
 in his native County. The place had no buildings 
 on it and only 20 acres had been cleared. He 
 erected the necessary buildings for the family and 
 his stock and crops and proceeded with the work of 
 clearing the land. He cut the timber on 15 acres 
 while he continued to occupy the farm, but disposed 
 of it in 1857 and came to Illinois. He settled in 
 Warren County on 60 acres of land situated on the 
 southeast quarter of section 31. The previous owner 
 had erected a log cabin and had placed 30 acr,es un- 
 der the plow. The family passed the winter in the 
 
 log building and in the spring Mr. McKnight built a 
 small frame house. He has since made additional 
 purchases of land and he is now the owner of the 
 whole quarter-section on which he at first settled. 
 The buildings and all the accessories of the place 
 are of excellent character. He also bought land in 
 Monmouth Township. 
 
 The first wife of Mr. McKnight died in Septem- 
 ber, 1866. Feb. 25, 1868, he was again married, to 
 Sarah J. Stevenson. She was born in Adams Co., 
 Ohio, Jan. 28, 1838, and is the daughter of James 
 and Margaret (Cameron) Stevenson. Her father 
 was born in County Donegal, Ireland, and her 
 mother was a native of Pennsylvania. 
 
 Of the first marriage of Mr. McKnight there were 
 born five children James E., Emma E., John O., 
 Ida L. and Edward L. Of the second marriage, 
 Alexander C. and Albert S. are the issue. 
 
 Mr. and Mr . McKnight are members of the 
 United Presbyterian Church. He is a Republican 
 in political faith and connections. 
 
 s 
 
 amuel Douglas is a resident of Monmouth. 
 He is a veteran of two wars, and is an 
 Irishman by birth and a Scotchman by 
 descent. He was born in County Antrim, 
 Ireland, in February, 1819. He was brought 
 up on the Green Isle, and educated in the 
 common schools. At the age of 19 he came to the 
 United States, accompanied by his mother and 
 brother. They landed at the port of New York af- 
 ter an ocean voyage of six weeks' duration. After a 
 residence of a few months in the city of New York 
 he went to St. Louis, Mo., and was occupied in va- 
 rious pursuits in that city until 1839, when he rented 
 land on the bluffs of the river near the city, and 
 turned his attention to farming. He was occupied 
 in that vocation until 1846, when he came to Mon- 
 mouth. He was one of the early settlers there, and 
 he bought a house and lot and rented land on the 
 borders of the village, as it then was. The Mexican 
 war attracted him with an irresistible influence, and 
 he determined to enter the military service of his 
 adopted country. He enrolled Aug. 6, 1846, under 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 567 
 
 Captain Wayne B. Stupps, and went to the "halls of 
 the Montezumas." The company was independent, 
 and was mounted and did effective service as volun- 
 teers. 
 
 On March n, 1848, Mr. Douglas was discharged 
 and returned to Monmouth. Soon after he bought 
 a farm situated two miles east of the city. He was 
 its owner and occupant three years. He then sold 
 the place and removed to town. He was a resident 
 of Monmouth two years, and managed a tract of 
 land which he had purchased in the same township. 
 He was occupied in its improvement when the civil 
 war broke out, and he was one of the first to enlist 
 in defense of the Union. He enrolled July 5, 1861, 
 in Co. B, First 111. Cav,, and on the organization of 
 the command was made First Lieutenant. The reg- 
 iment was mustered into service July 15, 1861. Mr. 
 Douglas received a severe wound at the battle of 
 Lexington, Mo., and was taken prisoner in the same 
 action by the rebel cavalry under General Price. He 
 was taken to St. Louis and shortly after was set at 
 liberty on parole. He resigned on account of disa- 
 bility June 23, 1862, and returned to Monmouth. 
 For some years after he was in active business life, 
 but has been livine for some years in retirement at 
 his pleasant residence in the suburbs. 
 
 Mary A. Merrifield became the wife of Mr. Doug- 
 las. She was born in Logan Co., Ky , in February, 
 1824. She is the daughter of John and Mary A. 
 (Burroughs) Merrifield. A son, Hercules Douglas, 
 resident at Monmouth, is the only child of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Douglas. 
 
 form G. Burchfield. Among the many ; 
 notable events of the late war, there were; 
 few if any that at the time of their occur-' 
 rence created any greater sensation than did 
 the killing of Gen. John H. Morgan, the fa- 
 mous guerrilla chief of Kentucky. Many and 
 different versions of the affair have from time to time 
 been given, but generally by persons wholly unac- 
 quainted with the facts other than through hearsay 
 testimony. 
 The subject of this sketch was one of the princi- 
 
 pal actors in that tragedy, being present from first 
 to last, and a participant in the raid that had for its 
 design the routing of Morgan from the vicinity of 
 Greenville, Tenn. The very bitter and unrelenting 
 hatred engendered in the hearts of the whole Union 
 people against the leaders of the Rebellion and par- 
 ticularly against Morgan, was calculated later on to 
 fit the mind of the unbiased reader for the accept- 
 ance as true, of the claim of Basil Duke and others, 
 that their chief had been ruthlessly murdered after 
 his surrender. 
 
 Mr. Burchfield, who was a member of Co. G, 13111 
 Tenn. Cav. (Federal), after detailing much, and very 
 minutely, the movements of his immediate command 
 upon the morning of August 4, 1864, makes the fol- 
 lowing statement in explanation of the killing of the 
 distinguished partisan at Greenville, Tenn., upon 
 that occasion : 
 
 "It was just growing light ; we had dashed through 
 the town, completely surprising and putting to rout 
 1,500 or 2,000 rebels there encamped, and turning ^ 
 back the street through which we had charged, I 
 rode up to the hotel of Mrs. Col. David Fry, and ad- 
 dressing that lady, who was my cousin, by the way, 
 was informed by her. that Gen. Morgan was just j 
 back of the hotel at the house of Mrs. Williams. I 
 reported the fact at once to Capt. Wilcox, who was in J 
 command of our men, and he ordered us to surround 
 the block. Andrew Campbell (now of Hawville, 
 Ind.) was on the west side of the block; Lieut. Wil- 
 cox and myself entered the grounds and passed 
 north towards the premises of Mrs. Williams. In 
 passing an outhouse on the southeast corner of Mrs. 
 Williams' lot, two officers, Rodgers and Clay, came 
 to the door and surrendered. At that moment a 
 man in shirt sleeves and bareheaded, ran from behind 
 the outhouse towards the residence. We followed 
 through the grape arbor and got between him and 
 the house and ordered him to surrender. He fired 
 at us and passed behind a bunch of vines. I saw 
 Campbell ride out from behind a stable and fire, 
 when we shouted to him not to shoot, as the man 
 was on a line between Campbell and us. The .man 
 walked a few paces toward Campbell, who dis- 
 mounted, laid his gun on the fence and was taking 
 deliberate aim, when the man faced about with pis- 
 tol raised, took a step or two towards us, and Camp- 
 bell fired. The ball entered just below the left 
 shoulder and passed out below the left nipple, and 
 
S 68 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Gen. Morgan, with the exclamation 'Oh, God!' fell 
 and was dead." The maltreatment of the dead body 
 is all contradicted by Mr. Burchfield. 
 
 John G. Burchfield was born at Clark Springs, 
 Tenn., May 5, 1846, and was the youngest of five 
 sons of John and Elizabeth (Gourley) Burchfield, 
 both now deceased. He was brought up to farming 
 and received in his early life only four months' 
 schooling, but a relative, James I. Tipton, who reared 
 him, taught him and placed him at Henry and 
 Emery College, Abingdon, Va. The war closed the 
 college, and young Burchfield returned to Tennes- 
 see to find that his guardian had died ; and he was 
 apprenticed to a blacksmith, John J. Edens, at 
 Elizabethtown, Tenn. 
 
 In November, 1861, he went out with Fry's bridge 
 burners, and helped burn the railroad bridges at 
 Union, across the Holistein River, Nov. 9, 1861, and 
 staid in the mountains until February, 1862. In 
 August, 1863, he entered the army and served until 
 Sept. 5, 1865. 
 
 In January, 1866, he came to Illinois, worked at 
 various places, landed at Monmouth in 1879, and 
 has since been in the employ of the Weir Plow 
 Company, He is a skillful mechanic and highly re- 
 spected by all who know him. He is Past Master 
 of Monmouth Lodge, A. F. & A. M.; Principal So- 
 journer in the Chapter, and illustrious Grand Master 
 of the Council. He is also Past Master of A. O. U. 
 W., and Officer of the Day in the G. A. R. In 1880 
 he was the candidate of the Greenback party for 
 Circuit Clerk; he is now a Republican. 
 
 He was married in Springfield, 111., Dec. 10, 1868, 
 to Miss Margaret Bumgardner, and they are the 
 parents of six children William E., Martha E., 
 George S., Charles M., Orion and Nellie V. The 
 three last named are deceased. 
 
 
 
 C. Miles represents one of the most 
 important industries of Warren County. He 
 is a brick and tile manufacturer and is lo- 
 cated on section i, in the township of Cold 
 Brook. He is also interested in the manufac- 
 ture of lumber and is the owner of a saw-mill. 
 He was born in Kelly Township, July 6, 1832, and 
 is the son of John and Sarah (Froman) Miles. He is 
 
 a member of one of the earliest of the pioneer fami- 
 lies of the county in which he has passed most of his 
 life. After he had spent about the allotted time at 
 school and had worked on the farm until about 17 
 years old, he commenced to learn the trade of a 
 carpenter. He operated for a short period as a jour- 
 neyman, and afterward commenced to act in the ca- 
 pacity of an independent builder and contractor and 
 has since managed his business as a craftsman in 
 those departments, to which he has also added 
 bridge building. 
 
 In 1858 Mr. Miles bought the Ferris steam-mill in 
 Henderson, Knox County, and was engaged in its 
 managemeni until 1862. The civil war interfered 
 with his business and he took up arms in the de- 
 fense of the union. In August of the second year of 
 the war he enlisted in Co. B, io2d 111. Vol. Inf., and 
 after a service of six months he was discharged for 
 disability. He returned to his home, resumed his 
 former business and continued to conduct the affairs 
 of the mill for four years, when it was burned. He im- 
 mediately rebuilt the structure and continued to con- ] 
 duct it for a period of two years. Then the boiler 
 exploded and blew the mill to pieces, killing two.; 
 men. The pecuniary loss to Mr. Miles was $3,000. 
 He then turned his attention exclusively to the busi- 
 iness of a contractor and builder, in which he was 
 occupied two years, after which he bought a quarter 
 interest in the steam-mill in Kelly Township, and in 
 which he is at present interested in connection with 
 other business. For the first six years he had a 
 partner, but at the end of that time he became by 
 purchase the sole owner and has since operated 
 singly. He added the tile and brick business in 
 1882, and is prospering in the several industries in 
 which he is interested. The clay beds are situated 
 about two miles from the factory. 
 
 Miss Harriet T. Rogers became the wife of Mr. 
 Miles in September, 1854. After their marriage they 
 located in Galesburg, and after a residence there of 
 two years went to Brown Co., Kas., and pre-empted 
 a claim of land, on which they resided six months. 
 
 At the expiration of that time they returned to 
 Henderson, which was their place of abode until 
 1882, when they removed to section i, in Cold Brook 
 Township. The farm of Mr. Miles contains 120 
 acres and is in thorough, good condition for prosper- 
 ous farming. He is also proprietor of 160 acres of 
 land in Kelly Township, situated on section 24, and 
 
 ' ' 
 
tit 
 IN 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 57' 
 
 has a tract which includes 20 acres on section 25, of 
 the same township. The farms are under the man- 
 agement of his sons. The household comprises 
 seven children John H., Eddie H., Frank G., Geo. 
 C., Willie, Theodore and Helen. Mrs. Miles is a 
 native of New York. Mr. Miles is a Republican. 
 
 ! ohn Calder. One of the most substantial 
 farmers and highly esteemed citizens of 
 Kelly Township, is John Calder. He is a 
 native of Somersetshire, England, and was 
 born Jan. 12, 1819. He is the son of William 
 and Elizabeth Calder, who were engaged as 
 farmers in their native land. John remained at 
 home until he attained his I4th year, when he was 
 apprenticed to the trade of a butcher. He served 
 his time faithfully and then went to London to fol- 
 low the calling he had thus chosen. He remained 
 in that city during the winter of 1839 and 1840, and 
 in the spring shipped for South Australia. From 
 there he went to Van Diemansland, where he re- 
 mained engaged in different avocations several 
 months. He then went to China, where he stayed 
 for 1 8 months, going thence to Bombay City, India. 
 He remained a citizen there for six months, when he 
 returned to England. After a six-months sojourn at 
 home, he became restless, and the desire for a change 
 was too great for him to resist. He therefore ship- 
 ped for Aden in Arabia, and from there up the Per- 
 sian Gulf, then back to India, where he remained 
 six months and then returned to England. There 
 he was content to remain during the winter, but on 
 the following spring he embarked for South America 
 and stopped at Monte Video, Buenos Ayres and 
 other places along the River La Platte and in the 
 Argentine and Uraguay Republics a little over two 
 years. From thence he went to the Brazils, stop- 
 ping at Rio ile Janeiro six or seven months, and 
 returned to England in March, 1848. 
 
 During the last year named, 1848, the expedition 
 was being fitted up to go in search of Sir John Frank- 
 lin, under the command of Sir James Ross and Cap- 
 tain Bird. Mr. Calder shipped in H. M. S. Investi- 
 gator, under the command of Captain Bird. The 
 fleet set sail in the spring of 1848, and passed 
 through David's Straits, Baffin's Bay, Lancaster 
 
 Sound into Barrow's Strait, at Prince Regent's Inlet, 
 and wintered at Leopold Bay, North Somerset, but 
 discovered no traces of the fated explorer, and, una- 
 ble to push further North, returned to England, in 
 November, 1849. 
 
 The country had now become thoroughly alarmed 
 for the fate of the great explorer and his party and 
 immediately set about organizing an expedition that 
 would make a thorough search for Sir John and his 
 crew. The Government fitted out the Enterprise, 
 commanded by Capt. Collison, and the Investiga- 
 tor, under Commander McClure. They set sail in 
 January, 1850, and parted company after passing 
 through the Straits of Magellan, never seeing the 
 Enterprise afterward. The Investigator, the vessel 
 upon which Mr. Calder shipped, as Captain of the 
 forecastle, passed the winters of 1850 and 1851 at 
 Prince Royal Island, in the Arctic Ocean. In the 
 spring of 1851 Commander McClure turned his ves- 
 sel southward around the southern extremity of Bar- 
 ring's Island, and commenced to force a passage to' 
 the northward, between the western shore of that 
 land and the enormous fields of ice which pressed 
 upon it. The cliffs rose up like walls on one side,< 
 while on the other the stupendous palaeoerzostic sea] 
 arose from the water to a level with the yards of the 
 Investigator. After many hair-breadth escapes, Mc- 
 Clure took refuge in a bay on the northern shore of 
 Banksland, which he named the Bay of God's Mercy. 
 Here the Investigator remained, never to move 
 again. 
 
 In the summer of 1852 Commander McClure, with 
 a part of his crew, among whom was Mr. Calder, 
 made a journey across the ice to the Melville Island 
 and there deposited some papers which were after- 
 ward found by the commanders of the "Resolute" 
 and " Intrepid," giving them a clew to McClure 's 
 company. The supply of food, however, ran short 
 the third winter, and all hands were compelled to go 
 on extremely short rations. The cold was intense, 
 often ranging from 60 to 66 degrees below zero. Wa- 
 ter was scarce, in fact their only supply was ob- 
 tained by melting snow, and during the extreme 
 cold weather the snow fall was very light. Water 
 and food were husbanded with the greatest care, and 
 every precaution taken to withstand the terrible suf- 
 fering and starvation as long as possible. In the 
 Spring of 1853 McClure was preparing to abandon 
 
57* 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 the vessel and with the crew attempt to reach the 
 American coast, the same as Sir John Franklin did. 
 In the meantime, however, the government of Eng- 
 land was fitting out the Resolute and Intrepid to 
 rescue McClure and his men. The latter vessel, for- 
 tunately, found McClure and his crew just as all ar- 
 rangements had been perfected, and they were ready 
 to make the start for the trip across the ice to the 
 coast of America. 
 
 After suitable arrangements could be made they 
 finally deserted the "Investigator," June 4, J853, 
 traveling across the ice to the east side of Melville 
 Island, where the "Resolute" and "Intrepid" were 
 stationed. During their short sojourn on this Island 
 they killed several musk o-x. From there, on board 
 the "Resolute," they sailed out into Melville Sound, 
 making a journey of about sixty (60) miles, when 
 they were bound in by ice and obliged to remain 
 there during that winter. On April 14, 1854, they 
 abandoned the "Resolute" and "Intrepid," making 
 
 p their way down to "Beechey Island," where they found 
 the "North Star" awaiting them. Lying there until 
 September, they started for England. They finally 
 
 > reached England, having been gone four years, nine 
 months and fifteen days, and thus closed one of the 
 most noted Arctic expeditions known in all the his- 
 tory of explorations to that far-off region. Mr. 
 Calder had spent five winters in the Polar seas. The 
 many incidents, narrow escapes, the intense suffer- 
 ing and heroic conduct of officers and crew if told 
 would fill a large volume. A grateful government 
 recognized their eminent and heroic services, and 
 presented the crew with medals appropriately de- 
 signed, and in addition Parliament voted them 
 ^10,000. Mr. Calder was presented individually 
 with a medal for "meritorious conduct," in addition 
 to that received as one of the crew. With a just 
 pride he regards them as his most valuable treasures. 
 There is not a man in Warren County, and but few 
 to be found anywhere in America who have traveled 
 so extensively, visited so many foreign ports, or 
 passed so many months in the distant Polar sea. 
 
 In 1855, Mr. Calder came to America and settled 
 at Chicago, where he was engaged in butchering, 
 feeding cattle and speculating, until 1863, when on 
 account of failing health he was compelled to leave 
 the city. He came to Warren County and purchased 
 some land on section 8, Kelly Township, where he 
 
 embarked in farming and stock raising. Here he 
 has since continued to reside, and in the quiet and 
 peaceful calling he has chosen, so radically different 
 from his former experiences, he has been quite suc- 
 cessful. He has an elegant home, a view of which 
 we present in connection with this sketch, and seem- 
 ingly enjoys life fully as well as when his vessel was 
 plowing the chilly waters of the North, or sailing in 
 distant seas. 
 
 On the 20th of February, 1855, before leaving 
 England for America, Mr. Calder was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Fanny, daughter of William and 
 Esther (Tilly) Cattle. She was born in Somerset- 
 shire, England, June 22, 1829. There has been born 
 to them seven children, four of whom are yet living, 
 the others dying in infancy. Those living are in the 
 order of their birth : John, born Oct. 9, 1858 ; Ka- 
 tie, May 6, 1864; Elizabeth E., July 4, 1866; and 
 Frederick, Jan. 28, 1870. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Calder were reared in the Epis- 
 copal Church, and politically Mr. C. is a Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 t avid C. Brent, general farmer and stock- 
 raiser, residing on section 18, Ellison 
 Township, was born in Lancaster Co., Va. 
 Oct. 12, 1821, and is a son of Kenner Brent 
 (see sketch of Paul Brent). Our subject, David 
 C., is the eldest of the living children, and was 
 14 years old when he came to Illinois. He lived on 
 the farm with his father until his marriage, in the 
 meantime acquiring a fair English education His 
 marriage was celebrated on the yth of March, 1850, 
 in Ellison Township, the lady chosen to become his 
 wife being Miss Jane, daughter of William Brown, 
 from Lancaster Co., Va., who was by occupation a 
 farmer and carpenter, his demise occurring in July, 
 1883, in this township. Mrs. Brent was the eldest 
 child of her father's family of seven children, and 
 was born Jan. i. 1830. She was only a small child 
 when her parents came to this township, where she 
 remained with them until her marriage. 
 
 The home circle of Mr. and Mrs. Brent has been 
 blessed by the birth of 12 children, three of whom 
 are deceased. The living are six sons and three 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 573 
 
 daughters, as follows : Elizabeth C.. born April 25, 
 1854; Augusta, Feb. 22, 1856; William K., Dec. 14, 
 1857 ; Melvin D., Jan. 8, 1860; Thomas, Feb. 14, 
 1862; Manic, June 17, 1864; Edmund, July 26, 
 1868; Frank, Oct. 15, 1870; Joseph A., Nov. 27, 
 1872. 
 
 After marriage, Mr. Brent settled on the farm 
 where he now lives and is the possessor of 304 acres 
 of excellent land, nearly all of which is improved. 
 
 Mrs. B. is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. Mr. Brent has held the office of Road 
 Commissioner, and, politically, is identified with the 
 Republican party, being a staunch advocate of its 
 principles. 
 
 ealy A. Chapin, banker and merchant at 
 Kirkwood, is not only one of the best 
 known men in the county, but is classed 
 among the early pioneers of this part of the 
 State. His parents, Ebenezer and Catherine 
 (Daggett) Chapin, were natives of New York 
 and Vermont respectively. They came west to 
 Indiana in 1832, and were living in Crawford County, 
 that State, when Nealy A. was born, Jan. 28, 1828. 
 His parents were among the early settlers of Indi- 
 ana and after a few years' residence there pushed on 
 westward and found a desirable location in Knox 
 Co., 111., where they arrived in 1836. At that early 
 day there were but few settlers in that section and 
 but little land ever turned by the plow. They re- 
 mained there three years, when they moved into 
 Oquawka village (then in Warren County, but after- 
 wards in Henderson County), where the father died, 
 in 1877. He was formerly a merchant, was an en- 
 terprising, influential and valuable pioneer, and a 
 man highly respected by the community in which he 
 lived. 
 
 Nealy A. received a liberal education. He as- 
 sisted his father in his store and finally learned the 
 trade of harness-maker, which occupation he fol- 
 lowed until the spring of 1840. After leaving home, 
 which he did in the year of 1840, he was employed 
 as a clerk for three years. He then embarked in the 
 lumber and mercantile business as a member of the 
 
 firm of Knowles, Ray & Chapin, at Oquawka. Here 
 they remained until 1858, when they removed their 
 business to Kirkwood, where the old firm conducted 
 the business for one year. The firm was then re- 
 organized under the name of Chapin, Creswell & 
 Houlton, who were the leading merchants of the 
 place until 1865, when the company was again re- 
 organized and their business enlarged. The firm 
 was then known as Chapin, Houlton & Davis, mer- 
 chants and bankers. No other change was made 
 until 1882, since which time the firm name has been 
 Chapin, Houlton & Co. 
 
 Mr. Chapin has been an active, enterprising busi- 
 ness man, and has done a great deal for Kirkwood. 
 He had a great faith in the future prosperity of 
 the village, and while the wild prairie grass was 
 growing on the site of the village plat, he erected a 
 fine residence there. The company put up a fine 
 brick business block, 56x64 feet, in 1868. Mr. 
 Chapin has also large landed interests in Henderson 
 County, but his time is entirely given to his banking 
 and mercantile business, and he is justly recognized 
 as one of the leading business men of Warren 
 County. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Chapin and Miss Cordelia 
 Perry occurred Jan. 28, 1854. Mrs. C. is a daugh- 
 ter of Jonathan Perry, a prominent citizen of Warren 
 County. They have a family of seven children (one 
 deceased) namely : Willis A., born Oct. 31, 1852, 
 died Sept. 4, 1868; Eben H , born Nov. 21, 1854; 
 Florence, Dec. 9, 1856; Katie B., Sept. 29, 1859; 
 Fred L., June 16, 1863; Jennie M., Dec. u, 1865; 
 Laura A., April 9, 1869; William R., March 24, 
 1875. Eben married Miss Kate Malhews, of Merid- 
 ian, Conn., Oct. 18, 1882, and is at present the 
 Pastor of the First Universalist Church at Lincoln, 
 Neb. ; they have one child named Charles. Flor- 
 ence married George C. Ellis, an attorney at Med- 
 icine Lodge, Kan. Katie B. married James F. 
 Morgan, superintendent of telegraphy of the Chicago, 
 Burlington & Quincy Railroad, June 14, 1879, and 
 they are now living in Chicago; two children have 
 been born to them Bessie and Olive. Florence 
 married George C. Ellis, an attorney, now of Medi- 
 cine Lodge, Kan., Feb. i, 1882 ; one child has been 
 born to them, named Nealy, after his grandfather, 
 the subject of this sketch. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Chapin is a Republican, and, with 
 his wife attends the Universalist Church. 
 
574 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 S. Hayden, gunsmith and dealer in 
 sporting goods, at Monmouth, was born in 
 Belmont Co., Ohio, Aug. 13, 1830. His 
 father, John Hayden, was a farmer and a na- 
 tive of Maryland, and was the only son of John 
 Hayden, Sr., who came from Dublin, Ireland, 
 where he had been bound out as a! coverlet weaver 
 at the age of 12 years, and who, after serving an ap- 
 prenticeship of about two years, became dissatisfied, 
 and stole on board a vessel setting sail to the United 
 States, and secured passage to this country. In Bal- 
 timore, Md , he accepted a position as a coverlet 
 weaver, where he remained until his enlistment in 
 the Revolutionary War, and there served for seven 
 years. He was wounded with a spent ball, this being 
 , the only injury received during his seven years' en- 
 listment. At the expiration of his term of service he 
 again engaged with his former employer, at Balti- 
 more, Md., where he served out his apprenticeship. 
 He died in the latter State, at an advanced age. 
 
 John Hayden, Jr., the father of our subject, was 
 an only child, and determined at the age of 14 years 
 to make his own way in the world. In the year 
 1817 he came to Ohio, having been previously mar- 
 ried to Nancy Ellis, in Maryland, in 1814, and of 
 their union have been born n children, of whom our 
 subject, David S., was the youngest but two. His 
 parents lived in Monroe Co., Ohio, until their deaths, 
 the father at the advanced age of 95 years and the 
 mother at 75. 
 
 David S., whose name heads this personal narra- 
 tive, resided with his parents until he attained his 
 2ist year, then setting out to learn his present trade. 
 He served his apprenticeship under his older broth- 
 er, Joseph, who was residing in Oxford, Ohio,, from 
 1851 to 1858. At the latter date he left Oxford for 
 Monmouth, arriving here March 12, 1858, and com- 
 menced business on his own account. He was the 
 only man of his calling in the county at that time, 
 and has been the pioneer of his trade and followed 
 it from the time he came here, being at present the 
 only gunsmith in the city. He is the proprietor of 
 25 acres of land and two houses near the city limits, 
 the land being well improved and valuable. 
 
 Mr. Hayden was married in Henderson County, 
 this State, at the residence of the bride's parents, the 
 event being celebrated on ihe igth of February, 1860, 
 to Miss Martha A. Michaels, daughter ot Frederick 
 Michaels, farmer from Tennessee,' and it was in that 
 State that the daughter was born, March 20, 1840. 
 She came to Illinois with her father, her mother hav- 
 ing died when she was nine years of age. They af- 
 terwards resided in Henderson County, where the 
 father still lives, at the advanced age of 89 years. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hayden are the parents of seven chil- 
 dren Frederick, married; Thomas F., and Ira B., 
 deceased; Fannie M., Lotta A., Ralph D., Ruth G. 
 and Ran. W., all of whom, except the eldest, reside 
 at home. Mrs. Hayden is a member of the Chris- 
 tian Church. Mr. H. is a member of the Masonic 
 Order and has been a member of the City Council. 
 Politically, he is a Republican. 
 
 ames W. Morgan, a successful dealer in 
 real estate, residing in a comfortable and 
 beautiful home near the city limits of Mon- 
 mouth, is the second son and third child of Jas. 
 C. and Penelope (Green) Morgan, and was born 
 Dec. 17, 1828, in Erie Co., New York. The 
 father of James was the fourth child and third son of 
 Benui Morgan, who married Mary Clark, and by her 
 had six children. He was a member of a cavalry 
 company in the Revolutionary War, and died in 
 Connecticut, aged 69 years. He was the fourth son 
 and child of James Morgan, who became the father 
 of seven children by Grace Smith, and who died at 
 Griswold, Conn., Oct. 15, 1801, aged 7 2 years. James 
 Morgan, the grandfather of James W. Morgan, sub- 
 ject of this notice, was the elder son in order of birth 
 of a family of n children, his father being Samuel 
 Morgan, who was born Dec. 16, 1705, and died while 
 in office at Preston, Conn.. Dec. 29, 1769, aged 65 
 years. 
 
 Samuel was married to Elizabeth Forsyth, and was 
 the oldest son and child of James Morgan, who was 
 born about 1680, and died at Preston, Conn., Nov. 7, 
 1721, and who became the father of five children. 
 He, James, was the seventh and youngest child of 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 575 
 
 his father, Capt. John Morgan, and of the first mar- 
 riage of his father, seven children having been born 
 by his first, and eight children by his second mar- 
 riage. He, Capt. John Morgan, was the second son 
 and third child of James Morgan, and was a prom- 
 inent, public man, being Indian Commissioner and 
 Deputy of the General Court in 1690, and was born 
 March 30, 1645, and died in 1712, aged 67 years, 
 his father, James Morgan, having been born in Wales 
 in 1670. James, the latter, was quite a young man 
 when he came to the United States, and married 
 Margery Hill, of Roxbury, Mass., and died in Au- 
 gust, 1685. aged 78 years. His family consisted of 
 seven children, and he was a pioirinent public man 
 of his day, and is the progenitor of one of the best 
 known and most successful families of the States. 
 He was the son of a prominent family in Wales.who 
 had figured conspicuously in that country in both 
 general and public life. We find among the family 
 in this country, merchants, farmers, speculators, of- 
 
 I facials, one of the most prominent being Edwin D. 
 Morgan, ex-Governor of the State of New York. He 
 was first elected Governor of the State in 1860, and 
 s* re-elected in 1861, his administration being a suc- 
 | cessful and popular one. He afterward received the 
 appointment from President Lincoln as Major Gen- 
 l eral of Volunteers. He was also connected with the 
 Western Union Telegraph Company, many Railroad 
 corporations, and was proprietor with Mr. Jones, of 
 the New York Times. 
 
 James C. Morgan, father of James W., of this 
 notice, was first married to Penelope Green, Jan. i, 
 1823. She was the daughter of Dyer Green, of 
 Columbia, Herkimer Co., N. Y. The wife and moth- 
 er died July 9, 1846, after having borne seven chil- 
 dren, and Mr. Morgan, on Dec. 2, 1846, was again 
 married to Nancy Gette, a daughter of James Gette, 
 of Hamburg, N. Y. She bore Mr. Morgan one 
 child Henrietta, born Jan. 2, 1848, and died March 
 4, 1849. 
 
 James C. Morgan, at the age of 19 years, moved 
 from Preston, Conn., to Columbia, Herkimer Co., N. 
 Y., and for five years had charge of his uncle's busi- 
 ness'there, which was paper making.' In March, 
 1823, he removed with his young wife to Hamburg, 
 Erie Co., N. Y., and engaged in the hotel business 
 until November, 1843, when he came to Monmouth, 
 111. He lived at the latter place, owning 40 acres of 
 land inside the city limits, and known as the Morgan 
 
 Addition to the city of Monmouth, and continued to 
 reside there, the sunset of his life being passed in 
 retirement from active labor, until old age called him 
 to the better land, at the age of 74 years. His death 
 occurred Jan. 31, 1872. He was a good business 
 man, possessing sterling qualities, and a strong sup- 
 porter of temperance. 
 
 The children of his first wife are recorded as fol- 
 lows: Emeline, born Jan. 10, 1824. became the wife 
 of J. W. Robertson; George W.,born May 31, 1826, 
 died while in the Mexican War, Sept. 13, 1847, and 
 James W., the subject of this notice. 
 
 James W. was married Dec. 2, 1857, at the resi- 
 dence of the bride's parents, in Henderson Co., 111., 
 to Miss Anna Maria Vantuyl, the accomplished 
 daughter of Isaac and Sarah (Williams) Vantuyl, na- 
 tives of New Jersey and Ohio respectively, and of 
 German descent. Her parents were married in Ohio 
 and resided on a farm near Dayton, that State, where 
 Mrs. Morgan was born April 21, 1833. Her father's 
 family came in 1854 to this State, and located on a 
 farm in Henderson County. Her father lost his 
 first wife in Ohio, and was again married in the same 
 State. He afterward came to this county and located 
 near Kirkwood, where he died Oct. n, 1880. He 
 was a leading citizen in the community in which he 
 resided, and met with success in the vocation of his 
 life. Mrs. James W. Morgan, after receiving a rudi- 
 mentary education in the common or district schools 
 attended college at Monmouth, 111., in the basement 
 of the old Presbyterian Church, now known as Unity 
 Church, and of her union with Mr. Morgan two 
 children were born Flora, Jan. 17, 1859, and Lewis 
 Howard, June i, 1867. 
 
 The subject of this sketch came with his father 
 in 1843 from Hamburg, N. Y., to Monmouth, this 
 county. In 1850, with an ox team and a party of 
 men, he crossed the plains to the land of gold, which 
 required a trip of six months. He remained in Cali- 
 fornia until 1853, in search of gold, spending two 
 winters in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, in a small 
 cabin, the snow 14 or 15 feet deep, and no commu- 
 nication with the outer world, from October until the 
 following May of each year. His experience was 
 similar to those of many who sought their fortune in 
 that distant clime. One of his best friends and 
 neighbors, Amos Harding, late of Monmouth, died 
 there of the cholera. 
 
 Mr. Morgan returned to Warren County in 1853, 
 
576 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 remaining there until August 6th, 1862, when, in an- 
 swer to the second call for men to fight in the war 
 for the Union, he enlisted in Co. F, 83d 111. Vol. Inf., 
 and was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland. 
 He was elected Second Lieutenant, subsequently pro- 
 moted to First Lieutenant, and served under Gener- 
 als Rosecrans and Sherman, participating in all of 
 the battles in which his regiment was engaged, until 
 he received an honorable discharge June 26, 1865,31 
 the close of the war. Among the most prominent 
 battles in which his regiment was engaged, was that 
 of Fort Donelson, in February, 1863, when the odds 
 in favor of the Confederate army were in the pro- 
 portion of 10 to i, and where the Union forces suc- 
 ceeded in holding the fort. 
 
 After the close of the war, Mr. Morgan returned 
 to Monmouth, where he has since, mostly, resided, 
 until the present time. He and his brother became 
 owners of their father's 40 acres of real estate within 
 the city limits, which constitutes Morgan's Addition 
 to the city of Monmouth. James W. managed the 
 sale of the lots for a time, and then bought out his 
 brother's interests. He also owns 24 acres where 
 his residence is located. He and "Deacon Brown," 
 of Monmouth, are also the owners of an entire sec- 
 rion of land in SewardCo., Neb., and Mr. Morgan is 
 the proprietor of 320 acres in Thayer County, that 
 State. 
 
 Mr. Morgan has been one of the Directors of the 
 Monmouth National Bank for some years, and is at 
 present a stockholder in the same. He and his wife 
 are members of the Unity Society, of which Mr. M. 
 is Trustee. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Morgan votes with the Republican 
 party. 
 
 The remaining members of the family of James 
 C. Morgan, are John Titus, born Nov. 25, 1831, 
 married Maria Harroun, Nov. 8, 1858; Decatur, born 
 July 23, 1834, Married Elizabeth A. Richardson, 
 lives at Watseka, 111., and was for a number of years 
 Deputy Internal Revenue Collector; Angeline, born 
 June 25, 1837, married David B. Stevens, and was a 
 graduate of Monmouth College ; Henry, born March 
 20, 1840, and died Feb. 20, 1841. 
 
 John Titus was educated at Lombard University, 
 and graduated at the law school, Poughkeepsie, N. 
 Y., after which he began practice at Monmouth, en- 
 tered the army during the rebellion as Captain of 
 
 Co. F, 83d 111. Vol. Inf. ; look part in the battles in 
 which the regiment was engaged. At the close of 
 the war resumed his law practice ; was elected a 
 member of the Lower House and afterwards to the 
 Senate. He acquitted himself honorably as a mem- 
 ber of the Legislature. He was appointed by Presi- 
 dent Hayes Chief Justice of Idaho Territory, and re- 
 appointed by President Arthur. He has now re- 
 sumed the practice of law in that Territory, and 
 resides at Oxford. 
 
 eorge'W. Bellinger is a general farmer 
 on section 9, in Kelly Township. He has 
 been Justice of the Peace since 1878. He 
 was born in Geauga Co., Ohio, Aug. 6, 1844. 
 His father and mother, Charles and Sophia 
 (Pine) Bellinger, were natives of the shire of 
 Somerset, England, and came to America, where 
 they located in Ohio. Mr. Bellinger was two years 
 old when they removed to Warren County. They set- 
 tled in the township where he is still living and 
 where he was brought up and educated, so far as 
 the common schools were concerned. He attended 
 Knox College three terms, which were passed in the 
 preparatory department. He lived at home with his 
 parents until he was 20. He had become the pos- 
 sessor of the farm on which he now lives and previ- 
 ous to that time he had made some improvements 
 on it. 
 
 His marriage with Lucinda Holcomb took place 
 March 12, 1869. She was born in Kelly Township, 
 Nov. 15, 1848, and is the daughter of Henry B. and 
 Phebe (Ingersoll) Holcomb, who were pioneers of 
 Kelly Township. A log house had been built on the 
 farm of Mr. Bellinger, and when he was married he 
 took possession of the humble abode with his wife. 
 They have now a good farm house and other struc- 
 tures suited to the purpose to which the farm is de- 
 voted. The value and general appearance of the 
 place is much increased by the addition of fruit and 
 shade trees in great numbers. 
 
 The politics of Mr. Bellinger are in unison with 
 the creed of the Democrats. He has been promi- 
 nent in his interest in general educational matters, 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 577 
 
 and has served many years as School Director in his 
 district. 
 
 The children of the household of Mr. Bellinger are 
 as follows : Ben. was born Aug. 10, 1879; Judd, 
 April 8, 1878; Jessie, Jan. i, 1880; Maggie, July 8, 
 1882 ; Ethel, July 29, 1885. Their first child was 
 born Sept. 4, 1870, and died Jan. 17, 1885. John, 
 the second child, was born Nov. 30, 1873, and died 
 Aug. 31, 1876. The father of Mrs. Bellinger was 
 born in Lorain Co., Ohio, and her mother was a na- 
 tive of Broome Co., N. Y. The former is still living, 
 in LaBette Co., Kas. 
 
 ; ealy Gordon, Postmaster at Kirkwood vil- 
 lage, is a native of Georgia, having been 
 born in Covington, Newton County, that 
 State, March 31, 1836. The parents of Mr. 
 Gordon, Cornelius and Agnes (McKenzie) Gor- 
 don, were natives of North Carolina. They em- 
 igrated to this state in 1855, locating in Henderson 
 County, where they resided until 1862, and where 
 the father followed the occupation of a farmer. Dur- 
 ing the year named, they came to this county, and 
 settled in Kirkwood village, where they lived until 
 their deaths, which took place in January, 1869, and 
 in April, 1870, respectively. 
 
 Mr. Gordon, whose name we place at the head of 
 this biographical notice, lived with his parents until 
 their death. He received a good common-school 
 education, and after he attained his majority rented 
 a farm and was engaged as an agriculturist until 
 1862. At this period the nation became imperiled 
 by the Southern States seceding, and the call having 
 gone forth for brave hearts and strong hands to bat- 
 tle for its perpetuity. Mr. Gordon enlisted in Co. K, 
 8-tth 111. Vol. Inf. He participated in the battles of 
 Stone River, Chicamauga, Atlanta, Franklin and 
 Nashville, and many smaller battles and skirmishes, 
 receiving an honorable discharge in June, 1865. 
 
 Returning from the war, Mr. Gordon engaged in 
 the nursery business at Kirkwood and was thus oc- 
 cupied until he received his commission as Postmas- 
 ter at that place, and has held the office until the 
 present time. April 21, 1874, Miss Mary Wood, a 
 
 native of Henderson County, this State, became the 
 wife of the subject of this notice, and to him she has 
 borne two children Frank W. and Fred C. So- 
 cially, Mr. Gordon is a member of the G. A. R., be-' 
 longing to Post No. 81, at Kirkwood. Religiously, 
 he and his wife are both members of the United 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 <avid E. Morse, a well-to-do and highly 
 respected farmer, located on 180 acres of 
 good land, on section 35, Berwick Town- 
 ship, was born in Sangainon Co., 111., Dec. 2, 
 1832, and is a son of Samuel G. Morse, a na- 
 tive of Windham Co., Conn., where he was 
 born, in April, 1786. The father came to Illinois in 
 i8ri,and located in Vandalia, where he remained 
 some years, then moved to Bond County. While a 
 resident of the latter county he was elected to the 
 Constitutional Convention in 1 8 1 8, that met at Spring- 
 field. He was also Sheriff of Bond County, and a 
 nran of considerable political influence at the time in 
 the county in which he resided. He married 
 Miss Jane M. Kirkpatrick, about 1820. She was 
 born in Tennessee, in 1801, and survives her hus- 
 band, who died in 1863, in Greenbush Township. 
 He came to this country in 1835 and located at Ber- 
 wick. Of their union 10 children were born, five 
 daughters and five sons, namely : Adeline, Harriet, 
 Roswell, Margaret A., John, William, Samuel, Da- 
 vid, Mary J., Asenath and Emeline, all of whom are 
 living except Harriet and Samuel. The mother is 
 rending in Anderson Co., Kas. 
 
 David E. Morse, of whom we write, was united in 
 marriage with Miss Margaret Davis, May 5, 1857. 
 She was born in Henderson Co., 111., July, 1840, and 
 is the daughter of William F. Davis, who was born 
 in Ohio, in 1815, and at present resides in Mills 
 Co., Iowa. He was married to Miss Elizabeth Jam- 
 ison, in 1839. She was born in Kentucky, in 1809, 
 and is still living. Their union has been blessed 
 with the birth of five children Margaret Ann, James, 
 Minerva, Thomas and Alexander. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Morse by their union have become the parents of 
 three children Ann, born May 26, 1860; Samuel, 
 
 
578 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Sept. 26, 1862 ; and Mary, March 19, 1872. They 
 also have three grandchildren Edwin McQueen, 
 born in November, 1882 ; and David and Lotta Mc- 
 Queen, twins, born Dec. 25, 1884. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Morse are pleasantly situated on 
 their fine farm of 180 acres, on section 35, Berwick 
 Township, all of which is under an advanced state 
 of cultivation. On the place there is a good resi- 
 dence and barn 28 x 34 feet in dimensions, and the 
 place presents an appearance to the passer-by indic- 
 ative of that push and perseverance characteristic of 
 its proprietor. In addition to the cultivation of his 
 land, he is engaged in raising fine horses. In poli- 
 tics, Mr. Morse is a believer in and a supporter of the 
 principles of the Republican party. 
 
 "acob Jewell, retired farmer, residing at 
 Monmoulh, was born in Oneida Co., N. Y., 
 Nov. 9, 18 14, and was the second son of 
 Lemuel and Jane (Cole) Jewell, of Connecti- 
 cut and New York respectively, and of English 
 and German extraction respectively. They 
 were the parents of seven children, six brothers and 
 one sister, viz. : Abel, Jacob, Ira, Halsey, Harriet, 
 Henry and John. Three are now deceased. Jacob 
 left home when ten years of age and began to labor 
 for his living. The district schools, with a few 
 months at an academy, afforded him such education 
 as allowed him to teach school a few years while yet 
 a young man. He came to Will County, this State, 
 in 1837, removed thence to DuPage County, in 1838, 
 and to Berwick, in Warren County, in 1839. From 
 the time he arrived in Warren County, he advanced 
 steadily in the accumulation of property up to the 
 time of his retirement. He moved into Lenox Town- 
 ship, in 1843, and from there to Monmouth, in 1867. 
 Of his immense farm property he gave to his children 
 until he now has only about 270 acres. Strictly 
 speaking, he did not retire from active business until 
 1882, when he turned matters over to his sons. 
 
 Mr. Jewell was married in Roseville Township, 
 April 10, 1843, to Mrs. Julia Harrison, nee Brooks, 
 native of Richmond, Ky., and daughter of Thomas 
 and Elizabeth (Lee) Brooks. Mr. Brooks enlisted in 
 the Union army and served until he was honorably 
 discharged. While in the service he received inju- 
 
 ries, for which he now draws a pension. The chil- 
 dren of Mr. Jewell are mentioned as follows : Wil- 
 liam, a farmer in Nebraska, born April 12, 1844; 
 Charles B., born Dec. 17, 1844, and accidentally 
 shot and killed April i, 1882, leaving a wife and five 
 children; this son, Charles Jewell, was the inventor 
 of the famous twine binder, which he sold to the Mc- 
 Cormick Reaper Company for $1.500 ; Henry, farmer, 
 born May ig, 1847 ; Olive (Mrs. Chas. Blackburn of 
 Monmouth), was born April 29, 1849; Dudley, farm- 
 er in Kansas, born Sept. 7, 1850; Decatur, born 
 March 25, 1852, died aged six months; and Emily 
 (Mrs. Dr. W. S. Holliday), born July 9, ^53. The 
 parents of Mrs. Jewell were natives of Kentucky, 
 and her grandparents of Virginia. On her mother's 
 side she is related to Gen. Robert E. Lee. Mr. J. 
 had two brothers and three sisters. The brothers 
 are now deceased. Two of the sisters live in War- 
 ren County and one in Decatur Co., Kas. 
 
 Mr. Jewell began life a poor boy, but by untiring 
 perseverance and labor he amassed a handsome for-1 
 tune and has the good sense in his ripe old age to 
 enjoy it. He has never been a speculator and has 
 not grown rich at the expense of his neighbors, but 
 his accumulation of wealth is stridtly the product of 
 honest toil. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Jewell are consistent members of j 
 the Baptist Church, and Mr. J. is an adherent of the 
 Republican party. 
 
 -S- 
 
 .ugene J. Clarke, City Clerk of Monmoulh, 
 is the eldest son of the late Thaddeus 
 S. and Octavia (Shaw) Clarke, and was 
 born at Macomb, III, June 22, 1855. Here he 
 was reared and educated, and under the eye 
 of his father brought up and trained in the 
 printer's art, in which, even when a very small lad, 
 he became proficient. He has held all the various 
 positions on a newspaper, or in the office, with the 
 exception of the editor-in-chief He came to Mon- 
 mouth with his parents in 1868, where he assisted 
 his father in his newspaper enterprise, as well as 
 worked in the offices of the other leading papers. 
 
 On the 5th of May, 1879, Mr. Clarke wa? married 
 in Fort Wayne, Ind., to Miss Ella M. Killian. They 
 subsequently moved to Cincinnati, where they re- 
 

 " 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 58' 
 
 mained for three years, when they[returned to Mon- 
 mouth. While living in Cincinnati, their only living 
 child, Elizabeth June, was born to them. A son, 
 Clarence Dave, born Sept. 3, 1884, died March 26, 
 1885, being a sufferer the few moftths 'of his life 
 After lingering and suffering for many months from 
 that insidious, though fatal disease, the consumption, 
 Mrs. Clarke was relieved by death from further pain, 
 on Sept. 4, 1885. 
 
 Upon Mr. Clarke's return to Monmouth, he was 
 city editor from the starting of the Evening Gazette, 
 until the fall of 1884. In April, 1885, while a re- 
 porter on the Daily Atlas, he was elected City Clerk 
 of Monmouth, which office he now holds. He is Vice 
 Grand of Warren Lodge No. 160 I. O. O. F., and 
 Captain of Philo E. Reed Camp, No. 31, Sons of 
 Veterans. Politically, he^is'a Republican. 
 
 ichard Haney, D. D. Prominent among 
 those who have contributed to the spread 
 of the gospel in this portion of Illinois, 
 stands the name of Richard Haney, whose 
 tf unceasing labors for many long years past in 
 the Master's vineyard, and whose humble 
 piety and Christian walk in life have endeared him 
 to the thousands who have from time to time listened 
 to his eloquent discourses and fervent prayers, as he 
 told the story of the Cross and po.inted their wayward 
 feet to the realm of eternal bliss. Mr. Haney is a 
 native of Cross Creek, Washington Co., Penn., born 
 April 15, 1812. He is the ninth child and sixth son 
 of Rev. James and Hannah (Freeborn) Haney, both 
 of whom were natives of County Donegal, Ireland. 
 They emigrated with their parents to this county soon 
 after the close of the Revolutionary War, in the year 
 r792. They first settled in Lancaster Co., Pa.,where 
 they were married, and three of their children were 
 born in that county. They were both of Scotch-Irish 
 parentage. James Haney was a minister of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church for over 60 years. 
 
 From Lancaster the family removed to Washington 
 County, where Mr. Haney was for many years in- 
 structor in an academy. He was a fine scholar and 
 was recognized as an able educator. He served his 
 adopted country as a soldier in the war of 1812, un- 
 der the command of General Thomas Patterson, of 
 Washington County, who figured conspicuously and 
 
 did signal service on the frontier in that memorable 
 struggle, driving the combined forces of English and 
 Indians back across the border into Canada. After 
 the surrender of Detroit, peace being declared, he 
 returned to the bosom of his family, and shortly 
 thereafter removed to Richland County, Ohio. His 
 wife, the mother of Richard Haney, our subject, died 
 there in the year r82i, at the birth of her i2th child. 
 Rev. Haney subsequently married Miss Mary Bev- 
 ans, who was a native of Wayne Co., Ohio, by whom 
 he had two sons the Rev. Milton L. and Henry. 
 The latter died Jan. 26, 1848. Four of the sons of 
 Rev. Haney became Methodist ministers ; two are 
 dead and two survive. 
 
 Hr. Haney was a remarkable man in many re- 
 spects, a mathematician of ability and a powerful, el- 
 oquent and graceful speaker. He ranked for the 
 period in which he lived among the able pulpit ora- 
 tors of the country. [n the year 1834 he removed 
 from Richland Co., Ohio, to Fulton Co., 111., where 
 he died, on the 5th day of June, 1855. 
 
 Rev. Richard Haney received his rudimentary ed- 
 ucation at the district schools and under the private 
 instruction of his father. He subsequently became a 
 student at Norwalk (Ohio) Seminary ; and here it 
 may be interesting to state, Mr. Haney was enrolled 
 as the first student of that school, which was the first 
 institution of learning west of the Ohio River owned 
 by the Methodist Episcopal Church. He prosecuted 
 his studies there about two years ; a part of the time 
 he served as tutor. He left the seminary when 
 about the age of 21 years and joined the Ohio Con- 
 ference. He was transferred the same year (1834) 
 to the Illinois Conference, and stationed at Rush- 
 ville, Schuyler County. The county being new and 
 sparsely settled, the young preacher had to endure 
 many of the privations and hardships which were in- 
 cident to those early times. Preaching was fre- 
 quently held in the log house of the settler, and 
 oftimes the congregations would gather in the groves 
 to worship together and listen to the fervid eloquence 
 of the young pastor, who, even at that early day, was 
 regarded as a strong and earnest worker in the cause 
 of Zion. His first presiding elder was the celebrated 
 Peter Cartwright, who was the most noted of the 
 early Methodist preachers of the West and a man 
 who is still revered for his piety and great force of 
 character. To him probably more than to any other 
 man the Methodist Episcopal Church in the Missis- 
 
5 8 2 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 sippi Valley owes its present prominence and great 
 influence in the West. During the long period of 
 his ministry, Mr. Haney has held the office of pre- 
 siding elder for 25 years. This of itself will attest 
 more than anything we can say the strong apprecia- 
 tion in which he has been held by his coadjutors in 
 the cause of Christ. In all positions to which he 
 has been called by the church, his piety, unremit- 
 ting labor and pronounced individuality of character 
 have been the means of drawing multitudes of sin- 
 ners from the error of their way. It was the pleas- 
 ure of the writer of this brief sketch to have listened 
 to the recital, by a gentleman well known to the peo- 
 ple of Warren County, of how he, while listening to 
 Brother Haney "s eloquent and masterly presentation 
 of the plan of salvation, as laid down by Holy Writ, 
 was enabled to see cle_rly the road which led from 
 sin's dark chaos into the effulgent light of Christian 
 peace and happiness. 
 
 The last district in which Mr. Haney officiated as 
 
 'presiding elder was at Winona, on the east side of 
 the Illinois River. He has been continuously in the 
 ministry for over 5 i years, having traveled four cir- 
 cuits, and the balance of the time filling stations, 
 prominent among which were the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church on Clark Street, Chicago ; at Quincy, 
 Bloomington, Rock Island and Peoria. During his 
 pastorate at the Clark Street Church, Chicago, from 
 1848 to 1850, he called the meeting which projected 
 and brought about the establishment of the North- 
 western University, at Evanston, 111. His name 
 stands first as one of the incorporators, and he has 
 been identified as one of the trustees ever since. By 
 his wise counsel, he has contributed largely to the 
 growth and development of that noted institution of 
 learning, which, by the liberality of its many friends, 
 has been handsomely endowed to the extent of about 
 $2,000,000. It is the leading institution in the West, 
 under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, and, as one of its founders, Mr. Haney will 
 ever be remembered. 
 
 During the dark days of the late slaveholders' re- 
 bellion, when our nation's life seemed in danger, Mr. 
 Haney came forward early, and laid his services and 
 life, if need be, upon the altar of his beloved country. 
 He enlisted May 24, 1861, and was made Chaplain of 
 the 1 6th III. Vol. Inf., commanded by Col. R. F. 
 Smith. Their first service was in Missouri. From 
 thence they moved to Kentucky, and participated in 
 
 the breaking of the blockade of Island No. 10. Mr. 
 Haney remained with the regiment until the last of 
 June, 1862, when he resigned, his health having 
 failed, and which he has never fully recovered. 
 Shortly after his return home, he resumed active ser- 
 vice in the ministry, being stationed at Bushnell. 
 
 In the years 1879-80, at the request of Gov. Cul- 
 lom, of Illinois, and Gov. St. John, of Kansas, Mr. 
 Haney traveled extensively over several Western 
 States, collecting supplies and funds for the relief of 
 the negro refugees from the South to the State of 
 Kansas. He sent to them large quantities of lum- 
 ber, agricultural implements, breadstuffs, clothing 
 and household utensils, besides 'considerable money. 
 The managers of railroads exhibited commendable 
 liberality in .furnishing free transportation of the 
 goods to the destitute colored people. The efforts of 
 Mr. Haney were crowned with success. The good 
 people of the Mississippi Valley came forward with 
 their accustomed generosity and aided the worthy 
 cause which he represented. It may here be men- 
 tioned that the extensive establishment of John 
 Deere, at Moline, gave 14 plows, and the Moline 
 Plow Co., through its president, gave an equal num- 
 ber. 
 
 At the session of the Central Illinois Conference, 
 held at Galesburg, in 1862, Mr. Haney, as chairman 
 of the committee on the state of the country, drafted 
 the resolutions praying President Lincoln to proclaim 
 the freedom of every slave in the United States. 
 The resolution received wide circulation in the press 
 and was forwarded to the President by Bishop Ba- 
 ker and the secretary of the Conference. This was 
 the first ecclesiastical body that ever passed such a 
 resolution. The patriotic efforts of the ministry of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church did much to inspire 
 confidence in the great President and the soldiers in 
 the field. 
 
 In 1834 Mr. Haney became acquainted with Abra- 
 ham Lincoln, and voted for him both times that he 
 was a candidate for the presidency. For many years 
 before he became prominent, Mr. Haney had learned 
 to admire the sterling qualities and marked ability of 
 him, who, in after years, was the most illustrious of 
 our Presidents. 
 
 On the 17 th of July, 1838, Mr. Haney was mar- 
 ried, near Quincy, Adams Co., Ill , to Adaline Mur- 
 phy. She was a native of New Brunswick, New Jer- 
 sey She came to Adams County with her parents 
 

 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 583 
 
 in 1835. Her father was a native of Ireland ; her 
 mother, Mary (Allen) Murphy, was descended from 
 the French Hugenots, who had been Protestants a 
 hundred years before the revocation of the Edict of 
 Nance. 
 
 Mr. Haney and his wife were the parents of ten 
 children, three sons and seven daughters, three of 
 whom are deceased. Their eldest son, Rev. James 
 W. Haney, is a member of the Central Illinois Con- 
 ference, now stationed in Blandinsville; Adaline is 
 the wife of Rev. George Palmer, D. D., of the Cen- 
 tral Illinois Conference; Emily the wife of George 
 Baker, a merchant in Dwight, 111. ; Luella, wife of 
 Prof. Robbins, who has charge of the high school at 
 Joliet ; Mary and Elizabeth are unmarried ; Charles is 
 married and a resident of Minneapolis, Minn. Mrs. 
 Haney died on the 151!} of January, 1865, in the city 
 of Peoria, where they were residing. 
 
 Mr. Haney's second marriage occurred May i, 
 1877, when he wedded Mrs. Mary E. Quinby. widow 
 of the late Judge Ivory Quinby (see sketch of Judge 
 Quinby). They now reside at their elegant home in 
 Monmouth. Mrs. Haney is also a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church and has been for nearly 
 half a century. 
 
 In politics, Mr. H. was first a Whig, then a Re- 
 publican, and was an active supporter of that party 
 until the question of prohibition became prominent, 
 when he became a promoter and advocate of that 
 movement. While absent attending Conference he 
 was nominated for Congress as the candidate of that 
 party in this district, and received a flattering vote, 
 many of them being cast by his old time friends of 
 both parties. An excellent portrait of Mr. Haney is 
 shown on page 580 
 
 i illiam E. Hall, of the firm of MundorrT & 
 Hall, hardware merchants at Kirkwood, 
 this county, was born in the State of New 
 >j> York, Lewis County, in 1846. The parents 
 of Mr. Hall, of this sketch, Gaylord N. and 
 Hannah M. (Slocum) Hall, were also natives 
 of York State. They came to this State in 1865 and 
 located on section 32, Tompkins Township, where 
 his father purchased no acres of land and followed 
 the occupation of an agriculturist until 1878. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head of 
 
 this notice remained with his parents, receiving at 
 the common schools a good education and assisting 
 his father on the farm until he became of age. On 
 becoming his own man, he worked out by the month 
 until he accumulated some means, when he rented a 
 farm and cultivated the same for a few years. In 
 r875, his accumulations and savings increasing, he 
 purchased 79 a .res on section 16, Tompkins Town- 
 ship, and remained on the same for eight years, en- 
 gaged in energetic and continuous labor as an agricul- 
 turist. He then sold his land and came to Kirk- 
 wood and, in company with Mr. Mundorff, engaged 
 in the hardware business, which he has continued to 
 the present time. He is the owner of a residence and 
 lot in the village, and his firm, by strict attention to 
 business and fair and honest dealings with their cus- 
 tomers, have established a good and paying trade. 
 
 In 1869 Mr. Hall formed a matrimonial alliance 
 with Miss Delilah Mundorff, a native of Pennsylva- 
 nia, and of their union have been born two children 
 Myra E. and Leo M. In politics, Mr. H. votes 
 with the Republican party, and in religion, he and 
 his wife belong to the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 As a business man, Mr. Hall stands prominent among 
 the foremost of Kirkwood village. 
 
 illiam Cowan, blacksmith and an early 
 settler of Monmouth, was born in Chester 
 Co., Pa., Feb. 10, 1815, and was the sec- 
 ond son of David and Margaret (Keyl) 
 Cowan, natives of the Keystone State. The 
 senior Mr. Cowan was a tanner and currier in 
 Chester County, where he spent the last years of his 
 life. His widow survived him a few years and died 
 in Washington County, that State. 
 
 William Cowan was fairly taught in the common 
 schools of his neighborhood when a boy, and at the 
 age of 17 years began an apprenticeship with a 
 blacksmith, named Hamilton Roney. After complet- 
 ing his trade, he " joured "over the country, working 
 at various places, finally returning to Pennsylvania, 
 and at Lancaster worked some months for Hiram 
 Baldwin, now and for the past 40 years proprietor of 
 the Baldwin House. He afterward worked in Phil- 
 adelphia, for the Gas Company and locomotive 
 shops, and from there jumped into the then Western 
 
 
5 4 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 State of Missouri. From Palmyra, that State, he 
 made a short sojourn at Quincy, 111., then back to 
 Missouri and enlisted in the only Missouri regiment 
 in the Seminole War. He was in the battle of Okee- 
 chobe and served throughout that Indian war under 
 Gen. Taylor. He returned to Palmyra, and in the 
 year 1839 landed at Monmouth. In 1839 he settled 
 down to blacksmithing in this place, and has since 
 stuck to it. His shop is now (October, 1885) in the 
 building erected as the first hotel in Monmonth. It 
 is an old log structure, originally one and one-half 
 stories high, now so decayed away at the bottom, a log 
 at a time, that it is scarcely one story from the ground 
 to the roof. 
 
 Mr. Cowan served the people of Monmouth five 
 years as Alderman from his ward, two terms as 
 Mayor and one term as Marshall. He used to be 
 an old time Whig, but drifted into the Republican 
 party, and finally, as he is growing wiser, he is strictly 
 independent. He is a member of no secret order, 
 nor is he connected with any Church. 
 
 He was married in Marion County, Mo., Oct. 3, 
 1840, to Miss Nancy C. S. Parrish. 
 
 i.eth P. Stem, is a farmer, presiding in Rose- 
 ville, and a gentleman of more than or- 
 dinary business ability, with an abundance 
 of practical knowledge obtained by actual ex- 
 perience. He is a native of Mercer Co., Pa., 
 where he was born July 29, 1833, of parents 
 by name Frederick and Sarah (Harris) Stem, natives 
 of Westmoreland and Fayette Co.s, Pa., respectively. 
 His parents came to this state in 1850 and located 
 one and a-half miles east of Roseville on Section 
 28, of that township. His father was engaged in 
 farming and stock-raising, and followed that vocation 
 in this county until his death, which took place June 
 8, 1875, his wife having preceded him to the other 
 world in January, 1868. 
 
 Seth P., the gentleman whose name appears at the 
 head of this sketch, remained with his parents until 
 he was 33 years old. He then rented land from his 
 father, on shares, which he engaged in cultivating. 
 Having received a good English education he taught 
 school for several years, also buying and selling land, 
 
 in which he was rather fortunate, and was enabled to 
 make a little money thereby. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Seth P. Stem and Mrs. Mary 
 Stem, nee McDermot, occurred Oct. 9, 1866. Mrs. 
 Stem was a native of Brooklyn, N. Y., and of this 
 union have been born two children, Elsie L., and 
 Nellie B. After marriage Mr. Stem went to farming 
 on a i6o-acre tract of good land, on Section 17, add- 
 ing 61 acres more by subsequent purchases, and 
 where he farmed for about eight years, when he came 
 to Roseville and purchased the property upon which 
 he has since resided. Mr. Stem was a stockholder 
 of the Roseville Union Bank for five years and one 
 of its originators,. Having sold out his interest in 
 the Bank he now lives a retired life, with the excep- 
 tion of overseeing his farm and stock. He resided 
 in Dakota one year, where he has 320 acres of land. 
 
 Mr. Stem enlisted in Company H, 2d 111. Cavalry, 
 on the 6th of August, 1862, and served his country 
 until the close of the war, having participated in the 
 battle at Bolivar, Tenn., and in all the battles fought 
 by Gen. Grant up to the fall of Vicksburg. He then 
 went to the Gulf under Gen. Banks, whose army 
 was several times surrounded by the enemy, and had 
 to cut its way out. At Holly Springs the 2d 111. 
 Cavalry was surrounded by the Rebel forces of Gen. 
 Van Dorn, and all the Infantry captured, but the Cav- 
 alry succeeded in escaping. Companies G, H, I, 
 and K, of the 2d 111. Regt. of Cavalry, were separa- 
 ted during the early part of the war, and were not 
 again together during the term of enlistment of Mr. 
 Stem. His regiment first went to LaGrange, then 
 Holly Springs and then Coffeeville, af'.er which it fell 
 back to Memphis.; went down the river to Young's 
 Point and was in several engagements between there 
 and Grand Gulf, and participated in the battle of 
 Champion Hills. It struck camp at Black River, 
 destroying railroads and lying in wait for Johnson and 
 foraging for supplies for the army. After the surren- 
 der of Vicksburg his regiment followed Johnson, and 
 after its return went to Natchez, where it raided the 
 country. It then went to Carlton and bivouacked 
 for a time. The next move of the regiment was to 
 Morganza, where the command was under fire every 
 day for some time. Gen. Green commanded the 
 Rebel forces, and Maj. Montgomery the 6th Missou- 
 ri Cavalry, and at that place Gen. Green captured the 
 Infantry. After this Mr. Stem was at New Orleans, 
 where he spent the winter, and then accompanied an 
 
- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 585 
 
 expedition up the Red River. Returning from the 
 latter expedition to New Orleans, he participated in 
 the Mobile campaign, after which he went by way of 
 the Gulf to Pensacola, from there back to Vicksburg, 
 and was finally mustered out at Springfield, 111., June 
 i, 1865. 
 
 Mr. Stem, with his wife, is a member of the Mis- 
 sionary Baptist Church, and he belongs to the G. A. 
 R. In politics he affiliates with the Republican par- 
 ty. Mr. Stem is regarded as a solid and substantial 
 citizen as well as a representative man, of Warren 
 County. 
 
 in 
 
 prdelia A. Tinkham, residing at Kirk- 
 wood, is the widow of Ransom Tinkham, 
 a native of Vermont, he having been born 
 the Green Mountain State, July 23, 1815, 
 
 and his demise occurring in this county, Mar. 
 
 21, 1878. The parents of Mr. Tinkham, Ben- 
 jamin and Anna (Gray) Tinkham, were natives of 
 Vermont and the Pine Tree State respectively. Ran- 
 som Tinkham, husband of the subject of this bio- 
 graphical notice, remained with his parents until he 
 attained the age of 21 years, receiving at their hands 
 a good common-school education. In 1836 he came 
 to Illinois and located at Monmoulh, and while re- 
 siding there was elected Constable, which position he 
 filled with credit to himself and his constituents. He 
 afterward moved to Tompkins Township and located 
 on section 19, where he purchased 80 acres of land, 
 which he at once began to cultivate and improve. 
 Subsequently he added another 8o-acre tract, mak- 
 ing his landed interests 160 acres, and continued to 
 reside there until 1876. During that year he moved 
 to Kirkwood and purchased a residence and lot on 
 the corner of Kellogg and Plum Streets, where he 
 lived in retirement from the active labors of life, en- 
 joying the peace, comfort and quiet which his accu- 
 mulations permitted, until his death. In politics, he 
 was a staunch Democrat, and his life pursuit was that 
 of an agriculturist, in which he met with financial 
 success. He also gave considerable attention to 
 music, and was leader of the first brass band organ- 
 ized in Warren County. 
 The marriage of Mr. Tinkham to Miss Cordelia 
 
 A. Forwood took place April 23, 1842. She was a 
 native of Maryland and bore her husband six chil- 
 dren, five of whom survive, namely: Sarah A. A., 
 Ophelia C. H., Ransom O. B , Cordelia C. A. and 
 George W. P. Erastus W. D., the second child in 
 order of birth, was born Dec. 17, 1845, and died 
 Sept. 5, 1846. Mrs. Tinkham is residing in Kirk- 
 wood with her two daughters and wo granddaugh- 
 ters. Sarah A. A. became the wife of Charles R. 
 Barnett, and to them five children have been born 
 George W., Cora A., Addie O., Charles E. and Flor- 
 ence A. Ophelia C. H. was united in marriage to 
 Peter Barnett, and of their union two children, Con- 
 stance O. A. and Ina C. A. were born. Mr. Barnett 
 died in 1870. Ransom O. B. married Sarah F. Ack- 
 erman, and they have four children Lester L., Wil- 
 fred C., Daisy M. and Guy R. are the names of 
 their family. George W. P. chose for his life part- 
 ner Adah L. Oaks, and they have become the par- 
 ents of two children, who have been named Forrest 
 G. and Ralph D. 
 
 Gilliland, of the firm of Foster &Gilliland, 
 druggists, at Kirkwood, was born in Hunt- 
 ington Co., Pa., July t, 1830, his parents be- 
 ing Mathew and Elizabeth (Rogers) Gillljland, 
 natives of Pennsylvania. His father came to 
 .this state and settled at Sugar Tree Grove, 
 Hale Township, Warren County, in 1850, and there 
 resided following the peaceful pursuit of an agricul- 
 turist until the date of his death, which took place in 
 1851. 
 
 Mr. Gilliland, whose name appears at the head of 
 this biographical notice, remained under the care and 
 instruction of his parents, receiving a good education 
 in the common schools until he attained the age of 
 majority. On becoming his own man in life he left 
 the parental homestead and went forth to fight his 
 battles single-handed and alone, and to acquire, if 
 possible, a competency. He first worked out by the 
 month, and continued to receive remuneration for his 
 services as a laborer, until 1855. During that year 
 he engaged with W. F. Smith, at Monmouth, as clerk 
 in a drug store, and followed that occupation for three 
 years. In 1859 he crossed the plains to California, 
 and on arrival in the Golden State prospected for 
 
586 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 gold, and was thus occupied for one year. He then 
 went to Nevada, where he worked in the silver mines, 
 and there remained until 1865, when he returned to 
 Monmouth. His trip across the plains, in a financial 
 sense was of but little benefit to him, and on return- 
 ing to Monmouth he again engaged as a clerk and 
 followed the same for two years. 
 
 Leaving Monmouth Mr. Gilliland came to Kirk- 
 wood, and in partnership with Mr. S. C. Foster, 
 engaged in the drug business, which they have con- 
 tinued until the present time, meeting with that suc- 
 cess which fair dealing and strict attention to 
 business generally bring. The. marriage of Mr.Gillil- 
 and to Miss Margaret A. Ebert, a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania, took place in 1869, and two children have 
 been born to the family circle, namely, William and 
 Lewis. 
 
 In politics Mr. Gilliland is a believer in and a sup- 
 porter of the Republican party. Religiously, he and 
 his wife are members of the Presbyterian Church. 
 Socially Mr. Gilliland is a member of the Order of 
 Masonry, and is regarded as one of the energetic and 
 foremost business men of Kirkwood. 
 
 } rs. S. E. Wray, residing at Kirkwood, is 
 the widow of John Wray, who died in 
 1874. He was born in Kentucky in 1816, 
 his parents being Isaac and Mary (Carleton) 
 Wray, natives of Ireland. He landed on 
 American shores in 1835, and determined to 
 follow the occupation of a fanner. Following in the 
 train whose watchword was "Westward Ho!" he 
 reached the Prairie State and located one mile west 
 of the present village of Kirkwood, where his father 
 and mother died. 
 
 John Wray was united in marriage with Sarah E. 
 Davis, a native of Virginia, Aug. 14, 1843, in Hen- 
 derson County. She came to Illinois with her par- 
 ents in 1833. They settled on a farm of 80 acres, 
 and there her father followed the occupation of farm- 
 ing and the daughter continued to reside until her 
 marriage with Mr. Wray. Of their union ten chil- 
 dren have been born, namely : William W.. Mary, 
 Frances M., Andrew E., Caroline C., Eliza J., Sam- 
 uel D., Elizabeth E., John P. and Charles E. 
 
 Mr. Wray, in his political belief, supported the 
 
 Republican party. He took an interest in political 
 matters and was an active worker for the success of 
 his party. In religion, he was a believer in the ten- 
 ets of the United Presbyterian Church, as is likewise 
 Mrs. Wray. 
 
 Mr. Wray was a hard working man, generous to a 
 fault, and never knowh to refuse aid in any cause 
 that was calculated to benefit the community in 
 which he resided. He lived on his farm and was 
 there engaged actively and energetically in its im- 
 provement until his death in 1874. Three years 
 after the death of her husband, Mrs. Wray moved to 
 the village of Kirkwood and there purchased a resi- 
 dence and two lots, where she is at present living 
 with her two sons and a daughter. 
 
 ohn S. Spriggs, M. D., of the pioneer drug 
 house of Spriggs & Brother, at Monmouth, 
 was born in Lancaster Co., Pa., Nov. 4, 
 1824. His parents, James S. and Elizabeth 
 (Leaman) Spriggs, natives respectively of the 
 States of New Jersey and Pennsylvania, traced 
 their ancestry back to England and Germany. They 
 were married in Lancaster Co., Pa., from whence 
 they removed to Philadelphia, where the senior Mr. 
 S. was for many years a merchant. He died in that 
 city in 1838. His widow survived him about 26 
 years, and came West with her son John S. in 1857, 
 and died at Monmouth in 1864, in the 7oth year 
 of her life. 
 
 John S. Spriggs graduated from New London (Pa.) 
 Academy, when about 18 years of age, and began 
 directly the study of medicine with Dr. John Lea- 
 man, an uncie, of Williamstown, Pa., who was his 
 preceptor. From Dr. Leaman's office he entered 
 the Jefferson College, in 1842, and graduated two 
 years later as M. D. He began to practice in Cum- 
 berland Co., Pa., immediately upon leaving college, 
 and was there 13 years. He came from Cumber- 
 land County to Monmouth in 1857, and soon after 
 engaged in the drug business. He began business in 
 a building that stood upon the site of the present 
 Second National Bank. The building was burned 
 in 1871, and he next opened up on the south side of 
 the public square, where the firm (for the brothers 
 have been together all the time) have since carried 
 
4v 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 587 
 
 on an extensive and lucrative business. As skillful 
 druggists they undoubtedly stand at the head of the 
 trade in Monmouth. Dr. Spriggs was one of the 
 organizers of the Monmouth Mining and Manufac- 
 turing Co., in 1872, his interests wherein he parted 
 with in 1884. 
 
 Dr. Spriggs was married in Cumberland Co., Pa., 
 Dec. 1 6, 1852, to Miss Emily E. Williamson, who 
 died at Castile, N. Y., whither she had gone for her 
 health, leaving four children, having buried two. 
 The living are John W., of Monmouth ; Margaret A. 
 (Mrs. W. W. Yeates), of Chicago; Florence E. (Mrs. 
 E. J. Robinson), of Iowa City, Iowa; and Laura 
 Belle (Mrs. W. R. Smith), of Kansas. Their first 
 child, Mary Elizabeth, was born Sept. 17, 1853, and 
 died Dec. 23, 1868; William Francis, was born Oct. 
 24, 1858, and died Dec. 6, of the same year. 
 
 Ten years after burying his first wife, the Doctor 
 found a second in the person of Miss Rachel Dy- 
 sart, a native of Belmont Co., Ohio. They were 
 married at Monmouth, May 6, 1885. The Doctor 
 and family are members of the Presbyterian Church. 
 In politics, he is a Republican. 
 
 H. Gilmore, who is engaged in the gro- 
 cery business at Kirkwood, this county, was 
 born in Butler Co., Pa., June 16, 1846, his 
 parents being Hugh and Catherine (Dorothy) 
 Gilmore, natives of Pennsylvania. The father 
 moved with his family to New London, Iowa, 
 in 1855, and was there resident for 10 years, coming 
 thence to Kirkwood, where he is yet living. 
 
 J. H. Gilmore, the gentleman whose name we place 
 as the subject of this biographical notice, was an in- 
 mate of the parental household until he attained his 
 23d year. His years prior to majority were passed 
 in acquiring an education in the common schools and 
 assisting in the maintenance of the family. Two 
 years after becoming his own man, in 1872, he en- 
 gaged with T. F. Lowther in the grocery business at 
 Kirkwood, where he continued for seven years, afier 
 which, in 1879, Mr. Gilmore purchased his partner's 
 interest, and since then has conducted the business 
 for his own individual profit. By strict attention to 
 business, quick sales and fair dealing with his cus- 
 
 tomers, he has established a good and constantly in- 
 creasing business. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Gilmore to Miss Louisa 
 Brown, daughter of John Brown and a native of this 
 State, took place in 1869. Their union has been 
 blessed by the birth of two children, Carrie and 
 Hugh. 
 
 In politics Mr. Gilmore is a staunch Republican. 
 He has held the different offices in his township and 
 is one of the foremost business men of Kirkwood. 
 
 -f 
 
 ortimer S. Baldwin, at the head of the 
 firm of Baldwin & Putnam, dealers in 
 flour, feed, pumps, lime, cement, etc., 
 at Monmouth, is a son of George and Mary 
 L. (Stewart) Baldwin, natives of Pensylvania, 
 and of English and Irish extraction, respect- 
 ively. He was born in Chester Co., Pa., Oct. 27, 
 1846. The senior Mr. Baldwin was by occupation 
 a farmer during his life and brought his six sons up 
 to that honorable calling. His life was ended in the 
 place where it began, and the hand of Time marked 
 for him 66 years, A. D. 1869. 
 
 Mortimer S. Baldwin had the benefit of a com- 
 mon-school education in Pennsylvania, and when 
 about 20 years of age was employed as a clerk in a 
 general .merchandise establishment at Cochranville, 
 that State. He remained here about three years 
 and then in a similar cap-icily at Penningtonville for 
 about one year. In 1869, we find him farming near 
 Virden, 111., and in 1871 he landed at Monmouth, 
 where he learned telegraphy. He followed " brass 
 pounding " only a short time and engaged in the 
 grocery business in partnership with a Mr. Hawkins. 
 In 1 88 1, he sold out his grocery and went to Black- 
 foot, Idaho Territory, and there engaged in the 
 butchering business, under contract to furnish meat 
 to the United States Government. A few months of 
 this life satisfied him, and Monmouth again became 
 his home. He was connected with the Monmouth 
 Merchant Milline Company, as their Secretary, 
 about 18 months, and in 1883 embarked in his pres- 
 ent business, taking in a partner in 1884. 
 
 Mr. Baldwin began life subject to all the difficul- 
 ties incident to a young man wholly devoid of means, 
 and has had his full share of the ups and downs, 
 
588 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 and, in fact, he has had occasion to feel that there 
 were more downs than ups to his allotment, but not- 
 withstanding it all, he has made a success of life so 
 far, and has outstripped many who had much the 
 advantage of him at the beginning. He owns the 
 Joel Clothing-House Block at Monmouth, a large 
 tract of land in Nebraska, is a stockholder and di- 
 rector in the Monmouth Merchant Milling Company, 
 at Mitchell, D. T., and has a half interest in the 
 celebrated Portable Hay and Grain Cover, the new- 
 est and most useful invention that has been intro- 
 duced to the agricultural people for ten years. 
 
 He is a Republican in politics, and, religiously, 
 attends the Presbyterian Church. Mr. B. is a mem- 
 ber of the Odd Fellows Order. Mrs. Baldwin's 
 maiden name was Laura W. Williams ; she is a na- 
 tive of Chester Co., Pa., where Mr. Baldwin made 
 her his wife Feb. 15, 1872. 
 
 rSWscar N. Kellogg, a gentleman who has met 
 yBA with more than ordinary success in life, a 
 good farmer and respected citizen of War- 
 ren County, residing on section 1 1, Cold Brook 
 Township, was born in Steuben Co., N. Y., 
 Jan. 4, 1846. Josiah Kellogg, father of the 
 gentleman whose name heads this biographical no- 
 tice, followed the trade of a harness maker until 
 1851, when he came West, and located in Kelly 
 Township. He continued to reside there, following 
 the vocation of a farmer, until the call was made by 
 President Lincoln for soldiers to defend the cause of 
 the union, when he enlisted, Sept. 2, 1862, as First 
 Corporal .in the iO2d 111. Vol. Inf., Co. B, under 
 Capt. Elisha C. Atchison. The regiment in which 
 his company belonged was assigned to the Army of 
 the Cumberland, and Mr. Kellogg participated in all 
 the battles in which it was engaged until March 13, 
 1863, when he was promoted to Third Sergeant. He 
 held that rank until the battle of Resaca, when he 
 received a shot from the enemy that caused his 
 death. 
 
 Oscar N. Kellogg, whose life history we write, was 
 but six years of age when his parents came to this 
 county and located in Kelly Township. After the 
 death of his father, he resided with his mother on the 
 
 old homestead, where he was engaged in its cultiva- 
 tion and improvement. Oct. 31, 1871, he was united 
 in marriage with Miss Margaret, the accomplished 
 daughter of Alex, and Martha (Richie) Armstrong, 
 natives of the North of Ireland and of Scotch-Irish 
 descent. Her parents were married in their native 
 country and resided in Fermanagh County, where 
 eight children were born to them. Mrs. Kellogg, 
 wife of the subject of this notice, was next to the 
 youngest in order of birth of her parents' family and 
 was bora in Fermanagh County, Ireland, July 2, 
 1849. Her parents emigrated to the United States 
 and settled in Kelly Township, this county, where 
 her father died, in May, 1876, aged 70 years. Her 
 mother survives and is residing with her oldest son, 
 James, in Kelly Township, aged 73 years. 
 
 After the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Kellogg, they 
 located on the old homestead belonging to the father 
 of Mrs. K., on section 28, Kelly Township. Mr. 
 Kellogg subsequently sold his possessions in Kelly 
 Township, and, in February, 1884, purchased 120 . 
 acres of good farm land in Cold Brook Township, the 
 same being the farm on which they at present reside. 
 It is under an advanced state of cultivation and pre- 
 sents an appearance indicative of the push and en- 
 ergy of its proprietor. Mr. and Mrs. Kellogg are 
 both members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, . 
 of which denomination Mr. K. is Steward and also 
 Sunday-school Superintendent. In politics, he al- 
 ways casts his vote with the Republican party. He 
 has held the office of Road Commissioner for six 
 years and School Trustee for the same length of 
 time. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Kellogg, two 
 children have been born Bertha, Dec. 17, 1873, and 
 Estella, Jan. 24, 1877. 
 
 ames W. Standley, M. D., a practicing 
 physician in Alexis, established his rela- 
 tions with the citizens of that place in 
 1880. He is a practitioner of the allopathic 
 school and is thoroughly well read in his pro- 
 fession. He has had a valuable experience 
 and is steadily growing in the confidence of the com- 
 munity where he has thrown his glove of challenge 
 to fame and fortune. 
 
 Dr. Standley was born in Putnam Co., Ind., March 
 
 

4- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 18, 1846. His father, Thomas Standley, is respon- 
 sible for the letter " d " which appears in the family 
 name, as it was inserted by him to change its origi- 
 nal name of " Stanley." The latter was a native of 
 South Carolina and married Lydia Moss, a lady who 
 was born in Indiana. The senior Standley removed 
 his family to Wapello Co., Iowa, when his son was a 
 child of nine years. 
 
 The days of the youth of Dr. Standley were passed 
 in Iowa, and he was educated primarily in the pub- 
 lic schools of the county whither his parents re- 
 moved. He went to Putnam Co., Mo., for the pur- 
 pose of commencing his studies preparatory to 
 entering the medical profession, with his uncle, 
 Thomas H. Moss, who was a physician of repute 
 and influence, and under whose preceptorship he 
 made satisfactory progress. On leaving his office, 
 Dr. Standley matriculated at Rush Medical College 
 in the city of Chicago and was graduated from that 
 institution with the class of 1872. In 1869, he went 
 f to Plattville, Taylor Co., Iowa, to enter upon his 
 professional career, and remained there six months. 
 He operated in Adair Co., Mo., after that period un- 
 til 1871, when he abandoned practice to give his 
 entire attention to his collegiate course. After tak- 
 ing his degree, he went to Greencastle, Sullivan Co., 
 Mo., and practiced as a physician until he came to 
 Alexis in the year named. 
 
 Dr. Standley was joined in marriage with Emma 
 Bartlett Sept. 9, 1875. She is the daughter of Charles 
 and Emeline Bartlett and was born in Newark, Ken- 
 dall Co., III. The Doctor and his svife are members 
 of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 n. Delos Porter Phelps, of Monmouth, 
 Asst. Supt. of the Central Iowa Rail- 
 way Company, is a son of Porter and Mary 
 Ellen Phelps, notices of whom appear in 
 this work. He was born about ten miles south 
 of Monmouth, in Roseville Township, Warren 
 Co., Nov. 1 6, 1837. In the sketch of his parents, in 
 this volume, will be found an account of his ancestry. 
 His father moved from Knoxville, 111., in the spring 
 of that year, and there began the improvement of a 
 small farm. He erected upon it a rude log house, 
 covered with hand-riven boards, kept in place by 
 
 logs weighting them down, and beneath that roof the 
 subject of our sketch first saw the light. 
 
 The whole country was then substantially a wil- 
 derness; only here and there along the timber could 
 be found the rude beginning of some adventurous 
 pioneer. He lived there until the spring of 
 1844, and many a time, as he has told the writer, 
 has he seen the wolves come up to within hailing 
 distance of the house, and the deer play like sheep 
 within gunshot of the dwelling. For several direc- 
 tions, as far as the eye could reach, there was not 
 then an improvement, or the smoke of a chimney in 
 view. He saw the prairie fires in the autumn sweep 
 across the broad expanse of waving grass swifter 
 than the speed of the fastest horse, and with a roar 
 that could be heard a considerable distance, leaving 
 blackness and desolation behind. During one win- 
 ter, while residing there, two of his father's neigh- 
 bors caught 46 wolves in one steel trap, and finally 
 a large black wolf was caught that broke the chain 
 and went off with the trap, and was killed the follow- 
 ing spring 10 miles away, almost starved to death, 
 with the trap still clinging to his foot. 
 
 At that time cooking stoves were substantially un- 
 known, kettles were used in fire places instead, and 
 each cabin, though rude without and within, had one 
 of those great cheerful fire-places with its back log 
 and fore log, andirons, and great chimneys, so beau- 
 tifully described in Whittier's "Snow Bound." Mills 
 were scarce and distant, and not unfrequently had he 
 seen meal manufactured by grating ears of new corn 
 upon the bottom of a tin pan punched full of holes 
 with an awl. 
 
 He was taught at home a great deal by his par- 
 ents, as no neighborhood had school to exceed three 
 months in the year. School houses as described by 
 him were made of logs generally about 1 6 ft. square, 
 and seats were formed of hewn puncheons ; or, if a 
 saw mill was near or a whip-saw available, seats were 
 made of slabs converted into benches by having four 
 holes bored and rude legs placed therein. These 
 legs generally protruded through the top far enough 
 for a wedge to be driven into them to prevent them 
 from falling out, and unfortunate was the unlucky 
 urchin who, in that small and usually crowded room 
 happened to be assigned his seat over that uncom- 
 fortable spot. 
 
 In the spring of 1844 the elder Phelps sold his 
 farm for $300, moved to the vicinity of Berwick and 
 
592 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 rented a farm. There, he said, he remembered well 
 with what pleasure and childish wonder he saw the 
 iron thumb latches with which the doors were fur- 
 nished. Usually at that time there was used a large 
 wooden latch, to which there was fastened a string 
 that passed through a hole in the door above it, and 
 by pulling the string the latch was raised. At that 
 time thieves were almost unknown, and this latch 
 string hung out with a welcoming hospitality to every 
 lost or belated traveler. 
 
 This year, 1844, was known as the rainy season. 
 The windows of heaven seemed to be opened, and 
 the storm king to rule with unrestrained power. 
 More than once with his brothers and sisters he was 
 put into the cellar, while his father and mother stay- 
 ed above to hold the doors and windows. Often, 
 too, with a common dipper, has he seen them dip 
 water from the well, so saturated was the earth. In 
 1845, his father having bought the place four miles 
 east of Monmouth, where he lived until his death, 
 ' moving upon it in the spring of that year. 
 
 From Berwick there was the wide prairie that lies 
 south and east of Monmouth. It was then supposed 
 to be too wet to ever be valuable, and rash indeed 
 was considered the man who would leave a point of 
 timber and venture to make his home thereon. 
 
 The course thence to Monmouth was a straight 
 line, and, in fact, to almost any other point, if one 
 could cross the sloughs and streams which were gen- 
 erally unbridged. The prairie spoken of was cov- 
 ered with an immense growth of rank weeds, but a 
 few feet apart, that grew to a height of from 10 to 15 
 feet, and were covered on top and sides with yellow 
 flowers. Many a time after he was large enough to 
 hunt the cows, he had to stand up on his horse's 
 back to see over the tops of these weeds, and would 
 find them lying down not 100 steps away, when he 
 could not see them while sitting on the horse. A great 
 bunch of resinous leaves several feet in diameter 
 grew at the foot of these tall weeds, and after frost 
 were as inflammable as tinder. In the event of a 
 prairie fire the wind would sweep them in a fiery 
 cloud away in front of the bursting flames, and kin- 
 dle the fire far in advance, which greatly accelerated 
 the speed of the conflagration. Upon this prairie, 
 when he was large enough to ride on horseback with 
 safely, he attended two grand circular wolf hunts with 
 his father and two older brothers, where the lines 
 had been formed upon the borders of the county, 
 
 and the deer and wolves driven before until late in 
 the day they were found in the circle or square that 
 the encroaching horses formed around the prairie. 
 
 The first year of residence upon this place, there 
 was killed thereon almost 100 rattlesnakes, and over 
 400 other snakes. Often, in riding across that prai- 
 rie several years later, he has encountered a wolf or 
 deer, or heard therattle of the disturbed rattlesnake, 
 which horses seemed to avoid with instinctive fear. 
 Here young Delos also attended school for a few 
 months in the year in the primitive log school house. 
 The privileges of school were valued, because scarce 
 in those days. There he first studied Latin under 
 the tuition of his sister Ellen, and also under that 
 of Rev. J. W. Butler, who afterward became Presi- 
 dent of Abingdon College. President Butler was at 
 that time a student at either Knox College, 111., or 
 Bethany College in Virginia. His father, Major Pe- 
 ter Butler, was almost, if not quite, the first County 
 Surveyor of Warren County, and lived about four 
 miles east of Monmouth. A block house stood up- 
 on his farm that had been built there for protection 
 against the Indians. But Mr. Phelps was indebted 
 to home instruction for much of his learning, espe- 
 cially for his love of poetry and eloquence. Extracts 
 from Scott and other standard authors were taught 
 him by his mother, who brought them stored in her 
 memory from New York, and taught them to him 
 years before he ever saw them in a book. She taught 
 him so early that he has no recollection of learning 
 to read. He always had a desire to go through Col- 
 lege, and in 1856 the establishment of Monmouth 
 College gave him an opportunity, and he told his 
 father that if he would let htm go he would relin- 
 quish all interest in his estate, and in September, 
 1857, he started. The father did not intend that 
 such should be the price of his son's education, but 
 justly considered that those things desired and ob- 
 tained with difficulty, were the most prized. The 
 young student pursued his studies at home and rode 
 on horseback to Monmouth to recite, staying out oc- 
 casionally to teach a term in order to get money to 
 aid in the expenses; and thus he really earned more 
 money than he spent while attending College. 
 
 Mr. Phelps graduated in the classical department 
 in 1862, having been in college five years. His was 
 the last class that graduated from the old college 
 building. He studied French under the instruction 
 of his cousin, Miss Annie Stevens, afterwards the 
 

 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 593 
 
 wife of A. G. Kirkpatrick, as an extra study. He 
 also studied law during vacations, and at all spare 
 moments, getting the books from A. G. Kirkpatrick, 
 then a leading lawyer of Monmouth. 
 
 In February, 1862, however, four months before he 
 graduated, he was attacked with acute opthalmia. 
 For weeks he was confined to a darkened room. At 
 one time the sight of one eye was pronounced by his 
 physician as lost, but fortunately he was mistaken. 
 Mr. Phelps was determined to graduate with his 
 class, however, and his sister Annie read his lessons 
 to him, and when he got able to endure the light, 
 with a heavy shade over his eyes, he rode to the col- 
 lege and recited them. He dictated his commence- 
 ment oration to the same sister, who wrote it down 
 and read it to him until he had learned it. He was 
 chosen by his class to deliver the valedictory ad- 
 dress, and delivered that and his oration while so 
 nearly blind he could not recognize his friends half 
 way across the Church, where the commencement 
 exercises were held. 
 
 He always had a great love for oratory, and many 
 eloquent passages of great orators and statesmen 
 were familiar and delightful to him, and while in 
 college he rarely missed the Friday night meeting of 
 the Philadelphia Literary Society, of which he was 
 a member. Their debates, orations and essays 
 were continued, often, to the "wee sma' hours," and 
 were to him a source of great pleasure and improve- 
 ment. For three successive years, during his college 
 course, he was chosen by his society to represent it 
 in its annual literary contest with the Eccrittean 
 Society, its rival in college. The writer of this has 
 heard him say that to the discipline there received in 
 that society, he attributed much of whatever suc- 
 cess he may have attained afterwards at the bar. 
 For two years after he graduated he vainly tried, by 
 the help of divers physicians, to recover his sight, 
 so as to go on with the study of his chosen profes- 
 sion, until almost in despair; and though usually 
 cheerful under the disappointment thus suffered, he 
 was wont to attribute to it whatever of a sombre 
 hue there might be in his character. 
 
 In the spring of 1864, Mr. Phelps, despairing of 
 being able to go on with his studies, being still un- 
 able to read for ten consecutive minutes, or even 
 look upward, and hoping to make a little money to 
 aid him in his studies when able to prosecute them, 
 went across the plains to Idaho Territory, where he 
 
 .began digging gold, with, however, indifferent suc- 
 cess, except as to health. The change of climate, 
 exercise and being in the open air invigorated his 
 health, and did much to strengthen his sight, and 
 having lost, in purchasing a mine, what money he 
 had, he concluded to go to Idaho City and teach 
 school. At that place in the winter of 1864-5 ne 
 rented a small house, bought some lumber, bor- 
 rowed tools, made seats and desks and opened a 
 school, at one dollar per week per scholar. His 
 school swelled to 55 in number, and finding his 
 quarters too small, he raised, by subscription, nearly 
 $1,000, and built the first school-house erected in 
 that Territory outside of Lewiston, and possibly in 
 advance of any built there. This school-house he 
 afterward gave to the school authorities there, and it 
 was one of the few buildings that escaped the fire 
 which destroyed the city. 
 
 While teaching, Mr. Phelps spent his spare hours 
 in the law office of Hon. Chas. B. Waite, of Chicago, 
 before then Chief Justice of Utah Territory, and he 
 and other legal friends examined him in the law 
 and wrote a letter in his favor, which he sent to 
 Lewiston, with the accustomed fee therefor, and a 
 license was issued him to practice law. On May 
 18, 1865, Idaho City was destroyed by fire, and his 
 law license and almost everything else he possessed 
 was burned. That fall he returned East on horse- 
 back across the plains. His sight was then restored 
 so that he could read a considerable portion of the 
 time by daylight, and he continued to study law and 
 was admitted to the Bar by the Supreme Court of 
 this State in the Spring of 1866, at Ottawa, upon ex- 
 amination in open court, not being able to produce 
 the license granted him in Idaho Territory. Thus, 
 aside from the improvement of his general health, 
 he had lost about four years of his life, and very im- 
 portant ones, too, coining as they did just at the 
 close of his college life. 
 
 On the 8th day of May, 1866, Mr. Phelps came 
 to Monmouth and began the practice of law, his 
 earthly possessions at that time consisting of a horse, 
 blind in one eye, wcrth about $125. He formed a 
 law partnership with Hon. C. M. Harris, of Oquawka, 
 which was nominal, rather than otherwise, as he 
 continued to reside in Oquawka. In the fall of that 
 year he formed a law partnership with Hon. J. H. 
 Stewart, which continued until he retired fiom prac- 
 tice, in 1880. 
 
 : 
 
594 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 In 1868, Mr. Phelps was nominated by the State 
 Democratic Convention for Presidential Elector, and 
 challenged Hon. Henry W. Draper, of Carthage, 111., 
 Republican Elector, to a joint discussion of the 
 questions at issue, at three points in each county in 
 the District, which then extended from Quincy to 
 Rock Island. Mr. Draper accepted for two points 
 in each county, and the debates were held, usually 
 before large audiences. While at Rock Island, hold- 
 ing one of these joint discussions, he was nominated 
 also for District Attorney. Both Districts were 
 largely Republican and he was defeated ; but these 
 debates established his reputation as a brilliant and 
 able speaker, and his name was frequently mentioned 
 thereafter as a candidate for Congress, and in 1876 
 he came within two or three votes of being nomi- 
 nated. In 1878 he was nominated by acclamation. 
 Col. Frank B. Marsh, of Warsaw, Hancock County, 
 was the Republican candidate, while Hon. A. B. 
 Streeter, of Mercer County, formerly a Democrat, 
 ran on the Greenback ticket. His candidacy di- 
 vided the Democratic vote and defeated Mr. Phelps. 
 In Mercer County Mr. Streeter succeeded in convinc- 
 ing his old neighbors that there was no chance for 
 Mr. Phelps' election, but that there was for his own 
 on the then Greenback tidal wave, and he secured 
 in that county 868 votes, while Mr. Phelps secured 
 898. The Democratic vote of that county two years 
 before had been nearly equal to both these numbers. 
 Col. Marsli retained his party strength and Mr. 
 Phelps was defeated by 576 votes. In Warren 
 County he was beaten by but 298 votes, while the 
 usual Republican majority was from 700 to 800. In 
 this campaign he had to contend against two other 
 candidates. Had Mr. Streeter not been in the field 
 Mr. Phelps would have been elected easily by 1,500 
 majority. In that campaign he probably delivered 
 more public addresses than were ever made by any 
 candidate in Illinois during the same length of time, 
 making 38 speeches of from two and a half to three 
 hours each in the last 23 days, or almost two daily, 
 yet such was their character that a prominent gen- 
 tleman declared to the writer that he "went to hear 
 him nine times during that campaign and that the 
 last speech was the best of all." 
 
 Mr. Phelps is an ardent and uncompromising 
 Democrat, and takes an active part in almost every 
 political campaign, and had his lot been cast where 
 
 his party was in the ascendancy there is no position 
 to which he might not have aspired. He was ever 
 interested in the welfare of his city and neighbor- 
 hood. 
 
 In 1875, the citizens of Monmouth, desiring to ob- 
 tain some railroad competition, organized the Bur- 
 lington, Monmouth & Illinois River Railway Com- 
 pany for that purpose. Mr. Phelps was among the 
 first subscribers, to the extent of $r,ooo. He was 
 made a director of the company, and in 1879, when 
 the enterprise seemed likely to fall, Mr. Phelps and 
 Mr. William Hanna assumed control and acquired 
 the ownership of it, and, as will be seen in the no- 
 tice of the Central Iowa Railway Company, pushed 
 it to completion, until now it is growing to be one of 
 the most important roads of the West. 
 
 There is, perhaps, no more remarkable case upon 
 record of as important a railway as this developing 
 from so humble a beginning by force of judicious 
 management. In this company and in the Peoria 
 & Farmington Railway Company, which was its suc- 
 cessor, the name of which was afterwards changed to 
 the Central Iowa, Mr. Phelps held almost every po- 
 sition of responsibility and trust; being its Vice-Pres- - 
 ident, General Manager, Secretary and Legal 
 Counselor. He made the contracts, supervised the 
 construction and directed its operations ; was instru- 
 mental in consolidating it with the Central Iowa, of 
 Iowa, of which company he became a director and 
 assistant Superintendant, which latter position he 
 now holds. He organized the Keithsburg Bridge 
 Company, now building an iron bridge over the Mis- 
 sissippi River at Keithsburg, 111., and was until 
 recently a director and secretary thereof. In addi- 
 tion to his interests in these railways, which are 
 large, he is a stockholder and director in the Weir 
 Plow Company of Monmouth, and is a large land- 
 owner in Warren County and in Iowa. What he 
 has, he has made by his own efforts. While at the 
 Bar, he was recognized as standing in its front ranks. 
 As a trial lawyer, he perhaps had no superior, and 
 as an advocate before a jury he was in a high de- 
 gree eloquent and persuasive, while an indomitable 
 will made him never despair of winning the most 
 desperate cases. The practice of his firm is seen by 
 reference to the reports of the Supreme Court, and 
 was both lucrative and extensive. He abandoned 
 it in 1880, because his time and energies were en- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 595 
 
 grossed in his railway enterprise. As a business 
 man, he possesses good judgment and great execu- 
 tive ability, as will be seen from his industrious and 
 successful career. 
 
 On April 13, 1870, Mr. Phelps was married to 
 Sarah Jeannette, daughter of Rev. Anson Tucker, 
 of whom and of her mother and their ancestry 
 sketches appear in this volume. Mrs. Phelps is a 
 lady of rare accomplishments and virtues. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Phelps occupy a delightful home, beautified by 
 many works of art and brightened by two lovely 
 daughters Eleanor Randolph, 12 years old and 
 Claire Marguerite, eight years old. With a father's 
 partiality, Mr. P. has given the names of Eleanor 
 and Claire to two stations upon the line of the 
 Central Iowa Railway in Illinois. Mrs. Phelps is a 
 member of the United Presbyterian Church, of Mon- 
 mouth. She is beloved by the poor and needy of 
 that city as their active and earnest friend and as- 
 sistant. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Phelps are now in the prime 
 of life, with promise of abundant years of usefulness 
 and happiness in store for them. 
 
 ^phraim S. Swinney, one of the pioneers of 
 Monmouth, was born at Bridgeton, N. J., 
 June 23, 1817, and was the second in or- 
 der of birth of a family of three sons of Daniel 
 J. and Elizabeth (Seeley) Swinney, natives of 
 Pennsylvania and New Jersey and of Irish and 
 Welsh extraction respectively. 
 
 Ephraim S. Swinney was educated at Mansfield, 
 Ohio, where his father removed in 1822, and where 
 Daniel J. Swinney, who was a physician and also a 
 preacher in the Baptist Church, died in 1858, at the 
 age of 76 years. His widow died at the same place, 
 surviving him only one month, aged 72 years. 
 
 Mr. Swinney of this notice came to Monmouth in 
 1837, an d here he has since lived, and what he does 
 not know of the early history of this now proud, little 
 city will never be told. He began life here as a la- 
 borer, worked at anything or everything, quarried the 
 rock that laid the foundation of the present County 
 Court House, and in 1839 went into Daniel McNeil's 
 store and Postoffice as a clerk. In 1843 he was 
 
 elected Recorder of the county, and held the office 
 eight years, or up to the day that office was abol- 
 ished. In 1853 he was elected County Clerk, and 
 held that office eight years, and since 1861 has lived 
 a life of peaceful retirement. 
 
 On Dec. 21, 1843, he was united in marriage at 
 Monmouth with Miss Mary Berry, whose father, B. 
 Berry, of Flemingsburg, Ky., was killed in the War 
 of 1812. The ten children bom to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Swinney are Mary E. (Mrs. William G. Hutchinson), 
 Miletus L., Ann M. (Mrs. W. D. Tresham), Daniel 
 J., John Milton, Lucy J., Catherine B. (Mrs. C. E. 
 Cornell), Henrietta, Octavia G. and Richard Lee, 
 and all living at the date of this publication (Febru- 
 ary, 1886). 
 
 tavid Dunbar Dunkle, Commander G. A. 
 R. Post, No. 330, and at the head of the 
 firm of Dunkle & Bristol, grocers at Mon- 
 mouth, was born at Pittsburgh, Pa., Nov. n, 
 1840. His parents, David and Margaret A. 
 (Henry) Dunkle, were also Pennsylvanians. 
 They were the parents of an only daughter, who 
 grew to womanhood, married a Mr. Stewart, and died 
 soon afterward in Pennsylvania. David was born a 
 few weeks after his father's death, but his mother 
 supplied him with a step-father in the course of time, 
 who taught David how to farm, and the neighborhood 
 pedagogue took advantage of such odd times as the 
 farm could not monopolize, and taught him the rudi- 
 ments of an English education. When about 20 
 years of age he went to Bedford Co., Pa., and learned 
 the moulder's trade, and on the 27th of August, 
 i86r, enlisted as a private in Co. F, tooth Pa. Reg., 
 known as the "Round Heads," and served three 
 years. He was with his regiment in the secret expe- 
 dition against Hilton Head, in November, 1861; 
 participated in the engagements at Bufort, S. C. ; 
 James Island, near Charleston ; joined the Eastern 
 army in July, 1862, and fought the enemy at Bull 
 Run, Chantilla, South Mountain, Antietam, and 
 through Gen. Burnside's winter campaign. The 
 spring of 1863 found the regiment in the army of the 
 Mississippi. After occupying Vicksburg, young Da- 
 vid was taken sick, returned to Kentucky and left at 
 
596 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Camp Nelson hospital. After his recovery he re- 
 turned to the army of the Potomac, and participated 
 in the early part of the Grant campaign, in the battle 
 of the Wilderness, and on to Spottsylvania. During 
 the whole service he was absent from duty only about 
 four months. 
 
 After the war D. D. Dunkle made a flying trip to 
 Colorado via Monmouth, where, after returning East, 
 he settled down in the spring of 1866, since which 
 time, up to engaging in his present business, he has 
 alternated between farming and working at his trade. 
 From 1880 to 1885 lie was employed as foreman for 
 the Pattee Plow Company, and in June, 1885, he 
 embarked in the grocery trade. 
 
 In 1883. he was elected Senior Vice-Commander 
 of the G. A. R. Post, and, in 1885, promoted to Post 
 Commander. He has been appointed Aid-de-Camp 
 on the staff" of the present Commander-in-Chief of 
 the G. A. R. He is a Past Master in Masonry, 
 High Priest in the Chapter (No. 30), and member of 
 the Oriental Consistory of Chicago. He is also a 
 member of the I. O. O. F., and in all the Orders to 
 which he belongs is counted among the brightest 
 and most active members. For the last three years 
 he has also been special correspondent of this county 
 for the Chicago Herald. 
 
 May 22, 1867, he was married at Viola, 111., to Miss 
 Jennie N. Ayles, who died Aug. 31, 1879, leaving 
 three children Harry, Maggie and Willie. On the 
 2oth of December, 1882, at Monmouth, he married 
 his present wife, Mrs. Amanda Vine, nee Rodgers. 
 
 Mr. Dunkle is a Democrat in political affiliations, 
 and has twice been elected to represent his Ward in 
 the City Council. 
 
 . harles E. Blackburn, of the firm of 
 Blackburn & Turnbull, undertakers and 
 dealers in undertaking and embalming 
 goods, also proprietors of extensive livery, 
 sale and feed stables at Monmouth, was born 
 in LaPorte County, Ind., Sept. 19, r847. His 
 parents, Alexander and Delilah (Polk) Blackburn, na- 
 tives of the States of Virginia and Kentucky respec- 
 tively, came to Illinois in 1853, and lived there 
 several years, in McDonough Count) , where, and in 
 
 Monmouth College, where he applied himself to study 
 for two years, he received his education. 
 
 In 1872, he came to Monmouth, clerked awhile in 
 a hardware store, embarked in the saddle and har- 
 ness business, and drifted into the livery business, in 
 1880. (See sketch of David Turnbull, in this 
 volume.) 
 
 Mr. Blackburn was married at Monmouth, Nov. 2, 
 1871, to Miss Olive Jewell, daughter of Jacob Jew- 
 ell, and of this union three children were born 
 Bessie, Anna, and an infant son who is dead. 
 
 J J\ 
 
 : rof. Thomas H. Rogers, Professor of 
 Mathematics of Monmouth College, was 
 born at Banares, India, Sept. 2, 1836. His 
 parents, Rev. William and Julia Ann (Riley) 
 Rogers, natives respectively of the States of 
 Ohio and New York, were married at Craw- 
 fordsville, Indiana, and the children born of their 
 union were one son and two daughters. 
 
 The Rev. Mr. Rogers, distinguished ministerof the 
 Presbyterian Church, was a graduate of Miami (Ohio) 
 University, and in 1836, sent as a missionary to In- 
 dia, where he remained Light years. Returning to 
 this country in 1844, he settled down at Oxford, Ohio, 
 and spent the rest of his life. 
 
 Thomas H. Rogers, of whom we write, also a 
 graduate of Miami (Ohio) University, from which 
 institution he took first honors in Philosophy, class of 
 1856, has spent his life as student and teacher. Im- 
 mediately upon leaving College he accepted a Pro- 
 fessorship at Logansport (Ind.) Academy; going 
 thence at the end of a year to Monroe (Ohio) Acad- 
 emy, where he taught the three succeeding years. 
 From Monroe he took charge of Paris (111.) Acade- 
 my, coming to Monmouth in 1864. Here he had 
 charge of the Academy for some years before ac- 
 cepting the chair of Mathematics in the College. 
 (See history of Monmouth College ) 
 
 From 1868 he has been officially connected as Sec- 
 retary and Superintendei.t, with the Public Library; 
 first in connection with the Monmouth Free Reading 
 Room, and since with the permanent organization of 
 the Library, founded by the large and wise liberality 
 of William P. Pressley. Much credit is due to Prof 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 597 
 
 Rogers, as to every one of the Directors of this, Mon- 
 mouth's greatest public institution, for its unusual 
 success, and its almost unparalleled and highly de- 
 served popularity. 
 
 Speaking thus of a Library at so small a city as 
 Monmouth, may sound extravagant; but the unbi- 
 ased stranger who visits such places from time to 
 time in all parts of the Union and patronizes them, 
 though only for selfish purposes, will never spend a 
 week at this city and one hour each day thereof in 
 its reading rooms, without comprehending fully the 
 force of the language here used, and what is of more 
 importance, appreciating its truthfulness. (See his- 
 tory of Warren County Library.) 
 
 Prof. Rogers was married at Lincoln, 111., Oc{. 24, 
 1862, to Miss Lucinda R. Brainard, a native of Ohio, 
 and daughter of Rev. E. Brainard, of the Presbyte- 
 rian Church. Mrs. Rogers died Oct. 29, 1878, leav- 
 ing two daughters Amy and Ella, the first a gradu- 
 ate of, and the second a student at Monmouth Col- 
 lege. 
 
 illiam D. Johnson, whose entrance into 
 life was coeval with that of the igth Cen- 
 tury, and whose silvered hair is strongly 
 indicative of a life that has been replete 
 with usefulness and honorable actions, was 
 born in Sussex Co., N. J., Dec. 19, 1800. He 
 is to-day venerated by all who know him as one of 
 the worthiest citizens of Kirkwood, where he has 
 been a resident for nearly 15 years. 
 
 The parents of Mr. Johnson, Samuel and Mary 
 (Hall) Johnson, were natives of New Jersey and 
 there resided until their deaths. William D. re- 
 mained an inmate of his father's household until he 
 was 20 years of age, having in the meantime received 
 a good common-school education in the district 
 schools. At the age named he settled on a portion 
 of his father's farm, which he cultivated until 1834. 
 On the 1 2th day of May, 1834, Mr. Johnson started 
 for the undeveloped West with two teams, contain- 
 ing his family (which at that time consisted of his 
 wife and six children) and such household effects 
 as were portable under the circumstances. They 
 came by way of Pittsburgh, through Pennsylvania 
 
 and through the Ohio Valley to Indianapolis, Ind. 
 From the latter city they came to this State, crossing 
 the Illinois River at Havana, and going thence to 
 Canton, Fulton County. Arriving at the latter place 
 Mr. Johnson concluded it was a good agricultural 
 country and determined to make it his abiding place. 
 He consequently purchased 80 acres of Government 
 land and cultivated the same until 1836, when he 
 sold it and purchased a 24o-acre tract, moved his 
 family, and at once engaged actively and energetic- 
 ally upon its cultivation and improvement, with the 
 determination at that time of making it a permanent 
 home. He lived on that farm for some 21 years, 
 erecting thereon a fine residence and a substantial 
 barn and other necessary outbuildings, set out fruit 
 and ornamental trees and otheiwise improved the 
 land, and by a subsequent purchase increased his 
 landed interests in that county to 400 acres. In 18157 
 he purchased 320 acres in Henderson County, and 
 during that year came to Kirkwood, purchased 
 ground and erected the fine residence upon it which 
 has been his home ever since. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Johnson took place in 1821, 
 at which time Miss Martha Shackleton, a native of 
 New Jersey, became his wife. They have seven 
 children living, namely: Pamelia, born Jan. n, 
 1822; Samuel J., Aug. 27, 1823; Richard S., April 
 20, 1825; Theodore F., March 26, 1827; Oakley, 
 Feb. 4, 1830; Mary J., Dec. 21, 1832; John H., 
 Nov. 9, 1834: Andrew R., July 2, 1838; he was 
 killed in the late Civil War. Pamelia married Sam- 
 uel Brimhall and resides at Kirkwood; Samuel mar- 
 ried Hester A. Rapalee ; six children are now living, 
 the result of his marriage William L., Elsena, 
 Clayton, Perry J., Andrew and Marilda. Of his 
 second marriage one child has been born ; he now 
 lives in Kansas. Richard was married to Lucretia 
 Bruce, and Kansas is now his home ; Theodore mar- 
 ried Elizabeth Martin; John W. and Luella are the 
 names of their children ; Oakley is married and liv- 
 ing in Clay Co., Neb. ; Frank and Waldo, besides 
 two deceased, are the children born to him ; Mary 
 became the wife of James Johnson ; one child was 
 born to them Mattie L. ; Mr. J. died Sept. 4, 1866; 
 John H. married Kate Zook, and resides at Bush- 
 nell. 
 
 Mrs. Johnson died April 14, 187 r, mourned by 
 her family and a host of relatives and friends as a 
 faithful, loving wife, a gentle and devoted mother 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 and a generous, warm-hearted neighbor. In politics, 
 Mr. J. is an earnest supporter of the principles ad- 
 vocated by the Republican party. In his religious 
 views, he coincides with the tenets of the Baptist 
 Church, to which denomination he belongs. He has 
 held many offices of trust within the gift of the peo- 
 ple of his township, and now, as he lingers in the 
 shadows of life, he can look back over the history of 
 the past with satisfaction, and live in the enjoyment 
 of that peace and plenty which a life of active indus- 
 try has brought him. 
 
 > V V *" 
 
 illiam Wood, in mercantile business at 
 Kirkwood, on Main Street, was born in 
 Ashtabula Co., Ohio, March 7, 1833, his 
 parents being Martin H. and Sally (Nettle- 
 ton) Wood. Martin H. Wood, father of the 
 gentleman whose biography we write, came to 
 Illinois from Ohio in 1837. His terminus in this 
 State was Warren County, and on arrival here he 
 purchased a farm on which he located with his fam- 
 ily, and engaged in that pursuit which he has fol- 
 lowed all his life, agriculture. He was one of the 
 early settlers in this county, and has witnessed its 
 development to the magnificent agricultural condi- 
 tion it occupies to-day, and is yet living, at the ad- 
 vanced age of 87 years, in Henderson County. 
 
 William Wood, subject of this notice, remained 
 with his parents until he was ten years old, when he 
 engaged as clerk in a store at Oquawka, where he 
 remained a year. He then changed his position to 
 another store, and followed the same occupation for 
 four years longer, and then worked on the river dur- 
 ing the summers, and clerked in the winter, for six 
 years more. In 1856 he purchased 40 acres of land, 
 which he subsequently added to by the purchase of 
 40 acres in Henderson County, and on which he re- 
 sided, occupied in its cultivation and improvement 
 for three years. At the expiration of this time he 
 once more engaged in the mercantile pursuits as clerk 
 at Oquawka, and followed the same for four years, 
 until 1868, when he came to Kirkwood, this county, 
 and engaged in the grocery and provision trade. In 
 company with a Mr. Thompson he bought out a 
 Mr. Morris at that place, and after carrying on their 
 
 business jointly four days, they were burned out. 
 The partners were not disheartened and immediately 
 purchased another building and under the firm name 
 of Wood & Thompson again engaged in business, 
 which co-partnership lasted for one and a half years, 
 when Mr. Wood bought out the interest of his part- 
 ner, and continued the business two years longer. He 
 also during that time was "mine host" of the Tre- 
 mont House at Kirkwood for 18 months, and for a 
 time followed the nursery business, which he merged 
 into the green-house business, and was thus occupied 
 for eight years. Disposing of the latter business, he 
 engaged in a variety store at Kirkwood Village in 
 1880, and has since continued the same. He keeps 
 a general stock of almost everything that is neces- 
 sary to supply the wants of his customers, and is 
 meeting with success. 
 
 In politics he votes with the Republican party, 
 and in religion, together with his wife, belongs to the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 In addition to his business at Kirkwood, Mr. 
 Wood has a farm of 160 acres, in Boone County, 
 Nebraska. 
 
 He was married Oct. 9, 1856, to Martha E. Tyr- 
 ell, a native of Ashtabula County, Ohio. 
 
 The business qualities of Mr. Wood are such as 
 to entitle him to be classified as one of the leading 
 business men of Kirkwood, and his dealings are such 
 as to entitle him to the respect of the citizens of the 
 community in which he resides. 
 
 ames Watson, the only gentleman engaged 
 I" in business at Ellison, where he is con- 
 ducting a dry goods, grocery and general 
 mercantile store, and is also Postmaster and 
 School Trustee, was born in this county, Nov. 
 10, 1855. The father of Mr. Watson of this 
 sketch, Lucius Watson, was born in Schoharie Co., 
 N. Y., and came with his parents when eight years 
 of age to this county. They settled near Roseville, 
 and live in Point Pleasant Township. Lucius was a 
 farmer by occupation and married Georgia A. Forte, 
 a native of Kentucky. After marriage he settled in 
 Point Pleasant Township, where he has continued 
 to follow his chosen profession until the present time. 
 He is the proprietor of 280 acres of good farm land 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 60 1 
 
 where he resides. The parental family comprised 
 seven children, and James is the third in order of 
 birth. 
 
 James Watson, whose name stands at the head of 
 this notice, was educated in the township of his na- 
 tivity and there resided until he attained the age of 
 17 years, when he went to Abingdon and remained 
 for three years. He afterward taught school four 
 terms in the common schools of the county. 
 
 He was married to Miss Augusta, the accom- 
 plished daughter of David and Jane (Brown) Brent, 
 Oct. 30, 1877. Her parents reside in the county 
 and her father is following the vocation of a farmer 
 in Ellison Township. Mrs. Watson was born on 
 the parental homestead in Ellison Township, Feb. 
 22, 1856, and was reared and educated in the town- 
 ship of her nativity, having also attended college at 
 Abingdon two years prior to her marriage. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Watson have become the parents of one child 
 Amy, born Jan. 27, 1885. 
 
 After marriage, Mr. Watson located on a farm in 
 Ellison Township, and continued to reside thereon 
 until December, 1881, when he moved to the village 
 of Ellison. He purchased the stock of goods owned 
 by Amos Pierce at that place, and since that time 
 has continued to carry on the mercantile business. 
 By fair and honest dealing with his patrons, he has 
 established a good and paying businessand is meet- 
 ing with financial success. Soon after engaging in 
 business at that place, Mr. Watson was appointed 
 Postmaster, which office he continues to hold until 
 the present time. He and his wife are members of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church at Ellison, of which 
 denomination Mr. Watson is Steward and Trustee. 
 He has held the office of School Trustee for two 
 years, and, in his political opinions, he affiliates 
 with the Republican party, taking an active interest 
 in local politics. 
 
 /.ugh Marshall, M. D., a prominent phy- 
 sician and surgeon of Monmouth, 111., was 
 born In Fairfield District, South Carolina, 
 Dec. 15, 1830. His grandparents were born 
 in Ireland, and his parents, Alexander and 
 Mary (McMillan) Marshall were natives of 
 South Carolina. They reared six sons and one 
 
 daughter, Hugh being the sixth child in order of 
 birth. Alexander Marshall was a 'farmer by occu- 
 pation, came into Henderson Co., 111., in 1838, or 
 1839, and there spent the rest of his life, dying in 
 1869 or 1870 at the age of about 70 years. 
 
 Hugh Marshall received his primary and literary 
 training at the common schools of Illinois and 
 taught therefrom the age of 20 to 22 or 23. In 
 1848-9 he began reading medicine with Dr. McMil- 
 lan of Henderson ; entered Rush Medical College, 
 Chicago, in 1849, and graduated in 1851. He be- 
 gan practice at once after leaving college at Cold- 
 brook, and there remained until 1872 at which time 
 he removed into Monmouth. Here he has devoted 
 his time to his profession, and with such success as 
 he may well be proud. He is prominently identified 
 with the State Medical Society, American Medical 
 Association, Military Tract Society and Monmouth 
 Medical Club. He is no politician, and the only of- 
 fices he has ever held in the county has been a term 
 or two as Collector of Coldbrook Township, and one 
 term as Coroner. 
 
 He was married at Monmouth some time in 1873 
 to Miss Matilda C. Brewer, native of Pennsylvania,^ 
 and daughter of the late John T. Brewer, of Mon- 
 mouth. TJie Doctor is a member of no Church. 
 He ranks high as a Mason, and votes the Demo- 
 cratic ticket with Christian regularity. 
 
 William Randall, a member of the reg- 
 ular school of medicine, practicing at 
 Greenbush, graduated at the Jefferson 
 Medical College, Philadelphia, at the head 
 of his class, March 9, 1858. He soon after- 
 | ward located in Greenbush, this county, 
 where he has built up a good practice and has been 
 very successful. The Doctor is also a graduate of 
 surgery, and his library is complete. 
 
 Dr. Randall was born in Dearbon Co., Ind., ,25 
 miles from Cincinnati, in the town of Aurora, May 
 27, 1834, and is a son of George Randall, born in 
 Kent Co., England, in 1796. His father emigrated 
 to the United States in r82i, and located near New 
 Haven, Ind. He was a minister of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, and followed his sacred calling 
 in this county some ten years, and died in .1866. He 
 had located in Indiana, where his marriage to Miss 
 
602 
 
 WARR&N COUNTV. 
 
 Rhoda Eubank, which took place in 1826, was 
 blessed by the birth of eight children, namely : John 
 E., George F., William, Mary, Thomas E. and Rich- 
 ard R., twins, Rebecca J. and Elizabeth V. Two 
 are deceased, Mary and Richard. The wife and 
 mother was born in Yorkshire, Eng., in 1806, and 
 died in Indiana in 1859. 
 
 Dr. Randall, of this sketch, was first married to 
 Miss Caroline, daughter of F. and Adeline Snapp, 
 who bore him two children George S. born Dec. 27, 
 1863, and Clyde W. Oct. 6, 1872. The Doctor mar- 
 ried Miss Edwina C. Bond, Feb. 28, 1879, and by 
 this union there is one child, William B., born 
 April 3, 1882. 
 
 In politics, the Doctor is a believer in the princi- 
 ples advocated by the Democratic party. His suc- 
 cess as a practitioner is due to his careful diagnos- 
 ing of the diseases of his patients, and his constant 
 attention to his cases. 
 
 Dr. Randall is a gentleman who not only reflects 
 honor upon his profession, but is a credit to the com- 
 munity in which he lives. His large and extended 
 experience, his deep and abiding interest in his pro- 
 fession and the general welfare of the community, 
 make him both a valuable physician and citizen. He 
 is as widely known and as highly esteemed as any 
 practitioner in the county, and numbers among his 
 patrons and friends many of the best people in War- 
 ren county. As both a representative of his chosen 
 profession and a citizen of the county, the publishers 
 take pleasure in placing Dr. Randall's portrait in this 
 ALBUM in connection with this sketch. 
 
 ames L. Glasgow, whose accumulations 
 during the years of the past have enabled 
 him to retire from the active labors of life, 
 is residing upon Section 28, Monmouth Town- 
 ship. He was born in Londonderry, Guernsey 
 Co., Ohio, Jan. 24, 1843. 
 The father of Mr. Glasgow, Arthur Glasgow, was 
 a native of County Antrim, the son of a farmer, of 
 Irish birth. When 18 years old, Arthur's parents 
 emigrated to the United States, and soon after land- 
 ing at an Eastern seaport, located in Guernsey Co., 
 
 Ohio. There the father and mother both died, and 
 there Arthur, father of the gentleman whose name 
 stands at the head of this notice, is at present resid- 
 ing, with his wife, he having purchased the old 
 homestead on which his father first located after 
 coming to the State. Arthur, before the death of 
 his father, was married to Jane Neal, a native of 
 County Antrim, Ireland, and they became the par- 
 ents of ten children. Jane (Neal) Glasgow, the 
 mother, came to the United States, with her parents, 
 when she was young, locating with them at Wheel- 
 ing, W. Va., and remaining there until her marriage. 
 J. L. Glasgow, whose name stands at the head of 
 this notice, remained with his parents on the par- 
 ental homestead in Guernsey County until October 
 16, 1861, when the call for brave hearts and strong 
 arms to battle for the perpetuity of the Union 
 aroused in him a sense of duty, and he enlisted in 
 Co. H. 65th Ohio Vol., Inf., his regiment being as- 
 signed to the Army of the Cumberland and under 
 the command of Gens. Buell and Rosekranz. It 
 participated in the second days' battle of Shiloh and 
 the seven days' battle at Stone river, also the battle 
 of Murfreesboro, and Chicamauga. On the second 
 days' fight at the latter place, James L. was taken 
 prisoner, and after passing 13 days as captive of the 
 Confederates, was exchanged and on account of dis- 
 ability never more joined his regiment, but was hon- 
 orably discharged at Camp Denison, Ohio, Oct. 26, 
 
 After his term of enlistment had expired, he re- 
 turned home, doffed his uniform, cast aside the ac- 
 coutrements of war and intended to enter again 
 upon the peaceful pursuits of life, but his indisposi- 
 tion was such that it required medical attention, and 
 he went to Madison, Ind., where for six months he 
 was under medical treatment. From Madison, he 
 went home, and from there to Nebraska where, after 
 remaining for a time, he went to Eastern Iowa, and 
 1 6 months later took a trip over Kansas and Mis- 
 souri looking for land. In the spring of 1868 he 
 started across the plains for the Rocky Mountains, 
 working his way on the Union Pacific railroad to 
 Humboldt. From there he accompanied another 
 party to the White Pines of Nevada Territory. He 
 passed seven years in that Territory, during which 
 time he was engaged in mining, meeting with fair 
 success. He afterward spent one year in the Sierra 
 Nevada Mountains, Cal., and in 1877 returned to 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 603 
 
 this county, where he formed a matrimonial alliance 
 with Miss Maggie McAdam, at the residence of the 
 bride's parents near Monmouth, Jan. i, 1877. Mrs. 
 Glasgow was born in Harrison Co., Ohio, and was 
 educated in her native State. Her mother died 
 there when Maggie was an infant, and her father 
 afterward moved to Iowa, where he died at West 
 Point. Mrs. Glasgow came to this county in 1867 
 with her relatives, and graduated from Monmouth 
 College in June, 1870. She has borne her husband 
 two children Robert A., born Sept. i, 1879, and 
 Margaret J., born Jan. 23, 1884. 
 
 After the marriage Mr. G. returned to Nevada 
 Territory for about ten months, where he was en- 
 gaged in settling up his affairs. In 1878 he purchased 
 80 acres of land on Section i, Hale Town- 
 ship. On that place, he with his young bride, lo- 
 cated, and there resided for four years, when they 
 moved to Monmouth Township and purchased 13 
 acres approximate to the city of Monmouth, on 
 which they moved and are at present residing. They 
 have a good residence on their Monmouth Township 
 property, and their farm of 80 acres in Hale Town- 
 ship is under an advanced state of cultivation, and 
 has good improvements upon it. They are both 
 members of the United Presbyterian Church at 
 Monmouth, of which denomination Mr. G. is one of 
 the Trustees. In politics he is a supporter of the 
 Prohibition party, and a strong advocate of the cause 
 of temperance. Mr. Glasgow is next to the eldest 
 in order of birth of a family of ten children, and 
 what is remarkable is, that not a death has occurred, 
 and to them 20 grand-children have been born. 
 
 t avid Turnbull, of the firm of Blackburn 
 & Turnbull, livery, sale and feed stables, 
 undertakers and dealers in undertaking 
 and embalming goods, at Monmouth, was 
 born in Greene County, Ohio, Feb. 4, 1857. 
 His parents, John and Margaret J. (Allen) 
 Turnbull, spent their lives in Greene County, the 
 old gentleman dying in 1880, aged So years, and the 
 old lady in 1881, aged 63 years. They reared three 
 
 sons and four daughters, and David was second in 
 order of birth. 
 
 He was brought up to farming and taught in the 
 public schools. Abandoning farming in 1883, he 
 went into the undertaking business at Cedarville, 
 Ohio, and came to Monmouth a year later, and soon 
 afterwards formed his present business relations. 
 
 Nov. 26, 1884, he was married, near Xenia, Ohio, 
 to Miss Ada Stevenson, the accomplished daughter 
 of Col. Robert Stevenson, Esq., of Greene County, 
 and both he and his wife are consistent members of 
 the United Presbyterian Church. Mr. Turnbull also 
 belongs to the Modern Woodmen of America, and is 
 an active member of Capt. Rankin's Military Com- 
 pany. 
 
 ev. W. T. McConnell. residing at Kirk- 
 wood, was born in Washington Co., Pa., 
 April 13, 1847. The parents of Rev. Mc- 
 Connel were Lemuel and Jane (Lawrence) 
 McConnell, natives of Washington Co., Pa. 
 His father was a farmer in that State and 
 there continued to follow his occupation until his 
 death, in July, 1879. His mother still survives and 
 resides with her son, D. S. McConnell, who is en- 
 gaged in the mercantile business. 
 
 Rev. W. T. McConnell, the gentleman whose 
 name heads this biographical notice, remained in the 
 parental household for five years after attaining his 
 majority. He obtained a rudimentary education in 
 the common schools of his native county, and at the 
 age of r6 years supplemented the same by a thor- 
 ough course of study at the Normal School at Mills- 
 borough, Pa., and followed the curriculum of that 
 institution for one year. He then taught school for 
 two years, and in 1865 still further supplemented 
 his education by matriculating at the Washington 
 and Jefferson College and followed the curriculum of 
 that institution for four years, after which he at- 
 tended the New Wilmington College one year and 
 graduated from the same with honors in 1871. After 
 graduating from the latter institution, the Rev. Mc- 
 Connell attended the Theological Seminary at Alle- 
 gheny, and graduated from the same in 1874. He 
 was licensed to preach, April 15, 1873, by the United 
 
604 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Presbyterian Church at Chartiers, Pa., and was or- 
 dained by the United Presbyterian Church, at 
 Beaver Valley, Nov. 18, 1873. He then became 
 Pastor of the Churches at Mahoning and Poland, the 
 former being located in Pennsylvania and the latter 
 in Ohio, and served them in that capacity for nine 
 years, after which he was Pastor of the Mahoning 
 Church for one year. 
 
 Since March i, 1884, Rev. McConnell has resided 
 in this county, living at Kirkwood. He was united 
 in marriage April 24, 1873, to Miss Allie Miller, a 
 resident of Cannonsburg, Pa., and daughter of 
 Thomas and Annie (Reed) Miller, natives of Wash- 
 ington Co., Pa. Of their union four children have 
 been born Lilliana A., Agnes G., Thomas W. A. 
 and Ralph B. In politics he is a believer in and a 
 strong advocate of the principles of the Prohibition 
 party. 
 
 r' s s- 
 
 >acob W. Brewer, M. D.. distinguished 33d 
 degree Mason, Past Commander-in-Chief 
 of the Oriental Consistory of Chicago, and 
 a prominent physician and surgeon at Mon- 
 mouth, was born March 2, 1823, in Franklin 
 Co., Pa. His parents, Adam and Maria (John- 
 son) Brewer, natives of Pennsylvania and Maryland 
 respectively and of German and Irish extraction, 
 were married in Franklin County, and there resided 
 until 1836, when they came to Fulton County, this 
 State. In 1851 they removed to Knox County and 
 spent the rest of their lives at Knoxville, the elder 
 Brewer dying in 1880, aged 78 years; and his widow 
 two years later aged 82 years. 
 
 The subject of this biographical notice was reared 
 to manhood on his father's farm and educated primar- 
 ily at the common schools, and at Marshal! College, 
 Mercersburg, Pa. When 24 years of age, he began 
 reading medicine at Canton, 111., under J. R. Walter, 
 M. D., and after devoting himself assiduously to the 
 text book for three years, entered Ohio Medical Col- 
 lege, Cincinnati, and in 1850 graduated from the 
 same. Knoxville was the scene of his earliest strug- 
 gles as an M. D., and here he made reputation and 
 money long before the ten years that he staid there 
 
 had passed. While at Knoxville he was Coroner of 
 Knox County, and eight years Postmaster. 
 
 Dr. Brewer came to Monmouth in 1862, and has 
 since practiced medicine and sold drugs. He has 
 been in the City Council as a member; has served 
 often on the Board of Health, and, altogether, has 
 been a useful member of society and a citizen that 
 would reflect credit even upon a better town than 
 Monmouth. His Masonic career began when he 
 was about 25 years of age. At Canton, 111., March 
 20, 1847, he received his first degree, in Morning 
 Star Lodge, No. 30, and May 20 following, the third 
 degree. In December of the same year he was 
 elected Senior Warden of that lodge, and in 1853-54 
 held the office of Deputy Grand Secretary of the 
 Grand Lodge of Illinois. On Dec. 28, 1856, he re- 
 ceived the 32d degree A. A. S. Rite, and June 22, 187 i, 
 was created Sovereign Grand Inspector General in 
 33d degree. He was elected Illustrious Commander- 
 in-Chief of Monmouth Consistory, No. 3, in 1869, 
 appointed Second Lieutenant Commander, Council 
 of Deliberation for Illinois, June 22, 1871; elected 
 High Priest, Warren Chapter, No. 30, Dec. 12, 1879; 
 and his present rank is the highest known in Ma- 
 sonry. 
 
 Dr. Brewer was married at Knoxville, 111., Nov. 
 10, 1852, to Miss Roxalana Hansford, daughter of the 
 late Dr. Charles Hansford, and she bore him one 
 child, Florence, who died in 1882, at the age of 32 
 years, being at the time of her demise the wife of 
 Cooper Shoemaker, of Monmouth. Mrs. Dr. Brewer 
 died in 1884, aged about 52 years. She was born in 
 Knox County. 
 
 |ev. J. B. McMichael, A. M. D. D., Presi- 
 dent of Monmouth College, was born 
 in Trumbull Co., Ohio, July 22, 1833. His 
 parents John and Margaret (Burgess) Mc- 
 Michael, were natives of Ireland, and the first 
 named came to America when but 15 years 
 of age, and lived in Ohio up to 1848. He then re- 
 moved to Pennsylvania, where he spent the rest of 
 his life, dying in Greenville, Mercer County, in 1881. 
 He \vas a farmer and his five sons were brought up 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 605 
 
 in that vocation. Hts mother was brought to this 
 country in infancy. The family came from County 
 Antrim, Ireland, the father being of Scotch-Irish de- 
 scent. The mother died in Trumbull Co., Ohio, in 
 1844. John McMichael, the father of our subject, 
 was thrice married. Eight children (five sons and 
 three daughters) were born of the first union. These 
 were Andrew, Charles, Jackson B., William, John D., 
 Mary, Eliza, Jane and Maria. Charles and William 
 are deceased. Andrew is a carriage manufacturer 
 at Meadville, Pa. He is married and has two 
 daughters living. John is living at Topeka, Kan., 
 where he is engaged in the lumber business. He is 
 also married and has one son. Mary became the 
 wife of Capt. Samuel Isett, of Altoona. He is now 
 deceased. She is the mother of two sons and one 
 daughter and resides at that place. Eliza J. married 
 William Buchanan, who is a farmer in Kansas. One 
 child is the result of this marriage. Maria is the 
 wife of Mr. DuMars, of Greenville, Pa. John Mc- 
 
 1 Michael's wife, the mother of the above named chil- 
 dren, died in 1844, and he was again married in 
 1846, Miss Jannette Calvin, from Mercer Co., Pa., 
 " becoming his wife. She became the mother of two 
 
 I children Robert C. and Elizabeth. The former 
 married a Miss Nelson, of Greenville, Pa., who has 
 borne him four children. He is now engaged in farm- 
 ing. Elizabeth married Dennis Cole, of Kansas, and 
 they have four children. After the death of his sec- 
 ond wife, which occurred in 1850, Mr. McMichael 
 married Miss Sarah Straight, of Georgetown, Pa. 
 This union occurred about 1850, and the widow lives 
 at the old homestead. 
 
 The subject of this sketch attended the common 
 schools while a lad, and at the age of 17 years went 
 to Crawford Co., Pa., and spent the two succeeding 
 years at learning a trade with his brother. From the 
 age of 20 to 22 he was at Greenville (Pa.) Academy, 
 and from there went to Westminister College, in 
 Lawrence County, that State, and after following the 
 entire curriculum of that institution, graduated there- 
 from as A. B. in 1859. In 1862 he graduated from 
 Xenia (Ohio) Theological Seminary, and was soon 
 afterward ordained and settled in Sugar Creek, near 
 Xenia, where he was in charge of a congregation for 
 about 1 6 years. During the last five years he also 
 held a professorship in the Xenia Theological Semin- 
 ary. In June, 1878, he was elected to the Presi- 
 dency of Monmouth College, and on the 5th of the 
 
 following September he entered upon the duties of 
 his office, which position he holds at the present 
 time. 
 
 Rev. McMichael was married at Washington, Pa., 
 Oct. 16, 1862, to Miss Mary N. Hanna, daughter of 
 Rev. Thomas Hanna, D. D., of that city. Of their 
 union, six children were born, named as follows : 
 Thomas Hanna, John Charles, William Jackson, 
 Gracie, James Starr Eckels, and George Harold, who 
 died in 1872, age 14 months. Thomas and Charles 
 are members of the class of 1886, and will graduate 
 on the i?th of June. William belongs to the class of 
 1878; Gracie attends the public schools and James 
 is the baby. 
 
 The Doctor is not only a thorough scholar, but a 
 man of rare executive ability. The growth of Mon- 
 mouth College, under his administration, attests his 
 fitness for the position he occupies. (See history of 
 Monmouth College, this volume.) 
 
 illiam S. Weir, President of the Weir Plow 
 Company, Monmouth, and son of William 
 S. and Frances (Brown) Weir, natives re- 
 spectively of the States of Pennsylvania and 
 Kentucky, and of Scotch descent, was born 
 at Yellow Springs, Greene Co., Ohio, July 2, 
 1835. His father, William S. Weir, Sr., was born in 
 the city of Philadelphia in 1804, and his father, Wil- 
 liam Weir, was a native of Scotland, who left home 
 for America when a young man. He landed at Phil- 
 adelphia, where he married and died about the time 
 his son, William S., was ten years of age. There 
 were four children, two sons and two daughters, in 
 the family. William S., Sr., became an apprentice 
 when a boy to learn the trade of wool-carding and 
 cloth dressing. After 20 years of age he turned his 
 attention to farming. He married Frances Brown, 
 and they had a family of five children, four of whom 
 were sons. Of this number, William S., the subject 
 of this sketch, is the eldest. The next are James B., 
 Francis M., John B. and Pauline, all of whom are 
 residents of Monmouth. 
 
 The family come to Monmouth in 1838. and the 
 year following the senior Mr. Weir started a small 
 
f 
 
 606 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 factory near Little York for making woolen goods, 
 and carried it on for about 20 years. 
 
 The subject of this biographical notice received a 
 limited education at the country schools of Sumner 
 Township, but being compelled to shift for himself, 
 from the time he was 1 1 years of age, he naturally 
 had but small time to devote to books. He followed 
 farming up to 1863. In 1862 he patented the" Weir 
 Two-Horse Cultivator," an implement covering all 
 the important principles employed in every walking 
 cultivator manufactured in this country at the pres- 
 ent time, and yet not all protected by his patent. It 
 will be remembered that Mr. Weir was an unedu- 
 cated farmer, necessarily knowing little of the patent 
 laws, and less of their scope in application ; he there- 
 fore had to rely upon his attorneys in obtaining let- 
 ters pater.t that would secure him his rights. Then, 
 as now, the business of the patent attorney was in 
 securing patents, and if one valuable invention em- 
 bodied a dozen indispensable principles and the at- 
 torney could satisfy the applicant or hoodwink him 
 into accepting letters protecting but one, of course 
 eleven remaining features would be left open for so 
 many different applications, thereby increasing largely 
 the business or chances of business for the attorney. 
 This may not state just the experience of Mr. Weir, 
 but it fully illustrates the practice that let in other 
 manufacturers, who employed important features of 
 his invention that should have been protected by his 
 patent of 1862. But, " men live and learn," and the 
 proverb is eminently verified in William S. Weir. It 
 has been many years since the duplicity of any pat- 
 ent attorney has operated to close his eyes against 
 the salient points of his inventions. With $200 cap- 
 ital, he came to Monmouth in 1863 and had made 
 for him, under contract, 120 cultivators ; in the fol- 
 lowing year 500 were made, and in 1865 he erected 
 a small shop, from which he turned out 800. The 
 following year, with increased capacity, he put upon 
 the market 1,200 cultivators, and in the winter of 
 1866-67 ' la d his entire establishment destroyed by 
 fire. 
 
 Rebuilding his shops at once, Mr. Weir put out 
 2,000 implements and in the fall of 1867 organized 
 the Wier Plow Company, with himself as President. 
 (A history of which company see in another part of 
 of this volume.) It is useless for the biographer to 
 attempt any enlargement upon the history of Mr. 
 Weir. That he began life a very poor boy and un- 
 
 der the greatest disadvantages, is readily observed 
 from the facts already disclosed ; that he has made 
 his life a success, and in doing so accomplished 
 more for the established welfare of Monmoulh than 
 any other man in Warren County, is attested by his 
 personal history and by the hundreds of families who 
 are daily benefhted, not to say supported, from the 
 gigantic establishment over which he presides and 
 which should be made perpetual as a monument to 
 his memory. Indeed, the history of Monmouth it- 
 self must ever be pregnant with the works of William 
 S. Weir. Compare the man who does great work ; 
 erects immense shops ; employs hundreds of his fel- 
 low men as laborers in the manufacture of useful ar- 
 ticles, which he sends broadcast throughout the 
 world, returning their products to him to go again 
 and again into the wages of the poor; compare such 
 an one we say, with the miserable miser, who hoards 
 up his hundreds of thousands, dispensing only upon 
 the guarantee of usury, and note the difference. 
 
 Mr. Weir was married in Hale Township, October, *. 
 1859, to Fidelia J. Boyd, daughter of Thomas and I 
 Ann Boyd, the former a native of Ireland and the | 
 latter of New York. Mrs. Weir died Feb. i, 1884,-^ 
 leaving four children, having buried five in infancy. 
 The living are Ella, Jessie, William B. and Amy. 
 
 eorge Sickmon, one of Warren County's 
 successful farmers and stock raisers, re- 
 siding on section 33, Monmouth Township, 
 a native of New York, having been born in 
 Erie County, that State, Jan. 18, 1819. He is 
 at present living in retirement, passing the 
 sunset of his life in the enjoyment of a competency, 
 which has been procured through his own indomi- 
 table energy, perseverance and good judgment. 
 
 The father of Mr. Sickmon, Henry Sickmon, was 
 a native of Germany. He and a brother Thomas 
 were the progenitors of the Sickmon family in this 
 country, coming here and locating in Erie County, 
 N. Y. The father was married there to Susan Fran- 
 cis, a native of Cayauga County. After a residence 
 there of some years, Henry Sickmon died and his 
 wife afterward came to this State, and resided with 
 
WARREN CotiNTY. 
 
 607 
 
 her son George, for 14 years, when in Nov. 1864, she 
 passed to the land of the hereafter, aged 73 years. 
 
 George Sickmon, whose biography we write, was 
 the fourth in order of birth of a family of twelve 
 children, eight sons and four daughters ; seven of the 
 former, and one of the latter still survives, and all 
 are married. George lived at home attending the 
 common schools until he attained the age of n 
 years, when he set out to do for himself in life. He 
 first lived with a farmer in Erie County for eighteen 
 months, then with another farmer for six months and 
 then went to live with Daniel A. Albert, with whom 
 he continued to reside until he attained his majority. 
 On becoming his own man, Mr. Sickmon engaged to 
 work by the month on a farm, which occupation he 
 followed for one year, and was then employed by a 
 gentleman who was dealing in oil, and remained 
 with him one year, in the city of Buffalo. He after- 
 ward went back to Erie County, the place of his na- 
 tivity, where Sept. i, 1842, he was united in mar- 
 ' riage to Miss Sarah, the accomplished daughter of 
 Abel and Sallie (Green) Green, natives of York 
 State, where they both died when Mrs. Sickmon was 
 ^ quite young, and she is the only member of the fam- 
 ily, who lived to attain the age of majority. She was 
 born in Herkimer Co., N. Y., July 20, 1824. After 
 the death of her parents, she lived with her aunt 
 until her marriaee. Of her union with Mr. S. six 
 children have been born, all of whom are living 
 Sallie M., married Felix Regnier, a farmer residing 
 in Monmouth [Township; Susan became the wife of 
 William P. Norcross, a large land owner, banker, 
 stock raiser and shipper, residing in Nebraska ; Win- 
 field S., is engaged in practicing law at Des Moines, 
 Iowa, his wife's maiden name being Alvareta Main ; 
 Ann E. is the wife of Isaac J. Frantz, a farmer in 
 .Nebraska; and Eliza became the wife of John KeU 
 tering, who is engaged in farming in Nebraska ; 
 Charles is also a farmer, residing in this township, 
 and his wife's maiden name was Katie Frantz. 
 
 Two years after marriage Mr. S. with his bride 
 came West, and pitched his tent on a new and un- 
 cultivated 80 acre tract of land, which is now the 
 well improved farm and pleasant homestead on 
 which he resides. He has subsequently, by his in- 
 dustry and perseverance, increased his landed inter- 
 ests, until he at present has 400 acres of good farm 
 land in this county, and in addition to the cultiva- 
 tion of the same, he is devoting a goodly portion of 
 
 his time to dealing in stock, having sold as high as 
 $12,000 worth annually. His residence and farm 
 buildings are large and commodious and the appear- 
 ance of his farm is indicative of that spirit of push 
 and perseverance which Mr. S. possesses He and 
 his wife are members of the Christian Church. Po- 
 litically he is a staunch supporter of the principles 
 of the Republican party. He has held the position 
 of Supervisor for three years and also other minor 
 offices. For three and a half years, Mr. S. resided 
 in the city of Monmouth, where his ability was 
 recognized, and he was elected Street Commissioner 
 and Alderman. 
 
 amuel Gibson, retired farmer and one of 
 the pioneers of Warren County, now (1885) 
 living in the suburbs west of Monmouth, was 
 born in Blount Co., Tenn., Sept. 3, 1804, and 
 was the fifth in a family of eight sons and five 
 daughters, born and reared to men and women, 
 by Thomas and Martha (Hogue) Gibson, natives re- 
 spectively of the states of Pennsylvania and Vir- 
 ginia. The family, except the subject of this sketch, 
 who had preceded them about one year, came to Il- 
 linois from Xenia, Ohio, where they had resided 
 about 25 years, in 1831, and here the two old people 
 spent the rest of their lives. 
 
 Samuel Gibson was fairly educated at the common 
 schools of Ohio, and there learned something of the 
 mechanic's trade under his father. He lived in Mon- 
 mouth until 1835, when he moved to his farm adja- 
 cent to the south line of the town. Here he has lived 
 a full half century, and at this writing is in the en- 
 joyment of good health, walks as lithe and erect as 
 an Indian, and bids fair to join his numerous friends 
 at the celebration of many another anniversary. He 
 joined the United Presbyterian Church when he was 
 27 years of age, and his life therein has remained 
 unbroken and consistent. 
 
 August 3, 1826 Mr. Gibson was married in Greene 
 Co., Ohio, to Miss Elizabeth Pierce, a native of Bour- 
 bon Co., Ky. She died in February, 1858, and their 
 seven children are mentioned here, as follows : Wil- 
 liam, who left home in 1853, and was last heard from 
 
6o8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 in California, in 1878 ; Martha H., the wife of Mr. 
 Samuel Little; Sarah E., who with untiring filial de- 
 votion, ministers daily to the wants and comforts of 
 her aged father; Isabel, wife of J. B. L. Smith, of 
 Indiana; Albert G., died in October, 1882; Mary 
 Jane (Mrs. Martin) died in 1881, and Thomas A. 
 died in 1862, a few days after arriving home from the 
 Union army. 
 
 Thus briefly we scan the events of a life coexist- 
 ent almost with the history of our Nation, and as we 
 read we realize at once what constitutes the memo- 
 rable matter in a man's life. The date of his birth 
 is treasured; the ruddy cheeks and rollicking laugh- 
 ter of his brothers and sisters, as in their cheerful 
 childhood they gathered about the great log fire in 
 the old chimney place of the long, long ago, are cher- 
 ished and not forgotten ; the father and mother are 
 remembered, and the kind old faces of his grandfa- 
 ther and grandmother pass vividly in view ; the old 
 log school house of three-quarters of a century ago; 
 the dapper little teacher, and his spelling schools, 
 later on ; the ruby-lipped and bright-eyed girl who 
 developed first into a sweetheart and next into a wife ; 
 the little ones that came and entwined themselves 
 about his heart to be torn ruthlessly away, crushing 
 for a time his every ambition in life, and the names of 
 the living and the dead are repeated. These events, 
 representing the happiest and the saddest in life are 
 ever remembered by the aged, and to the exclusion 
 of -the thousands of hardships incident to pioneer 
 times, are told to the biographer in response to his 
 inquiry for the most important data from which to 
 write a sketch. 
 
 , . .._ 
 
 Barnes T. Hartman, Supervisor of Cold 
 || Brook Township, a gentleman of more than 
 ordinary business ability and a good and 
 successful farmer and stock-raiser, residing on 
 Section 12, Cold Brook Township, is a native 
 of Marion Co., Indiana, where he was born 
 April 21, 1835. 
 
 John Hartman, the father of James T., was born 
 in North Carolina, and was of German ancestry. 
 He was married in his native state to Nancy Marklin, 
 
 a native of that state. Of their union nine children 
 were born in North Carolina, and the family then 
 journeyed to Indiana and located on a tract of land 
 which was in its natural condition. 
 
 James T. Hartman was the first child born to his 
 parents after their emigration to the wilds of the 
 Hoosier State. There was also another child 
 born to the parents, in Indiana, making their 
 children 1 1 in number, six sons and five daughters, 
 of which four of the former and two of the latter sur- 
 vive. Mr. Hartman was only eight years old when 
 his father died, and he lived with his mother until he 
 had nearly attained his majority. He received the 
 advantages of the district schools of that early pe- 
 riod, and at the age of 17 years served an ap- 
 prenticeship at Mt. Jackson, near Indianapolis, 
 Ind., under a Mr. Forshee, to learn the trade of a 
 blacksmith. After serving a term of four years, he 
 came to Illinois in December, 1855, settling in Buf- 
 falo 'Prairie Township, Rock Island County. At the 
 latter place he remained, working at his trade until 
 1859, when he emigrated further West to the State 
 of California, and from there to Idaho Territory. In 
 the latter territory he began mining in the Bitter Root . 
 Mountains, and continued there for some time, from 
 whence he passed on to the Rocky Mountains where 
 he resumed mining, and continued for three years . 
 longer. He then retraced his steps to Warren County, 
 purchased 80 acres of land on his present site, and 
 began its improvement and cultivation. 
 
 The marriage of James T. Hartman and Miss Hen- 
 rietta Freeman was celebrated in Knox County, Nov. 
 27, 1862. The lady of his choice was a daughter of 
 F. Leroy and Margaret (Brown) Freeman, natives of 
 Virginia and Kentucky respectively, both from old 
 families of those states. They were married in Illi- 
 nois, where they both came in early life, settling with 
 their parents in Knox County early in its history, and 
 were there during the Black Hawk War. The pa- 
 rents were farmers and died in Henderson Township, 
 where they had lived since marriage. Mrs. Hart- 
 man, of this notice, was born in Henderson Town- 
 ship, Knox County, Oct. 27, 1841. Her education 
 was commenced in the public schools but finished at 
 college. Sl\e remained at home until her marriage, 
 and of her union with Mr. Hartman has been born 
 three children, one of whom is deceased. Minnie is 
 the wife of Clark Robinson, and they reside in Co- 
 manche Co., Kan., her husband being engaged in 
 
.jySfk'r-^ 
 
 i***^ 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 613 
 
 farming; Ettie I. died in infancy, and Lillie G. is at- 
 tending college at Galesburg. 
 
 Since their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Hartman have 
 resided on their present homestead, and have made 
 remarkable changes and improvements, until now 
 their farm is considered an excellent one in every 
 respect. 
 
 Mr. Hartman has served his township as Collector 
 for four years ; Supervisor for the past 12 years, and 
 in politics is a first-class Democrat. 
 
 illiam Hanna, one of the most widely 
 known and enterprising business men of 
 Illinois, and whose portrait we present on 
 the opposite page, is a resident of Monmouth. 
 A view of his elegant home, which is one of 
 the finest in the county, is also presented in 
 this volume. He was born in Fayette Co., Ind., 
 June 19, 1827, and comes of Scotch-Irish stock on 
 T the paternal side. His father, John Hanna, was a 
 native of North Carolina and married Miss Sarah 
 I Crawford, a Virginia lady. In 1835 Mr. John Hanna 
 came to Illinois and settled 12 miles northwest of 
 Monmouth, in Warren County. 
 
 Here on the farm young Hanna was reared and re- 
 ceived such education as the subscription schools of 
 the neighborhood afforded. In 1849, upon the break- 
 ing out of the California gold fever, in company with 
 others, he drove an ox team across the plains to the 
 land of gold. He was successful there to the extent 
 of gathering a few thousand dollars. He returned 
 home in 1851, bought a farm in Henderson County 
 and engaged in agriculture until 1867. That year he 
 came to Monmouth, and, in company with Messrs. 
 W. S. Weir and Dr. W. B. Boyd, formed a joint 
 stock company for the purpose of manufacturing 
 farm implements. The capital stock of the company 
 was $25,000. Under the skillful and efficient man- 
 agement of Mr. Hanna the business of the company 
 increased very rapidly. In fact, at the end of 14 
 years the capital stock had increased to the enor- 
 mous amount of $1,000,000, after paying $163,00*0 of 
 dividends. 
 
 Immediately after the company was organized and 
 
 its factory in operation, Mr. Hanna " took the road " 
 and the following seven years traveled in the inter- 
 ests of the company, introducing its implements and 
 establishing agencies. It was through his persistent 
 and indefatigable efforts that the foundation and 
 subsequent success of the Weir Plow Company was 
 securely laid. In short, his energy and business 
 ability built up and made a great institution of this 
 now world-wide known company. 
 
 Mr. Hanna, in addition to his vast interests as 
 above stated, has found time to engage in various 
 enterprises, which in the main have for their object 
 the increase of the material wealth and prosperity of 
 Monmouth and vicinity. He is President of the 
 Monmouth Mining and Manufacturing Company, 
 which makes sewer pipe, drain tile, fire brick, etc. 
 The company employs a large number of men and 
 manufactures over 100 car-loads of its products a 
 month, and arrangements are being perfected to in- 
 ciease its capacity to 150 car-loads per month. 
 
 Mr. Hanna was one of the originators of the 
 Monmouth National Bank, which was established 
 in 1871, and for ten years (1874 to 1884) served 
 it in the capacity of President. He was one of the " 
 original incorporators of the Keithsburgh Bridge 
 Company, and still continues as one of its directors. 
 He was President and Treasurer of the Burlington, 
 Monmouth & Illinois River and the Peoria & Farm- 
 ington Railway Companies during the construction 
 of these roads and until their consolidation with the 
 Central Iowa. Without his wealth, energy, judgment 
 and perseverance that railway would never have 
 been constructed. He is a Director of the Iowa 
 Central RailwayCompany at present. He is aTrustee 
 of the Warren County Library and also of the Lom- 
 bard University, located at Galesburg, and is deeply 
 interested in any and every public enterprise calcu- 
 lated to benefit the people. 
 
 In 1851 Mr. Hanna was united in marriage with 
 Miss Sarah, daughter of James Findley, who settled in 
 Warren County as early as 1832. Three children 
 have been born to them, two of whom are living, J. 
 Ross, a sketch of whom may be found on another 
 page of this volume, and Mary J. E. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Hanna has steadily voted the 
 Democratic ticket and is a firm believer in the sav- 
 ing grace of that political organization. He has 
 twice been honored with an election as the Mayor ot 
 
 ' 
 
614 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 the city of Monmouth, and during his terms of office 
 brought to bear in the municipal affairs of the city 
 his characteristic energy and excellent judgment. 
 
 Thus we have a brief outline of the life of one of 
 the most valuable and highly esteemed citizens of 
 Warren County. He started in life poor and un- 
 aided, but by the sheer force of his own indomitable 
 energy and the exercise of good, common, business 
 sense, he has succeeded in carving out for himself a 
 comfortable competency, and at the same time has 
 maintained his reputation as an honorable, consci- 
 entious gentleman 
 
 ev. Anson Tucker, was born in New York 
 State, June 8, 1811. He graduated from 
 Haddington College, and was ordained, 
 in 1835, a minister in the Baptist Church. He 
 was pastor at Sardinia and Lockport, N. Y., 
 Norwalk, O., Adrian, Mich., Lafayette, Ind.. 
 Dixon and Monmouth, 111. He died at the latter place, 
 Apr. 23, i858,aged47. Though compartively a young 
 man, he had attained considerable prominence in his 
 denomination. He had an unusually refined and 
 sensitive nature, and was strict in his ideas of right 
 and wrong. Beloved by his people wherever he 
 preached, his life was one of great usefulness. He 
 was of a family of ministers, his father and four 
 brothers all being Baptist clergymen, and what is 
 very unusual, all preaching at the same time. He 
 had one other brother.a gifted lawyer.who was study- 
 ing for the ministry, when he suddenly died. 
 
 Mr. Tucker was a man of cultivated literary 
 tastes, and an earnest and eloquent speaker. His 
 friendships were deep and strong, and as a husband 
 and father his affections were tender and devoted. 
 His ancestors came from England and settled in 
 Virginia in the Colonial times, where many still re- 
 main, Judge Tucker, of Richmond, and John Ran- 
 dolph Tucker being of the family. Part of the fam- 
 ily had gone North, and of that branch was Rev. 
 Anson Tucker. 
 
 He was married to Caroline Rogers in 1836. They 
 had seven children, six girls and one boy, who died 
 
 in infancy: Eliza, the eldest daughter, married A. 
 S. Humphries, of Columbus, Miss. ; Erenah married 
 T. W. Raymond, of London, England; Caroline 
 married Guy Stapp, of Monmouth; Jeannette married 
 D. P. Phelps, of Monmouth; Emma resides in Mon- 
 mouth, and Frances is a resident of Columbus, 
 Miss. 
 
 Caroline Rogers was born in New York State. She 
 was daughter of Rev. James and Marcy(Champlain) 
 Rogers. Rev. James Rogers was the son of Hon. 
 Thomas Rogers, one of the three contemporary 
 Judges of the State of New York. Marcy Cham- 
 plain was the daughter of Stephen and Elizabeth 
 (Perry) Champlain. The Perrys came from England. 
 Elizabeth Perry was the daughter of Freeman Perry, 
 who was Supreme Judge of Rhode Island 44 years. 
 His wife was Mary Hazard. Their children were 
 Joshua, Oliver Hazard, Raymond, Elizabeth, Mary 
 and Susan. Joshua was a physician; Raymond was 
 a sea Captain and Commodore in the Navy, and one 
 of the founders of the United States Navy, and for 
 several months he was a prisoner on board thedreadj 
 ful Jersey prison ships. After his discharge he was ona 
 of the Lieutenants of theTrumbull during heractiof* 
 with the Watt, one of the hardest fought battles irj 
 our War of Independence. He had five sons; thtj 
 eldest, Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, gained th 
 battle on Lake Erie, and along with him in that en- 
 gagement was his little brother, Alexander, a boy of 
 10 years, serving as midshipman and aide. The lit- 
 tle fellow received a ball through the cap, and was 
 subsequently voted the thanks of Congress and a 
 sword of honor, being probably the youngest recip- 
 ient ever known of such national acknowledgment. 
 Another of the five brothers was Commodore M. C. 
 Perry, who crowned a long life of glory by opening 
 the ports of Japan to American commerce, while 
 two more brothers were commanders under Commo- 
 dore McDonough in the battle on Lake Champlain. 
 Another ancestor, Commodore Stephen Champlain, 
 was born Nov. 17, 1789, at South Kingston, R. I. 
 At the age of 23 he was in command of the brig 
 "Dore." He became one of the most active and 
 useful officers in the United States Navy. It is a. 
 well authenticated fact that he fired the first and last 
 gun in the battle of Lake Erie. He was then in 
 command of the "Scorpion," and with that vessel 
 overhauled the brttish ship "Little Belt," and cap- 
 tured her as she was endeavoring to run away from 
 
> 9- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 the fight. He died in Buffalo, N. Y., Feb. 20, 1870. 
 Rev. Anson Tucker was married a second time in 
 1854, to Miss Luana Macomber, of New York State. 
 They had two sons, Howard, who was three years 
 old, and George 15 months, when they both died, 
 within two weeks of each other, and only a few weeks 
 before their father, in the spring of 1858, at Mon- 
 mouth, 111. 
 
 eyton Roberts, General Insurance and 
 Land Agent, at Monmouth, 111., was born 
 at Fountain Green, Hancock Co., 111., Jan. 
 2ist, 1839. His great grandfather, James 
 Roberts, was- from Switzerland, and settled in 
 Wythe Co., Va., in 1775, where his grandfather, 
 bhn Roberts, was born, in 1781. His father, James 
 . Roberts, was born in Campbell Co., Tenn., Aug. 
 8th, 1807. His mother, Sally M., (Cox) Roberts, 
 as also descended from the Swiss. Her great 
 grandfather, Friend Cox, settled in Pennsylvania in 
 1712. Her grandfather, John Cox, and her father, 
 (Benjamin Cox, lived at McKeesport, Pa., where she 
 was born Dec. 22d, 1807. 
 
 The parents of Peyton were married at Hudson- 
 ville, Breckenridge Co., Ky., Aug. joth, 1830. They 
 moved to Fountain Green, Hancock Co., 111. in June, 
 1837, where the father now (1885) lives, at the age 
 of 78. The mother died at this place June 24th, 
 1846. 
 
 Peyton Roberts was educated at Hedding College, 
 Abingdon, 111. He entered the Insurance business 
 at the same place in 1863, and on January 4th, 1864, 
 transferred his headquarters to Monmouth, where 
 he has since stood at the very head of the Fire In- 
 surance Underwriters of the County, representing 
 at all times the best companies in the world, and ju- 
 diciously writing his policies in such a manner as to 
 preclude the possibility of misconception ; avoiding 
 all ambiguities, and thereby placing the policy pur- 
 chaser solidly upon the ground of the assured. If this 
 information, thrown into this sketch without the 
 knowledge or consent of Mr. Roberts, but none the 
 less based upon facts, should prove incomprehens- 
 ible to some, the writer knows to all such as may 
 
 be unfortunate enough as to sustain loss by fire and 
 find an improperly written policy in their possession, 
 there will be no longer any mystery. 
 
 Mr. Roberts is a Director in the Monmouth Min- 
 ing and Manufacturing Co.; a Director in the First 
 National Bank of Biggsville, 111.; is connected with 
 the Second National Bank of Monmouth, 111.; is Sec- 
 retary of Trinity Lodge, No. 561, A. F. & A. M., and 
 Member of the Republican State Central Committee. 
 
 Mr. Roberts was united in marriage at Bushnell, 
 111., May 8th, 1866, with Miss Lizzie K. Cox, of Hud- 
 sonville, Ky. They have two children living, Emma 
 and Corinne; one, Lizzie Lena, having died when 
 three months old. Mrs. Roberts is a descendant of 
 the Lendrum family, of Virginia, and the daughter 
 of Ralph and Emily A. Cox, of Vine Grove, Ky. 
 
 ohn W. Lusk, of the firm of Lusk Bros., 
 ^ leading grocers of Monmouth, is justly re- 
 garded as one of the enterprising business 
 men of that city. His father, Wilson Lusk, 
 was an early resident of Monmouth, locating 
 here as early as 1848. On the 2rstof January 
 of the following year, John W. was born. He was 
 one of a family of seven children, five sons and two 
 daughters, born to his parents, Wilson and Mary 
 Jane (McCoy) Lusk. He was reared and educated 
 at Monmouth, and early in life began to learn the 
 printer's trade, at which he became very profi- 
 cient. 
 
 In the spring of 1864, when yet a mere lad, he 
 enrolled in the service of his country as a drummer, 
 in Co. A, r38th 111. Inf. He served until the follow- 
 ing fall, when the term of his enlistment expired. Im- 
 mediately upon being mustered out of the i38th, he 
 entered Co. H, 471)1 111. Inf., as a private, and serv- 
 ed up to the winter of 1865-6, when he was mus- 
 tered out at Salem, Ala. He did valiant and faithful 
 service, and from the commencement to the close of 
 his enlistment he never missed a day from his regi- 
 ment, and the 47th, being a part of the i6th Army 
 Corps, it is reasonable to suppose that it was in ac- 
 tive duty continually. 
 
 Upon the expiration of Ms term of enlistment in 
 
6i6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 the army, Mr. Lusk returned to his home in Mon- 
 mouth, and for a while worked in the Review office. 
 Subsequently he went to Macomb, this State, where 
 he was engaged on the newspapers of that city for 
 a time. In 1869, we find him at Beardstown, in the 
 capacity of foreman of the lllinoisan, a position he 
 acceptably filled for about two years. He then form- 
 ed a partnership with H. A. Wilkinson, and started 
 the Beardstown Herald, a Democratic weekly paper. 
 At the expiration of about a year, Mr. Lusk sold out 
 his interest in the Herald, and returned to Macomb 
 and after spending a few years as a book-keeper in a 
 grocery house, in 1879 he bought his employer out. 
 In 1 88 1 he sold out his business at Macomb and 
 came to Monmouth,and at once embarked in his pres- 
 ent enterprise, since which time, in connection with 
 his partners, the firm of Lusk Bros, have taken front 
 rank among the leading business houses of Mon- 
 mouth. 
 
 Upon the 30th of January, 1871, at Macomb, 111., 
 r Mr. Lusk was united in marriage with Miss Kate 
 I Shumate, daughter of a well known citizen of that city. 
 J She is a native of Garrard Co., Ky., and has become 
 the mother of two children, Birdie and Claude. 
 
 1 Politically, Mr. Lusk is a Democrat, and socially 
 a member of the G. A. R., the I. O. O. F. and A. O. 
 U. W. 
 
 -esse Walton Bond, an energetic and suc- 
 cessful farmer of Lenox Township, residing 
 upon section 19, is a son of John C. and 
 Polly (Grimsley) Bond. A biography of the 
 former is given elsewhere in this volume. The 
 Bonds came from Ireland with Lord Baltimore 
 and settled in Maryland, in 1632, and from there 
 were scattered throughout the South. Jesse W. Bond, 
 the grandfather of the subject of this notice, was 
 born in South Carolina, in 1777. When a small boy, 
 his father's family removed to Kentucky, in which 
 State his father was killed by Indians, leaving three 
 children Jesse W., Lucy and Nathan. 
 
 In 1798, Jesse W. Bond, the eldest of the children, 
 was married in Overton Co., Tenn., to Miss Susan- 
 nah Crane. She was born in Georgia, in IJTJ, and 
 
 of their union seven children were born John Crane 
 Bond, the father of the subject of this notice; Ben- 
 jamin, Joel, Ruby, William B., Jesse W. and Nathan, 
 only two of whom are living, Nathan Bond, of Al- 
 bany, Oregon, and Mrs. Ruby Looiiey, of Salem, 
 Oregon. 
 
 Jesse W. Bond, the grandfather, removed to Jack- 
 son Co., Ala., in 1819. From there he went to Mor- 
 gan Co., 111., and in 1830, came to this county, and 
 here resided until his death, in 1842, the demise of 
 his wife occurring in 1858. The grandparents are 
 both buried on the old homestead, in the family 
 burial ground, Greenbush Township, where six gen- 
 erations of Bonds are resting. The homestead at his 
 death passed into the hands of Maj. John Crane 
 Bond, father of the subject of this notice, whose 
 biography we give, and when he died he left it to his 
 grandson, John Crane Bond, Jr., eldest son of the 
 subject of this sketch. 
 
 Jesse Walton Bond was born in Jackson Co., 
 Ala., Sept. 7, 1825. When he was a year old, his 
 parents moved to Morgan Co., 111., and he was nine 
 years of age when he came with his parents to 
 this county. His education was received in the 
 common schools, and he continued to reside with his 
 parents until his marriage. ' He lived in Greenbush 
 Township until 1850, when he crossed the plains to 
 California in search of gold, where he remained two 
 years, meeting with partial success, when he returned 
 for his family and soon afterward went back to 
 California. The following year, 1853, his wife died, 
 and Jesse W. once more returned to this county, but' 
 only remained a short time, when he went back to 
 California, the third time crossing the plains. He re- 
 mained in the latter State until r86z, when he re- 
 turned to this county and i\vo years later removed to 
 Iowa, and was there engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits until 1869. During that year, he again came 
 back to this county, and took charge of the Warren 
 County Poor Farm, on which he lived until March, 
 1885. Not desiring a reappointment, he removed to 
 his farm in Lenox Township, where he at present re- 
 sides. He is the owner of 320 acres of land 
 in Lenox Township, all of which is under an ad- 
 vanced state of cultivation. 
 
 Mr. Bond, of this sketch, was first married in Swan 
 Creek Township, this county, Feb. 12, 1848, to Sarah 
 E. Terry, who was born in Madison Co., 111. She 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 6,7 
 
 was a daughter of George and Nancy G. (Stice) 
 Terry, and bore him three children Edwina, Ellen 
 S. and John C. Edwina is the wife of Dr. Randall, 
 of Greenbush Township. Ellen S. married Benja- 
 min F. Reed, who resides in Swan Township. John 
 C. is engaged in farming in Greenbush Township. 
 Mrs. Bond died in Sacramento Co., Cal., Jan. 28, 
 1854, and Mr. Bond was again married in Green- 
 bush Township, Oct. 25, 1863, to Anna C. Harrah, 
 daughter of John N. and Helen (Wharton) Harrah. 
 Her parents came to Warren County about 1860, 
 and settled in Greenbush Township, where they 
 lived until about 1878, when they moved to Sedalia, 
 Mo. Mrs. Bond was born in Belmont Co., Ohio, 
 Feb. 25, 1835, an d has borne her husband three chil- 
 dren Sara Helen, Jesse Walton, Jr., and Anna J., 
 who resides at home. Mr. Bond is a member of the 
 Masonic Order, and in politics, is a supporter of the 
 principles advocated by the Democratic party. His 
 father and grandfather were likewise members of the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 The Bonds are related directly to Gov. Walton, of 
 Georgia, who was one of the signers of the Declara- 
 tion of Independence, and also to Shadrach Bond, 
 the first Governor of Illinois. 
 
 j.apt. John M. Turnbull, Postmaster at 
 Monmouth, this State, is a son of David 
 and Nancy (Mitchell) Turnbull, natives of 
 Green Co., Ohio, and Pittsburgh, Pa., respec- 
 tively, and bearing through their veins the 
 blood of various Celtic races, with an odd 
 mixture of the Scandinavian, was born in Ohio, 
 July 23, 1833. His parents were married in Xenia, 
 Ohio, in 1831 ; came to Illinois in 1833, and settled 
 upon a tract of land purchased the year before by 
 Mr. TurnbuH's father, the land being now occupied 
 by A. W. Spicer, and lying about one mile northwest 
 from Monmouth. At the end of the following year 
 they removed into Hale Township, six miles north- 
 west from Monmouth, at a place afterwards known 
 as "TurnbuH's Point." Here for many years his 
 house formed a kind of relay for emigrants and pi- 
 oneers, passing and repassing between the great river 
 
 and interior points. In 1850, he removed to the 
 vicinity of Sugar Tree Grove, and there spent the 
 rest of his life, dying, however, at the home of his son, 
 in Monmouth, in 187 1, aged about 63 years. His wife 
 had died a few years before, it is believed in 1866, 
 aged about 62 years. They were the parents of 12 
 children, only eight of whom John M., Ann E., 
 Sarah I., Mary A., William W., David A., Thomas 
 B. and Nannie J., grew to the estate of men and 
 women. Three of his sons, John M., William W. 
 and David A. were in the Union army during the 
 late war, and he for two years, 1863-4, held the po- 
 sition of Deputy United States Marshal. Mr. Turn- 
 bull was all his life an active citizen, a zealous work- 
 er, both in Church and State, and while no office 
 seeker, held almost continuously some useful, al- 
 though unprofitable office. He served two terms as 
 Sheriff of Warren County ; was several years Chair- 
 man of the Board of Supervisors, and altogether was 
 one of the most useful men in the community. 
 
 Capt. John M. Turnbull, whose name heads this 
 biographical sketch, was brought up to farming, and 
 was about 28 years of age when he abandoned it. 
 His education was the best to be had at the common ** 
 schools. When the war broke out he was farming. 
 In August, 1861, he enrolled at Kirkwood, this 
 county, in Co. C, 36th 111. Vol. Inf. as Second Lieu- 
 tenant; was promoted the following spring at Mur- 
 freesboro to the rank of First Lieutenant, and served 
 until May 24, 1864. In February or March of 
 1863, he was detailed for staff duty, and was 
 in that position as long as he was in the service. He 
 participated in the battles of Pea Ridge, Perryville, 
 Stone River, Chicamauga, Missionary Ridge, in 
 Sherman's Atlanta Campaign, and near Dallas on the 
 night of May 24, 1864, while acting as Brigade In- 
 spector, and in preparing to relieve Gen. Hooker's 
 command, received a gun shot wound in the left 
 knee which cost him the loss of that limb. 
 
 His regiment formed a part of the First Brigade 
 Second Division, Fourth Army Corps, commanded by 
 Gen. Sheridan, serving on the staff of Gen. T. F. 
 Sherman and W. H. Lytle, and last on Gen. Nathan 
 Kimball's staff, and was staff officer at the time he 
 was wounded. 
 
 He returned to Warren County, and in January, 
 1865, removed into Monmouth ; his name was pre- 
 sented by Mr. Lincoln for Postmaster at this place, 
 
6i8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 but the President's death occurring in the meantime, 
 his commission was signed by Andrew Johnson, and 
 he took charge of the office in May, 1865. In the 
 fall of 1866 Johnson removed him and appointed 
 Dr. Griffith as his successor, but the Senate refused 
 confirmation of the action, and Capt. Turnbull was, 
 at the end of six months, reinstated. His last com- 
 mission will end January 16, 1887. 
 
 He was married at Washington, Iowa, Nov. 7, 
 1854, to Anna P. Orr, native of Baltimore, Md., and 
 their six children are mentioned as follows : Ralph, 
 who died in infancy; Mary, Emma, Clara O., 
 Nannie A., Jennie R., and an infant deceased. 
 The four daughters were all educated at Monmouth 
 College. 
 
 The family are members of the U. P. Church. 
 
 oseph W. Adcock, an agriculturist of 
 Kelly Township, is of ancestry and ante- 
 cedents of Southern origin. Edmund Ad- 
 cock, his .father, was a pioneer of Warren 
 County of 1833. The latter was born Nov. 
 23, 1800, in Buckingham Co., Va., and was the 
 son of Joseph and Susan (Cason) Adcock. His par- 
 ents were both members of families of Virginia origin 
 and he was reared to the age of manhood in his 
 native county and in Kanawha County, whither his 
 parents removed when he was in his youth. In the 
 county last named he was married to Cynthia Chris- 
 tian. She was a native of Kanawha County, and 
 her father, Robert Christian, had a record as a brave 
 soldier in the war of the Revolution. The marriage 
 referred to took place March 13, 1823. The newly 
 married people settled in the same county and were 
 there resident until 1828. In that year they removed 
 to Indiana and located in Crawford County, where 
 they remained two years. In the fall of 1830 they 
 set out for Illinois. The family then included the 
 father, mother and three children. A neighbor of 
 theirs in Indiana had made a prospecting tour to 
 Knox County, and on his return the Adcock family 
 resolved to come to Illinois with him. He had a 
 
 team and they made the trip together. It was fall 
 when they arrived, and Mr. Adcock secured a claim 
 on section 3 in what is now Henderson Township, 
 Knox County. He obtained an entire quarter-sec- 
 tion and built a house for the temporary accommo- 
 dation of his family. It was the most primitive kind 
 of a structure and covered with clapboards obtained 
 from trees by a process called " riving,'' a term which 
 has the same significance at present though the ap- 
 plication in this locality is considerably different. 
 The floor was made of puncheon. In this the house- 
 hold lived through the Black Hawk War. It was 
 located within a mile of the fort. There were then 
 only a few families in the neighborhood, and the 
 people would frequently become alarmed at the 
 sight of a stray Indian, or rumors of their depreda- 
 tions would put them in such a state of fright that, 
 in the early times preceding the contest referred to, 
 they would repair to the fort for protection. On one 
 occasion, Wm. McMurtry and Edmund Adcock, who 
 were in the block-house with their families, went out to 
 attend to their stock and agreed not to remain longer 
 than to perform the service which took them out. 
 They also promised not to discharge their fire-arms 
 unless they saw Indians, but the sight of a quantity 
 of squirrels put the last stipulation out of their re- 
 membrances, and they fired at the little animals. 
 The shooting was rapid and alarmed their friends at 
 the fort. The men remaining there hastily gathered 
 their arms and ammunition and started out one by 
 one, without order or system, to the rescue, leaving 
 not a gun in the fort for the defense of the women 
 and children. Happily their fears proved ground- 
 less. 
 
 In the spring of 1833, Mr. Adcock sold his prop- 
 erty and came to Warren County. He located 
 on the northwest quarter of section 27 in town- 
 ship 12, range i. His brother Henry had previously 
 purchased the land and the tenant lived on the 
 place two ..years. He then made a claim on the 
 southeast quarter of the same section and removed 
 to a s nail log cabin which had already been erected 
 on the place. A few years later it was abandoned 
 for a new dwelling of rather aristocratic pretentions 
 for that period. The latter was a double hewed-log 
 house and was their residence for some years, or 
 until improved circumstances enabled them to build 
 a frame house. This was the home as long as the 
 father lived. His death occurred May 7, 1859. At 
 
WARREN Co UN TV. 
 
 <5r 9 
 
 the time he was the owner of the south half of sec- 
 tion 27, about 50 acres of which were in tillage. The 
 wife died Oct. 26, 1865. They had only the three 
 children, with whom they removed to Illinois. The 
 oldest was a daughter, named Cynthia Elizabeth. 
 She married John McMullen, and survived her mar- 
 riage only a few weeks. Joseph and Robert J. are 
 twins. They were born Jan. 23, 1826, in Kanawha 
 Co., Va. They were but four years old when they 
 removed with their parents to Illinois. The brother 
 of Mr. Adcock is a resident of Tompkins Township. 
 The latter was 7 years old when his father and mother 
 took up their residence in Warren County. Every- 
 thing was in its primitive condition and there were 
 no schools, consequently the parents gave their sons 
 such education as they 'could within the home. Af- 
 ter Mr. Adcock had grown to be quite a youth, there 
 was a school established about three miles distant, 
 which he attended, but it was not of the character of 
 the free schools of to-day, as it was instituted by the 
 pioneers to secure a little instruction for their chil- 
 dren, and they willingly bore all the expense thefh- 
 selves. 
 
 Mr. Adcock was married Aug. 30, 1849, to Mary 
 Elizabeth McMurtry. She was born in Crawford 
 Co., Ind.. Sept. 26, 1827, and is the daughter of 
 Hon. William and Ruth (Champion) McMurtry. 
 Her father was a native of Kentucky and settled in 
 Knox Co., 111., in 1829. He rose to distinction in 
 State affairs, and was elected Lieutenant-Governor 
 with Augustus French, in the second term which 
 was served by that gentleman, in November, 1848. 
 He was a candidate at the time of the first election 
 of Gov. French, when the successful nominee was 
 Mr. Wells. Hon. William McMurtry died at his 
 home in Knox County, in 1875. 
 
 After the date of his marriage, Mr. Adcock located 
 on a. part of the homestead of his father, a portion of 
 which he had given to him. During the first year, 
 he lived with the family, and then removed to a log 
 cabin and commenced the life of the true pioneer. 
 This was the home of himself and his wife for sev- 
 eral years, when they removed to the frame' house 
 which his family have since occupied. He is now 
 the owner of 459 acres. Eight of the children born 
 to himself and wife are still living. William resides 
 on section 35 in Kelly Township; Edmund follows 
 the legal profession in Chicago; Cynthia married E. 
 E. Terpenning, who is a farmer on section 3 in Cold 
 
 Brook Township; Robert J., an attorney-at-law, 
 lives in Monmouth ; Ruth F. married C. F. Barnett, 
 a farmer on section 18, S'parta Township, Knox Co., 
 111. Lucy and Mary live at home with their par- 
 ents. 
 
 In political faith and connection, Mr. Adcock is a 
 Democrat. 
 
 -5 *~ 
 
 em M. Lusk, senior member of the mer- 
 cantile firm of Lusk Bros., of Monmouth, 
 was born at Newburg, Cumberland Co., Pa., 
 Dec. 19, 1843. His parents, Wilson and Mary 
 Jane (McCoy) Lusk, were natives of the States 
 of Pennsylvania and Maryland respectively. 
 The former was of German and the latter of Scotch 
 ancestry. They reared four sons and two daughters, 
 our subject being the eldest of the six. The family 
 came West as early as 1846, and located in Iowa] 
 and two years later came to Monmouth. Here Mr| 
 Lusk was reared and received his education, and in* 
 the office of the Monmouth Review learned tha 
 printer's trade. 
 
 Mr. Lusk had worked on the above named paper] 
 only about six years, when he determined to enlist 
 in the services of his country to defend the flag that 
 had been assaulted the previous year. Accordingly, 
 on July 17, 1862, he enlisted in Co. C, 83d 111. Vol. 
 Inf., and for three years did faithful and commenda- 
 ble service. In the summer of 1863, while at 
 Clarksville, Tenn., he was detailed as printer at Post 
 Headquarters, which duty he performed during the 
 remainder of his term of service. He had, however, 
 previous to that time seen some active service on the 
 field. He wab at Fort Donelson, and participated in 
 about twenty skirmishes. He was never off duty 
 either as a soldier of the ranks, or when assigned to 
 the printing department, and it may be said to his 
 credit as a brave and devoted patriot, that 
 he did not seek the latter position as the safer one. 
 He was mustered out at Nashville, Tenn., and dis- 
 charged at Chicago, 111. His parchment, bearing all 
 the credits of an honorable soldier, is dated July 5, 
 1865. 
 
 He then returned home and resumed the quiet 
 pursuits of life, and has become one of the highly 
 
620 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 respected and influential citizens of Monmouth. The 
 firm of Lusk Bros, does a large and lucrative busi- 
 ness in the grocery line, having one of the largest 
 stocks and best assortments carried by any house in 
 the county. 
 
 September 13, 1866, Mr. Lusk was married at 
 Monmouth, to Miss Mary E. Riggs, who has borne to 
 him six children Minnie, Jessie H., Adda, Mamie, 
 Fred W. and Jean E. 
 
 Mr. Lusk is a member of the A. O. U. W., and 
 Quartermaster of the G. A. R. Post; Treasurer 
 or Engine Company No. i, and politically he is a 
 Democrat. 
 
 . ames C. Hogue, a farmer of Tompkins 
 Township, owning 80 acres of land on sec- 
 tion 26, is a native of Indiana, having 
 been born in that State Feb. 23, 1840. His 
 parents were P. F. and Elizabeth A. (Stormout) 
 Hogue, natives of Indiana and Tennessee re- 
 spectively. The parents of the subject of this notice 
 emigrated to this State in 1841, and purchased land 
 in Walnut Hill Township, Jefferson County. On 
 this land the father moved his family and was there 
 engaged in farming for six years, when he sold the 
 same and came to Warren County, buying 160 acres 
 on section 23, Tompkins Township, and on which 
 he resided until 1868. During that year he sold his 
 land and moved to Cutler, Perry County, in the 
 neighborhood of which place he purchased 240 acres 
 and where he is at present residing, following the 
 vocation of an agriculturist. 
 
 James C. Hogue was an inmate of the home circle 
 until he attained the age of 27 years, during the 
 meantime having received the advantages afforded 
 by the common schools. After leaving home, he 
 purchased the farm of 80 acres on which he is at 
 present living, moved on the same with his family 
 and has there been continuously occupied in its cul- 
 tivation and improvement until the present time. 
 
 In 1868, Miss Margery J. Stewart became the 
 wife of the subject of this notice and has borne him 
 six children Amelia H., Robert E., Anna E., Mary 
 B., Edna S., Norma A. In politics Mr. Hogue votes 
 with the Republican party. His religious views, 
 
 as likewise those of his wife, coincide with the tenets 
 of the United Presbyterian Church. 
 
 By economy and energetic effort, Mr. Hogue has 
 succeeded in accumulating sufficient to enable him 
 to add 40 acres to his original purchase and at pres- 
 ent he has a clear title to 120 acres of good farm 
 land, and in the vocation which he has chosen for a 
 life pursuit, he is meeting with that success which 
 energy and perseverance are sure to bring. 
 
 In the early history of the War for the Union, and 
 at a time when strong arms and brave hearts were 
 necessary to fight in defense of the flag, Mr. Hogue 
 was one of the first to enlist in the cause, which he 
 did by joining Co. K, 36th 111. Vol. Inf., as a private, 
 and for four years stood the brunt of battle. He 
 participated in the engagements of Pea Ridge, Per- 
 ryville, Murphysboro, Chattanooga, Mission Ridge, 
 the Atlanta campaign, Franklin and Nashville, and 
 was twice wounded, which necessitated his confine- 
 ment in the hospital for 13 months. He enlisted as 
 private, was promoted Sergeant in August, 1862. He 
 re-enlisted with his regiment as a veteran volunteer, 
 Jan. i, 1863, and was promoted to Captain of his 
 Company in June, 1865, receiving an honorable dis- 
 charge Oct. 9, 1865, by reason of services no longer 
 required. 
 
 oshua W. Coates, Jr. The writers of the 
 jjj- biographical sketches of this book, in their 
 travels throughout this county, very rarely 
 met an active business man, one who had for 
 sometime been engaged in his vocation, who was 
 a jiative of the county. It will be remembered 
 that the earliest pioneers, those who came between 
 the "3o's and '40*5, were few in number, and were 
 only found here and there settled on some neck of 
 timber, or had grubbed out a little farm on the bank 
 of some small stream. But it was not until after 
 1850, that any one ventured out upon the broad and 
 fertile prairies. It was about this period that the old 
 Oquawka Railroad was projected, and settlers began 
 to pour in rapidly, and from 1850 to 1856 there were 
 doubtless more settlers came in than all the years 
 previous from the day Daniel McNeil made his lo- 
 cation where the city of Monmouth now stands. 
 
?>*.; 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 623 
 
 Prominent among the few of this class intervieved, 
 is Joshua W. Coates, Jr., who is one of the leading 
 farmers of Roseville Township, where he has resided 
 all his life, having been born here Sept. 17, 1859. 
 He is a son of Joshua W. and Eletha (Ray) Coates, 
 natives of Kentucky and Illinois, respectively. The 
 father, Joshua, Sr., was one of the earliest settlers of 
 the county, having located on section 8, of Rose- 
 ville Township, at a very early period. He pur- 
 chased 240 acres of land there, which he made his 
 home until his death, which occurred in 1862. His 
 wife, who had journeyed with him through so many 
 years of his life, died the same year. Their family 
 consisted of two children, one of whom, William, 
 having died when in the third year of his life. 
 
 Joshua, Jr., as will be noticed, lost his parents 
 when an infant. He was taken in charge by his 
 mother's sister, now Mrs. Clarinda Talbert, with 
 whom he remained until he began business for him- 
 self. On becoming of age, lie went to Iowa and at- 
 
 . tended Howe's Academy for two years, at the end of 
 which time he returned to the farm left by his parents, 
 and where he is now living. His other landed pos- 
 sessions are 120 acres on section 9, and about 160 
 
 I acres located on sections 8 and 9. He owned a 
 farm in Henderson County, which he left in 1883, 
 
 [ and went to Eureka Springs, Ark., for the benefit of 
 his health. He then returned to his home in Warren 
 Co., and in the spring of 1885, to the place where he 
 is now residing. A view of his residence and accom- 
 panying farm buildings are given on page 416. 
 
 Mr. Coates is a member of the Union Baptist 
 Church, and in political matters casts his influence 
 and vote with the Democratic party. 
 
 r,on. Robert Holloway, formerly a promi- 
 nent member of the Bar of Warren County, 
 in 1881 removed from Monrnouth to his 
 farm^in Suez Township, Mercer County. He 
 
 !was a resident of Monmouth foi 30 years, and 
 during that period was extensively identified 
 with its varied interests and its development. He is 
 a native of Kentucky and was born in Bourbon 
 County, Sept. 26, 1829. His father, George Hollo- 
 
 way, was a native of Virginia, and there remained 
 until he grew to manhood. While still a young man 
 he emigrated to Kentucky and was a member of the 
 pioneer element of that State. He located in Bour- 
 bon County, and was there married to Mary McClan- 
 ahan. She was a native of Kentucky, although her 
 parents were from the State of Virginia. 
 
 The father of Mr. Holloway having died when he 
 was quite young, his mother devoted much pains- 
 taking care to the education of her son, who was for 
 some time a {.upil in St. Mary's College in Washing- 
 County, Ky. He afterwards graduated from the 
 Kentucky Military Institute, in 1849, of which he 
 was one of the most proficient of its students, 
 his grade in conduct and every class being 500, 
 the maximum. A. M. Garland, now United States At- 
 torney-General under President Cleveland, and his 
 brother, Rufus Garland, were members of the same 
 class with him at St. Mary's College. The elder 
 Garland, Rufus, and Mr. H. being the best students 
 of the smaller d:.rmitory, Mr. H. was awarded the first 
 and Mr. Garland the second prize of merit. During 
 his course of study at the Kentucky Military Insti- 
 tute, Mr. Holloway received the appointment of ^ 
 Assistant Professor of Mathematics and filled the 
 Chair throughout the remainder of the time he passed 
 at the Institute. He was also elected to the po- 
 sition of Captain of the First Corps of Cadets, and 
 after taking his degree he was elected to the Chair 
 of Mathematics and accepted the honor. Soon after, 
 a change became necessary in order to allow of his 
 fulfillment of his determination to enter upon the 
 study of law, and he resigned his position in the 
 Institute. 
 
 He proceeded to Lexington, in the State of his 
 nativity, where he entered the law office of the Hon. 
 George Robinson, then of the Supreme Benrch of 
 Kentucky, and read there under the preceptorshipof 
 that gentleman until 1851. He also attended Tran- 
 sylvania University at that place during the fall and 
 winter of 1849-50 and 1850-5 i, and graduated from 
 that institution during the latter term with honors. 
 Judge George Robinson, Judge Thomas A. Mar- 
 shall, both of the Supreme Court of Kentucky, and 
 Madison C. Johnson, a distinguished lawyer of Lex- 
 ington, were professors and law lecturers in the in- 
 stitution. 
 
 In April, 1851, he came to Monmouth. Soon after 
 

 624 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 his arrival he was admitted to the privileges of the Bar 
 of Illinois, and at once entered upon the duties of a 
 law practitioner at that place. He also became 
 interested in the purchase of real-estate and was 
 soon the owner of large tracts of land in Warren and 
 adjoining counties. At one time he owned more than 
 7,000 acres of land, including some fine farms. He 
 thus grew into an interest in the various avenues 
 open to the agriculturist and was soon deeply in- 
 volved in growing stock. He was the first importer 
 of thorough-bred Short-horn cattle in Warren Coun- 
 ty. In 1876 he held a sale at Dexter Park, Chicago, 
 at which he disposed of 7 1 head of blooded cattle, 
 which brought an average price of $t,ioo a head, a 
 sale at that time without a parallel. 
 
 In 1 88 1, Mr. Holloway removed to the farm on 
 which he has since resided. He is still carrying on 
 his plans for the improvement of the stock in his own 
 and adjacent counties, and is now more especially 
 interested in the breeding of thorough-bred Clydes- 
 
 f dale horses. He has journeyed to Scotland several 
 times for the purpose of personally selecting his 
 
 1 breeding-stock. His stables contain 150 horses of 
 the best accredited type. 
 
 He became interested in Clydesdale or draft 
 horses, which he has become so largely identified 
 with since, in the following way : While attending 
 a sale of noted Short-horns in Canada, in 1873, 
 he saw a magnificeut Clydesdale stallion, named 
 Jonnie Coope, which he purchased. Two years later, 
 desiring another horse for breeding purposes, to take 
 the place of the one mentioned above, he purchased 
 Donald Dinnie. He has also imported from Scot- 
 land many of the finest Clydesdales that country has 
 produced. Among these was Druid, the best Clydes- 
 dale horse ever seen in Scotland; also Pointsman, the 
 largest draft horse living. Among other importa- 
 tions were Prnice George Frederick, Cairn Broggie 
 Kier, King Edward, Simple Jaminie and Prince of 
 Wales Yet. Mr. Holloway has on his farm near 
 Alexis, the largest breeding stud of Clydesdale mares 
 in the world. His purpose and ambition is 'to show 
 that in America draft horses may be grown not in- 
 ferior to those imported from Great Britan, and soon 
 to supply the market with such without further im- 
 portation. 
 
 Mr. H. came to Illinois with Whig proclivities, but 
 shortly afterward hearing Douglas speak, was con- 
 
 vinced that his views were correct, and has since 
 continued a Democrat in his political belief. When 
 James Buchannan was elected President, Mr. Hol- 
 loway was Presidential Elector for the Congressional 
 District of which Warren County formed a part. 
 From the time he began political speaking he has 
 borne a conspicuous and distinguished part in advo- 
 cating the principles of his party in this portion of 
 the State ; and the writer of this sketch was told by 
 some of his friends that Douglas, in speaking of Mr. 
 Holloway remarked, that " he was one of the best 
 stump orators in Illinois." He was a delegate to the 
 National Convention at Charleston in 1860 and sup- 
 ported Douglas for President. He has always been 
 prominent in his devotion to the interest of his party, 
 and has on two occasions refused the nomination for 
 Congress in his district. In 1880 he consented to 
 the use of his name and scored a home triumph by 
 polling 1,300 more votes than the Presidential candi- 
 date of his party. 
 
 Mr. Holloway was joined in marriage to Catherine 
 E. Thompson, Oct. 24, 1853. Mrs. Holloway is the 
 daughter of Judge James and Elizabeth (Ewing) 
 Thompson, who were pioneers of Monmouth. She 
 was born in Sidney, Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Holloway 
 have four children. They are named Edmunds B., 
 George, Elizabeth Ellen and Mary Belle. The eldest 
 son married Belle Lafferty, of Mercer County. The 
 eldest daughter is the wife of M. M. McClana- 
 han, a practicing physician at Woodhull, Henry Co., 
 111. The others reside at home. 
 
 When Mr. H. was married his wife was a member 
 of the Presbyterian Church. About the year 1858, 
 he was converted under the preaching of Rev. R. 
 C. Mathews, and united with the same Church. Some 
 time afterward he was elected an Elder, and con- 
 tinued to fill that position so long as he remained in 
 Monmouth. After his removal to the country, he 
 transferred his membership to the Church at Nor- 
 wood and thence to Alexis and has since held 
 the position of Elder in those congregations During 
 almost all of the time Mr. Holloway has been con- 
 nected with the Church he has been a teacher of the 
 Bible class in the Sunday-school, a regular attendant 
 upon the services of the Church, and an interested 
 an active worker in all its labors at home and a will- 
 ing contributor of his means to all its agencies for the 
 spreading of the gospel abroad. He has a profound 
 and unshaken conviction in the truth of God's Word 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 625 
 
 and in its power to reclaim and bless man. His in- 
 terest and labors in this work are beyond what he 
 feels in and gives to any other cause. 
 
 Being so long identified with the interests of Mon- 
 mouthandso well known throughout the county, we 
 are pleased to be able to present a portrait of Mr. 
 Holloway in connection with this sketch. 
 
 form B. Meginnis, a retired farmer residing 
 near the city of Monmouth, was born in 
 Lancaster Co., Pa., Aug. 25, 1813. His 
 father, James Meginnis, was a carpenter in 
 early life and later a farmer, and his demise 
 occurred Jan. 3, 1831, in the county where 
 his son was born. He was a native of Dauphin 
 County, same State, of Irish descent but American 
 parentage, and the son of a Pennsylvania farmer. 
 He remained in his native county until he reached 
 maturity, when he came to Lancaster County and 
 was there united in marriage with Frances Brandt, 
 who was also a native of Lancaster County. Of this 
 union were born nine children, of whom our subject 
 was the eldest. Only three now survive Fanny, 
 the wife of David Detweiler, who resides on a farm 
 in Dauphin Co., Pa. ; Elizabeth, wife of David 
 Gingrich, also residing on a farm in the same county ; 
 and our subject, John B. 
 
 After the death of her husband, Mrs. Frances 
 Meginnis was united again in marriage, with Samuel 
 Bossier, but they had no family. She died in her 
 native county. 
 
 John B. Meginnis remained on the farm with his 
 mother, alternating his labors there with attendance 
 at the district schools, until he attained the age of 
 majority, when he went to Cumberland Co., Pa., 
 and superintended a farm there for his uncle two 
 years. He then rented land there for some time 
 and while in that county was married, at Harrisburg, 
 to Miss Margaret Sprout, on the ist of November, 
 1838. She was a daughter of John and Elizabeth 
 (McHose) Sprout, the eldest of her parents' family, 
 and was born in Cumberland Co., Pa., March 18, 
 1820. Her parents were both natives of that county, 
 where they were engaged chiefly in farming. They 
 
 were of Scotch ancestry, and the death of the father 
 occurred in 1855, and that of the mother in 1831, 
 both in their native county. Their family comprised 
 five children, all living, as follows: Mrs. Meginnis, 
 wife of our subject ; Mrs. Firoved, wife of Simon 
 Firoved, a retired farmer residing .in Monmouth ; 
 William married Catherine Hempt, and is engaged 
 in farming at Phelps, this county ; John is the hus- 
 band of Miss Mary Wellman, and they reside in 
 Hale Township, where he is engaged in farming ; 
 Hettie E., wife of James C. Nesbit, resides on a farm 
 in Hale Township. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Meginnis, are the parents of four 
 children: James married Priscilla Brooks, and re 
 sides on the old homestead in this township; Eliza- 
 beth is the wife of B. W. Hardin and resides on a 
 farm in Union Co., Iowa; Fannie B. is at home; and 
 John S., residing on a farm in Monmouth Township, 
 has never been married. 
 
 After Mr. Meginnis was married, he farmed in 
 Cumberland County until the year 1852, and came 
 thence to Illinois and here purchased land to the 
 extent of 200 acres, partly improved, in Monmouth 
 Township. On this he lived and farmed, being 
 very successful, until the year 1869, when he left 
 the farm and purchased five acres where he now re- 
 sides. This he has improved as a home. 
 
 Mrs. Meginnis is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. Mr. M. is an old line Democrat. 
 
 B. Nash, residing on section 16, Hale 
 j^ Township, is one of the successful, sturdy 
 tillers of the soil, and owns 160 acres of 
 good farm land. He was born in Greene 
 Co., Ohio, Aug. 18, 1833. When about two 
 years old, his parents came to Warren 
 County, where he received his education, which, 
 owing to the necessity which compelled him to as- 
 sist in the labors of the farm, was somewhat limited. 
 His father died when he was about seven years of 
 age, and he chose for his vocation in life that of 
 agriculture, which he has followed until the present 
 time. He has erected on his farm a good residence, 
 double corn crib, 32 x 24 feet, barn and outbuild-- 
 
 " 
 
726 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ings, and his premises are indicative of that push 
 and energy of which he is possessed. 
 
 Mr. Nash was married in Hale Township, Feb. i, 
 1860, to Adeline C. McKinney, who was born 
 in Warren County, on the izth day of January, 
 1836. She bore him four children James T. R., born 
 Jan. 21, 1861 ; John H., Feb. 16, 1862; Mary J., 
 May 22, 1864; and Harry C., Aug. 22, 1867 ; John 
 departed this life April r, 1882, aged 20 years. The 
 wife and mother died June 26, 1870, and Mr. Nash 
 was again married in the same township, Oct 7, 
 1875, to Susan E. Hamilton, who was born in Clin- 
 ton Co., Ind., Oct. 20, 1844. Her parents were 
 John and Sarah (Baldridge) Hamilton, natives of 
 South Carolina and Ohio respectively. They came 
 to this county in 1871, where the father died, in April, 
 1876; the mother still survives. The parents of 
 Mr. Nash's first wife were Abraham and Anna 
 (Brownlee) McKinney. 
 
 Mr. Nash has been School Director, and his wife 
 is a member of the United Presbyterian Church. Po- 
 litically, he is a supporter of the principles of the 
 Republican party. 
 
 The parents of Mr. Nash were James and Marga- 
 ret (Brown) Nash, natives of Pennsylvania and Ken- 
 tucky. They came to this county in 1835, and set- 
 tled in Hale Township, where they were among the 
 early pioneers, and experienced all the trials and pri- 
 vations incident to the settlement of a new country. 
 They continued to reside in Hale Township until the 
 death of the head of the family, which took place in 
 that township, Jan. 21, 1841. The wife and mother 
 survived -her husband, and resides in Hale Town- 
 ship, at the advanced age of 81 years. 
 
 K. Morris. The subject of the following 
 sketch is one of the substantial and well- 
 to-do farmers of Ellison Township. He was 
 born May 4, 1835, in Madison Co., Ohio, and 
 is the son of Amos and Rhoda J. (Campbell) 
 Morris, and the youngest of the family now 
 living. He came with his'parents to Warren County 
 in 1854. They settled on section 15, of Ellison 
 Township, wiiere the elder Morris purchased 80 
 acres of land, to which subsequently other tracts were 
 added. 
 
 Young Morris received a good common-school ed- 
 
 ucation in the district schools of his native State and 
 remained an inmate of the parental home until 
 shortly after the breaking out of the Civil War. In 
 February, of 1862, he enlisted in Co. D, 1 2th 111. 
 Cav. The regiment rendezvous was at Chicago and 
 from there went to Springfield, 111., where for three 
 months it was on duty guarding prisoners. The reg- 
 iment was then ordered to Marlinsburg, Va., and 
 soon after the entire command, under Gen. Miles, 
 was captured at Harper's Ferry, except the I3th 
 Cavalry, which succeeded in cutting its way through 
 the Rebel lines and escaped. Private Morris was 
 sick in the hospital at the time and was captured. 
 He was paroled at Harper's Ferry and from there 
 went to Chicago, via Baltimore and Annapolis. In 
 February, 1863, he re-joined his regiment at Falmouth, 
 Va., and was unfortunate enough to again fall into the 
 hands of the enemy. He was captured in the fight 
 at Farrel Station and sent to Libby Prison, at Rich- 
 mond, from which he was paroled and soon after ex- 
 changed. We soon after, however, find him again at 
 the front at the famous battle of Gettysburg. He did 
 honorable and faithful service for his country, and 
 should be remembered for the valiant part he took 
 in its defense. 
 
 ;,,on. John Porter, a prominent member of 
 the Warren County Bar, resident at Mon- 
 mouth, is a son of Jatnes and Sarah (Wray) 
 Porter, natives respectively of County Donegal, 
 
 S Ireland, and Juniata Co., Pa., and was born in 
 Huntington Co., Pa., April 27, 1824. His par- 
 were married in Huntington County, where 
 their eight sons and two daughters were born, and 
 where they died, the old lady in 1856, aged about 60 
 years, and the old gentleman two years later, aged 
 66 years. 
 
 Of the ten children born to them, below will be 
 found the record : Nancy, William, Robert W., John, 
 James D., Joseph, David T., Martha M., Franklin 
 T. and Andrew J. Nancy married James Boggs and 
 resides in Mercer County, and is the mother of seven 
 children. William married Miss Isabel Lane, of 
 Huntington Co., Pa. ; they have a family of ten chil- 
 dren. Robert W. married Miss Doyle, of Hunting- 
 ton Co., Pa., and they had five children;, his wife 
 died in 1854, and he was again married, to Nancy 
 
 ents 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 626 
 
 Robb, of the same county, and by the latter union 
 has two children. James D. Porter married Miss 
 Mary Irvine, of Philadelphia, and they have two 
 children and at present are residing in Spring Grove 
 Township. Joseph Porter married Mary J. Lytle, of 
 Pennsylvania, who is now deceased ; they had a fam- 
 ily of five children, and he is at present living near 
 Lynchburg, Amherst Co., Va., and has been, and is 
 at the present time, passing through the experience 
 of Judge Tourgee's great character in the Fool's Er- 
 rand. David T. Porter married Miss Emeline Wil- 
 son, of Stone Creek, Pa., and they have a family of 
 ten children and are residing in Chariton Co., Mo. 
 He is one of the most prominent farmers and stock- 
 raisers in that section of the country. Martha M. 
 married John Henry, of Shavers Creek, Pa., and is 
 now deceased. She left a family of six children to 
 mourn her loss. Franklin T. is unmarried. Andrew 
 J. married Miss Tillie Stuckey, of Bedford, Pa. ; they 
 have two children living and reside in Filmore Co., 
 Neb. The last three brothers named served in the 
 Union army. David T. and Franklin T. enlisted in 
 the io2d 111. Vol. Inf., under command of Col. Mc- 
 Murlry, of Knox County, who was afterwards super- 
 seded by Col. Smith. Andrew J. Porter enlisted in 
 the 55th Pa. Vol. Inf., went out as Orderly Sergeant, 
 was promoted to Second Lieutenant, and participated 
 in all the battles in which his regiment engaged, 
 without receiving a single scratch. All three broth- 
 ers received honorable discharges. 
 
 The first 18 years of John Porter's life were spent 
 upon his father's farm, and afterwards he learned 
 the trade of making and laying brick, working at 
 the same every summer till he married, and teaching 
 school in the winter. The summer of 1845 he 
 worked at his trade in Pittsburgh, Pa., laying brick 
 at $1.50 per day. In 1846 he followed his trade 
 in his native county. His primary education was 
 obtained through the common schools, and from the 
 age of 18 to 23 years he taught in the schools of his 
 county. His last school was taught in Ogle Co., 
 111., whither he had removed in 1850, and where 
 he spent the summer working at his trade. In 
 the spring of 185 i he took a farm in Warren County, 
 in Spring Grove Township, removing thence the 
 following year to a farm which he had purchased in 
 Sumner Township. Here he farmed with success 
 up to the spring of 1858, when he removed to Mon- 
 mouth, began at once the study of law, and in Janu- 
 
 ary, of 1863, was admitted to the Bar at Ottawa. 
 His official life began away back in 1855, when he 
 was elected Supervisor of Sumner Township. Two 
 years later, to fill a vacancy, he was elected to the 
 County Judgeship, for the next full term in Nov. 
 1857. This term the law giving the Court of this 
 county concurrent jurisdiction with the Circuit Court 
 in civil suits to the amount of $500, making the prac- 
 tice and pleading the same as in the Circuit Court, 
 was passed by the Legislature, and Judge Porter 
 was forced to study law to protect himself, and this 
 fact probably more than any other accounts for his 
 adopting the law for his profession. In r86i he was 
 again elected County Judge for four years, and soon 
 afterward may be dated his real beginning as a law- 
 yer. Up to 1862, he had worked with the Demo- 
 cratic party, but since that date the Republican 
 party has had no stronger supporter. 
 
 In 1868 the party of his adoption sent him to the 
 Legislature, probably the most important session since 
 the war. The i4th amendment to the United States 
 Constitution was adopted ; and so was the famous 
 (or infamous) tax steal, the latter being passed over 
 the Governor's veto, but to the credit of Judge Por- 
 ter, it is said, that while he stood with the majority 
 in the amendment bill, he opposed them in the tax 
 theft. The Judge was the author of and drew the ' 
 bill providing for the appointment of a conservator 
 for habitual drunkards, the bill becoming a law with- 
 out the delay of engrossing. 
 
 On Jan. 25, 1847, Mr. Porter was married, in his 
 native county, to Miss Mary E. Robb, at which 
 time he rented a farm in Hartslog Valley, where he 
 resided for the next three years, coming west 
 in the spring of 1850. Their eight children are 
 mentioned as follows : Mary, born in November, 
 r847, died in April, 1883, and was the wife of 
 W. J. Brooks; Sarah, bom in 1849, is at present 
 Mrs. Thomas Donahue, of Belle Plain, Kansas ; 
 James R., banker, of Belle Plain, Kansas; Nannie is 
 the wife of G. F. Buller, Wellington, Kans. ; Silas 
 W., attorney at Monmouth; Charles H., a resident 
 of Colorado; Ella F., at home; and George died in 
 infancy. 
 
 Mrs. Porter was the daughter of William and Mary 
 (Livingston) Robb. The former was a native of the 
 north of Ireland, and the latter of Lancaster Co., Pa., 
 the Livingstons being one of the oldest families of 
 that State. They were the parents of eight children, 
 
628 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Mrs. Porter of this sketch being the seventh in or- 
 der of birth. John married Miss Mary Cunningham; 
 William married Margaret Cunningham, sister of the 
 former, and they are both deceased, their widows 
 living in Huntingdon Co., Pa. Alexander is de- 
 ceased ; he was a physician and emigrated to 
 Indiana and there died, about the year 1838. 
 James lives in Mercer County 111. ; Sarah J. mar- 
 ried Peter C. Swoope, and they are both deceased. 
 They left a family of four children, one of whom is 
 deceased. Nancy Robb is the second wife of R. W. 
 Porter, brother of the subject of this notice, and they 
 at present reside in Sumner Township. Livingston 
 Robb married Mary Wilson, a native of Huntington 
 Co., Pa. ; they have a large family and reside on the 
 old Robb homestead, in Hartslog Valley, Pa. Thomas 
 S. Robb married Miss Martha Campbell, of McCon- 
 nellstown, Pa., and they at present reside in Mercer 
 Co., this State; they have six children living and 
 have lost several. The Robbs are of Scotch descent, 
 William Robb having come to this country about the 
 year 1800, settling in Huntingdon Co., Pa., where 
 he became a large land owner and a prominent and 
 influential man in that section of the country. 
 
 Judge Porter is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church. Socially, he belongs to the orders of Ma- 
 sonry and Odd Fellows. Although now a member 
 of one of the learned professions, so-called, he is as 
 proud of his record while a mechanic and a farmer 
 as of any other part of his life, and fully believes 
 with Burns, that "the rank is but the guinea's stamp, 
 the man's the gold for a' that." 
 
 jtrames C. Irwin, dealer in boots and shoes 
 |f and millinery, at Monmouth, was born in 
 Clarion, Pa., Aug. 19, 1843, a d was the 
 son of William and Margaret (Patrick) Irwin, 
 natives also of Pennsylvania. The family 
 removed from the Keystone State to Michigan, 
 probably in 184401 1845, and there in the city of 
 Detroit the parents spent the remainder of their 
 lives. 
 
 James C. was educated at the common schools of 
 
 Michigan ; came to Morris, this State, in 1858, and 
 to Monmouth in 1869. While at Morris he enlisted, 
 August, 1862, in Co. C, 7 6th 111. Vol. Inf., and served 
 to the close of the war. 
 
 He returned from the army to Morris, and clerked 
 in a dry goods store up to the date of his coming to 
 Monmouth. Here he engaged with an older brother 
 in mercantile business, and gave it his attention up 
 to 1878, his brother, however, retiring from the firm 
 at the end of the first year. In 1878, he closed out 
 his dry goods, retained the millinery department, 
 and put in an extensive stock of boots and shoes. 
 Associated with him in business is Mr. James Man- 
 non as salesman. Mr. Mannon is a native of Ohio, 
 came to Monmouth in 1877, and has been with Mr. 
 Irwin since 1880. Like Mr. Irwin, he is instinctively 
 a gentleman, and the source of their success in their 
 line, the secret to which they without effort place 
 themselves at the very head of their trade, is readily 
 traceable to the fact that they recognize the rights 
 of their patrons, and are satisfied with reasonable ' 
 profits. 
 
 These are the kind of men who deserve to suc- 
 ceed, and the writer of the industrial history of Mon- -< 
 mouth places their names in the list of "honorable 
 mention." 
 
 [ames Gardner, owning 200 acres of good 
 farm land, under an advanced state of cul- 
 tivation, located on section 6, Cold Brook 
 Township, was born in Edmonson Co., Ky., 
 Sept. 13, 1829. The father of James, Thornat 
 Gardner, was born in West Virginia, and was 
 the son of a farmer, who came to Edmonson Co., 
 Ky. ; was there reared to manhood and married 
 Catherine Lair, a native of Barren Co., Ky., the 
 daughter of a Kentucky farmer. Seven children 
 were born to the parents while residents of Ken- 
 tucky, James, our subject, being the eldest. 
 
 James Gardner was 17 years of age when his 
 father died in Edmonson Co., Ky., and two years 
 later his mother, accompanied by her six children, 
 came to this State and located in Cold Brook Town- 
 ship, this county, where the mother remained until 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 629 
 
 her death, which occurred Feb. 28, 1880, at the age 
 of 79 years, the date of her birth being April 26, 
 1801. 
 
 James Gardner, after accompanying his mother to 
 this State and county, lived with and labored for her 
 support and the maintenance of the children until 
 his marriage with Miss Margaret A. Robison, which 
 occurred in Cold Brook Township, May 10, 1853. 
 She was born Nov. i,i82g,and was the seventh child 
 of her parents' family, having been born in this coun- 
 ty, and is at present the oldest citizen of the county, 
 whose birth is recorded as within its boundaries. 
 She is a daughter of Andrew and Nancy (Stitt) Rob- 
 ison. (See sketch of M. C. L. Robison). Her par- 
 ents came to this State at an early day, and settled 
 in what is now Kelly Township, and known as Rob- 
 ison Point, Sept. 12, 1829. That portion of the 
 county at the time was undeveloped, and her par- 
 ents endured all the privations incident to the im- 
 provement of a new settlement. Their marketing 
 
 T was done at what is now Oquawka, Henderson 
 County. The county at that time included what is 
 
 ] now Warren and Henderson counties, the latter hav- 
 ing received its name from Henderson Richie, who 
 was the first white child born within its present bound- 
 ary. Mrs. Gardner was the oldest white child born 
 in Warren County. 
 
 After Mr. and Mrs. Gardner were united in mar- 
 riage, they located on a. new and unbroken tract of 
 prairie land, which to-day comprises the fine farm on 
 which they reside. It consists of 200 acres, and the 
 labors of the past have placed it under an advanced 
 state of cultivation. 
 
 When Mr. Gardner first started in this county he 
 was as poor as a church mouse, but by energy and 
 perseverance, coupled with the active co-operation of 
 his good helpmeet, he is to-day the possessor of a 
 fine faim as stated, and from his present standpoint 
 looks back over the history of the past and smiles at 
 the trials and difficulties which he and his good wife 
 encountered and overcame. 
 
 Their union has been blessed with the birth of 
 seven children, two of whom are deceased : Ella D. 
 became the wife of Clarence Young, a farmer resid- 
 ing in Kelly Township, and of which union three 
 children have been born Roy, Phebe and Nellie; 
 Effie D. was united in marriage to Henry Gates, who 
 resides on a farm in Butler Co., Neb., and they have 
 
 one child, Bertha; Nancy C., Milton E. and Ira M. 
 are living at home. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Gardner votes with the Democrat- 
 ic party. 
 
 Mrs. Gardner having been the first white child 
 born in Warren County, strange to say, has resided 
 within one and a half miles of the place of her na- 
 tivity until the present, and in the sunset of her 
 years realizes the wonderful developments through 
 which the county has passed since her birth. She 
 was never out of the State, even on a visit, until 
 about the age of 52. 
 
 j obert A. Gibson, retired farmer, residing 
 at Monmouth, was born near Xenia, Ohio, 
 Nov. 6, 1815, and of the eight sons born 
 to Thomas and Martha (Hogue) Gibson, he 
 was the youngest. His parents were natives 
 of Maryland and Virginia, respectively, and 
 in addition to eight sons, they reared five daughters 
 a real old-fashioned house full of children. 
 
 Thomas Gibson came to Warren County in the 
 fall of 1831, and bought a farm containing several 
 quarter sections, about two miles northwest from 
 Monmouth. Here he spent many years of his life, 
 and here his wife ended her days in the year 1842. 
 The old gentleman lived to become 87 years of age, 
 and died in 1860, at the house of his son, George, 
 near Little York. The Gibsons came originally from 
 England, and the Hogues from Scotland. The sons 
 of Thomas G. were brought up to farming, and the 
 old man gave each of them a quarter section. 
 
 Robert A., whose name heads this article, received 
 a pretty thorough common school education, and at 
 the age of 18 years, entered Hanover College, In- 
 diana, and graduated as an A. B. in 1838. After 
 leaving College he read law some and took a course 
 of lectures, and after returning to Illinois, was ad- 
 mitted to the Bar, in 1844. The farm, however, was 
 his choice, and he abandoned a professional life be- 
 fore he had scarcely begun it. He lived on his 
 farm, two miles northeast from Monmouth, from 1844 
 to 1875, when in the latter year he rented it out 
 and moved into town, and like the sensible man that 
 
630 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 he is, proposes to spend the rest of his life free from 
 care. 
 
 October 15, 1842, he was married in Trimble Co., 
 Ky., to Miss Maria Davidge, who lived but about 
 four years and left one child, Sarah, now (Sept., 
 1885,) employed at the Delevan (Wisconsin), Deaf 
 and Dumb Institute. 
 
 On the i yth of January, 1861, at Monmouth, 111., 
 Mr. Gibson was again married to Miss Amanda 
 Paine, a grandaughter of Gen. Edward Paine, the 
 founder of the city of Painesville, Ohio, and the 
 daughter of Chas. H. Paine, who came into Warren 
 County, in 1836, and settled near Little York, and 
 spent his life upon his farm, dying in 1859. Mrs. 
 Gibson was educated at Painesville, Ohio; Michigan 
 City, Ind ; Canton, 111.; and Jacksonville (111.) Fe- 
 male Academy, and taught school from the time she 
 was 16 years of age until she was 36. 
 
 Mr. Gibson had also some experience at school 
 teaching before he went to farming, but not enough 
 to fall in love with it. He also soldiered a little in 
 the Black Hawk war, and it may be presumed that 
 he did not fall in love with war any more than he 
 did with school teaching. He has been a hard- 
 working man, and to the talents given him has 
 abundantly added, like the wise and good servant 
 spoken of in the parable. 
 
 He belongs to the United Presbyterian Church, 
 votes the Democratic ticket, and enjoys heartily the 
 fruits of his many years' labor. 
 
 ] illiam Porter is one of the prominent and 
 is substantial agriculturists of the township 
 of Sumner, and is located on section 2. He 
 is the proprietor of a large tract of land 
 which contains 376 acres, and which is all 
 in fine condition for profitable cultivation, with 
 the exception of 20 acres, which is in timber, and 
 increases the value of the estate. 
 
 Mr. Porter made his first acquaintance with War- 
 ren County in 1852, when he bought unimproved 
 tracts of prairie, a part of which is included in the 
 property he now owns. After making his purchases 
 
 he returned to his home and remained thereuntil the 
 following spring, when he removed to Warren Coun- 
 ty with his family. They were the occupants during 
 the first year of a house on section i. Meanwhile 
 Mr. Porter had erected a small frame house on his 
 own land, to which he removed his family in the 
 spring of 1854. A great transformation has been 
 brought about by the application of persevering in- 
 dustry, good management and the best and most ap- 
 proved methods of modern farming. The pioneer 
 home has been replaced by a house of convenient pro- 
 portions, and the other buildings which have been erect- 
 ed are of the sort demanded by the purposes to which 
 the farm is devoted. Shade and fruit trees add to 
 the appearance and value of the place, and there are 
 ample sheds and other arrangements for the protec- 
 tion of the stock on the farm. 
 
 Mr. Porter was born in Brady Township, Hunting- 
 don Co., Pa., Nov. 5, 1819, and is the son of James 
 and Sarah (Wray) Porter. (See sketch of Judge 
 John Porter.) He received his early education in the . 
 common, or as it Was then called, subscription school, j 
 the system now in vogue not having been establish- I 
 ed. Later, he attended the district school in the 
 winter seasons, and passed the remainder of the year' 
 in farm labor. He also assisted in the lumber woods, 
 where it was the custom at that day to pass a portion , 
 of every year. 
 
 At the age of 17 he obtained a position as clerk 
 in a store in the village of Huntingdon. He ope- 
 rated in that capacity one year, and then returned 
 home and resumed farming. He alternated that 
 employ with teaching. In 1845 he withdrew from 
 the roof tree of his parents, taking possession of a 
 home of his own, in company with his wife. 
 
 He was married to Miss Isabella Lane, March 25 
 of that year. They located on the family home- 
 stead, and remained in Huntingdon County until 
 their removal to Warren Cou.ity, as has been related. 
 She was the daughter of James and Martha (Steele) 
 Lane. She was born in Huntingdon Co., Pa., Oct. 
 15, 1824. Her parents on her father's side were 
 English, and on her mother's side of Scotch-Irish 
 origin. She is the ninth in order of birth of ten 
 children, viz. , Mary, Samuel M., Eliza, Eleanor, 
 William A., James R., Martha J., Isabella and 
 Franklin H. One child died in infancy. Samuel, 
 Eliza and Martha J. are deceased. Franklin H. was 
 
' 
 
WARREN COUNTY 
 
 633 
 
 a General in the late Civil War, and is now living in 
 Huntingdon, Pa. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Porter have had 1 1 children. Nine 
 are still living. Sarah J. and Etta M. are the two 
 eldest. Minerva is married to James Milligan, of 
 Mercer County. James L and John C. are pros- 
 perous farmers in Cedar Co., Iowa. Clara is a well- 
 known and popular teacher in the public schools. 
 The other survivors are Frank, Warren J. and Pearl. 
 Ada, the seventh child, was born Sept. 4, 1857, and 
 died June 19, 1883. She was well educated, and at 
 the time of her death was engaged in teaching. Mar- 
 tha J., the second child, died in infancy. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Porter have always taken a deep 
 interest in educational matters, and provided liber- 
 ally for the mental training of their children. They 
 sent them to the academy in Monrnouth, and to the 
 college at Dixon. 
 
 The parents are members of the Presbyterian 
 Church. Mr. Porter votes the straight Democratic 
 ticket. 
 
 orter Phelps, one of the pioneers of War- 
 ren County, was born in Madison Co., N. 
 Y., April 14, 1804, and died at his resi- 
 dence in Lenox Township, four miles east of 
 Monmouth, Sept. 20, 1885. He was married 
 to Mary Ellen Rees, in Peterboro, N. Y., 
 March 29, 1826. She was born in Cazenovia, Mad- 
 ison Co., that State, May 23, 1805, and died at the 
 family residence July 26, 1884. 
 
 The name of Phelps is very old, being found at 
 Gloucestershire, England, as far back as the compi- 
 lation of the Dooms Day Book of William the Con- 
 querer. Porter Phelps traces his ancestry back in an 
 unbroken and honorable chain to James Phelps, who 
 was born in Tewksbury, England, about 1530. His 
 grandson, William Phelps, was born at that place in 
 August, 1599, and came to America, landing at South 
 Boston, then Hull, May 30, 1630, but soon after set- 
 tled at Dorchester. He moved to Windsor, Conn., in 
 1635, and was conspicuous in the settlement of that 
 State, filling many influential positions. Capt. Tim- 
 othy Phelps, his son, was born at Windsor, Sept. i, 
 1639, and married Mary Griswold, May 19, 1661. 
 He had a son, Timothy, born also at Windsor, Nov. 
 i, 1662. He married Martha Crow, Nov. 4, 1686, 
 
 and removed to Hebron, Conn., in 1690. He also 
 had a son Timothy, who was born at Hebron, June 
 29, 1692, who was married to Hannah Calkins, July 
 29, 1714. They, too, had a son named Timothy, 
 also bom at Hebron, June 29, 1718. He was mar- 
 ried to Hannah Northam, Sept. 16, 1742. To them 
 was born a son, at Hebron, whom they named Sam- 
 uel ; the date of his birth was Sept. 2, 1759. He 
 was married to Lydia Porter, Dec. 18, 1785. They 
 were the parents of Porter Phelps, the subject of this 
 sketch, and had moved to Madison Co., N. Y., pre- 
 vious to his birth. Samuel Phelps, and also two of 
 his brothers, were soldiers in the Revolutionary War 
 and the former, while prostrated with fever, was 
 held upon his horse to enable him to escape when 
 New York was evacuated by the Americans. 
 
 Lydia Porter, the mother of Porter Phelps, and for 
 whom he was named, was descended from John Por- 
 ter, who was born in 1590, in Kenilworth, Warwick- 
 shire, England, at Wraxhall Abbey, the ancient 
 seat of the family, where many of the name are 
 interred. He was descended, in the izth genera- 
 tion, from William De LaPorte, a Norman knight, < 
 who came over in the train of William the Conquerer, | 
 at the time of the Norman Conquest, in 1066, as can 
 still be seen upon the rolls of Battle Abbey, his J 
 name being transformed to Porter. John Porter, 
 with his wife and children, were among the first to 
 penetrate the wilderness of Connecticut, settling at 
 Windsor, Conn., in 1635, the very year William 
 Phelps arrived there. There he died. April 22, 1648. 
 Their son, John Porter, was born in 1618. About 
 1650, he married Mary Stanley, daughter of Thomas 
 Stanley, who came from London in 1635 and was one 
 of the original proprietors of Hartford, Conn. They 
 had a son, John, born Jan. 3, 1651; he married Joanna 
 Gaylord, and settled in Windsor, Conn. Of their 12 
 children, David was bora Oct. 3, 1685, and on Jan. 
 3, 1707, married Anna Phelps, daughter of Captain 
 Timothy Phelps, above mentioned. They had seven 
 children. Their youngest son, Increase Porter, born 
 Feb. 26,1722, married Mary Niles, May 15, 1750. 
 Their youngest daughter, Lydia Porter, born about 
 1765, married Samuel Phelps Dec. 18, 1785, as above 
 stated. She was a sister of Rev. David Porter, D. D., 
 a celebrated Presbyterian Divine, of New York, and 
 grandfather of Prof. Porter, of Yale College. 
 
 We find by the records that John Porter, who first 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 came to America, was a man of distinction and pos- 
 sessed of large property for those times. He was a 
 man of fine appearance and intrusted with positions 
 of importance. A long list of names may be traced 
 among his descendants, as well as among those of 
 William Phelps, who came over abdut the same time, 
 who were distinguished in the various learned pro- 
 fessions and walks of life, throughout the country. 
 The ancestors of Mary Ellen (Rees) Plielps came 
 from Glamorganshire, South Wales, tracing their de- 
 scent from old and distinguished stock. 
 
 In 1835 Porter Phelps, with his family, started 
 West, traveling the entire distance to this point in a 
 wagon drawn by horses. They were 69 days in 
 reaching Eugene, Tnd., where they spent the winter. 
 The following spring they came to Knoxville, 111., 
 where Mr. Phelps was taken sick and was carried 
 in a wagon to Monmouth to be doctored, there being 
 no desirable physician, if any at all, in Knoxville. 
 His wife, with heroism born of devotion, remained at 
 Knoxville to care for their little ones, and from time 
 to time rode on horseback to Monmouth to see her 
 husband. He stopped while sick at the house of 
 Daniel McNeil, which was situated on East Broad- 
 way, about where the residence of Rev. Dr. McDill 
 now stands. This was then almost the only resi- 
 dence in Monmouth. There was an old log house 
 where court was held. The judge and attorneys who 
 traveled in those times almost, if not quite, from 
 Springfield to Galena on horseback or by stages, 
 stopped at the McNeil hostelry. Those were the 
 days when Douglas, Browning, Richardson, Baker, 
 McDougall, Lincoln, Walker, Butterfield and other 
 great men of that day rode the circuit. There were 
 mighty men in this wilderness, even then, whose 
 ability has never been surpassed. 
 
 In the spring of 1837 Mr Phelps, with his family, 
 moved to Roseville Township, where he improved a 
 small farm. In 1844 he moved to the vicinity of 
 Berwick, and in the spring of the following year took 
 possession of the place where himself and wife both 
 died. They reared a family of eight children, one 
 daughter, Mary Gertrude, a lovely girl, dying in 
 1847. She was greatly beloved and is still remem- 
 bered by those who knew her. Their youngest son, 
 Kenneth Graham, died in 1876, a few years after 
 graduating from Monmouth College in the classical 
 department, and when nearly ready to be ordained 
 
 a minister of the United Presbyterian Church. He 
 was a young man of great promise and most lovable 
 character, whom to have known was but to love. We 
 cannot forbear cop)ing from the beautiful tribute to 
 him of his class-mate, Miss Mary J. Howard : "Six 
 years ago there left this port a sailor lad, whom to 
 know was to love, to name was to praise. Just as 
 he pulled away from the shore, his strength began to 
 fail; the little bark rocked on the waves awhile, and 
 then the angel came down the sunbeam-stairs and 
 carried him upward and away. To day you may go 
 out on the wharves of a village, that lieth cold aad still 
 and there you may trace in the rolling grass iheform 
 of an upturned boat. Six years ago he left this dear, 
 old college-port, the subject of his farewell speech, 
 'A King." One thing he said we will not forget 
 ' For all bright things there is a resurrection.' One 
 year ago, on the same day on which a group of boys 
 and gitls were starting out to sea, he was mounting 
 the steps on the other shore, to stand forever in the 
 presence of A King. ' Of the soft, brown hair, the 
 large gray eyes, so full of truth ; the warm, firm hand, 
 we can only say, ' For all bright things there is a 
 Resurrection. " 
 
 Samuel David Phelps, eldest son of Porter Phelps, 
 lives upon the old homestead, with his three children 
 Gertrude, Garrett Kirk and Rees. His wife was 
 Jane E. Lockwood, now deceased, and the daughter 
 of Sheldon and Parthenia Lockwood, who were 
 among the earliest pioneers of Warren County. They 
 came from New York and settled about ten miles 
 south of Monmouth, prior to the Black Hawk War. 
 DeWitt Phelps, the second son, lives southeast of 
 Kirkwood, in this county, and Delos P. Phelps at 
 Monmouth, sketches of whom appear elsewhere in 
 this volume. Ralph Gurley Phelps is a prominent 
 lawyer at Atlantic, Iowa. Ellen Porter and Annie 
 E. reside with their brother upon the old homestead. 
 They are cultured and intelligent women, with great 
 love of literature and poetry and both write more 
 or less for the press. 
 
 It is impossible for the present generation to real- 
 ize the hardships and privations endured by the pio- 
 neers. Porter Phelps was always an influential man 
 in his neighborhood and was the Supervisor of his 
 township from the date of township organization 
 until the year r864. He was retiring in his 
 disposition and put forward others rather than 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 635 
 
 himself. In politics, he was always a consistent 
 Democrat, and his five sons were of the same faith. 
 Perhaps there is no better way to close this brief 
 mention of the lives of Mr. and Mrs. Porter Phelps 
 than by copying from the notices of their deaths, as 
 published in the county papers. 
 
 "Mary Ellen Phelps, daughter of David and Ann 
 (Smith) Rees, being a woman of intellectual and re- 
 fined tastes, it required strong effort to make her 
 home in the then new country. The decision once 
 made, her unusual intellectual and physical strength 
 was exerted that the new abode might be a success, 
 and especially that her children might be deprived 
 as little as possible ol the superior educational ad- 
 vantages of an older country. To the very last she 
 retained her interest in public events, literature, 
 history and poetry, keeping a daily record, and lay- 
 ing down her pen only with her life. A consistent 
 Christian, she made a profession of faith at the age of 
 14, uniting with the First Presbyterian Church (Dr. 
 Aiken's), of Utica, New York. She was a member 
 of the Presbyterian Church of this place almost from 
 its organization until 1858, and at the time of her 
 death, and for many years previously, a member of 
 the Second United Presbyterian Church of Mon- 
 mouth. The mother of eight children, six, with her 
 husband, survive her. Although her health had been 
 very precarious for some time, she was not confined 
 to her room, and was sitting at the breakfast table 
 when the summons came. Without a struggle or a 
 word, in a moment's time, she departed. 
 
 "Of no distemper, of no blast she died. 
 
 But fell like autumn fruit that mellowed long, 
 E'en wondered at because she dropped no sooner; 
 
 Fate seemed to wind for three and half score 
 
 years, 
 Yet, swiftly ran she on ten summers more, 
 
 Till, like a clock, worn out with eating time, 
 The wheels of weary life at last stood still." 
 
 "Porter Phelps at his death had attained to more 
 than eleven years beyond the three score and ten al- 
 lotted as the life of man. He was descended in di- 
 rect line, by both paternal and maternal ancestry, 
 from those stern, hardy, conscientious, liberty-loving 
 pioneers, who settled New England in the early 
 part of the iyth century, when America was a wilder- 
 ness. He, himself, was a pioneer, coming West from 
 New York in 1835. Reaching Knox County, 111., in 
 1836, he came to Warren County in 1837, where he 
 has since continuously resided, and for more than 40 
 
 of the last years at his home, four miles east of Mon- 
 mouth. Since his residence here lie has witnessed 
 this country change from uninhabited prairie and 
 woodland to cultivated fields and cities enriched with 
 a superior civilization. 
 
 Mrs. Mary Ellen Phelps. a noble help-meet, 
 worthy such a husband, with whom he lived for more 
 than 58 years, died July 26, 1884, and for her he 
 grieved constantly to the day of his death. They 
 reared a family of eight children, six of whom sur- 
 vive them. 
 
 " Porter Phelps inherited the characteristics of his 
 ancestors. He possessed a keen sense of justice, a 
 discriminating judgment that suffered few errors, a 
 passionate love of liberty, home and country, and 
 a conscientiousness which was the mainspring of all 
 his actions. Although physically weak, he was a 
 man of great personal courage. A look of his eye, 
 when aroused, not unfrequently quelled opposition 
 and overawed su; erior strength. His will was in- 
 domitable. His firmness and tenacity of purpose, 
 when satisfied he was right, knew no such thing as 
 change. His reading, intelligence, love of books, 
 learning, poetry and eloquence, were remarkable ; I 
 and, had he chosen such a career, there had been no 
 position in civil life he would not have adorned. To 
 these stronger characteristics he added feelings ten- . 
 der and true, friendships warm, sincere and endur- 
 ing. His soul was full of pathos. Many a time, in 
 reading a touching poem or narration, the tears 
 would start, the lip tremble, and the voice break 
 with emotion. 
 
 "The spirituality of his nature was very great. 
 From early life he had been a sincere and devoted 
 Christian. His faith looked up to Calvary, undim- 
 med by doubt or fear. He joined the Presbyterian 
 Church when 21 years old, and from 22 was ruling 
 elder at Stockbridge and Addison, N. Y., and Knox- 
 ville, III. He was one of the earliest members of the 
 Presbyterian Church of Monmouth, an elder therein 
 for many years, and when he died was a member of 
 the Second United Presbyterian Church of this city. 
 But a few weeks before his death, he was noticed 
 reading in his Bible, the tears streaming down his 
 cheeks. The page showed it was of the agony of 
 our Saviour in the garden of Gethsemane. Still later 
 and but a few days before his death, from near the 
 window beside which he sat, he took his bible, found. 
 
 \ 
 
6 3 6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 the 23d Psalm and read aloud in feeble yet confi- 
 dent voice : ' The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not 
 want. ' Here he stopped, and after turning his book 
 from side to side, said he could not see. His sight 
 had failed him. This was the last verse he ever 
 read. 
 
 " He had been a great sufferer through the last 
 months of his life from progressive paralysis, and in- 
 ability to help himself was a great trial to his self- 
 reliant and determined spirit. Yet, through all his 
 sufferings he was ever patient and thoughtful of 
 those who cared for him. His last hours were peace- 
 ful and comparatively painless. 
 
 " In death his face was calm and beautiful. Faith 
 and hope still sat upon his brow, though the light of 
 his eye was quenched. His life had drawn to a close 
 like the ending of that bright and _beautiful autumn 
 Sabbath. " 
 
 "How flue has the day beenijhow bright was the sun-! 
 
 How lovely and joyful the course that he run, 
 Though he rose in a mist when his race he begun, 
 
 'And there followed somejdroppings of rain ! 
 But when the fair traveler 's come to the west, 
 
 His rays are all gold, his beauties are best-: 
 He paints the sky gay as he sinks to his rest, 
 
 And foretells a bright rising again. 
 
 Just such is the Christian; -'his course.-he begins 
 
 Like the sun in a mist, when he mourns for his sins, 
 And melts into tears; thenjie break;out and shines. 
 
 And travels his heavenly way: 
 But when he conies nearer to finish his race, 
 
 Like a fine setting sun, he looks richer in grace, 
 And gives a sure hope, at the end of his days, 
 
 Of rising in brighter array." 
 
 ^.amuel W. Eodgers, one of the pioneers 
 of Warren County, and at present (Octo- 
 ber, 1885), of the firm of Glendening & 
 Rodgers, dealers in wood, coal, hay, feed, etc., 
 at Monmouth, was born near Hannibal, Mo., 
 Oct. 12, 1832. His parents, Aleri and Mary 
 (Davidson) Rodgers, were natives of Virginia, and 
 of Scotch descent. They reared a family of five 
 sons and three daughters, and buried two children 
 in youth. 
 
 The senior Mr. Rodgers was a farmer by occupa- 
 tion ; removed from Virginia to Missouri, probably 
 in 1821; from there to Hale Township, in 1836, 
 
 where he died in 1863, about 74 years of age. His 
 widow survived him until July 3, 1879, and was about 
 89 years of age when she died. 
 
 S. W. Rodgers was reared on the farm and edu- 
 cated at the common schools. In 1882, he aban- 
 doned agricultural pursuits, removed into town, and 
 the following year entered into his present business 
 arrangements. His first wife, to whom he was mar- 
 ried in Hale Township, in 1854, died in 1874, leav- 
 ing five children Ida E. (Mrs. Horace Parsons), 
 Jasper F., James A., deceased, John S. and Anna 
 Mary. 
 
 February 28, 1878, Mr. Rodgers was again mar- 
 ried in Mercer County, this State, to Mrs. Mary A. 
 Finley, nee Cabeen, and their only child is named 
 Isabella C. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Rodgers are 'members of the 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 i- 
 
 .on. John J. Glenn, the subject of the fol- 
 lowing sketch, is one of the prominent jur- 
 ists, not only of the Tenth Judicial District, 
 but of the State of Illinois. He is a descend- 
 j ant from the hardy and vigorous Scotch-Irish 
 I stock, his ancestors being natives of the North 
 of Ireland. They emigrated to America and settled 
 in Maryland, where John Glenn, the father of 
 Judge Glenn, was born in the year 1794. He was 
 reared there, and in 1818 went to Ohio, and settled 
 in Ashland County, where he followed the vocation 
 of a farmer the remainder of his life, his death oc- 
 curring in 1868. He had married Miss Anna John- 
 son, a native of New Jersey, who died in May, 1841. 
 Of this union, five children were born, three sons 
 and two daughters. John J., one of the number, 
 was born in Ashland Co., Ohio, March 2, 1831. The 
 days of his youth, like those of most farmers' sons, 
 were spent upon the farm, assisting his father during 
 the summer months and in the winters attending the 
 district schools. In the latter he received the rudi- 
 ments of a good English education, and was thus 
 prepared for an academic course, which he received 
 in the Vennillion Institute, Haysville, Ohio. He 
 was then fitted for college and accordingly entered 
 
'' WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 637 
 
 the Miami University , r ,which institution subsequently 
 conferred upon him the degree of M. A. 
 
 After leaving college, our subject accepted a po- 
 sition as teacher in the academy at Logansport, 
 Ind. He l.ad, however, no intention of making 
 teaching the profession of his life, for soon after his 
 arrival at that city he commenced the study of law, 
 in the office and under the direction of Hon. Daniel 
 D. Pratt, then one of the leading lawyers and prom- 
 inent in the counsels of the State and nation. Young 
 Glenn labored diligently in the acquisition of legal 
 lore, and two years later, at New Castle, that State, 
 was admitted to the Bar. Immediately after his ad- 
 mission, lie went to Forl Wayne, opened an office 
 and commenced the practice of his profession. He 
 remained there until 1860, when, believing that suc- 
 cess would sooner crown his efforts in newer and 
 more western fields, he came to Illinois and located 
 at Aledo. Here he remained for one year, whence 
 he removed to Monmouth, which has since been his 
 
 | permanent abode. In his new field he soon met 
 with success, and in the course of a few years es- 
 
 J tablished a large and remunerative practice. 
 
 Judge Glenn was justly recognized as standing in 
 the front rank of attorneys in his Judicial Circuit. 
 He possessed that kind of patient industry and care 
 in the arrangement and preparation of his cases that 
 made him intimately acquainted with their strong 
 points, and these he was equally careful to impress 
 upon Court or jury. In addition to the clearness 
 and logic of his statements, they were always care- 
 fully supported by decisions of the higher courts 
 bearing upon the case. The natural result of such 
 efforts was usually a verdict for his client. He soon 
 earned for himself the reputation of being a careful, 
 conscientious and painstaking lawyer, one who looked 
 after the interests of his client and used all honor- 
 ble means to secure him exact and equal justice. As 
 an advocate, his appeals to the jury and to the Court 
 were made to the reason and judgment rather than 
 to the passions; and were not an endeavor to so be- 
 cloud the intellect of his auditors, by sophistical 
 reasoning, that the rightousness of the verdict was 
 left in doubt when rendered. 
 
 In 1877, Mr. Glenn's ability as an attorney and 
 his probity of character and worth as a man, received 
 honorable and suitable recognition by his election to 
 the Judgeship of the Tenth Judicial District, under 
 
 the new law that originated in the Appellate Court. 
 In 1879, he was elected for the full term, and in 
 1885 was re-elected, without opposition, for a second 
 full term. 
 
 The same characteristics that marked Mr. Glenn 
 as a lawyer are equally prominent in him as a Judge 
 upon the Bench. Painstaking and careful attention 
 to the evidence, and an intelligent application of the 
 law to the case, renders his decisions impregnable, 
 and he has had but few reversals from the higher 
 courts. Politically Judge Glenn has always been a 
 staunch Republican. 
 
 On the-i2th of August, 1856, Judge Glenn was 
 united in marriage with Miss Mary J. Magaw, 
 daughter of William and Rachel (Paxton) Magaw, 
 of Preble Co., Ohio. Five children have been born 
 to them, who bear the following names: Anna R., 
 J. McG., William M., Minnie E. and Addie M. The 
 family are all members of the Presbyterian Church, 
 of which Judge Glenn has been an Elder for many 
 years. 
 
 S 
 
 born 
 
 rs. Mary E. Freeman, widow of B. F. 
 Freeman, residing at Kirkwood, was born 
 at Washington, Tazewell Co., this State, 
 Feb. 5, 1842. She was united in marriage 
 to B. F. Freeman, Jan. i, 1865. B. F. Free- 
 man, husband of the subject of this notice, was 
 in Mercer Co., this State, Nov. 29, 1835, and 
 
 died June 15, 1876. His parents, Fauntleroy and 
 Margaret E. (Brown) Freeman, were natives of Ken- 
 tucky. They came to this State in r834, and settled 
 in Mercer County, where they remained a number of 
 years, and where his father was engaged in the occu- 
 pation of a farmer. Leaving the latter county they 
 moved to Knox County, where they resided until 
 their deaths, which occurred in 1844 and 1878, re- 
 spectively. 
 
 B. F. Freeman remained an inmate of the parental 
 household until November, 1868, having previous to 
 attaining his majority acquired a good education in 
 the district schools. After leaving home, he pur- 
 chased a farm in Greenville Township, Henderson 
 Co., of 160 acres, on which he located, with his fam- 
 ily, and entered actively and energetically upon the 
 
6 3 8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 task of its cultivation and improvement, and by a 
 subsequent purchase increased the same about 
 160 acres, making his total landed interests some 
 320 acres, on which he Jived and labored until his 
 death. 
 
 He was married Jan. i, 1865, to Miss Mary E. 
 Riddle, and of their union four children are living, 
 viz. : Fauritleroy, Alta M., Lloyd H. and Mary C. 
 Mrs. Freeman has purchased a residence and lot in 
 Kirkwood Village, and is residing there at present 
 with her three children. 
 
 Her husband in political matters voted with the 
 Republican party. He was a stockholder in the 
 First National Bank at Kirkwood, and was a warm- 
 hearted, generous, whole-souled gentleman, who was 
 always ready to assist any good enterprise that was 
 calculated to benefit the community in which he 
 resided. 
 
 He died respected and honored by those who knew 
 him, either socially or in business transactions. 
 
 eorge W. Brent is a prominent farmer 
 and stock-raiser, residing on section 18, 
 Ellison Township, where he was born on 
 March the 4th, 1840. He is the youngest son 
 of Kenner Brent, Sr., who was one of the first 
 settlers in Ellison Township. (See sketch of 
 Paul Brent.) 
 
 Our subject was reared on a farm and attended 
 the schools in his township until he attained his ma- 
 jority. On becoming of age he set out as a work- 
 man on his father's farm for some time. His first 
 purchase of land was 80 acres in Walnut Grove 
 Township, Henderson Co., which was partly im- 
 proved at the time of purchase. After making fur- 
 ther improvements he added to his possessions a 
 tract of 53 acres in Warren County, where he now 
 resides with his sisters, Virginia and Sarah, the for- 
 mer born in Virginia three months before her parents 
 came to Illinois; Sarah was born in this county. 
 
 Mr. Brent enlisted in the War of the Rebellion 
 Feb. r4, 1865, in Company H, 491)1 Illinois Volun- 
 teer Infantry, which was assigned to the Army of the 
 Cumberland, and fought in all the battles in which 
 his regiment was engaged. He was promoted to 
 Corporal December 21, 1865. He was discharged 
 
 at Selma, Ala., January 21, 1866, and returned home 
 immediately. He has since continued to reside upon 
 his farm, where he is engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits, and meeting with success in his chosen voca- 
 tion. 
 
 The property of Mr. Brent is mostly in a high 
 state of cultivation, and his residence is located in 
 a beautiful hickory grove. 
 
 I" ames H Burke, a. pushing, energetic farmer, 
 residing on section 19, Hale Township, 
 where he rents an A, No. i farm, is a son 
 of Thomas and Rebecca (Morgan) Burke, na- 
 tives of. Virginia and Ohio respectively. His 
 parents were married and settled in Indiana, 
 and in 1837 did not take the ndvice of Horace Gree- 
 ley, but came West without it, and settled in Mon- 
 mouth Township. From the date of their settlement 
 we see they were early pioneers, and they no doubt 
 experienced all the trials and privations which the 
 old sturdy pioneers were compelled to pass through 
 in the early settlement of the county. In 1850, af-p, 
 ter a residence in the county of some 13 years, the 
 parents removed to Henderson County, where the 
 mother died. After her doath the father removed to 
 Iowa, in which state his demise occurred. The issue 
 of their union was nine children, of whom James H. 
 was second in order of birth. 
 
 James H. Burke was born in Hancock Co., Ind., 
 May 6, 1833, and at the time his parents emigrated 
 to this county was but four years of age, conse- 
 quently may be classified as a pioneer himself. He 
 lived at home uniil he was 19 years old, receiving 
 such advantages as were at that time afforded by 
 the common schools. In the spring of 1853 he 
 crossed the plains to Northern Oregon, and becom- 
 ing imbued with the spirit of gain, he engaged in 
 mining. From Northern Oregon he went to South- 
 ern Oregon and was there occupied in mining until 
 the summer of 1856, when he returned to this 
 county and engaged in agricultural pursuits. He has 
 resided in Warren and Henderson Counties since 
 that time. In r 87 6 he moved into Hale Township, 
 and is at present following the vocation of farming 
 on section i 9, of that township. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Burke was solemnized in 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 639 
 
 Sumner Township, Feb. 12, 1857, at which time Miss 
 Mary A. Swain became his wife. She was born in 
 Ohio Feb. 23, 1830, and has borne her husband six 
 children, whose names are Harvey H., Kate I., Ra- 
 chel E., Mary A.. Benjamin S. and Harry E. Kate 
 I. is dead. 
 
 Mr. Burke has held the office of Collector for 
 three years, and at present is Assessor of the town- 
 ship. In politics he is a staunch and active Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 if 
 
 
 rury B. Boyd, a pioneer settler of Point 
 Pleasant Township, was born in the State 
 of Virginia, May 10, 1780. He was the 
 son of George and Jemima (Birge) Boyd, and 
 was early orphaned by their death. He was 
 made an apprentice to a trade, and when still 
 young went to the State cf Georgia. There he was 
 married, Feb. 18, 1805, to Elizabeth, the daughter 
 of George and Nancy (Dean) Hurd. She was born 
 in Georgia, Sept. n, 1867, and soon after their mar- 
 riage they went to Kentucky, where they located in 
 Bath County, and the husband utilized his good edu- 
 cation in teaching, and in the alternate seasons he 
 worked at his trade. They lived there until 1822, 
 when they went to Pulaski County, in the same 
 Slate, and remained there until 1825. They re- 
 moved thence to Greene Co., Ind., where they were 
 among the earliest of the pioneer element. They 
 located on land which was covered with heavy tim- 
 ber, and their sons were occupied with the work of 
 clearing the farm, while the father worked at his 
 trade. After a time he purchased a saw-mill. His 
 wife died Aug. 13, 1835, and he was again married, 
 about 12 years later, to Elizabeth Kelshaw. 
 
 The children of George and Nancy (Dean) Hurd 
 were Mary, George, Elizabeth and Nancy. Mary 
 was married to Joseph Dixson, and died in Greene 
 Co., Ind. George was married and lived in Georgia. 
 Elizabeth was the wife of Drury B. Boyd, subject of 
 this sketch. Nancy became the wife of Sanford 
 Raimy, and they lived in Preble Co., Ohio. 
 
 While living in Indiana he was twice elected to 
 represent his District, and served two terms in the 
 Legislature of that State. After his removal to War- 
 ren County, he located at Ellison, and a few years 
 
 later he settled on section 2, of Point Pleasant Town- 
 ship, where he died, Sept. 7, r8s6. His wife was 
 killed in the tornado at Ellison in 1858. Two of 
 their children are still living. Mrs. Dixson is repre- 
 sented elsewhere in this work, and it is through her 
 interest in the preservation of the records of her fam- 
 ily circle that these sketches of the members of the 
 family have been obtained. Her only sister was the 
 wife of Elisha Hughen, of Point Pleasant Township, 
 of whom a sketch is given in this work. 
 
 Since this sketch was written, and since Mr. 
 Hughen's sketch was printed in this volume, his wife 
 died. Her demise occurred Dec. 14, 1885, at her 
 home in Point Pleasant Township. 
 
 Mr. Boyd and his family made the trip from Ken- 
 tucky to Greene County with horse-teams. They 
 settled in a small log house, of the most unpreten- 
 tious style, until the father could clear a place, upon 
 which he erected a double-hewed log house. 
 
 The children of Drury B. and Elizabeth (Hurd) 
 Boyd, were: Eliza, Martha, Thomas H., John, Je- 
 mima, Nancy, Amanda, Mary and Elizabeth. Eliza 
 was born May 25, 1807, was married toiCary O'Neall, 
 Aug. 12, 1830, died Feb. 14, 1844. Martha, born in 
 1809, died in infancy. Thomas H., born June 4, 
 1811, was married to Margaret Jones, April 3, 1838, 
 died March i, 1877. John, born June 14, 1814, was 
 married to Elizabeth O'Neall, March n, 1840, died 
 July 5, 1865. Jemima, born Jan. 28, 1817, was 
 married to Eli Dixson, March 12, 1840, and is the 
 only survivor of the family. Nancy was born in 
 1819, arid died in 18215. Amanda, born April 12, 
 1824, was married to Stephen Dixson, April ro,i845, 
 and died May 3, i86t. Mary, born Sept. 9, 1827, 
 was married to Elisha Hughen, April 8, 1847, died 
 Dec. r4, 1885. Elizabeth, born Sept. 9, 1827, was 
 married to Gary O. Jones, April 5, 1847, died Aug. 
 14, 1856. 
 
 . ~U, |L -I. A - ^ 
 
 octor William E. Pittman, practicing 
 physician at Swan Creek Village, was born 
 in this county, Feb. 22, 1859, and is a son 
 of James B. Piltman, a native of Indiana, 
 where he was born in 1 830. His father is a 
 farmer by occupation, and resides in Pt. 
 Pleasant Township. He was married to Miss Eliza 
 
640 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 A. Simmons, in 1841. She was born in 1839, in 
 this county, and bore her husband 1 1 children, Os- 
 car, deceased at 18 years; William E., S. M., J. B., 
 George, Joseph, Charlie, Carrie May, Harry, Emma, 
 and one who died in infancy. 
 
 Dr. Pittman formed a matrimonial alliance with 
 Miss Zoa Huston, Oct. 15, 1885. She was born in 
 April, 1868, and is a daughter of William H. and 
 Eliza (Crabb) Huston. Dr. Pittman commenced 
 reading medicine preparatory to attending college, 
 with Doctor William Randall, of Greenbush, and 
 was with him for some three months. He then went 
 to Nodaway Co,, Mo., where he read medicine under 
 the instruction of Doctor M. R. Hackedorn, of Ma- 
 ryville, Mo., for about 18 months. He then matric- 
 ulated at Rush Medical College, March 13, 1882, 
 and after following the entire curriculum of that in- 
 stitution, graduated therefrom Feb. 17, 1885. He 
 also graduated in Dental Pathology and Surgery at 
 the Dental College, Chicago. He holds a certificate 
 
 ' of honor from Rush Medical College, and a certifi- 
 cate of Clinical Instruction from the Central Free 
 Dispensary, in Chicago. 
 
 He at present has a large and lucrative practice in 
 Swan Creek and the surrounding country. He is a 
 thorough practitioner, and by careful diagnosis of 
 
 ' disease and faithful attention to his patients, he has 
 established himself in the confidence of his commu- 
 nity. 
 
 In politics Dr. Pittman is a supporter of the prin- 
 ciples of the Democratic party. 
 
 Ib^riarles H. Pierce, of Berwick Township, is 
 engaged in fanning on section 31, where 
 he is the proprietor of 160 acres of good 
 land. He was born in Warren County, Feb. 
 i, 1840. His father, William H. Pierce, is a 
 native of Vermont and came to this State in 
 1835, locating at the village of Greenbush, where he 
 taught school for about a year. He then purchased 
 the tract which is now in possession of his son and 
 at once engaged in its improvement and cultivation. 
 ' He was united in marriage with Miss Angelina Wai- 
 din, who was born in Ohio, about 1817. They both 
 came to this State prior to their marriage. Trie 
 mother of Mr. Pierce died July 14, 1842, and the fa- 
 
 ther Feb. 23, 1880. Of their union two children 
 were born Almiron G. and Charles H. 
 
 Charles H. Pierce, subject of this notice, was 
 united in marriage with Elizabeth Long, Feb. r, 
 1862. She was born June 16, 1838, in Jackson Co., 
 Ohio, and they have four children living Maud Z., 
 Blanche M., William H. and Harriet G. Mr. Pierce 
 is engaged in general farming, and is meeting with 
 success in his chosen vocation. In politics he is a 
 believer in and a supporter of the principles advoca- 
 ted by the Republican party. 
 
 -4= 
 
 illiam Adcock, Clerk of Kelly Township, 
 and a farmer on section 35, is one of the 
 prominent and influential citizens of his 
 
 3> township and county and a member of the 
 local Board of Education since 1877. He is 
 
 the oldest son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Mc- 
 Murtry) Adcock, was born in the year 1850, in the 
 township where he is and always has been a resU 
 dent, of a family that has been largely identified with 
 the first settlement and subsequent development of 
 the country. His grandfather, Edmund Adcock, 
 was among the very first, if not the first, white man 
 that settled in this section of country, having been 
 located with his family in Henderson Grove, near 
 the Knox and Warren County line, in the year 1829 
 or '30, two or three years before the Black Hawk 
 War. William McMurtry, his grandfather on his 
 mother's side, was for 30 years a member of the 
 State Government, having held the offices of Lieu- 
 tenant-Governor, State Senator, Representative and 
 Penitentiary Commissioner during the building of 
 the State Penitentiary at Joliet, 111. ; also Colonel of 
 the io2d Reg't of 111. Vols. in the late war. His fa- 
 ther, Joseph, is a noted land surveyor and for several 
 years was County Commissioner. His brothers are 
 Edmund, a prominent lawyer in Chicago, 111., and 
 Robert, a practicing attorney at Monmouth. Mr. 
 Adcock was brought up to a full understanding of 
 the business of a fanner, and after receiving such 
 education as the common schools afforded, became 
 a student at Abingdon College, whence he was grad- 
 uated with the degree of A. B., in 1871. For some 
 years he operated as a teacher through the winter 
 seasons and gave his attention to farming the re- 
 

 

 
 -sf ^L* // 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 641 
 
 mainder of the year. Of late he has devoted his 
 time exclusively to agriculture. He is a Democrat 
 in political belief and connections and has been a 
 delegate to several County, State and Congressional 
 Conventions that have been held since he reached 
 his majority. He purchased the farm of which he is 
 the owner in 1877. It comprises 250 acres of good 
 land, in first class condition, and the proprietor is 
 occupied in the business of mixed husbandry. 
 
 The union in marriage of Mr. Adcock with Mary 
 J. Henderson, occurred July 13, 1876. Their chil- 
 dren are Edmund, David and Mary S. Mrs. Adcock 
 was born in the year 1858, in the town of Hender- 
 son, Knox Co., 111. Her parents, David Henderson, 
 a prominent citizen and recently member of the 
 Board of Supervisors of Knox Co., 111., and Sophia 
 (Davis) Henderson, were pioneers of Knox County, 
 whither they came soon after the termination of the 
 Black Hawk War. They were natives respectively 
 of Pennsylvania and Indiana, and are still living in 
 Knox County. 
 
 i 
 
 ,,on. Isaac L. Pratt, banker and farmer at 
 Roseville, is one of the well known and 
 highly respected citizens of Warren 
 County. We are glad to be able to give the 
 following very interesting record of the family, 
 of which Isaac L. is a member : The Pratt 
 family are of English ancestry, and date back to 
 Mathew and Elizabeth Pratt, who emigrated to Amer- 
 ica prior to the year of 1625. They settled in Wey- 
 mouth, Norfolk County, Mass. Their offspring were 
 Thomas, Matthew, John, Samuel, Joseph, Elizabeth 
 and Mary Pratt. Matthews' son Thomas is the 
 next in line of these descendants. He and his wife 
 lived in Weymouth until he was killed by the Indians 
 in 1676. Their children were William, Sarah, Abi- 
 gail, Hepzibah and Thomas. Thomas and his wife 
 moved to Easton, Mass., and their children were 
 Thomas, Abigail, James, Mary, Hepzibah, Deborah 
 and Jane. The father died in December, 1745. 
 James Pratt, son of Thomas, lived in Easton, Mass., 
 at which place he died Oct. 29,1774, aged 76 years. 
 His wife died Feb. 17, 1762. Seth Pratt, son of 
 
 Thomas, was the only one of the children who at- 
 tained to manhood. He married Mindwell Stone, of 
 Easton, Mass. By this union there were four chil- 
 dren, viz. : Jonas, Mehitabel, Seth, Jr., and Seaver. 
 Seth, Sr., died Aug. 22, 1802, his wife surviving him 
 until May 23, 1828. Seaver, son of Seth, was born 
 April 27, 1782, and died Dec. n, 1843, in the sixty- 
 second year of his age. He married Charity Lo- 
 throp in 1806. She was born in Easton, Mass., 
 Aug. 14, 1790, and died Jan. 3, 1850, aged sixty 
 years. 
 
 The names and. births of the offspring of Isaac 
 and Sarah Lothrop were as follows : Sarah, born Aug. 
 6, 1776 ; Catharine, born March 7, 1778 ; Ruth, Feb. 
 10, 1780; Washington, born March 26, 1782; Mary, 
 born Feb. 8, 1784 ; Isaac, born March i, 1786 ; Betsy, 
 born July 23, 1788; Charity, born Aug. 14, 17 90 Abi- 
 gail, born March 15, 1793; Anness, born Nov. 23, 
 1795 ; Jarvis, born Junes, J 79 8 - 
 
 The offspring of Seaver and Charity Pratt were 
 Laura, born Nov. 26, 1807; Amos, born Oct. 28,! 
 1809; Isaac L., born Aug. 4,1818; Abijah, born I 
 June 12, 1824, and David, born July 6, 1829. 
 
 H 
 
 Isaac L. Pratt, the subject of this sketch, was, as j 
 will be seen from the foregoing, the third in the fam- I 
 ily of Seaver and Charity Pratt. He married Miss j 
 Harriet W. Drake, a native of Easton, Mass., and a 
 daughter of Joel and Lusannah Drake, whose ances- 
 tors were the first settlers of Easton, Mass., on the 
 mother's side. Their children were Betsey, born 
 Nov. i, 1813; Harriet W., born March 29, 1816; 
 Sarah Ann, born Dec. , 1817 ; Nahum, born Sept. 
 28, 1820; Joel S., born June 8, 1823, and Bethnal 
 F., born July 13, 1825. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Pratt were married May 16, 1844. 
 They have had born to them four children, as fol- 
 lows : Isaac F. born June 24, 1846, died July 27 of 
 same year; Isaac Seaver, born Aug. 13, 1848, died, 
 July 14, 1865; Joel Drake, born Oct. 2, 1851, died 
 Jan. 13,1852; Seth Franklin was born April 20, 
 853 i he is cashier of the Roseville Bank. 
 
 Mr. Pratt, whose biography we write, was born 
 and reared in Easton, Mass. He remained beneath 
 the parental roof until he was a young man. During 
 this time he attended the district schools, and therein 
 received the rudimentary part of an English educa- 
 tion. His education was further advanced by 
 attendance at the Holliston School, Holliston, 
 
642 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Massachusetts, and at the Teachers' Seminary at 
 Andover for three years. After leaving the school 
 the subject of this sketch was engaged in teaching, 
 and continued in that profession for eleven sessions, 
 eight of which were taught in his native State, and 
 three in this State. His attention was early attracted 
 to the importance and future greatness of the West, 
 which was then rapidly filling up with the best young 
 and energetic blood of the Eastern States. In 1841 
 he joined the great throng that had for its watch- 
 word, " Westward, ho .'" and came to Illinois, arriv- 
 ing here in Warren County April 24 of that year. 
 He remained here one year and a half. During that 
 time he, in connection with E. Mitchell, purchased 
 an unimproved tract of land in Ellison Township in 
 this county. Soon after he returned East to his na- 
 tive town and was there variously engaged for two 
 years and a half. During his sojourn there he mar- 
 ried as stated above. In June, 1845, he and his 
 wife returned to Illinois and settled in Swan Town- 
 ship, on section 6, where he purchased sixty acres 
 of land. He at once erected a house, and went to 
 work industriously to cultivate and improve his pur- 
 chase. He continued to reside there until 1852, 
 when he moved to Roseville Township, where he had 
 purchased land on section 31. There he erected a 
 substantial building, and there he still continues to 
 reside. 
 
 Mr. Pratt has been more than ordinarily a success- 
 ful man. His landed interests consist of 2,000 
 acres of good land in Illinois, 775 acres in Arkan- 
 sas, and 300 acres in Easton, Mass. The latter 
 acreage is a part of the land handed down through 
 five generations of the past. This land and wealth 
 has been the accumulation of years of toil, energy, 
 and the practice of economical habits. It also is 
 the result of wise and judicious investments, backed 
 by good hard common sense and the utmost confi- 
 dence in the future of the great State of Illinois. 
 
 Religiously, Mr. Pratt subscribes to none of the 
 formulated creeds, but believes in doing unto others 
 as you would have others do unto you, and that in 
 the careful observance of that rule therein is con- 
 tained the genuine essence of true religion. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Pratt is a stanch Democrat. He 
 cast his first vote for Martin VanBuren for the Pres- 
 idency, in 1840, and from that time to the present, 
 through good as well as evil report, he has remained 
 firm and true to his first political love. 
 
 In 1883, his worth and standing as a man, and 
 character as a citizen, received suitable and honora- 
 ble recognition by his election to represent his dis- 
 trict in the General Assembly of the State. While a 
 member of that body he proved himself a valuable 
 .legislator, one who was careful and always present 
 at the sessions of the Legislature. He was a mem- 
 ber of the committees on Finance, Drainage and Re- 
 trenchment. He has been frequently honored with 
 offices of trust in the township in which he resides, 
 and has been Justice of the Peace for fifteen years. 
 
 This in short is a brief biography of Isaac L. 
 Pratt. He is truly a representative Western man. 
 During his long residence here he has become thor- 
 oughly identified with and understands the interests 
 of the West. His success stamps him as a man of in- 
 domitable energy that brooks no defeat. He started 
 in life poor, and whatever he has attained is the re- 
 sult of his industry, energy and great good common 
 sense. With these virtues, aided by a strong consti- 
 tution, he has carved out for himself and those de-> 
 pending upon him, a comfortable competency, at the 
 same time making and retaining for himself a name 
 for strict honor and integrity which, after all, is the<i 
 best inheritance to leave to his posterity. 
 
 As one of the leading and truly representative men 
 of the county, and a gentleman who is an honor to- 
 the community in which he has so long resided, we 
 take pleasure in presenting the portrait of Mr. Pratt 
 in connection with this sketch. 
 
 .dward D. Alexander, druggist at Alexis, 
 is a native of Warren County. He is the 
 only son of John E. and Mary C. (Reich- 
 !?S. ard) Alexander, who are residents of Mon- 
 mouth. Mr. Alexander was born in that city, 
 j May 10, 1860. He attended the city schools 
 until he had finished the branches of primary study, 
 and he subsequently was a student for a year at the 
 college in his native place, where he made good pro- 
 gress. When he decided on his profession he went 
 to Chicago and passed a year at the School of Phar- 
 macy in order to be thoroughly prepared for the re- 
 sponsible duties of his chosen vocation. 
 
 In 1878 he assumed charge of the drug business 
 which he has since conducted. He is winning the 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 643 
 
 patronage and support of the community in which 
 he resides and his trade is one of the most prominent 
 in the place in its comparative relations. We present 
 an interior view in this volume of Mr. Alexander's 
 neat and tasteful drug house. He is a young man 
 of ability and perseverance, and in the event of his 
 conducting his affairs in the same way in which he 
 has made his initiatory, he has an assured future of 
 usefulness and activity. His business principles are 
 excellent and he is amply fitted for the discharge of 
 the duties of his vocation. In manner and address 
 he is courteous and affable and is always observant 
 of his obligations as a gentleman. In his political 
 principles and affiliations, he is a Democrat. 
 
 Oct. 16, 1883, he formed a matrimonial alliance 
 with Miss Mina Kobler, and one child has been born 
 to them. The latter is named Theo Marie. Mrs. 
 Alexander was born in Monmouth and is the daugh- 
 ter of G. J. and Anna M. Kobler. 
 
 ichael S. Rees, a farmer in the township 
 of Kelly, located on section 32, is the son 
 of a pioneer of Warren County, and was 
 born in the township in which he is now a 
 citizen of prominence. Martin Rees, his father, 
 came to Warren County in 1836. He was born 
 on Pine Creek, near the center of Pennsylvania, in 
 1781, of German parentage. At the age of 19 he 
 moved with his parents to Warren Co., Pa., where 
 he divided his time in rafting logs and lumber and 
 in farming. He succeeded in accumulating consid- 
 erable property. He married Miss Jane Davis, at 
 that place and continued to reside there until 1836. 
 He then sold his farm and personal property, and 
 put his family, which consisted of himself, wife and 
 eight children, on board a raft, with three other 
 families, and moved out upon the waters of the Alle- 
 gheny River, on the loth of May of that year. They 
 floated to Pittsburg, where he sold his raft and pur- 
 chased a keel boat, which he run to Rising Sun, Ind., 
 a small town on the Ohio River. In the meantime 
 they were visited with that terrible disease, the small 
 l>ox, from which, however, all recovered. They 
 landed, and the elder Rees purchased three yoke of 
 oxen and two span of horses, five wagons, some 
 young horses and other necessary articles, and 
 
 started for Monmouth, where he arrived Sept. 10, 
 1836. Here he remained five days, when he moved 
 to a house located about one mile south of where 
 Gerlaw now stands. He bought the northwest quar- 
 ter of section 36, Spring Grove Township, and also 
 the north half of section 32, in Kelly Township. 
 The latter had a log house, stables and crib upon it, 
 and 30 acres had been broken and fenced. Here 
 Mr. Rees lived for four years, and during the time 
 improved the farm in Spring Grove Township, to 
 which he removed, but after remaining two years he 
 returned to the Kelly Township farm, where he re- 
 mained until his death, which occurred in 1861. He 
 owned considerable land in this and adjoining coun- 
 ties, which he divided among his children. 
 
 Mr. Rees was a member of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church for over 50 years, and was highly re- 
 spected for his strict morality and the firmness of 
 his faith. He was noted for strength, energy and 
 industry. Politically, he was formerly a Whig, but 
 became a Republican when that party 'was organ- 
 ized. He served for many years as Justice of the 
 Peace. He was a captain of Pennsylvania volun- 
 teers in the War of 1812, and his wife was pensioned 
 as widow of a soldier of that war. Her death oc- 
 curred Dec. 17, 1882. 
 
 By the three marriages of Mr. Rees, he became the 
 father of nine children, seven by the first and two 
 by the second wife. Seven of them are still living. 
 The maiden name of the second wife of Mr. Rees 
 was Sarah Smith and she was born in Indiana. 
 The third wife was Catherine Struthers. 
 
 Michael S. Rees, of this sketch, is the oldest child 
 of the second marriage. His birth took place in 
 Kelly Township, Nov. 18, 1838. He passed the 
 years of his minority in labor on the farm and in ob- 
 taining a limited education in the pioneer schools. 
 He was under the home roof-tree until the death of 
 his father, and he managed the farm for a year after 
 that event. He became a soldier in 1862, and en- 
 listed in August of that year in Co. B, io2d 111. Vol. 
 Inf., 20th corps, remaining in the service until the war 
 ended. His regiment joined the army in the field at 
 Chattanooga, and he was in the action at Resaca, 
 also at Burnt Hickory, Kenesaw Mountain, Peach- 
 tree Creek, and at the siege and capture of Atlanta, 
 and served in other lesser engagements. 
 
 From the latter place the command proceeded to 
 
644 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Savannah and thence through North Carolina to 
 Washington to the Grand Review, which constituted 
 the closing scene of the most remarkable war on 
 record. In June, 1865, the regiment was discharged 
 and Mr. Rees returned to his native county and 
 township, and took possession of the homestead 
 which is now his property. The estate of which he 
 is the proprietor contains 325 acres and is all in an 
 advanced agricultural condition. Mr. Rees has put 
 up good buildings of a character suited to the pur- 
 poses to which the farm is devoted, namely, mixed 
 husbandry. We present a view of the homestead in 
 this volume, on page 474. 
 
 January 16, 1868, Mr. Rees was married to Mar- 
 garet Low, and they are the parents of five chil- 
 dren Eva, who died at the age of six months, Elsie 
 R., Effie E., Daisy F., and Bertha A. Mrs. Rees was 
 born in the township of Spring Grove, Aug. 3, 1844, 
 and is the daughter of John and Margaret (Rey- 
 nolds) Low. Her parents came to this county the 
 Iyear previous, from Pennsylvania. Her father was 
 a native of England and came to this country at the 
 age of 1 6 years. Her mother was a native of the 
 * Keystone State, as were her maternal grandparents. 
 Mr. Low married the second time, the lady of his 
 choice being Mrs. Lenora Stewart. By the previous 
 marriage he had 12 children and by the last, one. 
 Of this number, six are now living. Mrs. Rees is 
 the fifth in order of birth of the above family. She 
 resided with her family on their farm in Spring Grove 
 Township until her marriage. Her mother died in 
 1866, and the father in 1878. Mr. Low's second 
 wife is living in Iowa. Her oldest brother, William 
 Low, died in the service of his country, at Paducah, 
 Ky., in 1862. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Rees votes the Republican ticket, 
 and he and his wife are members of the Christian 
 Church. 
 
 \ illiam H. Dawdy, owning 260 acres of 
 land in Berwick Township, 80 acres of 
 which is under an advanced state of cul- 
 tivation, and residing upon section n, of 
 the township named, was born in Knox Co., 
 this State, Oct. 2, r845, and is a son of John 
 Dawdy, a native of Kentucky, where he was born in 
 
 1798. The father was one of the pioneer settlers of 
 Illinois, coming to this State in 1828, and locating in 
 Knox County; he died in 1874. His marriage oc- 
 curred in 1834, in this State, at which time Miss To- 
 bitha Boydson became his wife. She was born in 
 1809, in Kentucky, and is still a resident of Knox 
 County, this State. Of her union with Mr. Dawdy, 
 ten children were born, named Benjamin M., Eliza, 
 Emily, Malinda, William H., Jacob W., Alexander 
 C. and Sarah E. 
 
 The gentleman whose name stands at the head 
 of this notice was married to Miss Amanda J. 
 Howard, Jan. 3, 1871. She was born Oct. 28, 1852, 
 and is a daughter of Nathan Howard, who was born 
 in 1826, in Kentucky, and came to this State in 
 1855, locating in Warren County. Her father married 
 Miss Martha Hood, and they had nine children, 
 viz. : Lucinda E., Isaac S., Amanda J., Mary C., 
 Sarah A., Joseph, Cora A., Rosa B. and John E., 
 twins. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Dawdy, of this sketch, are the par- 
 ents of six children: Delia M., born in 1873; Jessie 
 V. in 1874; Daisy D., in 1875 ; George W., in 1877; 
 Perley E., in i88r, and Bertha R., in 1883. Mr. 
 Dawdy is pleasantly located and has a good resi- 
 dence. He is turning his attention to the raising of 
 cattle, his specialty being the Short-horns. He is 
 also dealing in Poland-China hogs, and is meeting 
 with success in both his farming and breeding in- 
 terests. 
 
 Socially, he is a member of the A. F. & A. M., to 
 which order he has belonged for the last 12 years. 
 In politics, he is a Democrat. 
 
 i illiam M. Pinkerton, of the firm of Page 
 & Pinkerton, hardware and furniture deal- 
 ers, at Monmouth, was born in Preble Co., 
 5> Ohio, near the village of Fair Haven, April 
 18, 1837. His parents, Ebenezer and Mary 
 (McCrary) Pinkerton, natives respectively of 
 the States of South Carolina and Ohio, and of 
 Scotch-Irish extraction, reared three sons and three 
 daughters, William M. being the eldest son and third 
 child in order of birth. The senior Mr. Pinkerton 
 was by occupation a farmer ; came to Illinois in 1854, 
 and spent the balance of his days in Peoria County, 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 645 
 
 dying in the year 1863, aged 58 years. His widow 
 survived him up to 1883, dying in September of that 
 year, at the age of 75 years. 
 
 The subject of our sketch was brought up to farm- 
 ing, and followed it in Peoria, McLean and Mercer 
 counties, up to 1876, when he removed to Monmouth 
 and entered into the present business arrange- 
 ment. 
 
 Aug. 18, 1862, at Peoria, he enlisted in Co. C, 77th 
 111. Vol. Inf., and served three years, participating in 
 13 battles : Haines Bluff, Arkansas Post, Magnolia 
 Hills, Raymond, Champion Hills, Black River, Siege 
 of Vicksburg, Bank's Expedition in Western Loui- 
 siana, Ft. Morgan, on the Texas Coast, Bank's Red 
 River Expedition, Sabine, Cross Roads, Pleasant 
 Hill and the siege and final taking of Mobile. In all 
 these battles he was wounded once, and that so light 
 he never left his command. It must not be sup- 
 posed, however, that the army life did him no injury. 
 As with nearly every other man who saw service, his 
 
 [health was impaired, his constitution undermined,and 
 he was finally forced to abandon the farm on account 
 
 1 of it. 
 
 He was married in Peoria County, December, 
 1868, to Miss Martha A. Finley, who died at Mon- 
 mouth, April 17, 1877. The children she bore were 
 Grace, Fannie and Martha, and two that died in in- 
 fancy. 
 
 Jan. 28, i88i,Mr. Pinkerton was again married, 
 to Elizabeth Peacock, and has had borne to him 
 two children, James H. and Anna Mary. 
 
 illiam P. Brent, deceased, was one of 
 the early settlers of this county, coming 
 'n here in 1835, with his parents, and pre- 
 vious to his demise resided on section 
 17, Ellison Township. Mr. Brent was born 
 in Lancaster Co., Va., and came to this State 
 and county with his parents when he was 15 years 
 of age. He continued to reside with his parents, 
 enduring with them all the privations incident to the 
 settlement of a new country. 
 
 His years prior to attaining the age of majority 
 were passed on the parental homestead. Oct. 3, 
 1850, Miss Margaret E., daughter of James and 
 
 Mary Jamison, became his wife. She was born July 
 !> 18331 in the county in which she was married. Her 
 father was a farmer, and was married in Kentucky, 
 afterwards removing, in 1829, to this State, and set- 
 tling in Henderson County. She bore her husband 
 n children, three of whom are deceased: Batha- 
 nia is the wife of John H. Warfield, who resides in 
 Montgomery Co., Iowa, and is there engaged in the 
 occupation of farming ; Velma became the wife of 
 M. B. Jamison, who resides on a farm in Ellison 
 Township, and is its Supervisor; Arthur J., Scruiy- 
 ler L., Charles E., William W. and Ellen, all reside 
 at home with their mother. 
 
 After marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Brent settled on a 
 farm of 80 acres, where the family lived for some 
 time. By energetic labor and economy, coupled with 
 good judgment and perseverance, he succeeded in 
 adding to his original purchases, until at the time of 
 his demise, April 22, 1880, he was the owner of 160 
 acres of good farm land. 
 
 Religiously, Mrs. B. is a member of the Method- 
 odist Episcopal Church, and has been for several 
 years. In politics, Mr. B. was, during his lifetime, 
 a strong supporter of the principles of the Repub- 
 lican party. 
 
 i.ornelius McNeil, was born in Philadel- 
 phia, July 17, 1 8 10, and was the son of 
 Cornelius and Mary (Allison) McNeil, 
 natives respectively of counties Antrim 
 and Kerry, Ireland, but their ancestors were 
 originally from Scotland. The senior Corne- 
 lius came to America, in 1792, and Mary Allison 
 came in 1800. They were married in Philadelphia 
 where Mr. McNeil died, in 1826, and his widow in 
 1847. 
 
 Cornelius McNeil, Jr., was educated at the com- 
 mon schools of the city of "Brotherly Love," and 
 when 1 6 years of age was indentured "five years 
 eleven months and two weeks to the trade and mys- 
 tery of Weavers' Machine Making." Mastering the 
 "mysteries" he embarked in business upon his own, 
 hook, and followed it 17 years, in Kensington, where 
 he built a shop with the $169 inherited from his 
 father. 
 
 In company with John Corkin he bought the 
 
6 4 6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Gloucester Ferry House, an old building standing yet 
 near the Walnut Street Ferry, Philadelphia, and run 
 it with great success about four years. 
 
 He left Philadelphia in 1855, having been swindled 
 out of his property by some descendents of the pa- 
 triarch, Abraham, and spent a year at South Bend, 
 Ind. The year following he came to Monmouth, 
 where he has since been known as a first-class me- 
 chanic. We should not forget to say, however, that he 
 was in the employ of the United States Government 
 awhile during the war as a carpenter, and as such 
 was at Nashville, Tenn., during the last battle at that 
 place. His specialty for some years past has been 
 the manufacture of washing machines, a patent 
 upon which he controls. 
 
 Politically, Mr. McNeil formerly belonged to the 
 Whig party, then affiliated with the Democrats, and 
 is now an Independent. 
 
 July 4, 1836, Mr. McNeil was married, in Phila- 
 delphia, to Miss Elizabeth Young, and has had born 
 to him n children, seven of whom are deceased. 
 The living are James, Isabella (Mrs. Henry Duer), 
 Letitia (Mrs. J. A. Chafee) and Miss Ida. 
 ' Mr. McNeil belongs to no Church, but his heart is 
 jtrue to Masonry, which means, in the enlightened 
 (world, the highest order of religion. 
 
 li Dixson. From an early history of Greene 
 County, Ind., we get the following facts of 
 the Dixson family: Eli Dixson, who is the fa- 
 ther of Mrs. Jemima Dixson's husband, referred 
 to elsewhere in this work, was a son of Solo- 
 J mon and Sarah Dixson and was born in 1769, 
 in Virginia, near the Blue Ridge Mountains. He 
 emigrated to Georgia, where, near the city of Augus- 
 ta, he married Rebecca Hart, in 1799, and moved to 
 Preble County, Ohio, in 1806, settling in what is now 
 called Dixson Township, being the first settler in 
 that township. He remained there about twelve 
 years, during which time he cleared a farm and exer- 
 cised a prominent influence in the settling of the 
 neighborhood. He removed to Greene Co., Ind., in 
 1818, and settled in Smith Township, where he im- 
 proved a farm. He was noted for his liberality and 
 benevolence in helping such as were not able to help 
 themselves. He served two terms in the State Leg- 
 
 islature, from Greene, Owen and Putnam Counties. 
 He died respected by all who knew him, March 9, 
 1836. He had six brothers and three sisters, viz. : 
 Samuel, John, Joseph, Henry, Solomon Stephen Ruth, 
 Sarah and Elizabeth. Sam'l Dixson died in Greene 
 Co., Ind., Aug. 30, 1850, aged 53 years. John 
 Dixson was drowned in the Ohio River, near Shaw- 
 neetown. Joseph Dixson died at his residence, in 
 Greene Co., Ind. Henry Dixson died in Tennessee. 
 Solomon Dixson was born Oct. 4, 1771, died Oct. 8, 
 1824, in Greene Co., Ind. Stephen Dixson was 
 killed by the Indians, near Terre Haute, Ind., dur- 
 ing the war of 1812. 
 
 Rebecca, the wife of Eli Dixson, was the daughter 
 of Isaac and Hester Hart, and was born near Au- 
 gusta, Ga., Sept. 2, 1779, and died Oct. i, 1852. 
 She had four brothers, viz.: William, Isaac, Thomas 
 and Phineas ; and two half-brothers, viz. : Amos and 
 Jerry Greene; and one half-sister, who married a Mr. 
 Jones. Her brother, William, died in Georgia ; 
 Isaac and Thomas died in Preble Co., Ohio, and 
 Phineas in Peoria Co., 111. Her half-brothers, sister 
 and mother emigrated to Michigan at an early day. 
 
 Eli and Rebecca Dixson's family consisted of 
 eight sons and three daughters, viz. : Samuel, Sarah, 
 Solomon, Elizabeth, Rebecca, Eli, Stephen, John, 
 Phineas, William and Prior. Samuel was born June 
 22, 1800, died Dec. 17, 1844; Sarah (Johnston) born 
 Aug. 27, 1801, died April 29, 1839 ; Solomon, born 
 June 21, 1803, died June 20, 1851 ; Elizabeth, died 
 in infancy; Rebecca (Johnston), born Oct. 24, 1807, 
 died June 27, 1834; Prior, born Nov. 15, 1809, died 
 Sept. 10, 1850; Eli, born Mays, 1811, died Oct. 27, 
 1857; Stephen, born Dec. 21, 1814, died March i, 
 1879; William, born 1822, died Feb. 9, 1870. John 
 Dixson was born in 1816. He, being the only sur- 
 vivor of the family, still resides in Greene Co., Ind.; 
 Samuel, Solomon, Eli and Rebecca (seniors), Sam- 
 uel, Solomon, Sarah, Rebecca Prior, Phineas, Eli, 
 and William all being buried in the Dixson grave- 
 yard, in Greene Co., Ind. 
 
 Mrs. Jemima Dixson, of Point Pleasant Township, 
 is a settler of Warren County of 1858. She came 
 here after the death of her husband with her four 
 children, and located in the same township in which 
 she is still living. She was born in Bath Co., Ky., 
 Jan. 28. 1817, and is the daughaer of Drury B. and 
 Elizabeth (Hurd) Boyd, of whom an account is given 
 on another page in this volume. The latter removed 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 647 
 
 to Pulaski Co., Ky., when his daughter, Mrs. Dix- 
 son, was a child of five years. The family was trans- 
 ferred to Greene Co., Ind., in 1825, when she was 
 eight years of age. There she passed the remaining 
 years of her youth, and was married, March 12, 1840, 
 to Eli Dixson. He was born in Preble Co., Ohio, and 
 was the son of Eli and Rebecca (Hart) Dixson, men- 
 tioned above. At the time of their marriage, they 
 settled on a farm, which he had purchased in Smith 
 Township, in White River Bottom, in Greene Co., in 
 the State of Indiana. 
 
 Mr. Dixson was a man of excellent character and 
 a successful farmer. He improved and added to his 
 acreage to a considerable extent. He resided on the 
 same place until 1850, when he came to Illinois to 
 prospect. In 1855, he came again, and at that time 
 to Warren County. He decided to make an invest- 
 ment here, and he accordingly bought unimproved 
 land in Point Pleasant Township. He returned to 
 the farm in Indiana with every intention of removing 
 his family to Illinois and of settling on the land he 
 had bought. In 1857 he was engaged in making the 
 necessary arrangements for a transfer of his interests, 
 and in the midst of his operations, with that end in 
 view, he was taken sick and died, Oct. 27, of that 
 year. His widow rented the Indiana farm the fol- 
 lowing year and removed to Illinois. Her father and 
 other relatives had located in Warren County, and 
 she joined them, settling on section 12, in Point 
 Pleasant Township. The farm on which she took 
 up her residence was at the time unimproved, but 
 that has all been changed, and the place is in a 
 splendid condition for prosperous management. Mrs. 
 Dixson and her children are still the owners of the 
 property in Indiana. 
 
 To her and her husband five children were born. 
 The oldest, Samuel B., was born Jan. 10, 1841. He 
 married Jennie C. Davis, April 14, 1870, and they 
 had one child, Bertha. He died Aug. 14, 1874, in 
 Point Pleasant Township, where he had lived and 
 managed the family farm up to that time. His widow 
 and daughter reside in Burlington, Iowa. Elizabeth, 
 the eldest daughter of Mrs. Dixson, was born Aug. 
 1 6, 1842, and died in her infancy. Rebecca was 
 born May i, 1845, and died March 30, 1862. Mary 
 E., the only daughter now living, was born April 13, 
 1849, and is the wife of Lambert Lester, of this 
 township. Eli is the youngest child and is the only 
 surviving son. He was born in Jefferson Township, 
 
 Greene County, Ind., Jan. 8, 1853, and was five years 
 old when he accompanied his mother to Illinois, 
 where he has since lived. He was educated in the 
 common schools primarily, and afterwards attended 
 Abidngon College (Knox County) two years. Later, 
 he went to the Commercial College, at Monmouth. 
 He is a farmer and a citizen of prominence, and is 
 one of the Directors in the Roseville Union Bank. 
 He is a member of the Masonic Lodge at Roseville. 
 The farm of which he and his mother are the joint 
 owners contains 560 acres and is one of the finest 
 and most valuable places in the township. He is 
 also part owner of the Indiana homestead. 
 
 | obert Moore, owning an excellent farm, lo- 
 cated on section 15, Tompkins Township, 
 where he follows the vocation of an agri- 
 culturist, is a native of Ohio, having been 
 born in that State in 1818. His father, Abra- 
 ham Moore, and his mother, Margaret Moore, 
 whose maiden name was Wolverton, were natives of 
 Pennsylvania. After their marriage, in 1829, they 
 came from their native State to Hancock Co., 111., 
 and there resided until the father's death, which oc- 
 curred in 1834. 
 
 Robert Moore, whose name stands at the head of 
 this biographical notice, was an inmate of the paren- 
 tal household for 20 years, receiving during that time 
 a good education in the common schools. At the age 
 named he left the parental roof-tree and engaged in 
 farming, which occupation he had followed, more or 
 less, up to the time of his leaving home. He first 
 farmed in Iowa for one year, and was one of the first 
 to run a steam ferry across the Mississippi at Flint 
 Hills, now Burlington, at which he was engaged for two 
 years. In 1837 he came to this county and bought 
 land, on which he located and again engaged in 
 farming. He married, Feb. 20, 1 846, Jane Adams, 
 who bore him two children -Ellen S. and Wilson 
 M. She died Feb. 22. 1848, and in 1852 Mr. Moore 
 married Delilah Stone. In 1849, when the gold fever 
 was at its height, he crossed the plains to California 
 and Oregon and for three years prospected in those 
 States for gold, meeting with signal success. He then 
 returned to Illinois and purchased 240 acres of land 
 in Ellison Township, which he successfully cultiva- 
 ted until 1855, when he sold it and purchased the 
 
6 4 8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 160 acres on which he is at present residing. He has 
 lived on the latter tract of land for 20 years, contin- 
 uously engaged in its cultivation and improvement, 
 and has been amply rewarded for his labors. Mr. 
 Moore was a soldier in the Black Hawk War of 1832, 
 but received no injuries from the engagements in 
 which he took part. He has a wife and seven chil- 
 dren living, the names of the children being Ellen 
 S., Marion E., William A., John S., Willis C., Grace 
 B. and Fred A. 
 
 In his political views, Mr. Moore coincides with 
 the principles of the Republican party, and is one of 
 the leading representatives of his vocation in Warren 
 County. 
 
 eorge Bruington, engaged as a general 
 farmer and stock raiser on section 1 6, Cold 
 Brook_Township,was born in Knox County, 
 near the Warren County line, on the 4th of 
 October, 1840. His father, Thomas Bruing- 
 ton, a fai mer by occupation and a native of 
 Breckenridge Co. Ky.. was of Scotch-Irish descent. 
 He was married in the county of his nativity to Jane 
 McLaughlin, who was also a native of Breckenridge 
 Co. Ky., and of the same parentage and descent. 
 Before their emigration West in 1833, when they 
 came to the State of Illinois and located in Knox 
 County, they had a family of three children. Mr. 
 Thomas Bruington came into the new western 
 country and found it an improved, unbroken prairie, 
 and made a trade of his horse and a gun for his first 
 farm of 160 acres. After improving that farm and 
 when George, of whom we write, was but a small 
 child, they removed into Cold Brook Township and 
 here purchased 160 acres, where the son now resides, 
 and entered actively and energetically on its im- 
 provement. While residing at this place the moth- 
 er's demise occurred, in the year 1849. She was the 
 mother of nine children, of whom our subject was 
 the sixth in order of birth. The father then married 
 again in Kelly Township, where he lived until his 
 death, which occurred in 1883. His second wife was 
 Mrs. Anna Goff, nee Ingersol. 
 
 When 18 years of age, George Bruington, of whom 
 we write, set out to battle for himself, going in 1858 
 to Missouri, and the following year to Pike's Peak, 
 
 Col. To this latter place he went in view of mining, 
 but having no success, in the spring of i86r, he re- 
 turned to his township and began to farm on his own 
 account. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Bruington with Miss Mary, 
 daughter of Thomas Wallace, one of the old settlers 
 in this county, occurred June 7, 1863. The cere- 
 mony was performed at the residence of the bride, 
 who was born Sept. 1839, in Cold Brook Township, 
 and resided at home with her parents until her mar- 
 riage. Her mother's maiden name was Margaret 
 Murphy. She now resides with her son, John Wal- 
 lace, a resident of this township, at the venerable 
 age of 85 years. Mr. Wallace, her husband, and 
 father of Mrs. Bruington of this notice, died in this 
 township, April 9, 1861. 
 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Bruington five 
 children have been born. Margaret J., teacher; 
 Jessie L., Arnold, Elmer and Alma. Margaret and 
 Jessie have been educated in Lombard University, 
 Galesburg, 111. After marriage, Mr. and Mrs. B. 
 settled on the farm where they now live. Mr. B. is 
 the owner of 440 acres of well-improved land, sup- 
 plied with all the necessary outbuildings, and a fine"< 
 residence. 
 
 Mr. Bruington is a member of the Christian Church. 
 He has been Road Commissioner for 15 years and 
 in politics is an active Democrat. 
 
 .dward R. Houlton, who resides at Kirk- 
 wood, and is extensively engaged as a 
 dealer in thoroughbred cattle, and in 
 agriculture, was born at Houlton, Maine, Au- 
 gust 31, 1838. His parents, Joseph and Almira 
 (Ray) Houlton, were New Englanders, the 
 former having been born in New Salem, Mass., and 
 the latter at Concord, New Hampshire. They came 
 from Maine to Illinois in 1851, and found a desira- 
 ble location in Ellison Township, at the head of 
 Ellison Creek. Here the senior Houlton purchased 
 1,000 acres of land. At that time, that section of 
 the county was all new and the fertile prairie land 
 had never been turned by the plow. He was among 
 the first settlers in that section of the State, and un- 
 til his death, which occurred in 1883, was one of the 
 most influential, widely known and highly respected 
 

COUNTY. 
 
 649 
 
 citizens of that section of the county. They reared 
 a family of six children, five sons and one daughter, 
 viz. , Joseph, Frederick, Edward, Charles, Frances 
 and Frank. 
 
 Edward accompanied his parents to Illinois, and 
 remained with them until he was 19 years of age, 
 when he started out to labor for himself. His first 
 work after leaving home was in the capacity of a 
 clerk for Knowles, Ray & Chapin, of the well known 
 mercantile firm of that day, located at Kirkwood. In 
 1858, young Houlton bought out the interest of Mr. 
 Knowles, and the firm name was changed to Chapin, 
 Creswell & Houlton. Mr. Houlton was connected 
 with the firm until 1885, when he sold out his inter- 
 est and turned his attention to stock raising and 
 farming. He is also connected with the Kirkwood 
 Mineral Springs Company and besides his interests 
 here, which are quite extensive, he owns 4,000 acres 
 of land, adjoining Yankton, Dakota, which is stocked 
 with Short-horn and Durham cattle. He divides his 
 time and attention between his farm in Dakota and 
 his interests here, giving considerable attention to 
 the Mineral Spring Company, of which he is the 
 President. Mr. Houlton is an excellent business 
 man, received a good common school education, and 
 attended the Commercial Colleee at Chicago in 
 -1858, from which he received a diploma. 
 
 The above record tells of his success, and his 
 high standing in the community tells of the esteem 
 in which he is held by those who have known him 
 ever since he began as a clerk in the store at Kirk- 
 wood. 
 
 Politically he is a Republican, and belongs to the 
 Masonic fraternity. 
 
 obert H. Nance. It is only occasionally 
 that we come across in our travels a well- 
 to-do and active farmer, who is a native 
 of this county. We have in the person of 
 Mr. Nance, however, such a gentleman. He 
 was born Jan. 20, r856, and is the son of 
 John W. Nance, a well known and early pioneer of 
 this section, and a native of North Carolina, where 
 he was born May 15, 1814. He came to Illinois 
 about r844, and for about fifteen years lived in 
 Greenbush, when he located upon a farm on section 
 
 26, of Berwick Township, where Robert H. now re- 
 sides. The elder Nance at present lives at Abing- 
 don, 111. His wife, Nancy Simmons, is a native of 
 Tennessee where she was born Feb. 2, 1815. She 
 was a daughter of Charles Simmons, and became 
 Mrs. Nance May 24, 1826, in Tennessee. To them 
 were born the following u children, Rufus D., Fran- 
 cis M., Susan A., Sarah E., Mary J., William C.. 
 Nancy C., Martha W., John A., Harriet E. and Rob- 
 ert H. 
 
 Robert H. married Miss Malinda J. Shirley, Aug. 
 16, 1875. She became the mother of two children, 
 when, Sept. 10, 1879, her demise occurred. Walter 
 E. their only living child, was born Dec. 26, 1878. 
 Their first, who died in infancy, was born Feb. 22, 
 1877, and died on the 3rd of the following March. 
 
 Mr. Nance is conducting a general farming busi- 
 ness, and is an active enterprising young man, 
 highly respected in the community. Politically he is 
 a Democrat. 
 
 ?. William Randall, a member of the reg-^ 
 ||* ular school of medicine, practicing at 
 Greenbush, graduated at the Jefferson 
 Medical College, Philadelphia, at the head 
 of his class, March 9, 1858. He soon after- 
 ward located in Greenbush, this county, where 
 he has built up a good practice and has been very 
 successful. The Doctor is also a graduate of sur- 
 gery, and his library is complete. 
 
 Dr. Randall was born in Dearborn Co., Ind., 25 
 miles from Cincinnati, in the town of Aurora, May 
 27, 1834, and is a son of George Randall, born in 
 Canterbury, Kent Co., Eng., in 1796. His father 
 emigrated to the United States in 1819, and located in 
 Shawneetown, 111. He was a minister of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church, and followed his sacred 
 calling in this county some ten years, and died in 
 1866. He had located in Indiana, where his mar- 
 riage to Miss Rhoda Ewbank, which took place in 
 1826, was blessed by the birth of eight children, 
 namely : John E., George F., William, Mary, Thomas 
 E. and Richard R., twins, Rebecca J. and Elizabeth 
 V. Two are deceased Mary and Richard. The 
 wife and mother was born in Yorkshire, Eng., in 
 1806, and died in Indiana in 1859. 
 
 Dr. Randall, of this sketch, was first married 
 
 -X' , 
 
650 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 March 10, 1863, to Miss Caroline, daughter of F. G. 
 and Adeline Snapp, who bore him four children 
 George S., born Dec. 27, 1863; Channing C., Aug. 
 5, 1865 (deceased); Claud C., Jan. 8, 1870 (de- 
 ceased) ; Clyde W., Oct. 6, 1872 ; she died May 20, 
 1875. The Doctor married Edwina C., daughter of 
 J. W. and Sarah E. Bond, Feb. 26, 1879, and by 
 this union there is one child, William B., born April 
 3,1882. 
 
 In politics, the Doctor is a believer in the princi- 
 ples advocated by the Democratic party. His suc- 
 cess as a practitioner is due to his careful diagnosis 
 of the diseases of his patients, and his constant at- 
 tention to his cases. 
 
 Dr. Randall is a gentleman who not only reflects 
 honor upon his profession, but is a credit to the com- 
 munity in which he lives. His large and extended 
 experience, his deep and abiding interest in his pro- 
 fession and the general welfare of the community, 
 make him both a valuable physician and citizen. He 
 is as widely known and as highly esteemed as any 
 practitioner in the county, and numbers among his 
 patrons and friends many of the best people in War- 
 i ren County. As both a representative of his chosen 
 profession and a citizen of the county, the publishers 
 take pleasure in placing Dr. Randall's portrait in this 
 ALBUM in connection with this sketch. 
 
 -i 
 
 Lamuel Knox Crawford, M. D., prominent 
 physician and surgeon at Monmouth, and 
 Professor of Surgical Anatomy in the 
 College of Physicians and Surgeons, Chicago, 
 is a native of Fredericksburg, Ohio, where he 
 was born, Jan. 22, 1835. His parents, Hugh 
 B. and Rebecca (Knox) Crawford, were born in the 
 Ligonier Valley, Pa., and traced their ancestry back 
 to the North of Ireland, Protestant, and in the fe- 
 male line, to a direct kindred with the famous John 
 Knox. They reared to men and women three sons 
 and five daughters, and buried in youth and child- 
 hood, two sons and a daughter. 
 
 The subject of this notice, who was the youngest 
 of the family, spent the first 20 years of his life, 
 when not in school, upon his father's farm. He 
 graduated from Fredericksburg (Ohio) Academy, 
 when about 21 years of age, and three years later 
 
 entered the Medical Department of the Ann Arbor 
 (Mich.) University, having in the interim completed 
 a full course of the study of medicine with Doctor 
 Timothy H. Baker, of Wooster, Ohio. His first 
 course of lectures was attended at Starling Medical 
 College, Columbus, Ohio. He graduated from the 
 Medical Department of the University of Michigan, 
 in March, 1861, and from Ann Arbor went direct to 
 Bellevue, (N. Y.) Hospital, and there spent the 
 summer under clinical instruction from the distin- 
 guished doctors, Flint and Clark, and passed the fol- 
 lowing winter at Jefferson Medical College, Philadel- 
 phia. 
 
 In May, 1862, Dr. Crawford entered the United 
 States service as Surgeon, or Medical Director of the 
 Hospital Steamer, "Sunny Side," and made several 
 trips between Pittsburgh Landing and Cincinnati. 
 July following, he became Assistant Surgeon of the 
 5oth Ohio Vol. Inf., and was promoted to Surgeon of 
 that regiment during the succeeding autumn. He 
 served in this position until March, 1864, when he 
 was detailed as chief of the Operating Board for the 
 Second Division, 23d Army Corps. This duty placed 
 him in charge of the Field Hospital, where we find, 
 him in December, 1864, when the 5oth and ggth 
 Regiments were consolidated, and he was by special 
 order made Staff Surgeon to Brigadier General J. T. 
 Cooper. This charge in nowise relieved him from 
 his responsibility as chief of the Operating Board, 
 and he discharged double duty up to April 26, 1865. 
 Remembering the facts that Dr. Crawford was never 
 absent from duty, but at his post while his command 
 fought the desperate battles of Perryville, Resaca, 
 Goldsboro, the Atlanta Campaign with its 100 days' 
 fighting, Franklin and Nashville, and even an ordi- 
 nary mind can imagine something approximating his 
 experience, and the intelligent can know that in 
 placing him in the chair of Surgical Anatomy, the 
 managers and directors of the Chicago College of 
 Physicians and Surgeons understood what they were 
 doing. 
 
 July 20, 1865, Dr. Crawford first landed at Mon- 
 mouth. He is a member of the Warren County 
 Military Tract, American and State Medical Societ- 
 ies. For 10 or 12 years he lectured regularly to 
 Monmouth College classes upon anatomy, physiol- 
 ogy, and hygiene. He has for several years held 
 commissions from various life insurance companies 
 as Medical Referee of the State, and, in 1884, he 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 651 
 
 was made Professor of Obstetrics in the Medical 
 Department of the University of Wooster, at Cleve- 
 land, Ohio, a position he was unable to fill by reason 
 of the multiplicity of duties already claiming his 
 time and attention. The Doctor is also a writer of 
 repute, as attested by the popularity of his "Letters 
 to a Young Physician," in the Obstetrical Gazette (Cin- 
 cinnati), 1879 and 1882; an article on "Typhoid Fe- 
 ver," Transactions Illinois Medical Society, 1874, and 
 also an elaborate paper on Obstetrics. 
 
 Nov. 2, 1865, Dr. Crawford was united in marriage 
 at Fredericksburg, Ohio, with Miss Maria Irvine, 
 daughter of the late Samuel Irvine, D. D., of that 
 place, who has borne him eight children Ada L., 
 born Oct. 8, 1866, died Dec. 7, 1874; Charles, a stu- 
 dent; Mary I., Samuel K., Hugh B., who died in 
 infancy ; Fannie C., Grace May and John Jay. 
 
 |i; obert A. Elliott, owning 160 acres of good 
 farm land under an advanced state of im- 
 provement in Lenox Township and resjd- 
 ing on section 34, of the same, is one of the 
 energetic and successful farmers of Warren 
 County. The parents of Mr. Elliott, Thomas 
 H., and Ellen A. (Helvestine) Elliott, were natives 
 of England and Virginia respectively. They were 
 married in the latter State and removed from there 
 to Jackson Co. O., where the father still resides. 
 His wife died May 5, 1880, leaving to the care of 
 her husband n children, whose names were William 
 H., Margaret, Mary J., Eliza, John Q., George, 
 Charles, Sophia, Thomas, Ellen, James and Rob- 
 ert A. 
 
 Robert A. Elliott of whom we write, was a native 
 of the Buckeye State, having been born in Jackson 
 County, Jan. 8, 1849. He lived with his parents, at- 
 tending the common schools and assisting in the la- 
 bors on the farm until he attained the age of 1 7 years, 
 in 1865, when he came to this county and since 
 that time has continued to reside here. His life to 
 the present has been passed in agricultural pursuits 
 in which he has met with success. In 1869, four 
 years after arriving in this county, he had accumu- 
 lated sufficient to enable him to purchase 80 acres 
 of land on section 34 Lenox Township. On this 
 farm he settled with his bride and they unitedly en- 
 
 tered upon their separate tasks of improving and 
 beautifying their home and cultivating their land. 
 As the years rolled by, their savings enabled them 
 to purchase an additional 80 acres, making their to- 
 tal landed interests in Lenox Township 160 acres, 
 all of which is under an advanced state of cultiva- 
 tion, and is supplied with a good residence, and all 
 necessary farm buildings. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Elliott took place March 14, 
 1869, in Lenox Township, at which time Miss Sarah, 
 the accomplished daughter of John and Clarinda J. 
 (Ray) Shirley, became his wife. Her parents were 
 born in Kentucky and their children were four in 
 number, Sarah being'the eldest, after whom Hiram, 
 Malinda and Annie were born. Sarah, Mrs. Elliott, 
 was born in Lenox Township, this county, and re- 
 sided with her parents until her marriage with Mr. 
 E. They have become the parents of seven child- 
 ren, Nettie A., Sophronia J., Nora M., Annie H., 
 Eletha S., William E. and Ethael P. Mr. Elliott 
 has been School Trustee and Treasurer in his town- 
 ship and he and his wife belong to 'the Baptist 
 Church. In politics he votes with and is a supporter 
 of the principles advocated by the Democratic 
 party. 
 
 ames C. Morris, a farmer and stock-raiser, 
 resides on section 9, Ellison Township. 
 He was born in Gloucester County, the 
 name it bore at that time, but now known as 
 Atlantic Co., N. J., on the I4th of March, 
 1827. His father, Amos, was a native of New 
 Jersey and married Phcebe Campbell, who was also 
 born in that State. Both were of English and Scot- 
 tish extraction. The parents of Mr. Morris had 
 seven children, he being the fifth child of the family. 
 He lived at home and attended the common schools 
 up to the date of his marriage, when he resolved 
 upon removing to Madison Co., Ohio. 
 
 Our subject was only three years old when his 
 parents first arrived in Madison County. In the 
 same place his marriage was celebrated on the 26th 
 of March, 1851, the lady's name being Miss Mary 
 C. Moore, a native of Madison County, born March 
 26, 1832. She was the daughter of John and Cath- 
 erine (Coon) Moore, of Virginia. The father was 
 
6 52 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 born near Harper's Ferry, Va., the latter in Ross Co., 
 Ohio. Mrs. Morris was a baby of 18 months at the 
 date of her father's death. The mother and daughter 
 always lived together up to the date of the latter's 
 death. Mrs. Moore's demise took place at her res- 
 idence July 28, 1884, at the advanced age of 78 
 years. Mrs. M. was the younger daughter of five 
 children, herself being the mother of 1 2 children, 
 six of whom are now deceased. There are at present 
 still living Alice, Emery F., George B., A. R., Jesse 
 E. and Walter T. Mrs. M. received a good com- 
 mon school education, and before her marriage was 
 a great favorite with her companions and school- 
 mates. 
 
 After the wedding of Mr. and Mrs. Moore, they 
 took up their residence in Madison County, and 
 commenced to farm, which occupation they contin- 
 ued until 1856, when they came West to Mercer 
 County, where they resided for four years, thence to 
 Warren Co., 111., where the parents had first arrived 
 
 I in 1854. In 1863, when Mr. Morris purchased 80 
 acres of land, he decided to settle his residence 
 where he at present lives. Besides this, he owns 160 
 " acres of prime land, which from time to time has 
 
 I been considerably improved. 
 For more than ten years our subject has filled the 
 office of Township Assessor, a position in which he 
 has shown himself well fitted not only for this office, 
 but any other ordinarily falling within the scope of 
 men in his position. He is a consistent Democrat 
 in politics, and a warm advocate of right, no matter 
 what cause or in whatever form appearing. 
 
 .apt. Eichard A. Howk, farmer, ice 
 dealer and general speculator, residing at 
 Monmouth, is a son of Horace and Fanny 
 (Crouch) Howk, natives of the State of New 
 York, and of German descent. Richard was 
 born in Washington Co., N. Y.,Feb. 22, 1834, 
 and was the eldest of three sons of his parents' 
 family. His mother died in 1838, and his father in 
 r 88 1, both in Washington County. 
 
 The father of Capt. Howk was born in Washing- 
 ton Co., N. Y., in 1817; the mother in the same 
 county, in the year 1820. The brothers of Capt. 
 Howk were John, who died in infancy; and the third 
 
 brother was also named John, and now resides in 
 Wayne Co., N. Y. He was married to Catharine 
 Whitcomb, a native of New York State.and to them 
 have been born five boys, viz. : Leon, Edward, Jud- 
 son, Horace and Jay. 
 
 The subject of this notice was brought up to 
 manhood upon his father's farm, and educated at the 
 common schools of Granville, N. Y.; came to Mon- 
 mouth in iS$8; began work as train baggageman for 
 the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy (then Peoria & 
 Oquawka Railroad) and was directly appointed 
 Freight Conductor, and followed the business alto- 
 gether for about two and a-half years. He then turned 
 stock shipper for a few months from Peoria and Quin- 
 cy, 111. In April, 1 86 1, he enrolled as a private in 
 Co. G, ist 111. Vol. Cav., and with that command fell 
 into the hands of the enemy at Lexington, Mo. Be- 
 ing at once retired, he joined the nth 111. Vol. Cav. 
 as First Lieutenant of Co. K, and followed the for- 
 tunes of Col. "Bob," Ingersoll's regiment about a 
 year and a half. Leaving the nth at Memphis, 
 Tenn., he returned to Illinois and raised Co. L for 
 the 1 2th Cavalry, and went out as its Captain, and 
 in 1862-63 was a member of Gen. Wallace's staff. 
 
 From first to last while connected with his regi- 
 ment, Mr. Howk had participated in all its engage- 
 ments. With the ist Cavalry his term was brief; 
 with the nth he was in Tennessee at Ft. Donelson, 
 Donelsonville, Shiloh, Corinth, Stone Ridge, etc. ; 
 with the 1 2th he was in the far South and up the 
 Red River, that stream which the poet says "Damned 
 poor Banks forever." The Captain was about a 
 year and a half upon detached service as a Quar- 
 ter Master at New Orleans, and left the army in 
 August, r865_ 
 
 At the battle of Shiloh the Captain received a bul- 
 let in his leg, which still remains there, through a 
 period of 24 years, and continues to annoy him. He 
 received another wound by his horse running away 
 at Baton Rogue, which almost disabled his right 
 arm. 
 
 Returning to Monmouth after the war closed, Mr. 
 Howk engaged in business, and has since been one 
 of the most active and enterprising men in the coun- 
 ty. He is an ardent Republican and a member of 
 the I. O. O. F. and G. A. R. 
 
 Capt. Howk was married at Monmouth, Jan 12, 
 1866, to Miss Margaret Harper, the daughter of 
 
 1 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 653 
 
 Parker B. Harper. Her parents were natives of 
 Ohio. She was the third in order of birth of a fam- 
 ily of nine children, viz. : Harvey, who was killed 
 at the battle of Stone Ridge, Mo. ; Eliza J., Sarah, 
 James, Thomas, Walter, Charley, and one deceased. 
 Mrs. Howk was born in Greene Co., Ohio, in 1848. 
 The three children of Mr. and Mrs. Howk are men- 
 tioned as follows : Albert, a graduate of Monmouth 
 College, is now connected with the engineering de- 
 partment of the Union Pacific Railroad ; Edward is 
 engaged in the grocery business at Monmouth, and 
 Mamie resides at home. 
 
 Capt. Howk is purely a self-made man ; what he 
 has of this world's goods, and his fortune is ample, 
 he has acquired by his individual effort and in- 
 dustry. 
 
 McClanahan. To the present gener- 
 ation of Warren County, the statement that 
 the name which leads this biographical 
 notice was one of the most honored in the 
 records of the county, will be acknowledged by 
 all, so identified with the best interests of the 
 people was he who is represented in this sketch. He 
 was a native of Virginia, where he was born in 1794. 
 His parents went, in his youth, from the Old Domin- 
 ion to Highland Co., Ohio. They were pioneers 
 there and there they reared their family. 
 
 John McClanahan passed the years of his minor- 
 ity in Highland County, and when the period ar- 
 rived for him to take up in his own behalf the 
 weapons of warfare with the elements of fame and 
 fortune, he went to Adams County, in the same 
 State, and there became identified with the devel- 
 opment of the county by connecting himself with its 
 agricultural interests. He located " in the timber," 
 where he bought a large tract of land, cleared a 
 patch for a house, and settled himself to carve out a 
 home and fortune as so many had already done in 
 portions of the country now far advanced in improve- 
 ment. He was connected with the history of Adams 
 County until 1837, when he sold his possessions 
 there and went to Brown County, also in Ohio, and, 
 in company with another party, bought an exten- 
 sive tract of land. It was a valuable piece of prop- 
 erty from the fact that it contained a water-power, 
 grist and saw-mill. The owners managed their busi- 
 
 ness together about three years, when they divided 
 the proceeds and acreage, and Mr. McClanahan 
 took his share in land. Much of it was under par- 
 tial cultivation, and he devoted himself with vigorous 
 energy to the pursuit of agriculture until 1855. He 
 had already made a considerable distribution of his 
 land among his children, and, in the year named, 
 sold all he had remaining and came to Illinois, lo- 
 cating in Monmouth. 
 
 Mr. McClanahan took possession of the property 
 known as the Thompson farm, which is situated 
 about one mile west from the seat of Warren County, 
 in the capacity of a renter. He continued to man- 
 age the estate two years and at the expiration of that 
 time he removed to Spring Grove Township, where 
 he had bought a farm and on which he had made 
 some improvements. He operated there as a farmer 
 until 1862, when he could no longer resist the ele- 
 ment that attracted and overwhelmed every patriotic 
 citizen, and cast his fate in with the contending 
 elements of the Civil War. In July of that year he 
 raised a company of soldiers, and, on the organiza- 
 tion of the command, was made its Captain. It was 
 attached to the 83d Regt. 111. Vol. Inf., and was 
 designated Co. B. The regiment joined the forces 
 in the field and participated in the engagement at 
 Fort Donelson. Capt. McClanahan, while gallantly 
 leading his men in a charge, fell at the head of his 
 command, mortally wounded. He was taken into 
 the hospital and tenderly cared for during a severe 
 suffering of 19 days, when, on the 22d of February, 
 1863, he yielded up his life for his country's cause. 
 His remains were brought back to the home he had 
 given his life to defend. He sleeps the sleep of the 
 just and fearless man who saw more than life in the 
 defense of a principle, and more than the reward of 
 the patriot who valued above all else an unsullied 
 flag and a country intact, as the heritage from those 
 who had erected the most glorious national structure 
 in the history of all the ages. 
 
 John McClanahan was known all his life as pos- 
 sessing the elements of true courage and chivalry. 
 He was always the foremost in any enterprise that 
 bore even the smallest promises of permanent ben- 
 efit to the general well-being. While living in Ohio 
 he was one of the most prominent of the business 
 men of the Buckeye State, and he was for a long 
 lime the moving spirit in the Ripley & Hillsborough 
 Stone Pike Co.npany. He also, while in Ohio, held 
 
 ~ + 
 
f 
 
 654 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 I 
 
 various public positions, and served two terms in the 
 Legislature of the State as a Representative of Brown 
 County. 
 
 Mr. McClanahan married Miss Margaret B. 
 Wright, of Fall Creek, Highland Co., Ohio, and of 
 their union 17 children were born. The race is of 
 Scotch-Irish origin and is tenacious of life. Of the 
 sons and daughters of John McClanahan, 14 yet 
 survive, and worthily represent the honored name of 
 their sire. The mother died in October, 1874, aged 
 74 years. Of her husband it may further be added 
 that he was wholly self-educated, and that means a 
 far more liberal cultivation than that afforded by the 
 restricted curriculum of the schools. But he was a 
 thorough student of books in a general way, and was 
 a most successful teacher for many winter seasons 
 in Ohio. In political connection he was by inher- 
 itance a Democrat, but when the Republican party 
 was organized, its tenets harmonized with his views 
 and he enrolled under its banners. His brave and 
 honored life terminated in defense of its fundamental 
 principles, and " O'er his sacred dust shall wave the 
 tree of liberty." 
 
 D. Birdsall. This gentleman is a farmer 
 and blacksmith, and resides in Tompkins 
 Township. He was born Jan. 31 , 1816, in 
 Westchester Co., N. Y. His parents were 
 John and Letitia (Fowler) Birdsall, both 
 natives of New York. They went to Canada 
 in 1820, where '.hey continued to live until 1838, en- 
 gaging for the time in farming. On coming to War- 
 ren County, they settled in Ellison Township, and 
 purchased 320 acres of land. On this they remained 
 15 years, when they sold the estate and moved into 
 Henderson County, where they purchased 160 acres, 
 on which the family lived until the death of our 
 subject's father in 1863. The death of the mother 
 took place in 1838, an incident that had a saddening 
 effect on the whole household, and more especially to 
 the boy, P. IX Birdsall. 
 
 Up to his twenty-fifth year Mr Birdsall remained 
 at home, receiving in the interim a common school 
 education, and assisting his father on the farm. Af- 
 i cr leaving home he engaged in the flouring mill busi- 
 
 ness at Biggsvilk, and soon after removed to Oquawka, 
 where in the capacity of blacksmith he worked for 
 nine years, then returning to Warren County he set- 
 tled in Tompkins Township, and purchased 120 
 acres, upon which he still lives, carrying on general 
 farming and the blacksmith trade. 
 
 He was married, in 1842, to Miss Fannie Ryder, a 
 native of New York, by which union 12 children are 
 living: Charles E., Alexander, Mary, Nancy, John, 
 George, Jacob, William, Flora, Fannie, Clara and 
 Frank. Of these, seven are married, and altogether 
 he has 15 grandchildren. 
 
 In politics, Mr. Birdsall is a prominent Green- 
 backer, and with his wife belongs to the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. He is one of the representa- 
 tive men of Warren County, and considered a 
 consistent member of his Church, and steadfast 
 politician in principle. 
 
 harles Albert Hebbard, Editor of the 
 Roseville Times, is a native of this State 
 having been born at Oquawka, Hender- 
 son County, September i, 1844. His boyhood 
 was spent in this section and when a lad of 
 1 6, he was apprenticed to learn the machin- 
 ist trade in the C. B. & Q. R. R. shop at Galesburg. 
 Here he remained industriously engaged at the em- 
 ployment he had so early in life selected, from 1860 
 to 1863. He only then left the work-shop to go to 
 the front in defense of his country's flag. He en- 
 listed on Nov. 18, 1863, at Springfield, 111., in Co. 
 F, r 1 3th 111. Vol. Inf. He was sent to the front and 
 did valiant service in the cause he esteemed so dear, 
 and on the lothof June, 1864, afGuntown; Miss, 
 received a gun-shot wound in the left side. He 
 continued in the service, however, until Septem- 
 ber of the following year, when he was mustered out 
 at Springfield, 111. 
 
 Mr. Hebbard, like many other enterprising men 
 of the North, felt that there were good openings for 
 various enterprises in the States that were recently 
 in rebellion. He was therefore persuaded to return 
 to Arkansas and for the next two years was engaged 
 running a gang of choppers in getting out wood for 
 steamboats. This not proving satisfactory, he once 
 more returned to Galesburg, and for a time engaged 
 at his trade. Being ambitious and longing for a bet- 
 
WARREN COUNTY 
 
 655 
 
 ter education he made his arrangements for again 
 entering the school-room. He entered the Grand 
 River Institute, at Austinburg, Ashtabula Co., Ohio, a 
 year later. From this institution he was graduated 
 with the degree of B. S. Shortly after leaving the 
 school-room as a student we find him in charge of 
 the Jefferson High School, of Jefferson, Ohio. For two 
 years he successfully, and to the satisfaction of the 
 general public, managed that school. We next find 
 him at the head of the Madison Seminary, at Madison, 
 Lake Co., Ohio, where he remained for four years. 
 He then returned to Ashtabula County and went 
 into the service of the Western Lock Manufacturing 
 Company, taking charge of the manufacturing de- 
 partment. This position he held for four years, his 
 education as a machinist proving invaluable to him. 
 
 Mr. Hebbard again resumed his profession as a 
 teacher, and in the early autumn of 1884 came to 
 Roseville and took charge of the schools at this 
 place. So satisfactory has been his service here 
 that he has been retained in the same position since. 
 On the first of September, 1885, he purchased the 
 Roseville Times. This he enlarged and by devoting 
 to it his characteristic energy as a business man and 
 ability as a writer, has made it one of the most valu- 
 able and interesting local papers in the county. It 
 is now a six-column quarto and not only ably edited 
 but creditably printed. Mr. Hebbard is earnestly en- 
 gaged in the efforts to give the people of Roseville 
 and vicinity a good and valuable newspaper. 
 
 While living in Ohio, Mr. Hebbard was united in, 
 marriage with Julia A. Williams, of Harpersfield, 
 Ashtabula Co., Ohio. The date of this, to him very 
 important event, is 1871. 
 
 C. VanBiper, a retired farmer, on section 
 16, Tompkins Township, was born in Hud- 
 son Co., N. J., March 25, 1830. His par- 
 ents were Cornelius and Mary R. (Sickles) 
 VanRiper, also natives of New Jersey. A. C. 
 remained under the parental roof until he 
 was 23 years of age. During that time he received 
 a good common school education. After leaving 
 home he engaged in the dairying business in New 
 Jersey, which occupation he followed successfully for 
 five years, and then followed other pursuits up to 
 
 1855, when he came to Illinois. Then he commenced 
 purchasing and selling land, but abandoned this af- 
 ter 1 6 months, returned East, where he remained 
 until the year 1861, when he revisited Illinois 
 and occupied himself with the former business of 
 land purchase and sale, at the same time pursuing 
 farming more or less. He at present own 120 acres 
 of land, 40 acres lying in the corporation of Kirk- 
 wood, on which he now resides. A great portion 
 of his time, however, is taken up in visits to the 
 East. 
 
 He was married to Miss Cornelia Ackerman, a 
 native of New Jersey, by whom he had six children 
 Mary G,, Euphemia E., Cornelius, Abraham, Ed- 
 ward and Jeannie. Mary G. married M. G. John- 
 son, and by this union there are two children 
 Gertrude and Freddie. Euphemia E married New- 
 ton Spence. 
 
 By political persuasion, Mr. VanRiper is a Demo- 
 crat, and with his wife and two daughters belongs to 
 the Presbyterian Church. He has been elected to. 
 office on the Village Board as one of the "City 
 Fathers." He also rilled the position of Captain of I 
 the police force in Jersey city. He is one among the,^ 
 leading, most thoughtful and substantial men of 
 Kirk wood. 
 
 Lorimer, auctioneer and dealer in car- 
 riages, buggies, etc., at Monmouth, as well 
 as one of Warren County's prominent bus- 
 iness men, was born in Muskingum Co. Ohio, 
 March 26, 1831. His parents were Dr. Sam- 
 uel and Mary (Few) Lorimer, natives respect- 
 ively of old Ireland and the State of Ohio. They 
 both died before John was three years old, and at this 
 writing, he and his sister older, are the only survivors 
 of his father's family. 
 
 His youth was spent principally at school, supple- 
 menting a pretty thorough common school training 
 by a course at New Concord (Ohio) College. Leaving 
 College he taught school about four years in Ken- 
 tucky, Ohio and Illinois and then after a year 
 or two spent at farming, settled down at Monmouth. 
 He came here in 1856, since which time he has been 
 one of the busiest men in Warren County. He be- 
 gan auctioneering in 1861 and has kept it up stead- 
 ily, notwithstanding a multiplicy of duties of various 
 
6 5 6 
 
 WARR&N COUNTY. 
 
 kinds have necessarily demanded much of his atten- 
 tion. He was elected Constable in 1861 and held 
 the office 19 years. Was elected City Marshal, in 
 1864, and held the office about three years. Was 
 Deputy Sheriff of Warren County several years. He 
 ran an auction store eight years in Monmouth and 
 has been engaged in the buggy and carriage business 
 about eight years, two years of the time on the road 
 carrying with him a full line of vehicles. 
 
 September 13, 1853, he was married at New Con- 
 cord, Ohio, to Miss I. M. Russell, a native of the 
 Keystone State, and daughter of Thomas Russell, 
 deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Lorimer have had born to 
 them five children, as follows : Rachel N., wife of J. 
 M. Harvey, of Buena Vista, Colorado; Samuel B., 
 interested with his father, in the carriage and buggy 
 business ; John, now a resident of Colorado; Thomas 
 and Minnie, in Monmouth. Mr. Lorimer is identi- 
 fied with no Church or secret order, and through life 
 he has depended upon his own individual effort and 
 industry for such of this world's goods as he pos- 
 sesses and enjoys. He is a good liver and a man 
 that enjoys life wherever he is. 
 
 ,avid Tuttle. Prominent among the num- 
 erous retired farmers of Roseville, ranks 
 the subject of this personal sketch, who is 
 spending the evening of an active and use- 
 ful life in the enjoyment of the fruits of his 
 toil. David Tutile was born in Greene Co. Pa., 
 Oct. 13, 1800, and is consequently 85 years of age. 
 His parents Israel and Mary (Martin) Tuttle, were 
 natives of New Jersey, but at a very early day moved 
 into Pennsylvania and secured farming property. He 
 had a family of ten children, four sons and six 
 daughters. The wife, Mrs. Mary Tuttle, died in 
 Pennsylvania in February, 1824, and Israel Tuttle in 
 January, 1842. 
 
 David was a member of the home family until a 
 young man of 24 years of age. Of course during 
 these years he assisted his parents on the farm and 
 attended such schools as the neighborhood afforded. 
 His first venture after leaving home was to purchase 
 a farm of 120 acres. Here he lived for several years, 
 when he sold out and purchased his father's farm, 
 where he lived until 1850. Feeling that the West 
 
 offered superior advantages, he sold out and came to 
 Illinois, finding a desirable home in Warren County. 
 Here on section 28, of Roseville Township, he se- 
 cured a valuable 80 acre tract of land, where he 
 lived and farmed until 1880. He then sold out and 
 moved into Roseville, buying eight acres where he 
 now resides. Politically Mr. Tuttle is a Prohibition- 
 ist, and together with his wife belongs to the United 
 Brethren Church. 
 
 In 1854, January 24, Mr. Tuttle and Mrs. Philena 
 E. Young, a native of Ashtabula Co. Ohio, were 
 united in marriage. Mrs. Tuttle was born Dec. 13, 
 1821, and was a daughter of Samuel and Philena 
 (Ward) Overbaugh. They were natives of New York 
 and Connecticut respectively and had a family of two 
 daughters. Mr. O. died in 1822, the year following 
 the death of his wife. 
 
 F. Loudon, whose hair is silvered by the 
 lapse of time, is passing the sunset of his 
 life in peace and quiet at his residence in 
 Kirkwood. He is a native of South Caro- 
 lina, having been born in that State in 1812. 
 The parents of Mr. Loudon, George and Mary J 
 (Ferris) Loudon, were natives of Ireland and South 
 Carolina respectively. They moved to Indiana in 
 1816, where the father purchased 80 acres of land, 
 on which he moved with his family and there re- 
 sided until the death of both heads of the house- 
 hold. 
 
 W. F. Loudon, the subject of this notice, received 
 an education in the common schools and from about 
 the age of 12 years until he was 25, he worked at 
 various occupations, assisting in the maintenance of 
 his father's family. In 1851, he came to Henderson 
 County, this State, and there purchased 40 acres of 
 land. On this land he located and entered vigor- 
 ously and energetically upon the vocation of an ag- 
 riculturist and was there occupied lor two years. He 
 then came to this county and for two years followed 
 farming on rented land, when he purchased 160 
 acres on section 8, Tompkins Township, and there, 
 for 25 years, was engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
 He has lived in Kirkwood Village for the past four 
 years where he has 12 acres of land and a good res- 
 
f 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 657 
 
 idence, and is passing the evening of his life in quiet 
 retirement. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Loudon with Miss Jane Mar- 
 tin was solemized in 1836, and their union has been 
 blessed by the birth of five children, Margaret, 
 Nancy, George, Mary A., and James H. After 40 
 years of married life, during which the wife had 
 shared the toils and trials, the successes and re- 
 verses, of her husband, she passed to the better 
 land, the date of her death being 1876. Mr. Lou- 
 don in his political belief endorses the principles of 
 the Democratic party and religiously is a member of 
 the Reformed Presbyterian Church. 
 
 j. - _<::> - _^. 
 
 Ifoseph Pine located in Warren County in 
 If- 1844. He is now a resident of Galesburg, 
 111. He was 16 years of age when his par- 
 ents started from Ohio for Illinois. They 
 came over the intervening country with their 
 own conveyance, and reached Warren _ County 
 after a slow, but, in some respects, pleasant and 
 profitable journey. 
 
 Mr. Pine is a native of Somersetshire, England. 
 He was born May 2, 1828, and is the son of Rob- 
 ert and Elizabeth (Morris) Pine. His father emi- 
 grated with his family from England to Amer- 
 ica, sometime in the year 1840. Mr. Pine was then 
 12 years old, and has a distinct remembrance of the 
 incidents of the voyage from Liverpool to Philadel- 
 phia, as the time passed on the ocean was six entire 
 weeks. They went to Lake County, in the Buckeye 
 State, and were there resident until their removal at 
 the time stated to Illinois. They started on their 
 overland trip with three horses and a pair of oxen. 
 The members of the household and the domestic 
 belongings were accommodated in two large wagons. 
 In the vicinity of Cleveland the father exchanged 
 the oxen for horses, and the distance between them 
 and their destination seemed to diminish with pro- 
 portionate rapidity. 
 
 The senior Pine bought a claim on section 14, in 
 the part of Warren County then designated on the 
 government charts as township 12, and which on its 
 organization as a municipality was named Kelly 
 Township. There were 20 acres of the property in 
 tillage, and a log house had been erected. The lat- 
 
 ter was of the style of architecture which pointed 
 out a most primitive condition of things, and the 
 roof was made of "shakes," which were kept in their 
 places with poles. The usual improvements were 
 afterward made on the place by the owner, who lived 
 there until the close of his life. His death trans- 
 pired about 1870. The family included six chil- 
 dren, and the subject of this sketch was the fifth in 
 order of birth. 
 
 Mr. Pine remained a member of his father's house- 
 hold until his marriage to Letitia Watson, which 
 event took place in 1853. His wife was born in Ken- 
 tucky, and is the daughter of Basil and Matilda Wat- 
 son, who were members of the pioneer element of 
 Kelly Township. At the time of his marriage Mr. 
 Pine located on section 9, in the same township 
 where his father had settled, and improved the farm 
 on which he fixed his permanent residence, and 
 which is still in his possession. 
 
 In March, 1876, he rented his farm and went to 
 Galesburg, where he is now living. He is manu- 
 facturing brick and terra cotta articles of merchan- 
 dise, and is a member of the Stock Company in that 
 place which was incorporated in 1885. He is the 
 Superintendent and one of the Directors of the 
 Works. 
 
 His son, Edwin A., lives in Kelly Township, and 
 is officiating as Assessor. Frank J. is a hardware 
 dealer at Alexis, and is represented in this work. 
 Janet and Linnie May are the daughters of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Pine. 
 
 Mr. Pine is a member of the denomination known 
 as Second Adventists. 
 
 ohn Tucker, owning the undivided half 
 interest to 450 acres of land in Swan 
 Township, and residing upon section 20 of 
 the same, was born in the township where he at 
 present resides, Nov. 21, 1846, his parents both 
 being natives of Washington Co., Pa. Mr. 
 Tucker formed a matrimonial alliance with Miss Ida 
 F. Bostwick, Oct. n, 1871. She was born July i, 
 1852, in Roseville Township, this county, her father's 
 name being Alanson Bostwick. He was born in 
 Connecticut, in 1814, and married Jane A. Jones, in 
 1848. She was born in 1818, and bore her husband 
 
6s 8 
 
 COUNTY. 
 
 three children Ida F., Ozro P. and Ora A. Her 
 father died Dec. 23, 1876. 
 
 The father of Mr. Tucker, of this notice, James 
 Tucker, was born May 15, 1807, in Washington Co., 
 Pa., came to Illinois in 1834 and located in Swan 
 Township, this county ; removed from there to Rose- 
 ville, where he is at present residing. He was mar- 
 ried to Miss Caroline Johnson, April 27, 1840. She 
 was born July 9, 1809, in Washington Co., Pa. They 
 were married in the Keystone State, and of their un- 
 ion four children were born Daniel J., Aug. 20, 
 1841; James M., Feb. 24, 1844; John, Nov. 21, 
 1846, and George, Feb. 22, 1849. Daniel J. died in 
 the army, Sept. 20, 1861, at Lexington, Mo., of ty- 
 phoid fever, after an illness of eight days. He par- 
 ticipated in the battle of Lexington, on the 2oth of 
 September, that year, and died on the 28th of the 
 same month. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Tucker of this sketch are the happy 
 parents of two children Carrie J., born Sept. 9, 
 1873, and Ora A., January n, 1877. Mr. Tucker 
 has a good residence on the place, two stories in 
 height, and is there passing his life in the prosecu- 
 tion of a vocation which he has followed since he 
 was old enough. In politics he is a believer in and 
 a supporter of the principles advocated by the Re- 
 publican party, which ticket he has always voted. 
 
 "oshua C. Bay, a successful farmer owning 
 150 acres of land located on section 4, 
 Greenbush Township, where he resides 
 and is actively engaged in the prosecution of 
 the labors of an agriculturist, was born in 
 Lenox Township, this county, in 1852, and is 
 a son of Woodford Ray, a native of Kentucky, where 
 he was born in 1824. The latter followed the voca- 
 tion of a farmer and died in September, 1865, at the 
 age of 45 years, in Missouri. The father formed a 
 matrimonial alliance with Miss Nancy Simons in 
 1850. She was born in Kentucky in 1831, and died 
 in May, 1852. Of their union two children were 
 born, Jamess G. and Joshua C., our subject. After 
 their mother's death, the father was a second time 
 married, and by this wife had five children, namely : 
 Ida J., Charles C., Lewis R., Harriet and Delos. 
 
 Joshua Ray, subject of this biographical notice, 
 was married April 2, 1874, to Eliza Morris. She 
 was born Jan. 25, 18155, and has borne her husband 
 three children, one of whom, Mary E., died July 12, 
 1880. Marshal B. was born Jan. 2, 1875, and Wal- 
 ter, Oct. 29, 1880. Mr. Ray and his family are 
 pleasantly situated on their fine farm in Greenbush 
 Township, and in addition to their acreage in this 
 county, Mr. Ray is the owner of 12 acres in Mc- 
 Donough County, this State. In politics, he votes 
 with the Democratic party. 
 
 The father of Mrs. Ray, Bethuel Morris, was born 
 in Ohio, in 1826, and married Miss Mary Crawford 
 in 1847. She was-born in Ohio and bore her hus- 
 band six children, as follows: Merribah, John B., 
 Almira, Flora, Eliza E. and Melissa. Mr. Morris 
 and his wife are members of the Christian Church, 
 and, in politics, he votes the same ticket as his son- 
 in-law, Mr. Ray. 
 
 0*0 
 
 ev. George W. Hamilton, pastor of Little 
 York United Presbyterian Church, was 
 born in New Wilmington, Mercer Co., Pa., 
 March i, 1848, and was the son of George 
 Hamilton, also a native of Pennsylvania, and 
 the grandson of Thomas Hamilton, whose 
 birthplace was Ulster, County Tyrone, Ireland, and 
 the date of his birth 1763. In belief this latter gen- 
 tleman was a staunch Presbyterian of the Old School, 
 and came of a direct line of Scotch ancestry. He 
 emigrated to the United States in 1784, locating in 
 Eastern Pennsylvania, where he lived for some time, 
 then removed to Beaver County, of that State, where 
 he died. He had all his life engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits. Early in life he married Miss Agnes 
 Mitchell, who was likewise born in County Tyrone, 
 March 2, 1773, and like her husband was of Scotch 
 descent. They had 13 children, all of whom reached 
 maturity. The father of the subject was the nth in 
 order of birth and in his native county grew to man- 
 hood, being reared on his father's farm, and in early 
 life married Rebecca Strain, a native of Beaver 
 County, who was born in i8rg. Shortly after mar- 
 riage they removed to Mercer County, where he 
 took up land, which he worked until 1855, and in 
 that year he moved into Iowa, settling near Dubuque. 
 Here he bought a farm, upon which his wife died, in 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 the year i86r, he surviving her until 1876, when he 
 followed her to their long home. 
 
 Rev. G. W. Hamilton, our subject, and the ninth 
 child in the large circle of brothers and sisters, was 
 seven years of age at the time of his parents' removal 
 to Iowa. Here he grew to the years of maturity, 
 receiving his early education in the district schools, 
 and in 1872 graduated from college, having taken 
 a full classical course. Subsequently he entered the 
 Theological Seminary of Xenia, Ohio, in which he 
 continued two years, and leaving this he became a 
 student under Dr. Patton, of Chicago, with whom he 
 remained one year. He commenced his ministra- 
 tion in 1875, in the States of Michigan, Iowa and 
 Missouri, laboring two years before receiving ordina- 
 tion. This event took place at Elvira, Clinton Co., 
 Iowa, March 27, 1877, and at this time he was in- 
 stalled pastor of the Church there, the pulpit of 
 which he occupied until August, 1880. Receiving a 
 , call to the United Presbyterian Church of Little 
 York, he took up his abode in that town, in October 
 of that year, which pastorate he holds at the present 
 time. His marriage occurred Sept. 5, 1878, to Anna 
 C. Young, native of Michigan. Mr. Hamilton is a 
 man of large usefulness and adorns the position he 
 occupies, and is, heart and mind, enlisted in the work 
 of " bringing in the sheaves." 
 
 B. Holeman. One of the energetic and 
 jl^^S, successful farmers of Warren County is 
 3 o"" 5 Mr. D. B. Holeman, who resides upon 
 section 35, Roseville Township, having been 
 born in this township Nov. 20, 1850. He is a 
 son of Reuben and Susannah (Crab) Holeman, 
 who are natives of Indiana, and whose biography 
 appears elsewhere in this book. 
 
 D. B. Holeman, the gentleman whose name heads 
 this personal narrative, remained at home until he 
 attained his 2oth year, in the meantime receiving a 
 common-school education and assisting his parents 
 with the labors on the farm. He afterward farmed 
 with his father on shares for two years, and in 1872 
 thinking he could better himself considerably, he 
 went to Kansas, and located in Linn County. Here 
 he made a purchase of 80 acres of land and engaged 
 s i tr>:k-raising, continuing the same for two years, 
 
 when he exchanged his property for some land situ- 
 ated about three miles distant and entered upon the 
 latter tract, of 80 acres, where he engaged in mixed 
 husbandry for three years. He again returned to 
 Illinois, and in 1881 purchased 1465^ acres of land, 
 80 of which is in Roseville Township and is in ex- 
 cellent cultivation; 37 acres are prairie land and 
 29}^ good timber. 
 
 Mr. D. B. Holeman was married in 1870 to Miss 
 Harriet Smith, a native of Warren County and 
 daughter of Allen and Susan (Miller) Smith, natives 
 of Indiana, who came to Illinois in 1848 and 
 settled in Warren County. Mr. and Mrs. Holeman 
 have had their home brightened and blessed with 
 the birth of two children Susannah, born Oct. 12, 
 1871 ; and William B., Aug. 29, 1875. 
 
 Mr. Holeman affiliates with the Democratic party, 
 and is one of the representative and solid men of 
 Warren County. He and his wife are members of 
 the Christian Church, and he fills the position of 
 School Director. 
 
 ^rederick Heinzman, an agriculturist, re- 
 siding upon section 33, Greenbush Town- 
 ship, where, on his fine farm of 240 acres, 
 he is prosecuting his vocation, was born in 
 Baden, Germany, Oct. u, 1827, and emigrated 
 to this country in 1851, landing at New York, 
 from whence he proceeded to St. Louis, Mo., where 
 he remained one year and worked at the mason's 
 trade, which he had learned in the fatherland. 
 
 At the end of the time stated, Mr. Heinzman 
 came to Springfield, this State, and resided at that 
 place for two years, engaged in working at his trade, 
 when he went to Decatur, and, after remaining there 
 a year, moved to Prairie City. In the latter place 
 he worked at his trade until 1874, when he came to 
 this township and located on section 33, Greenbush 
 Township, where he purchased 80 acres of land. 
 He at once located on his land and engaged actively 
 and energetically in its improvement and cultivation, 
 and by economy and perseverance has, by subse- 
 quent purchases, increased his landed interests in 
 Warren County to 240 acres, and is also the owner 
 of 80 acres in McDon.ough County. Mr. H. has a 
 good residence upon his place, 35 x 45 feet in dimen - 
 
66o 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 sions, with a good cellar, the walls of which are of 
 his own work. His barn is 30 x 40 feet with a good 
 basement. 
 
 Mr. Heinzman was united in marriage with Fred- 
 rica Behler, March 6, 1855. She was born March 
 5, 1828, in Wurtemberg, Germany, and came to 
 America in 1854, landing at New Orleans. From 
 there she proceeded to Decatur, 111., where she re- 
 mained one year, at the expiration of which time she 
 married Mr. Heinzman. Of their union ten chil- 
 dren have been born, namely: May E., Jan. 16, 
 1856; Frederick, May 25, 1857; Frank, Aug. n, 
 1858; Louisa F., Dec. 2, 1859; Rudolph, May 5, 
 1861 ; John, Oct. 27, '1862; Charles Oct. 14, 
 1864; Minnie, born March 30, 1866, died July 25, 
 1881 ; Albert, born May 14, 1868, died April 29, 
 1870; and Lillian, born July 10, 1871. 
 
 In religion, Mr. and Mrs. H. are members of the 
 Lutheran Church. In politics, Mr. H. votes with the 
 Democratic party. His father, Jacob, was born in 
 1802, in Germany, and married Miss Mudinger. 
 who was born in that country in 1800. The father 
 died in Nebraska, in 1881, and the mother in this 
 county in 1875. They had nine children, five of 
 whom are deceased. The living are Frederick, 
 Mary, Jacob and Charles. 
 
 ambert Lester, a prominent farmer on sec- 
 tion 13 of Point Pleasant Township, was 
 born in Greene Co., Ind., Jan. n, 1839. 
 Thomas C. Lester, his father, was a native of 
 South Carolina, where he was born Aug. 3, 
 1816. The latter was a son of Peter R. and 
 Haney (O'Neil) Lester. The families of both his 
 parents were South Carolinians. His great-grand- 
 father, James Lester, was an Englishman. His wife 
 a Deneford; her given name is not recollected by 
 her descendants of this generation. She was reared 
 in Ireland, came to America at an early day and 
 was united in marriage to the above named James. 
 They had eight children, seven of whom were boys : 
 John, Isaac, James, Peter, Charles, Abner, Samuel 
 and the daughter, Joicey. All except Abner and 
 Samuel lived to raise families of their own. The 
 parents, with their children, moved to South Caro- 
 lina before the Revolutionary War, and about the 
 
 year 1787, Peter, the fourth son, married Jane Ru- 
 ble, who was born in Newbury, S. C. To them were 
 born n children, five boys and six girls, as follows: 
 Patty, Sally, Peter, James, Mary, Willis, Rhoda, 
 Vincent, Simpson, Cinderella and Jane. They all 
 grew to maturity and reared families of their own ; * 
 only three of the number are now living, namely : 
 Peter, the grandfather of our subject; Vincent, 
 who lives in Greene Co., Ind. ; and Simpson, who 
 resides at Batesville, Mississippi. Peter Lester re- 
 moved with his family to Indiana when his son 
 Thomas was but five years of age. He was one of 
 the earliest of the pioneer settlers in the county of 
 Greene, and is still living there at the age of 96 
 years. The son just referred to Thomas C. grew 
 to manhood in Greene County, where he was mar- 
 ried to Eliza Hughen, who was born in South Caro- 
 lina, Dec. 31, 1815. His father presented him with 
 80 acres of land on his marriage, which was situated 
 in the township of Plummer, on White River, in the 
 same county in which the father resided. As it was 1 
 all in heavy timber, there was a vast amount of hard 
 work before him to make a suitable home for the [ 
 new-made wife. But he built a log house on a " 
 small clearing, in which they took up their residence, | 
 and the work of reclamation from the original forest 
 went vigorously on. The husband was a man ofJ 
 energy and industry, and in a very short time placed 
 40 acres under good culture. He was enabled to 
 make a further purchase of land, which he thor- 
 oughly improved, and remained the occupant of the 
 farm as long as he lived. His death transpired 
 in May, 1851. His widow lives at present in Clay 
 Co., Neb. There were five children in the family of 
 Thomas Lester, but none now living save the sub- 
 ject of this sketch and Mary, the wife of Walter 
 Paine, of Edgar, Clay Co., Neb. 
 
 Mr. Lester was 12 years old when his father was 
 removed by death. He continued to live in his na- 
 tive county until October, 1856. The homestead 
 was then rented, his mother having remarried, to a 
 man named William R. Hindman. The latter removed 
 the family to Warren County, in the year named, 
 and located in Point Pleasant Township. The son 
 accompanied the family and was married to Mary E. 
 Dixon Oct. 19, 1869. His wife is the daughter of 
 Eli and Jemima (Boyd) Dixon, of whom a sketch is 
 given elsewhere in this book. 
 
 Previous to his marriage he became the owner of 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 66 1 
 
 40 acres of land, which he had purchased in 1863, 
 and which constituted the nucleus of the splendid 
 farm upon which he now resides. His mother re- 
 sided with him on the 4o-acre tract until he married. 
 He has been prosperous and has added to his estate 
 until he is the owner of 400 acres of excellent land, 
 all in a good state of cultivation. It includes 30 
 acres of timber land, whose value is appreciated in 
 a prairie country. 
 
 Mr. Lester is a Democrat in political views. Mrs. 
 Lester belongs to the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church. Minnie J. Lester, the sole daughter of the 
 parents' home and hearts, was born Feb. 7, 1876. 
 
 Among the views of farm residences given in the 
 pictorial department of this ALBUM, may be found 
 that of Mr. Lester's, on page 380. 
 
 ohn S. Whelan, a well-to-do, sturdy tiller 
 of the soil, resides in this county, on his 
 farm of 160 acres, located on section 18, 
 Hale Township. He is a son of James and 
 Margaret (Moore) Whelan, natives of Ireland. 
 They were the parents of seven children, of 
 whom John S. is the third in order of birth. 
 
 He was born in Brooklyn, N. Y., Oct. 23, 1853. 
 When John S. was but two years of age his parents 
 brought him to Illinois. They located in this county 
 in August, 1861, in Swan Township, where his fa- 
 ther died. His mother still survives. 
 
 The subject of this notice received a good common 
 school education in the district schools of this county, 
 and continued to reside here, engaged in the occupa- 
 tion of farming, until 1876, when he removed to Hen- 
 derson County, and there lived for five years following 
 the same occupation. At the expiration of this time 
 he came to Hale Township, and purchased the land 
 which he still owns and occupies. This land is all 
 under an advanced state of cultivation, and in the vo- 
 cation which he has followed the major portion of his 
 life he is meeting with success. 
 
 The ceremony which united the lives of Mr. Whe- 
 lan and Miss Kate Mason, the accomplished daugh- 
 ter of Michael and Johanna (Shaw) Mason, natives 
 of Ireland, was solemnized February i, 1876, in 
 Henderson County. Miss Mason was the fourth in 
 order of birth of a family of nine children. She 
 
 was born in Ohio January 16, 1855, and has borne 
 her husband four children, Charlie M., Mary E., Ka- 
 tie and J. Edgar. Mr. Whelan has held the office of 
 School Director in his Township, and in his politics 
 is independent. He and his wife are faithful and 
 active members of the Catholic Church. 
 
 homas Meadows, farmer on section 3, 
 Berwick Township, was born in this county, 
 Dec. 18, 1845, and is a son of Henry 
 Meadows, a native of Kentucky, where he was 
 born March 28, 1798. The father of the sub- 
 ject of this notice came to Illinois prior to the 
 Black Hawk War, in 1832, and died Jan. 13, 1851, 
 in this county. He was married to Miss Mary 
 Coffey March 26, 1818. She was also a native of 
 Kentucky, born there Sept. 6, 1799, and died Aug. 
 24, 1881. They had 14 children, namely : Nancy, 
 born May 21, 1819; Andrew, May 10, 1820; Jane, 
 April 15, 1821; Martin C., March 12, 1822; Eliza- 
 beth, July 23, 1823; James and Martha (twins),-; 
 Nov. ti, 1825 ; Mary, July 3, 1827; Sarah, July 5, 
 1829; Henry W.. Dec. 30, 1831; Althea, Jan. 5, 
 1834; John G., Nov. 30, 1837 ; Artimisia, Feb. 20, . 
 1836; Erastus, April 16, 1842; and Thomas, born 
 as stated above. 
 
 Thomas Meadows, the subject of this biographical 
 notice, was married to Miss Mary J. Brown, March 
 9, 1865. She was born Oct. 13, 1846, in Indiana, 
 and her parents came to this State in 1854, locating 
 in this county. Her father, Wm. L. Brown, was 
 born in Ohio, Dec. 31, 1820, and was there married 
 to Miss Julia A. Newkirk, Jan. i, 1846. She was 
 born Sept. r, 1826, and was also a native of Ohio, 
 and both are still living, residing at present in Ab- 
 ingdon. They have been blessed with eight chil- 
 dren Mary Jane, bom in October, 1846; Almeda 
 Ann, who was born Oct. 6, 1848, and married Wm. 
 P. Meadows March 10, 1870; Sarah M., born Sept. 
 
 26, 1850, (marriedGalen P. Meadows Feb. 7, 1871); 
 John W., born Aug. 27, 1852; Harriet E., born Feb. 
 
 27, 1855, (married Wm. L. Roney Sept. 24, 1874); 
 Jerusha R., born June i, 1858 (married Albert J. 
 Haynes in 1879); Alzora, born June 24, 1861, is 
 deceased; and Alvira A., born Nov. 29, 1863, be- 
 came the wife of Lewis J. Supple April 3, 1884. 
 
662 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Thomas Meadows, of whom we write, and his 
 wife are the parents of the following children : El- 
 mer, born Feb. 12, 1866, Ira D, Feb. 10, 1868; 
 Austin T., March 16, 1870; Leonard P.. Dec. 22, 
 1874; Charlie L., Jan. 20, 1878; Vella Ann, June 
 17, 1885. 
 
 Mr. Meadows is the proprietor of 98 acres of good 
 land, located on section 3, Berwick Township, and 
 as an agriculturist is meeting with the success which 
 energy and perseverance are sure to bring. In poli- 
 tics, he votes with the Democratic party, and, re- 
 ligiously, he and his wife are members of the Chris- 
 tian Church. 
 
 |j: eimer Lahann is a manufacturer and whole- 
 sale and retail dealer in cigars and tobacco, 
 at Monmouth, the name of his establishment 
 being the Maple City Cigar Factory. He was 
 born Oct. 8, 1842, at Delmat, Holstein, Ger- 
 many. He came to America in 1861, four 
 years after his father, who died suddenly at Palmyra, 
 Mo., in 1868, while en route from Hannibal, Mo., to 
 Monmouth. Reimer Lahann's first employment in 
 the United States was farming, which he followed 
 for a year and a half near Troy, N. Y., after which 
 he went to work at cabinet making, in Troy, 
 N. Y., where he resided until 1866, during which 
 time he also learned the cigar-maker's trade. While 
 a resident of New York State he served a term as a 
 member of the National Guards, assisting the organ- 
 ization in protecting lives and property at a time 
 when riots and disturbances were imminent. 
 
 Immediately upon removing to Monmouth, which 
 be did in 1866, Mr. Lahann began the manufacture 
 of cigars. He rolled the smokers himself. His bus- 
 iness was on a small scale, but with slight assistance 
 from his estimable wife, a good start was being made. 
 The fire of '68 completely cleaned out the business, 
 but Mr. Lahann was not discouraged. He began 
 work again at the beginning. By gradual development 
 his establishment, which he has built up alone and 
 unaided, except by his wife, has become one of the 
 leading institutions of Monmouth. The Maple City 
 factory is Mr. Lahann's pride, and it is evidence of 
 !.i ; industry and business ability. From 35 to 4omen 
 
 are constantly employed in the factory and a num- 
 ber of salesmen are continually on the road, dispos- 
 ing of the different brands of cigars, all of which have 
 an excellent reputation. The factory turned out in 
 1884 over 1,500,000 cigars. During the last four 
 months of that year the number sold was 440,525, 
 while during the corresponding period of '85 the 
 number was 493,500, a most gratifying increase. Not 
 only its size, but its prosperous condition, makes the 
 institution one of particular advantage to the city of 
 Monmouth, inasmuch as the place becomes known 
 throughout the extensive territory in which the cigars 
 are sold. Mr. Lahann's adherence to the practice of 
 using only a superior quality of stock has done much 
 to overcome the prejudice for Eastern cigars where- 
 ever the products of the Maple City factory are ob- 
 tainable. 
 
 Mr. Lahann was married at Troy, N. Y., Jan. 24, 
 1865, to Miss Katie Fougard, of Huhrhesse, Ger- 
 many. Their children are Ida, Andrew and Nina May, 
 the first the wife of Mr. Fred T. Hayden, the second 
 a cigar-maker and the third a school girl. Mr. Hay- 
 den and Andrew Lahann are both employed in the 
 factory. Mrs. Hayden has a daughter, born Feb. 2, 
 1886, and Mr. R. Lahann proudly responds to the 
 title of grandfather. Mr. Lahann is a Knight Tem- 
 plar in Masonry, an Odd Fellow, a member of the 
 Leiderkranz Society, and in politics, a Republican. 
 
 eorge W. Stice is extensively engaged as 
 an agriculturist upon section 30, Swan 
 Township, where he owns 910 acres. It 
 is all tillable land but 15 acres, which is cov- 
 ered with timber. He has erected a good, 
 substantial two-story dwelling, which is 30 x 30 
 feet in dimensions, upon his farm ; also a good barn, 
 38 x 42 feet. He is a breeder of Short -horn cattle, 
 having at present seven head, also excellent grades 
 of roadsters. In his chosen vocation, he has met 
 with remarkable success, being an industrious, per- 
 severing and economical farmer, and to himself and 
 good helpmeet, his wife, is his prosperity attribut- 
 able. 
 
 Mr. George. W. Stice, of whom we write, was born 
 in Madison Co., 111., July 8, 1832, and is the son of 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 663 
 
 Charles Slice, a native of North Carolina, where he 
 was born in 1795, on the nth of February. The 
 latter came to this State in 1814 and located in 
 Madison County. The elder Mr. Slice was a Ranger 
 during the War of 1812, and was under General 
 Whiteside in the Black Hawk War in 1832. It was 
 while in that war that he came through this county 
 and saw the fertility of the soil, and was so well 
 pleased that in 1833 he came to what is now the 
 southern part of Henderson County; but as that lo- 
 cality proved unheallhful, he came lo Greinbush, 
 Ihis counly, engaging in merchandising and was ap- 
 pointed Postmaster. After a residence of seven years 
 there, he exchanged his town property for a farm 
 on section 29, Swan Township, which he occupied 
 until his death. Miss Patsey Whitley was the lady 
 chosen to share his joys and sorrows, successes and 
 reverses. She was born in 1800, in Illinois, and of 
 her union with Mr. Slice 1 2 children were born, as 
 follows : Sarah, Andrew, Nancy, Tabitha, James 
 and Diana (twins), Martha, Charles, George W., 
 Oscar, and a pair of twins who died in infancy. Mrs. 
 Stice, the mother of our subject, died in 1847, the 
 father's demise occurring April i, 1869, in Swan 
 Township. 
 
 George W. Stice was united in marriage with Miss 
 Phoebe King, Jan. 19, 1860. She was a native of 
 McDonough County, and the daughter of R. T. 
 King, who was born in Washington Co., East Ten- 
 nesse, Nov. 28, 1817. He came to Illinois in 1835, 
 and on Nov. 28, 1839, was married to Miss Martha 
 A. Holden, who was born in Hamilton Co., Ohio, 
 July 2, 1822. Her father was a nalive of Vermont, 
 moved to Ohio at an early day, and had a family 
 comprising eight children Phebe, born Feb. 4, 
 1841: William H., Feb. 12, 1847; James M., in 
 November, 1849; John H., in July, 1852; Myrim 
 H., Oct. 10, 1855 ; Isabella L., in 1857 ; Thomas F., 
 Feb. 28, 1859; and Charlie, Aug. 8, 1861. All the 
 above children are at present living and have at- 
 tained the age of manhood and womanhood. Mr. 
 King was really one of the pioneers of McDonough 
 County. 
 
 George W. Stice, whose name heads this article, is 
 the father of three children living and three deceased. 
 George F. was born Oct. 29, 1864; Freeman S., 
 Oct. 15, 1870; Sylvia A., Oct. 2, 1872; Edith, born 
 Dec. 3, 1860, died in infancy; Charles, born Jan. 8, 
 
 1862, died Nov. 13, same year; Harry, born April 
 30, 1876, died May 22, 1876. Mr. Stice lived on 
 sections 26 and 27, of Point Pleasant Township for 
 16 years. In the spring of 1874 he moved to sec- 
 tion 30, Swan Township, where he had purchased 
 knd and here he has lived to the present time. 
 
 In addition to the cultivation of his land, Mr. S. 
 is engaged to a considerable extent in the breeding 
 of Short-horn caltle and graded roadsters. In pol- 
 itics, he is a strong advocate of temperance and votes 
 with the Prohibition party. His wife is President of 
 the W. C. T. U. county organization, and has held 
 the position for five years. She is also President of 
 the Band of Hope at Swan Creek, and is a lady of 
 most excellent qualities. Mr. Stice is one of the 
 leading representative citizens, not only of Swan 
 Township but also of Warren County. 
 
 rus B. Bristol, Jr., of the grocery house 
 of Bristol & Glendening, at Monmouth, 
 was born at Fairmount, W. Va., Feb. 13, 
 1840. His parents, the Rev. Cyrus Beecher 
 and Maria (Henderson) Bristol, were de- 
 scended respectively from old English and 
 Irish families, and were born, the first named in 
 New Haven, Conn., and the latler in Fayelte Co., 
 Pa. They reared four sons and four daughters, and 
 as if the figure four were destined to play some con- 
 spicuous part in his history, the subject of this sketch 
 was the fourth child in order of birth and was four 
 years old when his parents removed to Armstrong 
 Co., Pa. The Rev. Mr. Bristol had charge of two 
 churches in Armstrong County for about 12 years, 
 and in r856 came to Illinois. He resides now (Oct- 
 ober, 1885) at Schaller, Iowa, with his son, W. R. T. 
 Bristol. He is 87 years old; his wife 78. 
 
 At Elder's Ridge, Glade Run Academy and an 
 institution of learning in Pittsburgh, Pa., Cyrus B. 
 Bristol, Jr., acquired a pretty thorough English edu- 
 cation. After coming lo Illinois he learned the car- 
 penter's Irade, and worked al it for some years. Feb. 
 20, 1862, he enrolled in Mercer County, this Slate, 
 as a private in Co. B, 651)1 111. Vol. Inf., and re-en- 
 lisled at Knoxville, Tenn., March 30, 1864. Soon 
 after his first enlistmenl he was promoted Corporal. 
 He veteranized as Second Sergeant, was promoted to 
 
66 4 
 
 WARRED COUNTY. 
 
 Orderly Sergeant and mustered out as Sergeant 
 Major, July 13, 1865 ; was commissioned Second 
 Lieutenant, but did not muster. He saw service un- 
 der Burnside in East Tennessee; was in the 23d 
 army corps and took part in all the engagements of 
 that army from Dalton to Atlanta. He smelt gun- 
 powder and heard the bullets at Columbia, Ga. 
 Franklin, Tenn., and Nashville. After the battle 
 of Nashville, his regiment was transferred to the 
 Eastern Army and took a hand in the Wilmington 
 and Fort Fisher engagements. At Harper's Ferry, 
 Sept. 15, 1862, the enemy gobbled him up along with 
 the regiment, held them a day or two and paroled 
 them. He was with his command from beginning 
 to end and never missed duty but two days. 
 
 Returning from the war, he farmed two years in 
 Mercer County, and went to Pennsylvania, where, 
 on the i6th of May, 1867, at the town of Kent, In- 
 diana County, he was married to Miss S. J. McFar- 
 land, a native of that place and a daughter of Mr. 
 William McFarland. In 1868, he came to Mon- 
 mouth, where he has since resided. He worked for 
 the Weir Plow Company about nine years, and has 
 been in the grocery business since 1879. His first 
 partner in mercantile business was W. T. Wiley ; 
 second, W. P. Pressley ; third, A. S. Carson ; and 
 the present partnership was formed in June, 1885. 
 (See biography of D. D. Dunkle). 
 
 Mr. Bristol is a Mason, a member of the G. A. R. 
 and Master Workman in the A. O. U. W. Both he 
 and his wife are consistent members of the Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 ||,ol. James W. Davidson, an attorney and 
 counsellor at law, residing at Monmouth, 
 has practiced at the Warren County Bar 
 a greater number of years than any other man 
 now living. He was born in Barren County, 
 Ky., Sept. 16, 1813, and was the third of six 
 sons bred and reared to manhood by Hezekiah and 
 Eleanor (Wilson) Davidson, natives of the States of 
 North Carolina and Kentucky, and of Irish and 
 Scotch extraction respectively. 
 
 Hezekiah Davidson was a mechanic, and in his 
 day was the most extensive manufacturer of guns 
 and cotton gins in the country where he resided. He 
 came to Warren County in 1831, and spent the rest 
 of his life on his farm near Monmouth, dying in 
 1841, in the sixty-eighth year of his age. His widow 
 survived him up to the winter of 1857-8. 
 
 Col, James W. Davidson was in his youth inured 
 to the toils of farm life, and also learned the trade of 
 his father. He afterwards acquired a thorough acad- 
 emic education, teaching school two years in Logan 
 and two years in Simpson counties, Ky. He went to 
 Mississippi and remained there about one year. He 
 returned to the old Kentucky home to find that the 
 rest of the family had some time before emigrated to 
 the West. He had traveled from Brandon, Miss., to 
 Barren Co., Ky.,on horseback, and without delay he 
 pressed forward, and by the same conveyance reach- 
 ed Monmouth. Remaining there but a short time, 
 he returned to Kentucky, and at Bowling Green, in 
 the office of W. L. Underwood began reading law. "I 
 During the last two years spent under the instruction 
 of attorney Underwood he taught school in Simpson 1 
 County, going thence to Logan County, Ky., where ** 
 he taught about two years. At Russellville, Ky., he 
 finished his course of study with lawyer Benjamin E. 
 Gray, and was admitted to the Bar. He landed at 
 Monmouth, May 10, 1839, and at once hung out his 
 shingle as attorney-at-law. 
 
 Something of the confidence with which young 
 Davidson inspired the people in his abilities as a 
 lawyer, may be surmised from the fact that before the 
 convening of the first term of Court after his arrival 
 in Warren County, Nov. 1839, he was entrusted with 
 no less than 83 causes. When Court set, however, his 
 early ambition was doomed to disappointment. The 
 cold November day augmented the decline of his 
 young, though invalid wife, and her condition became 
 at once so precarious as to forbid' his absence from 
 her bedside, and the Court convened and adjourned 
 regularly for more than two years without his attend- 
 ance, Not that his young wife yet required his at- 
 tention, for before the roses bloomed and while yet 
 the new spring time was just warming into life the 
 little seeds that were to shoot forth the bright 
 flowers and green grasses, Mary E. (Wickware) Da- 
 vidson, to whom he was married in Kentucky, Aug. 
 26, 1838, yielded up her life, leaving to the care -of 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 665 
 
 her husband an only child, Thaddeus C. Davidson 
 now a business man at Kansas City, Mo. 
 
 Mr. Davidson has led the Democratic party of his 
 district in two heated campaigns for Congress, his last 
 nomination being by acclamation at Peoria, in the fall 
 of 1858. In the first, he ran 1,271 votes ahead of 
 Buchanan. Senator Douglas publicly complimented 
 him by saying, "his campaign was, under all circum- 
 stances, the grandest he had ever witnessed." In 
 June, 1857, James Buchanan appointed Mr. David- 
 son United States Marshal for the Northern District 
 of Illinois, but because the influence of the office 
 was not used against Mr. Douglas, Davidson was 
 soon afterward replaced. 
 
 At the request of the members of the Bar of his 
 Judicial District, Mr. Davidson ran for the Circuit 
 Judgeship in 18 , but his Democracy was too pro- 
 nounced to carry a majority in a district so ultra 
 radical, and previous to the election he withdrew from 
 the contest. In 1844, he was defeated by seven votes 
 f for the Illinois Legislature. For 46 years Mr. David- 
 I son has devoted his time to the practice of law, and 
 * during the last decade has been ranked as the Nestor 
 . of the Warren County Bar. Criminal causes have re- 
 ceived so much of his attention as to make it proper 
 I to say that that branch of his practice has been 
 his specialty. 
 
 April 4, 1843, Mr. Davidson was married to his sec- 
 ond wife, Mary E. Coleman, a native of Hopkins- 
 ville, Ky., who was born July 2, 1823. 
 
 The parents of Mrs. Davidson were James and 
 Lucy O. (Hawkins) Coleman. The father was of 
 German extraction and the mother of Scotch. The 
 family of Mr. Coleman consisted of ten children, 
 five brothers and five sisters. The only survivors are 
 Mrs. Davidson and one brother, William P. Coleman, 
 who is now a resident of Sacramento, California, 
 President of a Sacramento bank, and an influential 
 citizen ; and one sister, the wife of Dr. Huston, of 
 Blandinsville, McDonough Co., this State. One of 
 Mrs. D.'s brothers, Stephen O. Coleman, formerly of 
 St. Louis, Mo., was a soldier in the Mexican war, and 
 in the late war was Captain of the St. Louis Grays 
 and with his company served until near the close 
 of the war, and was killed at the battle of Wilson 
 Creek, near Springfield, Mo. 
 
 Of the nine children born to Mr. and Mrs. David- 
 son, we make the following brief memoranda 
 
 Rosalind O. and Cordelia A. died in infancy ; Jes- 
 sie P. is now the wife of Mr. H. A. Webster ; Lucy 
 Ellen, is the widow of Frank Huff; Harry died in in- 
 fancy; Stephen Lee is a business man in Kansas City ; 
 Julius M. resides at Monmouth ; Kate married a Mr. 
 Johnson ; and Pearlie was united in marriage to a 
 Mr. Montgomery. 
 
 illiam P. Pressly was born near Abbey- 
 ville, South Carolina, March 17, r8n. His 
 father, David Pressly, and his mother, whose 
 maiden name was Jane Patterson, came from 
 Ireland in their early youth. William was 
 the youngest of seven children. He attended for 
 some time Miami University, at Oxford, Ohio. 
 
 In 1832 he bought a farm in Preble Co., Ohio, and 
 engaged in farming with that energy and success that 
 has always marked his busy life. After about 20 
 years his health failed him, and he went into busi- 
 ness for a time in Hamilton, Ohio. In 1859 he came 
 to Monmouth. For one year he farmed west of the 
 city limits. Then he began mercantile life here and 
 from that time to the present he has been identified 
 with Monmouth as one of the most successful, un- 
 tiring, energetic and reliable of the business men of 
 the city. He dealt finally in dry-goods, and of late 
 years also in groceries. 
 
 No man, far or near, has sustained in all these 
 years a more unblemished credit than Mr. Pressly 
 and none have made a more benevolent use of money 
 carefully invested "where it would do the most good." 
 In the year 1863 he gave to Monmouth College 700 
 acres of choice farming land in Iowa: This would 
 have proved exceedingly valuable to the college if it 
 could have been held for a few years longer. He 
 has given, for the purpose of educating native Egyp- 
 tian ministers and teachers, $20,000 to missions in 
 that sorely troubled land. He was practical in this 
 as in all his benevolences, thinking .that a native 
 could best deal with natives. 
 
 In this county W. P. Pressly will ever be remem- 
 bered as the founder of the Warren County Library. 
 To establish a library for the county he bought an 
 ample lot and built a substantial and excellent brick 
 
666 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 building in 1870. He provided .that the building 
 should be kept up, and books constantly purchased 
 from the rents of two large store-rooms, also given 
 by him. As the library has grown in usefulness and 
 other needs have become manifest, he has increased 
 its power for good by increasing his gift. The $18,- 
 ooo which he has expended in this way has founded 
 one of the most successful popular libraries in the 
 West. In accordance with his own idea it is a peo- 
 ple's library, for the country as well as for the city. 
 Thus its benefits are intended for and enjoyed by a 
 population four times that of Monmouth. 
 
 The practical good sense of a careful business man 
 has given direction and insured success in his own 
 life time, and under his own eye, to that which his 
 money founded and his judgment sanctioned. 
 
 Mr. Pressly was married in 1833 to Mary Gilmore, 
 of PrebleCo., Ohio, who died in 1836. In 1838 he 
 was married to Mary Miller, of Virginia. She died 
 in 1885. Their four children, Virginia, Sarah, Mary 
 
 (Jane and Henry are all deceased. 
 
 Henry, a fine, bright, excellent young man, gave 
 his life in the service of his country, before Vicks- 
 burg. 
 
 Mr. William P. Pressly has always been prominent 
 as a devotedly religious man in Sabbath-school 
 work, in a devout knowledge and use of Scripture, 
 and in that broad Christian charity which lives for 
 others and recognizes " One Lord and One Faith" in 
 the Christian world. 
 
 W. Jones, the subject of this brief per- 
 sonal sketch, is one of the leading farm- 
 ers of Roseville Township, living on 
 section 12. His farm comprises 297 acres 
 and is finely improved and cultivated. He 
 makes a specialty of raising the cereals and is 
 also interested in stock-raising, being succesful in 
 his particular line of labor and a go-ahead, indus- 
 trious agriculturist. 
 
 Mr. Jones was born in Hardin Co., Ky., in 1836, 
 and his parents are Jesse P. and Magdalen (Gray) 
 Jones, both natives of Kentucky. All their lives 
 they followed the occupation in which Mr. Jones is 
 at present engaged. He remained at home until he 
 reached his majority, receiving a common-school ed- 
 ucation, and soon after leaving home he visited the 
 
 State of Illinois, remaining one summer. He then 
 returned to Kentucky, in which State he continued 
 two years, at his home. In 1860 he came to Warren 
 County and rented a farm in Roseville Township. 
 He then, in 1867, bought a farm in Fulton County, 
 which property he held two years, and which he sold 
 at the end of this time, and in 1871 bought his pres- 
 ent home. He has been active and energetic and 
 has allowed nothing to deter him from the discharge 
 of his duty, and, as the result of this, he is the owner 
 of one of the pleasantest homes in the county. 
 
 In the year 1872 Mr. Jones was united in the holy 
 bonds of matrimony with Mary J. Hiett. To their 
 family circle have been added four children Em- 
 eranza, Mary E , William J. and Edith M. Both 
 himself and wife are members of the Baptist Church 
 and he is a member of the Masonic Order. He has 
 been School Director for some length of time and is 
 a rigid Democrat in belief and sentiment, with which 
 party he also votes. He is one of the representa- 
 tive citizens of Warren County and a desirable friend 
 and neighbor. 
 
 f'ohn Flake is one of the settlers of 1856, 
 and a leading farmer by occupation, resid- , 
 ing on section 3, Kelly Township. His 
 farm includes 102 acres, all improved and cul- 
 tivated, and upon it stands a good and com- 
 modious farm residence. He also devotes 
 some attention to stock-raising and has proved him- 
 self successful in business. 
 
 Mr. Flake was born in Dearborn Co., Ind., Sept. 
 ir, 1830. His father, Amos Flake, was a native of 
 Indiana and of German descent. John grew up from 
 childhood in the county of his birth, living at home 
 on the farm and receiving his education in the com- 
 mon schools. He continued with his parents until 
 his marriage, Oct. 28, 1852, with Miss Amelia Welhoff, 
 who was born in Butler Co., Pa., Nov. 23, 1833, a "d 
 was the daughter of Jacob and Wilhelmina (Steele) 
 Welhoff. 
 
 Michael Flake, grandfather of our subject, was of 
 German descent and was one of the first settlers in 
 Dearborn Co., Ind. He "took up " a tract of tim- 
 ber land, upon which he fixed the boundaries and 
 commenced its cultivation and improvement. From 
 here he went to Hawesville, Ky., where he became 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 667 
 
 a slave-holder. The father of the subject came to 
 Mercer County in 1856 and settled in North Hen- 
 derson Township, where he bought a farm, and 
 where he lived until his death, in 1862. 
 
 The father and mother of Mrs. Flake were born 
 in Pennsylvania and Germany, respectively. The 
 young people took up their abode at the Flake home- 
 stead, where they lived until 1856. From there they 
 came to Warren County, locating in Kelly Township, 
 where the husband purchased land on section 9, and 
 where they lived for two years. At the expiration of 
 this time he was confronted with the old title, where- 
 upon he leased the place for five years and bought 
 the place which is now his present home. 
 
 In 1868 a tornado swept over the country and de- 
 stroyed his house, barn and fences. This was a 
 great loss to him, but he rallied from the shock and 
 soon after rebuilt, this time a neat frame house. 
 
 The family circle of Mr. and Mrs. Flake has been 
 made complete by the addition of six children as fol- 
 lows : Augustus, Laura, Emily, Amos, Hattie and 
 Albert. The father and mother and three of the 
 children of this happy household are members in 
 regular standing in the Methodist Church. Mr. Flake 
 MS a Republican in political sentiment and a useful 
 man in the community. In 1863 he added to his 
 property a sorghum mill, which he has run ever 
 since. 
 
 -* 
 
 W. Conlee, station agent of the Chicago, 
 Burlington & Quincy Railroad, at Rose- 
 ville, is one of the leading representative 
 citizens of this village. He is President of the 
 Village Board and of the Board of Education, 
 and is one of the most enterprising and wor- 
 thy men claimed by the town. He was born in 
 Morgan Co., 111., in 1847. His parents were Josiah 
 and Mary A. (Brown) Conlee, natives of Madison 
 Co., 111., and Tennessee, respectively. They were 
 by occupation farmers and the father entered the 
 better life in July, 1882. His relict, {he mother, still 
 survives him, living in the home of J. W. 
 
 The subject of this notice lived under the parental 
 roof until he reached the age of 22 years, receiving a 
 common-school education, and, while at home, 
 showing an interest in the affairs of the farm, work- 
 ing with his father. He afterward learned telegraphy 
 and was employed by the Chicago & Alton Railroad 
 in the years 1869-70. He went from here into the 
 employ of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Rail- 
 road, where for 12 years he has held the position of 
 station and express agent. 
 
 He deserted the ranks of single blessedness on be- 
 half of Miss Minnie, daughter of John Powell, of 
 Roseville. The event securing his happiness took 
 
 place in 1880. One bud has blossomed on the pa- 
 rental stalk, a soli, Grover C., and the little home 
 circle is a pleasant and attractive one. 
 
 Mr. Conlee is a man of keen foresight and logical 
 common-sense. He feels an interest in public af- 
 fairs and is Democratic in political sentiment. He 
 is Master Mason in the lodge of that order, an Odd 
 Fellow of the encampment at Bushnell, as well as 
 one of the Select Knights, A O. U. W. He owns a 
 pleasant residence, on the corner of Gossett and 
 Chamberlain Streets, and is desirably situated and 
 filling a wide sphere of usefulness. By religious pro- 
 fession he is a Baptist and an active worker in all 
 philanthropic and worthy enterprises, and may truth- 
 fully be called " good," in its worthiest sense. 
 
 jasper Galloway is a resident of Little 
 York and a native of Ohio, being born in 
 Green County, Feb, 29, 1844. He is the 
 son of Anthony and Catherine (Junkin) Gal- 
 loway. His father also was born in Ohio, 
 and his mother came from the State of Penn- 
 sylvania. When Casper was nine years of age, his 
 parents came to Illinois and located in Warren 
 County, where they lived for two years, and remov- 
 ing from this place went to Henderson County, 
 where his father bought a farm, in Green Bush 
 Township, close to the Biggsville line. He, how- 
 ever, enjoyed his new home but a short time, being 
 snatched away by death in the prime of manhood, 
 in the year 1856. Following his death, his wife 
 bought a farm over the line in Biggsville Township, 
 which property she still occupies as a home 
 
 Mr. Galloway of this narrative grew up in the 
 home of his mother, remaining with the bereaved 
 widow until 1864, and proving a valuable assistant 
 and confidant. At this date he entered Monmouth 
 College, from which institution he graduated with 
 the degree of A. M. in 1870. Soon after graduation 
 he went to Washington, D C., where he received 
 an appointment as clerk in the Census Bureau, 
 in which position he labored for one year and 
 from which he came back to Warren County, en- 
 gaging as a teacher, in which profession he continued 
 until 1878, when he formed a business association 
 with G. B. Harvey as partner. This was located at 
 Alexis, and he engaged in mercantile pursuits until 
 1882, at which time he sold out and for about a 
 year was idle. He next took a trip to the West for 
 the purpose of seeing the country, with which he 
 was pleased, so much so that in 1883, he came to 
 Little York, and bought a building then in process 
 of construction. On the completion of the same he 
 formed a business connection with Charles Rogers 
 as associate partner, and the two opened a general 
 

 668 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 store. This firm continued with a large and gratify- 
 ing trade until May, 1884, at which date Mr. Gallo- 
 way sold out to his partner. 
 
 In the year 1873, April 24, he espoused Miss Re- 
 becca A. Wakefield, who was born in MifHand Co., 
 Pa., Dec. 3, 1844. and to them have been given five 
 children, as follows: Horace C., Mary C., Edith, 
 Jennie and Chester A. Mr. and Mrs. Galloway are 
 devoted members of the Presbyterian Church, which 
 religious denomination they strongly support. He 
 is a member of Lodge No. 702, Alexis, A. F. &. A. 
 M., and of Little York Lodge, No. 153, I. O. O. F., 
 and is in politics a Republican. 
 
 D. Patch. Standing prominent among the 
 leading merchants of Roseville, and identi- 
 fied as proprietor of the Commercial House, 
 is the gentleman of whom this brief personal 
 sketch is written. The hotel which he con- 
 ducts has been in active working order since 
 
 1873, at which time it was erected. 
 
 Mr. Patch was born in Eaton, Carroll Co., N. H., 
 and his parents, originally from Maine, were Dennis 
 and Susan (Drew) Patch. While yet young, Dennis 
 learned the carpenter trade, at which he worked for 
 a number of years, then, in 1857, with his wife and 
 little family, removed to the State of Illinois. Here 
 he settled in Ellison Township, purchasing 80 acres 
 of land, to which he afterwards added 40 acres. 
 Making one or two changes into 'different parts of 
 the township, he eventually settled down and there 
 remained until his death. Their family was un- 
 usually large, consisting of 14 children, of whom 12 
 grew to manhood and womanhood, nine still sur- 
 viving. 
 
 Mr. Patch came to Illinois in 1856, and stopping 
 in Ellison Township, began a teacher's life in the 
 schools of Warren County. At this profession he 
 continued, teaching a large share of the time until 
 
 1868, when he bought a farm and engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits. To this, with native thrift, he 
 added work at his trade as a carpenter, until, in 
 
 1869, he went to Kewanee, Henry County, and there 
 engaged in mercantile pursuits. Following this for 
 three years, he closed his labors in this direction, 
 and, coming to Roseville, bought a lot and erected 
 the present Commercial Hotel. In 1878, he en- 
 gaged as clerk in the Grange store and in this busi- 
 ness he continued until 1882, when he purchased 
 the entire stock from the company and has since 
 been sole proprietor. To the original goods he has 
 added agricultural implements, reapers, mowers, 
 plows, wagons, etc. He purchased on the corner of 
 Main and Walnut Streets, the Grange stqre and four 
 
 lots. His stock includes dry goods, boots and shoes, 
 hats and caps, and also groceries. In 1865, Sept. 
 21, he entered into conjugal relations with Miss 
 Sarah E. Morford, native of Mercer Co., Pa., and 
 daughter of Benjamin Morford of Roseville, now de- 
 ceased. 
 
 The family of Mr. Patch consists of four children 
 Grace D., Flora M., Fred. G. and Gertrude, one 
 child having been lost by death, a son, named Ralph. 
 Grace and Flora are in attendance at the Hillsdale 
 College, of Michigan. This is their second scholas- 
 tic year, they expecting to graduate in three years 
 from the date of their entrance to the institution. 
 Mr. Patch is an active worker in public affairs. He 
 is a Greenbacker in political sentiment, and belongs 
 to the A. O. U. W. Lodge, and is well known as a 
 citizen who has at heart the best interests of his 
 home town. 
 
 avid Graham, a citizen of Monmouth, was 
 born in Todd Co., Ky., April 12, 1821. , 
 His parents, Matthew and Janette Gra- 
 ham, were of Scotch descent and moved from 
 South Carolina, their native State, to Kentucky,^ 
 about the year 1804, where there were born to* 
 them ten children, eight sons and two daughters. 
 The eldest, Martha Graham McDill, was born in 
 1805 and died in 1841 ; Andrew, born in 1807, died ' 
 in 1848; John W., born in 1809; Robert C., born in 
 1811, died in 1878; William M., born in 1814, died 
 in 1863; Margaret Graham Porter, born in 1816, 
 died in 1861 ; Wilson M., born in 1818, died in 
 1871 ; James H., born in 1823; A. Y.,born in 1826, 
 died in 1876. 
 
 In 1828, the entire family moved from Kentucky 
 to Preble Co., Ohio. The father died in 1857 and 
 the mother in 1843. 
 
 David Graham came with his father to Henderson 
 County in 1836, where he was brought up to the 
 vocation of farming, which he has pursued all his 
 life. He removed to Monmouth in 1867, where he 
 has resided ever since. Coming from the old Whig 
 party into the Republican ranks, the latter has been 
 the recipient of his unqualified support ever since, 
 though at no time has he been known as a politician. 
 He was married Nov. 3, 1846, in Warren County, to 
 Miss Elizabeth Brown, daughter of the late Hon. 
 John Brown, of this county. She was born July 8, 
 1826. They have had born to them six children 
 Elizabeth (Mrs. G. H. Cowden), Clara (Mrs. A. G. 
 McCoy), James A., Mary L. (Mrs. W. B. Bryson), 
 Fannie, M., and Ralph W., who died in 1861. The 
 family are communicants of the United Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 I- 
 

J 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 665 
 
 INTRODUCTORY 
 
 f c 
 / 
 
 4$> 
 
 f 
 
 IME is ever moving on. The 
 deeds and actions of to-day 
 form the subject of history 
 to-morrow. From the rec- 
 ord of these deeds men form 
 opinions, and their actions 
 in the present and future are gov- 
 erned thereby. Warren County fur- 
 nishes the world a record that is 
 of great interest, a record that tells 
 of heroic deeds of its pioneers, 
 how that vast territory was se- 
 cured from savage tribes and 
 made the home of civilized man. 
 In Rock Island County originated 
 the troubles, and from this county 
 nearly every movement was made, 
 in the Black Hawk War, and here the chiefs gath- 
 ered together in council, and treaties were made re- 
 sulting in lasting peace. Upon the lovely island 
 and magnificent bluffs that overlook the river, the 
 red men were wont to stray, and many beautiful and 
 touching legends are told of their presence here. 
 The white men came, and that country so lovely in 
 nature has been greatly changed, but it can never be 
 robbed of its great beauty. The island and the 
 bluffs still exist, and the valleys are transformed into 
 fields of waving grain. The trails of the hunters and 
 the wily red man have given place to railroads and 
 broad thoroughfares, school-houses, churches, mills, 
 postoffices, manufactories and elegant dwelling-hous- 
 es are now to be seen upon every hand. The rec- 
 
 ord of the marvelous change is history, and the most 
 important that can be written. 
 
 It is but little more than half a century since the 
 white men came to this beautiful land for the pur- 
 pose of securing homes, but in that time what great 
 and startling events have transpired! Monarchies 
 since then have crumbled into dust and republics 
 have been reared upon their ruins. Inventions that 
 have revolutionized labor have been given to the 
 world, and in much of what has been done the peo- 
 ple of Warren County have borne a leading part. 
 
 The question is often asked, why men leave the 
 comforts and pleasures of civilized lands and strike 
 out into a new and almost unknown country, bearing 
 the toils and privations which are unavoidable. Not 
 more from choice than necessity did the old pioneers 
 bid farewell to the play-grounds of their childhood 
 and the graves of their fathers. One generation 
 after another had worn themselves out in the service 
 of avaricious landlords, or to eke out a miserable 
 existence upon barren or worn-out land, which they 
 called their own. From the first flashes of the morn- 
 ing light until the last glimmer of the setting sun they 
 had toiled unceasingly on from father to son, carry- 
 ing home each day upon their aching shoulders the 
 precious proceeds of their daily labor. Money, 
 pride and power were handed down in the line of 
 succession from the rich father to his son, while un- 
 ceasing work, continuous poverty and everlasting 
 obscurity were the heritage of the working man and 
 his children. For the sons and daughters of the 
 
666 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 poor man to remain there was to follow and never to 
 lead to be poor forever. 
 
 Without money, prestige or friends, the old pioneers 
 drifted along seeking the garden spot, the place 
 where he might establish a home, where he might ed- 
 ucate his sons and daughters, giving them privileges 
 he never enjoyed himself. The broad prairie and 
 beautiful groves of Warren County in that early 
 day were indeed inviting to those seeking a home in 
 a more favored land, and here planted their stakes, 
 many of whom the present generation have rea- 
 son to rise up and call blessed. To secure and 
 adorn the homes desired by the pioneers, more than 
 ordinary ambition was required, greater than ordina- 
 nary endurance demanded. How well they have 
 succeeded, let the broad, cultivated fields and fruit- 
 bearing orchards, the flocks and the herds, the pa- 
 latial residences, the places of business, the spacious 
 halls, the clattering car-wheels and ponderous en- 
 gines all testify. 
 
 There was a time when pioneers waded through 
 deep snows, across bridgeless rivers and through bot- 
 tomless sloughs, more than a score of miles to mill 
 .or market, and when more time was required to reach 
 and return from market than is now required to cross 
 the continent or Atlantic Ocean. These were the 
 times when their palaces were constructed of logs 
 and covered with " shakes " riven from forest trees. 
 These were the times when children were stowed 
 away during the nights in the low, dark attics, 
 amongst the horns of the elk and the deer, and 
 where through the chinks in the " shakes " they could 
 count the twyikling stars. These were the times 
 when chairs and bedsteads were hewn from the for- 
 est trees, and tables and bureaus constructed from 
 the boxes in which goods were brought. These were 
 the days when all were required to work six days in 
 the week and all the hours in a day from sunrise to 
 sunset. Now all is changed. In viewing the bless- 
 ings which now surround us, we should reverence 
 those that made them possible, and ever fondly cher- 
 ish in memory the sturdy old pioneer and his log 
 cabin. 
 Generation after generation comes and goes like the 
 
 leaves of autumn. Nations have been born, have 
 had their rise and fall, and then passed away, leav- 
 ing scarcely a riffle on the great ocean of time to 
 show that they ever existed, so imperfect and muta- 
 ble has been the means to perpetuate their achieve- 
 ments. It was left to modern ages to establish an 
 intelligent, undecaying, immutable method of per- 
 petuating this history ; immutable in that it is almost 
 unlimited in extent, and perpetual in its action ; and 
 this is through the art of printing. Nations may be- 
 come disintegrated and pass away, monuments and 
 statues may crumble into dust, but books will live. 
 This art has been rapidly advancing from its first in- 
 ception until now it would seem that there were no 
 longer any further grounds for improvement. This is 
 pre-eminently an age of printing, an age of books. 
 
 To the present generation, however, are we indebt- 
 ed for the introduction of the admirable system of 
 local history and local biography By this system 
 every man, though he has not achieved what the 
 world calls greatness, lias the means to perpetuate 
 his life, his history through the coming ages ; so alike 
 has every community. 
 
 We come now to the work before us : To our pat- 7" 
 rons, we say, that the scythe of Time cuts down all ; 
 nothing of the physical man is left; the monument 
 which his children or friends may erect to his mem- 
 ory in the cemetery will crumble into dust and pass 
 away ; but his life, his achievements, the work he has 
 accomplished, which otherwise would be forgotten, is 
 perpetuated by this book through coming ages. 
 Shakespeare has said : 
 
 The evil that men do lives after them ; 
 The good is oft Intel-red with their bones. 
 
 Our aim in this work has been only to preserve the 
 good. We have sought to gather from the best 
 sources of information obtainable, the conditions and 
 incidents of early pioneer life, and to present them 
 together with the present development of the county. 
 Many of the pioneers came into this beautiful coun- 
 ty without a dollar in their pockets, but with the 
 unflinching determination to carve out their fortunes 
 and build up a community. With undaunted hearts 
 and a courage equal to that of the great heroes of 
 our country, they began life. 
 

 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 667 
 
 way of preface to the history 
 of Warren County, a brief 
 account of the settlement 
 and organization of the State 
 of Illinois is essential to the 
 proper understanding of the 
 condition of the country in 
 this part of the State prior to 
 its settlement. The terri- 
 tory now embraced by this State at one 
 time belonged to the Aborigines. The 
 time of their settlement here has never 
 been definitely fixed by history. They 
 have never, however, been treated by 
 historians in other than a nomadic sense ; 
 never having been recognized as citizens, 
 o r even occupants of this continent. 
 Therefore, we will make our bow to the 
 illustrious precedence that has been es- 
 tablished by historians, and pass on. We will say, 
 then, that this territory was originally a part of Flor- 
 ida and belonged to the Spanish Government ; that 
 the Spanish chevalier, Fernando de Soto, with his 
 band of followers, was the first to discover this beau- 
 tiful land. This was as early as 1541. The Span- 
 ish, however, never took possession of it and it was 
 first occupied by the French, who, after having planted 
 settlements along the St. Lawrence and in Canada, 
 fitted out one of their Jesuit missionaries and sent 
 him westward up the St. Lawrence. From thence he 
 was to take the Mississippi and follow its course. 
 This explorer was the famous Father Marquette. He 
 
 reached the great " Father of Waters " in the spring 
 of 167^, hoisted the sails on his little bark canoes, 
 and, with his companions and two Indian guides, 
 with joy unspeakable, floated down the majestic river ' 
 between the broad plains of Illinois and Iowa. While 
 descending the Mississippi, he discovered an Indian 
 trail and immediately moored his boats and took the 
 trail. After walking about six miles, they came to an 
 Indian village, when the inhabitants advanced to 
 meet them, and through their calumets, the pipe of ' 
 peace was smoked. In saluting Father Marquette, 
 they addressed him in a language familiar to him. 
 " We are Illinois, " they said. " How beautiful is the 
 son, O Frenchman, when thou comest to see us 
 Our village awaits thee, thou shalt enter in peace all 
 dwellings." He remained with these hospitable 
 people a few days and then descended the Missis- 
 sippi River until he was satisfied that it entered into 
 the Gulf of Mexico, when he returned and reaching 
 the 39th degree of north latitude, entered the Illinois 
 River and followed it to its source. He was cor- 
 dially invited by the Illinois Indians to occupy its 
 banks and remain with them. Desiring;, however, to 
 continue his travels, he declined their generous offer 
 and was conducted by one of the chiefs, accompan- 
 ied by several of his warriors, to a point near Chicago, 
 if not that point, where he remained to preach the 
 gospel to the Miamis, sending his companions back 
 to Quebec to announce his discoveries. This may 
 be said to be the inception of the settlement of Illi- 
 nois by the Caucasian race. 
 
 Father Marquette's discoveries and his fame 
 
668 
 
 WAR REN COUNTY. 
 
 thrilled the hearts of many adventurers in France, 
 and among these was Robert Cavalier de la Salle. 
 La Salle came to this country, remained awhile, and 
 then returned to France. He sought an interview 
 at once with Loais XIV, whom he inspired with 
 his own enthusiasm and from whom he received a 
 commission to explore the valley of the Mississippi. 
 He returned with a number of mechanics, military 
 stores, merchandise, etc., in the year 1678. After 
 leaving the St. Lawrence and Niagara Rivers and 
 crossing Lake Erie, he reached Green Bay, and next 
 entered St. Joseph River. At these places he es- 
 tablished trading posts. He then descended the Il- 
 linois River as far as Lake Peoria, where he was met 
 by a large party of Illinois Indians, who offered him 
 the calumet and with whom he formed an alliance. 
 He was received with great joy and when they 
 learned that he was to establish a colony among 
 them, their happiness knew no bounds. Thus began 
 the first white settlement in this fair Territory. 
 
 A long war arose between England and France 
 over the possession of this country. Peace was con- 
 cluded between these two countries, Feb. 10, 1763, 
 by virtue of which France ceded to England the 
 Canadas, Nova Scotia, Louisiana (east of the Miss- 
 issippi) and her possessions on the Mississippi and 
 Ohio, which included the Territory of Illinois. At 
 this time the white population numbered about 3,000 
 souls. These resided along the Mississippi and Illi- 
 nois Rivers, the largest towns being Kaskaskia and 
 Cahokia. 
 
 Although Illinois was ceded in 1863, it was not 
 taken possession of by England until 1765, when 
 Capt. Sterling, sent by Gen. Gage, then Comtnan- 
 der-in-Chief of the British forces in America, as- 
 sumed control in the name of Great Britain. Illi- 
 nois remained in the possession of the British until 
 1778, when Col. Rogers Clarke was secretly fitted 
 out by the Commonwealth of Virginia with seven 
 companies, money, arms, ammunition and military 
 stores, and clothed with all the authority he could 
 wish. After a brief resistance, he took possession in 
 the name of Virginia. Reporting his signal triumph 
 to the Governor of that Slate, the Legislature passed 
 an act in October, 1778, establishing " As the County 
 of Illinois, all that part of Virginia west of the Ohio " 
 (which surpassed in dimensions the whole of Great 
 Britain), and appointed Col. John Todd Civil Com- 
 mander and Lieutenant Colonel of that county. After 
 
 establishing garrisons at Kaskaskia, Cahokia and at 
 the falls of the Ohio (on the site of Louisville), Col. 
 Clarke exerted his great influence to bring about a 
 good feeling between the Indians and the Americans. 
 After the close of the Revolutionary War and the 
 surrender of Cornwallis with his whole army, Oct. 
 19, 1781, to the Americans, a treaty of peace was 
 signed between England and the United Colonies, 
 by virtue of which the independence of the latter 
 was recognized and all the land East of the Missis- 
 sippi and south of the lakes Ontario, Erie, Huron, 
 Superior and the Lake of the Woods, which included 
 Illinois, was ceded to the Americans. All this terri- 
 tory, by virtue of the conquest through that renowned 
 soldier, Col. Rogers Clarke, was claimed by Virginia ; 
 in part, it was also claimed by New York, Massa- 
 chusetts and Connecticut, but having in view the all- 
 paramount object, a Union among the States of the 
 Confederacy and the establishment of a permanent 
 Government, the people of these States, through 
 their patriotic influence, ceded all their rights to this 
 territory, which was called the Northwestern Terri- 
 tory, to the Federal Government. Subsequently 
 Congress, in the summer of 1787, passed a general 
 law for the government of the Territories of the 
 United States. This law provided for a Governor, a 
 Secretary, a Court of three Judges, Representatives, . 
 and a legislative Council, which was to be appointed 
 by Congress. The legislature was authorized to elect 
 by joint ballot a delegate to Congress. Gen. Arthur 
 St. Claire, a distinguished officer of the Revolution- 
 ary Army, was appointed to the Governorship (which 
 was the first to be appointed to the Northwestern 
 Territory), and Commander-in-chief of the Territory. 
 The new Government, however, was not destined to 
 remain in peace, for the Indians again commenced 
 hostilities, incited by English gold and also by the 
 hope of recovering their favorite hunting grounds. 
 St. Clair being feeble in health and unable to prop- 
 erly command his troops, was disastrously defeated 
 by the Indians. To remove the disgrace of this de- 
 feat and retrieve the credit of the American arms, 
 the gallant Gen. Wayne was sent out, who com- 
 pletely routed the Indians and once more restored 
 peace. 
 
 In 1803 a new Territory was formed, called the 
 Territory of Indiana, which embraced the whole of 
 the Northwestern Territory, with the exception of 
 that part from which Ohio was formed, and William 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 669 
 
 H. Harrison was appointed Governor. This Gov- 
 ernment remained until 1809, when another change 
 was made and Illinois was erected into an independ- 
 ent Territory, with Ninian Edwards as Governor. 
 Peace had been made and the whole people com- 
 menced again their agricultural pursuits on ground 
 which had been occupied by the red men. This con- 
 dition remained until the second conflict with Eng- 
 land, known as the War of 1812. A bold, daring 
 chief, Tecumseh by name, taking advantage of this 
 war between the two countries, incited his people 
 again to battle and joined the British forces, who 
 again occupied a part of this Territory. This war was 
 carried on chiefly in the Northwestern Territory, and 
 Gen. Harrison was one of the chief actors. The con- 
 flict was hot and decisive, and the Americans were 
 again victorious. The defeat of the British by Com- 
 modore Perry, on Lake Erie, and on land at the bat- 
 tle of the Thames by Gen. Harrison and the gallant 
 Colonel Johnson (in which battle Black Hawk took 
 part), the killing of Tecumseh and the rout and 
 slaughter of his warriors, terminated this conflict in 
 the Norhwestern Territory, which was once more 
 united to the Republic, never again to be separated. 
 
 In 1812, under the ordinance of 1787, a delegate 
 was sent to Congress and a Territorial Government 
 established. In this manner the Territory existed, 
 with Ninian Edwards as Governor, until 1818. The 
 population at the close of the War of 1812 did not 
 exceed 12,000 souls. In 1818 the inhabitants num- 
 bered 50,000. At the beginning of this year the peo- 
 ple of the Territory unanimously resolved to enter 
 the Union as a State, and instructed their delegate, 
 Nathaniel Pope, who was then in Congress, to bring 
 the subject before that body and take such means as 
 was necessary to accomplish this result. 
 
 The bill for the admission of Illinois into the 
 Union as a State, was passed in April, 1818. An 
 election was held under the provisions of this Act, 
 for State officers, and Shadrack Bond was chosen 
 Governor, and entered upon the discharge of his du- 
 ties in October, of the same year, with the seat of 
 government at Kaskaskia. Subsequently, Ninian 
 Edwards and Jesse B. Thomas were chosen Senators. 
 In 1822 Edward Coles, an anti-slavery man, was 
 elected to succeed Gov. Bond. In 1826 Gov. Coles' 
 term expired, and Ninian Edwards was elected to 
 succeed him. This brings the history of the State, 
 the principal points of which have only been touched, 
 
 down to the period when the settlement of Warren 
 County begins, and at this point the former is left 
 that the history of the latter may be taken up. 
 
 Organization of Warren County. 
 
 f 
 
 HE Legislature of the State of Illinois, at 
 its session during the winter of 1822-23, ' a *d 
 out into counties what is known as the Mili- 
 tary Tract, together with other unorganized ter- 
 ritory. This land was situated between the Il- 
 linois and the Mississippi Rivers, extending as 
 far north as the north line of Warren County. At 
 this session Pike County was formed from this terri- 
 tory, with a county seat at Atlas. Subsequently the 
 counties of Adams, Fulton, Peoria and Schuyler were 
 organized with McDonough attached to the latter for 
 judicial purposes. 
 
 During the Legislative session of 1824 and 1825,' 
 Warren County was formed, which comprised all 
 that part of the Military Tract west of the 4th 
 P. M., extending to the Mississippi River, and 
 including the territory now occupied by Hender- 
 son County. At this time it was attached to Pike 
 County for judicial purposes. Subsequently it was" 1 
 attached to Peoria County. The county was named 
 after Gen. Joseph Warren, of Revolutionary fame. 
 
 The first settlement in the territory now embraced 
 by this county, was made in 1827, by Mrs. Talbot, 
 her son, John B., and her nephew, Allen G. An- 
 drews. For more particular information regarding 
 its early settlement, the reader is referred to the his- 
 tory of the several townships. 
 
 The first furrow turned in Warren County soil was 
 in 1828. The foundation for six settlements was 
 made during this and the following year, and the zeal 
 of the settlers was only equaled by their industry, 
 and one pioneer was soon followed by another. By 
 the summer of 1830 it was estimated that there were 
 between 300 and 400 inhabitants in the county, who 
 had established the reputation of being prosperous. 
 Of so much importance had it become that Peoria 
 County deemed it expedient to send up an officer 
 with the view of levying. a tax for her benefit, she 
 having previously established a judicial district 
 here. The inhabitants of Warren, as long as they 
 
670 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 were not taxed and had a justice before whom they 
 could transact their little legal business, and consum- 
 mate their matrimonial alliances, did not care to what 
 county they were attached or belonged. Marriage 
 licenses were dispensed with in those days, and all 
 that was required was the posting up of a notice for 
 ten days, announcing the coming event. 
 
 There was no road then from this county to Peoria, 
 a distance of some 50 miles, and in going to and 
 from, the Kickapoo and Spoon rivers had to be ford- 
 ed, which was rather dangerous in high water time. 
 So when a movement was made to put a tax on the 
 people of Warren County for the small benefits they 
 had received, they rebelled against it as much as the 
 Boston Tea Party did against the tax of Great Brit- 
 ain. 
 
 In the Spring of 1830, therefore, having a desire to 
 manage their own municipal affairs, and to have 
 whatever taxes they might be called on to pay go in- 
 to their own exchequer; and believing, also, that they 
 had the requisite population for a full county organ- 
 ization, they petitioned the Hon. Richard M. Young, 
 Judge of the Fifth Judicial Circuit, for an order to 
 
 : hold an election for the purpose of forming a com- 
 plete county government. About this period the 
 census had been taken by a commissioner sent on 
 
 by the county court of Peoria County, who reported 
 about 300 inhabitants, which was not sufficient for a 
 county organization ; nor was this report satisfactory 
 to the people of Warren County, who claimed about 
 400. Subsequently the U. S. Marshal passed through 
 the county and reported 350. 
 
 Daniel McNeil was selected to go with the petition 
 and present it to Judge Young, who was then at Pe- 
 oria. The Judge saw the justice of the petition, and 
 at once granted the prayer of the citizens of Warren, 
 and appointed Saturday, the third day of July, A.D. 
 1830, for the election of three County Commission- 
 ers, one Sheriff and one Coroner. The election was 
 to be held at the house of Adam Ritchey, for the 
 purpose of having this order carried into execution. 
 He appointed John B. Talbot, Adam Ritchey, Jr., 
 and Robert K. Hendricks, Judges of the said elec- 
 tion. The election was to be held viva voce, between 
 the hours of 9 o'clock in the forenoon, and 7 o'clock 
 in the afternoon. 
 
 The third day of July, 1830, was waited for with 
 a good deal of anxiety by the voters of Warren. It 
 
 came as all things do, in good time. It wa beau- 
 tiful day. A lovely breeze was wafted over the prai- 
 ries; a few clouds flitted above in the blue summer 
 sky, the air was balmy and enlivened by the sweet 
 songs of wild birds. After their morning's work was 
 done, the voters wended their way from their several 
 homes to the place of election to cast their first vote 
 in their new settlement, to exercise the great gift of 
 the freeman. What a precious boon is this ! The 
 right of self-government; the exercise of suffrage, 
 holding within ourselves the power to regulate and 
 control our political affairs. And yet, how little is it 
 appreciated by some, and to what extent are its 
 grand and sacred rights abused! There was no pol- 
 itics in this election, and the voters cast their tick- 
 ets for the men they deemed most worthy. The elec- 
 tion passed off harmoniously, and the hope was 
 expressed that in all future elections there would be 
 the same good feeling manifested, and the same in- 
 tegrity of the ballot-box preserved. 
 
 The election resulted in the choice of John Pence, 
 John B. Talbot and Andrew Ritchey, Jr., for County 
 Commissioners; John Rust, Sheriff; and John Ritch- 
 ey, Coroner. 
 
 The persons named in Judge Young's order for 
 Judges of Election, declined to serve, and the peo- 
 ple appointed Robert K. Hendricks, Sheldon Lock- 
 wood and Peter Butler in their places. For Clerks of 
 Election, they appointed Stephen S. Phelps and 
 Daniel McNeil. There were 37 votes polled at this 
 election, three voters being absent. 
 
 The county was organized, the Commissioners as- 
 sumed their duties, and for many years the political 
 government of the county was very nicely conducted 
 in this way. For a brief season it was under the 
 management of the County Court, but for over thirty 
 years the public affairs of the county have been in 
 the hands of the Board of Supervisors. After the 
 organization of the county, the settlers felt themselves 
 of greater importance, and worked for the progress 
 of their new homes with renewed zeal. It was many 
 years, however, before the beautiful and fertile prai- 
 ries were settled. In fact this was not done to any 
 considerable extent until the advent of the "iron 
 horse." The introduction of railroads stimulated 
 emigration, and increased the activity in manufac- 
 tures and agricultural pursuits. While the county 
 through its generous aids to railroad enterprises has 
 
 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 671 
 
 encumbered itself with a large debt, yet it has been 
 benefitted by the rise of property and the general 
 development and increase of all branches of indus- 
 try. 
 
 From the advent of the Talbots, its first settlers, 
 in 1827, it has moved steadily on, with few draw- 
 backs, until it now has an estimated population of 
 23,000, with an assessment value, as shown by the 
 reports of 1885, of $4,928,755 on the improved lands; 
 $68,655 on unimproved lands ; town lots, $794,872 ; 
 personal property, $1,583,087. Strictly speaking, 
 there is no unimproved land in the county. For a gen- 
 eral average of valuation of lands, the county ranks 
 among the first in the State, and by no means would 
 it appear insignificant if compared with the counties 
 of any of the Eastern States, and if the editor who 
 wrote the following stanza, in r847, could pass over 
 this country now, and through its broad, cultivated 
 fields and elegant homes, he would undoubtedly be 
 ashamed of his verse : 
 
 'Great western waste of bottom land. 
 Flat as a pancake, rich as grease. 
 
 Where gnats are full as big as toads, 
 And skeeters are as big as geese. 
 
 O, lonesome, windy, grassy place, 
 
 Where buffalo and snakes prevail; 
 The first with dreadful looking face, 
 
 The last with dreadful sounding tail. 
 I'd rather live ou camel rump, 
 
 And be a Yankee double beggar, 
 Than where they never see a stump, 
 
 And shake to dea.th with fever'n 'ager." 
 
 The old log cabins have disappeared and in their 
 places are fine dwellings ; ox teams as a means of 
 travel and transportation are gone, and the steam 
 car now rushes over the prairie; the mortar and 
 corn-cracker live only in the memory of the pioneer, 
 while the products of the roller mill are placed in his 
 store room ; the dread of the savage no longer dis- 
 turbs his slumbers, nor does the wolf come in the 
 darkness of the night to destroy his flocks. With 
 complacency he can take a retrospective view of the 
 past and contemplate the transformations made dur- 
 ing half a century. Yes, half a century ago, before 
 the pioneer there was doubt and uncertainty, priva- 
 tions and dangers; before him to-day, standing out 
 in broad, radiant light, is a complete social and po- 
 litical government, under American institutions and 
 shining resplendent with American freedom. 
 
6 72 
 
 WAR KEN COUNTY. 
 
 ndia 
 
 1M ^ftm >W 
 
 HEN this Territory was first 
 occupied by the Aborigines 
 or Indians, has never been 
 definitely ascertained. 
 When Father Marquette, 
 with his companions, sailed 
 down the Mississippi in their 
 frail bark canoes, they discovered a trail 
 leading out from Illinois' beautiful shores 
 and following it, came, after a journey of a 
 few miles, to an Indian village. The 
 inhabitants of this primitive village came 
 forward to meet Father Marquette and 
 party, and addressing them in a language 
 that was familiar to Marquette, said, "We 
 are Illinois," which translated means, "we 
 This was in the summer of 1673. After 
 remaining here awhile, Father Marquette and party 
 sailed down the Mississippi River until he satisfied 
 himself that this river emptied into the Gulf of Mex- 
 ico. Then he returned and entered the Illinois 
 River and followed it to its source. Along its banks 
 as well as at its source, he found Indian settlements. 
 These Indians desired him to remain with them and 
 make their home his home, but desiring to pursue 
 his explorations, he declined their generous invita- 
 tion and was conducted by some of their chiefs to 
 the site now occupied by Chicago. At this place he 
 also found an Indian settlement, the Miamis. 
 
 When La Salle visited this territory, five years 
 later, he found several Indian settlements along the 
 
 are men. 
 
 large water courses, among which were the villages 
 of Kaskaskia and Cahokia. The first people to set- 
 tle among the Indians were the French, and they 
 were most heartily welcomed, and lived together on 
 the most friendly terms with these then very innocent 
 and warm-hearted people. It is evident that had there 
 been no conflict between France and England, and, 
 later on, none between England and America, there 
 never would have been any trouble between the 
 white and the red man. 
 
 From the discovery of this country by Columbus, 
 to the commencement of hostilities between the 
 white inhabitants, all travelers and settlers to this 
 country were received with the greatest cordiality. 
 These innocent people were deluded and deceived, 
 first by one white faction and then by another, until 
 they did not know who to believe, nor who, if any, 
 were their real friends. This much may be consist- 
 ently said in palliation of the atrocities in after years 
 committed by them. 
 
 The Sac tribe of Indians, at the close of the long 
 war between England and France over the Canadian 
 Territory, which terminated in favor of the former, 
 were driven from their village near Quebec, by the 
 united efforts of the different tribes of Indians then 
 inhabiting that country. They then settled at Mon- 
 treal, from which place they were subsequently 
 again driven by the combined strength of their ene- 
 mies to Mackinac. Here they met the British troops, 
 who gave them provisions and made them presents. 
 They were not permitted to remain long here, for 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 673 
 
 their remorseless enemies still pursued them, driving 
 them from one place to another, until they reached 
 Green Bay, where they first met the Fox Indians. 
 
 They made a village near Green Bay on what was 
 afterward named Sac River. They held a council 
 with the Foxes and a national alliance was formed 
 between them. Subsequently the Foxes abandoned 
 their village and joined the Sacs, and as neither were 
 sufficiently strong to meet their enemies with any 
 hope of success, they soon became as one band or 
 nation of people. They were still driven, however, 
 by their enemies to the Wisconsin River, where they 
 remained in peace for some time. While here a 
 party of their young men started out on an expedi- 
 tion, and coming to Rock River, followed it to its 
 mouth. They then returned to the village and 
 made a report of all they had seen of the beautiful 
 country and large rivers below. Upon hearing the 
 reports of the grand country south from the young 
 men, these tribes gathered up their little possessions, 
 descended the Rock River, met the Kaskaskias, 
 drove them away, and commenced the building up 
 of a new village, which they resolved never to leave. 
 
 This was the first settlement in the territory now 
 embraced by Illinois, made by the Indians after the 
 whites came in. With this settlement was Pyesa, 
 father of Black Hawk ; and here Black Hawk, who 
 was the great grandson of Nanamakee, was born, in 
 1767 ; here, also, Black Hawk learned the first les- 
 sons of war, going out with his father, who had 
 joined the Muscows, against the Osages. During 
 the war with the Osages, Black Hawk distinguished 
 himself as a fighter. Finally this tribe became sat- 
 isfied to live in their own country. After peace had 
 been established with the Osages, a war with the 
 Cherokees came on. In the war with this nation, 
 Black Hawk's Qther was killed, and he became 
 chief and fell heir to tlie great medicine bag of his 
 forefathers. Black Hawk, after a long and arduous 
 campaign wilh the Chippewas, Kaskaskias and 
 Osages, delivered his hunting-grounds from these 
 enemies. He then, with many of his braves, visited 
 St. Louis, to pay his respects to his " Spanish father," 
 as he termed him. It was while here that he was 
 informed that the Americans were coming to take 
 charge of the country. This made Black Hawk sad, 
 for he had been prejudiced against the Americans 
 by the British. They soon arrived, and Black Hawk 
 met them for the first time as he went to take leave 
 
 of the Spaniards. As the Americans came in one 
 door, Black Hawk with his followers went out the 
 other and returned to their home on Rock River. 
 On arriving home, they reported what they had seen 
 and the new people they had met. 
 
 Some time after, Lieut. Pike with some soldiers 
 arrived at their village. This was the first time the 
 Indians here met the Americans on their own hunt- 
 ing grounds. Lieut. Pike found these Indians wav- 
 ing the British colors, and he gave them an American 
 flag, which they raised. 
 
 During the War of the Revolution, between Great 
 Britain and the Colonies, most of the Indian tribes 
 took part with the former. In the treaty of peace 
 between the two countries, the Indians had not been 
 included. Several tribes, therefore, stimulated on 
 by English gold, continued their hostilities, and in the 
 Northwestern Territory several hundred whites had 
 been killed, including men, women and children, be- 
 fore the Government took active measures to stop 
 the slaughter. This work was delegated to Gen., 
 Arthur bt. Clair, former Governor of the Territory, 
 which was in 1791. The expedition of Gen. St. 
 Clair, owing possibly to his feeble health, was dis-= 
 astrous. The Americans were completed routed, a 
 panic seized the army and they could not be brought 
 to a standstill until they reached Fort Jefferson., 
 Subsequently a new and larger force was sent out 
 under the command of Gen. Wayne, one of the 
 heroes of the Revolution, which proved more suc- 
 cessful than the former ; the Indians were defeated 
 at every point and sued for peace, which was con- 
 cluded Aug. 7, 1795. During these two conflicts, 
 Little Turtle was the most skillful and indefatigable 
 chief among them. Peace was restored once more 
 and so remained for many years, the >vhites pursuing 
 their occupations on soil once the favorite hunting 
 ground of the Indians. 
 
 Prior to the War of 1812, there rose in this coun- 
 try an Indian of most extraordinary character, a 
 great warrior and considerable of a statesman. His 
 name was Tecumseh, chief of the Pawnees. He 
 sought to unite all the Indian tribes in one grand ef- 
 fort against the Americans to recover their lost hunt- 
 ing grounds. As a preliminary step, he sought to 
 educate his people, to improve their morals and in- 
 still into their hearts a more ardent love of country. 
 He had several interviews with Gov. Harrison, 'who 
 was formerly the Governor of this. Territory and a.t. 
 
 
674 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 this time was Governor of Indiana Territory, with 
 a view of regaining this country for his people. At 
 the last interview, the Governor plainly told him 
 " that the President would put his warriors in petti- 
 coats sooner than give up the country he had fairly 
 acquired, or to suffer his people to be murdered 
 with impunity." 
 
 The opportunity finally came for which Tecumseh 
 had so long waited, of avenging what he conceived 
 to be the injury his people had sustained at the 
 hands of the Americans. The war of 1812 came on. 
 Murders continued to be committed, and even Gov. 
 Harrison's own soldiers were fired upon. Gov. Har- 
 rison, indignant at these outrages, started out with 
 a force of a thousand men, attacked their town, Tip- 
 pecanoe. which had been well fortified, and after a 
 bloody conflict, drove them into the swamp. Tecum- 
 seh, who was away at this time, upon returning was 
 greatly exasperated at this defeat. He, with his band, 
 immediately departed to Canada, and offered his 
 services to the British, not for any love he had for 
 them, but because after the battle of Tippecanoe he 
 felt that he could have no success against the Amer- 
 " icans, unless aided by British troops. Tecumseh 
 was killed at the Tames, where he led some 1200 
 Indians, bravely and desperately fighting for victory. 
 Black Hawk was also in this battle. 
 
 The loss of the battle and the defeat of the British 
 on L"ake Erie put an end to the war, and the Indians 
 soon were brought to peaceful terms. There was no 
 further trouble from them until about the time of the 
 settlement of this county. There were several large 
 villages in the territory, the largest being on Rock 
 River, near its confluence with the Mississippi. This 
 was Sac Village, the home of Black Hawk and his 
 people, and at one time there was some 1 2,000 Indians 
 here. The Indians were engaged in hunting, fish- 
 ing, lead-mining and raising corn. 
 
 The Black Hawk War. 
 
 'HE Black Hawk War, as a military exhibi- 
 tion, was not much of an affair. From first 
 to last the forces of the Government, inclu- 
 ding the Wisconsin Volunteers, the friendly 
 Indians and the six Artillery companies, sent 
 out by Gen. Scott, did not exceed 6,000 men. 
 After the long peace the Indians again became trou- 
 
 blesome, in the sum-Tier of 1827. The Winnebagoes, 
 Sacs, Foxes and other tribes had been at war with 
 each other for over a century, and although at times 
 through the mediation of the United States peice 
 was restored between them, yet a bitter enmity ever 
 existed. During this summer a war party of Win- 
 nebagoes surprised a party of the Chippewas, and 
 killed eight of their men. Four of the Winnebasoes 
 were arrested by the commander of the United States 
 troops, at St. Peters, and delivered to the Chippewas, 
 by whom they were immediately shot. This was the 
 first irritation of the Winnebagoes, and they were 
 further aggrieved at seeing the Americans occupying 
 their country; for many of them had penetrated it 
 as far as the Wisconsin, in search of lead. Red 
 Bird, in order to avenge himself, made an attack up- 
 on the Chippewas and was defeated, but to satisfy 
 his desire for vengeance he surprised and killed sev- 
 eral whites. On hearing of this the miners, who 
 were working the lead-mines at Galena, organized a 
 company of volunteers, and being reinforced by a 
 company of United States troops, marched against 
 the Winnebagoes. To save his nation from war Red 
 Bird, with six others of the most influential men of 
 his nation, surrendered themselves as prisoners of 
 war. Part of them were executed, and a part pined 
 away in jail. From this time to 1831, there were no 
 further disturbances. 
 
 But to return to the causes that brought on the 
 Black Hawk War. In 1804 a treaty was formed be- 
 tween the United States and the chiefs of the Sacs 
 and Fox nations, by virtue of which the Government 
 acquired, together with other territory, the title to 
 the Rock River country. Black Hawk, however, a 
 chief of the Sacs and a noted warrior, claimed that 
 this treaty was obtained through fraud, and that 
 whatever had been done was without his knowledge 
 or consent. Black Hawk's version of this treaty is 
 this : One of the Sac Indians killed an American 
 and was taken prisoner and confined in the prison at 
 St. Louis. The council was held at the Sac Village 
 to see what could be done, and it was determined to 
 send Quasquame and other chiefs to St. Louis to 
 get the offender released by paying for his crime, this 
 being the way of adjusting such affairs with the In- 
 dians. The party started on their mission with the 
 best wishes of the nation. They remained a long 
 time, and when they returned they encamped near 
 the village but remained away from it. They were 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 <>75 
 
 dressed in fine clothes and had valuable medals and 
 other ornaments. Early the next day Quasquame 
 came into the Council Lodge and gave the following 
 account : " On our arrival at St. Louis we met our 
 American father and explained to him our business, 
 urging the release of our friend. The American chief 
 told us he wanted land. We agreed to give him 
 some on the west side of the Mississippi, likewise 
 more on the Illinois side opposite Jefferson. When 
 the business was all arranged, we expected to have 
 our friend released to come home with us. About 
 the time we were ready to start our brother was let 
 out of the prison. He started to run a short distance 
 when he was shot dead." Black Hawk said this was 
 all they could remember, and it subsequently was as- 
 certained that this party were all drunk during the 
 greater part of the time they were at St. Louis. 
 This was all his nation knew of the treaty of 1804. 
 "It," says Black Hawk, " has since been explained 
 to me. I find by that treaty that all of the country 
 east of the Mississippi and south of Jefferson was 
 ceded to the United States for $1,000 a year. I will 
 leave it to the people of the United States to say 
 whether our nation was properly represented in this 
 treaty, or whether we received a fair compensation 
 for the extent of country ceded by these four indi- 
 viduals. I could say much more respecting this 
 treaty with the whites, but I will not at this time. It 
 has been the origin of all our serious difficulties with 
 the whites." 
 
 Whatever may be the real facts regarding this 
 treaty, however, Black Hawk was not satisfied with 
 it, and he was determined if possible to regain the 
 territory which he claimed had been ceded away 
 from his people without his knowledge. He pro- 
 nounced the treaty a fraud and void, and gathering 
 his chosen band of warriors about him, which num- 
 bered about 300, he re-crossed the Mississippi, took 
 possession of the disputed lands and ordered the 
 whites to leave the country at once. The settlers 
 reported the matter to Gov. Reynolds, and he dis- 
 patched Gen. Gaines with a company of regulars and 
 1,500 volunteers to the scene of action. Black Hawk 
 was taken by surprise ; the troops burned their vil- 
 lages and forced them to submission. Another 
 treaty of peace was concluded, by which the Indians 
 ceded all right and title to the land east of the Mis- 
 sissippi, and agreed to remain on the western side of 
 the river and never re-cross it without permission 
 
 from the President of the United States or Governor 
 of the State of Illinois. 
 
 Seeing such a large force arraigned against him, 
 the proud spirit of Black Hawk was compelled to 
 submit, though with a determination to seek the 
 first opportunity to be avenged upon his enemies. 
 In the spring of 1832, having rallied about him the 
 braves of the Sac and Fox nations to the number 
 of 650, he re-crossed the Mississippi and directed his 
 march into the Winnebago and Pottawattamie coun- 
 tries, hoping to make them their allies; Gov. Rey- 
 nolds upon being informed of the invasion, hastily 
 collected a body of 1,800 volunteers, divided into 
 four regiments, and a spy battallion under command 
 of Col. James B. Henry, all under the command of 
 Gen. Samuel Whiteside. This army marched to the 
 Mississippi, reduced to ashes the Indian village of 
 Prophetstown, the home of the Prophet, and then 
 proceeded for several miles up the river to Dixon, to 
 join the regular forces of Gen. Atkinson, and to 
 await the arrival of provisions. 
 
 It would seem at first glance that the force mus- 
 tered by the Government against Black Hawk was 
 needlessly large, but when it is remembered that it 
 was anticipated that Black Hawk might form an al- 
 liance with some of the other tribes, it will be ad- 
 mitted that the Government was wise in its precau- 
 tionary movements. At Dixon, there were two full 
 companies, then awaiting to achieve immortal fame 
 in an encounter with the dusky warriors. These 
 troops advanced under Maj. Stilhnan. They made 
 their first encampment on Rock River near a creek 
 which entered into it, which is now known in history 
 as Stillman's Run. They had been sent to spy out 
 the Indians. While here in camp they saw a party 
 of them at a distance, and several of the command 
 mounted their horses and charged after them, killing 
 three of their number. But the main body of the 
 band under Black Hawk returned the charge, which 
 produced a panic among the volunteers, and in pre- 
 cipitous flight they hurried back to Dixon. This was 
 the first engagement of the Black Hawk war, which 
 occurred May i2th, and there was not much in it 
 for the white soldiers to boast of. Had it occurred 
 during the rebellion, it would have been called a 
 "skedaddle." 
 
 After calling the roll, 1 1 men were found missing. 
 A council of war was convoked by Gen. Whiteside, 
 when it was agreed to march back the next day to 
 
 'A 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 the battle-field. Arriving there they were surprised 
 at not finding any Indians, but they found the poor 
 dead soldiers, and after burying them and erecting a 
 rude monument to their memory, they returned to 
 Dixon, where they were joined by Gen. Atkinson 
 with his regulars. 
 
 After this engagement, the Indians committed many 
 depredations, massacred the inhabitants, burned 
 their houses, and neglected nothing known to the 
 peculiar mode of Indian warfare. By June isth, 
 about 4,000 volunteers had been organized. This 
 made a formidable array against the small Indian 
 force, and it kept in check other tribes, who were 
 friendly to Black Hawk and were much inclined to 
 join him. About this time, Black Hawk with a part 
 of his force attacked Apple River Fort, near Galena. 
 This was a mere palisade of logs in the form of a 
 square. This little garrison of 25 men resisted the 
 attack from their savage enemy for 15 long hours, 
 when they withdrew with great loss. There were 
 several small engagements and skirmishes, when the 
 battle at Kellogg's Grove under Maj. Dement came 
 off. The latter had fortified himself here in the 
 midst of the Indian country. From here they sallied 
 out to reconnoitre, when they found themselves sud- 
 denly confronted by some 300 Indians under Black 
 Hawk, and it was with difficulty they regained their 
 camp. The Indians undertook to storm it, but they 
 were repulsed with great loss, and finally retreated, 
 carrying their dead with them. Upon hearing of 
 this engagement, Gen. Atkinson sent a detachment 
 to overtake the flying Indians, while he marched 
 Northward into the territory of the Winnebagoes to 
 meet the Indians that were concentrating there. 
 
 There was some dissatisfaction among the volun- 
 teers about this time, who had not anticipated the 
 hardships and fatigues of an Indian war. They had 
 also been wasteful of provisions, and it became 
 necessary to send out troops to replenish their stores. 
 Reaching the Winnebago country, Black Hawk for- 
 tified himself there near the four lakes, with the de- 
 termination to decide the fate of war by a general 
 battle. The troops marched very slowly and cau- 
 tiously through the country, passing through Turtle 
 Village and up along Rock River to Burnt Village. 
 Here they were delayed for a while, following out 
 false trails and waiting for provisions, when hearing 
 that Black Hawk was encamped on Rock River, 
 some 35 miles distant, they started in pursuit. They 
 
 overtook the Indians at the bluffs of the Wisconsin 
 River, in the afternoon of July 2ist, and unable any 
 longer to escape the hot pursuit of the Government 
 forces, the Indians turned and fought until they 
 were completely routed. Night having set in, the 
 battle for the day ended. This engagement was led 
 by Gen. Henry. Escaping during the night across 
 the river, the Indians made for the Mississippi, 
 hoping to be able to cross to the western side. They 
 reached the Mississippi before the troops came up, 
 but were prevented from crossing by the steamboat 
 " Warrior," which happened just at this time to come 
 along. The Warrior greeted them with canister 
 shot and a brisk fire of musketry, causing them se- 
 vere losses. Pending this conflict, the forces under 
 Gen. Atkinson and Gen. Henry arrived. Atkinson 
 was decoyed off by a ruse of the wily Indians, and 
 Gen. Henry perceiving this and discovering the main 
 body of the enemy endeavoring to make their es- 
 cape, advanced on them, when a line of battle was 
 formed and the engagement became general. The 
 Indians, who fought with desperate valor, were 
 furiously met at every point by volunteer forces, 
 slaughtering them with their bayonets and driving 
 them into the river. Hearing the general engage- 
 ment, Gen. Atkinson returned from his pursuit of 
 Black Hawk and with his force of 20 men joined in 
 the fight, which lermin.iKd in a complete victory for 
 the Government. There were some 300 Indians 
 killed and drowned and 50 taken prisoners. Black 
 Hawk, with 20 of his followers, made his escape up 
 the Wisconsin River. 
 
 Thus ended the Black Hawk War, the decisive 
 and last battle of which was fought Aug. 2, 1832, 
 near the mouth of Bad Axe River. And thus ended 
 the last conflict with the red man on the east side of 
 the Mississippi. Black Hawk and his party were 
 pursued by the Winnebagoes and captured at the 
 Belles of the Wisconsin, and turned over to Gen. 
 Street, the United States Indian Agent. Among 
 the prisoners were Black Hawk, his son and the 
 Prophet, who had been largely instrumental in bring- 
 ing about this war, and who was his strong right arm 
 to its close. They were taken to Jefferson Barracks, 
 when a treaty was concluded, by which the Indians 
 ceded to the United States their lands on the Mis- 
 sissippi between the Des Moines and Turkey Rivers. 
 They were afterwards taken to Washington and 
 from there made a tour of the United States. 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 677 
 
 In his interview with the President, Black Hawk, 
 in extenuation of his action in going into battle with 
 the whites, said : " I am a man and you are another. 
 I took up the hatchet to revenge the injuries which 
 could no longer be borne. Had I borne them longer, 
 my people would have said, ' Black Hawk is a 
 squaw; he is too old to be a chief. He is no Sac? 
 This caused me to raise the war-whoop. I say no 
 more about it; all is known to you. Keokuk once 
 was here. You took him by the hand and when he 
 wanted to return, you sent him back to his nation. 
 Black Hawk expects that like Keokuk, he will be 
 permitted to return." 
 
 By order of the President, Black Hawk and the 
 other prisoners were set free June 4, 1833. On the 
 3d of October, 1838, Black Hawk passed away to 
 the happy hunting grounds of the future, at the age 
 of 71 years, at his home in Iowa, surrounded by his 
 wife and family. He had taken cold on his way to 
 Rock Island to receive his annuity. He was buried 
 near his home on the southwest quarter of section 2, 
 Township 70, range 12, Davis Co., Iowa. He was 
 dressed in a suit of military clothes given to him in 
 Washington by President Jackson. 
 
 The overthrow of Black Hawk and his band of 
 followers, the successful termination of the war, and 
 the capture of Black Hawk was important in this, 
 that it quenched forever the last germ of Indian hos- 
 tilies between the red man in the Northwestern Ter- 
 ritory and his acknowledged master, and extinguished 
 all claims of the Indians to this part of the country. 
 
 Engaged in this war there were quite a number of 
 persons who in after years played a very important 
 and distinguished part in American history. Fore- 
 most among these was Abraham Lincoln. At the 
 first call of Gov. Reynolds, he enlisted in a company 
 of volunteers and was chosen Captain. This com- 
 pany, with the first levy, was disbanded. He re- 
 enlisted as a private and served to the end of the 
 war. He was mustered in at Dixon into Capt. He's 
 Company under Zachary Taylor, then Lieutenant 
 Colonel, by Lieut. Robert Anderson, who so gal- 
 lantly defended Fort Sumter at the opening of the 
 Rebellion. At this place, too, and among the Gov- 
 ernment soldiers, was one also noted in after life, 
 although not to his credit, Jefferson Davis, then a 
 Lieutenant. 
 
 After Maj. Anderson evacuated Fort Sumter, he 
 
 called on President Lincoln and received his thanks 
 for his gallant defense of the fort. Mr. Lincoln 
 asked the Major if he remembered ever having met 
 him before, who replied that he did not. " My mem- 
 ory is better than yours," said President Lincoln ; 
 " you mustered me into the United States service as 
 a high private of the Illinois Volunteers, at Dixon's 
 Ferry, in the Black Hawk War." Another incident 
 connected with this war is of some interest: When 
 Black Hawk was captured he was turned over to 
 Lieut. Jefferson Davis, with instructions to deliver 
 him at Jefferson Barracks. Black Hawk was subse- 
 quently for a while confined in Fortress Monroe, 
 where, a generation later, Davis was confined as a 
 traitor. Both made war against the United States, 
 and were the cause of the shedding of much blood ; 
 but if any extenuation should be given to either of 
 these men for their crime, it should be given to the 
 distinguished Indian warrior. 
 
 Great consternation was felt during the trying days 
 of the Black Hawk war, by the few pioneers then liv- 
 ing in the county. The winter of [831-32 was a 
 rather mild one, and spring opened with a fair and 
 prosperous outlook for the settlers. The spring days> 
 however, had not half passed away before a cloud 
 arose which darkened all their hopes, and sent dis- 
 may into every heart. Black Hawk was threatening, 
 with his band, to re-cross the Mississippi River to 
 recover his hunting grounds, and another Indian 
 war, with its nameless terrors, was imminent. The 
 signs were too true; war was again to be inaugurated. 
 About the first of May Gov. Reynolds was at Yellow 
 Banks with quite a large number of volunteers to 
 meet and keep back the Indians. Warren County 
 was deficient in war material, and had no war lead- 
 ers. It was feared that when the troops left Yel- 
 low Banks the Indians would sweep over the entire 
 country. 
 
 When the Governor and his troops withdrew, the 
 citizens became greatly alarmed. A petition was 
 forwarded to him representing their exposed condi- 
 tion, and praying for aid. Upon receiving the peti- 
 tion the Governor issued the following order : 
 
 I do hereby appoint Daniel McNeil, Jr., to give 
 notice that an election for Major of the Militia Com- 
 pany and an odd Battalion in Warren County, will 
 be held in Monmouth at some convenient lime within 
 ten days from the date of this order, and I further 
 authorize the said McNeil to conduct said election 
 according to law, and to give the person elected a Ma- 
 li * 
 
6 7 8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 jor's certificate of the election, which will authorize 
 said Major to cause elections to be held for company 
 officers, so that Militia be organized with speed to 
 defend their lives from Indian depredation ; and in 
 case of necessity the said McNeil is authorized to 
 call one or more companies to range the frontier for 
 its defense. JOHN REYNOLDS, 
 
 Governor and Commander-in-Chief of 
 the Illinois Militia. 
 
 Notice was given in accordance with the above or- 
 der, an election was held, and Peter Butler was cho- 
 cen as Major of the odd Battalion. Maj. Butler 
 forthwith ordered an election for company officers in 
 the different districts of the county, which completed 
 the organization of the Militia. 
 
 After Gov. Reynolds withdrew his troops and 
 passed on towards Rock River, the citizens became 
 greatly alarmed for their safety and felt that they 
 ought to have a patrol, or a body of rangers. A pe- 
 tition was accordingly presented to McNeil, asking 
 that volunteers be called in accordance with the 
 Governor's order. A call was made May 31, 1832, 
 to meet at Monmouth June 4th. At this time the 
 requisite number volunteered, elected their officers, 
 were mustered into service and reported for duty at 
 the war department at Washington, and to the Gov- 
 ernor of the Stale. 
 
 For the benefit of the readers, a copy of the mus- 
 ter-roll is here given : Peter Butler, Captain ; James 
 McCammon, ist Lieutenant; Solomon Purkins, zd 
 Lieutenant; Isaac Walton, ist Sergeant; Benj. 
 Tucker, zd Sergeant; M. D. Ritchey, 3d Sergeant, 
 and Adam Ritchey, 4th. Privates, John Van Atta ; 
 James C. Caldwell, John Quinn, Thomas Ritchey, 
 Andrew Gilson, George Gilson, William Stark, W. H. 
 Dennison, Isaiah Osborn, John Armstrong, D. B. 
 
 Cartwright, G. Van Atta, Elijah Hilton r James Rea- 
 son, Win. Laswell, P. Vancanean, John D. Richey, 
 S. L. Hogue, David Russell, C. A. Smith, John 
 Findley, Amos Williams, Gabriel Short, John McCoy, 
 R. S. Dennison, John Maley, R. S. Slice, John Hen- 
 dricks, William Patton and Ezra A. Allen. These 
 troops were subsequently disbanded in consequence 
 of the Governor's orders calling upon the counties of 
 Warren and McDonough to furnish a company lo 
 serve as mounted rangers. This company was 
 quickly raised and largely made up of the volunteers 
 mentioned. Maj. Butler was elected Captain, with 
 James McCallon ist Lieutenant. These war prepa- 
 rations, however, proved unnecessary. The Indian 
 hostilities were not carried into this county. Antic- 
 ipating, however, that the Indians would invade the 
 county, the families throughout had resorted to the 
 forts for safety, and many had left. There were no 
 depredations committed in the county until the war 
 was over, and Black Hawk was captured, which was 
 in the early part of August. After the war was over 1 
 the murder of William Martin, in Sumner Township, 
 was committed by some straggling Indians of Black 
 Hawk's band, an account of which will be found in 
 the history of that township, also in the legal his- 
 tory of the county. 
 
 This event threw the people again into consterna- 
 tion. When full particulars of this murder was 
 known, and they were assured that there was no 
 further trouble with the Indians, the inhabitants re- 
 paired to their several homes and to their peaceful 
 walks again. Following this peaceful condition of 
 things, came emigration, settling in all parts of the 
 country, and the future once more looked bright and 
 prosperous. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 679 
 
 ;N Friday, July 9, the first term 
 of the County Commissioners' 
 Court was held at the house 
 of Alexis Phelps. Daniel 
 McNeil, Jr., was appointed 
 Clerk of the Court, this being 
 the first appointment of the 
 Court. The first order made was that 
 McNeil should file his bond. The first 
 account approved and ordered to be 
 paid was that of Adam Ritchey, John B. 
 Talbot and John Pence, for amounts 
 respectively, $3.00, $3.00 and $1.50. 
 The first road viewers were appointed 
 on Sept. 7, 1830, upon the petition 
 of William McCullough, for a road from Lower 
 Yellow Banks to the southeast comer of section 36, 
 in town 12, north of range i west, Kelly Township. 
 Stephen S. Phelps, David Findley and Allen G. An- 
 drews were appointed viewers. 
 
 Jacob Rust was licensed to keep a grocery or inn 
 Oct. ist, i83r,at Monmouth. VVm. Causland was 
 licensed to keep an inn at Yellow Banks, June n, 
 1831. Stephen S. Phelps was licensed to keep a store 
 at the same time and at the same place. On Dec. 5, 
 1831, Elijah Davidson was licensed to keep a gro- 
 cery at Monmouth. The order of the County Com- 
 missioner's Court that the Circuit Court hold its next 
 term at Monmouth, the permanent seat of justice, 
 was made April 12, 1831. 
 
 Daniel McNeil, Jr., took an oath to faithfully and 
 impartially discharge all the duties of his office, ac- 
 cording to the best of his ability and understanding, 
 
 and to support the Constitution of the United States 
 and State, presented his bo ~.d to the Commissioners' 
 Court, which was accepted, and then entered upon 
 the duties of his office. 
 
 It was ordered by the County Commissioners' 
 Court that a temporary seat of justice or place for 
 holding the County Commissioners' and Circuit 
 Courts for the county, be held at the house of Mr. 
 Alexander Phelps, at the Yellow Banks, on fractional 
 section 15, in town 1 1 north, of range 5 west. The 
 Court appointed Stephen S. Phelps Treasurer for 
 the County, and required of him a bond of $1,000 
 for the faithful discharge of his duties, which bond 
 was presented and approved. They also authorized 
 him to purchase a small "blank book," for the pur- 
 pose of entering county orders and keeping the said 
 Treasurer's account with said County of Warren. 
 
 At this time the Court divided the County into 
 two election precincts, to be known as precinct num- 
 ber one and precinct number two. Number one was 
 laid out as follows : Commencing at the northeast 
 corner of township 12 north, of range 4 west (Kelly), 
 thence west to the Mississippi River, thence down 
 said river to the township line, between 7 and 8 
 north, thence east to the southeast corner of town- 
 ship 8 north and range 4 west, thence north to the 
 place of beginning. 
 
 The place for holding the election was ordered to 
 be at the Court House, or the place of holding Courts, 
 and Jeremiah Smith, James Jamison and Thomas D. 
 Wells were appointed Judges of the Election to be 
 held in this precinct. , 
 
 Precinct number 2 was laid out as follows : Com- 
 
6So 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 mencing at the northeast corner of township 12, 
 north of range i west (Kelly), thence west to the 
 northwest corner of township 12, north of range 3 
 west (Sumner), thence south to the southwest corner 
 of township 8 north, of range 3 west (Point Pleasant), 
 thence east to the southeast corner of township 8, 
 north of range i west (Greenbush) and thence north 
 to the place of begianing. The place of election 
 was located at the house of James Hodgins, and 
 Thomas C. Jennings, James Hindley and James. 
 Hodgins were appointed Judges of the Election. 
 
 For the purpose of electing Justices of the Peace 
 and Constables, the county was divided into two 
 districts the Mississippi and Cedar Creek districts. 
 The Mississippi district comprised what is now Hen- 
 derson County. The place of election was fixed at 
 the place of holding courts in this district, and Jere- 
 miah Smith, James Jamison and Thomas D. Wells 
 were appointed Judges of the Election. Cedar Creek 
 District included Warren County. The place of 
 'holding the elections for Justices of the Peace and 
 Constables were fixed at James Hodgins', and John 
 Findley, Thomas C. Jennings and James Hodgins 
 were appointed Judges of Election for this district. 
 
 An election was ordered by the County Commis- 
 sioners' Court, to be held the first Monday in August, 
 which was the day for the general election through- 
 out the State. It was also ordered that in addition 
 to Hie State officers to be elected, there should be 
 chosen three County Commissioners, one Sheriff, 
 one Coroner, two Justices of the Peace and two Con- 
 stables for each precinct. 
 
 Anticipating this election and the full organization 
 of the county, Judge Young, on the 5th day of July, 
 1830, issued the following order : 
 
 STATE OF ILLINOIS, j 
 FIFTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT. ) ss ' 
 
 To all whom these presents may concern. Greet- 
 ing: Know ye. that I, Richard M. Young, Judge of 
 the Fifth Judicial Circuit of the State of Illinois, 
 north of the Illinois River, and presiding Judge of 
 the Circuit Court, in and for the county of Warren, 
 and State aforesaid, in pursuance of the power vested 
 in me, by virtue of the loth section of the act enti- 
 tled " an act supplementary to an act regulating the 
 Supreme and Circuit Courts," approved Jan. 19, 
 1829, do hereby order and appoint that Circuit Court 
 be held in and for the said county of Warren, at 
 such places as may be selected and provided by the 
 County Commissioner's Court of said county, on the 
 
 fourth Monday in June and the first Monday in Oc- 
 tober, until I shall make another order to the con- 
 trary. RICHARD M. YOUNG, 
 
 Judge of the Fifth Judicial Circuit. 
 
 The Judge gave the above order while holding 
 court at Galena. Subsequently he made an order 
 appointing Daniel McNeil, Jr., Clerk pro tern, for 
 the Circuit Court. 
 
 At this general election 47 votes were cast, being 
 within three of the entire vote of the county. John 
 B. Talbot, Peter Butler and John Pence were elected 
 County Commissioners; Stephen S. Phelps, Sheriff; 
 and John Ritchey, Coroner. At the Yellow Banks 
 District, John Pence and Daniel McNeil, Jr., were 
 elected Justices of the Peace, and James Ryerson 
 and William Causland, Constables. John B. Talbot 
 and Adam Ritchey, Jr., were elected Justices of the 
 Peace for Hodgin's Grove District, and David Find- 
 ley and James Hodgins Constables. 
 
 The first regular term of the Couuty Commission- 
 ers' Court i; et on the second Monday in August, 
 1830. At this meeting John Pence and Peter But- 
 ler only were present, John B. Talbot, the other 
 Commissioner being absent. At this session the 
 Court ordered to be summoned a grand and a petit i 
 jury for a term of Circuit Court to be holden the first 
 Monday in October. This term of court was not 
 held, and consequently the men who were summoned 
 for jurors were not wanted. The Judge and Clerk 
 met, transacted some formulatory business and then 
 returned to their homes. 
 
 After the organization of the county, the people 
 were a little anxious to place themselves on good 
 terms with Uncle Sam, as will be seen from the fol- 
 lowing order, which was indicted by the County 
 Commissioners: 
 STATE OF ILLINOIS, WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 The Clerk of the Warren County Commissioners' 
 Court will certify to the Postmaster-General of the 
 United States, at Washington city, that the county of 
 \V;irren was organized on the 3<1 day of July, 1830, 
 and that the temporary seat of Justice is and was 
 located at Lower Yellow Banks (Oquawka), on the 
 Mississippi River, on the gth day of July, and about 
 half way between the Des Moines and Rock River 
 Rapids, and request the Postmaster-General to es- 
 tablish a Postoffice at said County seat, to be called 
 Warren Court House Postoffice; and further request 
 the Postmaster-General to forward the mail immedi- 
 ately to said office, either from Fulton and Schuyler 
 Counties, or from Venus, Hancock County. 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 681 
 
 Given under our hands in vacation of Court, this 
 loth day of September, A. D. 1830. 
 
 JOHN PENCE, 
 JOHN B. TALBOT, 
 County Commissioners. 
 
 The county having been fully organized, the ques- 
 tion of the permanent seat of Justice came up for 
 their action. Not being able to settle this matter 
 among themselves, the citizens petitioned the Legis- 
 lature to make the location. Upon receiving the pe- 
 tition, the Legislature took action at once by special 
 act, approved Jan. 27, 1831, and appointed Hazen 
 Bedell, of Hancock County; John G. Sanborn, of 
 Knox County; John McNeil, Fulipn County, Special 
 Commissioners to select the site. Having duly 
 qualified themselves, they met at the house of Ste- 
 phen S. Phelps, on the first Monday in April, and at 
 once proceeded to the work in hand. There were 
 several contestants for the location, among which were 
 Hodgins' Point, Center Grove, Yellow Banks, Ellison 
 Creek, Monmouth, and some other names were put 
 in. From these each County Commissioner drew 
 one name. The names drawn were Isabella, Kosci- 
 usco and Monmouth. They were put together and 
 
 .the drawing again commenced, the agreement being 
 that the first name drawn should be the one selected. 
 Kosciusko was the lucky name. When this name 
 appeared before them in all its un-Saxon orthogra- 
 phy, they were in doubt. They felt sure that not 
 one fourth of the inhabitants could ever learn to 
 spell that name. Finally, they decided to draw 
 again, and this time the name of Monmouth came 
 out, which was accepted. They completed their 
 work on the 7th of April, sealed up their report, ad- 
 dressed it to the County Commissioners' Court, and 
 returned to their homes. 
 
 On the 1 1 th of April, a special meetingof theCourt 
 was called. The sealed package was opened and 
 the following report was found : 
 
 "To the Honorable County Commissioners' Court 
 of Warren County : The undersigned Commission- 
 ers, appointed by an act of the General Assembly of 
 the State of Illinois, entitled an " act to establish a 
 permanent seat of Justice for Warren County,' 1 ap- 
 proved Jan. 27, 1831, respectfully report that they 
 located the seat of Justice for said county on the 
 southwest quarter of section 29, in township n 
 north, of range 2 west (Monmouth Township) of the 
 4th principal meridian, which said quarter section is 
 reported, and we believe to be, Congress land, and 
 
 they have given the said seat of Justice the name of 
 
 Monmouth. 
 
 In witness whereof, we have hereunto set our 
 
 hands and seal this yih day of April, A. D. 1831. 
 
 JOHN G. SANBORN. 
 HAZEN BEDELL, 
 JOHN MCNEIL. 
 
 This report was accepted by the County Commis- 
 sioners, though with some reluctance, as stated in 
 the history of Monmouth, and was ordered to be 
 placed on record. 
 
 After the organization of the county, Mercer 
 County was attached to it for Judicial and other pur- 
 poses, until it should be organized as provided by 
 law. 
 
 In the spring of 183 r, the matter of laying out the 
 county seat was taken up by the County Commis- 
 sioners. Plans were carefully prepared and furn- 
 ished and the survey given to Peter Butler, April 25,' 
 1831, who received 2 i j cents per lot for the same. 
 On the 26th the Court located the public square. 
 On the 6th of June, the lots were put up at public' 
 sale. There were 46 lots sold, amounting in all to 
 $965.6254. 
 
 At the April term, 1831, the Commissioners' Court 
 ordered that proposals be received and contracts 
 be entered into for the purpose of building a Court- 
 House from plans to be furnished by the Court. 
 From the plans presented, it would appear that these 
 pioneers did not think that expensive halls or build- 
 ings were necessary for the seat of Justice. The 
 following were the specifications: "To be 20x22 
 feet on the ground, 9 feet between sleepers and the 
 joists, and to be built of logs hewn down inside and 
 out, and finished as the County Commissioners shall 
 direct." The construction of this building was let at 
 public vendue to Francis Kendall at $57. It was 
 located on the west side of Main Street, about a 
 block below the square. 
 
 Those early Commissioners were statesmen as 
 well as economists, and the duties that they felt 
 called upon to discharge were manifold. At their 
 June term 1831, we find them licensing Win. Cans- 
 land to keep an inn at the Yellow Banks, which was 
 then temporarily the seat of Justice, under some 
 very commendable restrictions and provisions, to 
 wit : " On his producing to the Clerk of this Court, 
 the Treasurer's receipt for $2.50, and paying the 
 Clerk his fee ; and that the following rates be al-. 
 
 
682 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 lowed in said tavern : Horse keeping per night, 25 
 cents: single feed per night 12 J/ cents; for each 
 meal of victuals, 25 cents; lodging per night, per 
 bed, 12}^ cents, but if two persons lodge in one bed, 
 6^ cents; for each half pint of brandy, 25 cents; 
 for each half pint of rum or wine, 18^ cents ; for 
 each half pint of whisky, i2j cents. If any person 
 shall call for a less quantity than a half pint of either 
 of said liquors, the same price as per half pint." If 
 liquors could be had at the present day at the above 
 rates, it is not probable that the good people of Mon- 
 mouth could enforce their prohibition laws. 
 
 This inn was the first opened in the county. At 
 the same time a license was given to Stephen S. 
 Phelps to sell merchandise. Viewers were appointed 
 at this term to lay out a road from Broadway, in 
 Mon mouth, to Yellow Banks, now known as 
 Oquawka. 
 
 The first regular term of the Circuit Court was 
 called to meet at Monmouth, June, 1831. On ac- 
 count of threatened Indian troubles, no term was 
 held. It was the same in October. In October of 
 the following year, the first session of the Court was 
 held, Judge Richard M. Young presiding. For the 
 proceedings of this Court, the reader is referred to 
 the legal history. The August elections of 1832 re- 
 sulted in the choice of Peter Butler, Sheriff; John 
 Ritchey, Coroner ; Jeremiah Smith, John B. Talbot 
 and James McCallon, County Commissioners ; Wm. 
 Edmundson, Representative of the District em- 
 bracing the counties of Calhoun, McDonough and 
 Warren ; Wm. McCreery, Senator of the District 
 embracing the counties of Schuyler, Knox, Fulton, 
 Calhoun, McDonough and Warren ; Joseph Duncan 
 for Congress, for all Northern Illinois. 
 
 During the year 1833, the laws for the collection of 
 taxes were passed and the land in the Military Tract 
 was no longer exempt. The Clerks of the County 
 Commissioners' Court were made the collectors from 
 September to March, and if the taxes were not then 
 paid the non-resident lands were sold by the Clerks 
 instead of the Auditor as heretofore. This gave the 
 citizens an opportunity to become bidders without 
 going to Vandalia, then the seat of Government. 
 
 In 1837, under the act of the General Assemby 
 passed in 1837, a Probate Court was established. 
 
 The residents of the territory now embraced by 
 Henderson County, were not satisfied with the loca- 
 
 tion of the county seat at Monmouth, and made an 
 effort to have it changed to a more central location. 
 Failing in this, they seceded and organized them- 
 selves into a county which was called Henderson. 
 
 From about the beginning of the organization of 
 the county, the County Commissioners, ardently 
 sustained by the people, commenced the laying out 
 and improvement of roads, which under an organ- 
 ized system they have continued until the present 
 day. The result of this has been that to-day the 
 public roads of the county are unexceptional. 
 
 The municipal affairs of the county continued un- 
 der the government of the County Commissioners 
 until 1849, whe^i they were turned over to the 
 County Court. They remained in charge of this 
 Court until June, 1850, when they were for a brief 
 period in the hands of the Board of Supervisors ; 
 then the county matters were again placed in the 
 hands of the County Court. (See County Court 
 history). In 1854 the government of the county 
 was again placed in the hands of the Board of Sup- 
 ervisors. 
 
 The last session of the County Commissioners' 
 Court was held Nov. 12, 1849. Under the Constitu-_, 
 tion of 1848, the County Judge and two associates f 
 had been chosen at the general election, in 1849,' 
 who were to supersede the Commissioners' Court j 
 and take charge of the municipal affairs of the 
 county. These officers were commissioned by the 
 Governor of the State, and after taking the oath of 
 office, duly entered on the discharge of their duties. 
 The first session of this Court was held Dec. 3, 1849. 
 At this session, the Court appointed three Commis- 
 sioners, Joseph Paddox, John C. Bond and Ira F. 
 M. Butler, to divide the county of Warren into town- 
 ships in accordance with the township organization 
 laws. 
 
 Board of Supervisors. 
 
 ? T the election held in November, 1849, the 
 people had declared themselves in favor 
 of township organization. The commis- 
 sioners met and proceeded in the discharge 
 of their duties, completing their work and 
 making their report to the Court. The Board 
 of Supervisors chosen at the spring elections, on the 
 8th day of April, 1850, organized and proceeded to 
 the transaction of county business. They adjourned 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 68 3 
 
 on the 5th of June, to meet on the second Monday 
 of November following, but this Board never met 
 again. The Supreme Court had decided the elec- 
 tions illegal on account of the insufficiency of votes 
 cast. Accordingly the municipal affairs of the 
 county reverted back again to the County Court. 
 This Court continued to transact the county business 
 until 1854, holding their last regular session on April 
 ist of this year. 
 
 A petition was presented to the County Court, in 
 session Sept. 12, 1853, signed by James McCoy and 
 50 legal voters of the county, praying that the town- 
 ship organization be submitted again to the people 
 at the next general election, to be holden on Tuesday 
 after the first Monday in November next, which pe- 
 tition was duly granted by the Court, and the Clerk 
 was ordered to give the notice of same for the next 
 general election. An election was accordingly held 
 on the 8th of November, 1853, for township organi- 
 zation. The whole number of votes cast was 1,396, 
 for organization 768, being a majority of all the votes 
 cast at said election. The County Court at its De- 
 cember Term, 1853, again appointed Commissioners 
 
 to divide the county into townships. John C. Bond, 
 Samuel Holland and Robert Gilmore were the 
 appointees. 
 
 On June 5th following the Board of Supervisors 
 were elected. On April 4, they met, organized and 
 assumed control of the county affairs. A vote had 
 been taken for and against township organization at 
 the regular fall election of 1851 and 1852, and at 
 each of these elections, township organization had 
 been voted on and had been defeated. The people 
 seemed to be very much adverse to it at this time. 
 At the November election of 1853, a vote was taken, 
 as stated above, for township organization, which 
 proved successful. 
 
 Since then the affairs of the county have been 
 conducted by the Board of Supervisors, and in the 
 main with unusual satisfaction. The different town- 
 ships have generally sent able and honest members 
 to represent their interests and to legislate for the 
 county. During the war the Board did much toward 
 aiding the cause of the Union. The names of the 
 men comprising the Board since 1853 are given in 
 sketches of the various townships. 
 
68 4 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 O country in the world is more 
 fertile than that known as the 
 Military Tract. Warren 
 County is situated in this 
 district, near the Western 
 \ border of the State, and 
 contains an area of 540 
 square miles, divided up into 15 full 
 townships. It has no large water 
 courses flowing through its territory, 
 cutting deep channels, but several 
 small streams. In the Northern 
 part it is intersected from East to 
 West by Middle Henderfon and 
 Cedar Creeks. About the middle 
 of the county is South Henderson 
 brai.ch, which rises in township 
 10, range 2, section 10, and runs 
 nearly due West. In the southern part is a small 
 stream called Ellison Creek, which with its little 
 tributaries rises in Ellison Township and runs west- 
 ward. In the northern p:ut of Lenox Township, is 
 Skig Run, which runs nearly south, forming a con- 
 fluence with Cedar Fork, near the eastern line of the 
 county. Cedar Fork rises near the western bound- 
 ary at Roseville Township, and meanders southeast- 
 erly. Southeast of this is Nigger Creek and its 
 branches, Little Nigger and Sivan Creek, which run 
 in an easterly direction. With these and some 
 smaller streams the county is pretty well watered, 
 and very good facilities afforded for drainage. 
 
 Warren County presents to the eye no scenes of 
 rugged grandeur, but rather the quiet beauty of 
 rounded outlines, of surface clothed with green and 
 far-reaching prairies and beautiful little groves. It 
 
 has no mountain chains within its borders. The 
 mean elevation of the county is 600 feet above the 
 level of the ocean. Springs are not abundant 
 but good wells can be obtained from a depth varying 
 from i o to 60 feet. It is seldom necessary to go to 
 the latter depth ; but if so, water is reached after 
 passing through a strata of blue clay. 
 
 The county is largely undulating prairie, inter-- 
 spersed with groves of fine timber. The soil is a 
 dark vegetable, rich loam, uniform in its general char- 
 acter, beneath which is a subsoil of yellow clay. - 
 Along the water courses there was originally a liberal 
 growth of timber, consisting of the oak varieties, 
 elm, ash, hickory, black walnut and the maples. In 
 addition to these can be found along the slope and 
 the bottom lands, the sycamore, box elder, linden, 
 cotton wood, locust, coffee tree, wild cherry, wild 
 plum, thorn, crab apple, dogwood, red bud, hackberry 
 and mulberry. 
 
 The alluvial deposits are principally on the bor- 
 ders of the water courses, and rarely exceed a half 
 mile in width. It is claimed that coal measures un- 
 derlie the greater portion of the county, but it has 
 not been found profitable to mine it simply for the 
 coal only. In Roseville Township, near the village, 
 the coal seam crops out, and so along Swan and Lit- 
 tle Nigger Creeks. East of Monmouth, on the site 
 of the Monmouth Mining and Manufacturing Co., 
 coal was found at a depth of about 70 feet. In min- 
 ing for clay for the tile factory, coal was taken out for 
 awhile, but this company has long ceased to mine 
 for coal, and finds it cheaper to purchase elsewhere. 
 
 The soil in the county is remarkable fertile, with 
 scarcely an acre of poor ground, and is adapted for 
 the production of all the cereals grown in this latitude. 
 
e- 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 685 
 
 legal profession occupies 
 a most important place in 
 our political, as well as in 
 our social system. It is con- 
 nected with the closest of 
 family ties, and is often 
 called upon to settle the 
 disputes most vital to domestic 
 happiness. To this profession are 
 we indebted for our constitutions 
 and our laws, and in a great mea- 
 sure the management of our polit- 
 ical system. To it also mirst we 
 look for the enforcement of our laws, 
 the punishment of its violators and 
 the maintenance of good order in 
 society. The Judicial system of 
 Warren County, as at present constituted, maybe di- 
 vided into four parts: The Justice Court, County 
 Court, Circuit Court and the Supreme Court. John B. 
 Talbot was the first Justice of the Peace, receiving his 
 appointment when the county was attached to Peo- 
 ria County, and Daniel McNeil, Jr., was the first ap- 
 pointed after the county was organized. The first 
 elected, which was at the election held the first Mon- 
 day in August, 1830, was John Pence, and Daniel 
 McNeil, Jr., for the Yellow Banks district, and John 
 B. Talbot and Andrew (Sandy) Ritchey, for Hodgin's 
 Grove district. 
 
 When the county was organized it was in the fifth 
 
 judicial circuit, with Judge Richard M. Young pre- 
 siding. At the time the Judge issued his order for 
 an election for county organization, he fixed the 
 terms of holding the Circuit Court for the fourth 
 Monday in June, and the first Monday in October, 
 which was to be held at such places as the County < 
 Commissioners' Court might select. The Commis- 
 sioners, however, for reasons not known, failed to 
 make any provision for an October term of court, and 
 there was none held. The first term of this court 
 subsequently was called for June, 1831. There were 
 two cases docketed for this term, to wit : John Pence, 
 vs. Joshua Vandruff, an appeal case from the Justice 
 Court, and Charles Collins vs. Thomas S. Sublett, an 
 action for debt. 
 
 The docket reports that no court was held on ac- 
 count of Indian disturbances. It was the same with 
 the October term following. In October, 1832, the 
 Indian troubles having been settled, a term of court 
 was held, which was the first regular term in 
 the county. Hon. Richard M. Young presided, 
 with Thomas Ford, states attorney, Daniel Mc- 
 Neil, Jr., clerk, and Stephen S. Phelps, sheriff. 
 The first case tried was an action for an assault and 
 battery ; the People vs. William Dennison. The de- 
 fendant was found guilty and fined $14 and cost. The 
 two first cases docketed were then tried. The judg- 
 ment in the Justice Court was affirmed, and the 
 other case was non-suited at plaintiff's cost. The 
 Grand Turors for this term were Alexander Davidson, 
 William Russell, Thomas S. Sublett, James Ritchey, 
 
 - 
 
 
686 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 John Caldwell, Peter Smith, Thomas Caldwell, Field 
 Jarvis, John Smith, John G. Haley, Elijah Hanan, 
 John Vanaton, John E. Murphy, Wm. R. Jamison, 
 Elijah Davidson, Jacob Rust, Robert M. Black and 
 Wm. Whitman. Davidson was appointed foreman. 
 After a few days of session the Grand Jury came into 
 court and reported that they had not found any cause 
 for indictment, and there being no further business 
 before them they were discharged. The first petit 
 jury sworn in for the trial of causes were : Sheldon 
 Lockwood, Elijah Davidson, Sr., Henry Meadows, 
 John C. Jamison, Abner Short, Lewis Vertrees, Sam- 
 uel Gibson, Robert Wallace, George Peckempaugh, 
 James Gibson, Joseph W. Kendall and Thomas Gib- 
 son, Sr. They tried the assault and battery case 
 above mentioned. 
 
 The members of the Bar were fond of having their 
 little fun in those days, probably more so than now. 
 They had more t.me then for jecreation and frolic, 
 and never failed to embrace the opportunity. John 
 Porter had been admitted to the Bar at one of the 
 sessions of the Court during this term. He was for- 
 tunate in securing a trial case, in which he made his 
 first plea or maiden speech, which is reported to have 
 been a very fair one. On the motion docket is the 
 following order : " Members of the Bar vs. John 
 ' Porter : Now, come the plaintiffs and move the 
 Court for an order on defendant to ' wet ' his maiden 
 speech." This order was allowed. The records do 
 not inform us however, whether the young attorney's 
 fees in this case were sufficient to defray the ex- 
 penses necessary to carry out the Court's order. 
 
 Trial of the Murderers of William Martin. 
 
 VERY novel case in the history of crimi- 
 nal practice came up in the June term of 
 1833. This is a case in which it was pro- 
 posed to try persons for the crime of murder 
 by proxy, and in which Indian law was to be 
 introduced into the state Courts. It was none 
 other than the case of the trial of the Indians turned 
 over as substitutes for the real murderers of William 
 Martin. This was the first indictment for murder, 
 and the first criminal case docketed. The grand 
 jury were John Humphrey, who was the foreman, 
 
 is, I 
 t, i 
 
 ss. 
 
 Jesse W. Bond, James Ryason, David Maurice, Wm. 
 McCoy, Thos. C. Jennings, Alex. Davidson, James 
 Brown, William Russell, R. Black, Robert Wallace, 
 Sr., James Jenkins, John Vanaton, Roland Simmons, 
 Solomon Perkins, Emmons Williams, Wm. Baty, 
 Jonathan Tipton and Peter Scott. The indictment 
 of the Indians is given below, without comment : 
 
 At the June term of the Warren County Circuit 
 Court, in the year A. D. 1833 : 
 
 STATE OF ILLINOIS, 
 WARREN COUNTY, 
 
 The Grand Jurors chosen, elected and sworn in for 
 the county of Warren, in the name and by authority 
 of the people of the State of Illinois, upon their oaths 
 present: That Shash-quaw-a-shi, alias Neesh-wak- 
 que, Muck-que-che-qua, Muck-qua-po-la-shah, and 
 Was-a-wan-a-quot, being Indians, late of said county, 
 not having the fear of God before their eyes, but be- 
 ing moved and seduced by the instigations of the 
 devil, on the Qth day of August, A. D. 1832, with 
 force and arms, at and within the county of Warren 
 aforesaid, in and upon William Martin, against the . 
 peace of God and the people of the State of Illinois, ' 
 then and there, being unlawfully, wilfully, felon- 
 iously and of their malice aforethought, d;d make an 
 assault, and that the said Shash-quaw-a-shi, alias 
 Neesh-wakque, a certain gun, of the value of$io, 
 then and there loaded and charged with gun powder, 
 one leaden bullet, which gun he, the said Shash- 
 quaw-a-shi, alias Neesh-wakque, in his right hand, 
 then and there in hand, and held to, against and 
 upon the said William Martin, then and there, and 
 unlawfully, wilfully, feloniously and with malice 
 aforethought, did shoot and discharge, and that the 
 said Shash quaw-a-shi, alias Neesh-wakque, with the 
 leaden bullet aforesaid, out of the gun aforesaid, then 
 and there by force of the gun powder shot, and sent 
 forth as aforesaid, against the aforesaid William Mar- 
 tin, in and upon the left side of the back 
 of him, a little below the left shoulder blade, the 
 said William Martin, then and there, unlawfully, 
 wilfully, feloniously, and of his malice aforethought, 
 did strike, penetrate and wound, giving to the said 
 William Martin one mortal wound, of the deptli of 
 six inches and of the breadth of one inch, of which 
 said mortal wound the aforesaid William Martin then 
 and there instantly died. And that the aforesaid 
 Muck-que-che-qua, Muck-qua-po-la shah and Was- 
 a-wan-a-quot, then and there, unlawfully, wilfully 
 and feloniously, and of their malice aforethought, 
 were present, helping, aiding and abetting, and com- 
 forting, assisting and maintaining the said Shash- 
 quaw-a-shi, alias Neesh-wakque, the felony and mur- 
 der aforesaid, in manner and form aforesaid, to do 
 and to commit; and so the jurors aforesaid, upon 
 their oaths aforesaid, do say that the said Shash- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 687 
 
 quaw-a shi, alias Neesh-wakque, Muck-que-che-qua 
 and Muck-qua-po-la-shah and Was-a-wan-a-quot, 
 then and there, in manner and form aforesaid, the 
 said William Martin, and unlawfully, wilfully and fe- 
 loniously, and of their malice aforethought, did kill 
 and murder, contrary to the form of the statute in 
 such cases made and provided, and against the 
 peace and dignity of the people of the State of Illi- 
 nois. THOMAS FORD, 
 
 State's Attorney. 
 
 This indictment was forwarded to the Governor, 
 with the request that the same be forwarded to the 
 President of the United States, requesting him to 
 make a demand, through the Indian Agent of the 
 band of Indians for the murderers. The particulars 
 of the murder are as follows : On the afternoon of 
 the gtli day of August, 1832, William Martin was out 
 in the fields cutting some grass for his horses, when 
 five Indians rushed out from the timber near by, ran 
 up to Martin, shot and killed him, and then as 
 quickly disappeared into the woods again. This field 
 | was a short distance south of the block-house or fort. 
 The fort was east of Little York or between Little 
 York and where Hugh Martin's brick house now 
 ; stands. Mrs. Osborn was living in this block-house 
 with two small children at the time and heard the 
 I shots. She, with the two children, rushed out 
 i through a corn field into a buckwheat field and laid 
 down on the ground. The McCoy girls are reported 
 to have seen the shooting. One of the murderers 
 was arrested and confined for a time in the fort at 
 Rock Island, then called Fort Armstrong, from 
 which he made his escape. The Indians, who at 
 this time desired to be on friendly terms with the 
 whites, according to their custom, delivered up 
 the next of kin to the real murderers, and these were 
 the ones which were indicted and brought into the 
 Court for trial. The Sheriff of the county, Peter 
 Butler, was notified to be at the Yellow Banks and 
 receive the prisoners, the reported murderers of Mar- 
 tin. At the appointed time, March 20, 1833, he was 
 at the Yellow Banks, was there met by Col. Daven- 
 port, the Indian Agent, Keokuk, and a number of 
 other Indians, who had in custody four young Indian 
 warriors, who had been divested of their weapons, 
 and who were turned over to the Sheriff as substi- 
 tutes for the real murderers, and by the Sheriff taken 
 to Monmouth and there confined in jail to await 
 their trial. Their names were J-o-nah, Ka-ke-mo, 
 Wau-pe-sho-kon and S-sa-fe-mo. While the prison- 
 
 ers were in jail, they afforded the people of Mon- 
 mouth considerable amusement in various ways. 
 
 The case came up for trial at the June term and 
 created a good deal of excitement. Col. Davenport, 
 LeClair, interpreter, Keokuk, and some 50 chiefs 
 and warriors came from the Yellow Banks and en- 
 camped near the place of trial with the United 
 States flag waving over their encampment. They 
 had, at the suggestion of Col. Davenport, employed 
 Messrs. Field, Galewood & Heirpstead to defend 
 them, for which they received large fees. The pris- 
 oners were brought into court under a writ of habeas 
 corpus, and there being no indictment against them 
 for the supposed crime of murder, they were, on mo- 
 tion of the attorneys, ordered to be discharged from 
 their imprisonment and to go hence without delay. 
 
 With this order the Court took occasion to repri- 
 mand Keokuk and his chiefs for delivering innocent 
 persons to be tried for the guilty. Keokuk responded 
 through his interpreter, that one guilty of the crime 
 had been turned over to the Government for the 
 murder, but had made his escape, and with the other 
 four had gone beyond the Rocky Mountains ; that 
 he had, in accordance with the Indian custom, turned 
 over the next of kin. 
 
 The prisoners were very joyful at their deliver- 
 ance, and with the rest of the Indians returned to 
 their hunting grounds beyond the Mississippi. 
 
 Trial of Joe Smith. 
 
 'HE next important case to come before the 
 Court was that of Joe Smith, the Mormon 
 prophet, who, with several other Mormons, 
 had been arrested for offenses against the 
 peace and dignity of the State of Missouri. In 
 the autumn of 1841, the Governor of Missouri 
 made the demand on Gov. Carlin, of Illinois, to de- 
 liver up to him Joe Smith for these offenses. Gov. 
 Carlin issued his executive order to this effect, and 
 its process was being carried out when the attorneys 
 of Joe Smith sued out a writ of habeas corpus and 
 the case came up for hearing before Judge Stephen 
 A. Douglas, who was then on the Circuit, and hold- 
 ing Court at Monmouth. 
 
 The warrant of the Governor had been returned 
 
 A' 
 
688 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 once before its execution. Joe Smith was under in- 
 dictment for murder and at the time of his arrest was 
 at Nauvoo, which was in this Judicial Circuit. 
 
 At the trial Smith had many of his Mormon 
 friends with him and was backed by plenty of money 
 which was used very freely. He had secured the 
 best legal talent in the State to defend him, such 
 men as O. H. Browning, Walker, Archibald, Little 
 and Williams ; for the State was B. Knowlton, Pros- 
 ecuting Attorney, Abraham Lincoln and John H. 
 Mitchell. Lincoln, however, was not present at the 
 trial. The Court House was packed to its utmost 
 capacity. Able aguments were made on both sides 
 and the excitement became intense. When the case 
 was submitted, the Court granted the motion and 
 quashed the writ, on the ground that the writ, hav- 
 ing been once returned before its execution, was 
 functus officio. Thus ended one of the notable cases 
 before Warren County Court. 
 
 In 1843, Gov. Carlin issued another writ against 
 Joe Smith, under which he was arrested again, but 
 discharged by his own municipal court at Nauvoo, 
 under a writ of habeas corpus. 
 
 The Common Council at Nauvoo, of which Smith 
 was the presiding member, had passed an ordinance 
 empowering the municipal court of that town with 
 jurisdiction in all cases of arrests made in that city, 
 by any process whatever, notwithstanding the charter 
 granted to the municipal court gave jurisdiction only 
 in cases of arrests for breach of some ordinance. 
 
 =, . ^ <.> - j. 
 
 John Baxter. 
 
 *NE of the most exciting murder trials in this 
 county was that of John Baxter, as acces- 
 sory before the fact of the murder of Col. 
 '" George Davenport, July 4, 1845. Young Bax- 
 ter had been almost raised in the family of 
 Davenport, and had been always treated with 
 kindness and was regarded as one of the fam- 
 ily. Col. Davenport, who was Indian Agent, had 
 received a large amount of silver from the Govern- 
 ment, a part of which was for the Indians, and the 
 gang of robbers called the " Banditti of the Prairies" 
 were anxious to get hold of it. Baxter, being aware 
 of the reception of this silver, furnished information, 
 
 it was claimed, about this money, and it was for this 
 that Baxter was indicted and tried. 
 
 The case was brought to Warren County under a 
 change of venue, for trial at the June term of 1846. 
 Baxter had been tried for this crime at Rock Island 
 and was sentenced to be hung. A stay of execution 
 had been granted and finally a new trial with a 
 change of venue. Judge N. H. Purple was then the 
 presiding Justice, |and William Elliott, the State's 
 Attorney. He was assisted in the case by Joseph 
 Knox, an able lawyer. Messrs. Wells, Wilkenson, 
 Manning, Davidson and Ralston were for the de- 
 fense. The case was continued until the November 
 term. The jail of Warren County not being a very 
 safe place for the confinement of prisoners, Baxter 
 was committed by order of the Court to the jail of 
 Adams County, and to the custody of the Sheriff of 
 that county for safe keeping. He was tried at the 
 November term, 1846. Some of the ablest jurists in 
 the State were in this case, especially in the defense, 
 and every point was contested with marked ability. . 
 After the arguments were closed, the Judge charged 
 the jury. His charge was able, clear, emphatic and 
 impressive, causing many persons in the court-room 
 to shed tears ; even His Honor himself was seen to 
 weep. 
 
 The jury retired with the case late Saturday night. . 
 On Sunday morning they sent word that they had 
 arrived at a decision. The Judge came in and the 
 jury was brought into Court, when they rendered a 
 verdict of " guilty." On being polled, one of the 
 jurors stated he did not believe the prisoner guilty 
 as charged under the indictment. They were di- 
 rected by the Court to again retire. In a short time 
 they again came into Court and rendered the follow- 
 ing verdict : " We the jury find the defendant guilty 
 in manner and form as charged in the indictment." 
 A motion was made for a new trial and arrest of 
 judgment, which was overruled. The Court then 
 pronounced the sentence, which was that the pris- 
 oner be hanged on Wednesday, Dec. 9, 1846. 
 
 The case was taken to the Supreme Court and 
 came back in due course, with the sentence of the 
 lower court affirmed, together with the instructions 
 that the sentence be pronounced on any day but 
 Sunday, and that the prisoner be executed as a mur- 
 derer. Pending the delivery of the second sentence, 
 he Legislature had passed an Act for Baxter's indi- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 689 
 
 vidual benefit, commuting the sentence to life im- 
 prisonment or making optional with the defendant, 
 the choice between imprisonment and hanging. This 
 Act also made it obligatory on the Judge to request 
 in open Court the prisoner's wishes in the matter; thus 
 was presented Tn Court the anomly of a prisoner be- 
 coming the Judge in his own case. This was virtu- 
 ally introducing an ex-post-facto law, or making an 
 act punishable in a manner which was not provided 
 for at the time it was committed. The case was 
 brought into Court, May 5, 1847, and the Court- 
 room was packed to its utmost. The prisoner for 
 the third time was called to the Bar, to receive the 
 sentence of death. The Act of the Legislature was 
 read to him and then the Judge pronounced the sen- 
 tence of death, fixing the day of the execution, May 
 a8th. He explained to the prisoner that although 
 the law required him to pronounce the sentence of 
 death for the crime of which he had been found 
 guilty, yet he was not to be executed unless he pre- 
 ferred execution to a life in the State Penitentiary. 
 The prisoner was then asked in open court, which 
 mode of punishment he would prefer, the Legislative 
 provision or the decision of the Supreme Court. He 
 eagerly replied, that he would prefer the Legislative 
 provision. 
 
 As the sentence of the Judge is rather a remark- 
 able document and may be of interest to the new 
 generation of people in Warren County, it is given 
 in full. The sentence is as follows : 
 
 " John Baxter, a jury of the country has found you 
 guilty of murder, the highest and most aggravated 
 offense known to the laws, and in your case ingrati- 
 tude, and the ties of friendship severed and confi- 
 dence betrayed, have tinged your guilt with a deeper 
 and darker strain. The murdered man had been 
 your friend and patron. You had once been an in- 
 mate of his family, and but a short period of time 
 before his melancholy and tragical end, you had en- 
 joyed the hospitality of his house, and under the pre- 
 tence of the partiality of a friend had wound and 
 wound yourself into his confidence and affection. 
 The time also which was selected for the commission 
 of your purpose marks its commission with more than 
 ordinary turpitude. You had no cause of hatred, or 
 even complaint against the deceased. Money ap- 
 peared to have been your only incentive. No sud- 
 den impulse, no injury inflicted at the moment, no in- 
 ward, long concealed and pent up malignity of heart 
 arising from wrongs and injustice inflicted and often 
 repeated, impels you to the commission of the crime. 
 But without any apparent motive other than that of 
 
 ' 
 
 gain, on the fourth day of July a day hallowed and 
 sacred to National devotion and festivity while a 
 race of freemen rejoicing and rendering thanks to 
 heaven for the blessings of free Government, and the 
 fancied security of their property and persons under 
 the benign and salutary influences of just laws and 
 equal rights, you and your confederates in crime, in- 
 vaded the sanctuary of home, and coolly, relentlessly, 
 slaughtered an aged and venerable man, without one 
 emotion of compunction or remorse. 
 
 A just and righteous retribution for blood thus 
 shed demands the life of the offender. Not alone by 
 way of punishment for the offense or expiation of the 
 crime, but also as a salutary example to those who 
 may come after. 
 
 Remember then, that although the law demands 
 your death, that death is no atonement for your 
 crime ; nor does it subtract one tithe from the over- 
 whelming amount of moral guilt which rests upon 
 your soul. When the penalties of the law shall have 
 consigned you to a premature and untimely death, 
 there is a higher power to which you must answer 
 for this act as well as for the conduct of your whole 
 life. Let then the short space of time allotted to 
 you here be spent in deep contrition and repentance. 
 Prepare yourself to die ! Your time of life is short 
 and much remains to be accomplished. Expect not, 
 hope not, for the interference of the Executive in 
 your behalf, or that chance or accident may aid you 
 to escape from your impending doom. Such hopes 
 and expectations will be idle and visionary, and will 
 only tend to retard the work of repentance and re- 
 form which is so indispensable to your future and 
 eternal state of being. 
 
 Your life is forfeited to the laws of your country, 
 and you must die a disgraceful and ignominious 
 death. It was not in the power of an impartial jury, 
 or of able or zealous counsel who have stood up 
 most manfully in your defense ; it is not in the 
 power of the court to avert the sentence of the law 
 and save you from your impending fate. To Heaven 
 alone, you must address your prayers for mercy and 
 forgiveness. As you must die, die penitent and like 
 a Christian, and though the forgiveness of the world 
 cannot restore you to life and the endearments of 
 society and friends, yet the tears of sympathy will 
 sometimes be shed over your early and ignoble doom ; 
 and those who have known you here may not wholly 
 curse your memory. 
 
 Black and unmitigated as your crime may be, how- 
 ever much you may have scoffed and derided the 
 laws of God and man, you may, if sincerely penitent 
 and humble, still hope for pardon and salvation 
 through the redeeming power and stainless purity of 
 the Redeemer's, blood. 
 
 To that Beneficent Power and Mercy, with the 
 deepest emotions of pity and compassion, I corn- 
 mend you and your eternal destiny. The sentence 
 of the law and the sentence of t,he cqurt is, that you. 
 
690 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 should be taken from this place to the jail of the 
 County of Warren, and from thence to the place of 
 execution ; and that on Wednesday, the gth day of 
 December, next, (1847), between the hours of i and 
 4 o'clock p. m. of said day, you be hanged by the 
 neck until you be dead, and may God Almighty have 
 mercy on your soul." 
 
 As the act of the Legislature above referred to 
 stands out alone and almost unprecedented in the 
 annals of Legislation, it is made a part of this his- 
 tory, and is as follows : Whereas, John Baxter, late 
 of the county of Rock Island, was convicted of the 
 murder of George Davenport, at the November term 
 of the Circuit Court of Warren County, 1846, and is 
 now confined in the jail of said county of Warren, 
 to await the sentence of death to be pronounced upon 
 him at the next term of Circuit Court of said county: 
 Section i , Be it enacted by the people of the State 
 of Illinois, represented in the general assembly, 
 That the punishment of John Baxter be, and the same 
 is hereby commuted from that of death to imprison- 
 ment in the Illinois Penitentiary during the term of 
 his natural life, and the Sheriff or other officer, after 
 
 the sentence of death shall be pronounced against 
 said Baxter, instead of executing said sentence of 
 death, shall, within 20 days after such sentence, re- 
 
 ' move said Baxter to the Penitentiary at Alton, and 
 
 \ the Warden or keeper of said Penitentiary shall re- 
 ceive said Baxter, and detain him in his custody, and 
 subject him to the same rules and regulations as 
 
 _ other convicts are, who are sentenced to said Pen- 
 itentiary for life. 
 
 Section 2. The Secretary of State shall furnish a 
 certified copy of this act to the Sheriff of Warren 
 County or other proper legal officer, upon whom de- 
 volves the duty by law of executing said sentence 
 upon said Baxter, and also shall furnish a certified 
 copy of the act to the Warden or keeper of said Pen- 
 itentiary; Provided, this act shall not be enforced 
 unless said Baxter shall at the time his sentence is 
 pronounced, consent or agree in open court, to the 
 provisions of this act. 
 
 John Baxter remained in prison for many years ; 
 becoming so weak and emaciated that his longer con- 
 finement in the penitentiary would be certain death, 
 he was pardoned out by the Governor and died a 
 short time afterward, in the Northern part of the 
 State. 
 
 Joseph Knox, the prosecuting attorney, admitted 
 to Col. Davidson, of the defense, some years after 
 the trial, that he believed the State had hung two in- 
 nocent men, and sent to the penitentiary a third. He 
 said he believed that Fox and Birch were the guilty 
 parties in the murder of Col. Davenport, and that 
 the Longs were innocent. 
 
 Brockner and McMahill. 
 
 ANOTHER exciting murder trial was held in 
 Monmoutrrjust before the war. In this 
 case Ferdinand Brockner and Pickney H. Mc- 
 Mahill, were indicted and brought to trial 
 
 
 
 for the murder of Thomas Traylor, at his home 
 in Greenbush Township. Mr. Traylor was sitting in 
 his house reading one evening, when a shot was fired 
 through the ,window, inflicting upon him a mortal 
 wound. The persons mentioned above, being sus- 
 pected, were arrested, indicted and finally brought to 
 trial. The prosecuting attorney was James A. Mc- 
 Kenzie, and they were defended by that distinguished 
 criminal lawyer, the late W. W. O'Brien, and one of 
 Monmouth's not less distinguished attorneys, Col. J. 
 W. Davidson. The prisoners were acquitted. 
 
 In early days there was a good deal of land litiga- 
 tion in Monmouth, and some of the ablest lawyers in 
 the state were before the Monmouth bar ; and on this 
 bench some of the ablest judges of the state have 
 presided, men who have been distinguished in polit- 
 ical life and in the halls of the Legislature. 
 
 This County was first in the Fifth Judicial District, 
 then in the Tenth and the Eighth, and under reorgan- 
 ization it was again placed in the Tenth. 
 
 Probate Court. 
 
 HE Probate Court was established in 1837, 
 which provides for a Probate Justice of the 
 Peace, who shall have charge of all Pro- 
 bate matters, and be also vested with the same 
 power and jurisdiction in civil cases as were 
 given to Justices of the Peace. W. F. Smith 
 was the first Probate Justice. This law remained in 
 force until 1849, when a County Court was estab- 
 lished. 
 
 County Court. 
 
 N r849 the General Assembly, under the 
 constitution of 1848, passed an act approved 
 Feb. 1 2th, providing for a Court of Record 
 to be styled the County Court, and to be pre- 
 sided over by a County Judge. Under this 
 act the County Court was vested with all the 
 powers and jurisdiction heretofore resting in the Pro- 
 
 I 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 691 
 
 bate Court. In addition thereto it was further pro- 
 vided that the County Judge, with two Justices of 
 the Peace, to be known as Associate Justices, should 
 sit as a County Court and have all the powers that 
 were vested in the Commissioners' Court, the latter, 
 under this act, being abolished. The first session of 
 this Court was held Dec. 3, 1849, with Judge Ivory 
 Quinby presiding. 
 
 This Court had charge of County matters until 
 the township-organization system was adopted, and 
 the power was vested in the Board of Supervisors, 
 which was permanently done in 1854. In 1872 the 
 General Assembly passed an act giving it concurrent 
 jurisdiction with the Circuit Court in all civil cases 
 where the value of property in controversy should 
 not exceed $500, and in criminal cases, where the 
 punishment was not imprisonment in the peniten- 
 tiary or death. The names of the officers of the 
 Courts will be found in the list of County officials. 
 
 Judges and Members of the Bar. 
 
 "N this connection only a brief history of the 
 Judges that have presided at Monmouth 
 can be given. Hon. Richard M. Young, 
 who presided at Galena, was the first Judge 
 to preside in the Circuit who had jurisdiction 
 here from the organization of the County un- 
 til 1837, when he resigned to take his seat in the 
 United States Senate, to which place he had been 
 elected. Judge Young was born in Kentucky, and 
 was among the first settlers in Northern Illinois. He 
 was of unimpeachable character, a good jurist and 
 did much to give tone and dignity to the Bench and 
 Bar in the Circuit over which he presided. 
 
 He was of a social nature; gentle, courteous, en- 
 tertaining, and refined in his manner. Though in 
 the Senate during its palmiest days, when the most 
 noted men of the country were members, yet he dis- 
 tinguished himself for his ability, and was brought 
 into general notice. After serving out his term in 
 the United States Senate, he was appointed by Presi- 
 dent Polk, Commissioner of the General Land Of- 
 fice. He has been dead many years. 
 
 Hon. James H. Ralston succeeded Judge Young, 
 filling out an unexpired term. Mr. Ralston was orig- 
 
 inally from Kentucky. His health being poor, he 
 resigned after remaining on the bench about a year. 
 In 1840, he was elected to the State Senate. In 1846, 
 President Polk appointed him Assistant Quartermas- 
 ter of the United States Army, and he was ordered 
 to report for duty to the Commander of the Illinois 
 Volunteers, then en route for Mexico. He served 
 in this capacity until the close of the Mexican war. 
 After the Mexican war, he emigrated to California, 
 where he died. 
 
 Hon. Peter Lott, formerly of New York, was the 
 next to serve on this bench. Mr. Lott, before his 
 promotion to the Bench, had practiced at this Bar. 
 He was only a fair lawyer, but quite a politician, and 
 after leaving the Bench was appointed Circuit Clerk 
 of Adams County. In 1852, he went to California, 
 having been appointed by President Pierce, Super- 
 intendent of the United States Mint at San Fran- 
 cisco. He was removed by President Buchanan, and 
 subsequently went to Kansas, where he died. 
 
 Hon. Stephen A. Douglas served in this Circuit, 
 from 1841 to 1843. The life and career of this dis- 
 tinguished American is too well known to need an 
 extensive notice here. He resigned to take his seat 
 in the United States Congress, from the Fifth Con- 
 gressional District. 
 
 Judge Douglas' familiarity with cases and author- 
 ities, the readiness with which he dispatched busi- 
 ness, his acute and judicial mind, were the astonish- 
 ment of all. There had been cases on the docket 
 for years, and it was loaded down with unfinished 
 business, but Judge Douglas cleaned out the docket 
 and when he left the Bench there were only new 
 cases for his successor. The ability which he showed 
 as a Judge, and his popularity on the Bench, were 
 accessories to his political elevation. His sociability 
 also made him popular; while a suit was pending, 
 he watched every point of law, kept track of all the 
 proceedings, while at the same time he would leave 
 the Bench, go back among the spectators "the 
 boys," as he would call them and talk familiarly 
 with Tom, Dick or Bill, take or give a cigar, enjoy a 
 social smoke with them, and often sitting on their 
 lap, while at the same time he would closely follow 
 the case on trial. 
 
 Stephen A. Douglas served in the House of Rep- 
 resentatives, until 1847, when he was elected to the 
 United States Senate. In 1860, he was nominated 
 
692 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 by a faction of the Democratic party for the Presi- 
 dency. Upon the election of President Lincoln and 
 the breaking out of the Rebellion, he, true to his 
 country, visited President Lincoln before leaving 
 Washington for the camps of Illinois, and gave him 
 his heartiest support. 
 
 Arriving at Springfield, he was publicly received 
 by Gov. Yates, to whom he gave the same assurance 
 of his entire co-operation in putting down the Re- 
 bellion. Springfield and the camps were full of 
 volunteers for the war. He was asked by the Leg- 
 islature and the leading citizens to give a public 
 address. Here he made one of the greatest and 
 most noted speeches of his life, denouncing the se- 
 cession movement as a wide-spread conspiracy to 
 overthrow the best Government that the sun ever 
 shone on. The next day he rode through the camp 
 with his beautiful and accomplished wife, making 
 short speeches to the soldiers. His action at this 
 particular time was a great service to the Union. It 
 was heralded throughout the country that "Douglas 
 sustains Lincoln." From Springfield he hastened to 
 Chicago, where he delivered in the "Wigwam" his 
 great and last speech, pleading, even at the threshold 
 of death, for the cause of the Republic. 
 
 His exhaustive labors, together with the severe 
 cold already contracted, were too much for his over- 
 taxed constitution, and after the speech, he returned 
 to the Tremont House and laid down to rise no more 
 in this life. 
 
 Hon. Jesse B. Thomas was the next on the Bench 
 following the lamented Douglas. He had a very 
 difficult position to fill. He had, however, a judicial 
 mind, and made an excellent Judge, discharging the 
 duties of the office with credit to himself and satis- 
 faction to the people. He was subsequently appointed 
 to another district, and soon after he died. 
 
 Hon. Norman H. Purple served from 1845 to 1849, 
 when he resigned. He was distinguished for his 
 legal attainments and executive ability, and retired 
 shedding lustre over the ermine. He was a good 
 criminal lawyer and a fine advocate, and had the 
 reputation of being one of the best attorneys at this 
 Bar; with this he had also the reputation of being a 
 great wag. He died at Peoria years ago. 
 
 Hon. William A. Minchall, formerly from Tennes- 
 see, and at this time from Rushville, succeeded Mr. 
 Purple, serving from 1849 to 1851. He had been 
 
 prominent in politics before he was elected to the 
 Bench. 
 
 He was a good lawyer and an excellent Judge. His 
 specialty as a lawyer was on the trial of land cases. 
 He was trying an important case at one time, when 
 Judge Purple was presiding, and was making a long 
 and exhaustive argument for his client. Finally, 
 the Judge asked him which side of the case he was 
 on, anyway. Minchall stopped and looked around 
 for some moments, and then turning to the Clerk, 
 said, "Mr. Clerk, will you please tell me which side 
 of the easel am on?" He has been dead some 
 years. 
 
 Hon. William Kellogg, from Canton, served after 
 Minchall. He was a good lawyer and had an ex- 
 tensive practice before his elevation to the Bench. 
 As a Judge he gave general satisfaction. He has 
 been dead some years. 
 
 Hon. H. M. Weed, presided from 1852 to 1855. 
 He was a fair lawyer, but did not achieve much of a 
 reputation as a Judge. He died in Peoria many 
 years ago. 
 
 Hon. John S. Thompson, from Mercer County, 
 served five years from 1855 to 1860. He was hot 
 brilliant, but a careful Judge, and gave general sat- 
 isfaction. After leaving the Bench, he went to Cali- 
 fornia, where he accumulated a large fortune. He 
 is now living in Southern California. 
 
 Hon. Aaron Tyler, of Knoxville, was the next 
 Judge to preside, only one year. He was only a 
 medium lawyer, but a conscientious man. He died 
 at Knoxville. 
 
 Hon. Charles B. Lawrence, was the presiding 
 Judge here, from 1861 to 1864. As a lawyer he was 
 good in all branches of the profession except crim- 
 inal, and was an ornament to the Bench. He was 
 one of the ablest jurists that ever presided in this 
 Circuit. From the Circuit he was promoted to the 
 Supreme Court of the State, where he remained 
 several years adding new laurels to his judicial fame. 
 His health giving away, he made a trip south in 
 1884, with the hope that change of air and rest 
 would restore his physical power and renew his vital 
 energies. But it was too late. He died before he 
 reached home, and his remains were brought back 
 and interred in the Galesburg Cemetery. 
 
 Hon. John J. Glenn was elected, in 1877, and is 
 still presiding. He had. distinguished himself as a. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 693 
 
 lawyer and advocate before his promotion to the 
 Bench. He is a man of fine executive ability, very 
 quick and clear in his solution of law points, sound 
 in his judicial decisions, and irreproachable in char- 
 acter. He is distinguished also for the large amount 
 of judicial business which he dispatches during his 
 term of court. During his long incumbency he has 
 added new lustre to the Monmouth Bench. (See 
 Biography). 
 
 Hon. Arthur A. Smith. In the fall of 1867, 
 Arthur A. Smith assumed the ermine, and is still one 
 of the Judges of this Circuit, residing at Galesburg. 
 He is a good sound lawyer, a man of strict integrity, 
 and during his long service has reflected credit upon 
 the legal profession. 
 
 Hon. George W. Pleasants was elected to this 
 Circuit in 1879, but seldom presides at Monmouth. 
 He is well read in his profession, a man of fine 
 ability, and is a good presiding officer, and conscien- 
 tious in the discharge of his judicial duties. 
 
 In 1877, this Circuit was changed from the Eighth 
 to the Tenth, the Eighth Circuit comprising Knox, 
 Warren and Henderson Counties was consolidated 
 with the Circuit North, consisting of the counties of 
 Mercer, Henry and Rock Island, and is now called 
 the Tenth Judicial District. There are three Judges 
 elected represented at present, as follows : Arthur 
 A. Smith, of Galesburg; John J. Glenn, of Mon- 
 mouth ; and George W. Pleasants, of Rock Island. 
 These Judges arrange their work usually so as to en- 
 able them to preside in their respective courrties. 
 
 State's Attorneys. 
 
 J. THOMAS FORD, was the first gen- 
 tleman to hold this position for this county, 
 and was in this office when the Indians 
 ^ were brought up for trial. He was a man of 
 "considerable learning, of noble manhood, strict 
 integrity, a good lawyer, and very prepossessing. 
 As a Prosecuting Attorney, he was thorough, forci- 
 ble, and very successful. He served until 1835, 
 when he was elected Judge four terms by the Legis- 
 lature, twice a Circuit Judge, once a Judge in Chi- 
 cago, and an Associated Justice of the Supreme 
 Court. He was assigned to the Ninth Judicial Dis- 
 
 trict, and while holding this office was nominated by 
 the Democrats for Governor, and elected by a large 
 majority. He died at Peoria, Nov. 2, 1850. 
 
 Hon. William A. Richardson succeeded Gov. Ford, 
 serving until 1837. He was a man of great moral 
 courage and strong will power. He was a good law- 
 yer and a successful Prosecuting Attorney. When 
 the Mexican War broke out he enlisted and was as- 
 signed to the command of a regiment, and served 
 with distinction. Returning home after the termin- 
 ation of the war, he received the nomination by the 
 Democrats for Congress, and was elected five times 
 serving until 1860. During the latter part of Presi- 
 dent Buchanan's term he was appointed Governor of 
 Nebraska, which position he resigned after a service 
 of a few months. 
 
 Hon. Henry L. Bryant, served from 1837 until 
 1839. He was a good lawyer and made a fair Pros- 
 ecuting Attorney. 
 
 Hon. William Elliott followed Mr. Bryant, serving 
 from 1839 to 1848. He was an excellent lawyer and 
 also a good fighter, serving with distinction in the 
 Black Hawk War, where he was wounded in a hand- 
 to-hand encounter with one of the red braves whom 
 he killed. He also served in the Mexican War. He 
 died soon after the close of this war, at his home in 
 Louisville. 
 
 Hon. R. S. Blackwell, from Rushville, filled the 
 office from 1848 to 1852, and was one of the most 
 brilliant and successful Prosecuting Attorneys that 
 ever presided in this Circuit. He was a splendid 
 criminal lawyer, a good advocate and very forcible 
 before a jury. He was also a thorough law student, 
 well versed in all the intricacies of the profession. 
 Subsequently he located in Chicago, where he prac- 
 ticed many years and distinguished himself before 
 the Chicago Bar. He was a lecturer at one time be- 
 fore one of the law colleges. He has been dead sev- 
 eral years. 
 
 Hon. H. G. Reynolds from Rock Island, was 
 Prosecuting Attorney from 1850 to 1854. He was a 
 good attorney and a successful prosecutor. He was 
 also an active man in all public enterprises and quite 
 a politician. While in this office he moved to Knox- 
 ville. After the expiration of his term, he moved to 
 Springfield, where at one time he was Grand Secre- 
 tary of the Masonic Order. From Springfield he 
 emigrated to Kansas. 
 
 
f 
 
 -3- 
 
 694 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Hon. William C. Gowdy succeeded Mr. Reynolds 
 from 1854 to 1855. Before assuming this office, he 
 had built up an extensive practice and had estab- 
 lished a fair reputation as a lawyer; also as a politi- 
 cian,being very active in the Democratic Conventions. 
 He moved to Chicago in 1859, where he is still en- 
 gaged in the profession. 
 
 Hon. A. M. Craig served from 1855 to '56. 
 
 James H. Stewart succeeded Mr. Craig, serving 
 about nine years. He was a good lawyer and a 
 careful and painstaking Prosecuting Attorney. There 
 were very few escaped punishment while he held the 
 office. His long service showed that he was appre- 
 ciated by the people he served. (See biography). 
 
 Hon. James A. McKinzie, of Galesburg, served 
 from 1864 to 1872, succeeding Mr. Stewart. He 
 made a good Prosecuting Attorney and filled the of- 
 fice with credit to himself and the people who elected 
 him. His specialty was in the criminal practice. 
 
 Hon. William Marshall succeeded Mr. McKinzie 
 serving four years and with marked ability. He 
 studied his cases well and was a good prosecutor. 
 
 Hon. George Snyder succeeded Mr. Marshall, 
 holding the office from 1876 to 1880, discharging his 
 duties in an able manner. 
 
 Hon. John W. Matthews, of Monmouth, the pres- 
 ent incumbent, entered upon the discharge of his 
 duties in 1880, and was re-elected in 1884. Mr. 
 Matthews is a good lawyer and is very zealous in his 
 application to the duties of the office. He has been 
 successful as a prosecutor and is very popular. He 
 is yet young and bids fair to achieve distinction in 
 the profession. (See biography, on page 357.) 
 
 Members of the Bar. 
 
 MONG the lawyers who have practiced at 
 the Monmouth Bar and who have died 
 TO or moved away, may be mentioned the fol- 
 lowing : O. H. Browning, of Quincy, 111., was 
 a fine orator and a good advocate, and proba- 
 bly one of the best land lawyers that ever 
 pleaded at this Bar. He was a member of the Leg- 
 
 islature several years and was also elected to a seat in 
 the United States Senate. His reputation as an at- 
 torney extended throughout the State. 
 
 Ivory Quinby was one of the first lawyers to locate 
 at Monmouth. He was also the first County Judge 
 under the act of 1849. Judge Quinby was a sound 
 lawyer and active in all matters that tended to de- 
 velop and improve the county, and was ever ready 
 to aid the deserving and needy. He died Oct. 23, 
 1869. (See biography, page 375.) 
 
 Julius Manning, who resided at Knoxville, was 
 one of the finest pleaders at this Bar. He was an 
 eloquent speaker and almost unrivaled before a jury. 
 He was very methodical in his work, was a close 
 student, and would never accept office, though he 
 took a deep interest in politics. He was a man of 
 social habits and fond of good society. He died July 
 4, 1862. 
 
 Cyrus Walker, from Macomb, practiced at this 
 Bar. He was a fine criminal lawyer and one of the 
 best that ever appeared before the Warren County 
 Bar. He died a few years ago. 
 
 J. H. Mitchell was an ornament to the profession. 
 He is reported to have been a man of extraordinary 
 memory and of remarkable character. He was a 
 fine counsellor and good in all branches of the pro- 
 fession. 
 
 A. C. Harding was one of the prominent members 
 of this Bar, and a very successful practitioner. He 
 had an extensive practice up to the time of his de- 
 mise. (See biography, page 541.) 
 
 Wyatt B. Stapp was for a long time a member of 
 this Bar and a good general lawyer and successful 
 practitioner. He took a prominent part in the pub- 
 lic affairs of the county and was a much esteemed 
 citizen. He died some years ago. 
 
 The Bar of Warren County is still ably represented 
 by J. W. Davidson, who is now the oldest represent- 
 ative of the profession in the county ; also by James 
 H. Stewart, an old timer ; and others, whose names 
 will be found in the biographical department of 
 this work. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 695 
 
 BOUNTY Commissioners' 
 Court, the April term, 1831. 
 It was ordered that propos- 
 als should be received and 
 contracts be entered into for 
 the building of aCourt House, 
 on plans to be furnished by 
 the Court. The plans were not intri- 
 cate, nor did they require in carrying 
 them out much architectural skill. A 
 marble or frescoed hall was not needed 
 in those days for the dispensation of 
 Justice. The building was to be 20 x 
 22 feet on the ground, 9 feet between 
 floors, and to be built of logs, hewn on 
 the outside and inside. The construction of this 
 building, within the walls of which Justice was to be 
 meted out to the people of Warren County, was let 
 at public venue to Francis Kendall, at $57. It was 
 located on Main Street, a little north of Garden 
 Street. This crude building served the purpose for 
 which it was erected for several years, and after it 
 was superseded by a new one was sold for $21, to 
 James Hodgin, September, 1835. 
 
 At the March term of the Court, in 1835, it was 
 decided to have a new Court House, and a commit- 
 tee of three was appointed to prepare plans for the 
 same. It was decided to have a frame building, the 
 dimensions of which were to be 20x30 feet on the 
 ground and one story and a half high. The contracts 
 were let separately, to different persons, the entire 
 cost to be $773. It was located on block 33, lots 5 
 and eight. Daniel McNeil, junior, was appointed to 
 superintend its construction. It was never fully 
 
 completed, and was only used about two years, or 
 only until another building was erected. In June, 
 1837, the County Commissioners made an order for 
 a new Court House, had plans and specifications 
 made, and closed the contract for its erection to 
 Cornelius Tunnicliff, for $8,998, who was the lowest 
 bidder. It was located in the Court-House block. 
 Tunnicliff, after commencing the work, drew $1,000 
 as his first installment, and then absconded. The 
 contract was turned over to his sureties, Daniel Mc- 
 Neil, Jr., Justus Woodworth, Mordica McBride and 
 George H. Wright, who completed the work. It was 
 received from their hands March 14, 1841, when 
 they were relieved from their bonds. This building 
 is still used by the county. Its dimensions are 40 
 x 50 feet, two stories high, with a stone foundation 
 and brick walls. A large vault has been added to 
 the building since it was completed, for the deposi- 
 tory of records. The building is inadequate to meet 
 the demands of the county and the advanced condi- 
 tion of the people ,and it is expected that in a few 
 years it will give place to a large, handsome and 
 modern structure. 
 
 County Jail. 
 
 N the 5th day of September, 1832, the 
 County Commissioners made an order ap- 
 propriating lot No. 15, Block 6, for the 
 purpose of having constructed upon it a 
 jail. Some crude plans were drawn containing 
 the size and material for the jail, and bids 
 called for. The construction was let to Jacob 
 
 were 
 
696 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Rust, the lowest bidder, for $300. It was completed 
 and accepted by the Commissioners, March 4, 1833, 
 and the Treasurer of the county was directed to pay 
 Mr. Rust the money. This jail was rather remarka- 
 ble for its construction, and its builder received much 
 praise for the ingennity of his work. It was thought 
 in those days that once a prisoner was inside its 
 walls, there was but one way for him to get out, and 
 that was through the door, with the aid of the jailer's 
 key. In the first place an excavation of two feet 
 was made in the ground, and floor laid at the bot- 
 tom. This floor was composed of two layers of hewn 
 logs, one foot square, one layer crossing the other. 
 The walls of the first floor were of the same thick- 
 ness, and constructed of the same material, the ends 
 of which were dove tailed into each other. The 
 upper story was built of one thickness of logs, closely 
 joined and fastened with bolts. In the center 
 was a heavy trap-door, which was secured by strong 
 iron hinges and a padlock. A substantial solid roof 
 
 (was built over this. A window 6x12 inches was 
 cut in the lower story, which was. crossed by iron 
 bars laid between the logs. A stairway led up from 
 the outside into the upper floor, through a heavy 
 oaken door. The prisoner was conducted through a 
 trap-door into the room below by a portable stairway, 
 which was drawn up after his descent. This jail, 
 though strong in its capacity for holding prisoners, 
 was not large enough to meet the demands of the 
 rapidly increasing population of the county, and on 
 March 22, 1839, the County Commissioners decided 
 to build a new one. Specifications and plans were 
 made out and submitted, and the contract was let 
 to the lowest bidders, Messrs. Woodworth & Mer- 
 rill, July 19, 1839, f r $8,495- I' was built on lot 6, 
 block 10, and was completed and accepted by the 
 County Commissioners, March 27, 1841. The foun- 
 dation was of stone, and the superstructure of brick. 
 It was two stories high, containing four cells and two 
 dungeons, and for those days was regarded as a good 
 building for jail purposes. At the December term, 
 1856, of the Board of Supervisors, the jail question 
 was again brought up. The building upon which 
 so much money had been expended had not proved 
 satisfactory as it was expected. A committee was 
 appointed to investigate the matter, who reported the 
 nsuflficien cy of the jail facilities, and the inferior 
 structure of the building, but stated also that the 
 county finances would not warrant the building of a 
 
 new one. At a subsequent meeting of the Board of 
 Supervisors another committee was appointed to in- 
 vestigate the jail matter, and vested with the power 
 to sell the old jail. It was decided at this time to 
 repair and enlarge the jail. This was done at an ex- 
 pense of something over $2,000. The great increase 
 of population in the county, of latter years, brought 
 with it also an increase in the criminal list. With 
 the advancement of civilization and science, came 
 also an advancement in the skill and devices of the 
 burglar and jail breaker, and a new, larger and safer 
 place for the confinement of criminals was demanded. 
 At the June term of 1882, the Board of Supervisors 
 appointed a committee, consisting of C. A. Dunn, 
 J. T. Hartman and T. A. Dilley, to examine into 
 the matter of construction of the new jail, and to 
 devise plans for the same. They were also empow- 
 ered to visit other counties, if necessrry, in order to 
 post themselves in regard to the construction of 
 places of confinement. The committee received 
 specifications and plans from P. J. Pauly & Bro., of 
 St. Louis, among others, which they upon examina- 
 tion found to be advisable, and reported that they be 
 adopted. The committee was further authorized to 
 investigate the matter, to receive bids and to re- 
 port at the next meeting of the Board, December 
 term. 
 
 P. J. Pauly & Bro.'s proposition was to put in the 
 steel cell work for $12,500, or to build the jail com- 
 plete for $25,000. The committee made the report 
 at the December term, recommending tne adoption 
 of the Pauly proposition, so far, at least, as the cell 
 work. This report was accepted by the Board, and 
 the committee were authorized to contract with Pauly 
 & Bro., according to the plans, specifications and 
 propositions submitted by them, providing the cost 
 did not exceed $25,000. 
 
 The site selected for the jail was the north part 
 of the Court House block. The committee finally 
 closed the contract with William F. Hayden for the 
 construction of the jail complete for $12,437, and 
 with P. J. Pauly & Bio. for the cell work, at $12,500. 
 The building was completed in the fall of 1883, and 
 was accepted by the Board of Supervisors. 
 
 The foundation of the entire building is of stone; 
 the walls of the superstructure of brick, trimmed 
 with stone. In front is the Sheriffs residence, which 
 is two stories high, with a hall extending through the 
 center. There are four rooms below and four rooms 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 697 
 
 above, and all are well finished. Opening from the 
 residence part is a large vestibule, at one side of which 
 there are four cells, two below and two above, for 
 female prisoners or for the insane. From the vesti- 
 bule you enter the jail proper. In this there are six 
 cells, 7x11 feet, three on the first floor and three on 
 the second, with bathrooms at the end. Around 
 these cells is a corrider. In front of them is a hall 
 for the prisoners to walk. The whole is constructed 
 of iron and chilled steel, upon the Pauly patent sys- 
 tem. Canvas hammocks are furnished for the pris- 
 oners, which are attached to the sides of the cells 
 by strong iron hooks. The jail is light, airy and well 
 ventilated. It is warm in winter, and cool in sum- 
 mer. The entire building is heated by steam, and 
 was occupied Oct. 12, 1883. 
 
 In the spring of 1884, the old jail, the second one 
 built in the county, was sold to Andrew Hickman for 
 $125. The first jail built in the county was sold to 
 C. L. Woodworth in June, 1840, for $62. 50. 
 
 County Poor Farm. 
 
 [T the June term of the County Court, 1853, 
 a petition was presented by A. C. Harding, 
 signed by many of the citizens of the 
 county, praying that the Court purchase lands 
 and establish a farm for the poor of the county. 
 This petition was favorably received and in 
 relation thereto the Court made the following order: 
 "And it is now ordered by the Court, that proposi- 
 tions be received until the first Monday in Septem- 
 ber next, for the sale to the county of Warren of one 
 quarter section or more of land, either improved or 
 unimproved, to be used as a County Poor-house 
 Farm, and the Clerk is ordered to advertise for pro- 
 posals for six successive weeks .in the Monmouth 
 Atlas" Nothing was further done until Dec. 10, 
 1856, when the Board of Supervisors appointed from 
 its members Messrs. Bond, Brownlee and Lewis, a 
 committee, who were authorized to purchase a suit- 
 able piece of ground for the farm. 
 
 Another order was made at the June term. 1857, 
 in the same direction, and Messrs. Norcross, Brown 
 and Phelps were appointed a committee, with au- 
 
 thority to purchase land for a poor-farm. At the 
 September term, the committee on purchase reported 
 that they had purchased 120 acres of land located 
 on sections 29 and 30, township 10 north of range 2 
 west, for which they had agreed to pay $3,360. This 
 report was accepted. In December the Board set 
 aside $1,000 toward the building of a poor-house, 
 and appointed Albert Mitchell superintendent of its 
 construction. 
 
 In March, 1858, $r,ooo more were appropriated 
 toward the completion of the building, and Mr. 
 Mitchell appointed Overseer of the Poor-farm for 
 one year. In June following an additional $r,ooo was 
 appropriated by the Board for the building, which 
 was completed by fall and ready for occupancy. 
 
 The land here is rich and productive and has 
 been put under good cultivation. It is located about 
 five miles south of Monmouth on 'the county road. 
 The farm house is a long, low, story and a half frame 
 building, about 45 feet long and 16 feet wide. The 
 insane building stands in the rear of the main de- 1 
 partment about 20 feet. It is a small, story and a 
 half frame building, containing six cells, four above ! 
 and two below, with a small passage-way. Back of 
 this building is a pen, enclosed by a high board 
 fence, for the use of the insane during the daytime 
 when desirable. In the main building, on the fam- 
 ily side, there is a parlor, sitting-room, two bedrooms, 
 a kitchen and pantry. On the inmate side, a sitting- 
 room, kitchen and two bedrooms. The second floor 
 contains eight bedrooms. The building is poor, old 
 a/id shaky, and in the winter time especially it must 
 of necessity be poorly ventilated. For a county hav- 
 ing the wealth, culture and civilization that is 
 claimed by this county, and which it really has v we 
 are constrained to say that the County Poor-farm 
 building is not at all a creditable one. The inmates, 
 however, are well and kindly treated and say they 
 are well fed. They speak in praise of the family 
 who have charge of them. There were 27 inmates 
 last summer at the farm, 12 males and 15 females, 
 several of whom were not rational. Most of them 
 were quite old and feeble. One of the insane in- 
 mates has been here 20 years. The farm has a 
 good large barn, which is the best part of the im- 
 provements. It is well fenced with hedges and rails 
 and is well cultivated. They milk. four, cows and. 
 are raising about 50 pigs, 
 
6 9 8 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 LAVERY was undoubtedly the 
 prime cause of the Rebellion 
 and tr.ost of the dissension pre- 
 ceding it. Consequently, as a 
 suitable preface to the Warre.i 
 County war record, a very brief 
 recital of the events and imme- 
 diate causes leading to and culmi- 
 nating in the late Civil War, are 
 necessary. The introduction of slav- 
 ery into this country followed the 
 first settlements. It grew with the 
 Colonial development and became an 
 important factor in its government. 
 Almost from the first, its poisonous 
 fangs were fastened on the political 
 fabric, and clung there with the ten- 
 acity of death's grip, and it is not at all to be won- 
 dered at. Slavery had its peculiar fascinations ; it 
 appealed to the indolence and cupidity of the peo- 
 ple. Then as now, a large percentage of mankind 
 preferred to live by other men's labors than by the 
 sweat of their own brow. It is safe to say that in all 
 ages and climes mankind does not materially differ. 
 An axiom stated to-day without fear of contradic- 
 tion, could with the same degree of assurance have 
 been proclaimed when Solomon reigned in all his 
 glory. 
 
 The great cardinal mistake made by the founders 
 
 of this Government was when they had, by a long 
 and terrible war, released themselves from the 
 bondage of Great Britain, to establish a Government 
 for themselves and their posterity, the very corner- 
 stone of which they in turn violated by the en- 
 slavement of another race. While this was done, 
 these patriots of the Revolution, these founders of 
 the greatest Government the world has ever known, 
 gave immortality to their convictions in the declara- 
 tion "That all men were created equal, with certain 
 inalienable rights, among which were life, liberty and 
 the pursuit of happiness." 
 
 It was expected, however, by the founders of the 
 Government, many of whom held slaves, that the 
 institution of slavery would gradually fade away and 
 finally cease to exist. The contrary to this, however, 
 was the result. Encroachments after encroach- 
 ments were made by the slave power, until it vir- 
 tually had possession of the Government. For 
 nearly half a century it was the dominant power in 
 the politics of our country. Not satisfied with slavery 
 in the cotton and sugar growing States of the South, 
 its advocates wanted it to extend its territory. 
 
 Some of the greatest minds, the brightest statemen 
 in the country and as great and bright as were ever 
 produced in any country in endeavoring to placate 
 this power, hoping thereby to prevent disruption, be- 
 came the victims of its deadly power, and were brought 
 to untimely political death, while this car of Jug- 
 
 ' 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 699 
 
 gernaut rolled triumphantly over their political 
 graves. 
 
 The Missouri Compromise was made, then came 
 the Kansas-Nebraska bill with its agitation and strug- 
 gle over the right to introduce slavery into the Terri- 
 tories, and then the Fugitive-Slave Law. 
 
 In 1856 the Whig party broke up, and its members, 
 with a portion of the Democrats, formed a new 
 party, known throughout the world since as the Re- 
 publican party. This was the initiatory movement 
 which presaged the downfall of the slave power. A 
 Presidential campaign was made this year by the 
 new party, but it was defeated. In 1860 it made an- 
 other campaign and won, with Abraham Lincoln at 
 the head. 
 
 The South, believing that in the Union they had 
 lost their political power forever, yet knowing (the 
 political leaders at least) that the Government under 
 any party could not interfere with slavery where it 
 already existed, nevertheless set up this false issue 
 and consummated the secession of the Southern 
 States on the strength of it, proclaiming to their de- 
 luded followers that the Government, Abraham Lin- 
 coln at least, would take their slaves from them. 
 
 Before the inauguration of the new administration 
 most of the Slave States had seceded ; the United 
 "States Mint, the forts and the arsenals had been 
 seized and the American flag had been torn down, 
 and soon after the inauguration of President Lincoln, 
 April 12, 1861, they opened fire on Fort Sumter and 
 demanded of its commander, Maj. Anderson, its sur- 
 render. Had the incumbent of the White House 
 been a man of firmness and patriotism, had he even 
 been a shadow of that sterling patriot and President, 
 Andrew Jackson, these outrages to the country would 
 never have been committed, nor secession allowed, 
 and the war that followed would have been averted. 
 But President Buchanan was weak, imbecile, and in 
 the hands of the Southern leaders. He held that he 
 had no power to prevent secession and protect the 
 forts and property of the Government in other 
 words, that the Government was powerless for its 
 own preservation. 
 
 The firing on Fort Sumter sent a thrill of indigna- 
 tion through the entire North, and through every pa- 
 triotic heart in the country. A new President was 
 now at the head of the Government, and a man in 
 whom the Nation had confidence. There was no 
 
 law authorizing the President to raise an army, and 
 Congress had as yet passed no bill investing him 
 with the authority to call for troops ; but President 
 Lincoln believed that a Government had within it- 
 self the power of self-preservation. Upon this 
 belief, with his great, patriotic heart, he acted. A 
 call was made for 75,000 volunteers to protect the 
 Government. This call was made on the i6th of 
 April, 1861. Gov. Yates responded, issuing a call 
 on Illinois for her quota. It was met with great en- 
 thusiasm. Within two weeks Illinois had over dou- 
 ble her quota enlisted and in camps. The people 
 had confidence in " Honest Abe," as he was affec- 
 tionately called, and also in their brilliant and noble 
 Governor, Richard Yates; and so it was throughout 
 the entire Northern states. Volunteers poured into 
 the camps from every department of life; from the 
 farm, the manufactories, the offices, the bar, the 
 bench, the pulpit and the school room. Political 
 differences were obliterated; angry words that had 
 been given in that heated and memorable canvass 
 but a few short months before, were forgiven; party 
 distinctions vanished as mist before the morning suni 
 and party platforms were swept as a morning dream 
 from the minds of men. All were joined with one 
 common bond of sympathy and united in one effort, 
 the saving of the.American Union. yC 
 
 The writer was at Camp Yates by the first ot May, 
 enrolled for the cause. The camp was then nearly 
 full, and it was by strategy that his company got 
 inside, and when in it was near being expelled. Vol- 
 unteers continued to pour in from all parts of the 
 State, but there was no longer any room in the camp, 
 and arrangements were made outside for some. 
 Word was sent out all over the State ordering volun- 
 teers to stay at home, but still they came. One full 
 company of as fine looking men as ever carried 
 arms, well dressed, uniformed and thoroughly equip- 
 ped with arms, arrived. They were told there was 
 no place for them, that the State did not want them, 
 and that they could not be used or provided for. 
 They were so well uniformed the only volunteers 
 then out of a camp of 10,000 that had any other 
 dress than the one they wore at home so noble 
 looking, so patriotic and so importunate in their en- 
 treaties to be let in, that the gates were thrown open 
 and they were admitted. They spent the day in 
 camp mingling with the boys, the raw recruits, and 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 were happy, poor fellows, until their fate was made 
 known to them. 
 
 Just before night they were told that the Govern- 
 ment did not need them, could not place them, and 
 that they must go home. A cloud of sadness over- 
 spread their brave countenances as they turned and 
 walked slowly away to where their arms were stacked. 
 They were brought up in double line facing the out- 
 ward gate, and the order to march' was given. It 
 was a solemn and palhetic scene, and one not to be 
 forgotten. The evening was calm and clear; the 
 sun had just gone down beyond the western horizon, 
 throwing back its mellow rays upon the crowded 
 camp. A long open line was made for the company 
 to pass out, which was densely packed each side, 
 and far back to the rear. These patriots who had 
 left the sacred home, and all the ties so dear, to give 
 their life's blood for their 'country, marched slowly 
 out with great tears coursing down their cheeks. All 
 heads were uncovered as they passed by, and many 
 were the tears that were dropped by those they left 
 behind. 
 
 It was but a short time, however, before they were 
 wanted; another call for volunteers was soon made. 
 The members of this company undoubtedly all re- 
 sponded, and many of them probably breathed their 
 last on the battle field. Such is war. 
 
 The third call, July, 1861, was for 500,000 men, 
 and for a period of three years. After this, call suc- 
 ceeded call, until the grand total reached the enor- 
 mous figures of 3.339,748. Of this number, Illinois 
 furnished altogether about 290,000 men, of which 
 Warren County is credited with 2,277. So gener- 
 ously did Illinois respond in sending out volunteers, 
 without stopping to figure, that her quota was found 
 to be largely in excess of any other State. When 
 President Lincoln's attention was called to this fact, 
 he replied : " The country needs the sacrifice; we 
 must put the whip on the free horse." While all the 
 States did well, Illinois more especially distinguished 
 herself by the number and quality of her service. 
 
 Aside from furnishing the President, who was Com- 
 mander-in-chief of the army, she gave to the country 
 that foremost captain of the world, Ulysses S. Grant, 
 whose recent death has left a mourning Nation. She 
 also gave to the service that distinguished General, 
 John A. Logan, who now represents her in the Uni- 
 ted States Senate. Tne soldiers brought home with 
 
 them 300 battle~flags, the product of their numerous 
 victories. The first flag that waved in triumph over 
 Richmond after the surrender was an Illinois flag, 
 which was there unfurled to the Southern breeze by 
 Illinois soldiers. 
 
 During the dark days of the struggle, when re- 
 verses met our army, when apparently there seemed 
 to be no ground to rest our hopes upon, when ominous 
 clouds hung over the face of the Republic, when the 
 hearts of the patriots grew sick with dispair, they 
 would turn to that great President and to that great 
 Captain and say, with a just cause, and with them at 
 the head of the Government, backed by the brave 
 and patriotic soldiers in the field, " we cannot but 
 win, we cannot fail in our efforts to preserve the Na- 
 tion. " 
 
 Illinois had, also, to keep her inspired with hope, 
 the noble Yates, the great war Governor, who with a 
 father's care looked after the wants of the soldiers 
 from his State, and gave his whole attention to the 
 cause. 
 
 This struggle brought out the true greatness of the 
 American people and produced some of the greatest 
 men of history. The great wisdom, practical and 
 far-seeing statesmanship, the radiant virtues, the 
 Christian-like character of Lincoln made him the 
 wonder of the civilized world. No less known and 
 distinguished was the modest, silent, patriot-soldier, 
 Ulysses S. Grant, who, after the surrender of the 
 greatest rebellion the world ever beheld, gave the 
 most noble exhibition of Christian charity, by refus- 
 ing to march with his army into the captured city, 
 that the brave soldiers and people, who had so long 
 resisted his forces and defied the power of his mili- 
 tary genius, might not be humiliated ; that they 
 might return to peaceful pursuits with spirits unbro- 
 ken. No less immortal was that act, which breathed 
 a sentiment very close to the Divine heart, " let the 
 soldiers have their horses, they will need them for 
 making their crops. " 
 
 Warren County w;is among the first to respond to 
 the call for troops. No cpunty in the State did bet- 
 ter or responded more nobly, either in furnishing 
 soldiers or means to defray the expenses of the war. 
 Such was the patriotism and enthusiasm with which 
 they responded to the call of the Government, that 
 when the last draft was ordered, there was hardly a 
 man in the county subject to its provision. 
 
WARREN COUNTY, 
 
 701 
 
 
 
 For the Infantry rervice there went forth from this 
 county, in the 83d regiment, 630 volunteers ; in the 
 138111 regiment, 222 ; in the 1026 regiment, 107 ; in 
 the I4th regiment, 42 ; in the 47th, 78: in the i7th, 
 124; in the 36th, 16; in the 6rst, 73 ; in the 15 th, 
 106; in the 59th, 67 ; in the jSth, 23 ; miscellane- 
 ous, 128. In the Cavalry Service, the enlistment was 
 as follows: First Cavalry, 165 ; Eleventh Cavalry, 
 185 ; Twelfth Cavalry, 66; Ninth Cavalry, 17 ; Sev- 
 enth, 23 ; miscellaneous, 59. 
 
 The 83d Regiment of Infantry was made up 
 mostly of volunteers from Warren County, and was 
 organized from Monmouth, in August, 1862, A. C. 
 Harding being elected Colonel. It was mustered 
 into service Aug. 2ist, arrived at Cairo the 2gth and 
 reported to Brigadier-General Tuttle, who com- 
 manded the post there. About the sth of Septem- 
 ber, the regiment arrived at Fort Henry, where it 
 was divided up, a part remaining there and at Fort 
 Heiman, the balance moving to Fort Donelson, 
 where they had their headquarters during the year. 
 The companies left at Forts Henry and Heiman sub- 
 sequently re-joined the regiment at Fort Donelson, 
 where it remained until Sept. 20, 1863, and then 
 moved to Clarkson, Tenn. Here it had almost daily 
 skirmishes with the enemy, some of them being al- 
 most engagements, and also had very heavy guard 
 duty to perform. It was engaged in several expedi- 
 tions, under the command of Maj. -General Rosseau, 
 in pursuit of Gens. Forrest and Wheeler, who were 
 trying to cut off Gen. Sherman's communications. 
 
 This regiment, with Co. C, Second Illinois Light Ar- 
 tillery, successfully resisted the attack of Forrest and 
 Wheeler to re-capture Fort Donelson. The engage- 
 ment lasted about seven hours, when Forrest and 
 Wheeler were compelled to retire, with a loss of 800 
 killed and wounded, while there were only 13 killed 
 and 51 wounded of the Union forces. For this gal- 
 lar.t defense of the fort, Col. Harding was promoted 
 to Brigadier-General, and Lieutenant-Colonel A. A. 
 bmith to Colonel. (See biography of Gen. Harding, 
 page 541-) 
 
 In 1864 this regiment was largely engaged in the 
 defense of extensive communications and heavy 
 patrol duty. In the ever-memorable winter of 1864- 
 5, it was on provost duty at Nashville, where it was 
 mustered out, after the surrender of the rebels, June 
 26, 1865. 
 
 The 138111 regiment was organized in Quincy, 111., 
 by Col. John W. Goodwin, and was mustered in for 
 100 days service, June 21, 1864. On July 26, it was 
 assigned to duty at Fort Leavenworth, Kans., Col. 
 Goodwin commanding. It was mustered out of ser- 
 vice at Springfield, Oct. 14, 1864. 
 
 The volunteers from Warren County, in these as 
 well as in the other regiments, served with distinc- 
 tion during the war on various battle-fields, where 
 many of them gave up their lives to perpetuate the 
 JJnion. 
 
 yfhe glorious triumph of the cause of the Union 
 "was darkened by the tragic death of President Lin- 
 coln, who was stricken down by the bloody hand of 
 the assassin, Booth, April 14, 1865. But in the 
 midst of this great sorrow and that caused by the 
 sacrifice made for liberty on a thousand battle-fields, 
 with mourning hearts at every fireside, the Nation 
 began the work of cementing together, closer than 
 ever, the bonds of union. How well this work has 
 been performed is evident by the close commercial 
 relations between the two sections of the country, 
 by the interchange of the social courtesies, by the 
 reunions of the " boys in blue " with the " boys in 
 gray," and by friendly discussions over the reminis- 
 cences of the " tented field." 
 
 Warren County, like all the other counties in the 
 United States, mourns its friends and kindred, who 
 rest in soldier's graves ; around its firesides there are 
 many vacant seats. The absent ones, though years 
 have rolled away, are not forgotten. The same con- 
 dition of things exists in the^outh. Time has soft- 
 ened if, not obliterated, the bitterness engendered by 
 the war; the two sections have mingled their sor- 
 rows together, and the great conflict is rerne,mbered 
 only as a lesson for our future guidance. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 WARREN COUNTY LIBRARY, 
 
 of the most beneficial in- 
 stitutions of the county is 
 the Warren County Library, 
 located at Monmouth, and 
 which deserves more than a 
 brief mention. There were 
 several attempts made, from time to 
 time, by Church societies, and by citi- 
 zens to establish a public library, but 
 there was nothing done by them more 
 than to secure a reading room until 
 W. P. Pressly, one of Monmouth's 
 benefactors took hold of the enter- 
 prise and made it a success. The 
 following is a brief account of the ori- 
 gin of the library. The need for a public reading 
 room, well supplied with books had been long felt, 
 and in 1867, an effort was made to raise funds for 
 this purpose through the meeting of a joint stock 
 company, which was a failure. During the follow- 
 ing year, the Evangelical Union, composed of repre- 
 sentatives from the different churches of Monmouth, 
 took hold of the matter. After consultation with 
 the citizens of the town, it was determined to have 
 an organization independent of the union, which 
 was done by 25 persons becoming responsible for 
 the means to sustain a reading room for two years. 
 Judge Ivory Quinby took a prominent part in this 
 matter. He drew up articles of association and by- 
 laws, and furnished a room, rent free, for two years. 
 During this period it was demonstrated that a pub- 
 
 lic library would be an institution of great useful- 
 ness and one which would be extensively patronized. 
 A reading room was supplied with papers and pop- 
 ular periodicals, and on the ist day of June, 1868,' 
 it was opened as the Monmouth Rending Room and 
 Library. As there were no funds for the purchase 
 of any books, none were obtained. The reading"' 
 room, however, was constantly visited by the young 
 and the old, and the papers and periodicals were 
 eagerly looked for and zealously read. During this J 
 time a citizen of Monmouth was quietly but earn- 
 estly watching the result of this first step in a public 
 library direction to determine its usefulness, and to 
 see to what extent a larger institution would be ap- 
 preciated and patronized, and the proportionate 
 benefits that would accrue; a citizen who believed 
 that money was placed in the hands of man for 
 other and more noble purposes than to hoard and 
 pile up in combination time-lock vaults, or increase 
 his acreage. This citizen was Mr. VV. P. Pressly. 
 In 1870 he erected a two-story brick building 42 x;s 
 feet, and donated it to the association for a public 
 library and reading room. The provisions of the 
 donation were that the upper floor should be used 
 for a library hall and reading room, and the store 
 rooms on the first floor to be rented, the proceeds 
 thereof to be used in purchasing books. He also 
 expressed a wish that the Constitution and By-Laws 
 should be changed so as to benefit the country as 
 well as the city. After this action of Mr. Pressly, 
 the association was incorporated as the " Warren 
 County Library and Reading Room Association." 
 
 ix; 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 703 
 
 Subsequently the Board of Supervisors passed an 
 order granting " all the rents, profits and issues 
 hereafter accruing from the Seminary Block;" and 
 reserving the privilege by provision in the constitu- 
 tion of the association to appoint one of the trustees. 
 It was provided that the proceeds from this county 
 grant should go to the purchase of books in the de- 
 partment of agriculture and practical arts. The 
 system of extending the library was successful and 
 highly beneficial. As it was started by its founder 
 for the use and benefit of all classes of people, both 
 in the town and country, so it has been patronized 
 and sustained by all. 
 
 Since the foundation of the Library, generous do- 
 nations have been made from some of the citizens, 
 prominent among whom was the lamented and noble 
 William Laferty. The founder has never ceased to 
 remember his pel project, but has from time to time 
 increased his benefactions. To meet the demands 
 of the large additions and the increasing patronage, 
 Mr. Pressly, in 1884, built an addition to the hall, 
 22x60, two stories high, constructed of brick and 
 connecting with the former building on the west. 
 This gives a capacity for 20,000 volumes without en- 
 cioaching on the Reading Room. During this year 
 (1X85) a generous citizen who desired his name not 
 to be known, increased the endowment fund by a 
 donation of $5 ,000. Mr. Pressly also added another 
 source of revenue to the Association by the donation 
 of a fine dwelling house in the rear of the building 
 facing the opposite house, the rents of which are 
 used for the benefit of the Association. 
 
 The selection of reading matter is entrusted to a 
 
 committee. A cataloguing committee is also one of 
 the features of the institution, and a very excellent 
 system has been adopted. 
 
 A small charge is made for books which are taken 
 out of the Library. 
 
 The endowment fund now amounts to over 
 $13,000, which is loaned out at 8 per cent. The 
 contents of the Library may be summed up as fol- 
 lows : Books loaned for house use, 11,988; used in 
 room, per Librarian, 9,587 ; magazines loaned out, 
 i ,985 ; reference books used from the open book- 
 cases, 8,000. In addition there are n daily papers, 
 55 weeklies, 2 semi-weeklies, 76 monthlies and quar- 
 terlies. 
 
 The average daily attendance at the reading room 
 is estimated at 162. The reading room is well furn- 
 ished, large and well lighted. Great care has been 
 taken since its foundation in the purchase of books, 
 the result of which has been that this Association 
 has an exceedingly well-selected library, the credit 
 of which is largely due to Prof. Thomas H. 
 Rogers. 
 
 Too much praise cannot be given to the founder ~ 
 of this Library, who has given it may be truly said, I 
 his all to this institution, and some missionary work. 
 In order that he might increase his fund for benefi- J 
 cent purposes, he has deprived himself not only of 
 the luxuries, but the actual comforts of life. With 
 the snows of three score and ten winters whitening 
 his head, he is still toiling on, still saving and labor- 
 ing, that he may have more to give, and more with 
 which to bless. 
 
1 04 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 A] LROADS. 
 
 AILROADS have now become 
 necessary adjuncts to the 
 development of a country, and 
 no community of any propor- 
 tions is content to exist withoui 
 them. The State, through its 
 Legislature, was very mag- 
 nanimous in its support and 
 donations to railroad enterprises, the 
 result of which is that Illinois is 
 more thoroughly connected with 
 railroad lines than any other State in 
 the Union. The people of Warren 
 County have ever been exceptionally 
 generous in their donations to rail- 
 road enterprises,as the followingfacts 
 will show. In Warren County there are really now but 
 two lines, the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, and the 
 Central Iowa. 
 
 Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. 
 
 HE first railroad meeting in this county 
 was held in Monmouth, the 27th day of 
 Februry, 1851. At this meeting J. W. Da- 
 vidson, A. C. Harding, W. B. Stapp and 
 James G. Madden were appointed a Commit- 
 tee to wait on the County Court asking for a 
 call for a special election, to vote for or against the 
 county of Warren subscribing $50,000, to be ex- 
 
 pended on the construction of the Peoria & Oquawka 
 Railroad, with a lateral branch to Burlington. The 
 matter was presented to the County Court, which re- , 
 suited in the following order being made: The 
 County Court now being sufficiently advised in re- I 
 gard to the premises, it is ordered that an election^ 
 be held on the izth day of April next, at the usual f 
 places of voting for the voters of Warren County, to 1 
 vote for or against the subscription of said county of j 
 $50,000 of the capital stock in the Peoria & Oquawka 
 Railroad, the bonds to be issued for said stock to run 
 20 years from their date, at 7 per cent, interest, paya- 
 ble annually ; and the clerk is ordered to issue elec- 
 tion notices in accordance with this order." 
 
 The election having been favorable to the stock 
 subscription, to the Peoria & Oquawka Railroad, the 
 County Court, at the September term, made an order 
 authorizing Ivory Quinby to subscribe for Warren 
 County $50,000 of the capital stock of said road, so 
 soon as the company shall have had subscribed to 
 its capital stock $450,000. Ivory Quinby, who was the 
 Presiding Justice, upon examination found that the 
 $450,000 had been subscribed, and thereupon, in 
 accordance with his instructions, subscribed for the 
 County of Warren, $50,000 of the capital stock of 
 the company. 
 
 This was the beginning of railroad enterprises in 
 this county, and the starting of the Peoria & 
 Oquawka Railroad. The ideas of railroads was at 
 this time somewhat limited. Col. Davidson drew 
 up a charter for this road, and presented it to one of 
 
WARREN COUA7 Y. 
 
 7S 
 
 the leading members of the Legislature, to be placed 
 before that body for its approval. This member 
 asked him if he ever expected to build a railroad 80 
 miles long. The Colonel replied, "Give us the char- 
 ter, and I will build the road." The charter was 
 granted, and subsequently the road was built. The 
 people of Oquawka refused to subscribe or aid the 
 enterprise, but the people of Burlington came for- 
 ward with the necessary aid,, and the route was 
 changed to that place, and Oquawka was left out in 
 the cold. 
 
 Railroads were not built in those days as rapidly 
 as now. On March 5, 1855, the last rail was laid 
 and the first passenger train came to Monmouth 
 from the West. The side track at the depot had not 
 been completed, so as to allow the passenger train to 
 pass the construction train. The passengers were 
 taken on board the latter and carried on to Gales- 
 burg. Next morning on its return from Galesburg 
 it was saluted from an old brass field piece which had 
 been takes from the walls of Vera Cruz during the 
 Mexican War. This field piece was handled by 
 Capt. Wyatt B. Stapp. After the salutes were given, 
 the train moved on toward the great " father of 
 waters." This was probably the most important 
 event to the people of the county, since its organi- 
 zation. 
 
 The Northern Cross Ry. Co. had about this time 
 completed their track to Galesburg. It secured the 
 privilege of running its trains over the Peoria & 
 Oquawka R. R. to Burlington. 
 
 About 1856, the Chicago & Aurora, the Northern 
 Cross, the Peoria & Oquawka and the Central Mili- 
 tary Tract Companies were all consolidated under 
 the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Com- 
 pany. This name was derived from the terminal 
 points. J. W. Brooks was elected President of the 
 new road. This road opened up one of the most 
 magnificent sections of the United States, known as 
 the Military Tract, the northern line of which passed 
 through the middle of Henry County. Upon the 
 building of this road settlers began to pour in, and 
 within five or six years every quarter-section of land 
 was taken, and to-day it is one of the highest culti- 
 vated sections in the country. 
 
 It was thought at first that this road would hardly 
 pay. Before the completion of the road the tri- 
 weekly stage line to Peoria carried all the traveling 
 
 people and the coaches were seldom more than half 
 full. Not long after the completion of the road, 
 however, it crowded the company to do all the freight 
 business brought to Monmouth for shipping. 
 
 Louis Division, C. B. & Q. R. B. 
 
 N 1856, another railroad project was pre- 
 sented to the county for its support. This 
 was the Alton & Rock Island Road. A 
 proposition to subscribe to the capital stock of 
 this enterprise, $100,000, was voted on and 
 carried, and the Board of Supervisors at their 
 December term subscribed that amount. Nothing, 
 however, came of this project. The provisions were 
 that the road should come through Monmouth. 
 
 Warren County was very liberal in aiding railroad 
 projects. The next railroad scheme presented to them 
 for aid, was the Rockford, Rock Island & St. Louis 
 road. At a special meeting in August, 1869, the 
 Board of Supervisors decided to submit the question 
 of the county subscribing $200,000 to the capital 
 stock of the Rock Island road. An election was or- 
 dered for September 23, 1869. On the question of 
 subscription to the capital stock of this road, there 
 were 1,775 votes cast for, and 975 against. Having 
 received the support of the people, the stock was 
 duly taken ; the condition was that it should pass 
 through Monmouth. David Turnbull, one of the 
 members of the Board from Hale, was appointed 
 agent of the County to subscribe to the stock, for 
 which bonds of the company were issued running 
 20 years and bearing eight percent, interest. Besides 
 the $200,000 subscribed by the county, the several 
 townships contributed their aid, their subscription 
 amounting to $84,000. 
 
 The bonds of the county still outstanding to rail- 
 roads amount to $171,000. 
 
 The first passenger train of this road was run into 
 Monmouth, the 22d day of August, 1870, making the 
 connection through to St. Louis. A large gathering 
 was at the depot to welcome it, and a salute fron the 
 old Mexican field piece was given. There was no 
 celebration or excitement ; it was received as one of 
 the matter-of-course events of the day. This road 
 was completed through to Rock Island Nov. IT, 
 
 - ' 
 
7 o6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1870. The remainder of its line it was never able 
 to complete. This road was sold under a foreclosure 
 of mortgage to the St. Louis, Rock Island & Chicago 
 Railroad Company, which was incorporated April 21, 
 1876. It was soon afterward leased by the Chicago, 
 Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company, who now 
 operate it as its St. Louis Division. This road was 
 sold for $1,600,000, and it is said that it cost $11,- 
 000,000. The bond holders, who live in Germany, 
 were the losers of about six-sevenths of their invest- 
 ment. 
 
 Central Iowa Railway Company. 
 
 j| NE of the most important enterprises for 
 
 "^ k Warren County of late years, is the above 
 named railroad. The more important and 
 creditable to the county in this, that the en- 
 terprise owes its conception and completion to 
 the indomitable energy, nerve and will of two 
 of Monmoulh's worthy citizens, Delos P. Phelps and 
 William Hanna. 
 
 The construction of this road at the time, with all 
 the other lines in full operation and backed by an 
 almost inexhaustible capital, was no holiday task, 
 and one that few men would have the courage and 
 nerve to undertake. 
 
 In 1875, a company was organized at Monmouth, 
 called the Burlington, Monmouth & Illinois River 
 Railroad Company, the object of which was to con- 
 struct a narrow gauge road, with a view of compet- 
 ing with the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad 
 for the Warren County traffic. 
 
 Some few subscriptions were obtained, but not 
 enough to warrant the breaking of ground. A small 
 amount of grading was done in 1878. In 1879, 
 Messrs. Hanna and Phelps were placed upon the 
 Executive Committee, and immediately went to 
 Peoria for the purpose of soliciting subscriptions, 
 and to concentrate all their efforts to secure the grad- 
 ing of the road as far west as possible. They also 
 assumed the responsibility of buying up the. old 
 grade and franchises of the Peoria & Farmington 
 Railroad Company, and changing the enterprise from 
 a narrow to a standard gauge line. They let contracts 
 
 upon the faith of subscriptions made, which in many 
 instances were not honored, and they found them- 
 selves involved to the amount of about $40,000. At 
 this critical period they offered to donate their per- 
 sonal subscriptions, and all they had done, to any 
 person or company that would complete the road 
 from Peoria to Farmington, or to be two of twelve 
 persons to advance a sufficient sum for that purpose. 
 Meeting with no acceptance to either of these propo- 
 sitions, they offered to buy out a majority of the 
 stock at twenty-five cents on the dollar, which pro- 
 posal was accepted. 
 
 After this they made an effort to interest other 
 persons in. the work, and in a measure were success- 
 ful. The road was finished from Peoria to Farming- 
 ton in October, 1881, and operated until October, 
 1882, when building west was begun, and the track 
 completed to Keithsburg, on the Mississippi River. 
 About a million and a-half of dollars in hard cash 
 were expended in securing the completion of this road. 
 Friends and enemies had predicted financial ruin for 
 Messrs. Hanna and Phelps, and a defeat of the en- 
 terprise. 
 
 The task they undertook was a Herculean one, 
 and one to shake the nerve of the most resolute, 
 but after many days and nights of sleepless anxiety, 
 the work was accomplished, and will forever remain 
 as an enduring monument of what perseverance, 
 energy, sagacity, and an indomitable will can accom- 
 plish. 
 
 The Central Iowa, which owned a railroad from 
 Albia to Manly Junction, in Iowa, having a road 
 leading from Oskaloosa, Iowa, east to the Missis- 
 sippi River, opposite to Keithsburg, a consolidation 
 was effected with the Illinois line, or the Burlington, 
 Monmouth & Illinois River Railroad, which had 
 been prosecuted under the name of the Peoria & 
 Farmington, after the franchises of the latter were 
 secured, under the name of the Central Iowa Rail- 
 way Company, which embraced the entire system. 
 Since the consolidation a magnificent iron bridge has 
 been built across the Mississippi at Keithsburg, a 
 road built from Manly Junction to St. Paul, and 
 through trains without break are now running from 
 St. Paul to Peoria ; and this road which had so un- 
 propitious a beginning, is now one of the great and im- 
 portant transportation lines of the country. William 
 Hanna is President of the Company, and Delos P. 
 

 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 707 
 
 Phelps has the management of the Illinois Division 
 To these men too much credit cannot be given for 
 the consummation of this grand project. After pass- 
 ing through the struggles, and what appeared almost 
 
 insurmountable barriers to accomplish their project, 
 they now, in the hey-day of success, can have the 
 luxury of that condition that comes from a success- 
 ful achievement of a noble purpose. 
 
 County Officials. 
 
 .ROM its first organization to the present 
 time; from Daniel McNeil, Jr., and Ivory 
 Quinby down, the officials of Warren 
 County, with hardly an exception, have been 
 of unexceptional character; men of integrity, 
 ability and usefulness. Very few counties can 
 present a better list than the one appended below, 
 some of whom have not only achieved State but Na- 
 tional distinction, who have been identified with 
 the organization of the State, the framing of its laws, 
 and the perfecting of its political and legal system. 
 
 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS. 
 
 John B. Talbot, Adam Ritchey and John Pence, 
 1830, under a special election. John Pence, John 
 B. Talbot and Peter Butler, 1830-32, under a regular 
 election ; Jeremiah Smith, John B. Talbot and James 
 McCallon, 1832-34; Robert Gilmore, William Whit- 
 man and W. S. Jamison, 1834-36; Samuel G. Morse, 
 Alexander Turnbull and John B. Talbot, 1836-38; 
 Alexander Turnbull, Samuel G. Morse, James C. 
 Hutchinson, 1838 ; Samuel G. Morse, John C. Bond 
 and J. C. Hutchinson, 1838-39; James C. Hutchin- 
 son, John C. Bond and James P. Hogue, 1839-40; 
 John C. Bond, James P. Hogue and Peter Butler, 
 
 1840-42; James P. Hogue, Peter Butler and James 
 Tucker, 1842-43; Peter Butler, James Tucker and 
 H. Bromlee, 1843-44 ; Alexander Turnbull, Thomas 
 Griffee and James Tucker, 1844-45 ; Alexander 
 Turnbull, Thomas Griffee and James Drain, 1845- 
 46 ; H. E. Haley, James Drain and John B. Jenkin, 
 1846-47 ; James Drain, John B. Jenkin and Josiah 
 Whitman, 1847-48; John B. Jenkin, John W. Gid- 
 dings and Josiah Whitman, 1848-49. 
 
 COUNTY CLERK. 
 
 Daniel McNeil, Jr., 1830; Elijah Davidson, 1838- 
 43; Daniel McNeil, Jr., 1843-48; William F. Smith, 
 1849; Ephraim S. Swinney, 1849-61 ; W. J. Thomp- 
 son, 1861-65; W. G. Bond, 1865-73; W. H. Sex- 
 ton, 1873-86. 
 
 RECORDER. 
 
 Daniel McNeil, Jr., 1830-43; Ephraim S. Swin- 
 ney, 1843-48. 
 
 CIRCUIT CLERK. 
 
 Daniel McNeil, Jr., 1830-41; Ira F. M. Butler, 
 1841-48. 
 
 CIRCUIT CLERK AND RECORDER. 
 
 W. B. 1 Stapp, 1848-49: R. S. Monroe, 1849-50; 
 H. S. Hascall, 1850-51; William Billings, 1851-56; 
 William Laferty, 1856-64; T. M. Luter, 1864-68 ; 
 
708 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 J. L. Dryden, 1868-80; George C. Rankin, 1880-84, 
 re-elected. 
 
 PROBATE JUDGE. 
 Daniel McNeil, Jr., 1831-37. 
 
 PROBATE JUSTICE. 
 
 W. F. Smith, 1837-39; Geo. C. Lamphere, 1839- 
 43; Erastus Rice, 1843-49. 
 
 COUNTY JUDGE. 
 
 Ivory Quinby, 1849-55 ; James Thompson, 1855- 
 57 ; John Porter, 1857-65 ; Joseph K. Ripley, 1865- 
 73; Elias Willets, 1873-81; James H. Stewart, 
 1881-85, re-elected. 
 
 COUNTY COURT. 
 
 Ivory Quinby, Judge ; John Riggs and Joseph Ho- 
 gan, Associates, 1849-53, under the Constitution of 
 1848. Ivory Quinby, Justice ; John Riggs and Wm. 
 Lair, Associates, 1853-54. 
 
 COUNTY SCHOOL COMMISSIONERS. 
 Alelander Phelps, 1837-39 ; W. S. Berry, 1839- 
 43; Samuel Wood, 1843-47 ; A. C. Harding, 1847- 
 49; James G. Madden, 1849-51; W. B. Jenks, 
 1851-53; W. F. Smith, 1853-55; A - H - Tracy, 
 1855-61 ; A. B. Cox, 1861-65. 
 
 COUNTY SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS. 
 James I. Wilson, 1865-69; James B. Donnell, 
 1869-77; W. E. Watt, 1877-81; J. P. Higgins, 
 1881-82, Maggie L. Wiley, 1882-84, re-elected. 
 
 CORONERS. 
 
 John Ritchey, 1830-35; Alexander Turnbull, 
 1835-36; George H. Wright, 1836-40; H. C. George, 
 1840-42; David Smith, 1842-46; Joseph McCoy, 
 1846-50; Robert Thompson, 1850-52; Wm. Talbot, 
 1852-54, Robert Grant, 1854-60; Samuel Douglas, 
 1860-64; John B. Webster, 1864-68; W. L. Cuth- 
 bert, 1868-70; R. B. McCleary, 1870-78; Henry B. 
 Young, 1878-80; George H. Breed, 1880-82; Wm. 
 S. Holliday, 1882-84, re-elected. 
 
 COUNTY TREASURER AND ASSESSOR. 
 
 James Jamison, 1830-31 ; Thos, C. Jennings, 
 1831 ; Elijah Davidson, 1831-36 ;M5ilbert Turnbull, 
 1836-43; R. N. Allen, 1843-49; George Babcock, 
 1849-53; James W. Butler, 1853-55. 
 
 TREASURER. 
 R. S. Thompson, 1855-61; Draper Babcock, 
 
 1861-65 : Wm. Shores, 1865-67 ; D. D. Parry, 1867- 
 75; James Hurdman, 187579; John F. Wallace, 
 1879-82; Robert S. Patton, 1882-84, re-elected. 
 
 SURVEYOR. 
 
 Peter Butler, 1831-35 ; Wm. C. Butler, 1835-39; 
 Benjamin Thompson, 183943; Joseph Paddocks, 
 l8 43~SS J E - E - Wallace, 1855-59 ; Thos. S. Mc- 
 Clanahan, 1859-65 ; Alberts. Crawford, 1865-69; 
 John A. Gordon, 1869-71; John B. McCulloch, 
 1871-75; Thos. S. McClanahan, 1875-79 ; John F. 
 Wallace, 1879-82; Thos. S. McClanahan, 1882-84, 
 re-elected. 
 
 SHERIFF. 
 
 Stephen S. Phelps. 1830-32 ; Peter Butler, 1832- 
 34; John G. Haley, 1834-36; Ira F. M. Butler, 
 1836-40; Samuel L. Hogue, 1840-41 ; John Brown, 
 1841-50; R. N. Allen, 1850-52; C. L. Armsby, 
 1852-54; James McCoy, 1854-56; C. M. Mills, 
 1856-58; Seth Smith, 1858-60; David Turnbull, 
 1860-62; David C. Riggs, 1862-64; David Turn- 
 bull, 1864-66; Wm. Armstrong, 1866-67 ! W. L. 
 Cuthbert, 1867-68: Cyrus Bute, 1868-70; J. A. 
 Boynton, 1870-72; W. L. Cuthbert, 1872-74; J. A. 
 Boynton, 1874-76; Wm. G. Bond, 1876-82 ; John 
 W. Bolon, 1882-84, re-elected. 
 
 STATE'S ATTORNEY. 
 
 Thomas Ford, 1832-34 ; W. A. Richardson, 1834- 
 36; Henry L. Bryant, 1836-38; Wm. Elliott, 1838- 
 50; H. G. Reynolds, 1850-54; Wm. C. Goudy, 
 1854-55 ; A. M. Craig, 1855-56; James H. Stewart, 
 1856-64; James A. McKinzie, 1864-72; Wm. Mar- 
 shall, 1872-76 ; George Snyder, 1876-80; John W. 
 Matthews, 1880-84, re-elected. 
 
 CIRCUIT JUDGES. 
 
 Richard M. Young, 1830-36; James H. Ralston, 
 1836-39; Peter Lott, 1839-40; Stephen A. Douglas, 
 1841-43; Jesse B. Thomas, 1843-45 ; N. H. Pur- 
 ple, 1845-49; Wm. A. Minchall, 1849-50; Wm. 
 Kellogg, 1850-53 ; H. M. Weed, 1853-55 ; J ohn s - 
 Thompson, 1855-60: Aaron Tyler, 1860-61; Chas. 
 B. Lawrence, 1861-64; John S. Thompson, 1864- 
 67 ; Arthur A. Smith, 1867-85 ; John J. Glenn, 
 1877-85; George W. Pleasants, 1879-85; the three 
 last named Judges preside in this Circuit and their 
 terms expire in 1891. 
 
Y-. 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 709 
 
 Educational Matters. 
 
 [HERE are 134 school districts in Warren 
 County, 8 graded schools and 134 ungraded 
 schools. The total value of school prop- 
 erty is $111,185, w'th 7 brick and 131 frame 
 buildings. Of scholastic age, there are 10,669 
 pupils, the entire enrollment is 5,494, and the 
 total tax levy $53,168.94. 
 
 Miss Maggie Wiley is the County Superintendent, 
 who gives her whole time to the school interests of 
 the county. All the schools have good teachers and 
 they are well conducted, having the most approved 
 text books and all the modern adjuncts to education. 
 They have a County Teachers' Association, which 
 holds annual sessions, of two days, during the latter 
 part of November, at Monmouth. 
 
 Local associations are held at Monmouth, Kirk- 
 wood, Roseville, Alexis, Cameron, Berwick, Little 
 York, Greenbush and Hale. 
 
 The Annual Summer's Institute of two weeks, 
 which is held under section 5, of the School Act, 
 meets at Monmouth. At these sessions, exercises 
 and drills are had and a complete review of the 
 modes of teaching is gone through. A journal de- 
 voted to the educational interests of the county, 
 called the School Chronicle, is published by this In- 
 stitute. 
 
 Old Settlers' Association. 
 
 f HE matter of perpetuating the memory 'of 
 pioneer life, its incidents, with its joys and 
 sorrows, its hopes and fears, had been dis- 
 cussed among the early settlers of this and 
 Henderson County for some time. Finally 
 a call was made through the press for the old 
 settlers to meet at Young America, now Kirkwood, 
 Saturday afternoon, Jan. 27, 1872, for the purpose of 
 maturing some plan for an organization to meet the 
 objects in view. At the appointed time a large 
 
 number of the early settlers met at Young America 
 and the meeting was called to order by Samuel 
 Hutchinson, who stated the objects of the meeting. 
 T. S. Lowther was nominated as Chairman and Jud- 
 son Giaves was chosen Secretary. It was decided 
 at this meeting to form an old settlers' organization, 
 and to admit all persons as members who had set- 
 tled in either of the counties of Henderson or War- 
 ren prior to the formation of Henderson County. 
 
 This meeting adjourned to meet again Feb 22. At 
 this meeting the officers of the Association were de- 
 cided upon and a committee appointed to draft a 
 constitution and by-laws to be submitted at the next 
 meeting. First officers elected : President, S. S. 
 Phelps; Vice-Presidents, R. W. Ritchie, A. C. 
 Harding and John Curts; Secretaries, Judson Graves 
 and E. H. N. Patterson ; Treasurer, N. A. Chapin. 
 The meeting adjourned to meet for their first annual 
 reunion, which was fixed for the first Wednesday in 
 June, and was to be held at Young America (now 
 Kirkwood). At the day appointed there was a grand 1 
 gathering of old pioneers, and a very enjoyable time 
 was had. They all came with their lunch-baskets J 
 laden with those choice eatables that tend so much*" 
 to enhance the pleasures of such gatherings. 
 
 Speeches were made, songs were sung, stories were 
 told, and the incidents and reminiscenses connected 
 with the early settlement, its privations and hard- 
 ships, were freely discussed. Before the reunion 
 broke up, a constitution and by-laws were adopted, 
 and the time was changed for the meeting to the 
 first Wednesday in September. 
 
 The association has held its reunion ever since, 
 and its membership now embraces nearly all the old 
 settlers. The constitution has been amended so as 
 to admit all persons who have been in the county 30 
 years. They met the last season at Mineral Springs, 
 near Kirkwood, which has become the favorite resort 
 of the people of the county, and had a grand time. 
 It is said that there were more people there than 
 ever before at any of their reunions. Before adjourn- 
 ment the following officers were elected : Samuel 
 Hutchinson, President (since deceased) ; Benjamin 
 Tinkham, Vice-President ; N. A. Chapin, Secretary; 
 Mrs. Wm. Hanna, Treasurer. Executive Commit- 
 tee O. S. Barnum, D. Babcock, W. C. Tubbs. Wm. 
 Boden and G. R. Graham. Corresponding Secre- 
 tary, A. H. Swain. There are at present 221 mem- 
 bers belonging to this organization. 
 
 -4-* 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Agricultural Fair. 
 
 ( N agricultural society was organized Aug. 7, 
 1852, at a public meeting held at the 
 Court-House, Monmouth. Following are 
 names of the temporary officers : Samuel 
 Hallan, President ; G. W. Palmer, Vice-Pres- 
 ident; J. G. Madden, Secretary; and F. B. 
 Weakley, Treasurer. Their first annual election was 
 held Sept. 4, 1852, with the following results: Sam- 
 uel Hallan, President; Robert Gibson, Vice-Presi- 
 dent; J. G. Madden, Secretary; and Wm. Billings, 
 Treasurer. Their first annual fair was held at the 
 Court-House, Oct. 15, 1852. It was regarded as a 
 great success. There were many entries made and 
 over 1,000 persons in attendance. As there was not 
 much money about in those days, the premiums 
 only consisted in certificates. Since that period, the 
 society has progressed, and it has now a very fair 
 standing ; is out of debt and is in a prosperous con- 
 dition. The grounds enclose about 30 acres, in 
 which there is a good half-mile track, exhibition 
 buildings, stalls, pens, etc., all valued at $6,500. 
 
 In 1884 there were 2,099 entries. At this meet- 
 ing a saddle-horse was entered which had taken the 
 
 first premium in 1859, then ten years old. Generally, 
 the annual receipts are about $5,000. For this year 
 the premiums offered amounted to $4,000. A good 
 deal of interest is manifested in this fair, and some 
 as fine stock as there is in the State is annually ex- 
 hibited here. Present officers: J. T. Reichard, 
 President; Thos. W. Beers, Vice- President; Geo. 
 Rankin, Secretary; and W. B. Young, Treasurer. 
 Executive Committee L. H. Gilmore, J. N. Mc- 
 Kelvey, S. C. Hogue, Peyton Roberts, H. C. Gid- 
 dings, J. R. Barnett, W. B. Porter, R. S. Patton, N. 
 S. Woodward. 
 
 The fall meeting of this association was attended 
 with success, although the attendance was limited 
 for the first two days on account of the rains. The 
 exhibition of stock was exceedingly good. A finer 
 exhibition of high-bred Percherons and Clydesdales 
 has rarely been seen so also with the Red Jersey 
 pig. Some fine cows were also on exhibition. The 
 races were fair and some very good time was made. 
 It is a pity, however, in laying out the grounds that 
 the society did not arrange for a mile track. In the 
 exhibition hall there was an excellent display of art 
 work, showing fine taste and skill. The soil pro- 
 ducts on exhibition demonstrated the fact that 
 the soil of Warren County is unsurpassed in rich- 
 ness and that its farmers are skilled in the science 
 of agriculture. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 711 
 
 p?qf^'*F* a $iFW*'WVWWTWWro| l 
 
 TOWNSHIPS 
 
 &j..fcA.r*fet&..M^^^ 
 
 ^^^^^T 
 
 DWNSHIP history is an es- 
 sential and prominent part 
 of the county history. The 
 various parts of Warren 
 County were settled by men 
 most of whom have repre- 
 sentatives now living in the 
 county, or are still living here 
 themselves. A careful reading of 
 the incidents relating to the early 
 settlement of the several town- 
 ships will repay the reader, as each 
 one contains the names of the first 
 settlers, and many other items 
 which are required to make the 
 history complete. The township 
 histories are given in their alpha- 
 betical order, and the sketches of 
 the villages are included in their respective town- 
 ships. The city of Monmouth follows the town- 
 ships. 
 
 BERWICK TOWNSHIP. 
 
 ERWICK was among the earliest town- 
 ships to be settled, and in this Solomon 
 Kaisey was the pioneer, casting his for- 
 tunes here as early as the spring of 1829. 
 He located on section 7. With him came his 
 family, and his brother-in-law, Solomon Per- 
 kins, and family. Mr. Perkins located on section 4 
 
 These men, with their strong and true-hearted life 
 partners, after securing their lands, settled down to 
 construct for themselves and children, homes for the 
 future. In the midst of plenty, surrounded with all 
 the comforts of civilization, with all our wants sup- 
 plied, we are too apt to forget the pioneer to whom 
 we are indebted for all these comforts. Soon 
 after the above named settlers, came Peter Scott, 
 Mr. Smith and Jonathan Tipton, who located in the 
 neighborhood. In 1832, Isaac, Daniel and Elisha, 
 brothers of Solomon Perkins, the two latter with their 
 families, moved in and located near the settlement. 
 Isaac went to the Black Hawk war, and was killed. 
 Robert and George Ray came in r 83 1-2, locating in 
 the timber, on section 6. With these men came 
 their families. They and their wives are dead. H. 
 M. Lewis, W. H. Cable and E. W. Allen came into 
 the township in 1835, and were followed soon after 
 by many others. These early settlers formed a nu- 
 cleus, around which gathered in a few years an ex- 
 tensive settlement. 
 
 Miss Jane Allen taught the first school in the 
 township, in 1835, in a log school house built by 
 Thomas Pearce, near where the village of Berwick 
 now is. This school house had no doors or win- 
 dows, or what these are understood to be in modern 
 times. There were holes in the wall to admit light 
 and air, and one also for egress and exit, and this 
 was all. And here in this rudely constructed cabin 
 the first children of Berwick Township, with the 
 ruddy glow on their cheeks, with the bright sparkle in 
 
712 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 their eye, with innocence and hope in their young 
 hearts, commenced their education, directed by their 
 devoted teacher, Jane Allen. Here they commenced 
 to learn lessons in books and lessons in life, and fit 
 themselves for the duties which in after years were 
 to be imposed upon them. What hopes and aspira- 
 tions may have filled these young hearts just enter- 
 ing upon this world's stage ! What ties formed here, 
 that may have been stronger in after years than 
 chains of brass or steel ! What a contrast between 
 this rude cabin and the finished school-house of to- 
 day ! And yet with all our improvements and what we 
 call our advanced civilization, with our Female Sem- 
 inaries and Boarding Schools, and all our modern ad- 
 juncts to study, is there any one prepared to say that 
 the pupil of to-day learns better than those did 
 then ? 
 
 Miss Jane Allen was married to Judge Ivory 
 Quinby, March 14, 1839. She died Feb. 7, 1847. 
 The second school taught in the township was by 
 Miss Sarah Cable, in 1837. 
 
 Berwick was organized as a township, April 4, 
 1854. The proceedings of this election either were 
 !>* not recorded or have since been lost, and hence the 
 first officers under the new organization cannot be 
 given. It is numbered 7 north, of range i west, of 
 the fourth principal meridian, and has for its north- 
 ern line Floyd Township. On the east lies Knox 
 County, on the south Greenbush, and the west Rose- 
 ville Township. The streams, Nigger Creek, Cedar 
 Creek and Cedar Fork meander southwesterly 
 through the township, which afford good opportunity 
 for drainage. Along and adjacent to those streams 
 the land is somewhat broken and liberally timbered. 
 The remaining portion of the township is rolling 
 prairie. It is a good farming country; the farms are 
 well cultivated and mostly owned by those who 
 work them ; the dwelling houses are well built and 
 comfortable. 
 
 The Iowa Central runs through the township, en- 
 tering at the northwest corner and running along 
 through the northern tier of sections. It was com- 
 pleted through here in January, 1883. In 1880, 
 Berwick had a population of 1,003 souls, and this is 
 about the number of inhabitants at the present 
 time. 
 
 The following statistics are given regarding the 
 schools in the township, which were taken from the 
 
 County Superintendent's annual report, ending June 
 3oth,'i885. There were eight school districts in the 
 township, with a valuation of school property 
 amounting to $3,500, and the buildings are con- 
 structed, one of brick, the rest of wood. Of persons 
 under 21 years of age, there were 451, of whom 257 
 were of scholastic age, 272 being enrolled. The 
 highest wages paid to teachers was $45, the lowest 
 $30 per month. The tax levy for this year was 
 $1,925. 
 
 From the Assessor's report of 1885, the following 
 items are obtained : 
 
 Number of acres of improved land, 22,572; num- 
 ber of acres of unimproved land, 160; value of im- 
 proved lands, $294,770; value of unimproved land, 
 $1,330; total value of lots, $7,002; number of 
 horses, 775; number of cattle, 1,484; asses and 
 mules, 55 ; sheep, 429; hogs, 2,824; steam engines, 
 i ; carriages and wagons, 225 ; watches and clocks, 
 159; sewing and knitting machines, 106 , pianos, 4 ; 
 melodeons and organs, 27. Total value of personal^ 
 property, $30,430. 
 
 Below we give the names of the citizens who have 
 represented this township as Supervisors : E. 
 Lewis, 1854-64; S. B. Crane, 1865; H. M. Lewis, 
 1866-78; W. D. Miller, 1879-85. 
 
 CHURCHES. 
 
 Berwick was very early in establishing church or- 
 ganizations, which indicates that the early settlers 
 were zealous in matters of religion. 
 
 Baptist Church. This society was organized July 
 28, 1833, at John Smith's house. Sheldon Lockwood 
 and wife, John Smith and wife and Elizabeth Hanon 
 constituted the first membership. Revs. John Clark 
 and John Logan presided at this organization. Rev. 
 G. Bartlet was the first Pastor, taking charge Aug. 
 i, 1833, and serving until December, 1834; then 
 they were without a pastor for over a year, when Rev. 
 R. M. Wilbur assumed charge, serving until Septem- 
 ber, 1844. He was followed by Rev. Isaac Matteson, 
 who served the church until June, 1845, giving place 
 then to Erastus Minor, who remained until June, 
 1847. R V - J oe l Sweet was the next pastor in charge, 
 serving the Society until February, 1850. Rev. Jo- 
 seph Elliott came in December, and remained until 
 May, 185 r. Following Mr. Elliott was Rev. Wm. 
 T. Ely, who served his flock until 1853, when Rev. 
 G. D. Simmons took charge, remaining until October 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1854. Rev. Truman Gregory accepted a call March, 
 
 1855, and remained until June, 1856, when he was 
 succeeded by Rev. H. S. P. Warren, who took charge 
 in March. Mr. Warren served until 1859, and was 
 followed by Rev. C. E. Bailey, who remained until 
 January, 1861. Rev. P. P. Shirley took charge in 
 September, the same year, and was with the church 
 until May, 1864, when Rev. R. L. Caldwell assumed 
 the pastorate, remaining until July, 1866. He was 
 succeeded in September by Rev. J. B. Congers, who 
 served until October, 1868. Rev. Gary Telsberry 
 became pastor March, 1869, remaining until Febru- 
 ary, 1870, and was followed in June by Rev. Homer 
 E. Norton, who remained until November, 1874. He 
 was succeeded by Rev. D. G. Zaak, who took charge 
 in June, 1875, and served the congregation until 
 death took him home, Sept 25, 1876. Rev. George 
 Gray was the next to accept the call, Jan. i, 1877, 
 and remained until Jan. i, 1881. Rev. J. F. Cald- 
 well followed in August, remaining until 1884, when 
 'he was succeeded by the present pastor, J. F. Mer- 
 riam. The congregation has a membership at pres- 
 ent of 115; total membership since its organization 
 541. The first building was erected in 1840, and 
 was located a little north of the present edifice. It 
 is occupied now as a dwelling house by R. A. Beck. 
 
 The present church building was erected in 1856, at 
 a cost of $3,000, and was dedicated in 1857. A good 
 parsonage is attached to the church, costing $1,400. 
 A good Sabbath School is one of the interesting fea- 
 tures of this organization, having a membership of 
 145. It is a large commodious building, and well 
 furnished. The society is prosperous and the mem- 
 bers active. 
 
 7'he Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 
 1832, in the early part of the year. Rev. Mr. Cordier 
 was the first preacher to hold service about this neigh- 
 borhood, which was at Thomas Pearce's house. Rev. 
 Barton Randall organized the first class, in the spring 
 of 1833. This class was composed of Thomas Pearce 
 and wife, Barton H. Cartwright and wife and Robert 
 Ray and wife. This was the beginning of the Meth- 
 odist Church at Berwick. They held their first meet- 
 ing at Thomas Pearce's house and other private 
 houses until 1837, when the organization was perma- 
 nently located at Berwick Village. After it was lo- 
 cated at this village the society was served by Revs. 
 Thomas Hobart and Thomas Kirkpatrick. In 1852 
 they erected the first church building. This is now 
 
 used for a store by Mr. Beck. In 1868 they erected 
 a new edifice at a cost of $4,000. It is of Gothic 
 architecture, and is an attractive building, or was 
 when it was new. It is now sadly out of repair, and 
 if not attended to soon, will be worthless. With the 
 church is a good parsonage. Present membership is 
 about 30. Rev. G. B. Snedaker has charge, holding 
 service- every two weeks. Mr. Snedaker also serves 
 the Cameron Church. 
 
 BERWICK CEMETERY. 
 
 This cemetery was laid out in 1840, and was 
 among the earliest located in the county. It con- 
 tains four acres of ground, and is a very pretty rest- 
 ing place for the departed. The first person buried 
 here was the son of Franklin Ogden, in 1840. It is 
 under a trustee's government. In this cemetery are 
 some very neat little tombstones, and the grounds 
 are well cared for. 
 
 Berwick Village. 
 
 N r836 Thomas Pearce and Samuel G. 
 Morse thought that the township was of 
 sufficient importance, in population at least, 
 to warrant them in founding a village. Ac- 
 cordingly they laid out their plat. It was lo- 
 cated on the west half of the northwest quarter 
 of section 5, and the east half of the northeast quar- 
 ter of section 6, and contained fifty and five-eighths 
 acres. It was first called Bowling Green, but was 
 subsequently changed to Berwick. It was surveyed 
 by Peter Butler, and the plat was recorded July 14, 
 of the same year. 
 
 This little village is nicely located and has a fine 
 agricultural country surrounding it. At one time 
 there was quite a trade carried on here, and it is yet 
 a good shipping point for stock and grain. The ship- 
 ping is done by the Iowa Central Railroad, which 
 has a station here. Its population numbers about 
 175 persons. The village is laid out with a plaza or 
 square in the center, after the Southern or Mexican 
 style of laying out towns. 
 
 Miss Sarah Cable taught the first school here, in 
 1837. They have at present a good school in the 
 village, with an average attendance of 35 pupils. 
 
 R. A. Beck is the present Postmaster, and has had 
 a tenure of office for some 16 years. 
 Its business is represented by Beck & Lewis, and 
 
WAP. REN COUNTY. 
 
 Dement & Sheldon, who have general merchandise 
 stores. Dr. F. K. Morse keeps a drug store, and is 
 also a practicing physician. C. Oseran has a boot 
 and shoe store, and Thomas Brown does the black- 
 smithing for the village. J. L. Stormet supplies the 
 people with a market. 
 
 The people of this village have provided for the 
 education of their children by erecting a good school 
 building, and securing the services of a good teacher. 
 They have an average attendance at the school of 
 about 30 pupils. 
 
 COLD BROOK TOWNSHIP. 
 
 LD BROOK TOWNSHIP, or the terri- 
 tory that is now embraced by it, was 
 among the earliest that was settled in 
 the county. As early as 1828, Peter Pecken- 
 paugh, from Indiana, found his way up into 
 this locality, and put down his stake for a 
 
 * home, on section 30. Peter did not have long to 
 wait, for Peter Butler and Jeremiah McFarland came 
 
 I on soon, seeking homes for themselves and their 
 
 * families. The former located on section 31, and the 
 latter on section 25. These pioneers were from 
 Kentucky. They all had their families to brighten 
 their pioneer firesides, and this gave them hope, 
 courage and strength to put the axe into the timber, 
 the plow-share into the virgin soil, and carve out 
 homes for themselves and families. 
 
 If there is any one position in life more lonely than 
 another, it is that of a man starting out in a new 
 country all alone to make his fortune, without wife or 
 children to assist him in building up a home; it 
 would seem that his condition must be something 
 akin to "Coleridge's Ancient Mariner" 
 
 " Alone, alone, all, all alone 
 Alone on a wide, wide sea. 
 So lonely 'twas, that God hiinselt, 
 Scarce .'seemed there to be." 
 
 Peter Peckenpaugh died but a few years ago. His 
 wife died in 1850. Mr. McFarland has only been 
 dead a few years. Peter Butler, who figured quite 
 extensively in the early history of the county, moved 
 to Oregon, in 1853, where, after an active life, he 
 died. He was one of the first County Commission- 
 
 ers. William Whitman and family, and Josiah 
 Whitman, his brother, were the next to settle in 
 the township, which was in the spring of 1829. 
 They came from Kentucky and made claims upon 
 section 32. William was a preacher of the Christian 
 Church, and in those early days, charmed his hear- 
 ers with his eloquence. He died at his home in 
 1838. Josiah Whitman was married to Han- 
 nah Davidson. He died near Monmouth in 
 1865. His widow is still living in this city. Wil- 
 liam Whitman's widow married Rev. Richard John- 
 son, who was also a minister of the Christian 
 Church. They are both dead. Richard H. Rag- 
 land and family, of Kentucky, moved into the town- 
 ship at an early day, locating in the timber near 
 Cedar Fork. This pioneer did not live long in his 
 Western home,but passed on to the eternal one, dying 
 in 1839. His widow survived him, nearly half a 
 century, dying in 1885, at the old homestead. 
 Their children are residing in the townsnip. In 1830, 
 Aaron Hardin, from Schuyler Co., 111., came in and 
 located on section 33. He left the county at an 
 early day. John G. Haley, with his wife, Elizabeth, 
 came in this year, and located their home on section 
 29. He was a very active and influential man, and 
 an Elder in the Christian Church. He was quite 
 prominent in the early days in county matters, and 
 was at one time Sheriff of the county. He moved to 
 Missouri in the fall of 1870, and died there some 
 years later. His first wife, Elizabeth, died in 1847, at 
 the old homestead. They had a family of seven 
 children, three boys and four girls Mary Jane, 
 Henry, Edward. Eliza, Cynthia Ann and Thomas. 
 Of these children three are living Jane and Eliza 
 in Warren County, and Thomas in California. 
 
 Mr. Haley married for his second wife, Mrs. Mar- 
 tha Whitman, "Aunt Patsey," who came from Ken- 
 tucky, in 1831, locating on section 7. Her 
 seven children were William C., S. Squire, Sally, 
 C., John C.,Lucy A., Huldy A. and Christina J. They 
 are all living except Huldy A and William C., and 
 all in the county except S. Squire. Aunt Patsey is liv- 
 ing with her daughter, Mrs. Hascall, on section 7, in 
 Floyd Township, in her 891)1 year. She is still 
 strong and hearty, and bids far to live many more 
 years. 
 
 Of those who came after the pioneers above men- 
 tioned up to 1837, there were Phillip Homey, H. S. 
 Hascall, Max Haley, P. R. Haley, Alva Gordon 
 
WARREN COUMTY. 
 
 7'S 
 
 David R. Shelton, Sr., with a family of 13 children, 
 Edward Grounds, William Harper, Sr., Seth C. Mur- 
 phy, Jacob Rust, David Morrow,William Fraymeyer, 
 and Mrs. Claycomb and children, Henry and Wil- 
 liam Bruner, Thomas Wallace, Sr., William and Jo- 
 seph Murphy, William Wallace, Alexander Moore, 
 Nelson E. Hills, Thomas Griffee, Jesse Cleveland, 
 Henry Landers, William and John Davidson, John 
 Underwood, John P. Cone, b. S. Wallace and John E. 
 Murphy. Thus a goodstart was made toward settling 
 the township. They were an industrious, intelligent 
 class of pioneers, and went to work with energy and 
 perseverance to build up homes, develop the town- 
 ship and improve the country. 
 
 Seth C. Murphy taught the first school in the 
 township, in a small log house on section 30, or in 
 the "Neck." This was in 1832. Mr, Murphy died 
 in the fall of 1836. Rev. William Whitman was the 
 first preacher to entertain these pioneers with gospel 
 eloquence, which was in the old town of Cold Brook, 
 in 1831, the services being held in Peter Pecken- 
 paugh's house. Alma Arasmith and Elizabeth 
 Peckenpaugh led off in this township in the first 
 ' matrimonial venture. This very interesting event, 
 which created quite a sensation in this neighborhood, 
 was duly solemnized on Christmas day, 1831, by 
 Rev. William Whitman. Jacob Rust was the first 
 man to embark in the mercantile business, which he 
 did by opening a store in a log cabin in the town of 
 Cold Brook. Jacob did not have an elaborate assort- 
 ment of goods, nor was there much capital invested, 
 but his little cabin store, as humble as it appeared, 
 was a pleasing sight to those pioneers. A postoffice 
 was opened at Cold Brook, in 1832, and Alva Gordon 
 was the favorite son who held Uncle Sam's commis- 
 sion. 
 
 Thomas Wallace started the first saw mill in the 
 township, about a mile north of Cold Brook, on Ce- 
 dar Creek. This was one of the first mills in the 
 county, and was started in the summer of 1832. 
 Subsequently he put in a stone for grinding corn. 
 Cold Brook received its name from some cold springs 
 which were located near there. It was platted by 
 John G. Haley. 
 
 In 1832, Mr. Haggett and John Bundy started a 
 blacksmith shop here, which was the first in the 
 township. At one time, Cold Brook was quite a 
 town, and. a thriving trade carried on. The Brink 
 & Walker stage line passed through the town. It 
 
 was twelve miles from here to Knoxville and eight 
 miles to Monmouth. Mr. Gordon served as Post- 
 master until 1840, when H. E. Haley was appointed. 
 A. D. Hawkins succeeded him and was the last 
 Postmaster in the town. Upon the completion of 
 the railroad, Mr. Hawkins moved the office with his 
 store to Cameron, where it was established in 1855. 
 The starting of the town of Cameron broke the town 
 of Cold Brook up, and the owners of the land there 
 have had the good sense to convert the site into 
 fields. If many of the other would-be towns in the 
 county would follow the example of the town of 
 Cold Brook, there would be many acres of good land 
 put to a proper and beneficial use. 
 
 A sad accident occurred near this town in the 
 early days (1838). Mat Dean and John Hardin 
 were fishing in the mill pond. They were sitting on 
 a log, one end of which lay on the bank and the 
 other ran out into the pond. Dean suddenly had a 
 fit and fell off the log into the water. Hardin see- 
 ing him go down, plunged in after him, and they 
 were both drowned. Singularly enough, their bodies 
 were found some distance apart. Hardin's body 
 was found a few hours after the accident, but that of 
 Dean was not recovered until the next day, and not 
 until after the pond had been dragged. It was 
 found clinging witli knees and arms to the under 
 side of the log upon which they had been sitting. 
 
 This township was organized April 4, 1854. The 
 minutes of this meeting are imperfect, but we find 
 that Philip Horney was chosen Moderator, and Jos- 
 eph Stewart, Clerk. After the votes were polled, it 
 was found that Benjamin F. Morey was elected Sup- 
 ervisor; J. S. Parker, Clerk; James McFarland, 
 Assessor and Collector; Andrew Claycomb and B. 
 F. Morey, Justices of the Peace; W. H. H. Clay- 
 comb, T. F. Taylor and B. S. Parker were elected 
 Commissioners of Highways. It is .township 11 
 north of range i west, and is bounded on the north 
 by Kelly, on the east by Knox County, on the south 
 by Floyd and on the West by Monmouth Town- 
 ship. 
 
 The only village in the township is Cameron, sit- 
 uated on the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Rail- 
 road, where some of the people do their trading. 
 
 This road runs nearly all the way on the southern 
 line of this township and was completed through it 
 in the early part of 1855. 
 
 It is watered by Cedar and Talbot Creeks and 
 
7 i6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 their branches. Much of the township contains 
 broad, rolling prairie, and some parts are rather 
 broken. The land lying along and bordering the 
 streams is very well timbered. Most of the farms 
 are well cultivated and provided with good buildings. 
 The farmers with but few exceptions are out of debt 
 and prosperous. More attention is being given by 
 the farmers to the raising of stock than was formerly 
 done, and the production in this line is increasing 
 every year. 
 
 The population, in 1880, was 1,084, ar >d it is esti- 
 mated there has been a little gain since that time. 
 
 The County Superintendent's reports for the year 
 ending June 30, 1885, contains the following school 
 items : There are eight school districts, one graded 
 and seven ungraded schools, with a valuation of 
 school property amounting to $6,400. All of the 
 school-buildings are frame. Of persons under 21 
 years of age, there were 425, of whom 272 were of 
 school age, and 252 were enrolled. The highest 
 wages paid to teachers is $45 and the lowest $25 per 
 month. The tax levy for this year was $2,170. 
 
 From the Assessor's report for the year 1885, the 
 following information is obtained : Number of acres 
 improved land, 22,439 ; value of improved land, $314,- 
 025; total value of lots, $3,375; number of horses, 
 "922; cattle, 1,688; asses and mules, 37; sheep, 
 157; hogs, 3,249; steam engines, i; carriages and 
 wagons, 308; watches and clocks, 197 ; sewing and 
 knitting machines, 99 ; pianos, 7 ; melodeons and 
 organs, 35. Total value of personal property, 
 $708.02. 
 
 Below is given the names of the citizens who have 
 been honored with the office of Supervisor : 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 Benj.S. Morey 1854 
 
 Philip Horney 
 
 W. H. H. Claycomb 
 
 Philip Horney 
 
 W. H. H. Claycomb. 
 
 Henry Murphy 
 
 W. H. H. Claycomb.. 
 James McFarland .... 
 
 ,8 S 6 
 .1857 
 
 1859 
 .1860 
 .1661-2 
 
 L . M . Gates ........... . 1863-4 
 
 J. H. Murphy .......... 1865 
 
 Philip Horney ........... 1866 
 
 J. R. Barnett ............ 1867-70 
 
 L. M. Gates ............. 1871-3 
 
 J- T Hartman ........... 1874-5 
 
 Philip Horney .......... 1876 
 
 J. T. Hartman .......... 1877-85 
 
 Cameron. 
 
 AMERON is located on the line of the 
 Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad 
 and principally in Floyd Township. Af- 
 ter the route of this road was determined, 
 Robert Cameron concluded that this would 
 be a good locality to lay out a town. It was 
 first platted Feb. 22, 1854, and was called Cameron- 
 
 ville, and was located south of the track. There 
 were a few people at least here who must have had 
 great expectations regarding this town. Why they 
 did so remains a mystery. We find it was platted 
 again at two different times, once by Ivory Quinby 
 and John H. Warren. This plat was filed Dec. 21, 
 1854, and was located on sections 32 and 33 in 
 township ii north of range i west, containing 79 
 acres. It was surveyed by J. W. Adcock. Camer- 
 onville south of the railroad track was platted by 
 Robert and Sarah Cameron, March 6, 1854, and was 
 located on sections 5 and 6, township 10 north of 
 range i west, and was also surveyed by J. W. Ad- 
 cock. Waste's Addition to Cameron was platted 
 July 13, 1855, and was located on section 4, town- 
 ship 10 north of range i west, and was surveyed by 
 S. M. Moore. 
 
 Robert Cameron made another addition to Camer- 
 onviile, Aug. 2, 1856. Waste's addition lay east of 
 the first plat and also extended across the railroad 
 track into Cold Brook Township, and was called 
 Cameron. This place, or noted village, is known 
 in the sad years gone by, by travelers as a sort of a 
 cross between a watering place and a harbor of re- 
 fuge. It is not remembered, that anybody ever had 
 the courage or audacity to accuse a traveler of vol- 
 untarily stopping, but he has been quietly or uncere- 
 moniously " dropped," by the conductors, to foot it 
 back to Galesburg, and there wait for the next train 
 to carry him on to his destination, giving him in the 
 meantime ample opportunity to stretch his limbs, 
 for which he left his car, and was left by it. The 
 railroad officials corrected their management at 
 Galesburg some years ago, and hence Cameron has 
 gone down, not having any more unfortunate travel- 
 ers to supply with cigars, cookies, crackers and 
 cheese. 
 
 The first man to open a store here was A. B. Haw- 
 kins, who moved over from the old town of Cold 
 Brook. The postoffice was established here after 
 the railroad was completed, in February, 1855, and 
 Mr. Hawkins was appointed postmaster. After this, 
 the name of Cameron was united upon, and it has 
 been known as such since that time. Edward 
 Hunt followed Hawkins as postmaster, and served 
 during President Buchanan's administration. Har- 
 rison Waste came in during the Republican admin- 
 istration of President Lincoln. He was followed by 
 H. C. Higgin, H. H. Kelly, and E. Hart, who is the 
 
 : 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 7'? 
 
 present postmaster. After the advent of the rail- 
 road, some houses from Galesburg opened business 
 here. At one time it was quite a shipping point for 
 grain, and it still receives most of the products 
 from the western portions of Cold Brook and Floyd 
 Townships, and some from the eastern parts of Lenox 
 and Monmouth. The population, as estimated by S. 
 T. Shelton last spring, is 306. 
 
 There is a general store carried on here by E. 
 Hart, and one by L. T. Kelly. Robert Atkinson 
 keeps harness and saddlery ; Temple & Son carry on 
 the drug business ; E. W. Rowe has also a general 
 store. 
 
 CHURCHES. 
 
 The Christian Church is the same society that 
 was organized at Peter Peckempaugh's on section 
 30, April 30, 1831, and is one of the first church or- 
 ganizations in the county. The first members were 
 among the first settlers of the county. As they 
 were somewhat historical, their names are given be- 
 low: William Whitman, Sarah Whitman, Julia A. 
 Whitman, Henry C. Haley, Elizabeth Haley, John 
 C. and Francis Murphy, John G. Haley, Richard H. 
 Ragland, Nancy Ragland, Wm. M. and Elizabeth 
 Davidson, Josiah Whitman, Elijah Davidson, Sr., 
 Margaret Davidson, Sr.,and Margaret Davidson, Jr., 
 Elijah Davidson, Jr. Six of the above members are 
 still living: Julia A. Whitman, now Mrs. Davidson; 
 Elizabeth Haley, now Mrs. Jones ; Francis Murphy, 
 now living in Oregon; Margaret Davidson, Jr., also 
 in Oregon; Elijah Davidson, Jr., in Oregon; and 
 Elizabeth Davidson, now Mrs. Lucas, and living at 
 Abingdon. This church was constituted upon the 
 belief that the scriptures of the Old and New Testa- 
 ments are the word of God, and the only rule of 
 faith and practice, and sufficient for the government 
 of 'the Church. They erected their first church 
 building at Savanna, afterward called Cold Brook, 
 which was completed in 1839. Rev. Wm. Whit- 
 man was their first pastor. Before their church 
 building was constructed, meetings were held in 
 school houses and in private families. This society 
 at one time numbered over 200 members. In 1851 
 many of its members went to Oregon, enough to 
 form quite a congregation there. The place where 
 they settled was called Monmouth, after the town 
 in Warren County. In 1860, Cameron having be- 
 come a thriving railroad town, and the business of 
 
 Cold Brook having been transferred to that place, 
 it was decided to move the church also. Accord- 
 ingly an edifice was put up at Cameron, at a cost of 
 $2,300. In an early day the people attended this 
 church from far and near ; from Abingdon, Mon- 
 mouth, Ellison, Gerlaw, etc. Among the preachers 
 that have served this church are : Revs. Wm. Whit- 
 man, Alexander Reynolds, James R. Ross, Livy 
 Hatchett, John Rigdon, (cousin of Sidney Rigdon of 
 Mormon fame), William Davenport, A. J. Kane, 
 Isaac Murphy, John G. Haley, Josiah Whitman, 
 Alex Johnson, L. S. Wallace, . J. S. Ed- 
 wards, John E. Murphy, and T. H. Good- 
 night, now in Kansas. Some pf these early 
 preachers are still living. When the church 
 had no regular pastors, Elder S. T. Shelton, 
 one of Cold Brook's most prominent and favored 
 citizens, would preach to the congregation. Re- 
 cently they have secured the services of Rev. 
 Charles Laycock, a talented young preacher. They 
 have now about 125 members with a large and in- 
 teresting Sabbath-school. This society is prosper- 
 ous and is doing good work in the Christian field of 
 labor. 
 
 ^ 
 
 The Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in J 
 1856 ; M. B. .Morey and wife, J. B. Porterfield and 
 wife, Benjamin Tinkham and wife, and William P.J 
 Crosby and wife, constituted the first members. 
 Their building was erected in 1857, at a cost of 
 $1,300. This building was burned in Sept. 1877. A 
 new edifice was erected in 1883, and was dedicated 
 July ist, the same year. The dedicatory sermon 
 was preached by Revs. George W. Palmer, pastor, 
 and Thomas H. Pryon. It is a neat frame structure, 
 costing about $3,000, with a seating capacity of 
 probably 250 persons. They have a good parson- 
 age, which cost $1,000. Rev. J. B. Snedaker is the 
 present pastor who presides over about 60 members. 
 In connection with the society is an interesting Sab- 
 bath-school with about 45 members. 
 
 The First Baptist Church. A number of the 
 members of this church assembled June 30, 1866, 
 for the purpose of perfecting an organization. Rev. 
 J. N. Talman of Monmouth preached the sermon, 
 when Rev. H. H. Parks was called to the chair. J. 
 N. Talman was chosen clerk pro tern. Letters were 
 presented by D. F. Smith, C. C. Manford and F. G. 
 Manford. Several others gave their names and de- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 clared themselves in favor of uniting as soon as they 
 could receive letters from their former churches. 
 After this, articles of faith were adopted. Rev. John 
 Ballon was the first pastor. The church was com- 
 pleted and dedicated in August, 1869. Rev. Balton 
 terminated his labors with the church, March 4, 1871. 
 He was followed by J. K. Pennington, who remained 
 until 1878, when he was succeeded by Rev. C. G. 
 Kent, who served until 1880. Rev. T. W. Jones 
 then took charge and remained for a while, when he 
 was succeeded by Rev. Mr. Depperman. At present 
 the society is without a pastor, but occasionally they 
 have services at the church. 
 
 SCHOOLS. 
 
 Cameron has a fair graded school. It is a union 
 district from Floyd and Cold Brook. Before the con- 
 solidation in 187 1, they had separate schools and 
 school buildings. After the districts were united, a 
 good two-story building was erected for school pur- 
 poses. Miss Libbie Regnieris the present principal, 
 and Miss Kate Boggles, assistant, with an average 
 attendance of 75 pupils. 
 
 ELLISON TOWNSHIP. 
 
 LLISON was organized as a township, April 
 4, 1854. Agreeable to the notice previ- 
 ously given, the legal voters of this town- 
 ship met on this day and proceeded to elect 
 their officers and perfect their organization. E. 
 Mitchell was chosen Moderator, and A. S. 
 Smith, Clerk. The result of this meeting was the 
 election of E. Mitchell, for Supervisor, Wm. Coleman, 
 Clerk; J. P. Rutherford, Assessor; N. B. Cramer, 
 Collector; H. F. Sexton and S. D. Perkins, Justices 
 of the Peace; H. S. Sexton, Overseer of the Poor; 
 D. Leacock and N. Eldridge, Commissioners of 
 Highways ; W. H. Gilmore, George VV. Scott, Con- 
 stables. Thus equipped for self-government the 
 people of this township, received new life and went 
 on in their development and prosperity. 
 
 This territory is in township 9 north of range 3 
 west, and is bounded on the north by Tompkins, on 
 the east by Roseville, on the south by Point Pleas- 
 
 ant Township, and on the west by Henderson 
 County. 
 
 Field Jarvis was the first settler in this township, 
 locating in 1829 at the head of Ellison Creek. It 
 was some years before he had any neighbors. 
 
 Isaac A. Watson and Wm. P. Thompson settled in 
 this township in 1835. Kenner Brent, his wife, Eliza- 
 beth, and a large family of children,among whom were 
 Kenner, Jr., David C., Wm P. and Paul, came in 
 March, 1836, locating on section 18. They were 
 from Lancaster Co. Va. Mr. Brent and his wife, 
 Elizabeth, are both dead. Some of their children are 
 still living in the township. Mr. Brent was in the 
 war of 1812, where he distinguished himself for his 
 bravery in several active engagements, Seneca Sals- 
 bury and family from Ohio, located in 1836, on sec- 
 tion 4. Among those that soon followed these pio- 
 neers and settled in the township before 1840, are 
 Mr. Meacham and family, C. Higler and family, 
 Mathew Cox and family, Samuel Baldwin and Jesse 
 Coleman with their families ; also, Mr. Staley ; John 
 and Edward Ray, with their families ; Benton God- 
 frey, Paul, William and John Birdsell, Daniel Lea- 
 cock, James Gregory, William Talbot, Decatur Lof- 
 tus, and family from Tennessee ; William Brown and 
 family from Virginia. Mr. Jarvis was a large, pow- 
 erful man, and a noted bee-hunter. The early set- 
 tlers depended upon Field almost entirely to furnish 
 them with honey. Horace Sexton and wife, Hannah, 
 came in and settled in the northwestern part of the 
 township, in the spring of 1840. When they settled, 
 there was but one house between them and Mon- 
 mouth. They came from Ashtabula Co., Ohio. 
 Horace Sexton died at the old homestead, in Oct., 
 1877 ; his widow is still living. Seneca Salsbury and 
 wife are both dead, the former but recently. It is said 
 that at the time he erected his dwelling house, it was 
 the finest house in the county. Mr. Salsbury was 
 the first Postmaster in the township. 
 
 The first villnge that started was Lancaster, on 
 section 22. It contained a tavern, two stores, a black 
 smith shop, and Post Office. As a village it is now 
 deserted, and is only known in the memory of the 
 early settlers. 
 
 " But now the sounds of population fail, 
 No cheerful murmurs fluctuate the gale; 
 No busy steps the grass-grown foot-way tread, 
 But Blithe blooming Hush of life is fled/' 
 
 But while it is no longer a village, on its site can 
 
WARR&N COUNTY. 
 
 719 
 
 be traced broad fields of grain, and extensive herds 
 of cattle graze and chew their cuds at ease on the 
 green pasture. 
 
 The first couple to enter into the sacred ties of 
 matrimony were Decatur Loftus and Mary Barrett. 
 Their honey-moon and after life were spent on sec- 
 tion 25. The first birth and death are not remem- 
 bered. This township has not been exempt from the 
 wrathful winds of earth, though it has been shown 
 that it deserved no such affliction. On the 3oth day 
 of May, 1858, towards sunset, the blue sky became 
 overcast with dark, ominous clouds. Soon the roar 
 of the wind was heard in the timber west of Ellison 
 Village. The dreadful sound increased and in a few 
 seconds a tornado with lightning-like speed and des- 
 tructiveness overshadowed the town. But a few mo- 
 ments and only a few, buildings were left standing, 
 and nearly all of the inhabitants were more or less 
 injured, and many of them killed. 
 
 The gale came from Iowa and did no damage un- 
 til after it passed the Bluffs. Its path was about 40 
 rods wide and about 6 miles long in its destructive 
 course. It made one of its fearful revolutions in 
 front of Mr. Kelly's house, and after demolishing 
 the town, raised up from the ground a few miles 
 northwest and passed away. There were several 
 stores in the village, blacksmith shops, taverns, etc., 
 all of which were demolished. Fifteen persons were 
 killed and fatally wounded and many were disabled 
 for life. Of those killed and who died from the ef- 
 fects of their wounds, were the Misses McWilliams, 
 Mrs. Thompson and child, Mrs. Brazelton, Martin 
 Wentworth, Miss Lacy, Mrs. Boyd, Mrs. McCartney 
 and child, Mr. Johnson and child, Mr. Hurd, and 
 Mr. Thompson, who lived out on the prairie. On 
 the approach of the tornado, Mr. Thompson, with 
 his family, had gone into a cave, dug on purpose for 
 protection against such a catastrophe. Curiosity 
 got the best of his judgment, and against the admo- 
 nitions of his sensible wife, he put out his head to 
 see how a tornado looked in its best humor, when 
 the end of a rail that was flying about in the air 
 struck him in the "head, knocking it off, and sending 
 his headless body back into the cave, where it fell 
 at the feet of his wife and children. This tornado 
 was terrible in its power and must have been very 
 heavily charged with electricity. It tore the ground 
 up for rods, and took wagons and literally tore them 
 to pieces. From one heavy wagon wheel it took off 
 
 the tire and neatly cut a piece from it two feet in 
 length. Over a score of the dead, wounded and 
 dying were brought into J. M. Kelly's residence and 
 laid about on the floor. The scene was most heart- 
 rending and beyond all description. Their groans 
 and sufferings were sickening to behold. There were 
 only two men in the town unhurt ; these were J. M. 
 Kelly and W. L. Edwards, who are still living. 
 
 Ellison, before this dreadful visitation, was a 
 thriving, attractive, pleasant_little village. It broke 
 up and disheartened its business men and virtually 
 ruined the town as a trading point. 
 
 This town is the home of Mrs. Nancy Wilcox, 
 grandmother of the celebrated opera singer, Emma 
 Abbott. A very good story is related about the 
 grandmother. In the fall of 1854 Mrs. Wilcox at- 
 tended the Methodist Love Feast, in the Methodist 
 Church at Ellison village, which was presided over 
 by the Rev. Richard Haney. During the meeting, 
 or Love Feast, Mrs. Wilcox arose to give her relig- 
 ious experiences. Among other facts related by this 
 lady, was one of the difficulties which beset her be- 
 fore she joined the Church. When she had made up , 
 her mind to number herself with God's people, she 
 addressed her husband, saying: " Isaac, my beloved 
 husband, I have decided to give my heart to God, 
 and to join the Methodist Church." Her husband 
 very energetically replied: " Nancy, I'll be damned 
 if you do!" Mrs. Wilcox, with equal emphasis, re- 
 plied : " Isaac, I'll be damned if I don't! " Since 
 that day Isaac died the death of the righteous and 
 Mrs. Wilcox is still living, in her good old age, the 
 life of a Christian. 
 
 Ellison Township is very liberally watered, by 
 Nigger Creek, with its tributaries, and Ellison Creek. 
 In the southwestern part the land is broken and 
 pretty well timbered ; the balance is mostly rolling 
 prairie, with a rich and productive soil. There are 
 many fine and well cultivated farms in the township, 
 and the farmers are mostly all in independent cir- 
 cumstances. No railroad lines pass through its ter- 
 ritory and the people do their trading mostly at 
 Roseville and some at Ellison. Population, in 1880, 
 was 1,041, and it has not gained any since that time. 
 
 The County Superintendent, in her report ending 
 June 30, 1885, gives the following information relat- 
 ing to the public schools of the township : There 
 were seven schools districts, with a valuation of 
 school property of $6,525. In these districts all the 
 
720 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 buildings were frame. Of persons under 21 years of 
 age, there were 401, of whom 293 were of scholastic 
 age, 270 being enrolled. The highest wages paid 
 teachers was $50 per month, the lowest $25 per 
 month. The tax levy for this township was $2,450. 
 
 From the Assessor's reports for the year 1885, the 
 following information has been obtained : Number 
 of acres of improved lands, 22,740; value of im- 
 proved lands, $325,585 ; number of horses, 787 ; 
 cattle, 1,647; mules and asses, 40; sheep, 18; hogs, 
 3,055 ; steam engines, I ; carnages and wagons, 290, 
 watches and clocks, 141 ; sewing and knitting ma- 
 chines, 97 ; pianos, 5 ; melodeons and organs, 34 ; 
 total cash value of personal property, $56,610. 
 
 The following named citizens have represented 
 Ellison Township as Supervisors : Eliphalet Mitchell, 
 1854-55; George W. Palmer, 1856; N. A. Eldridge, 
 1857-64; Wm. A. Albright, 1865; N. A. Eldridge, 
 1866-67; Thos. Paul, 1868; W. R. Rayburne, 
 1869-70; J. A. Pierson, 1871; S. B. Crane, 1872; 
 E. Mitchell, 1873; S. B. Crane, 1874; E. Mitchell, 
 1875-77; A. K. Morris, 1878; E.Mitchell, 1879; 
 A. K. Morris, 1880; E. Mitchell, 1881-82; M. V. 
 Jamieson, 1883-85. 
 
 Ellison Village. 
 
 'MONO the early towns of the county plat- 
 ted was that of Ellison. It was laid out 
 under the proprietorship of Joseph De- 
 hague, and the plaf was recorded May 10, 
 1836. It embraced the southwest quarter of 
 the northwest quarter of section 6. Wil- 
 liam Butler was the surveyor who laid it out. This 
 village grew with the settlement of the township and 
 there was at one time quite a trade carried on here, 
 in fact, until its destruction by the tornado of 1858. 
 After this calamity most of the trade was trans- 
 ferred to Roseville. There is a post office here, 
 which is presided over by James Watson. Mr. Wat- 
 son is also proprietor of a general store. J. E. Painter 
 carries on a grocery, and harness and saddlery bus- 
 iness. The blacksmithing is attended to by W. 
 L. Edwards. There are also two wagon and repair 
 shops, carried on by J. M. Kelly and G. Davidson. 
 The most important industry of this village is the 
 
 tile factory, which was started in 1882. The clay 
 used is a very superior quality and taken from a bank 
 about a mile from the town. Mr. Edwards employs 
 on an average five men and has one kiln. Dr. E. 
 Wilkinson attends to the sick in the village. 
 
 Ellison has a good school and a very popular 
 teacher in the person of W. F. Shirkey ; average at- 
 tendance at this school is about 45 pupils. 
 
 FLOYD TOWNSHIP. 
 
 LOYD came into the township organiza- 
 tion with the other townships. The records 
 of the proceedings of the first meeting 
 were burned, and only a part can be given. 
 The election was held April 4, 1854, at the 
 old town of Cold Brook, when the follow- 
 ing officers were chosen : William Laferty, Super- 
 visor; H. S. Hascal, Clerk; G. B. Cross, Assessor; 
 Thomas B. Cross and Charles Phelps, Justices of the 
 Peace ; James L. Grant and Bradley Hecox, Com- 
 missioners of Highways. It is numbered ro north, 
 of range i east, and is bounded on the north by Cold 
 Brook, on the east by Knox County, on the south by 
 Berwick and on the west by Lenox Townships. This 
 territory was not overlooked by the early settlers of J 
 Warren County. John Armstrong has the credit of 
 being the first to locate in the township, which was 
 in 1829. He came with his family and located on 
 the south side of the township, on section 23, put up 
 a cabin, the first in the township, and commenced to 
 improve his land and construct for himself and fam- 
 ily a home. He was born in Illinois, May ir, 1812, 
 and died in 1882, leaving his kindred and a large 
 circle of friends to mourn his loss. The next to 
 move in was Benjamin F. Allen, with wife and nine 
 children, from Oneida Co., N. Y. The names of the 
 children are Truman D., Eliza, Frederick, Jane, 
 Edwin, Henry and Emery (twins), Albert and Am- 
 brose. These children are all dead but Ambrose 
 and Truman D. Mr. Allen located on section 29. 
 He died July 10, 1872, at the old homestead, and 
 his widow three years later. 
 
 Louis and Isaac Vertrees, from Kentucky, with 
 their families, came here in 1830, locating their 
 homes on section 3, where they made many improve- 
 ments. Isaac, after some years, moved back to his 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 721 
 
 native State. Louis was attached to his home, lived 
 there throughout his long life, and died April 13, 
 1883, [respected and loved by all who knew him. 
 Elijah Davidson was another early settler, moving in 
 in 1830. He was also from Kentucky. After liv- 
 ing here over 20 years, he, with a part of his family, 
 joined the colony that emigrated to Oregon in 1851. 
 Carter T. and Hosea, sons of Elijah Davdson, set- 
 tled here with him. Carter died in Oregon a few 
 years ago. Hosea moved to Missouri, where he 
 died. Alexander Davidson, son of Elijah, came in 
 about this time. All the Davidsons settled on the 
 school section 16. After these families came John 
 Dodge, his son, John Milton, Felix and David Rob- 
 inson, George and Henry Cable, Wilson Sheldon, M. 
 D. Matteson, Cornelius Tunnicliff, Thos. D. Allen, 
 and others. After the Black Hawk War the town- 
 ship settled up quite rapidly. Among those coming 
 in after the war was Henry Cable, his wife and six 
 children Sarah, Mary, Ezra, George C., Chauncy 
 M. and William H. They came in 1835, and set- 
 tled about a mile and a half east of the town of Ber- 
 wick, near the township line. Mr. Cable came from 
 Oneida Co., N. Y. Here he lived for over 40 years, 
 improving his farm, accumulating property and rear- 
 ing his children, most of whom settled about hin. 
 During this long period he took an active part in all 
 the public affairs of the township. In 1866 he moved 
 to Monmouth, where he died, March 8, 1877, at the 
 age of 80 years. His wife, Olive, died in February, 
 1875, in her 84th year. Mary died in 1851 ; Sarah, 
 who married Mr. Laferty (see biography) is still liv- 
 ing in Monmouth. The sons are all living on farms 
 in Floyd Township, except'Chauncy M., who is living 
 in Monmouth. During the Black Hawk War, many 
 of the settlers, fearing attacks from the Indians, went 
 into Knox County, where they remained until the 
 war terminated. The first birth, death and marriage 
 is not definitely remembered, nor the first school 
 taught. 
 
 The children living in the territory now embraced 
 by this township, attended school at the old town of 
 Cold Brook ; so also did the people go there for their 
 religious services, which were held under the aus- 
 pices of the Christian Church. Some of the preach- 
 ers of this Church would hold services occasionally 
 at private houses in this township. In 1839, a Chris- 
 tian Church was established at Meridian, near the 
 
 line between Floyd and Berwick Townships, the 
 members joining this organization withdrawing from 
 the Cold Brook Church. Another congregation was 
 formed from the Cold Brook Church, in 1845,3! what 
 was called Short's Corners, section 16. It was one 
 of short duration, and was disbanded in 1847. 
 
 The township is watered by Slug Creek and its 
 tributaries, which run southeasterly into Berwick, 
 uniting with Nigger Creek, which empties into Spoon 
 River. The land in this township is nearly all prai- 
 rie, with slight undulations, except in the 
 southwest portion, where it is timbered and some- 
 what broken. Along the upper line of the township 
 is the divide, the waters on the north emptying into 
 the Henderson and then into the Mississippi, and 
 those on the South into Spoon River, and then 
 into the Illinois River. The principal crops raised 
 now, are corn and hay. It was once a very heavy 
 producing township in all the cereals, but the land 
 became worn out and a change of product was nec- 
 essary. The farms in the township are all good and 
 well managed. The dwelling houses are comforta- 
 ble, and many of them are constructed with taste. 
 In all the school districts are good schools and good 
 school buildings. The Chicago, Burlington & 
 Quincy Railroad passes along the northern line of 
 this township, or between this and Cold Brook. The 
 nearest depot and trading place is Cameron. In pop- 
 ulation it is estimated that Floyd has not lost in 
 numbers since 1880, it containing then, according to 
 the census reports, 1,162. 
 
 From the Assessor's report for the year 1885, the 
 following information is obtained : 
 
 Number of acres of improved land, 22,385 ; num- 
 ber of acres of unimproved land, 360 ; value of im- 
 proved land, $301,5 n ; value .of unimproved lands, 
 $2,880; total value of lots, $4,170; number of 
 horses, 1,065; cattle, 1,422; asses and mules, 6; 
 sheep, 147 ; hogs, 2,665 '> steam engines, 2 ; car- 
 riages and wagons, 204; watches and clocks, 73; 
 sewing and knitting machines, 87 ; pianos, 6 ; organs 
 and melodeons, 34; total value of personal property, 
 $606.40. 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 William Laferty 1854-5 
 
 John F. Giddings 856 
 
 Thomas B. Cross 1857-60 
 
 Lewis Vertrees 1860-3 
 
 Charles Waste 1863 
 
 W. C. Clyborne 1864 
 
 S. T. Shelton 1865-70 
 
 C . W . Boydston 1871 
 
 Lewis Vertrees .-...1872 
 
 C. W. Boydtton 1873-4 
 
 John W . Bolon 1875-8 
 
 D. C.Graham 1879 
 
 John W. Bolon 1880-2 
 
 D. C. Graham 1883- = 
 
712 
 
 WARREN 
 
 -S 
 
 GREENBTJSH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 REENBUSH TOWNSHIP was one of the 
 early settled townships of the county. Ro- 
 land Simmons was the first man to settle 
 here, which he did in 1830, making a claim on 
 section 6. He was an energetic, thriving 
 man, prominent in the public affairs of the 
 township, and a good citizen. He died in the sum- 
 mer of 1858, leaving a large family of children and 
 many friends to mourn his loss. His wife preceded 
 him to the other world many years before. They 
 both died at the old homestead where they first lo- 
 cated. 
 
 Jesse W. Bond and William Taylor, with their 
 families, came in soon after Mr. Simmons, and made 
 claims on section 19. These pioneers were active 
 , and valuable citizens, and did much toward im- 
 proving and building up the township. They became 
 prominent and active in all public affairs, accumu- 
 lated fine properties, which they left to their children. 
 They, with their wives, have been dead some years 
 all dying at their homesteads. James Simmons, his 
 wife and seven children, from Madison Co., 111., came 
 in 1833, and located on section 35. He first came 
 to Illinois in 1816. His children were Andrew W., 
 Sally, Roland M., Alfred W., Francis M., Charles R., 
 William J. and Joanna. 
 
 Four children, Nancy, Diana, Arminda and Mar- 
 tin VanBuren, were born in Greenbush. This pio- 
 neer died at the farm, Aug. 21, 1873. His wife, 
 Sally, died Aprils, 1855. He left a good inheritance 
 to his children, and was one of the prominent citizens 
 of the township. 
 
 Along after these pioneers came John C. Bond, 
 William McMahill, Payton Vaughn, Thomas Moul- 
 ton, James B. Smith, Jesse Looney, Aaron Powers 
 and Amos Pierce. Some of these pioneers brought 
 with them families. Amos Pierce settled on section 
 7, and died in July, 1872. His wife died in 1845. 
 (See biography.) James B. Smith died on his way 
 to Oregon. After this the settlement in the township 
 advanced quite rapidly, particularly after the Indian 
 troubles had been finally adjusted. 
 
 A young child of Roland Simmons was the first 
 
 death in the township, which occurred in 1830. 
 
 The first couple to enter into matrimonial relations 
 were Moses D. Hand and Elizabeth Crawford. They 
 were joined in the holy bonds of wedlock Dec. 23, 
 l8 35> by John C. Bond, Justice of the Peace. The 
 next important event was the death of the sister of 
 John Long. Her body was interred in the Bond 
 burying ground. The first post office was opened at 
 Greenfield, now known as- Greenbush, by Charles 
 Slice. Blankenship & Brother were the first to em- 
 bark in the ivercantile business. Mr. Desbro was 
 the firsi educated young man to open school in the 
 township, which was in a log house southeast of 
 Greenbush. The first religious exercises, or preach- 
 ing, was at Roland Simmons' house, by a Methodist 
 circuit rider, in the winter of 1833-4. 
 
 In early days the people of this township did 
 their trading and marketing at Peoria, Oquawka and 
 sometimes at Chicago. 
 
 Greenbush went into township organization with 
 the other townships, but the records have been lost 
 and only a part of the proceedings of the first elec- 
 tion can be given. We find, however, that David 
 Armstrong acted as Moderator at this election. Levi 
 Lincoln was elected Supervisor; William Shores, 
 Collector; A. W. Simmons, Assessor; F. H. Merrill, 
 Clerk; John C. Vaughn and L. L. Ury, Justices of 
 the Peace; J. Butler R. M. Simmons and H. H. 
 Hewitt, Commissioners of Highways. 
 
 This township is numbered eight north, of range i 
 west, and has for its boundary line, Berwick Town- 
 ship on the north, Knox County on the east, Fulton 
 County on the south and Swan Township on the 
 west. It is very liberally watered by Swan and Nig- 
 ger Creeks and their tributaries, which run eastward 
 and empty into Spoon River. The Quincy branch 
 of the C. B. & Q. R. R. crosses the southeast cor- 
 ner of the township. In the northeast portion of the 
 township and along the main creeks the land is some- 
 what broken, and is very well timbered ; the other 
 portion of the township is rolling prairie. The soil 
 is rich and productive, corn and hay being the prin- 
 cipal crop, which have a prolific growth. There are 
 some grand old farms in Greenbush and'many fine 
 dwellings. The people do their trading mostly at 
 Avon, Fulton County, and at Greenbush Village. 
 The population of this township, in 1880, was 1,053, 
 which is about the present number. 
 
 In the annual report for the year ending June 30 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 1885, the County Superintendent gives the following 
 information regarding the public schools. There 
 were to school districts, the school property being 
 valued at $2,500. All the school buildings are frame. 
 Of persons under 21 years of age there were 406, of 
 which 286 were of scholastic age, 243 being en- 
 rolled. The highest wages paid teachers was $5 
 per month, and the lowest $25. The tax levy for 
 this township was $1,825. 
 
 From the Assessor's report for 1885, the following 
 information was obtained : Number of acres of im- 
 proved land, 22,000 ; number of acres of unimproved 
 land, 1,000 ; value of improved land, $312,120; 
 value of unimproved land, $4,060 ; value of lots, 
 $2,800: number of horses, 900; cattle, 2,060; num- 
 ber of mules and asses, 129; sheep, 636; hogs, 2,- 
 660; steam engines, i ; carriages and wagons, 227 ; 
 watches and clocks, 159; sewing and knitting ma- 
 chines, 90; pianos, 4; melodeons and organs, 34. 
 Total value of personal property, $840.49. 
 
 IGreenbush has been represented by the following 
 
 named citizens as Supervisors: John C. Bond, 1854; 
 
 Levi Lincoln, 1854; John C. Bond, 1856-67 ; A. W. 
 
 Simmons, 1868-7 r; L - M - Green, 1872; Danford 
 
 I Taylor, 1873-74; A. W. Simmons, 1875-76; L. M. 
 Green, 1877 ; A. W. Simmons, 1878-83 ; Israel Spor- 
 gin, 1884; A. W. Simmons, 1885. 
 
 Greenbush Village. 
 
 REENBUSH was one of the early aspiring 
 localities, the citizens of whom looked for. 
 ward with great expectations to the time 
 when there would be solid brick blocks, crowd- 
 ed streets, and all the bustle of a great city. 
 It was platted April 29, 1836, by Roland and 
 James Simmons, on the northeast quarter of section 
 5, the plat embracing about 40 acres. The name of 
 the village was afterward changed to that of Green- 
 bush, on account of there being another town of the 
 same name in this btate. This town for some years 
 was quite a thriving village, having several stores 
 and business enterprises, but when the railroad came 
 through, which makes and unmakes towns, the trade 
 went elsewhere. There is one general store here 
 now owned by J. C. Johnson, who has a thriving 
 
 country trade. Mr. Johnson is also Postmaster of 
 the village. Population about 100 souls. There is 
 a good school here, which is taught by Mr. Blair, 
 with an average attendance of about 30 pupils. 
 
 RELIGIOUS. 
 
 There are two Churches here, the Baptist and Meth- 
 odist, which grew out of early organizations in the 
 township. 
 
 The Baptist Church. The members of the society 
 met on the third Saturday in June, 1836, at the house 
 of Brother Caleb Hedges, organized, and formed the 
 basis for quite a large congregation. Present at this 
 meeting were John Murphy, James Kelsey, John 
 Riggs, Joseph Rudges, B. W. Lewis, Caleb and 
 Polly Hedges, Ellis Lewis, Martha Riggs, Rosanna 
 Murphy, Rachael Butler, Polly Vandeveer and Rev. 
 Chas. Vandeveer. Mr. Vandeveer was chosen Mod- 
 erator, and John Murphy, Clerk. After mature de- 
 liberation, they decided to send for ministers for the 
 purpose of Ijeing constituted into a church. On the 
 third Saturday in July, they again met with addi- 
 tional members who had come in with letters from 
 other societies, to prepare and adopt articles of faith 
 and a constitution for their guidance. Elders Chas. , 
 Vandeveer and Robt. Mays were present to consti- 
 tute the church, which was given the name of New 
 Hope. This church belonged to the Spoon River J 
 Association. Rev. Chas. Vandeveer was chosen the 
 first pastor, in August, 1830. Services were held in 
 different parts of this and Swan Township, in private 
 houses. Rev. Chas. Vandeveer served his flock until 
 1854, when death took him to a new field of labor. 
 He was succeeded by Rev. George Tracy, who as- 
 sumed charge in June 1855, and retired the following 
 year. In May, 1857, Rev. Isaac Vanmeter was called 
 to take charge, and is the present pastor, having served 
 nearly a generation. In 1850, when the Academy 
 was built at the village of Greenbush, the society 
 was permantly located there. This Academy was 
 put up by the people of Greenbush for a school 
 building and for the holding of religious and other 
 meetings. It was a two-story building, the upper 
 part of which was principally devoted to school pur- 
 poses. At present there are 43 members, and servi- 
 ces are held every fourth Sunday, the pastor hav- 
 ing other charges in different parts of the county. 
 
 1 he Methodist Episcopal Church was organized at 
 the town of Greenbush at a very early day. Meet- 
 
724 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ings were held in private houses at first, and after 
 the establishment of school buildings services were 
 held in them, and when the Academy building, as 
 it was called, was erected, which was in 1850, at 
 Greenbush village, they held their services there, in 
 the lower room. In 1870 they completed their new 
 church building, at a cost of $5,000. In April, 187 i, 
 it was dedicated, Rev. Roswell Morse preaching the 
 dedicatory sermon. Rev. Mr. Matthews was the 
 first pastor in charge after the new edifice was 
 erected. He was succeeded by Revs. Hitchcock, 
 Jones, Blackwell, Grant, Torpin and Streator. Rev. 
 N. G. Clark is the present pastor, with service every 
 other Sunday. His other appointments are in Mc- 
 Donough County, which, with Greenbush, belong 
 to the Pleasant Mounds circuit. Present member- 
 ship of this society is about 50. It was at onetime 
 quite a thriving church, and they had a very grace- 
 ful, neat little edifice. The building has fallen into 
 decay, and is sadly out of repair. Many of the 
 
 'members have gone away, and others have ceased to 
 attend the church. 
 
 >S\ if 
 
 HALE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 ''ALE is situated in the western tier of town- 
 ships, and is numbered 10 north, of range 
 3, west. Its northern boundary is Sumner 
 township, on the east lies Monmouth, on the 
 south Tompkins township and on the west Hen- 
 derson County. The first election after township or- 
 ganization had been adopted, was held April 4, 1854, 
 in school house number i. Wm. Nast presided as 
 Moderator, and W. S. VVier, Clerk peo tern. Upon a 
 vote being taken for these officers, Wm. Cannon was 
 chosen Moderator, and S. W. Rodgers, Clerk. Fifty- 
 nine votes were cast at this election, which resulted 
 in the choice of Win. Fleming for Supervisor, Wm. 
 Clark, Clerk, B. B. Findley, Assessor, J. C. Ward, 
 Collector, G. H. Smaley and Andrew Jenkins. High- 
 way Commissioners, T. F. Lowther and W. S. Wier, 
 Justices of the Peace; Ira A. Palmer and D. Vanfleet 
 Constables. 
 
 The first act of the Commissioners of the High- 
 
 ways was to levy a tax of 20 cents on the $100, for 
 the improvement of roads. 
 
 The territory now occupied by Hale township was 
 settled about as early as any part of the county. 
 Adam Ritchey, Sr., with his wife, Elizabeth, were the 
 first settlers. They located near Sugar Tree Grove, 
 in 1828. Here he erected a cabin and began his im- 
 provements. This family was large enough to have 
 within themselves social amusement and cpmpan- 
 ionship, and to relieve pioneer life from that dreary 
 loneliness, usually one of its unavoidable and un- 
 pleasant features. There was Adam, Jr. John, Ab- 
 igail, Martha, Elizabeth, Matthew, Caroline and 
 James, Ritchey. Take them altogether they formed 
 quite a little colony, and soon made their impression 
 in the township. Adarn Ritchey died many years 
 ago, and was buried in the Ritchey burying-ground. 
 His widow, Elizabeth, moved to Iowa, where she 
 subsequently died. David Findley and Thomas 
 Campbell came to this settlement in 1829. In 1830, 
 John Kendall and wife, Elizabeth, William and Samuel 1 
 Gibson, with their wives, James Jenkins, wife and 
 children and James Maley and wife, added their 1 
 numbers to the settlement. Soon after came John "* 
 Caldwell, wife and three children, John W., Eleanor 
 and Martha, and located on section n. The Cald- 
 wells were from Bedford Co., Pa. John Caldwell J 
 was a man of great force of character, and took an 
 active part in the affairs of the county. He was one 
 of the leaders in the establishment of the Associate 
 Church at Sugar Tree Grove, and was one of the first 
 Elders. His wife died at an early day, and he 
 joined her in the other world in December, 1865. 
 Eleanor married John Black. Both she and Martha 
 are dead. John W. Caldwell is living at Monmouth. 
 (See biography.) 
 
 To this settlement was added in October, 1831, 
 William Paxton, wife and seven children. They 
 came from Xenia, Ohio, and located on section 2. 
 The names of the children were : W. S., John S., 
 Thomas M., Jane L., Ann, Margaret F., and Mary 
 E. Mr. Paxton took an active part in the public af- 
 fairs of the township, and was an upright and worthy 
 citizen. He died in March, 1861, at his home. His 
 wife had preceded him, departing this life in Jan- 
 uary, 1845. Thomas M. is living on the place; 
 John S. is in Iowa; William S. is living at Mon- 
 mouth. (See biography.) The daughters are all 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 7*5 
 
 dead but Margaret, who is living in Sumner Town- 
 ship. 
 
 The next addition to this township was William 
 Turnbull, his wife and two sons, Alexander and Gil- 
 bert, and their families, who came in 1832. They 
 located on sections 19 and 30. Mr. Turnbull was a 
 native of Scotland, and had emigrated to this country 
 soon after the close of the Revolution, settling first 
 in Tennessee. Unable to reconcile himself with the 
 institution of slavery, he left Tennessee in 1808, 
 and settled in Ohio. From Ohio he came to Warren 
 County. He was a man of marked character and 
 great religious zeal. He died at his home in Hale 
 Township, in 1835. 
 
 Gilbert moved to Henderson County, where he 
 died in 1851. Alexander died in Hale Township in 
 1856. David Turnbull followed his father from 
 Ohio, in 1833, and settled one mile north of Mon- 
 mouth. He afterward moved into Hale Township, 
 and located near Sugar Tree Grove. He died in 
 Monmouth, at the residence of his son, John M., in 
 1871. (See biography of John M.) 
 
 William Turnbull's home in Tennessee was near 
 Nashville, and joined that of Andrew Jackson. Gen- 
 eral Jackson came in after the Turnbulls had set- 
 tled. He had at that day but little of this world's 
 effects; a light wardrobe and a few law books em- 
 braced all of his earthly possessions, but he had a 
 strong, bold spirit and an indomitable will, which 
 was good capital to begin life's struggles with. He 
 had paid out his last copper to procure his passage 
 to this place, his future home, and had no money to 
 pay for the hauling of his baggage, small as it was, 
 to his house. This future soldier, statesman and 
 president was here alone in the world, penniless, 
 friendless, and did not know to whom he might ap- 
 peal for aid. He fortunately met Mr. Turnbull, 
 made known to him his situation, who readily let 
 him have the money to relieve him of his embarrass- 
 ment. This generous act to a stranger attached 
 young Jackson to his benefactor, Mr. Turnbull, and 
 they ever afterward were warm friends. 
 
 It might be of interest to the reader to mention at 
 this point in the history of this township an incident 
 connected with the life of Gen. Jackson, as related 
 by Wm. Turnbull, in which he to some extent figures, 
 the full and correct account of which probably has 
 never appeared in print. 
 
 Some years after Gen. Jackson came to Nashville, 
 he being involved in a quarrel, which finally resulted 
 in a duel. It grew out of a difficulty which oc- 
 curred at a horse-race, between Gen. Jackson and a 
 young lawyer by the name of Swann, who had re- 
 cently come into the State from Virginia. The race 
 was for $2,000, and Gen. Jackson had brought for- 
 ward his favorite steed, Truxton, to win the stakes. 
 Some angry words arose between the General and 
 young Swann, which resulted in the latter sending a 
 challenge. Gen. Jackson refused to accept the 
 challenge on the ground that Swann was not a gen- 
 tleman, but turned and struck him with his cane. 
 Charles Dickinson, who was also a lawyer, and a 
 man of prominence took up young Swann 's quarrel, 
 challenged Jackson, and insisted on an immediate 
 fight. William Turnbull hearing of the trouble and 
 discovering Jackson in the woods practicing with his 
 pistol, approached him and with all the religious 
 zeal for which his countrymen were noted, labored 
 long and earnestly with the General, trying to per- 
 suade him from accepting the challenge. Previous 
 to this affair Jackson was wont to practice with his 
 pistols for hours in the woods. Turnbull discover- 
 ing this, reprimanded him for his lack of true, Chris- 
 tian principle, telling him that it was not consistent 
 with his religious views. Jackson would reply, that 
 it was not, but that he had to be prepared to live 
 under the " code " or he could not stay in Tennes- 
 see. In reply to Mr. Trumbull's remonstrance Gen. 
 Jackson said: "That he could not live there unless 
 he accepted the challenge ; that if he refused to 
 accept it he must leave the country." He told Mr. 
 Turnbull, however, referring to the duel, that he did 
 not intend to shoot Mr. Dickinson; that above other 
 considerations, he (Dickinson) had a wife and child 
 whom he had great regard for. 
 
 The challenge sent by Mr. Dickinson was finally 
 accepted by Gen. Jackson. The duel was to take 
 place at a day's ride from Nashville, in Kentucky. 
 Jackson left with his friends for the appointed place. 
 Dickinson arose early in the morning, and kissing 
 his innocent, sleeping child, and taking leave of his 
 beautiful young wife, saying, " good-bye, darling, I 
 will be sure to be at home to-morrow night," started 
 on his fatal journey. After a day's jo;;rney, the 
 two parties arrived near the grounds. They passed 
 the night at farm houses about two miles from each 
 other. The opponents met at the designated place, 
 
 LAr: 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 which was in a grove, early Tuesday morning, May 
 30, 1806. The arrangements were duly made. The 
 duelists were to face each other at 24 feet, with pis- 
 tols drawn, and at the word " fire " were to discharge 
 their weapons. Gen. Jackson had informed his 
 friends of the course he intended to pursue. Dick- 
 inson was known as a dead shot, and he said it was 
 useless for him to contend against him. He would 
 receive the fire of his antagonist and hold his own. 
 As the sun rose sending its warm spring rays through 
 the young and tender draperies of the trees, and 
 while the wild, beautiful birds were offering up their 
 sweet notes of praise, these human beings faced 
 each other with drawn weapons, one at least intent 
 on murder. The signal was given and the report of 
 the pistol rang out through the clear morning air. 
 When the smoke cleared away, Gen. Jackson was 
 still standing apparently unhurt. He, as he had 
 promised his friends, held his fire. His antagonist 
 seeing him stand there raised up his hand and ex- 
 
 f claimed, "What, have I not killed thedamn ? " 
 
 Jackson on hearing this, calmly and deliberately lev- 
 
 1 eled his weapon and fired. His antagonist fell with 
 a fatal wound near the heart, from which he died in 
 a few hours. 
 
 The duelling party broke up. Jackson and his 
 friends mounted their horses and turned their steps 
 homeward, leaving the dying Dickinson with his 
 party on the field. As Jackson and his party 
 started homeward he told them that he did not in- 
 tend to shoot Dickinson, but when he heard the ex- 
 pression used by him, he considered it a reflection 
 upon his mother, which he could not in any way 
 overlook, or forgive. Riding by the side of the Gen- 
 eral, the surgeon discovered blood running out of his 
 boot. He made him at once dismount, and submit 
 to an examination. On examination, the surgeon 
 discovered that Gen. Jackson had received a very se- 
 vere wound in the chest immediately over his heart. 
 The ball which his antagonist had sent with so 
 deadly an aim had struck one of his ribs, fracturing 
 it and glancing off, thus saving the General's life. 
 " General," asked the surgeon, " how could you with 
 such a wound in your body, stand so calm and firm, 
 and fire such a shot ? " His reply was : " I would 
 have killed him had I been shot through the brain." 
 This was a very strong illustration of the great nerve 
 of Gen. Jackson, which was so prominently displayed 
 in after years. 
 
 David B. Findley was an early settler, moving in 
 as early as 1832. He died in the summer of 1885. 
 Albert Rockwell also came in r832, with his brother, 
 Alfred. Albert died in the fall of 1884. His brother 
 is living on the old place. Bedford Ray settled in 
 the township, on section 26. 
 
 Several lamilies moved in from 1832 to 1836, 
 among whom were Aleri Rodgers, wife and ten chil- 
 dren, with Hamilton Roney, wife and children. 
 Aleri Rodgers was originally from Rockbridge Co., 
 Va., and he came to the township early in the spring 
 of 1836, having previously lived awhile in Missouri. 
 The names of the children were . John, William, 
 Andrew, Alexander, Mary, Joseph, Phebe, Isabelle, 
 Samuel and Caroline. Four of these are living 
 Isabelle, Mary, Caroline and Samuel, and all in this 
 country. Isabelle is residing in Monmouth. Aleri 
 Rodgers was a prominent citizen of the township, 
 and took a leading part in all public affairs. He 
 was the first one to introduce the McCormick reaper 
 into the county, which he brought with him from 
 Virginia. He died, respected by all who knew him, 
 Dec. 20, 1863. His widow survived him several 
 years, joining him in that brighter world, July 3, 1879. 
 Andrew was killed by the Indians in Oregon at the 
 time of the Whitman massacre. 
 
 Hamilton Roney, after residing here 37 years, 
 moved back to Ohio with a part of his family, and 
 settled near Dayton, where he died, March 3, 1881, 
 in his 75th year. 
 
 David B. Findley and Jane Ritchey were the first 
 to join their hands for life's joys and sorrows, its 
 hopes and struggles. This event occurred in 1829. 
 This partnership began in the budding spring-time 
 the most charming season in all the year; a season 
 when the sweet wild flowers look up to greet you, 
 when all nature puts on its new dress, the beautiful 
 birds choose their mates, and the world looks bright, 
 fresh and happy. 
 
 David and Jane did not long for 
 
 "Some bright little isle of their own, 
 In a blue summer ocean far off and alone, 
 AVliere u leaf never dies in the still blooming bowers. 
 And the bee banquet." on through a whole year of 
 flowers." 
 
 But they selected a little cottage in the township 
 of Hale, and there, with their loving hearts, and sur- 
 rounded by their friends, they commenced life's 
 journey. To this couple alone is given the honor of 
 
WARREN COUNTY 
 
 727 
 
 producing a first native citizen of the township, in 
 the person of James Madison, born in 1830. 
 
 Martha Jenkins taught the first school in the 
 township, in 1830. It was held in a little log cabin 
 about half a mile north of the old Henderson 
 Church. This is also claimed to be the first school 
 in the county. Martha subsequently moved to Ore- 
 gon, where she died. The first death in the town- 
 ship was that of William Turnbull, who died at his 
 home in 1835. 
 
 The first religious society was formed in Novem- 
 ber, 1830. It was the Associate Church, and was or- 
 ganized by Rev. James McCarroll, of the Western 
 Mission. It was called the Henderson Church, and 
 also known as the Sugar Tree Grove Church. John 
 Caldwell and Adam Ritchey were the first Elders. 
 There were 27 members forming the first congrega- 
 tion, consisting of the Ritcheys, Kendalls, Gibsons, 
 Jenkins, Findleys and Maley families, and John 
 Campbell. The first building put up for worship by 
 this society, was 24 x 30 feet, in 1830, and was con- 
 structed with logs. It was the first church build- 
 ing erected in the county. In 1832 an addition was 
 made, making the building 36 x 40. In 1837, a fine 
 brick edifice was erected, 54 x 60, costing about 
 $4,000. This became one of the noted buildings of 
 the county, and people attended services here from 
 nearly all the townships. It was known for a gen- 
 eration as the "Old Brick Church," and is still spo- 
 ken of with mournful affection. Having been used 
 for nearly 40 years as a place of worship, it was con- 
 sidered by some of the members that it ought to be 
 torn down and a new building erected. Conse- 
 quently it was razed by rude hands, and a more 
 modern frame building put up in its place, possibly 
 better adapted and more in consonance with modern . 
 religious ideas. 
 
 Rev. James Bruce was the first pastor of this 
 Church, taking charge in October, 1830. Members 
 of this Church came from Little York, Sunbeam, 
 North Henderson, Viola, Spring Grove, Monmouth, 
 Kirkwood, Smith Creek and Pleasant Grove. Mr. 
 Bruce remained with this congregation until October, 
 1847, when he was succeeded by Rev. John Scott, 
 who regularly took charge in 1849, and served for 
 19 years, a remarkably long period. At the expira- 
 tion of this engagement he moved to Monmouth, 
 and took a Professorship in the College. Rev. Tlios. 
 G. Morrow succeeded Mr. Scott, and remained until 
 
 1872, when Rev. David A. Wallace took charge, 
 serving the congregation until 1876. Rev. David 
 McDill was then called, and remained until 1884, 
 and then the Rev. R. J. Davidson, the present pas- 
 tor, assumed charge. During Mr. Bruce's term 
 there were admitted annually, an average of 25 
 members, and during Mr. Scotts' term 15 members. 
 
 In 1858, the Synods of the Reformed and Asso- 
 ciate Presbyterian met at Pittsburgh, Pa., and the 
 union between the two branches was consummated 
 under the name of the United Presbyterians. This 
 action was approved by the Henderson congrega- 
 tion, and about the year 1860, they adopted the same 
 name. The present membership of this Church is 
 about 70, and in addition to other services they have 
 a large and interesting Sunday-school. 
 
 From 1836, there was a steady influx of settlers, 
 until the land was all taken up. The township was 
 regarded as one of the best in the county for agri- 
 cultural purposes, and it ranks among the first for 
 stock raising. The land is nearly all rolling prairie, 
 is rich and easily cultivated. There is not a poor 
 farm in it, and but few poor dwellings, while there 
 are very many fine ones. It is watered by Cedar 
 Creek and its branches and some other little streams. 
 The St. Louis branch of the Chicago, Burlington & 
 Quincy Railroad cuts across the southwest corner, 
 and the Iowa Central comes in at the northwest cor- 
 ner, running along the Eastern line, and passes out 
 on section 25. The people do their trading mostly 
 at Monmouth; some, however, go to Kirkwood. The 
 census of 1880 gives the population at 1,041, and 
 this is about the number at the present day. 
 
 The following information regarding the schools of 
 the township, is obtained from the County Superin- 
 tendent's report for the year ending June 30, 1885 : 
 There were eight school districts, with one brick and 
 seven frame buildings. The school property was val- 
 ued at $4,625. Of persons under 21 years of age, 
 there were 403, of whom 314 were of scholastic 
 age, 2T9 being enrolled. The highest wages paid 
 teachers was $65 per month, and the lowest $25. 
 The tax levy for this township was $2,735. 
 
 The Assessor's report for the year 1885, furnished 
 the following information : 
 
 Number of acres of improved land, 23,009; value 
 of improved lands, $344,450; number of horses, 
 981; cattle, 2,094; mules and asses, 27; hogs, 
 
728 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 3,686 ; steam engines, i ; carriages and wagons, 357 ; 
 watches and clocks, 214; sewing and knitting ma- 
 chines, 102 ; pianos, 10; melodeons and organs, 24. 
 Total cash value of personal property, $80,328. 
 
 The township has honored the citizens whose 
 names appear below, with the office of Supervisor : 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 Wm. Fleming 1854 
 
 John R. Graham I 8ss 
 
 David Turnbull 1855 
 
 John Brown 1857 
 
 David Turnbull 1858-60 
 
 Edward Burns 1861 
 
 Newton Barr 1862 
 
 David Turnbull 1863-5 
 
 Leander Findley . . 1866 
 
 Hugh Nash 1867 
 
 David Turnbull 1868-70 
 
 Newton Barr 1871 
 
 H. G. Lord 1872 
 
 John N. Carson 1873 
 
 Newton Barr 1874-5 
 
 C. M. Rodgcrs 1876-80 
 
 Newton Barr 1881 
 
 C. M. Rodgers i88 
 
 J. N. McKelvey 1883-4 
 
 D. A. Turnbull 1885 
 
 KELLY TOWNSHIP. 
 
 ELLY Township is located in the north- 
 east corner of the county, and is numbered 
 12 north, of range i west. Mercer County 
 lies on the north, Knox County on the east, 
 Cold Brook on the south and Spring Grove 
 
 I Township on the west. The territory now 
 
 embraced by this township was settled as early as 
 any other portion of the county. James B. Atwood 
 was the first pioneer to move in and make a home 
 here, which was in the early part of 1828. He lo- 
 cated on section 27. Mr. Atwood sold his place to 
 Edmund Adcock, a few months later, and moved 
 away. Mr. Adcock and family came from Bucking- 
 ham Co., Va. He was born Nov. 23, 1800, and died 
 May 7, 1859, at the old farm. His son, J. W., now 
 owns and lives on the place. Andrew Robison 
 with wife and six children, moved in Sept. 20, 1829, 
 and settled on section 33. He subsequently ascer- 
 tained that he had located on land that had been 
 bought by David Ingersol, and he moved to section 
 31. (See biography.) The land they first settled on 
 is now occupied by the cemetery. Mr. Atwood was 
 the only settler in the township when the Robisons 
 came in, and at that time there were no settlers in 
 Spring Grove Township. Andrew Robison died at 
 his home Aug. 6, 1849, and Nancy, his widow, at the 
 same place, March 15, 1876. William A. Lair came 
 in October, 1832, and located a home on section 
 30 ; he is now dead. B. H. Gardner, from Kentucky, 
 came into the county in 1834, spent the winter in 
 
 Monmouth Township and made his location in Kelly, 
 on section 30, in the spring of 1835. James Brown 
 came in 1830, settling on section 25 ; Mr. Brown is 
 now dead. He served in the Black Hawk War. 
 
 Of the other settlers that came in from 1829 to 
 1835, there were David Ingersol, wife and six 
 children James, Jane, Anna, Nellie, Adelina and 
 Thomas, who was a baby; Henry and John Peck- 
 empaugh, William Lair, Stephen Mitchell, John Mil- 
 ler, Henry and Edward Martin, James Stevens, John 
 Miles, George and James Brown, Ezekiel and Olive 
 Terpening and Calvin Glass, with their familes. 
 Hiram Ingersol, son of David Ingersol, followed his 
 father in the latter part of 1835. Mr. Ingersol is 
 living with his wife neat Alexis. His father died 
 July 10, 1842, at the old homestead; his mother 
 many years before. From this nucleus grew a large 
 and prosperous settlement. 
 
 The first child born in the township and the first 
 female child said to be born in the county, was Mar- 
 garet Ann, daughter of Andrew and Nancy Robison, 
 Nov. i, 1829, and was their seventh child. This 
 daughter married James Gardner, in May, 1852. 
 She, with her husband, are still living on section 2, > 
 in Cold Brook Township. 
 
 During the early days of the settlement, many of 
 the seasons appeared to have been backward and 
 cold, the natural results of which were light crops. 
 By planting the Indian maize, commonly called 
 "squaw corn," which they procured from the Indians, 
 they succeeded in raising a fair crop, as this species 
 of corn matured much earlier than any other. They 
 would also use the maize for re-planting when the 
 other corn did not come up. The winter of 1830 
 and 1831 was long and cold and there was much 
 suffering in the new settlements. A deep snow fell 
 in December, and the corn had not been harvested 
 at this time. The settlements were isolated from 
 each other, and it was hazardous for the settlers to 
 pass from one house to another, and often it was at- 
 tended with frozen feet or other parts of the body. 
 
 At this time there was but one mill in the county, 
 known as Smith's mill, which was about two miles 
 east of Oquawka. Hand mills and mortars were 
 brought into requisition, corn was dug from beneath 
 the snow, dried, placed in the mortar, pounded into 
 meal and then cooked and placed before the cold 
 and hungry families. There was but little stock, 
 
WARREN COUN1 Y. 
 
 729 
 
 and what there was took care of itself. The stock 
 near the bottoms, or about the timber, got along tol- 
 erably well and very few died. This winter was alike 
 hard on the Indians. The watercourses were heav- 
 ily crusted with ice, upon which laid a deep body of 
 snow, which made it impossible for them to procure 
 fish. The feathery tribes had sought Southern 
 climes and the deer had gone to other and more con- 
 genial quarters. 
 
 The first grist mill was put up by Calvin Glass, in 
 1832, on the banks of the Henderson, on section 12. 
 It was rather a primitive arrangement; nevertheless, 
 it was very welcome to the pioneers of that .day, and 
 much better than the mortar, which they had often 
 used to pound up their corn. It was run by water- 
 power, but the power was none too strong, and the 
 bolting was done by hand-power. The second mill 
 was started by Chester Potter, and was located on 
 the banks of the main Henderson, section 22. 
 
 The people in the early days traded atMonmouth, 
 1 Knoxville, Oquawka and Old Hendersonville, as it 
 was called. 
 
 There were some interesting political contests even 
 - in that early day. The elections were held at Rob- 
 
 Iison Corners, until the township organization system 
 was adopted. This was where the corners of Mon- 
 mouth, Cold Brook, Spring Grove and Kelly Town- 
 ships came together. The settlers were not without 
 their religious entertainments. Preachers from dif- 
 ferent denominations came in and held forth, some- 
 times in school-houses and sometimes at private 
 residences. Elder Haney was among the first to 
 expound the gospel according to the Methodist be- 
 lief. They were not so particular then as now as to 
 what day they worshipped. Whenever a preacher 
 would come around to administer religious food, 
 they would assemble to partake of the feast at some 
 school-house or private residence, and there be en- 
 tertained with graphic descriptions of the beauties of 
 Heaven and the terrors of hell. These old pioneer 
 preachers were ardent workmen and very radical in 
 their views. There was no half-way house for them 
 to stop at, and a member of their congregation who 
 was heterodox or sought a road to Heaven, smooth in 
 its course and lined with flowers, had no sympathy 
 from them. Caleb Smith's house was a favorite 
 place for holding these meetings. Sometimes Sister 
 Smith would be spinning when the meetings were 
 held. This supplied the place of a choir, and the 
 
 music of her wheel would go on while the exhorter 
 was entertaining the audience with his most eloquent 
 passages. Mrs. Smith, who was a very industrious 
 woman, thought that she could not give up her en- 
 tire time to the religious services, and, therefore, 
 kept her wheel in motion, having always one ear to- 
 ward the preacher. 
 
 The first school in this township was taught by 
 Peter Terpening, in 1837, in a log school-house 
 which stood on section 28. He was the son of 
 Ezekiel and Olive Terpening, who were early set- 
 tlers. Ezekiel Terpening died July 16, 1864, aged 
 82 years, and his widow, Olive, Feb. 8, 1867, aged 
 79 years. It was along the road by the Adcock 
 farm, that the troops, some 1,600 in number, passed 
 on their way to Rock Island, during the first Black 
 Hawk War, in 1831. 
 
 In 1839, the Methodist Episcopal Church was 
 organized. They held their meetings for many years 
 in private houses and in school buildings. In 187", 
 a church building was erected at a cost of $2,500, at 
 Utah, which was formerly called Tylerville. A 
 church building was also erected at Ionia, which 
 place is also known by the name of Shanghai. The 
 societies have been served by many pastors, the last 
 being Mr. Bolen. 
 
 A Second Advent Church was started at Ionia in 
 1857, with some 15 members. In 1867 they erected 
 their first building, at a cost of about $2,800. It 
 was a very good frame structure. The first Pastor 
 was Rev. Guy Rathborne, who remained with the 
 Church several years. In May, 1868, this building 
 was demolished by the great tornado which visited 
 this place, but was rebuilt at a cost of about $1,400. 
 Services are held regularly by this society, which 
 has a membership of about 60 and also an interest- 
 ing Sunday-school. At one time there were stores 
 in Ionia, and a good trade was carried on here, but 
 when the railroad came through, and a station was 
 made at Alexis, its business was destroyed and only 
 a postoffice now remains. 
 
 There were one or two stores also at Tylerville. 
 The merchants who located here have sought richer 
 fields for trading, and their buildings are deserted. 
 Tylerville still has a postoffice, known as Utah, and 
 has John Landon for its Postmaster. It is located 
 in the southeast corner of section 34. 
 
 A meeting was held for the organization of the 
 township of Kelly, April 4, 1854, at the Tylerville 
 
73 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 school-house. This meeting was organized by the 
 appointment of William Graham as Moderator, and 
 E. C. Atchison, Clerk. The result of the election 
 was as follows: John Miles was elected Supervisor; 
 John Terpening, Assessor; Ira S. Ingersol, Col- 
 lector; Samuel Black, Overseer of the Poor; James 
 Stevens and W. J. T. Wallace, Commissioners of 
 Highways ; Aaron Yarde, G. C. Adcock and Chris- 
 tian Mills, Justices of the Peace ; David Vestal and 
 Nathan Smith, Constables. 
 
 There was quite a little contest about the name of 
 this township. The Democrats wanted it named 
 after Capt. John Kelly, and the Whigs after William 
 Graham. Finally the Democrats were successful 
 and the naming of the township was given to them. 
 
 The St. Louis branch of the Chicago, Burlington 
 & Quincy Railroad passes near the northwest corner 
 of this township. 
 
 Kelly is watered by Henderson Creek and its 
 branches. A large portion of the land is undulating, 
 with broad level fields. The southwest portion is 
 quite broken in places and contains much fine tim- 
 ber. People do most of their trading at Alexis ; 
 some, however, go to Galesburg. 
 
 The population of this township in 1880 was 1,135, 
 and it will not vary much from these figures at the 
 present time. 
 
 According to the County Superintendent's report 
 for the year ending June 30, 1885, there were eight 
 school districts, with eight frame buildings. The 
 school property was valued at $3,760. Of persons 
 under 2 i years of age, there were 478, of whom there 
 were 333 of scholastic age, 239 being enrolled. The 
 highest wages paid teachers was $45 per month, and 
 the lowest $25. The tax levy for this township was 
 $1,950. 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 John Mills 1854 
 
 Thos. Bannington 1855 
 
 Wm. Graham 1856-65 
 
 Joseph Pine 1866-7 
 
 Wm. Graham 1868-70 
 
 J. W. Adcock 1871-3 
 
 Joseph Pine 1874 
 
 M . M cCuIlock 1875-6 
 
 Nathan Crane 1877-8 
 
 John Rucker 1879-81 
 
 C. E. Johnson '. . . ..1882 
 
 John Rucker 1883-5 
 
 LENOX TOWNSHIP. 
 
 'HIS township completed its organization 
 April 4, 1854, holding its election in the 
 school-house in District No. i. Ebenezer 
 <w ' Landon was chosen Chairman ; Norman Mat- 
 teson, Moderator; B. F. Wiggins, Clerk. 
 There were 19 votes cast at this election, the 
 result of which was as follows : Porter Phelps was 
 
 chosen Supervisor; B. F, Wiggins, Clerk; Norman 
 Matteson, Assessor ; S. Carmer, Collector ; E. Lan- 
 Lon, Overseer of the Poor; C. C. Dickson, Jacob 
 Jewell and C. Lucas, Commissioners of Highways ; 
 James M. Dickson and Jacob Jewell, Justices of the 
 Peace; M. Landon and S. Dickson, Constables; 
 J. Oglesby was chosen Path Master for the south 
 district, and Luther Robinson for the north district. 
 Messrs. Carmer, Wiggins, Landon, Dickson (Consta- 
 bles) failed to qualify and a special election was held 
 June 13 to fill their places. N. Matteson was chosen 
 Clerk; S. Carmer, Collector; Ebenezer Landon, 
 Overseer of the Poor; and Enoch Hawkins and 
 Sanford Carmer, Constables. It was organized un- 
 der the name of Ripley, but was changed the year 
 following to Lenox. It is numbered 10 north of 
 range 2 west. 
 
 J. W. Bond and family were the first settlers in 
 the township. They came in 1833 and located on 
 section 18. (See biography). Seth Murphy and 
 Ephraim Smith came in 1836, the former settling on 
 section 35 and the latter on section 36. With them 
 came their families. Mr. Murphy was from Ken- 
 tucky and Mr. Smith from Ohio. Mr. Murphy died 
 at the old homestead, and his wife in Monmouth. 
 Mrs. Smith died on the old farm, and her husband 
 moved to Abingdon, where he died a few years ago. 
 Porter Plielps and family, from New York, moved 
 into the township in 1837, and located on section 2, 
 where, after a long life of usefulness, he died on the 
 i4th day of April, 1885. His wife, Mary Ellen 
 Phelps, died July 26, 1884. They reared a family 
 of eight children, six of whom are still living. Mr. 
 Phelps was a prominent man, not only in his town- 
 ship but also in the county. He was an ardent 
 patriot and a true hearted Christian, having a pas- 
 sionate love for liberty, home and his country. He 
 was an intellectual man, fond of study, and books of 
 poetry, philosophy and metaphysics. With a warm 
 and tender heart, and strong attachments for his 
 friends and neighbors, lie died regretted by all who 
 knew him, in his 82d year. (See biography). 
 
 Jesse Riggs was one of the early settlers of the 
 county, but did not locate in Lenox Township until 
 1840, when, with his family, he moved in, locating 
 on section 35, where he still lives. (See biography.) 
 In the latter part of 1840 Garland Ray moved into 
 the township, from Roseville, with his wife and ten 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 children,' two sons and eight daughters. Mr. Ray 
 died at his home, in April, 1882. His wife had died 
 many years before. His son, James W., died while 
 on a visit to Missouri. M. B. is living on section 
 20. His daughters, Ann, Harriet, Henrietta and 
 Letha, are dead. Clarinda Jane, Julia Ann, Susan 
 and Elizabeth were married. Susan lives in Idaho ; 
 Clarinda Jane and Julia Ann, in this county, and 
 Elizabeth in Henderson County. 
 
 James Dickson was also an early settler, locating, 
 with his family, on section 31. He died some years 
 ago, and his children moved away. Mathew Arm- 
 strong was another early settler, locating in the north- 
 western part of the township. The children during 
 the early days attended school in Roseville Town- 
 ship. 
 
 In the early part of 1871, the Rockford, Rock 
 Island & St. Louis R. R. Company laid its line 
 through the township. It runs directly north and 
 south, a mile east of the western line. This line is 
 now controlled by the C. B. & Q. R. R. Company. 
 The Iowa Central completed its track through the 
 township in 1883. It enters in the northern part of 
 the township on section 3, and runs along the east- 
 ern line, passing out on section 22. 
 
 This township is watered by the Henderson 
 Branch and its tributaries, which heads in section 10, 
 running westerly, and Cedar Creek, which runs south- 
 easterly. The nature of the land is rolling, with 
 level prairies. There never was much timber in the 
 township, and there is hardly an acre of ground 
 which cannot be easily plowed. The principal grains 
 are oats, hay and corn. The latter is cultivated ex- 
 tensively. It is probably the largest grain-producing 
 townshipin the county. Certainly there is no town- 
 ship that can present any finer farms, farm buildings 
 and dwellings. There are two railroad stations in 
 the township, Phelps and Larchland, which afford 
 the people mail facilities, trading and shipping.- 
 
 PHELPS. 
 
 There is a station on the Iowa Central R. R. line, 
 in this township, on section 13, named after Hon. 
 Delos P. Phelps, who is prominently connected with 
 this road. The first freight train stopping at Phelps 
 was from Peoria, and it arrived April 16, 1883, and 
 discharged a car load of lumber. The Methodist 
 Church has an organization here, holding their meet- 
 ings in the school house, near the station. Services 
 
 are held every two weeks, and are presided over by 
 Rev. G. B. Snedaker, who also serves the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church at West Prairie. 
 
 In 1880 the census reports gave Lenox Township 
 a population of 992 souls. It is not thought that 
 there has been any material change since that time. 
 
 The County Superintendent in her report for the 
 fiscal year ending June 30, 1885, gives the follow- 
 ing information regarding the schools of this township: 
 There were eight school districts, with one brick and 
 seven frame buildings ; the school property was val- 
 ued at $6.900. Of persons under 21 years of age, 
 there were 321, of whom 258 were of scholastic age; 
 218 being enrolled. The highest wages paid teach- 
 ers was $40 per month ; and the lowest $20. The 
 tax levy for this year was $2,619.46. 
 
 West Prairie Methodist Episcopal Church. A 
 class of this society was formed in the fall of 1856, 
 at the house of Joseph Amie. John Shelton, Evan 
 Ewan and wife, Joseph Amie and wife, were mem- 
 bers of this class, which was organized by the Rev. 
 Frank Chaffee. Meetings were held in the school 
 house and at private residences until the year 1863, 
 when they erected a house of worship, which was 
 located on the southwest quarter of section 29, at a 
 cost of $2,000. It was dedicated by Rev. Hender- 
 son Ritchey, who was the first child born in the 
 county. This society was known as the West Prairie 
 Church. Rev. Franklin Chaffee was the first pastor. 
 In 1860 they had a great revival, which largely in- 
 creased their membership. This was during the Rev. 
 Mr. Elliott's pastorate. Succeeding Mr. Chaffee 
 were respectively Revs. Crosier, Beck, Elliott, Sulli- 
 van, Carruthers, Farris, Coe, Couch, Fowler, Ells- 
 worth, Brown, Ailsworth and Winsor. The present 
 pastor is Rev. G. B. Snedaker, with a membership 
 of about 25. Their building is a plain, substantial 
 and commodious structure. Connected with the so- 
 ciety is a Sabbath School. 
 
 From the Assessor's report of 1885, the following 
 items are taken : Number of acres of improved 
 lands, 22,296; value of improved lands, $368,760; 
 value of lots, $1,955 ; number of horses, 770; cattle, 
 931; asses and mules, 16; sheep, 22; hogs, 3,068 ; 
 steam engines, 2 ; carriages and wagons, 265 ; 
 watches and clocks, 138; sewing and knitting ma- 
 chines, 97 ; melodeons and organs, 25. Total Cash 
 value of personal property, $53,924. 
 
732 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 The following citizens who have represented this 
 township as Supervisors, are : 
 
 Porter Phelps 1854-63 
 
 Zepheniah Lewis 1864.65 
 
 G. M. Sayler 1866.68 
 
 'J. W. Brictenthal ... . ^69.73 
 
 Evan Ewan 1874 
 
 D, R. Smith 1875 
 
 Evan Ewan 1876 
 
 D. R. Smith 1877 
 
 G. M. Sayler 1878.79 
 
 J. W. Robertson 1880 
 
 G. M. Sayler 1881 
 
 T L. Capps 1882 
 
 J T Lewis 1883 
 
 T. L. Capps 1884 
 
 H. T. Jewell r88 5 
 
 Larchland. 
 
 ARCHLAND is the railroad station of the 
 St. Louis Branch of the C. B. & Q. R. R., 
 situated near the southwest corner of Len- 
 ox Township. It was formerly called Lenox 
 and was started after the completion of the 
 railroad. Larchland is quite a shipping point 
 for grain, which is handled chiefly by J. H. Robert- 
 son, who has an elevator. John Hodgson has a large 
 general store and carries on an extensive business, 
 and is also the Postmaster. The first Postmaster 
 here was Henry Redant, who was appointed in 1870. 
 He was succeeded by J. M. Young, and Mr. Young 
 by Mr. Hodgson. 
 
 There is also a blacksmith and' wagon shop here. 
 Larchland has constructed recently a fine new school 
 house which is a very creditable building. Having 
 secured a good building, they next provided a good 
 teacher to instruct their children, and have now a 
 first-class village school, with a good large attend- 
 ance. 
 
 CHURCHES. 
 
 The Methodist Protestant Church. There are two 
 of these societies at this Station; one called Liberty 
 Chapel, and the other Grace Chapel. In 1863, a 
 class was organized at the school house, about two 
 miles west of this village, which was called Prospect 
 Chapel. It was afterward changed to Liberty Chapel. 
 This class under the administration of the Rev. S. 
 M. Davidson, erected a church building, in r 869, and 
 through the zeal of the pastor, was enabled to com- 
 plete it at a cost of $1,800. The lot on which this 
 house of worship was erected was presented by 
 
 Joshua O. Talbot. Size of the building, 25x40 feet. 
 It was dedicated by Rev. C. Gray, of the North Il- 
 linois Annual Conference, in Nov. 1869, and named 
 Liberty Chapel, by Joshua O. Talbot. They have 
 also a good parsonage adjoining the church building, 
 which was built at a cost of $[,000. The first regu- 
 lar pastor was Daniel McCormick, in 1863. Rev. 
 Thomas Rook served from 1864 to 1865, and John 
 Brook from 1866 to 1867 ; Rev. S. N. Davidson, 
 from 1868 to 1869. These were followed respect- 
 ively, each serving from one to two years, by Revs. 
 J. L. Bortan, W. Williams, W. J. Stubbles, M. Handy, 
 James N. Mayall, Thomas Keely, J. W. Kidd. Rev. 
 John A. Richard is the present pastor, who presides 
 over a membership of 74. 
 
 Grace Chapel. A revival meeting was held in 
 Larchland, in 1876, which resulted in the increase 
 of members of this church and the establishment of 
 an organization here. A meeting of the members 
 was called, at which it was decided to purchase the 
 old Presbyterian Church building, that society hav- 
 ing been disbanded, and offering their house for sale. 
 It was bought for $300, and sold on condition that 
 religious services would be continued there. The 
 membership of both Chapels is 74, and they are pre- 
 sided over by the same pastor. This is the only or- 
 ganization of the Methodist Protestant Church in 
 the country. Services are held at Liberty Chapel in 
 the morning, and at Grace Chapel in the afternoon 
 of each Sunday. A good Sabbath-school is continued 
 at both places of worship the year around. J. W. 
 Barber and his wife, Mary A., are the only members 
 now living that were present at the first organization 
 of this church. This organization in Warren County 
 originated from the Honey Creek Circuit in Henderson 
 County, which was established Oct. 24, 1857, Rev. 
 Madison Haney being the first pastor, and Wilson 
 Nichols assistant. This same year, a class was or- 
 ganized at Ellison. 
 
 During the tornado of 1858, while Elder Haney 
 was out riding on Circuit duty, and coming toward 
 his home at Ellison, his wife who was at that place 
 was severely injured. Mr. Haney was the organizer 
 of this church in Warren County. The Station in 
 Lenox Township belongs to the North Illinois Con- 
 ference, of which Rev. W. W. Williams, who resides 
 at Cuba, Fulton Co. 111., is president. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 733 
 
 MONMOUTH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 i 
 i 
 ONMOUTH was organized as a township 
 
 April 4, 1854, taking its name from the 
 city of Monmouth, which is situated with- 
 in its territory. The election was held at 
 the court house with John Leeper as Modera- 
 tor, and B. F. Corwin, Clerk. At this meeting 
 the following named citizens were elected the town- 
 ship officers : Joseph Whitman, Supervisor; Samuel 
 Wood, Assessor; James McCoy, Collector; A. S.Gil- 
 bert, Clerk ; A. C. Gregg, Overseer of the Poor ; C. 
 W. Hunnicutt and W. N. Smith, Justices of the 
 Peace ; James McCoy, Constable ; C. V. Brooks, R. 
 S. Hall, and James McKemson, Commissioners of 
 Highway. 
 
 I This township is numbered 1 1 north of range 2 
 west, and is bounded by Spring Grove on the north, 
 Cold Brook on the east, Lenox on the south, and on 
 the west lies Hale Township. 
 
 It is pretty well watered by Cedar Creek, and-its 
 numerous little tributaries, which afford also ample 
 drainage facilities. The face of the land is mostly 
 undulating, with some level prairies. The soil is rich 
 and susceptible of high cultivation. Bordering the 
 streams there is a very liberal growth of timber, and 
 within the township are some very fine groves. 
 Three railroad lines pass through it ; the main line 
 of the C. B. & Q. R; R. enters on section 36, deflects 
 a little to the northward and passes through sections 
 26, 27, 28, 29 and 31. The St. Louis branch enters 
 between sections 2 and 3, runs south through the 
 city of Monmouth and passes out of the township 
 on section 31. The Iowa Central passes diagonally 
 across the southwest corner. 
 
 Mrs. Talbott and son, from Kentucky, were the 
 first settlers in the township, and the county, in 1827, 
 locating on section 2. Mrs. Talbott died in Mon- 
 mouth, about the year 1849, aged 80 years, and John 
 B., mentioned very often in the history of this 
 county, moved to Oregon in 1850, and was living then 
 near the mouth of the Columbia River. With the 
 Talbotts came Allen G. Andrews, who settled on 
 Cedar Creek, section 6. He was an educated man 
 
 and a good Spanish scholar, and took a prominent 
 part in the public affairs of the township and county. 
 He died at his home some years ago. 
 
 Abraham Swartz and wife came in April, 1829, lo- 
 cating about a mile nortli of Monmouth. They moved 
 soon afterward to Knox County. Daniel McNeil, 
 Jr., John Pence, Joel Hargrove, Isaac Hodgins and 
 Robert Wallace moved in, in the early part of 1830. 
 During this year also came Hezekiah Davidson, wife 
 and 10 children Alexander, Elijah, Helena, Irene, 
 Benjamin F., James W., Cornelia Ann, Solomon P., 
 Ellen S. and Thomas H. They located on section 
 16. Of this family only Thomas H". and James W. 
 Davidson are living. (See biography of these two 
 sons.) Later on William Causland, E. Rodgers, 
 Adam (Black) Ritchey, cousin of Adam (Sandy) 
 Ritchey, William Corwin and William S. Paxton 
 were added to the settlement. 
 
 Robert Wallace put up the first grist mill, or corn 
 cracker, in the township. It was a small affair, and 
 was located about four miles north of Monmouth. , 
 The next grist mill was put up by Aniel Rodgers, in 
 1832. It was located about four miles north of Mon- 
 mouth, on Cedar Creek, section 7. Mr. Rodgers af- , 
 terward sold out to Olmstead & Avery. It had two 
 run of stone, and was a great accommodation to the 
 people. Without this mill many a pioneer would 
 have been deprived of the luxury of sitting down to a 
 corn cake. In addition to the grist mill, a saw mill was 
 put up and attached to this power, and considerable 
 lumber was cut for the settlement. This mill was 
 burned in 1837, and was subsequently rebuilt by Wm. 
 S. Paxton, with an increased capacity of two stone. 
 It is still running, and owned by Peter Oswell. It is 
 claimed by some that Adam Ritchey built this mill 
 and sold it to Aniel Rodgers. 
 
 Monmouth Township is one of the most thoroughly 
 cultivated and largest producing townships in this 
 county. Its population, including Monmouth City, 
 in 1880, was 6,420. It is estimated that there has 
 been since that time an increase of 600. 
 
 The early history of this township is so closely 
 identified with that of the city of Monmouth, 
 as well as that of the county, that it has been found 
 difficult to separate the two, and for further particu- 
 lars the reader is referred to the history af Monmouth 
 and of Warren County. 
 
 The County Superintendent in her report for the 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 year ending June 30, 1885, has the following items 
 regarding the public schools of the township: 
 
 In the 15 districts there were 4 graded and n un- 
 graded schools; 3 brick and 12 frame buildings, with 
 a property valuation of $29,850. Of persons under 
 21 years of age, there were 3,918, of whom 1,860 
 were of scholastic age, 1,397 being enrolled. The 
 highest wages paid teachers was $90, and the lowest 
 was $25. The tax levy for this township was $12,- 
 742.49. 
 
 From the Assessor's report for the year 1885, the 
 following items are taken : 
 
 Number pf acres of improved lands : 21,233; value 
 of improved lands, $461,010; total value of lots, 
 $578,210; number of horses, 1,286; cattle, 1,833; 
 asses and males, 22 ; sheep, 143 ; hogs, 3,372 ; steam 
 engines, 6; carriages and wagons, 5 06; watches and 
 clocks, 455; sewing and knitting machines, 404; 
 pianos, 158; melodeons and organs, 116; total cash 
 value of personal property, $325,178. 
 
 Momnouth has honored the following citizens with 
 the office of Supervisor: 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 Josiah Whitman .......... 1854 
 
 Samuel Hallam ........... 1855 
 
 J. Leeper ............... 1856 
 
 Hiram Norcross .......... 1857-8 
 
 John G. Wilson .......... 1859 
 
 Samuel Hallam .......... 1860-1 
 
 Samuel Hallam .......... 1862-63 
 
 'osiah Whitman, Asst. . . . 1862-3 
 
 osiah Whitman ......... 1864 
 
 ohn Brown, Asst ........ 1864 
 
 ames T. Owens ........ 1865 
 
 .Vm. Clark, Asst ......... 1865 
 
 Sickmon ........ 1866 
 
 . Sykes, Asst ...... 1866 
 
 John F. Owens, Asst ..... 1897-8 
 
 Thos. Averell ............ 1869 
 
 N. A. Rankin, Asst ...... 1869 
 
 N. A. Rankin ........... 1870 
 
 W. A. Grant, Asst ...... 1870 
 
 W. A. Grant ............ 1871 
 
 C. V. Brooks, Asst ....... 1871 
 
 W. A. Grant ............. 1872 
 
 George Sickmon ........ 1866 
 
 Wm. P. Syke 
 
 John G. Wilson ......... 1867-8 
 
 Amos Eurford, Asst 1872 
 
 Chancy Hardin 1873-4 
 
 Alex. Rankin, Asst 1873-4 
 
 Chancy Hardin 1875 
 
 John B. Meginnis, Asst.. 1875 
 
 Geo. Sickmons 1876-7 
 
 Samuel Douglas 1878 
 
 O. S. Barnum, Asst 1878 
 
 Samuel Douglas 1879 
 
 Alex. Rankin, Asst ^79 
 
 Samuel Douglas 1880 
 
 Geo. Sickmon, Asst .. .1880 
 
 Samuel Douglas 1881 
 
 Amos Burford, Asst 1881 
 
 C. A. Dunn 1882 
 
 C. P. Averill, Asst 1882 
 
 J. R. Hanna 1883 
 
 A. T. Bruner, Asst 1883 
 
 Sipher Moses 1884 
 
 A T. Bruner, Asst 1884 
 
 G. W. Claycomb 1885 
 
 A. T, Bruner, Asst 1885 
 
 POINT PLEASANT TOWNSHIP. 
 
 
 t 
 
 p OINT Pleasant was organized as a town- 
 ship, April 4, 1854. Albert Mitchell was 
 chosen Moderator at the meeting, and J. 
 D. Conkling, Clerk. The township was very 
 thinly settled at this time, and there were only 
 ten votes cast at the election. Albert Mitchell was 
 chosen Supervisor; Albert Livermore, Clerk; E. J. 
 
 Hazelton, Assessor and Collector ; Thomas Boyd, 
 Franklin Booth and Andrew Livermore, Commis- 
 sioners of Highways; John A. Waugh and W. T. 
 Johnson, Constables; Warren Park and Lucius 
 Watson, Overseers of the Poor. 
 
 Point Pleasant is located in the southwest corner 
 of the county ; is numbered 7 north of range 3 west, 
 and is bounded on the north by Ellison, on the east 
 by Swan, on the south by McDonough County on the 
 west by Henderson County. This township was 
 about the last to settle up. Solomon Sovereign and 
 Abraham Baldwin were the first settlers, coming in 
 in 1835, and locating on section 13. Mr. Sovereign 
 remained on his farm for some years and then 
 moved to California, where he is still living. Mr. 
 Baldwin moved to Missouri, where he died. After 
 these pioneers came Wm. Parkhurst, Mr. Sutton, 
 and Mr. Garrett. Parkhurst was from New Eng- 
 land, and located on section 25. He afterward 
 moved to Minnesota. Mr. Garrett settled on sec- 
 tion 24, on Swan Creek, and Sutton in the timber on 
 section 12. In 1849, Lucius and Isaac Watson 
 came in and located on section i. James Owen also 
 came in about this time with John A. Waugh. In 
 1849 a school-house was built and the first school in 
 the township was taught. In 1850 a postoffice was 
 established at a place called Colfax. In 1875 the 
 Methodists organized a society near Colfax postoffice 
 with some 18 members. Rev. J. \V. Coe was the 
 first pastor to serve this church, and meetings were 
 held in school-houses. Later on they erected a 
 house of worship, at a cost of $1,500. Rev. P. S. 
 Garretson succeeded Mr. Coe. This society has 
 not kept up its organization, but meeiings have been 
 held occasionally. 
 
 Point Pleasant Township with exceptions of sec- 
 tions 12, 13 and 14, which are a little broken on the 
 eastern line, is rolling prairie. The soil is rich and 
 very productive, and it contains some of the best 
 farms in the county. There are many very fine 
 dwelling houses and beautiful homes, and the farm- 
 ers are mostly in independent circumstances. In 
 fact, this township has been truly named, for it is in- 
 deed a pleasant township to live in and to look upon. 
 
 It is watered by the middle and south branches of 
 Nigger Creek, which heads about the middle of the 
 township and courses easterly. It has no railroad 
 lines running through its territory, the nearest rail- 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 735 
 
 road station being the St. Louis branch of the C., B. 
 & Q. R. R., which has a station at Swan Creek. 
 There are no stores, shops, or manufacturing estab- 
 lishments. The people do their trading mostly at 
 Swan Creek and Roseville. 
 
 In the production of corn and the raising of hogs, 
 Point Pleasant ranks among the first townships in 
 the county. It is also unexcelled in the production 
 of the smaller grains. 
 
 The population is about the same as in 1880, 
 when the last census was taken, which was 915. 
 
 According to the report of the County Superin- 
 tendent for the year ending June 30, 1885, there 
 were nine school districts in which there were nine 
 frame school buildings. The school property was 
 valued at $3,700. Of persons under 21 years of age 
 there were 407, of whom 275 were of stholastic age, 
 261 being enrolled. The highest wages paid teach- 
 ers was $47.50 per month, and the lowest was $30. 
 The tax levy for the township was $2,480. 
 
 The Assessor in his report for the year 1885, furn- 
 ishes the following items : Number of acres of im- 
 proved lands, 22,531 ; value of improved lands, 
 $339,610; number of horses, 846; cattle, 1,524; 
 mules and asses, 77 ; sheep, 372 ; hogs, 3,670; car- 
 riages aYid wagons, 298; watches and clocks, 134; 
 sewing and knitting machines, 90 ; pianos, 3 ; organs 
 and melodeons, 35. Total cash value of personal 
 property, $63,364. 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 James M. Humes 1869 70 
 
 R. T. King 1871-72 
 
 A. S Smith 1873-76 
 
 Thomas Pennington l %77 
 
 A S. Smith 1878-80 
 
 W. T. Boyd 1881-83 
 
 A. S. Smith 1884-85 
 
 Warren Park 1854 
 
 Albert Mitchell 1855-5? 
 
 R. T. King 1858-59 
 
 Leonard Connell 1860 
 
 Albert Mitchell 1861 
 
 George W. Slice 1862-63 
 
 R T.King 1864-67 
 
 Geo. W. Slice 1868 
 
 -13 
 
 ROSEVILLE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 'HE legal voters of the township of Rose- 
 ville metal the Union Church, agreeable to 
 notice, and proceeded to form the township 
 organization. They chose Richard Ray chair- 
 man, and voted to elect all officers by yeas and 
 nays, except those the law required to elect by 
 ballot. Truman Eldridg was chosen Moderator 
 and John C. Franklin, Clerk. When the votes were 
 
 counted it was found that Wm. Johnson was elected 
 Supervisor; Samuel Cole, Clerk; W. B. Smith, As- 
 sessor; Elijah Hannon, Collector ; Stephen Dilly, 
 Overseer of the Poor ; James W. Ray, S. T. Hadly, 
 and Reuben Holeman, Commissioners of Highways; 
 John Riggs, Isaac L. Pratt, Justices of the Peace ; 
 Thomas H. Riggs, G. W. Kerby, Constables. 
 
 Roseville Township is numbered 9 north, of range 
 2 west, of the 4th principal meridian, and is bounded 
 on the north by Lenox, on the east by Berwick, the 
 south by Swan, and the West by Ellison Township. 
 It is watered by the north and south branches of 
 Nigger Creek, which meanders easterly through the 
 township. Bordering these water courses, there is 
 a liberal growth of timber, with broad, rolling prai- 
 ries predominating in the township. Along the east- 
 ern line, however, and particularly about the streams, 
 the land is broken. Tne St. Louis branch of the 
 Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad enters the 
 township on sections 5 and 6, passes south between 
 these sections and sections 7 and 8, and deflecting a 
 little westward, goes out about the middle of section 
 31. This road was completed through the township 
 in the summer of 1870. 
 
 John and James Armstrong have the credit of be- 
 ing the first settlers in Roseville Township. They 
 came in 1829, from the south part of the State, and 
 located on section i. They did not remain long, but 
 sold out to Thomas Pearce, who came in 1831. Mr. 
 Pearce came from Ohio, with his wife and children 
 Andrew G., Thomas, Theodore, Melissa, Minerva, 
 Mary E. and Sarah D. Andrew G. (see biography) 
 still lives on the old homestead ; Theodore and 
 Thomas died in their youth ; Minerva died when a 
 woman; Melissa, who married R. E. Hill, died in 
 Iowa; Mary E. was married to Judge Ivory Quinby, 
 Feb. 17, 1848, and is still living in Monmouth ; Sa- 
 rah T. was married to William Whitenack, and is 
 living in Monmouth. Thomas Pearce died at his 
 homestead Aug 22, 1853, aged 75 years. He was 
 one of those sturdy pioneers so essential to the de- 
 velopment of a new country. His widow died Feb. 
 29, 1869, at the advanced age of 78 years and five 
 months. 
 
 William R. Pearce came in soon after. He did 
 not remain long, but settled near Pekin, where he 
 died in the winter of 1833. 
 
 Sheldon Lockwood and John Smith, from Ken- 
 
736 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 tucky, with their families, were the next additions to 
 this settlement, which was in the winter of 1831-32, 
 locating on sections i and n. They camped in the 
 timber, patting up a rude shanty to protect them 
 from the cold blasts of winter, until the log cabin 
 could be built. While Lockwood was at work on the 
 cabin, Smith, with an ox team, went to the town now 
 known as Springfield for some provisions. Smith was 
 gone over a month, and before he returned the little 
 band of pioneers that he had left behind him became 
 pretty hungry, and no man, probably, was evermore 
 cordially welcomed home than Smith. 
 
 Lockwood died some years ago, at the old farm, 
 and his widow died June, 1884, at the advanced age 
 of 88 years. Mr. Smith died in 1837, and his widow 
 married William Gunter. She has been dead some 
 years. 
 
 John Murphy and W. Carr were the next to settle 
 in the township. The former was from Kentucky, 
 and located on section i, where he lived and died; 
 the latter was from Indiana, and settled on section 
 13. These pioneers did not .remain long in their sol- 
 itude, but were soon followed by many more families 
 seeking homes in the West. Among these was Tru- 
 man Eldridg, who located southwest, near the town 
 of Roseville. (See biography.) . Mr. Carr's house 
 was struck by lightning in 1838, killing two of his 
 children. He died in 1879, at the age of 84 years, 
 and his widow followed him in 1880. 
 
 The first religious services in the township were 
 held in the winter of 1832, by Elder Covdier, a Meth- 
 odist circuit rider. Thomas Pearce then opened 
 his hospitable doors for Divine worship. This was 
 a great event for these dwellers in the wilderness, 
 and the religioi.s enthusiasm became very great. Sub- 
 sequently, in the spring of 1833, a Methodist Class 
 was formed by Rev. Barton Randall, at Mr. Pearce's 
 house, which was the first in the township. This 
 was the beginning of the Berwick Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church. 
 
 Miss Jane A. Allen taught the first school in the 
 township, in a log cabin in Pearce's Grove, in the 
 summer of 1834. She subsequently was married to 
 Judge Ivory Quinby, March 10, 1839, and died Feb. 
 7, 1847. 
 
 A new settlement could not be happy without hav- 
 ing a marriage feast to enliven it, and William Haines 
 and Lucinda Pearce made the sacrifice to please the 
 
 good people of the township. The warm rays of the 
 summer sun rested upon two loving hearts that were 
 joined as one amid the congratulations of their 
 friends, on July 3, 1832. They are now living at 
 Ottumwa, Iowa. 
 
 Roseville Township gradually increased with its 
 settlement, its rich soil and fair fields stimulating 
 production and inviting emigration, until now it is 
 third in rank of population and one of the best pro- 
 ducing townships in the county. 
 
 Its population, according to the last census, was 
 i, 708, and it is estimated that these figures have 
 been, increased since that time. 
 
 Its beautiful farms, enclosed with well trimmed 
 hedges, and decorated with fine dwelling houses and 
 farm buildings, present an ever-pleasing aspect to 
 the traveler. Within its borders there is a good, 
 thriving town for the people to do their trading and 
 marketing, which obviates the necessity of making 
 long journeys to other places for this purpose. 
 
 The County School Superintendent, in her report 
 for the year ending June 30, r885, has the following 
 items regarding the public schools of this township. 
 There were 1 1 school districts, with one graded and 
 ten ungraded schools, and one brick and ten frame 
 school buildings, with a valuation of school property 
 at $15,900. Of the persons under 21 years of age 
 there were 672, of whom 496 were of scholastic age, 
 494 being enrolled. The highest wages paid to 
 teachers was $75 per month, and the lowest $25. 
 The tax levy for the township was $6,950. 
 
 From the Assessor's report for the year 1885, the 
 following information is obtained: Number of acres 
 of improved land, 22,788; value of improved lands, 
 $344,559; total value of lots, $68,937; number of 
 horses, 970; cattle, 1,696; mules and asses, 59; 
 sheep, 372; hogs, 3,297; steam engines, r; car- 
 riages and wagons, 357; watches and clocks, 347 ; 
 sewing and knitting machines 2ri; pianos, 10; 
 melodeons and organs, 69. Total cash value of per- 
 sonal property, $91,226. 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 Wm. Johnson 1854 
 
 John Riggs 1855 
 
 James tlarrett 1856-7 
 
 D. C. Rings 1858 
 
 John Riggs 1855 
 
 D. C. Riggs 1860 
 
 John Riggs 1861 
 
 D. C. Riggs 1862 
 
 John Riggs 1863 
 
 Thompson Brooks 1864 
 
 D. M. Taliaferro 1865-9 
 
 S. M. F.ldred 1870 
 
 D.M. Taliaferro 1871 
 
 Wm. Dillv 1872-3 
 
 Alpheus Lewis 1874 
 
 T. J. Morris 1875 
 
 Alpheus Lewis 1876-80 
 
 T. A. Dilly 1881-3 
 
 R. L. McReynolds 1884 
 
 H. T. Lope 1885 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 737 
 
 He-Seville Village. 
 
 HIS thriving village, now so favorably 
 known throughout this section of the State, 
 made its first start in the world under a 
 different banner. The name by which it first 
 appeared to the public was Hat Grove, and it 
 covered a piece of ground but a little way 
 from its present site. Its commencement may be 
 dated from the esta'olisment of the postoffice, with 
 Truman Eldridg as Postmaster. Not until after the 
 completion of the Rockford, Rock Island and St. 
 Louis Railroad, however, was there much progress 
 made toward a business town. Lancaster and Elli- 
 son, in what is now Ellison Township, were having 
 a fine local trade, which continued to increase until 
 the railroad came through the county, making the 
 station at Roseville. 
 
 A small store was first opened at this place by 
 John Adams (a very historical name) where Pierce's 
 brick building now stands. Adams did not remain 
 long in business, but was succeeded by E. P. Emans, 
 who opened a general merchandise establishment 
 with a very liberal stock of goods, and who is at 
 present one of the leading merchants of the place. 
 After the completion of the railroad, the business of 
 Lancaster was moved over to Roseville. Ellison 
 had been ruined years before by the great tornado 
 and the trade which this place at one time had also 
 come here. 
 
 The first train came into Roseville July 4, 1870, 
 and was made quite an event by the people of the 
 village, who celebrated the day of our independence 
 with the advent of the railroad. From this time on 
 Roseville has had a steady growth. There is no 
 richer fanning country in the county than that which 
 surrounds this village. Like al! the towns in the 
 county, it labors under the disadvantage of not hav- 
 ing a water power for manufacturing purposes; yet, 
 the site is a very pleasing one and reasonably 
 healthy. But we have anticipated a little and we 
 return to an earlier period. 
 
 The town was platted in 1868, by Solomon Sover- 
 eign, and the surveys were made by that energetic 
 citizen, John A. Gordon, who has stood by this town 
 
 all these long years. The plat was laid out on the 
 northeast quarter of section 31, and contained 40 
 acres. The next addition to the town was by Tru- 
 man Eldridg, embracing 60 acres, and laid out on 
 the southeast quarter of section 30. This was in 1870, 
 and also surveyed by Mr. Gordon. The town con- 
 tinued to grow, and dreams of a future large c ty 
 were had by many of Roseville's speculative citizens, 
 and even by the conservative-minded. Reeve's ad- 
 dition came next and was platted the same year, so 
 also was that of Pratt & Dilly, containing 60 acres 
 on section 31. Munford's addition was the next and 
 last. It was platted December, 1875, and embraced 
 the south half of the southwest quarter of section 
 30. With all these blocks and streets laid out, the 
 town had ample room to grow. But as there is a 
 Divinity that shapes the ends of individuals, it may 
 be stated with the same degree of logic, that there is 
 a Divinity that also shapes the ends of towns; and 
 it remains for the future to disclose whether Rose- 
 ville will ever occupy as a town all the ground laid 
 out for her. 
 
 Business houses and dwellings increased, and it 
 looked to the more sanguine citizens that in the no 
 distant future all the blocks would soon be covered 
 with fine buildings of one kind or the other. Some 
 of the most progressive people were in favor of an 
 incorporation. The movement, however, failed for 
 want of sufficient support. Subsequently another at- 
 tempt was made with like results. The movers for 
 incorporation were persistent in agitating their pro- 
 ject and finally an election was ordered for the pur- 
 pose of voting on this subject. This election was 
 held May 30, 1873, and resulted in the defeat of the 
 movement of incorporation, Two years later another 
 election was held, May 4, 1875 At this election, the 
 movers for incorporation were successful, winning by 
 75 votes against 42, which made them very jubilant. 
 An election for Village Trustees was then called for 
 June 8, 1876, which resulted in the choice of J. C. 
 Turnbull, Sr., Ezra P. Emans, John A. Gordon, 
 James S. Reed, and J. T. Loihrop. On the i4th of 
 June following, the Trustees met at the office of John 
 A. Gordon, and completed their village- organization 
 by the election of Ezra P. Emans, President of the 
 Board; Benjamin R. Ostrander, Clerk; R. L. Mc- 
 Reynolds, Treasurer. On motion, J. S. Reed, John 
 A. Gordon and E. P. Emans were appointed a com- 
 mittee to prepare an ordinance lor the city govern. 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 merit. Under the incorporation the village has gone 
 along very smoothly, and there has been no occasion 
 to regret the action of the majority. 
 
 There are some good business houses here, and 
 fine dwellings ; and taking the town altogether, it is a 
 pleasing and attractive one. The population is es- 
 timated now to be between 900 and 1,000. 
 
 The principal manufacturing industry of this vil- 
 lage is that of Daniel Bird & Sons' Tile Factory, 
 which was started in 1879. They employ on an av- 
 erage 12 men, and three kilns. They also manufac- 
 ture brick which is of a good quality. Mr. Bird 
 found a two foot vein of coal near his clay beds and 
 also an excellent quality of fire-clay. This firm 
 through their manufactory are contributing no little 
 to the business and prosperity of Roseville. 
 
 Messrs. Blazer & Steninger, proprietors of the 
 Roseville Creamery, are doing a good business in 
 their line. They gather their cream from an ex- 
 tended area of territory, and make during the season 
 about 500 pounds of butter per day. 
 
 As above stated, Truman Eldridg was the first 
 Postmaster of the town, then known as Hat Grove. 
 > He resigned in favor of Benjamin Morford who held 
 the place until 1861. E. P. Emans then took charge 
 and held the office until 1866, and was followed by 
 Amos Pierce, who served until 1871, when W. T. 
 Gossett was appointed, and is the present incum- 
 bent. 
 
 PRESS 
 
 The first paper started at Roseville, was the Rose- 
 ville Gazette, by that enterprising and successful 
 newspaper man. G. G. McCosh, now proprietor of 
 the Monmouth Gazette, May 24, 1876, who was at 
 that time foreman of the Monmouth Review: It was 
 a six-column folio, published every Wednesday, and 
 was independent in politics. The printing was done 
 at The Review office. In June, 1877, Mr. McCosh 
 moved his paper to Monmouth and changed the 
 name to the Monmouth Gazette. 
 
 The Roseville Gazette was a lively, spicy sheet and 
 attracted no little attention in the newspaper field, 
 the result of which was the starting of an opposition 
 paper at Roseville, by Wilson Bros., called Wilsons 
 Weekly. The editor of the Gazette having accom- 
 plished what he desired, modestly withdrew from the 
 field to Monmouth, where he could have a more ex- 
 tensive scope for his abilities. 
 
 Wilsons Weekly was too weak to stand after the 
 Gazette had departed, or withdrew its aid, and was 
 soon changed to the Roseville Times, under a new 
 management. This paper was subsequently pur- 
 chased by C. Elliott, who continued its publication 
 until the spring of 1885, when he sold out to C. H. 
 Hebbard, present proprietor and editor. Mr. Heb- 
 bard has enlarged the Times to an eight-column 
 folio, and also extended the job office. The Times 
 is independent in politics, and has a liberal circula- 
 tion, and is a well conducted paper. 
 OFFICERS. 
 
 Present officers of the Village Government ; Trus- 
 tees, J. W. Connelly, J. W. Malcomb, George 
 Meclram, N. G. Taft, S. H. Tuttle and W. B. Ditch. 
 President of the Board, J. W. Connolly ; Clerk, J. 
 B. Lozier; Treasurer, E. P. Emans. 
 
 SCHOOLS. 
 
 Roseville has the credit of having the best school 
 building in the county, and one of the best graded 
 schools. The building is a large two-story brick 
 structure, solid and handsome in its architecture, 
 and containing six apartments. It was erected in 
 1880. C. A. Hebbard is the Principal of the I 
 school, who is an experienced teacher and a gentle- 
 man of education. He has Mrs. M. E. Higgins for 
 First Assistant ; Miss Bertha Taft, Second Assistant, 
 and Miss S. A. Ragon in the Primary Department. 
 Enrollment, 188 pupils. This school is thor- 
 oughly graded, and all of the English branches are 
 taught here. 
 
 SOCIETIES. 
 
 Roseville Lodge, A. F. & A. M., No. 519, was 
 chartered Oct. 4, 1867, with 18 members. First of- 
 ficers : D. Adams, W. M. ; W. Clayton, Sr. W. M. ; J. 
 
 B. Wilsey, Jr. W. M.; B. Ragon, Secretary; D. N. 
 Taliaferro, Treasurer ; T.Bradley, S. D. ; Wm. Stan- 
 field, J. D.; Israel G.ired, Tyler. Present officers: 
 J. W. Connelly, W. M.; N. G. Taft, Sr. W. M.; A. 
 
 C. Stein, Jr. W. M. ; R. L. McReynolds, Treasurer; 
 T. B. Bohen, Secretary; J. W. Bockus, S. D. ; C. J. 
 Danielson, J. D. ; J. L. Davenport, Tyler. The 
 Lodge has a fine, well furnished hall, with a mem- 
 bership of 33. The hall is neatly decorated, well 
 equipped and in good working condition. 
 
 G. A. R., A. C. Harding Post, No. 127, was char- 
 tered March 17, 1882, with 30 members, J, W. 
 
 , 
 

 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 739 
 
 Coates, C. : F. B. Davis, V. C. ; J. Whitenack, J. N. 
 C.; T. S. Fowler, Chaplain; Dr. N. A. Griffith, Sur- 
 geon; J. M. Tucker, O. D. ; J. J. McClen, Agt. ; 
 R. L. McReynolds, Q. M. The present membership 
 of the Post is 50. It is in a good working order, and 
 increasing in numbers. They have a good hall, 
 which is well furnished. Present officers: D. M. 
 Fay, C. ; T. S. Miller, S. V. C. ; M. G. Taft, J. V. 
 C.; Ellis Scott, Secretary ; James Chapman, Chap- 
 lain; Sylvester Bryner, O. D. ; George C. Murphy, 
 Adj. ; R. L. McReynolds, Q. M. ; John T. Bragg, O. 
 G. They meet on the second and fourth Mondays 
 of each month. 
 
 I. O. O. F., Roseville Lodge, No. 537, was insti- 
 tuted Jan. 21, 1874, with five charter members. J. 
 W. Kennor was the first N. G. ; H. G. Simmons, V. 
 G. ; J. S. Greer, Secretary; R. B. Tredmore, Treas- 
 urer. This Society was first organized at Youngs- 
 town, and was known as the Youngstown Lodge, and 
 was so chartered. In June, 1874, it was moved to 
 Roseville. The Society occupies the Masonic Hall, 
 has money in the Treasury, is well equipped and 
 in good working order. They intend to erect for 
 >= themselves, in the near future, a hall for lodge pur- 
 poses. Present membership about 50, with the fol- 
 lowing officers : A. C. McPeak, N. G. ; J. H. Morn- 
 ingstar, V. G.; J. E. Hartley, Secretary; A. C. Stem, 
 Treasurer. 
 
 Selected Knights of the A. O. U. W., was insti- 
 tuted Nov. 8, 1883, with 28 members. Present 
 officers are: R. L. McReynolds, S. C.; E. D. Patch, 
 V. C.; G. C Murphy, Lt. C.; T. B. Bohn, Recor- 
 der; S. P. Stem, Treasurer; C. A. Anderson, R. T. ; 
 S. N. Edwards, S. B. ; J. L. Davenport, Chaplain ; 
 S. Roseberry, Marshal. Membership, 35, This 
 Society holds its meetings in Masonic Hall. 
 
 A. O. U. W., No. 112, was organized May 15, 
 1878, with C. S. McDonough, P. M. W. ; J. W. 
 Coates, M. W. ; W. T. Gossett, Recorder. Present 
 membership of the Lodge, 61. Present officers : J. 
 S. Roseberry, M. W. ; L. D. Patch, M. W. . John 
 Powell. Treasurer; S. N. Edwards, Overseer; T. 
 B. Bohn, Recorder; G. R. Davenport, Financier; 
 W. H.Buckley, Recorder; R. B. Davenport, G.; M. 
 N. Anderson, I. W. ; D. F. Morningstar, O. W. They 
 meet in the Masonic Hall, and are in a prosperous 
 condition. 
 
 RELIGIOUS. 
 The Congregational Church was first organized 
 
 with 12 members, at Hat Grove, in the old school 
 house, November, 1851. Rev. J. Blanchard, Mod- 
 erator, and L. E. Sykes, Clerk. This school house 
 is now used as a dwelling. In 1855, they erected 
 their new church building, costing $3,000. It is a 
 very neat frame structure, with a seating capacity of 
 about 300. It was dedicated March 5, 1856. Sup- 
 plies were furnished by other congregations for 
 awhile. In the latter part of 1856, they secured their 
 first pastor, Rev. J. R. Rodgers, who was ordained 
 at fhe time the church was dedicated. Revs. A. 
 Moore, T. H. Johnson, A. R. Mitchell, L. S. Morgan, 
 Aldred Morse, Cyrus H. Eaton, A. E. Arnold, A. J. 
 Drake, followed in succession, serving from one to 
 two years. In 1868, Rev. James D. Wyckoff ac- 
 cepted a call, and served the Church for nine years, 
 or until 1877. He was followed by Rev. R. A. 
 Woods, who served one year. Rev. S. Goodenow 
 then took charge, and remained until 1880, when 
 Rev. R. B. Guild became pastor, remaining until 
 1883. In August, 1883, Rev. F. C. Cochran was 
 called, who served until August, 1885. The pastor- 
 ate is at present vacant, but the Church is negotiat- 
 ing for a minister. Present membership 79. A Sab- = 
 bath-school with about 60 members is connected with 
 this Society. 
 
 The Methodist Episcopal Church was formed in the 
 year 1841. It had its beginning with a membership 
 of seven. The first preaching place was in the house 
 of Solomon Sovereign. Subsequently they secured 
 the school house, in which they held their meetings, 
 and next they worshipped in the Congregational 
 Church. In 1864, the Methodists built their present 
 church edifice, which was during the pastorate of 
 Rev. J. A. Windsor. The church building was ded- 
 icated by the Rev. O. S. Munsel, President of Bloom- 
 ington University. The structure cost $4,000, and 
 is a substantial building, with a seating capacity of 
 350. In 1881, the building was thoroughly repaired, 
 at a cost of about $750, and is now in good order. 
 This appointment once belonged to Oquawka Cir- 
 cuit, and most of the records of this Church are still 
 with that circuit. 
 
 Roseville became apart of Ellison Circuit, in 1855, 
 and in 1869 became the head of the circuit, and 
 remains so at the present time. 
 
 The following is a list of the names of the pastors 
 in their regular succession, as sent by the Confer- 
 
740 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 ence : Revs. William Clark, H. Pressan, A. D. Mc- 
 Cool, William Haney, A. Fisher, Josiah Kerns, W. 
 J. Beck, A. E. Higgins, W. B. Morse, Amos Morey, 
 H. H. Crosier, B. C. Swartz, J. T. Windsor, G. C. 
 Woodruff, W. B. Caruthers, Thomas Watson, J. W. 
 Coe, Abram Beeler, C. B. Couch, J. W. Coe, N. T. 
 Allen, J. Q. Adams, T. F. Fowler, D. McLeish, the 
 present pastor. The present membership of the 
 Church is 102 ; the entire circuit has 175 members. 
 Attached to this society is a prosperous Sunday 
 School, presided over by C. J. Boyd. They have had 
 many revivals of religion in this- Church from time to 
 time, which have increased its membership, though 
 many have died and moved away. 
 
 The Christian Church was organized in 1860, with 
 about 20 members. In 1871 the society erected a 
 house of worship, which cost them $1,500. At a 
 later period they secured a parsonage at a cost of about 
 $600. This congregation was organized from the 
 Downing School-house Society, in Swan Township, 
 and afterward the Ellison Township Church united 
 with them. Rev. M. Jones is the present pastor of this 
 Church, which has now about 100 members. During 
 the past season Mr. Jones, by his zeal and earnest 
 preaching, got up quite a revival in the Church, 
 which resulted in adding many members to their 
 faith. On account of the early records being lost, 
 the full history of this organization cannot be given. 
 
 The Baptist Church was first organized in Feb- 
 ruary, 1852, with 25 members, and was called the 
 Hat Grove Baptist Church. Rev. G. S. Minor pre- 
 sided over the organization. Rev. Joseph Elliot 
 was the first pastor installed, which was in 1853, 
 and served the Church 18 months. During the early 
 history of the society Rev. William T. Bly got up a 
 very extensive revival, and added largely to its mem- 
 bership. A church building was erected in 1863, at 
 a cost of $1,500, and was dedicated in the fall of the 
 same year. They have also a good parsonage, which 
 cost $[,200, including lots. After Mr. Bly they had 
 'alternates for a while. In May, 1855, Rev. Win- 
 throp Morse took charge, remaining one year, and 
 was succeeded by Rev. Joseph Elliot. In June, 1858, 
 David L'eland became pastor for a few months. Suc- 
 ceeding him for short terms were Revs. Henry B. 
 Johnson, Daniel B. Gunn, William Storrs, A. Jones, 
 Jr., Elijah Russ. Mr. Russ was succeeded in 1872, 
 by Rev. George D. Kent, who remained with the 
 
 Church until 1876, when he was followed by E. C. 
 Cady, who served until 1881. Rev. J. E. Ladd then 
 served one year, and was succeeded by Rev. Isaac 
 Fallis, the present pastor. They have about 150 
 members, and a thriving Sabbath School of about 
 80 members. 
 
 The Evangelical Swedish Lutheran Church was 
 organized in 1876, by Rev Charles Anderson, of Ans- 
 gari College, Knoxville. Rev. George Wieburg was 
 installed as the first pastor, in the fall of this year. 
 He remained two years with the Church and was 
 succeeded by Rev. Charles J. Lundell, who remained 
 until 1880, when Rev. Charles Bargstrum took charge, 
 serving one year. Rev. J. W. Carlson followed, serv- 
 ing one year. After Mr. Carlson came Rev. N. A. 
 Blomstrand, the present pastor. The church build- 
 ing was erected in 1876, at a cost of $[,ooo. Pres- 
 ent membership about 30, and a Sabbath School, 
 numbering about 20. Preaching every third Sui day. 
 
 The Union Baptist Church is located on section 
 2, and was organized in 1841, by Rev. John Logan 
 and Robert Wilbur, with the following members : 
 Thomas, Elizabeth and Asmeth Brooks, John and 
 Rosina Murphy, Hasula, Jane and Elizabeth Smith, 
 Julian Shirley, Wilson M. and Malvina Gunter, Wil- 
 liam M. and Ann Brooks, David and J. A. J. Smith, 
 Nancy Fields, Harriet R iy, Elizabeth Robb and Wil- 
 liam Hiet. First regular pastor was Rev. John Mur- 
 phy, who served from 1841 to 1845. He was 
 followed by Rev. John C. Ward, who rrmained with 
 his flock until February, [85 1, when he was suc- 
 ceeded by John James. Mr. James served the Church 
 until [854, and was succeeded respectively by Revs. 
 William Whitehead, Mr. R. Newton, Tronier, H. 
 H. Parks, R. W. Welsh and S. Peckard. The lat- 
 ter is the present pastor, and has been with the 
 society since June, 1876. In 1860 they erected 
 their house of worship, costing about $1,900. 
 
 SPRING GROVE TOWNSHIP. 
 
 PRING Grove Township was organized un- 
 der the Township Organization Laws, April 
 4, 1854. A meeting for this purpose was 
 held at the usual place for holding elections. 
 Thomas Gibson was chosen Moderator, and 
 James H. Carmichael, Clerk. When the 
 ballots were counted it was found that Robert 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Gilmore was chosen Supervisor; Thomas Gibson, 
 Jr., Clerk ; John Ray, Assessor ; James L. Porter, 
 Collector; Watson Gates, Overseer of the Poor; 
 Robert and William Walker, Justices of the Peace ; 
 Josiah Porter, S. R. Boggs and Thomas Averel, 
 Commissioners of Highways; Joseph Ray and Jo- 
 seph Meyers, Constables ; James R. Patterson, Rob- 
 ert W. Gerlaw, Overseers of Roads and James H. 
 Carmichael, Pound Master. 
 
 Spring Grove is situated in the middle of the 
 northern tier of townships, number 12 north, of 
 range 2, west. The county of Mercer is at the 
 north, and on the east, south and west sides lie re- 
 spectively the townships of Kelly, Monmouth and 
 Sumner. The nature of the land in the greater por- 
 tion of the township is rolling, ; in the western part 
 it is in places quite broken. It is liberally watered 
 by the Middle Henderson, Cedar Creek and tributa- 
 ries, which meander westward into the Henderson 
 River. Along the water courses the township is 
 pretty well timbered. The facilities for drainage are 
 good, and there is but little dead land in the town- 
 ship, nearly all being subject to cultivation, and very 
 : fertile. 
 
 I James Humphreys has the credit of being the first 
 settler in the township, having located here in 1833. 
 He was soon followed by Robert Gilmore and fam- 
 ily, of whom James T. and L. H. Gilmore were 
 members. He located on section 25, which he sub- 
 sequently sold, and bought a farm on section 24. 
 
 John Armstrong and Wm. Miller with their fami- 
 lies came in, in 1834. John H. Frantz and family 
 located in the township, in 1835, and David H. Mc- 
 Curry, in 1836. Horace Smith with his family en- 
 larged the settlement in 1837. He came from Penn- 
 sylvania with his wife, Margaret, and four children 
 Robert, Isabelle, Mary and John. Charles and 
 Owen were born in the township. Mr. Smith loca- 
 ted on section 3, on which place lie lived until 1858, 
 when he died. His widow survived him nearly a 
 score of years, and died in the spring of 1885. All 
 the children are living. Mary, who was married to 
 Nathan Pettit, is living at Alexis. 
 
 Elder Richard Haney was the first preacher to 
 hold service in the township. He preached at first 
 in private houses. 
 
 Mrs. Wilket, who was quite an elderly lady, taught 
 the first school, in 1841, in a house built by her 
 
 brother, on section 5. She had sixteen pupils who 
 were very much attached to her and did all they 
 could to please and make her happy . She long ago 
 passed on to the other world. 
 
 A postoffice was opened at Spring Grove, in 1835, 
 soon after the Rock Island stage route was estab- 
 lished. There was a little settlement at this place, 
 and some trading done before the Rock Island & St. 
 Louis R. R., was built and the town of Alexis was 
 started, when the business, with most of the settle- 
 ment here, moved to the latter place. 
 
 Spring Grove is a beautiful township, many parts 
 of it very picturesque, and containing some grand 
 farms. It ranks second in the production of stock, 
 and is very fair in the production of the cereals. 
 
 The Rock Island & St. Louis R. R. was com- 
 pleted through the township in June, 1871. It en- 
 ters in the northeast corner of section i.and running 
 south by west, passes out on section 34. 
 
 The people do their trading mostly at Alexis, and 
 at Gerlaw, from which places considerable stock is 
 shipped. In 1880, the population according to the 
 census, was r,4oo, and it is estimated now to be 
 about 1,500 
 
 There is a United Presbyterian congregation at 
 Spring Grove, which was organized by the Monmouth 
 Presbytery, June 22, 1855. J. C. McKnight was 
 the first pastor, serving from June, 1856, until 
 March, 1860. He was succeeded by Wm. M. Gra- 
 ham, who served the Church until 1863. Then 
 they were without a pastor for about a year, when 
 they secured the services of T. P. Patterson, who 
 remained until December, 1868. Rev. David Inches 
 then took charge and remained until 1874, and was 
 followed by Revs. Rufus Johnson, Wm. J. Mc- 
 Croney and A. W. Johnson, the present pastor, who 
 was installed Aug 25, 1885, this being his first 
 charge. 
 
 They have a good church building costing about 
 $3,500, also a good parsonage. The membership is 
 about 85. In addition to the services they have a 
 fine Sabbath-school. 
 
 On section 10 there is located a religious society 
 called the Church of God. It was organized in 1865 
 by Randolph White. The first meeting of this so- 
 ciety was held in school-houses. In 1869 they com- 
 pleted their church building at a cost of some 
 $j i ,500. No regular services are held here now, but 
 
742 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 sometimes they have preaching by a woman of the 
 faith who comes from Monmouth. 
 
 From the County Superintendent's report for the 
 year ending June 30, 1885, the following statistics 
 have been obtained : There were 10 school districts 
 in the township with one graded school, and 9 un- 
 graded. The 10 districts embraced i brick and 9 
 frame school buildings ; the value of the school 
 property was $7,050. Of persons under 21 years of 
 age there were 695, of whom 412 were of scholastic 
 age, 551 being enrolled. The highest wages paid 
 teachers was $60 ; the lowest, $25 per month. The 
 tax levy was $3,459.86. 
 
 From the Assessor's report for 1885, the following 
 facts are obtained: Number of acres of improved 
 lands, 21,794; number of acres of unimproved 
 lands, 766; value of improved lands, $283,140; 
 value of unimproved lands, $3,625 ; total value of 
 lots, $35,150 ; number of horses, 849; cattle, 2,009 ! 
 mules and asses, 19; sheep, 440; hogs, 3,706; 
 steam engines, 4; carriages and wagons, 253; watches 
 and clocks, 54; sewing and knitting machines, 85 ; 
 pianos, 4; melodeons and organs, 44. Total cash 
 value of personal property, $92,925. 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 Robt. Oilmore 1854-56 
 
 M.A. Thompson 1857 
 
 R. W.Gerlaw 1858-62 
 
 L. H.Gilmore 1863 
 
 R. W. Gerlaw 1864-65 
 
 R. H.Gilmorc 1866-68 
 
 James B. Porter 1869-70 
 
 L. H. Gilmore 1871-72 
 
 Craig Hanna 1873 
 
 L. H.Gilmore 1874-78 
 
 Angus McCoy 1879 
 
 A. J. Reid 1880 
 
 B . F . Forwood 1881-82 
 
 ngus McL-oy 
 
 O. Reid ... 
 
 . F . Forwood 
 
 ohn C. Blaney 1883 
 
 ohn S. Winbigler 1884-85 
 
 Alexis. 
 
 1 HIS pretty and attractive little village is 
 situated in the northeast corner of Spring 
 Grove Township on section i, and on the 
 line of the St. Louis Branch of the Chicago, 
 Burlington & Quincy Railroad, about 12 miles 
 northeasterly from Monmouth. It was plat- 
 ted in 1870, by Messrs. Robert Holloway and J. E. 
 Alexander, and was named after the latter gentle- 
 man. The survey was made by Thomas F. McClan- 
 ahan on the 7th of September, and recorded on the 
 i6th of the same month. The original plat contains 
 1 60 acres, on section i, in Spring Grove Township, 
 and 1 60 acres in Mercer County, section 36, town 
 
 13 north of range 2 west. With the exception of a 
 few residences the town has not extended into the 
 latter section. Schuyler Palmer originally owned 
 this land; he planted the first crop and made the 
 first improvements here, which was in 1855. His 
 house stood on the east side of where Main Street 
 now is, near the little grove, and was the first house 
 built in this part of the county. Mr. Palmer sold 
 the land to Thomas Lawhead, Sr., and he to Messrs. 
 Holloway and Alexander. It was first named Alex- 
 andria, in honor of one of its founders,' but there be- 
 ing a name similar to this in the State, considerable 
 confusion followed in the mail service and in the 
 shipping of goods. Consequently it was changed to 
 Alexis. This name was suggested by the arrival in 
 this country, about this time, of the Russian Grand 
 Duke Alexis. 
 
 O. G. Chapman and C. W. Gates opened the first 
 store in the town, in November, 1870, on Main 
 Street; they also received the first car-load of lum- 
 ber that was shipped on this part of the railroad. 
 
 T. B. Patterson opened the next store, on Market 
 Street, near the Baptist Church, or what is now the 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 Richardson & Riner opened the first hotel at the 
 depot. This hotel is now kept by Blayney and 
 called the Alexis House. About the same time, U. 
 W. Hull started a hotel on the corner of Main and 
 South Streets, called the Alexandria House. 
 
 The railroad was completed to Alexis and Mon- 
 mouth about the ist of January, 1871. The post- 
 office was established Jan. 17, following, and O. G. 
 Chapman was appointed Postmaster, a position he 
 has held since that time. 
 
 The town grew so rapidly, the people decided that 
 they ought to have a village government, and an 
 election was duly called to take this matter under 
 consideration. It was held June 28, 1873, at 
 Churchill & Wray's Hall. The County Judge ap- 
 pointed T. Loveridge, W. T. Richardson and Robert 
 S. Wray, judges of election. This was quite an im- 
 portant event to the people of this new town, and the 
 following named citizens were entrusted with its 
 destinies: John C. Blayney, A. G. Talbot, O. G. 
 Chapman, O. E. Bugbee, Daniel Churchill and 
 James Loveridge. These Trustees met at Flake's 
 Hall, July 28, and completed the city government 
 by electing John C. Bla) ney, President of the Board ; 
 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 743 
 
 John Douglas, Clerk; Charles E. Johnson, Treas- 
 urer; and H. R. Gilhland Street Commissioner. 
 
 On the night of Jan 24, 1878, fire broke out under 
 the floor of the Masonic Hall on Main Street, and 
 nearly destroyed the west side of that street. Among 
 the sufferers were D. S. McKnight, hardware dealer, 
 two stores and one dwelling; James Shaw, notions 
 and grocery; Dr. J. P. McClanahan, drug store; 
 Thomas Loveridge, dry goods and grocery; Hardy & 
 Knox, dealers in groceries and clothing; Bolinger & 
 Yarde, grocery store ; Benjamin Churchill, restaurant 
 and boarding-house; Jacob Wolff, harness and sad- 
 dlery. 
 
 On May 8. 1879, another fire broke out, on the 
 east side of Main Street, which destroyed several 
 business houses. 
 
 This town is excellently located and is surrounded 
 by a rich agricultural country. It has a healthy 
 growth, and improvements are steadily going on. 
 The industrial interests of Alexis, for a new and 
 small town, are very good. The Alexis tile and 
 brick factory was established in 1878, by George 
 Bruington and Thomas Townsley. The business 
 = was carried on two years by them, when Bruington 
 sold out to Townsley, who has since had sole charge 
 and ownership. Mr. Townsley is prepared with 
 machinery and buildings to do an extensive business 
 in this line of manufacture. He has the best of 
 clay, which is easily obtained and comparatively in- 
 exhaustible. At present he has 20 hands in his em- 
 ployment. 
 
 Another very important industry for Alexis is 
 Daniel Churchill's wagon and carriage shop. For 
 hand-made wagons, buggies and carriages, Mr. 
 Churchill has a wide reputation. 
 
 Porter Bros, have also established a reputation for 
 handling good buggies and carriages. 
 
 A creamery was established here last spring by 
 D. W. Little, who is making about 1,000 pounds of 
 butter a. week. 
 
 There are several good business houses in the town 
 and all appear to be prosperous. 
 
 Alexis is one of the desirable towns to live and 
 do business in. It has a population of 398. Pres- 
 ent officers : N. P. Bruington, D. W. Burt, S. B. 
 Miller, F. J. Pine, J. S. Canon and W. E. Durston, 
 Trustees. Mr. Bruington is President of the Board. 
 T. B. Patterson is Clerk; C. W. Postlewaite, Treas 
 
 urer; and George Poe, Street Commissioner. 
 
 A short distance west of Alexis, on the county 
 line road, is the stock farm of Col. Robert Holloway, 
 one of the most extensive breeders of horses in the 
 State. (See biography.) He breeds pure Clydes- 
 dales, of which he is a large importer. His large 
 farm, containing 640 acres, his extensive stables 
 and long experience, eminently qualify him for achiev- 
 ing success in carrying off the prizes in the Clydes- 
 dale line of stock. At the Chicago exhibition of 
 1884, Col. Holloway won three- fourths of all the 
 premiums in the Clydesdale list. His Carmerogie, 
 a yearling, took the first prize in New Orleans, St. 
 Louis and Chicago, for the best bred horse in this 
 country from imported stock. Carmerogie Kier, 
 once belonging to Col. Holloway 's stables, is now in 
 Scotland, owned by the Duke of Hamilton. 
 
 Col. Holloway established his stables about 12 
 years ago. He has spent many years of hard labor 
 and large sums of money in improving his stock and 
 perfecting his breed, and eminently deserves the suc- 
 cess that has followed his efforts. 
 SCHOOLS. 
 
 Alexis has a eood graded school, where a full Eng- 
 lish course is taught. They have a good frame 
 building, large enough to accommodate all the schol- 
 ars. J. S. Canon, is Principal; Miss Anna Bain has 
 charge of the grammar department; J. P. Campbell, 
 the intermediate ; and Miss Maggie Boggs, the pri- 
 mary department. They have an average attend- 
 ance of 150 pupils. 
 
 PRESS. 
 
 Alexis is not without its newspaper experience, 
 and, like most all small towns, she has furnished an- 
 other field for the entombment of those enterprises. 
 
 The Alexis Journal made its first appearance 
 Feb. 13, 1874, and was a seven-column, folio paper, 
 edited by James Everett. The patronage was not 
 enough to warrant its continuance, and it was sus- 
 pended at the close of the third volume. The plant 
 was purchased by Dr. Chaffee and the Alexis Index 
 was started. This was a five-column, eight-page 
 paper. It had a brief life and expired like its pred- 
 ecessor. Since then no one has been enterprising 
 enough to attempt the publication of another journal 
 here. 
 
 SOCIETIES. 
 
 Alexandria Lodge, No. 702, A. F. & A. M., was 
 
744 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 instituted Oct. 8, 1872, with n charter mem- 
 bers. John E. Alexander was W. M. ; John H. Mc- 
 Grew, S. W. M.; Joseph R. Scott, J. W. M. They 
 have at present 46 members, with a good hall ; they 
 were burned out in the fire of 1878. The present 
 officers are: C. W. Postlewaite, W. M.; J. R. Mc- 
 Call, S. W. M.; Wm. Jackson, J. W. M. ; Wm. Bel- 
 linger, Tyler; Truman Lord, Secretary ; John Bel- 
 linger, Treasurer. The lodge was named after John 
 E. Alexander, the founder of Alexis. 
 
 Alexis Lodge, No. 526, I. O. O. F. This lodg^ 
 was organized Oct. i, 1873, and received its charter 
 the 151)1 of the same month. The charter members 
 were Thomas M. Bell, J. H. McGrew, Daniel 
 Churchill, John N. Carr and R. T. Wray. Thomas 
 M. Bell was the first N. G. 
 
 In the fire of 1878 the hall of this lodge was 
 burned, together with all their records, furniture and 
 regalia. They have now a membership of 77, and 
 are in good working condition. Present officers are: 
 George Bellinger, N. G. ; Chas. Bellinger, B. G. ; S. 
 P. Leonard, Secretary ; Alfred Bellinger, Treasurer. 
 They contemplate the erection soon of a fine hall for 
 their use, and have already purchased a lot. 
 
 CHURCHES. 
 
 The Presbyterian Church was organized at Blay- 
 ney's Hall, in 1881, in connection with the Norwood 
 Church, with 60 members, by Rev. I. T. Whittemore. 
 Meetings were held for awhile in Blayney's Hall and 
 afterward in the United Brethren Church. The or- 
 ganization of the First Presbyterian Church of Alexis 
 was at a meeting held in the United Brethren 
 church, May 29, 1883, with 65 members. In the 
 summer of 1883 they purchased the building belong- 
 ing to the Baptist Missionary Association for $1,200, 
 and re-modeled it at a cost of $800. After several 
 removals, the present membership is about 75, and 
 is under the pastoral charge of Wm. J. Palm, the 
 first installed pastor. The Church is steadily grow- 
 ing, with hopeful prospects. They have a Sabbath- 
 school connected with the Church, with a membership 
 of 100 scholars, presided over by J. P. McClanahan. 
 
 United Presbyterian Church. This congregation 
 was organized April 4, 1871, by Rev. J. H. Hender- 
 son, witli about 25 members. M. McClanahan and 
 W. A. Elder were the first elders. Mr. Henderson 
 supplied the Church for a year, and after him Drs. 
 Black and Doig. Meetings were at first held in the 
 
 school house, near town. In 1873 the society erected 
 a very neat frame building, which is tastily finished, 
 costing 3,100. With this they have good parsonage, 
 located on the same lot. In 1876 they secured the 
 services of Rev. F. McKerahan, their first regular 
 pastor. He served the congregation until 1882; they 
 were then without a pastor two years. In June, 1884, 
 Rev. J. D. Palmer accepted a call and is the present 
 pastor. It has a membership of 63 and an interest- 
 ing Sabbath-school of too members. 
 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. This Church has 
 a small congregation here. When first organized, 
 meetings were held in the grove, then in Caldwell's 
 Hall. Rev. P. L. Call, from Iowa, preached for them 
 awhile. They hold their meetings now in the church 
 of the United Brethren, and have service every two 
 weeks, being supplied from the North Henderson 
 Church. 
 
 The United Brethren Church have an organiza- 
 tion in the village. This society was formed in the 
 township in 1856. After Alexis was started, the so- 
 ciety located there, where they put up the first church 
 building. It was dedicated in November, 1872. The 
 building is a good, substantial, frame structure, cost- 
 ing $2,250. Rev. H. Kline is the present pastor, 
 holding services here every two weeks. Present 
 membership about 24, with a Sabbath-school of 48.- 
 
 Gerlaw. 
 
 ;x ERLAW post office was established about 
 ^ the ist of January, 1871, with A. Elder as 
 Postmaster. Mr. Elder had a long serv-r 
 
 ice, remaining until Aug. r, 1883, when J. A. 
 
 Foster took charge. It was established soon 
 
 after the advent of the St. Louis branch of 
 the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. Ger- 
 law was founded by R. W. Gerlaw, who owned the 
 land alxDut here, and was platted by Thomas S. Mc- 
 Clanahan, May 2, 1871. It is located on the north- 
 west corner of section 34. (See view, page 35 6.) A. 
 Elder opened the first store in the town. He deals 
 in general merchandise and grain. Mr. Elder sold 
 out to Parker & Hart and Hart sold out to Parker, 
 in 1883. Subsequently he took in J. A. Foster as 
 partner. 
 
 Dr. W. H. Rupp attends to the medical wants of 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 745 
 
 this hamlet. J. P. Lindquist has a wagon shop, and 
 there is also a blacksmith and a shoe shop here. 
 Gerlaw has a good school building, and a good school, 
 with an average attendance of 30 pupils. Its popu- 
 lation numbers about 75. 
 
 Christian Church. This congregation was organ- 
 ized June 20, 1859, by Rev. L. S. Wallace, at 
 Mauck's Grove, with 29 members. Of these mem- 
 bers only three are now living Sarah Lair, Harriet 
 Carson and B. H. Gardner. They had erected a 
 house of worship, before organizing, at a cost of 
 $r,ioo, which is a very neat and substantial build- 
 ing. It was moved to Gerlaw, in September, 1873. 
 
 Rev. Mr. Lucy succeeded Mr. Wallace, remained 
 one year, and was followed by James Gaston, who 
 also served one year. Revs. Henry Murphy, H. R. 
 Trickett, J. B. Boyer and Mr. McPherson, followed 
 in succession. After this the Church had supplies 
 for some years, when, in November, 1883, they se- 
 cured the services of the Rev. Chas. Laycock, who is 
 the present pastor. They have services every Sun- 
 day, with a membership of some 60, and a Sunday- 
 school of 30 scholars. 
 
 SUMNEH TOWNSHIP. 
 
 MEETING was held at Little York, April 
 4, i85r,forthe purpose of establishing a 
 111 m township organization. Thomas Graham 
 was chosen Moderator, and George Black, 
 Clerk. The polls were then opened to receive 
 the votes of the citizens. Upon counting the 
 ballots, the following officers were found to be 
 elected: J. P. McGaw, Supervisor; Thomas Gra- 
 ham, Collector ; John E. McGreg, Assessor ; John 
 Porter, John Martin and John Nealy, Commission- 
 ers of Highway ; A. A. Allen and T. J. Caldwell, 
 Justices of the Peace ; George Gibson and Hugh 
 Brownlee, Constables ; William Preston and Samuel 
 Graham, Overseers of Roads. The vote for Clerk 
 was a tie, and the Justices of the Peace appointed 
 Thomas Brownlee to take the place. 
 
 It was organized first as Union Township, and 
 they changed it to Sumner, in 1855. It is situated 
 in the northwest quarter of the county, in township 
 
 12 north, of range 3 west, and is bounded on the 
 north by Mercer County, on the east by Spring 
 Grove, on the south by Hale, and the west by Hen- 
 derson county. 
 
 The territory that is now embraced by Sumner, 
 was settled as early as any other part of the county. 
 Matthew D. and Adam Ritchey, and Otter Craig, 
 came into the township in 1828. William McCoy, 
 Jonathan Buffun and L. P. Rockwell, u oved in, in 
 1830. Hugh Martin, Sr., with wife and seven chil- 
 dren, came in the fall of 1832, locating on section 28. 
 Mr. Martin, who first located in Fulton County, had, 
 previous to moving into the county, been in and se- 
 cured his land. William McCoy and L. P. Rock- 
 well bought Adam Ritchey's claim of 160 acres, 
 which included a block house that he had erected 
 upon the hill and used as a fort. This house was 
 the first building in the township. Among others 
 who came in, in 1832, was Chester Potter and David 
 Maler. Mr. Potter located with his family at Rock- 
 well's Mill, on Cedar Creek. He moved from here 
 in 1833, and located in Kelly Township, on section 
 22, where he died, Oct. 19, 1851. Cecilia, his 
 daughter, who was married to Hiram Ingersol, is the 
 only one of the Potter family now living. 
 
 The first child born in this township, was Hen- 
 derson, son of Adam (Sandy) Ritchey, who was born 
 Dec. 23, 1828. 
 
 The first death was that of William Martin, in the 
 fall of 1832. The second death was that of a 
 young man by the name of Moffit, who was killed by 
 falling off a fence, the fall breaking his neck. They 
 were buried by the side of each other in Sugar Tree 
 Grove Cemetery. 
 
 William Martin, as is well known, was killed by 
 the Indians, soon after the close of the Black Hawk 
 War. This occurred Aug. 9, 1832. He was out in 
 the field, mowing some grass for his horses, near the 
 old town of Denny, southeast of Hugh Martin's res- 
 idence, when some half dozen Indians rushed out to 
 him from the timber, shot him and then fled to the 
 woods, One of the shots was fired so close to him 
 that the powder burned his hair. It is reported that 
 after shooting him the Indians took his scalp, but 
 this is denied by some old settlers who are good au- 
 thority. The murder was supposed to have been 
 done by Indians who had been detached from the 
 main band, and were prowling about seeking some 
 
 
746 
 
 WARKEN COUMTY. 
 
 subject for their vengeance. This sad affair was 
 witnessed by the McCoy girls, who were not very far 
 from the old fort. The killing of Martin threw the 
 entire settlement into great consternation, and it was 
 feared that another Indian war would be inaugu- 
 rated. The families in this vicinity gatheied into 
 the fort, bringing with them their provisions, where 
 they remained for some weeks, until all apprehen- 
 sions from any further trouble was removed. Happily 
 there were no further attacks from the Indians. 
 The saddest events of life often have amusing fea- 
 tures. It was so in this unhappy affair. This fort, 
 which was located west of Cedar Creek, near the old 
 town of Denny, section 27, had been used at times 
 during this period for the holding of religious meet- 
 ings. At the time of this tragic event religious ser- 
 vices were going on in the fort, attended by the set- 
 tlers living in the vicinity, particularly the women, 
 and presided over by Mr. Miles, a Methodist preach- 
 er. While Miles was preaching, a man rode swiftly 
 into the fort, and with bated breath announced the 
 murder of Martin by the Indians. The preacher, it 
 is reported, did not wait to close his sermon, nor 
 even pronounce a benediction ; nor did he " stand 
 on the order of his going," but mounted his horse, 
 which had "been hitched near by, and away he flew, 
 trusting more to the speeedof his animal than he did 
 to the protecting hand of God. He did not stop his 
 horse until he reached Yellow Banks, on the Missis- 
 sippi, and it is stated that the last that was seen of 
 him, he was swimming his horse across the Illinois 
 River. 
 
 James Kendall opened the first store in the town- 
 ship, in 1833. It was located in Little York, and he 
 had for his store house a little log cabin. He died 
 soon after, and William, his brother, took the store, 
 and subsequently sold it to Arthur McFarland. 
 
 The first post office was established at Little York, 
 in 1838, and J. F. Pollock was the first Postmaster; 
 held the office about 1 6 years, when he moved to 
 Oregon. Mr. Pollock came in 1837, and located on 
 section 28. 
 
 Peter Terpening taught the first school, in 1837. 
 
 P. L. Rockwell and Jonathan Buffun put up the 
 first saw mill. It was erected at the Cedar Fork of 
 the Henderson, generally called Cedar Creek, a short 
 distance east of the old town of Denny. They worked 
 on the mill during the winter of 1830-1, and had it 
 
 ready with the opening of spring for operation. This 
 was also the first saw mill in the county. A stockade 
 was put up near this mill, upon the west bank of the 
 creek, for protection against Indian raids. In r832 
 Chester Potter took charge of the mill, and, having 
 had some experience in the grist mill business, in 
 Ohio, where he came from, he concluded he would 
 try his hand in the far West. After some geological 
 prospecting, he succeeded in finding a granite boul- 
 der (" nigger-head, as Mr. Potter called it "). from 
 which he cut two burrs, 12 inches in diameter, and 
 set them up in the saw mill for grinding corn. With 
 these stones, grists were ground for the neighboring 
 families and others in different parts of the county. 
 As this was the first and only mill at that time in the 
 county, it was largely patronized. The proprietors 
 of this enterprise were truly benefactors. While it 
 was not equal to the mills of the present day, yet it 
 was undoubtedly appreciated more, for to it the 
 early pioneers looked for the meal with which to 
 make their bread. These old burrs can yet be seen 
 in the township; Mr. Potter remained here one year 
 and then moved into Kelly Township. It may be as I 
 well to close the history of this mill, at least up to 
 the present time, though we travel ahead of the de.- I 
 velopments of the township. In 1837 Mr. Rockwell 1 
 formed a partnership with D. G. Baldwin and J 
 erected, on the site of the old pioneer mill, a new 
 and large flouring mill. Witkthe exception of shut- 
 ting down a few days for repairs, this mill has been 
 running pretty constantly ever since. It has been 
 enlarged and its machinery improved, which includes 
 two French burrs. It is now owned by A. H. Rock- 
 well, son of L. P. Their brand of flour is called the 
 Eagle Mill Brand. Water-power is still used, with 
 a double Laffell turbine wheel. 
 
 The first post office in the township, and one of 
 the first in the county, was located at this mill, with 
 Jonathan Buffun as Postmaster. Mr. Buffun held 
 the office for about a year, and then L. P. Rockwell 
 was appointed, and held it for nearly 20 years. 
 
 The first religious society organized in Sumner 
 Township was the Cedar Creek Church, July 4, 1835. 
 It was called the Associate Reform, and was organ- 
 ized by Rev. Dr. Blakie, now of Detroit, who was a 
 Missionary sent out to the new settlement of the 
 West, to gather into an organization those who had 
 been members of this society in the East. It was 
 also called the Sharon Church. A few families made 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 747 
 
 up the first organization, of which the Giles family 
 seemed to predominate. There was John Giles, who 
 was the ruling Elder, 'and who probably succeeded 
 to that distinction by virtue of a large kindred con- 
 stituency; John B. Giles, Susanna, Nanry, Pru- 
 dence, Margaret, Susan, Jane and Mary L. ; Hugh 
 Martin, James Campbell, John Williamson, James 
 and Mary Findley, Nancy Robinson, George and 
 Mary A. Jay, constituted the remainder of the con- 
 gregation. 
 
 Some years before Dr. Blakie came, Rev. John 
 Wallace, a Missionary from Virginia, was here 
 preaching, in private houses, to the people. He was 
 finally employed by this congregation, after it had 
 organized, as a stated supply, preaching pretty regu- 
 larly here from 1835 to 1840. Rev. James C. Por- 
 ter came out in 1840. He was liked by the society, 
 and was installed in 1841, and continued in the ser- 
 service of this congregation until about the time of 
 his death, Nov. 15, 1863. He was a man of consid- 
 erable ability and largely increased the membership 
 of this Church. 
 
 It was during the latter part of his pastorate that 
 this Church joined in the Union with the Associate 
 Presbyterians and became United Presbyterians. 
 Rev. John C. Reynolds succeeded Mr. Porter, and 
 remained until July, 1872, when he gave place to J. 
 M. Atchison, who was installed Dec. r, 1872. Mr. 
 Atchison served the congregation several years, and 
 was followed by the Rev. J. A. Gherett, who retired 
 in the spring of 1885, and was their last pastor. 
 This congregation had a long and prosperous life. 
 Their first house of worship was built of logs and 
 was located about two miles northeast of Little 
 York; it was built in the summer of 1836. In 1845 
 they erected a larger building of frame near the old 
 log one. In 1866, the congregation outgrew this 
 building, and they erected a larger and more com- 
 modious edifice, at a cost of about $4,000 ; later on 
 a good parsonage was put up. The church build- 
 ing is beautifully located, about three miles north- 
 east of Little York, and the parsonage about a mile 
 north of the church. All of the original members 
 are either dead or have moved away. The widow 
 of Rev. John Wallace is yet living, in Little York. 
 At the present time they have no service, but the 
 Sabbath-school is still kept up. Last 4th of July, it 
 celebrated its semi-centennial anniversary. 
 
 This township is well watered by the Middle Hen- 
 derson and its branches and Cedar Creek. At one 
 time it was one of the best timbered townships in 
 the county, and fine bodies of timber are still stand- 
 ing, particularly along the borders of the streams. 
 The nature of the land is undulating ; in the south- 
 western and southeastern portions quite broken in 
 places, while the northeastern part is very little undu- 
 lated. The soil is rich and easily cultivated. The 
 township is dotted over with grand farms, which are 
 ornamented with fine dwellings and farm buildings. 
 Some of the houses are elegant in construction. 
 There is a station at Denny and Little York, where 
 the people of the township do most of their trading 
 and get their mails. The Iowa Central Railroad 
 was completed through the township in the spring of 
 1883. 
 
 The population, according to the census of 1880, 
 was 948. It is estimated that there has been a gain 
 since then. 
 
 According to the County Superintendent's report 
 for the year ending June 30, 1885, there were seven 
 school districts, in all of which there were frame 
 school buildings. The school property was valued 
 at $4,000. Of persons under 21 years of age there 
 were 427, of whom 324 were of school age, 211 being 
 enrolled. The highest wages paid teachers was $50 
 per month, and the lowest $28. The tax levy was 
 
 $2,155.19. 
 
 From the Assessor's report for the year of 1885, 
 
 the following items are obtained : Number of acres 
 of improved land, 21,772 ; number of acres of unim- 
 proved land, 800; value of improved land, $282,- 
 355; value of unimproved land, $4,535; total value 
 of lots, $8,635 ; number of horses 870; cattle, t,66r; 
 mules and asses, 35; hogs, 2,318; carriages and 
 wagons, 248; watches and clocks, 25; sewing and 
 knitting machines, 57; pianos, 4; melodeons and 
 organs. 29. Total cash value of personal property 
 $63,535- 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 John P. McGaw 1854 
 
 John Porter 1855 
 
 Frank Brownlcc 1856-7 
 
 H. C. Maley 1858-60 
 
 John Atchison 1861-4 
 
 H. C. Maley 1865-7 
 
 A. H. Rockwell 1868-9 
 
 R.C. Stewart 1870-1 
 
 R.W. Porter 1872-7 
 
 Thomas Brownlee 1878 
 
 R.W. Poiter 1879-81 
 
 [. J. Ivy 1882-3 
 
 J. E. Pine 1884-5 
 
 ' A _ 
 
748 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 Little York. 
 
 HIS thriving village has a very pleasing and 
 a very healthy location. The immediate 
 town and the land adjacent is well drained 
 by Cedar Creek. This is an old town and one 
 of the oldest in the county. A store was opened 
 here as early as 1833, by James Kendall, 
 which was the first in the township. This ambi- 
 tious town was. platted in 1836, and the papers were 
 filed Aug. 25 of the same year. William C. Butler 
 was the surveyor, and the owners of this then valu- 
 able town property were Win. McCoy, M. D. Ritchey 
 and McCallon & Hogue. It was located on the south- 
 east 20 of the northwest 21, in township 12 north of 
 .range 3 west of the 4th P. M. In 1838 the post- 
 office was established here, and J. F. Pollock was 
 appointed Postmaster. The establishment of a 
 postoffice forms quite an event in the history of a 
 town, and so the good people of this hamlet consid- 
 ered it in that pioneer day. Mr. Pollock held the 
 office about 16 years, when he resigned. We are 
 not informed that he resigned with a fortune made 
 in the service of Uncle Sam. He was succeeded by 
 William Munsey, who held the office two years, and 
 then Isaac Hopper had charge. Mr. Pollock re- 
 turned to Oregon in 1856, and the Government 
 again honored him with the postoffice appointment. 
 In 1863, Mr. Williver was appointed and held the 
 place about three years. He was succeeded by 
 Wm. Munsey. who died in the service, and left the 
 commission to his son Milton. In 1876, Mr. Henry 
 was appointed and held it until 1883, when M. M. 
 Palmer assumed charge, and is the present Post- 
 master. 
 
 Little York has had its ups and downs, its bright 
 and its cloudy days, like all other towns. Through 
 the long years it has held its own, and if the fine 
 business houses that border its streets are any indi- 
 cation, it has made a gain. The Indian that 50 
 years ago was prowling about these grounds would 
 have to tax his memory very much to recognize it, or 
 call up any familiar objects. The Central Iowa R. 
 
 R. was completed to this place, Feb. 22, 1883, and 
 the first regular train came in April 51)1 of the same 
 year. It was built up from Monmouth. The first 
 mail by railroad arrived July i, 1883. 
 
 Unlike most towns through which railroads pass, 
 Little York instead of going down, has increased its 
 population, and its business. The buildings are all 
 bright and new, and there is not an old rookery in it. 
 The people, too, are fresh, smiling, full of hope and 
 common sympathy. They look upon the bright side 
 of life and keep the dark in the background. It has 
 a population now of some 300 souls. 
 
 M. M. Palmer has a drug store here that would 
 do credit to any town. He also keeps books, station- 
 ery and jewelry. Hardware and furniture by Bird- 
 sail & Pollock ; harness and saddlery by T. D. Gor- 
 don ; general merchandise by Chas. Rodgers, and 
 boots and shoes by Hans Joehnk; groceries by E. B. 
 Wallace and general merchandise by Bowers & Mor- 
 ris. Z. D. Dorothy has a hotel and restaurant ; J. 
 W. Leeper, carries on blacksmithing ; and Julius 
 Poerschman supplies the people with a market. 
 Schuckman & Graham manufacture wagons and bug- 
 gies; B. S. Dodson has a livery and feed stable. 
 There are two large elevators at the depot owned by 
 Harvey & Son, and John Brownlee, grain .dealers. 
 Drs. C. Sherrick and A. R. Graham look after the 
 health of the village or nure properly speaking, the 
 sick. Little York has a very interesting school, 
 which is taught by J. Brock. They have a nice little 
 school building with an average attendance of 45 
 pupils. 
 
 The United Presbyterian Church. This society 
 was organized here 1863, by Rev. John Scott of Mon- 
 mouth, with some 40 members. The congregation 
 was formed mostly of the Henderson Sugar Tree 
 Grove, and the Cedar Creek Churches. The build- 
 ing was constructed this year, and subsequently a 
 parsonage was added, the whole costing about $5,- 
 ooo. The Rev. W. H. McMillan was the first regu- 
 lar pastor, who was installed Oct. 4, 1864, and re- 
 mained until April 1870. Rev. W. P. Campbell took 
 charge in June, 1871, and remained until December 
 1874. In February, 1876, the society secured the 
 services of Rev. David Anderson, who remained 
 until Oct. 1878. He was succeeded by Rev. G. H. 
 Hamilton, who is still serving this church, the mem- 
 bership of which is about 90. 
 
WARREN COUNTY 
 
 749 
 
 SWAN TOWNSHIP. 
 
 'WAN Township was organized April 4, 
 1854. A full account of the meeting can- 
 not be given as the records were destroyed 
 by the tornado. Absalom Vandeveer, was 
 elected the first Supervisor ; A. B. Sisson, 
 Clerk, and Wm. G. Bond, Assessor and Col- 
 lector. Swan lies in the southern tier of the town- 
 ships and is numbered 6 north, of range 2 west, of 
 the 4th P. M. Roseville Township lies on the north, 
 Greenbush on the east, McDonough on the south, 
 and Pt. Pleasant on the west. 
 
 The first settlers in this township were Mrs. 
 Lively Cayton, widow of Abel Cayton, with her child- 
 ren, and George Simmons and family. They came 
 in the fall of 1832, Mrs. Cayton locating on section 
 n, and Mr. Simmons on section i. All were from 
 Kentucky. Mrs. Cayton had four children Nancy, 
 George, Andrew J., and Miranda. She died at the 
 old homestead in the spring of i87r. Her son 
 Andrew J., is living still on the old farm (see biog- 
 raphy). George and Nancy are dead. Miranda was 
 married to John Rayburne and is living in Mon- 
 mouth. 
 
 A. B. Sisson from Albany Co. N. Y., came to the 
 township in 1836. The following year, his father 
 and all the family, including eight children, arrived, 
 locating on the northwest quarter of section 20. A. 
 B. Sisson located on section 29. Joseph Sisson died 
 in 185 i, in Greenbush ; his widow died in May, r882, 
 in Page County, Iowa, at the age of 92 years. The 
 children, C. F., R. K., Augustine W.,died in 1851. 
 M. F. died in 1882 ; A. J., Ann, Mary E., are living. 
 Anna married Matthew Hammond, and is living in 
 Iowa; Mary E., married George Welty, and is living 
 with her husband in Kansas. In 1833, Peter Scott, 
 Daniel R. Perkins, and Elijah Hanon with their 
 families moved in. Mr. Scott located on section 18. 
 Mr. Perkins and Elijah Hanon on section i. Peter 
 Scott subsequently moved to Oregon, where he died. 
 To this small circle of pioneers, Rev. Chas. Van- 
 deveer and his family were heartily welcomed in 
 1834. His family consisted of wife and five child- 
 ren ; John, William, Absalom, Syntha and Maria. 
 
 They located on section 2. This acquision to the 
 neighborhood made the howl of the wolves less dis- 
 agreeable and lonely, and life on the prairies of the 
 West more attractive. It gave them hope for the 
 settlement, and brightened up their hearts. 
 
 Surrounded as this present generation is with a 
 numerous population and all the comforts that wealth 
 and civilization can bring, they cannot appreciate the 
 joy that comes to the lonely heart on the prairie or in 
 the wilderness, from the visitation of a human soul. 
 Here, away from strife and discord, away from the 
 trappings and conventionalities of society, away from 
 fashion, more deadly to the natural born instincts of 
 the soul than the presence of the Upas Tree, the hu- 
 man heart asserts itself; here, the Divinity in man 
 manifests itself, and here man is seen truly after 
 God's own image. 
 
 Syntha Vandeveer was married to John Arm- 
 strong, both of whom ate now dead. Charles Van- 
 deveer died in 1854, and his faithful partner fol- 
 lowed him a few years afterward. These pioneers 
 were soon followed by Richard Orr, Reece Perkins, 
 and Wm. Talley with their families. They located 
 in the timber on sections i and 18. Clement Pierce ~, 
 with his young " yankee " wife, as she was called, 
 (see biography) came in about this time. In the 
 spring of 1835 Joseph Ratekin, wife and nine chil- J 
 dren Samuel, George, Polly, Fountain, Lafayette, 
 Berlinda, Lucinda, Edward, and Joseph S., from 
 Morgan Co., Ill, moved in and located on section 
 19. This family was originally from Kentucky. 
 Jonathan Ratekin, another son, came in soon after. 
 
 Joseph Ratekin was an active and prominent citi- 
 zen, and not only himself but his children contrib- 
 uted largely to the development of the township. 
 He died Jan. 30, 1867, and his widow, Feb. 9, 1875. 
 Joseph S. Ratekin resides at the old homestead and 
 is one of the leading pioneers of the township. 
 James Tucker came in soon after the Ratekins, lo- 
 cating on section 4. Some years later he re- 
 moved to Roseville, where he still resides. 
 
 At the first public land sale of the Military Tract 
 held June 16, 1835. at Quincy, 111., Mr. Tucker, 
 Peter Butler, Daniel R. Perkins, Louis Vertrees, 
 Jesse W. Bond and John Riggs all met at Quincy, 
 for the purpose of purchasing their homes, and all 
 came home together. Having secured their lands 
 they felt well, and the future looked bright before 
 
75 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 them ; but they had only five horses to ride and the 
 journey was long. To be neighborly, charitable and 
 obliging was the notable feature among the early 
 settlers, and they arranged to " ride and tie," and 
 in this way they reached their new homes without 
 much fatigue. Of this party Mr. Tucker is the only 
 one living. 
 
 From this time on the settlement increased rapidly 
 and this territory became one of the leading points 
 of the county. 
 
 Mr. Hendricks taught the first school in the town- 
 ship, in the spring of r833- It was held in a log 
 cabin, without any floor, and no windows except 
 loop holes in the walls. 
 
 Sally Simmons, niece of Rolla Simmons, was the 
 pretty maid who carried off the first matrimonial 
 prize in the township. David Young was the lucky 
 man to be captured. The event was celebrated in 
 true pioneer style. Mrs. Young is still living in 
 Greenbush, but her husband is dead. 
 
 The first death in the township was that of Isa- 
 bella, daughter of John Long, which occurred at 
 the farm now owned by Joseph Pitman. The first 
 child (or children) born was in 1854 a son and 
 daughter (twins) of Joel and Lovisa Bond. They 
 are now living in Kansas. 
 
 Rev. Silas Cartwright was the first expounder of 
 the Gospel in this township, in 1834. To the wor- 
 shipers it was a great religious treat. It was like 
 manna to the soul, Hke the gentle dew to the wither- 
 ing flower. Mr. Cartwright was a circuit rider, and 
 the service was held in the school- house on section 
 6. Ashel B. Sisson taught the second school in the 
 winter of 1837-8, in a log school-house on section 17. 
 
 The first postmaster was Peter Scott, who was 
 commissioned in 1837. The postoffice was located 
 ou the northwest quarter of section 18. Mr. Scott 
 held the office until he moved to Oregon, when 
 Joseph Ratekin was appointed. George W. Worden 
 succeeded Mr. Ratekin, and held the office west of 
 where the depot now stands. 
 
 In 1870 the Rockford. Rock Island (now the St. 
 Louis Branch of the C. B. & Q. R. R.), completed 
 its line through the township. It enters on section 
 6, running south through sections 7 and 18, then 
 southeast across the northeast corner of section 19, 
 then through sections 20, 21, 27 and 35. The first 
 train steamed into the township July 4, 1870. This 
 
 road was of great advantage to the people as it 
 furnished them ready means for the transportation 
 of their products. 
 
 On the 27th day of May, 1872, this township was 
 visited with a tornado. It came from the northwest 
 and struck the township about four o'clock in the 
 afternoon, two miles and a half northwest of Youngs- 
 town on Swan Creek. Its path was some 80 rods 
 wide, and its line of destruction extended several 
 miles. Its power was terrific and irresistible, de- 
 molishing everything within its course ; killing cattle, 
 hogs and poultry, the latter flying through the air 
 like snowflakes. During the passing of this tornado 
 it was almost as dark as night. Young George 
 Vandeveeer was killed; his father had his arm 
 broken, and was otherwise injured; Mrs. Perry died 
 from the effects of her injuries. Mrs. A. J. Cayton 
 had her arm broken, her shoulder put out of joint, 
 and was otherwise so injured that she has never 
 fully recovered. Mr. Cayton, who was out of the 
 house at the time, was taken up and carried about 
 100 yards, and was dropped down, unconscious, with 
 a badly injured neck. 
 
 Swan is watered by the middle and southern 
 branches of Nigger Creek and by Swan Creek, which 
 meanders easterly through it. The nature of the 
 land is rolling, except in an northeasterly portion, 
 which is somewhat broken. It is adorned with many 
 beautiful groves, and adjacent to the streams are 
 some fine bodies of timber. This township is well 
 cultivated and the farms, all with good dwellings 
 and other buildings, are above the average. There 
 are a few farms here that are unsurpassed for their 
 beauty and unexcelled in their productions anywhere. 
 
 It has two thriving little villages, Swan Creek and 
 Youngstown, where the people do most of their trad- 
 ing, secure their mail, and dispose of their products. 
 
 The population in 1880, according to the census 
 at that time, was 1,137. It is estimated that there 
 has been some gain since that period. 
 
 According to the County Superintendent's report 
 for the year, ending June 3oth, 1885, there were nine 
 school districts, with nine schools. The school 
 property was valued at $2,795; the buildings were 
 all frame. Of persons under 21 years of age, there 
 were 546; of whom 358 were of scholastic age, 275 
 being enrolled. The highest wages paid teachers 
 was $40., and the lowest $25 per month. The tax 
 levy for the township was $2,141.94. 
 
 ' \' 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 75' 
 
 The Assessor's report for 1885, contains the follow- 
 ing items : Number of acres improved land, 1,657; 
 number of acres of unimproved land, 5,080; value 
 of improved land, $251,140; value of unimproved 
 lands, $52,225 ; total value of lots, $ir,i25 ; number 
 of horses, 823; cattle, 1324; asses and mules, 18 ; 
 sheep, 386; hogs, 2,631; steam engines, i; car- 
 riages and wagons, 231; watches and clocks, 04; 
 sewing and knitting machines, no; pianos, 4: me- 
 lodeons and organs, 34. Total cash value of per- 
 sonal property, $62,35 6. 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 Absalom Vandeveer "854-7 
 
 Hezekiah Simmons 1858 
 
 William G. Bond 1859-62 
 
 A. Vandeveer 1863-4 
 
 R. R. McKinley 1865 
 
 A. Vandeveer 1866-70 
 
 Jacob Miller 1871-3 
 
 G. W. Beckner 1873 
 
 A. Vandeveer 1874 
 
 G. W. Beckner 1875-77 
 
 J. P. Higgins 1878-8 
 
 A. Vandeveer 1882 
 
 A. A.Cornell 1883-5 
 
 Youngstown Village. 
 
 'OUNGSTOWN is situated almost in the 
 center of Swan Township, on the .St. Louis 
 branch of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy 
 Railroad. More particularly described, its site 
 rests on the southwest quarter of section 
 22, and the southeast quarter of section 21, the 
 northeast quarter of section 28, and the northwest 
 quarter of section 27, and was platted by VV. Kid- 
 der, B. H. Kidder, N. Kidder, Mary A. and Eliza 
 Kidder, J. B. Shawler and Olivia M. Davis. It was 
 surveyed by Thomas S. McClannahan, on the ist 
 and 2d days of September, 1870. McKinley 's addi- 
 tion was laid out afterwards on section 27. By the 
 extent of territory embraced in these plats, it would 
 seem that the founders of Youngs.town had very ex- 
 travagant hopes regarding its future growth. It was 
 started after the completion of the railroad and the 
 location of a station at this point. 
 
 A. J. Cayton was the first Postmaster. He was 
 succeeded, in 1873, by H. V. Simmons, who held the 
 office about a year, and VV. G. Thomas was appoint- 
 ed. H. A. Taylor then held the office for awhile, 
 and was superseded by C. W. Mapes. In i88r, C. 
 A. Cayton was commissioned and remained in serv- 
 ice two years, when he was succeeded by J. W. 
 Moo.i. When the Democratic administration came 
 
 into power, Mr. Cayton was reinstated and is the 
 present Postmaster. 
 
 H. V. Simmons opened the first store in the vil- 
 lage, and was soon followed by others. Youngstown 
 has a rich farming country around it , has a good 
 trade, is quite a shipping point, and a very pretty 
 little hamlet. The population is about 125. 
 
 Youngstown Lodge, No. 387, A. F. & A. M., was 
 chartered Oct. 8, 1863. The charter members were 
 Wm. R. Chaplin, Wm. Cayton. Swiss Loutz, John 
 Bowman, A. S. Hazington, Stephen Lawrence, A. Z 
 McGuin, J. VV. Nance, P. Ray, J. A. J. Smith, L 
 Barlow, J. C. Smith, J. W. Baird. The first officers 
 were Wm. R. Chaplin, W. M. ; Wm. Clayton, Sr. W 
 M. ; Lewis Lantz, Jr. W. M. The lodge was de- 
 stroyed by fire in February, 1885. During the past 
 summer they erected a new hall, which was dedi- 
 cated on the 28th of October, 1885. It is a neat 
 pleasant hall, and is well furnished. The Lodge is 
 in a prosperous condition. The present officers are 
 J. S. Ratekin, W. M.;A. T. Brown, Sr. W. M: 
 George Taylor, Jr. W. M. ; G. W. Beckman, Secre 
 tary, and A. Vandeveer, Treasurer. 
 
 Swan Creek. 
 
 HIS thriving little village is situated on the 
 western part of Swan Township, on sec- 
 tions 19 and 20. It was platted on April 
 16, 187 r, by John A. Gordon, County Survey- 
 or. The land upon which the town is located 
 was dedicated for the use of the inhabitants 
 by James Tucker, Verlinda Worden, Caroline J. 
 Tucker, George W. Worden, Joseph S. Ratekin and 
 Hannah M. Ratekin. 
 
 Swan Creek, a thrifty town, is not overgrown, and 
 those who are in business here have a good trade and 
 are prosperous. After the railroad came in, the post- 
 office was moved into the village, and John H. Lippy 
 was appointed Postmaster, succeeding Mr. Worden, 
 who had held the office in the township. Mr. Lippy 
 is the present Postmaster. A most important indus- 
 try in the village is the Swan Creek Brick and Tile 
 Company. This company was incorporated Aug. i, 
 1885, with a capital stock of $6,000. The Direct- 
 ors are A. B. Sisson, E. V. Bliss, M. B. Roberts, Wm. 
 
75* 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 H. Stephenson and Chas. Torrence. Officers: 
 Royal Bliss, President, Wm. S. -Bliss, Secretary; 
 and A. A. Cornell, Treasurer. This company 
 manufactures about 9,000 tile per week, and employs 
 15 men. They get their clay on Swan Creek, about 
 four miles southeast of the town. 
 
 William L. Bliss and John H. Lippy are dealers in 
 general merchandise. M. B. Roberts carries on the 
 drug business, hardware and groceries. Restaurant 
 by Joseph Repple. Dr. B. A. Griffith is the village 
 physician. Population is estimated at about 250. 
 
 The village has a good school, with an average at- 
 tendance of 40 pupils. Miss Rhoda Byarlay is the 
 present teacher. They have a good, substantial, 
 plain school building. 
 
 SOCIETIES. 
 
 G. A. R., D. J. Tucker Post, No. 407, was organ- 
 ized Feb. 9, 1884, with 14 charter members. Pres- 
 ent officers : Edgar Bliss, C.; J. C. Buchanan, Sr. 
 V. C.; A. J. Johnson, Jr., V. C.; B. A. Griffith, Adjt.; 
 John Bouton, O. D ; R. H. Ostrander, Q. M.; C. M. 
 McClanahan, Surg.: Alex. Bouton.Chaplain ; William 
 - F. Stephenson, O. G.; Isaac Edil, Sergt. Maj ; Eiias 
 D. Acton, Q. M. S. Present membership 18. The 
 Post is in a good condition, and holds its meetings 
 regularly in the Union Hall. 
 
 The I. O. O. F. Lodge, No. 203. This society was 
 chartered Oct. 15, 1885, with six charter members. 
 The present officers are : D. R. Warren, M. G.; 
 Frank Jerrid, V. G.; Robert Bradley, Secretary; J. 
 S. Ratekin, Treasurer. Present membership of tins 
 society is to, and they hold their meetings in Union 
 Hall. 
 
 RELIGIOUS. 
 
 The Universalists have a society here, and preach- 
 ing every two weeks by Miss Anna Fleming, of 
 Avon. Services are held in the Union Hall. Miss 
 Fleming, who is an eloquent speaker, has awakened 
 quite an interest in this township among the believ- 
 ers in this particular faith, and her services are 
 largely attended. 
 
 A Sunday School was organized here several years 
 ago. It was free to all, irrespective of religious 
 views or creeds. A good deal of interest has been 
 manifested in this school since its foundation, and a 
 Sunday has not passed that service has not been held. 
 Since the erection of Union Hall, this Sunday 
 
 School has held its meetings here. A. A. Cornell is 
 the present Superintendent. 
 
 TOMPKINS TOWNSHIP. 
 
 THIS township is situated in the middle of 
 the western row, and is in number 10 
 north, of range 3, west. It is bounded on 
 the north by Hale, on the east by Lenox, on 
 the south by Ellison Township, and on the 
 west by Henderson County. 
 
 A meeting was held by the citizens for the purpose 
 of establishing a township government, April 4, 1854. 
 Nathan Carr was called to the chair ; Orrin Lam- 
 phere was chosen Moderator, Ransom Tinkharn and 
 Seth Smith, Assistants ; T. W. Beers and Daniel M. 
 Smiley, Clerks. The result of the vote was as fol- 
 lows : For Supervisor, Joseph Tinkham ; Clerk, 
 Daniel M. Smiley; Assessor, James H. Martin;' 
 Collector, John L. Hanna; Justices of the Peace, 
 William Hanna and James L. Rusk; Commissioners 
 of Highways, Seth Smith and T. F. Hogue ; Consta- ' 
 bles, H. R. Norcross and John L. Hanna; Overseers 
 of the Poor, William Norcross and Orrin Lamphere. 
 
 John Quinn was the first settler to stake out a 
 home in the township, but he pulled up his stake in 
 a short time and moved to other fields. 
 
 Samuel Hanna and family and Wilson Kendall 
 moved in, in 1830, and made claims, the former on 
 section 5, and the latter on section 6. The Kendalls 
 lived in the township several years and then moved 
 to Oregon. Mr. Hanna's family consisted of a wife 
 and nine children : William, John, Isabella, Eliza- 
 beth, Miles, Samuel, Jr., Green, Mary and James. 
 Elizabeth was married to Robert Hutchinson, and 
 Mary became the wife of Henry Creswell. They 
 were a remarkable family, especially noted for their 
 benevolence and charity. Mrs. Hanna was always 
 ready to aid the poor and the sick, and her hand was 
 ever ready, and her purse open, for charitable pur- 
 poses. The family were wealthy, and she had plenty 
 of means to second the promptings of her generous 
 heart. Mr. Hanna and his wife died at the old 
 homestead at an advanced age, beloved and mourned 
 by all who knew them. 
 
 James Gibson and Samuel Creswell, with their 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 753 
 
 families, came in the same year. James Gibson lo- 
 cated on section 7. He was a good citizen, a suc- 
 cessful farmer and accumulated for his family 
 a fine property. He and his wife died at the 
 old farm, where his son, John K., now lives. (See 
 biography.) 
 
 The Creswells were from Ohio, and came to the 
 township with six children, James, Hannah, Mary, 
 Henry, Rachel and Rebecca. Hannah died before 
 marriage; Rebecca was married to William Hanna, 
 eldest son of Samuel Hanna. She is also dead. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Creswell died some years ago at the 
 old place. Mr. Creswell was a very able and intel- 
 lectual man, having no superior in the township. 
 Before he came to this county he was a member of 
 the Ohio Legislature. James Creswell married Mary 
 Ann Woods, and is now living in Henderson County. 
 Henry married Mary, youngest daughter of Samuel 
 Hanna, and is living in Des Moines, Iowa. Rachel 
 was married to J. M. Woods, and both are still liv- 
 ing. 
 
 Zachariah M. Davis located in the township soon 
 after the Gibsons, and near their farm. They are 
 now living in Nebraska. They had two children, 
 Joann and Martin. Joann married Lew Leslie, and 
 is dead ; Martin is still living. 
 
 Samuel Hutchinson came in, in the spring of 1833. 
 He is recently deceased, in Momnouth. In 1835 
 Joseph and Ransom Tinkham, from New England, 
 with their families, came in and settled in the lower 
 tier of sections, where they lived for many years. 
 Ransom is dead, but his family are living in Kirk- 
 wood. Joseph is also living there. 
 
 During this year and the following, Judson Graves, 
 DeWitt Phelps, A. P. Carmichael and C. H. Warren 
 moved in, making, with those who had preceded 
 them,quite a little settlement, and giving'a neighborly 
 aspect to the new country. With the good start 
 thus made, the township increased in population and 
 developed very rapidly. 
 
 Isaac Ray, from Kentucky, wife and six children 
 Talitha, Eliza, John, Isaac, Jr., Josephus and 
 Mary Jane, moved in, in 1837, locating on section 7. 
 The children are all dead but two, Talitha and Jo- 
 sephus. The parents died at the old home. (See 
 biography of Josephus.) 
 
 The first school house was erected by Mr. Hanna, 
 near his home, and the first school was taught by 
 
 Mr. Banker. Mr. Creswell was the enterprising man 
 who first put up a grist mill in the township. It was 
 located near Mr. Hanna's place, and was operated 
 by ox-power, the oxen working a tread mill. 
 
 The first church built in the township was at 
 Kirkwood, and the first service held in it was by 
 Rev. Jas. Brace, afterwards of the United Presbyte- 
 rian Church. Prior to this, religious meetings were 
 held in private houses. 
 
 The eastern portion of this township is undulating 
 prairie, the northwestern part is somewhat broken. 
 It is watered by South Henderson Creek and its 
 tributaries. A part of the township is liberally tim- 
 bered, particularly along the water courses. The to- 
 pography of the township is attractive, and the en- 
 tire area is very well adapted for farming and stock 
 raising, and both of these branches of husbandry 
 are carried on well and successfully. 
 
 The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad was 
 constructed through the township in the early part 
 of 1855. It enters the township near the northeast 
 corner and passes out on section 18. 
 
 The people do their trading chiefly at Kirkwood,^ 
 which is a thriving town. In 1880 the township, as | 
 shown by the census, had a population if 1,994, and 
 there has been since that time a small gain. 
 
 According ,to the County Superintendent's report 
 for the year ending June 30, 1885, there were ten 
 school districts in the township, with one graded and 
 nine ungraded schools. All the buildings were 
 frame. The school property was valued at $7,000. 
 Of persons under 21 years of age, there were 725, of 
 whom 548 were of scholastic age, 426 being enrolled. 
 The highest wages paid teachers was $85 and the 
 lowest $25 per month. The lax levy for this year 
 was $4,7 25. 
 
 From the Assessor's report for the year 1885, the 
 following items have been obtained. Number of 
 acres of improved land, 21,794 ; number of acres of 
 unimproved land, 388; value of improved land, 
 $349,700: total value of lots, $71,740 ; number of 
 horses, 883; cattle, 2,047; mules and asses, 44; 
 sheep, 85; hogs, 2,922; steam engines, i ; carriages 
 and wagons, 349; watches and clocks, 214; sewing 
 and knitting machines, 102 ; pianos, 10 : melodeons 
 and organs, 24; total cash value of personal prop- 
 erty, $155,985. 
 
54 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 SUPERVISORS. 
 
 loseph Tinkham 1855-6 
 
 Vm- Hanna 1857 
 
 eorge Tubbs 1858-61 
 
 [. L. Bachelor 1861-2 
 
 Henry Tubbs 1863-5 
 
 J ames M oore 1 866 
 
 ^yrus Bute 1867 
 
 Henry Tubbs i8b8-g 
 
 f. A. Chapin.... 1870 
 
 W. G.Latimer 1871 
 
 enry 
 
 W. M. Galbraith 1873 
 
 Hugh Gilmore l &14~* 
 
 Thos. Beers 1876 " 
 
 J. E, Barnes 1877-9 
 
 T. W. Beers 1880 
 
 W. G. Latimer 1881 
 
 Henry Tubbs 1882 
 
 Robert Gamble 1883-4 
 
 J. C. McLinn 1885 
 
 Kirkwood. 
 
 HIS charmingly located town was started a 
 short period before the advent of the Chi- 
 cago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, and 
 was first called Lyndon. It was, however, in- 
 corporated Aug. 5, 1865, under the act of the 
 Legislature as Young America. At the elec- 
 tion, J. K. Cummings, J. B. Sofield, A. Carmichael, 
 O. Lamphere, J. L. Bachelor, were chosen Trustees. 
 At a meeting of the trustees, August 15, for the pur- 
 se of completing their corporate government, T. 
 Cummings was chosen President of the Board ; 
 B. Sofield, Secretary; and J. L. Bachelor, Clerk, 
 t a meeting held August 5 ist, the boundary lines 
 ere determined, as follows, viz. : Commencing 80 
 )ds north of the southeast corner of the northwest 
 quarter of section 9, 10 north 3 west ; thence west 
 one mile, to the northeast quarter of section 8 ; 
 thence south one mile, to the center of the west line 
 of the northeast quarter of section 17, thence east, to 
 the center of the east line of the northwest quarter of 
 section 16 ; thence north, one mile, to the place of 
 beginning. 
 
 A petition was presented to the Board by a major- 
 ity of the legal voters, requesting that the name be 
 changed from Young America to that of Kirkwood, 
 which petition was granted, May 14, 1874, with but 
 one dissenting vote. 
 
 It was first platted by David Irvine and A. G. 
 Kirkpatrick, the plat containing 80 acres on the east 
 side of the southeast quarter of section 8, and was 
 filed for record Oct. 20, 1854. There were 12 sub- 
 sequent additions to the town. 
 
 Carr and Rankin had the enterprise to start 
 the first store in the town, which was located on the 
 corner of Kirk and Cherry Streets. Knowles, Ray 
 & Chapin opened the next store, on the north side 
 of the railroad track. The first building erected here 
 
 was for a hotel, by the railroad company. This was 
 also located on the north side of the track and was 
 used for a restaurant. W. W. Gilmore was the first 
 Postmaster, receiving his commission soon after the 
 railroad station was established. S. C. Smith erected 
 the first dwelling house. It was located in the 
 northwest part of the town. 
 
 The first school taught in the town, then called 
 Lyndon, was by David Abby, over a warehouse. 
 Soon after this school was opened, a school-house 
 was eVected, which was located on the north side of 
 the railroad. Its completion was made the occasion 
 of a celebration. 
 
 Having thus secured so favorable a start, the fu- 
 ture growth of the town was assurred. Messrs. 
 Chapin, Houlton & Davis established a private 
 banking institution at an early day and are now do- 
 ing a large business. This is one of the reliable 
 banking houses in the county. After the inaugura- 
 tion of the National Banking system, the First Na- 
 tional Bank of Kirkwood was established, which is 
 doing an extensive business. The mercantile line is 
 well represented here, and there are many very fine 
 stores, some of which would be very creditable to 
 any city. 
 
 The Kirkwood Roller Mills, by Davidson & Sons, 
 is one of the manufacturing industries which give 
 credit to a town and materially aid in its develop- 
 ment. It has been running now about 22 years, 
 and under the roller system about four years, retain- 
 ing one burr for grinding middlings. The capacity 
 of this mill is about 40 barrels every 24 hours. This 
 firm is constructing a large brick building near the 
 track of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, 
 into which they intend to put new and improved 
 machinery, which will give them a capacity of 100 
 barrels per day, They expect to be able to start 
 this mill by the first of June, 1886. 
 
 In natural advantages of location, Kirkwood has 
 no superior in the county. In walking about the 
 town, one is impressed with the fact that the art of 
 man could not construct more beautiful or desirable 
 sites for dwellings. The citizens, with commendable 
 skill and taste, have enhanced the natural attract- 
 iveness of these grounds by setting out shade-trees, 
 which have grown into grandeur, laying out broad 
 streets, and erecting elegant and imposing residences. 
 Much of this, however, if not all, is lost to the trav- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 755 
 
 eler who only passes through, stopping, it may be, 
 for a night at the hotel, and in consequence of which 
 Kirkwood has obtained rather an unenviable reputa- 
 tion. If the people would fence in, or fence out, the 
 depot, with its immediate surroundings, it would give 
 the traveler at least the luxury of imagining that 
 over or beyond this fence there might rest one of the 
 most attractive towns within the Military Tract. 
 
 The present officers of the village are: F. M. 
 Davidson, President of the Board of Trustees ; J. C. 
 Betzinger, C. H. Mundorff, J. C. McLinn, and C. A. 
 Carmichael, Trustees; E. Schenbarger, Clerk; W. 
 K. Gamble, Treasurer ; John Effort, Marshal. The 
 population of the town is about 1,100. 
 
 MINERAL SPRINGS. 
 
 About a mile from the corporate limits, is located 
 the Mineral Springs of Kirkwood. This place is a 
 favorite refort for tourists, and the waters are be- 
 lieved to contain medicinal qualities. Whether this 
 is really so or not, it does not matter, as long as the 
 
 Snpression is made upon the imagination of the vis- 
 ors that they do. However, the end is accomp- 
 shed. People come here, have relaxation, change 
 of air and exercise, and feel better. They drink a 
 treat deal of water as people do at all watering- 
 places and imagine they are effected by it. Pos- 
 sibly they are. They would feel the same effects, 
 however, at any place, by drinking the same amount 
 of pure water. One advantage of this place at least, 
 is that that there is plenty of water, and it is easily 
 obtained, having a constant flow; and there is not 
 much danger of the visitors drinking the springs 
 dry, though it would seem at times to a healthy 
 looker-on that there was a deep laid conspiracy en- 
 ergetically executed to accomplish this. 
 
 These grounds are very pleasantly located and are 
 naturally attractive. A small museum has been es- 
 tablished, which contains some very fine and rare 
 fossils and geological specimens that are of interest 
 to the scientist as well as the naturalist. If the 
 grounds were more extensively improved and a good 
 large hotel located here, it would be a very agreea- 
 ble place for a person to spend a few weeks in idle- 
 ness and gossiping, providing, always, that they have 
 nothing else to do, or can make no better use of 
 their time. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS. 
 
 W. W. Gilmore was the first man to distribute 
 
 the mail to the people of this town. He held the 
 office of Postmaster for 12 years and was followed 
 by George Williams.* Succeeding Mr. Williams was 
 W. M. Galbraith, John E. Willets, E. L. Senberger, 
 J. B. Sofield, and N. Gordon, the present incum- 
 bent. 
 
 The town of Kirkwood has an excellent graded 
 school, with very fair school buildings. J. C. Stock- 
 ton is Principal ; Mattie Armstrong, First Assistant ; " 
 Cynthia Shatby, Second Assistant; Nellie Willets, 
 primary department. The south school is under 
 the charge of Miss Laura Brown. Enrollment about 
 250. 
 
 The location of the cemetery is one of exceeding 
 beauty, the site embracing about eight acres, and it 
 is situated about one mile west of the town of Kirk- 
 wood. Originally there were only three acres in the 
 site. John Ramsel, W. D. Johnson and J. L. Bach- 
 elor bought the land in 1856, organized an associa- 
 tion and had the land laid out for cemetery pur- 
 poses. They afterwards conveyed their rights to 
 the town, under which control it now is. Subse- 
 quently the corporation extended the grounds by 
 purchase. They are embellished by shade-trees and 
 some very neat and artistically designed monuments. 
 Most of the lots are well cared for. 
 
 The people of Kirkwood have sought to protect 
 themselves from the ravages of fire, and have estab- 
 lished a very good fire department. It consists of 
 two companies, the Excelsior, which is a hook and 
 ladder company, with Thomas Calahan as Foreman ; 
 T. S. Kyler, as First Assistant ; George R. Everett, 
 Secretary; with a membership of 20. The Cham- 
 pion Company runs a chemical engine, which is al- 
 ways ready for use. E. H. Gilmore is Foreman; C. 
 O. Carmichael, Assistant; Chas. Mundorff, Secre- 
 tary; S. F. Allen, Treasurer; J. P. Davidson, Man- 
 head; and William Sofield, Nozzleman. This 
 company has 14 members. J. C. Ely is Chief Fire 
 Marshal. 
 
 Kirkwood has a most excellent band, of which 
 Henry Plitscher is the Leader. There are n in- 
 struments, and the members practice regularly and 
 are well organized. 
 
 SOCIETIES. 
 
 Masonic Lodge, A. F. & A. M., A. Lincoln, No. 
 518, was chartered Oct. i, 1867, with 18 members. 
 First officers, N. Pierpont, W. M. D. C. Davis, S. 
 
 { 
 
7S 6 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 W. ; L. M. Mitchell, J. W. Present officers : A. B. 
 Holliday, W. M. ; J. C. Betzinger, S. W. ; J. W. 
 Kelly, J. W. ; W. J. Sofield, J.-D. ; B. D. Sofield, S. 
 D. ; H. J. Cutler, Treasurer ; Cyrus Bute, Secretary ; 
 Jacob Long, Tyler. Present membership, 46. They 
 hold their meetings in the Odd Fellows Hall. 
 
 I. O. O. F., Kirkw9od Lodge, No. 675, was started 
 Nov. 17, 1880. J. P. March, James B. Butler, Thos. 
 W. Beers and Jacob J. Yager were the charter mem- 
 bers. This Lodge has a very good hall, which is 
 well furnished, and the lodge is well equipped and in 
 good working condition. 
 
 G. A. R. Post, No. 8r. This Post was organized 
 Aug. 4, 1880, with 34 charter members, and was the 
 firstorganization of the kind in Warren and Henderson 
 Counties. The first officers were : C. A. Carmichael, 
 C.; R. R. Davison, S. V. C.; G. V. Johnson, J. V. 
 C. ; W. G. Latimer, O. D. ; John Holliday, O. G. ; 
 J. H. Gilmore, Q. M. , S. C. Hogue, Chaplain ; S. C. 
 Glover, Adj. Many of the members of the Post are 
 
 I from Henderson County. The majority of them af- 
 terwards withdrew and formed a Post at Oquawka. 
 Later on, many of the comrades who belonged to 
 Monmouth Township, started a Post in Monmouth 
 City. The Kirkwood Post is one of the best in this 
 part of the country. They have a good hall, which 
 is well furnished and equipped, and they are in the 
 most flourishing condition. Since their first organi- 
 zation they have enlisted 194 comrades. The "old 
 boys" of this part of the country do not forget the 
 incidents and associations connected with the late 
 war, nor the patriotism that inspired them to shoul- 
 der their muskets, leave their home and kindred, and 
 offer up their lives on the altar of their country. The 
 present officers of the Post are ; J. M. Dennis, C. ; J. 
 S. Glover, S. V. C. ; A. Edwards, J. V.. C. ; S. G. 
 Baggett, O. D. ; J. C. Berry, O. G. ; J. H. Gilmore, 
 Q. M.; W. M. Glover, Chaplain; R. R. Davison, 
 Adj. The Post meets the first and third Mondays 
 of each month, and since their organization have 
 never failed, to have a quorum for the transaction of 
 business. 
 
 PRESS. 
 
 Kirkwood has been quite a little graveyard for 
 newspaper enterprises. The Monmouth Atlas had 
 a branch office here, and printed a special edition for 
 Kirkwood, in 1867. It did not prove profitable, and the 
 project was abandoned. In 1868, Judson Graves 
 
 concluded to embark in the newspaper world, and 
 deal with plain facts as well as fancies, under the title 
 of Kirkwood Plaindealer. It was a weekly paper, six- 
 column folio, Republican in politics. It continued 
 for about three years, laboring for the enlightenment 
 of the denisens of Kirkwood, but failing to produce 
 that degree of enlightenment necessary for its con- 
 tinuation in Kirkwood, it made its bow to the town, 
 and struck out for a new field of labor, landing at 
 Galesburg, where it appeared rehabilitated as the 
 Galesburg Plaindealer. 
 
 The Kirkwood News was the next to seek the fa- 
 vor of the people, whom it desired especially to 
 bless. This daring adventurer was W. H. Leedham. 
 His sheet went forth to the public, June, 1875. It 
 was a six-column folio, issued every week, and inde- 
 pendent in politics. Subsequently, it was enlarged 
 to a seven-column paper. Whether the publishers 
 were attracted to this place as a rich journalistic 
 field, or to it as a cemetery where burial services 
 would be performed with facility and cheapness, his- 1 
 tory does not inform us; but no sooner was the News 
 launched upon the journalistic sea, than the Kirk- | 
 wood Enterprise appeared, with sails all set, bearing 
 right down upon her bow with an order for her to 
 fold her sheets or "pi'" her columns. A compromise 
 was effected by the Neics selling out to the Enter- 
 prise. The Enterprise was started by Everett & 
 Bros. At first it was rather a small sheet, but was 
 afterwards enlarged to a six-column folio. It was 
 independent in politics, and liberal in religious mat- 
 ters. It closed its career very happily in the fall of 
 1880, and the autumn very generously covered its 
 grave with her leaves. 
 
 In March, 1880, Barnes and Smaley established 
 the Kirkwood Leader. It was an eight-column folio, 
 issued every Wednesday, and was independent in 
 politics. The firm published the Leader eight months, 
 and then sold out to Bradshaw & Hook. With the 
 new and bright year, 1885, Mr. Charles Bradshaw 
 became sole proprietor and editor. He is a newspa- 
 per man with considerable experience, the tide is in 
 his favor, the rocks, reefs and shoals in the journal- 
 istic sea have been passed, and his venture is a suc- 
 cess. The Leader is ably edited, has a good circu- 
 lation, is a credit to the town and should be liberally 
 supported. 
 
 CHURCHES. 
 
 Presbyterian Church. In the early part of 1856, 
 
 T 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 757 
 
 the members of this society held a meeting and dis- 
 cussed the question of an organization. The result 
 of this meeting was the appointment of a committee, 
 upon solicitation by the Schuyler Presbytery, to assist 
 in the formation of a society. The committee con- 
 sisted of the Rev. J. H. Nevins, Dr. R. C. Matthews, 
 Hiram Norcross and James Boggs, who went about 
 their work with great zeal, and completed the organ- 
 ization with 26 members, which they styled, " South 
 Henderson Church." The first pastor installed was 
 Rev. J. H. Nevins, who served the Church one year. 
 The first Elders were Alex. M. Harvey, Nathan Carr 
 and Jacob Ackerman. Rev. W. L. Lyons succeeded 
 Mr. Nevins, and remained in the work over three 
 years. While Mr. Lyons was in charge, they erected 
 their first house of worship. It was a small frame 
 structure, and stood in the south part of the town. 
 They then had supply preaching for some years. In 
 1865 Rev. J. W. Allen was secured; he was an able, 
 energetic and zealous man, and through his efforts, 
 
 , supported by a liberal congregation, the present 
 building was completed. It is a fine, large, imposing 
 structure, of Gothic architecture, well finished, and 
 
 , costing about $8,000. After two years' service, Mr. 
 
 I Allen resigned, and was followed by Rev. G. N. 
 Johnson as a supply, and also by J. H. Marshall. In 
 1884 Rev. E. W. Thompson accepted a call, and is 
 still with the Church. Present membership is about 
 too, with an interesting Sabbath-school, of about the 
 same number. 
 
 United Presbyterian Church. The first preaching 
 in the community was supplied by the Rev. Marion 
 Morrison, who preached in a school house adjacent 
 to the town for about one year, before a congregation 
 was organized. The first meeting looking toward an 
 organization was at the home of Mr. J. S. Paris. 
 March i, 1858, Boon's Hall was secured as a place 
 for worship. The Presbytery provided them with 
 preaching during the summer and autumn, and, on 
 Nov. 4, 1858, a commission of Presbytery, consist- 
 ing of the Rev. D. A. Wallace and Elders M. B. 
 Campbell and J. W. Woods, met at the Centre 
 School-house and organized the congregation with 
 15 members. At this meeting three Elders were 
 elected J. W. Woods, Leander Lindly and Mathew 
 Wood. At the next meeting of the commissioners, 
 Nov. 20, same year, for the ordination and installa- 
 tion of the Elders-elect, J. H. Martin was also chosen 
 Elder. The name of the congregation at this time 
 
 of the organization was that of Young America. It 
 was changed to Kirkwood early in 1875. They met 
 for worship, for five years in rented halls. In 1861 
 they took steps toward building a place of worship. 
 They had it finished for worship Nov. 7, 1863. It is 
 a neat church, with a capacity of about 300, costing 
 about $2,800. Rev. S. N. Moore served the con- 
 gregation from June 13, 1863, to February, 1864. He 
 was not ordained nor installed, on account of being 
 adjudged by the Presbytery, at the time of his trial 
 for ordination, guilty of heresy, at which time his 
 license was withdrawn. Rev. J. B. Foster began his 
 labors June, 1864, and resigned his pastorate the 
 last of August, 1867, to connect himself with the 
 Presbyterian Church. He was succeeded by Rev. 
 Wm. J. McSurley, who began his labors in October, 
 1867. He resigned to connect himself with the 
 Presbyterian Church, Dec. 31, 1868. Rev. J. M. 
 Waddel was next called to take charge, in the spring 
 of 1869, and he also resigned, in 1876, to connect 
 with the Presbyterian Church. He was succeeded 
 by Rev. L. N. Laferty, July 8, 1877. Mr. Laferty 
 resigned Dec. 30, 1883, to accept an appointment by 
 the Home Mission Board, at Creston, Iowa. In 
 March, 1884, Rev. Wm. McConnell was called, and 
 was installed April 24, 1884, and is still with the 
 Church. The present membership numbers 230. 
 A large Sabbath-school is attached to this congrega- 
 tion. 
 
 Baptist Church. The members of this Church met 
 Oct. 12, 1855, for the purpose of organization. This 
 society was organized and called the Lyndon Bap- 
 tist Church. It was organized by Rev. James Ho- 
 vey, with ten members; Mr. Hovey was the first 
 pastor. It was then in the Salem Association, but 
 was subsequently changed to the Peoria Association. 
 Succeeding Mr. Hovey, in December, 1864, was Rev. 
 B. F. Caldwell, who remained until the close of 1866. 
 He was followed by Rev. E. J. Lockwood, who 
 served until about the ist of June, 1869, when he 
 was succeeded by Rev. H. E.Norton. Mr. Norton 
 remained until February, 1871, when Rev. Henry 
 Taylor was called, who served the Church until No- 
 vember, 1872. In January, 1873, Rev. Mr. Seward 
 assumed the pastoral chair, remaining until 1875, 
 and was followed by the Rev. Mr. Fuller, who served 
 until August, 1878. He was succeeded by Rev. E. 
 G. Cheverton, who remained until August, 1880. 
 They were served by supplies then for awhile. In 
 
758 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 July, 1882, the Rev. Mr. Depperman was secured. 
 He was the last pastor, serving until 1884. They 
 have a very good church, which cost $1,500. Present 
 membership about 42. 
 
 The Methodist Episcopal Church was organized 
 here in 1856, at the Young America Hotel, by Rev. 
 O. S. Swartz. In the first class formed, there were 
 John and Elizabeth Ramsdell, Mary E. Youmas, 
 Daniel and Matilda Tinker, Oliver and Rachel Hall, 
 William and Margaret Roberts. The first pastor 
 who took charge of this Church was Rev. James 
 Tubbs; following him were Revs. C. Springer, B. C. 
 Couch, M. Spurlock, J. J. Flaherty, Samuel Fisher, 
 Jesse Smith, C. H. Bruce. A house of worship was 
 erected in 1865, costing, with grounds and parson- 
 
 age, about $8,000. It was dedicated by Dr. Eddy, 
 To Rev. Jas. Tubbs, the credit in a great measure 
 is due for the completion of this building. The; 
 have a good membership and a large and interestin; 
 Sabbath-school. 
 
 We regret that we are unable to give a more ful 
 account of the history of this Church, but the pastoi 
 who promised, and on whom we relied for informa- 
 tion regarding its organization, growth and preset 
 condition, failed in his promises, and hence our his- 
 tory is not as complete as it otherwise might have 
 been. A historian has to depend upon written anc 
 traditional matter for his works, and when the former 
 is meagre and the latter unobtainable, his histories 
 must of necessity be incomplete. 
 
 +&iE+&+w 
 
 ton and others. 
 
 HE City of Mon mouth may 
 be considered to have been 
 founded when the commis- 
 sioners, John G. Sanburn, 
 Hazen Bedell, and John 
 McNeil, appointed under 
 an Act of the General As- 
 sembly, established at this point a 
 permanent seat of Justice, which 
 was approved Jan. 27, 1830.. Its 
 settlement was started by pioneers 
 moving in from different parts of 
 ihis and Henderson Counties, the 
 first coming in being Daniel Mc- 
 Neil, Elijah Davidson, and Joel 
 Hargrove. They were soon fol- 
 lowed by John Pence, Peter But- 
 ler, John B. Talbott, Wm. S. Pax- 
 Its location is within about four 
 
 miles of the geographical center of the county and 
 
 may be more particularly described as being situ- 
 ated on the southeast quarter of section 29, in town- 
 ship i j, north of range 2 west, of the 4th P. M. In 
 making their report the Commissioners stated, that 
 they believed 'the location selected by them was 
 "Congress land." To this location they gave the 
 name of Monmouth. The site was chosen on the 
 7th day of April, i83r, and was accepted by the 
 County Commissioners. It is a matter of history 
 that the County Commissioners were not satisfied 
 with the name of Monmouth nor the location of the 
 County seat, and one of them threatened to nullify 
 it. But the Calhoun doctrine had not then been in- 
 troduced into the politics or government of Illinois, 
 and the action of the Commissioners held good. The 
 survey of the town was let to the lowest bidder, who 
 was Peter Butler, at 22% cents per lot, April 25, 
 1831. The work of " Peter Butler, Surveyor," was 
 accepted by the County Commissioners, June 6, 1831. 
 The seat of Justice had been temporarily located 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 759 
 
 at Oquawka, but no session of Court had been held 
 there. Monmouth was platted by Peter Butler in 
 1836, and certified by him Sept. 8th following. A 
 patent was given to this one quarter section, by the 
 U. S. Government, to John Pence, Peter Butler, and 
 John B. Talbott, Feb. 12, 1836, and was signed by 
 that grand old patriot, President Andrew Jackson. 
 Daniel McNeil, Jr., was appointed Commissioner by 
 the County Court with power to sell and deed lots to 
 purchasers. 
 
 Upon petition being sent to the Postmaster-Gen- 
 eral asking that a postoffice be established in the 
 county, Daniel McNeil, Jr. was appointed Postmas- 
 ter of Warren Court House as it was called. This 
 name was given that the mail might be taken where- 
 ever the seat of Justice was located. The appoint- 
 ment was made in the spring of 1831, but the mails 
 were delayed in coming and did not arrive until 
 June, and at that time Monmouth had been located 
 as the seat of Justice and the mail was opened here, 
 which was the first in the county. Warren Buffun 
 had been appointed Postmaster at Cedar Creek in 
 the winter of 1831, but owing to delay above men- 
 tioned, no mail was received here until June, when 
 it came through to Monmouth postoffice. 
 
 It is said of Daniel McNeil, (who held nearly all 
 of the offices in the town and county) that he used 
 to carry the postoffice in his hat, and if he met a 
 citizen for whom he had a letter, he would doff his 
 hat and hand him his mail. Postage in those days 
 was 25 cents and unpaid. The good Daniel, how- 
 ever, would not withhold the letter if a person did 
 not have the postage; and it is said that he had set- 
 tled, from his own pocket, some heavy bills with the 
 postoffice department. The pioneers would jest- 
 ingly, and with truth say, that McNeil was always 
 in his office. It has been previously said that he 
 held about all the offices in the county, so many in 
 fact that it made him poor and he was obliged to earn 
 bread for his family. When out, his good dame would 
 act as his deputy. Daniel McNeil lived where John 
 Carr's house now stands, on Broadway, on the edge 
 of the ravine. It was the first cabin put up in the 
 town. The first tavern wis located on Broadway 
 below the Court House Square on the opposite 
 side of the street in block 20. This famous hostelry, 
 which still stands afler the lapse of half a century, 
 was a double log house with an attic, and was opened 
 
 by James M. Garrison, in the fall of 1831. Sur- 
 viving its need for hotel purposes and having been 
 occupied for various uses of man, it finally came into 
 possession of W. S. Paxon, a worthy pioneer, who 
 now uses it as a blacksmith shop. The first couple 
 married in Garrison's Inn were Caesar Love and 
 Venus McCormick (colored) Feb. 25, 1836. In this 
 hotel E. S. Swinney used to lodge. He had his bunk 
 directly under the roof in the northwest corner. To 
 look at this corner now one would be inclined to 
 sympathize with Bro. Swinney, and think he had a 
 close time of it 
 
 The second couple married in the town were 
 Josiah Whitman and Hannah Davidson, Oct. 12, 
 1832. The first marriage in the county was that of 
 Samuel White and Huldah Jennings by John B. Tal- 
 bott, J. P., May 10, 1831. 
 
 W. S. Paxton broke the first ground in the town 
 for Daniel McNeil, who planted the first crop. Mc- 
 Neil had his first official building east of the Bank on 
 Broadway. 
 
 According to Joel Hargrove, Wm. S. Paxon opened 
 the first store in the town, in the spring of 1831, 
 where Scott & Bros', grocery house now stands. 
 was in a little wickup, or round shanty, built with 
 poles, mud and straw. 
 
 Robert Black was the pioneer in the school de- 
 partment in this town, opening a school in the sum- 
 mer of 1831. The second school was opened by 
 Alpheus Russell. 
 
 Thomas B. Cull urn was licensed to keep a store 
 at Monmouth, July 4, 1831, and he celebrated Inde- 
 pendence day by opening his little stock of goods 
 for sale to the settlers. He was followed in October 
 by Joel Hargrove, and in December by Elijah David- 
 son. 
 
 June 6, 1831, the sale of lots by order of the 
 Commissioners took place. The order read : " The 
 highest and best bidder to be the purchaser, provid- 
 ing the large or ' outlets ' be not sold unless the bid 
 offered should amount to at least $2 per acre ; the 
 bid on the ' inlots ' be not sold for less than $4 per 
 lo', and those adjoining the Public Square not to be 
 sold unless the bid offered be at least not less than 
 $10 per lot. There was ' realized from the sale of 
 lots this day $965.62." 
 
 The town was retarded in its growth by the In- 
 dian troubles. Soon after the sale of the lots a re- 
 
760 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 port came of the rising of Black Hawk's band. This 
 alarmed the settlement very much and some fami- 
 lies left the town. After consultation it was decided 
 that forts be built and that the settlers come together 
 for mutual protection. Accordingly one fort was 
 built about a mile from town, and another at Peter 
 Butler's place a few miles from the settlement. 
 
 After the Indian troubles were over other business 
 houses were opened and this settlement advanced 
 rapidly. 
 
 With the increase of population came a desire to 
 have a corporate government of some kind, and 
 Daniel McNeil, Jr., took the lead in this movement. 
 Finally notices were posted about the town inform- 
 ing the legal voters that a meeting would be held 
 Nov. 29, 1836, at the school-house, to determine 
 this question. The proceedings were under the gen- 
 eral law of this State, approved Feb. 12, 1831, which 
 was entitled an " Act to incorporate the inhabitants 
 of such towns as may wish to be incorporated." At 
 the election Elijah Davidson was chosen President 
 of the meeting and Henry Jennings to act as Clerk. 
 The objects of the meeting having been fully set 
 forth by the Chairman, Mr. Davidson, voting was 
 announced to be in order. There were 23 votes 
 cast in all for incorporation, there being none in op- 
 position. When the result of this election was made 
 known, an election for Town Trustees was ordered 
 for Dec. 5th following. At the December election 
 Elijah Davidson, Daniel McNeil, Jr., James McCal- 
 lon, Alexander Ritchey and George H. Wright were 
 elected Trustees. A meeting of the Trustees was 
 duly held at which Daniel McNeil was chosen Pres- 
 ident of the Board, and Henry Jennings. Clerk and 
 Treasurer. 
 
 The first meeting of the Board after organization 
 was at the house of James McCallon, Dec. 26, when 
 they passed their first ordinance, which was as fol- 
 lows : " Be it ordered by the President and Trustees 
 of the town of Monmouth in council convened 
 that the corporation be one-half mile east, one-half 
 mile west, one-half mile south, and one-half mile 
 north from the center of the Public Square, contain- 
 ing one mile square.' 1 
 
 The village continued to grow and prosper, fine 
 blocks went up and large business houses and man- 
 ufactories were established and the future develop- 
 ment of Monmouth seemed to be assured. With 
 
 an increased population came a desire among the 
 citizens for a city government. Accordingly a bill 
 was presented to the Legislature for this purpose. 
 It was passed and received the approval of the 
 Governor, June 21, 1852, the first section of which 
 read as follows : " Be it enacted by the people of the 
 State of Illinois, represented in the General As- 
 sembly, that the inhabitants of the town of Mon- 
 mouth, in the county of Warren, and State of Illi- 
 nois, be and are hereby constituted a body politic 
 and corporate by the name and style of the City of 
 Monmouth, and by that name shall have perpetual 
 succession, and may have and use a common seal 
 which they may change and alter at pleasure." The 
 second provision of this bill fixed the boundaries of 
 the corporation which was to extend one mile each 
 way from the Public Square ; and the third section 
 provided for the division of the city into two wards. 
 The election under this act was held Oct. 23d, 1852, 
 at which Samuel Wood was elected Mayor. N. A. 
 Rankin, Secretary; E. S. Swinney, James Thomp-' 
 son and William Rodgers, Aldermen. The officers- 
 elect met Nov. 3, and organized the Council by ap- 
 pointing E. F. Corwin, Clerk; G. W. Savage, at-"% 
 torney ; James Thompson, Treasurer, and James 
 Finney, Marshal. 
 
 The following is a list of the gentlemen who have 
 served the city in the capacity of Mayor : 
 MAYORS. 
 
 J . A . Templeton 1869 
 
 S. Douglas 1870 
 
 W. B. Boycl. i8 ?I 
 
 W. M. Buffington 1872 
 
 D. Babcock 1873 
 
 Jacob H . Holt 1874-75 
 
 J.L. Dryden 1876 
 
 JacobH.Holt 1877 
 
 J.M. McCutcheon 1878-79 
 
 William Hanna 1880-81 
 
 I. P. Pillsbury 1882 
 
 Henry Burlingim 1883-85 
 
 Wm. B. Young 1885-86 
 
 Samuel Wood ........... 1852 
 
 George W . Palmer ....... 1853 
 
 E . S. Swinney ........... 1854 
 
 Robert Grant ............ 1855 
 
 W. H. Young ........... 1856 
 
 Ivory Quinby ............ 1857 
 
 Jacob H. Holt ........... 1858 
 
 A. Rankin .......... 1859-60 
 
 H. G. Harding .......... 1861-62 
 
 Samuel Wood ........... 1863 
 
 Wm. S. Cowan ........... 1864-65 
 
 George Babcock .......... 1866 
 
 John M. Turnbull ...... 1667 
 
 Samuel Wood ............ 1868 
 
 Ivory Quinby opened the first bank in this town, 
 which was a private institution. In r862 the First 
 National Bank was established, which was the 38th 
 established in the United States. In 1872 C. Jones 
 & Co. opened their private bank, which was subse- 
 quently merged into the Monmouth National Bank. 
 Later on the Second National Bank was established. 
 With one exception these banks have all been suc- 
 cessful, and have had a good standing in the financial 
 world. This exception is too well known by the peo- 
 ple of Monmouth to need any comments or explana- 
 tions in this work. Suffice it to say that aged men 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 761 
 
 and women, once in affluent circumstances, lost ev- 
 erything through the action of a man, who to-day 
 is within the four walls of the penitentiary. 
 
 In the suburbs of Monmouth are located Doctor 
 Vanhoorebeke's stables, which were established 
 over 20 years ago. Dr. Vanhoorebeke was one of 
 the first to introduce imported slock into this State, 
 and in the line of his business has crossed the ocean 
 98 times. He breeds entirely from pure French 
 horses, and mostly from imported stock. For fine 
 draft horses Dr. Vanhoorebeke's stables are unex- 
 celled by any in the State. He has a ready sale for 
 all his stock, and at high figures. In the line of in- 
 troducing good draft horses into the county and State, 
 the Doctor has been a benefactor. A visit at his sta- 
 bles is a treat which any lover of good horses will 
 enjoy. 
 
 The city is well and ably represented in the med- 
 ical line by Drs. J. W. Brewer, H. L. Harrington, S. 
 M. Hamilton, J. R. Webster, H. Marshall, J. H. 
 Wallace, W. S. Holliday, S. K. Crawford, W. E.Tay- 
 lor and E. C. Linn. With this able array of med- 
 ical men and those reliable druggists, Spriggs & 
 Bros., and W. M. Schultz & Co., Monmouth is pretty 
 well fortified against sickness or epidemics. 
 
 The city of Monmouth has a very good Opera 
 House, which is one of the features of the town. It 
 was erected by Mr. Schultz in 1875, at a cost of 
 about $50,000, including the store-houses below. It 
 is a favorite place of amusement for the people of 
 this city. 
 
 There are many fine business blocks in the city, 
 as well as a number of beautiful residences. Some 
 of the church buildings are very creditable, and even 
 an ornament to the place. The public buildings, 
 however, with the exception of the jail, are about as 
 inferior as any in the State. 
 
 Monmouth is beautifully situated and well laid 
 out, with a square or plaza in the center. The streets 
 run in regular parallel lines and are adorned with 
 handsome shade trees. The town is dotted over 
 with elegant residences and comfortable homes. The 
 people, as a class, are intelligent and industrious. If 
 marked by any particular phase of character, it is 
 that of being rather set in their notions ; and it may 
 be, too, that some of the inhabitants are a little 
 prescriptive and Pharisaical. The population of 
 Monmouth is estimated to be at the present time 
 about 5,500. 
 
 Upon the completion of the C. B. & Q. Railroad 
 through Monmouth, in 1855, quite an impetus was 
 given to the growth of the town, and from that time 
 on its growth has been steady With the completion 
 of the railroad some very important manufactories 
 were established in Monmouth. 
 
 INDUSTRIAL INTERESTS. 
 
 Weir Plow Company. At an early date the in- 
 ventive brain of W. S. Weir began to conceive of a 
 better way for cultivating corn than with a hoe. He 
 soon brought his ideas into practical operation. In 
 1859 he completed a plow which, upon a test being 
 had, proved successful. After some further altera- 
 tions and improvements he had his cultivator pat- 
 ented in 1862. Later on a factory was established, 
 and the first year 400 cultivators were made. The 
 year following he turned out some 500 cultivators. 
 In 1869 a company incorporated as the Weir 
 Plow Company, with & capital stock of $25,000. The 
 members of this company were W. S. Weir, William 
 Hanna, W. B. Boyd and Joseph Stephenson. The 
 site was secured for the factory near the C. B. & 
 Q. Railroad, and suitable buildings were erected. 
 
 Since then several changes have been made in the 
 company, and many improvements made in the 
 plow and cultivator. Extensive buildings have been 
 put up for manufacturing purposes, which have been 
 filled with the most complete and best machinery. 
 They occupy now, with buildings and grounds, about 
 four acres, and manufacture a full line of agricul- 
 tural implements, such as cultivators, plows, double 
 shovels and harrows. The capital stock has been 
 increased to $500,000, and the present stock-holders 
 are W. S. Weir, William Hanna, Delos Phelps and 
 J. Ross Hanna. 
 
 Active work generally begins about the first of Oc- 
 tober, and closes in June. They employ from three 
 to four hundred hands, and their trade extends into 
 all the Western and Southwestern States, Ohio, Indi- 
 ana and also into Mexico. Most of their timber is 
 from Kentucky and Missouri. This Weir Plow 
 Company has been a great auxiliary to the growth 
 of Monmouth. The superior qualities of their ag- 
 ricultural implements are known and appreciated 
 throughout the country. 
 
 The Pattee Plow Company was another establish- 
 ment which has aided materially to the growth of 
 Monmouth. It was established in 1875, under the 
 
762 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 firm name of Pattee Bros. & Co. The members of 
 
 * 
 
 this firm were James H. Pattee, Henry H. Pattee 
 and I. P. Pillsbury. They started with the manu- 
 facture of the "New Departure" Tongueless Culti- 
 vator, of which Mr. Pattee was the inventor. In 
 1 88 1, they incorporated, with a capital stock of 
 $10,000. James H. Pattee is President, I. P. Pills- 
 bury, Vice-President, and H. H. Pattee, Secretary ' 
 and Treasurer. During the manufacturing season, \ 
 this establishment employs about 100 men, and man- 
 ufacture principally the Tongueless Cultivator, the ' 
 Combined Walking and Riding Cultivator, and the 
 Cotton Planter. Their Tongueless Cultivator was 
 patented in 1872, by J. H. Pattee. At this time, a 
 tongueless cultivator was unknown, and like all men 
 who present new ideas or new inventions, Mr. Pattee 
 was the subject for much ridicule. But with Mr. 
 Pattee, like all other brainy men, who have an idea 
 or an invention to present for the benefit of the 
 world, the shafts of ridicule fell harmless upon him. 
 f If it had been a failure, people would have said, " I 
 I told you so." Having been a success, it would be 
 I more difficult now to find a man who did not say, 
 "he knew it would be a success," than it was for 
 Diogenes of old to find with his lamp an honest 
 man. 
 
 > Monmouth Mining and Manufacturing Company. 
 Following on in the development of the city, we 
 come to this company, which was established in 1872, 
 by Messrs. A. M. Black and J. M. White. Subse- 
 quently it became the property of those worthy citi- 
 zens, Spriggs & Bros., who carried on the work for 
 several years. In 1872, it was incorporated, with a 
 capital stock of $350,000. W. H. Koonce was elected 
 President ; B. T. Hubbard, Secretary ; J. S. Spriggs, 
 Treasurer. In 1874,1)16 capital stock was increased 
 to $100,000, and G. B. Henderson luckily succeeded 
 B. T. Hubbard as Secretary. In 1875, J. H. Spriggs 
 was elected President, and, in 1866, Mr. D. D. Parry 
 succeeded Mr. Spriggs. In 1877, William Hanna 
 became President, with J. H. Spriggs, Vice-President, 
 and J. 3. Spriggs, Treasurer. In 1884, Mr. Hanna 
 bought out Spriggs & Bros, stock, and with his son, 
 J. Ross Hanna, now controls the establishment. 
 When the enterprise was first started, it was expect- 
 ed coal mining would be carried on extensively with 
 the pipe and tiling business. It was found, however, 
 that the coal veins were limited, and that part of 
 the business has been abandoned. Mr. Hanna has 
 
 greatly enlarged the capacity for manufacturing tile, 
 and has now in this establishment some of the 
 largest kilns in the country. They have 22 acres ap- 
 propriated for the use of the works, the buildings 
 covering about two acres. The clay beds are from 
 70 to 100 feet down, and furnish an excellent quality 
 of clay. About 1,000 car loads of tile are manu- 
 factured yearly, and 500 bushels of coal are used 
 daily. From 65 to 75 hands are constantly employed 
 at this establishment. 
 
 Reimer Lahann. While speaking of the industrial 
 elements which have so materially advanced the 
 prosperity of Monmouth, the cigar factory of Reimer 
 Lahann should be mentioned. Mr. Lahann started 
 his factory in 1860, with no capital other than a 
 strong heart, energetic mind, and a sympathetic wife, 
 who was truly a help-mate. His business has stead- 
 ily increased, until last year he manufactured 
 1,500,000 cigars. By the close of this year he ex- 
 pects to make 1,8000,000. He employs from 30 to 
 40 hands. 
 
 SCHOOLS. 
 
 The first public school opened in Monmouth, in , 
 1834. The County Commissioners acting under a ] 
 petition signed by several citizens, established the 
 boundary of the first school district, which they] 
 called No. i, which included the town of Monmouth. 
 A building was erected on the site now occupied by 
 the Methodist Church. This school was opened in 
 June, and was held three months, at an expense of 
 less than $50. At this period there were 50 chil- 
 dren in the settlement between the age of 5 and 12 
 years, and of this number 25 attended the schools. 
 It was not long before this building was insufficient 
 to meet the demand of the increasing number of 
 pupils, and a new building was erected. This new 
 building soon was inadequate to meet the wants of 
 the population, and other buildings were put up, 
 and private schools were also opened. Ward schools 
 were finally established, the educational advantages 
 were extended, and systems of instruction were im- 
 proved from time to time up to the present period. 
 The public schools of Monmouth are now divided 
 up into four districts, or wards, having one school for 
 each ward in the city. They are all graded and pro- 
 vided with good teachers. 
 
 Miss E. B. Leighty is Principal of the East Ward 
 School, with the Misses J. H. Boyd, Winnie McCly- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 763 
 
 monds, Ella Erskine and Kate Manchester as As- 
 sistants, with an enrollment of 280 pupils. 
 
 West Ward School, presided over by Miss L. B. 
 Duer as Principal, who is assisted by the Misses J.S. 
 Wiley, F. E. Sterret, Ida Matthews and M. Kin- 
 kead. Enrollment, 207. 
 
 North Ward. In this school Miss M. A. Sterrett 
 is Principal, and the Misses Minnie S. Nelson, Jennie 
 McBrown, Anna Peacock, and Mrs. M. D. Sterrett 
 are Assistants. Enrollment, 243. 
 
 South Ward. Miss W. Scott is Principal of this 
 school With her are the Misses Jessie K. Babcock, 
 A. Fleming,Sadie Parkinson, Delia Caldwell and Mag- 
 gie McDill, with an enrollment of 268. 
 
 The school buildings are inferior, old, with large 
 cracks in the walls, and are not, some of them at 
 least, very safe. Take them altogether for a city 
 with the wealth of Monmouth, they are not at all 
 creditable. Some day, if they are not torn down, 
 they will be tumbling down, burying beneath their 
 ruins innocent children. 
 
 MONMOUTH COLLEGE. 
 
 This College was founded by the Reform Associate 
 Presbytery of Illinois, and was first started as an Acad- 
 emy. It was established as a Church institution, and 
 has continued so. In 1856, it was converted into a 
 College, when Trustees were appointed. In 1847, it 
 was incorporated under the name and style of ''The 
 Monmouth College." This act was amended in 1859, 
 vesting the control of the College with the United 
 Presbyterian Synod. It was further amended in 
 1869, establishing a more liberal government, and 
 providing for the admission of other bodies to its 
 constituency. 
 
 After several changes, additions and improvements, 
 they have now a fine school building, three stories 
 high, and constructed of brick, costing altogether 
 about $35,000. The building is well furnished and 
 the rooms are commodious. All the facilities for a 
 thorough collegiate education have been provided, 
 which includes a good faculty. After several exper- 
 iments, a liberal endowment fund has been secured, 
 upon a practical basis. This College is well patron- 
 ized by the people of the county, and on its roll there 
 are many students from other parts of the State. 
 
 PRESS. 
 
 The Monmouth A tla s.^ This is the oldest paper 
 
 in the county. It was established by C. K. Smith, 
 and its first sheet was issued to the reading public 
 Oct. 30, 1846. Mr. Byron was the editor. At that 
 time it was a six-column folio paper and was issued 
 every Saturday. It is a rare treat to peruse its old 
 pages, every column of which is full of interesting 
 matter. It was issued about the time of the begin- 
 ning of the Mexican War, and its early issues are 
 replete with the descriptions of the battles of Cero 
 Gordo, Monterey, etc. Jan. i, 1844, the publishing 
 day was changed to Friday. In October, 1857, Mr. 
 John S. Clark purchased the Atlas, and has edited 
 it from that time to the present. In 1860 it was in- 
 creased to an eight-column paper. In September, 
 1884, a daily was started, and this venture has been 
 eminently successful. The Atlas has a circulation 
 of about 1,600, and a good job office is connected 
 with the paper. It is Republican in politics, and is 
 a well edited, bright and newsy journal, and a credit 
 to the county. It is an unusual thing to find a man 
 who has been in the editorial chair as long as Mr. 
 Clark. 
 
 Monmouth Review. The first issue of this paper j 
 was made Dec. 28, 1855, by A H. Swain, its founder -< 
 and editor. It came out pretty fully fledged at first, 
 having seven columns and issued every Friday. It 
 was started about the time of the dissolution of the 
 Whig party and the formation of the Republican 
 party, which has since been so potent a factor in 
 American politics, and was devoted to the principles 
 of the Democratic party and the interests of Warren 
 County. In 1856 it was an ardent advocate of the 
 claims of James Buchanan for the Presidency. It 
 was loyal to the Union and to the country during 
 the war. In 1866 it was enlarged to an eight-col- 
 umn paper, its present size. It has a circulation 
 now of about 1,200, which is constantly increasing. 
 The plant contains a steam-power press and a fine 
 job office. The Review has never changed its ed- 
 itor nor proprietor, nor its politics ; and it never has 
 failed to make its appearance on publication day, 
 which now covers a period of 30 years. There are but 
 few papers in the country that have been under so 
 long and continuous a management. It is neatly 
 gotten up, ably edited, and zealously devoted to the 
 interests of its patrons. Mr. Swain says he started 
 his paper on a quarter of a dollar and has got that 
 quarter yet. Amid the many changes of this life, it 
 is pleasant once in a while to meet a man who has 
 
764 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 held on to a business so long and so successfully, 
 and who is still hale and hearty and at his daily post 
 of duty. 
 
 The Monmouth Weekly Gazette, was established in 
 1876, by G. G. McCosh, an experienced newspaper 
 man. It was started as a seven-column folio, issued 
 every Wednesday. In 1883 it was enlarged to a 
 nine-column folio, its present size. Mr. McCosh 
 having been prosperous in his weekly venture, and 
 believing there was an opening for a daily, concluded 
 to start one. With this man, to think was to act, 
 and in February, 1883, he sent forth his daily sheet, 
 which he called The Evening Gazette. The editor 
 has had no occasion to regret his action, for the daily 
 Gazette has been a prosperous enterprise. The cir- 
 culation of this paper is from 1,000 to 1,200 per 
 week and is increasing. The Gazette is independent 
 in politics, is lively in its editorial department and is 
 full of interesting reading matter. A good job office 
 is connected with the paper, where first-class work 
 can always be secured. The presses are moved by 
 steam. The genial editor is always ready to make 
 new friends and welcome the old ones. Being com- 
 paratively young in the editorial chair, he even now 
 displays rare ability as an editor, and we expect to 
 see the day when he will be among the distin- 
 guished journalists of the State. 
 
 MILITARY. 
 
 Co. ff, Sixth Regt. I. N. G., of Monmouth. 
 This company was organized April 29, i88r, with 43 
 members. Its present officers are: Captain, Geo. 
 
 C. Rankin ; First Lieutenant, Rufus H. Scott ; Sec- 
 ond Lieutenant, Wm. F. Reichard ; First Sergeant, 
 Samuel H. Hogue. The Second, Third, Fourth and 
 Fifth Sergeants are respectively J. R. Hickman, E. 
 
 D. Brady, Wm. W. Shields, S. W. Porter. Corpor- 
 als, John N. Thomson, E. I. Camm, S. L. Hough- 
 ton, V. H. Webb. The first Captain was Wm. G. 
 Bond. Size of armory, 60 x 66 feet. Adjoining this 
 hall is an elegantly furnished parlor, and a room with 
 lockers for uniforms. The company has fatigue and 
 dress uniforms and is completely equipped with 
 Springfield rifles. They are fine, soldierly looking 
 men, well up in their drill and are creditable to the 
 city of Monmouth. 
 
 BANDS. 
 
 The Monmouth Marine Band was first organized 
 in 1869, with a small membership. These members, 
 
 however, were zealous and attached to the profes- 
 sion, and determined to have a first-class band. 
 They practiced regularly and systematically and 
 finally became distinguished for the excellence of 
 their playing. In 1878 they took the premium at 
 the Fire Tournament in Chicago, and have since 
 that time won honors in different parts of the State. 
 They have a membership at the present time of 16, 
 all of whom are good musicians. Prof. F. W. White, 
 second E flat and Director; J. F. Saville, first E 
 flat and leader; and J. A. Montgomery, bass drum 
 and manager. There are not many bands in the 
 country that can excel the Marine Band for the 
 taste, skill and harmony of their music. Many a 
 pleasant moment was spent during the past summer 
 by the writer in listening to the sweet, melodious 
 strains of music sent out on the warm evening air 
 by this band, for which he takes this opportunity to 
 express his grateful thanks. 
 
 The Cadet Band was organized about a year ago, 
 with Frank Young as leader. It is composed of 
 young men who are ambitious to distinguish them- 
 selves in the musical world. They are in constant 
 practice and are improving every day. 
 
 There is also a colored band in town which has 
 been recently started. They are practicing with a 
 good deal of zeal and it is expected that at no dis- 
 tant day they will become quite proficient and dis- 
 tinguish themselves as musicians. They certainly 
 deserve a great deal of credit for their perseverance. 
 
 FIRE DEPARTMENT. 
 
 The fire department of Monmouth consists of two 
 engine companies, one a chemical, and two hook and 
 ladder companies. H. A. Webster is Chief and is 
 an experienced fireman. 
 
 Monmouth Engine Company, No. i, has N. S. 
 Woodward for Foreman, with 22 [members. This 
 Company has one of Silsby's best nickel-plated en- 
 gines, fourth size. It is a beautiful machine, costing 
 $4,000. With it there are three hose-carts, and 
 2,400 feet of hose. This engine has the power of 
 throwing 500 gallons of water per minute. Cisterns 
 and wells are provided at different parts of the city 
 for water supplies. 
 
 Mayor Holt Engine Company, No. 2, has a chem- 
 ical engine with two 8o-gallon tanks. They use a 
 solution of soda and sulphuric acid. It is stationed 
 at the freight depot. W. T. Hayes is Foreman, 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 765 
 
 with ten members. A team is connected with this 
 engine which is at all times ready for use. 
 
 Hook and Ladder Companies. Rough and Ready, 
 No. i, has a membership of 20, of which Oscar 
 Henry is Foreman. The Alert, No. 2, has a mem- 
 bership of 25, with John P. Gray, Foreman. 
 
 The Rough and Ready Hook and Ladder Com- 
 pany, as well as the Alert, have won a National rep- 
 utation for their activity in the drill and for their 
 athletic performances; and have in their hall many 
 trophies of their victories. The Rough and Ready 
 Company won the first belt at the first annual tour- 
 nament of the Illinois State Firemens' Association, 
 held at Decatur, Oct. 12, 1876. The feat was to 
 run 300 rods, raise a 2o-foot ladder and place a man 
 on the top. This feat they accomplished in 70 sec- 
 onds, being the best time made. The belt, which is 
 made of solid silver and very neatly and artistically 
 designed, was to be given to the company that 
 should be victorious in three annual contests. The 
 second contest was at Galesburg, Aug. 30, 1877. 
 They performed the great feat at this time in 55 
 seconds, making the best time. At the third contest 
 of the annual Tournament of the Illinois State Fire- 
 men's Association, held at Chicago, Sept. 5, 1878, 
 two trials were allowed, their average time being 49 
 seconds, which was the quickest time made. This 
 gave them the victory over all contestants and they 
 were presented with the belt. This company has 
 another belt, also made of solid silver, or this com- 
 pany and the Alert, No. 2, who went out as the Nip 
 and Tuck Company, which they won at the Illinois 
 State Firemen's Tournament, held at Quincy, in 
 1 88 1. At this contest they made the time in 46^ 
 seconds, and took the belt from the Knoxville Hook 
 and Ladder Company, who h:d won it at the tour- 
 nament held at Monmouth, Sept. 3, 1880, when the 
 time was made in 52}^ seconds This belt had been 
 previously won by the Abingdon Hook and Ladder 
 Company, at the Illinois State Firemen's Tourna- 
 nament, held at Peoria, Sept. 4, 1879; time 49}^ 
 seconds. 
 
 The Rough and Ready Company have also a 
 beautiful firemen's lantern, which they won at the 
 National Firemen's Tournament, held in Chicago, 
 Sept. 5, 1878, time 49 seconds. This lantern was 
 the gift of the National Firemens Journal. 
 
 At the Annual Illinois Firemen's Tournament, held 
 
 at Quincy, the National Firemens Journal offered a 
 lantern as a prize, which was won by the Nip and 
 Tuck ; time 46^ seconds ; this was a sweepstake 
 prize. At this tournament there was also offered by 
 Brunswick & Balke a prize, consisting of a fine bil- 
 liard table, to be given to the best company in a hub 
 and hub contest, distance 300 yards. This prize 
 was won by the Nip and Tuck Company. 
 
 The fire department have a neat hall, where they 
 hold their meetings. This hall is decorated with the 
 photographs of the firemen in uniform, the engine, 
 hook and ladder wagon, etc. In this hall they also 
 have a well selected library, for the use of them- 
 selves and their families. 
 
 SOCIETIES. 
 
 Monmouth Masonic Lodge, No. 37, was instituted 
 Oct. 6, 1846; George C. Lamphere was W. M. ; 
 Samuel Webster, Sr. W. M.; John C. Young, Jr. W. 
 M. This lodge now numbers 74 members; present 
 officers, W. S. Holliday, W. M. ; J. W. Gael, Sr. W. ' 
 M.; A. G. McDowell, Jr. W. M., and D. D. Dun- 
 kle, Secretary. They have a large, fine hall, which 
 they own. It is neatly frescoed with emblematic ' 
 illustrations of the order. The lodge is well equipped 
 and in a flourishing condition. It is the first society 
 organized in the county. 
 
 Warren Chapter, No. jo, R. A. M., was organ- 
 ized Oct. z, 1856. At the first organization David 
 B. Rice was H. P.; Wm. A. Seaton, K. ; Samuel 
 Stanley, Scribe. Th's lodge numbers at present 80 
 members, and meets in the Masonic Hall.; present 
 officers, D. D. Dunkle, H. P. ; Levi Roadhouse, K. ; 
 Levi Page, Scribe, and A. C. McDowell, Secretary. 
 The Masons met with some misfortune last spring, 
 having had the roof of their hall taken off by the cy- 
 clone that visited this place. Another roof, however, 
 was put on and their hall is again in good condition. 
 
 Trinity Lodge, No. 561, A. F. & A. M., was or- 
 ganized June 27, 1867, with 16 charter members; 
 first officers, Joseph Hill, W. M.; J. N. Reece, S. 
 W.; E. C. Johnston, J. W.; S. Gamble, Treasurer; 
 G. R. Barbour, Secretary; A. H. Swain. S. D. ; L. 
 Stansbury, J. D. ; C. Coates, Tyler. Present officers, 
 O. B. Wilcox, W. M. ; L. F. Schusler, S. W. ; John 
 H. Hogue, J. W.; E. C. Johnston, Treasurer; Pey- 
 ton Roberts, Secretary; R. Dony, S. D.; J- H. 
 Beeny, J. D. ; H. T. Harkless, Tyler. This lodge 
 

 
 766 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 has a fine farm, which is well equipped and in a good 
 working condition. 
 
 Encampment, No. 87, was chartered Oct. 13, 1868, 
 with seven members C. W. Palmer, J. T. Wallace, 
 G. A. Samson, R. S. Frew, Win. M. Smiley, T. O. 
 Hamsher and Jeremiah M. McGrew. This lodge is 
 well attended and is also in a flourishing condition. 
 
 Warren County Lodge, No. 160, I. O. O. P., was 
 instituted June 10, 1855, with C. W. Palmer, W. B. 
 Jenks, Elisha Nye, George McGowan as the charter 
 members. In 1871 the fire destroyed their building; 
 the records were at this time also burned. In 1875 
 some 20 of the members of this lodge seceded and 
 formed a new organization. In 1881 they completed 
 and moved into their new hall. It is large, airy and 
 elegantly equipped and beautifully decorated. Their 
 furniture and regalia cost about $[,500. Financially 
 they are in good condition, having something over 
 $3,000 out at interest ; number of active members at 
 present is over 117. L. C. Nott is the Noble Grand. 
 
 /. O. O. F., No. 577, Monmouth Lodge, was or- 
 ganized May 18, 1875, with 23 charter- members. 
 The first officers were L. S. Holden, N. G. ; John B. 
 Weir, V. G.; Isaac Mark, R. S.; Peyton Roberts, P. 
 S. ; Riemer Lahann, Treasurer. The membership at 
 present is 127, with the following officers: Henry 
 Mclntyre, N. G. ; Riemer Lahann, V. G. ; E. W. 
 Stevens, R. S.; L. S. Holden, P. S. ; W. W. Brooks, 
 Treasurer. This lodge has a fine, large hall, neatly 
 furnished and elegantly equipped with all the para- 
 phernalia of the order. It is out of debt, has money at 
 interest, and is in a prosperous condition. Meetings 
 are held by the Lodge every Wednesday. 
 
 Monmouth Lodge, I. O. O. F. , Rebecca Degree, No. 
 128. This order was instituted November, 1853, 
 with 54 members, and have increased their numbers 
 since their organization to 60. Present officers, Mrs. 
 A. E. Mclntosh, N. G. ; Mrs. Nettie Emert, V. G. ; 
 Mrs. Mattie Baker, R. S,; Mrs. E. W. Stevens, F. 
 S. ; Mrs. Ahnira Cottrell, Treasurer. They meet 
 the second and fourth Fridays in each month. 
 
 Rebecca Degree Lodge, J\o. 122, 1. O. O. F., was 
 instituted Oct. n, 1870. They have quite an inter- 
 esting lodge and meet regularly, in the Warren 
 Lodge Hall. Mrs. N. Y. Frew is at present N. G. 
 
 McClanahan Post, G. A. R. No. 330 was char- 
 tered Aug. 27, 1883. First officers: J. P. Higgins, 
 C; D. D. Dunkle, Sr, V. C. ; J. G. Burchfield, Jr., 
 
 V. C. ; J. H. Hurdman, Adj't. There were 34 char- 
 tered members in the organization. The Post num- 
 bers at present 65, with the following named of- 
 ficers : D. D. Dunkle, C. ; W. T. Ramsey, S. V. C. : 
 S. A. Hogue, J. V. C. ; J. H. Hurdman, Adjt. They 
 have a good large hall, 22x60 feet, which is nicely 
 furnished. The Post is in a flourishing condition 
 and hold their meetings twice a month. They have 
 an altar tastefully gotten up, which stands in the 
 center of the hall, erected to the memory of theit 
 fallen comrades. 
 
 Monmouth Relief Corps, No. 6. This is an aux- 
 iliary to the G. A. R. McClanahan Post. It was 
 chartered June 18, 1884, with 25 members. Mrs. E. 
 J. Hurdman, President. They meet in the G. A. R 
 hall. Considerable interest is manifested in this 
 lodge by the ladies of Monmouth, and it is increas- 
 ing in its membership. 
 
 A. O. U, W. Lodge, 192, was organized in Aug- 
 ust, 1881, -with 37 charter members. This society 
 has been prosperous and has increased its member- 
 ship to 68. They have a hall which they have fitted 
 up for their meetings, and it is neatly furnished. 
 Present officers: George M. Peters, P. M. W. ; 
 C. B. Bristol, M. W.; F. Ahlstrand, Foreman ; James 
 Wilson, Overseer; J. F. Coleville, Recorder; C. E. 
 Blackburn, Financier; A. H. McGrew, Receiver; 
 M. Raims, Guide. This society h^as lost only two 
 members since its organization. 
 
 Modern Woodmen of America, Maple City Camp, 
 No. 94. This camp was organized April 22, 1885, 
 with 19 charter members. Officers : C. E. Black- 
 burn, Counsel ; A. W. Morton, Advisor; H. M. Put- 
 man, Clerk; David Turnbull, Banker. They have 
 now 20 members and meet regularly in the A. O. (J. 
 W. hall on the 2d and 4th Tuesdays of each month. 
 Maple City Camp is new, but it is active, is steadily 
 increasing in numbers, and is in a prosperous condi- 
 tion. 
 
 Order of Chosen Friends, Monmouth Council, 
 No. 15, was instituted Aug. 7, 1883, with 25 mem- 
 bers. Edward Parkinson was Chief Counsellor ; E. 
 J. Clark, Secretary; and H. M. Wright, Treasurer. 
 This society meets in the Odd Fellows' Hall, holding 
 their sessions twice a month. Present membership 
 is about 50. Present officers as follows; J. W. 
 Smith, C. C. ; Wm. B. Vorvvick, V. C. ; J. Chaffee, 
 Secretary; E. C. Linn, Treasurer; J. H. Moore, P. 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 767 
 
 C. C. ; J. T. Piper, Prelate ; H. H. Reed, Warden ; 
 G. H. Coaltrap,~Guard. This is an insurance order 
 and a beneficiary one, with policies ranging from $i,- 
 ooo to $3,000. Some of the cardinal features of this 
 society are that it furnishes its benefits at cost. Its 
 plans are equitable and just, and its fraternal obli- 
 gations binding and forcible. It makes no distinction 
 in regard to sex, and the season of old age is soft- 
 ened and made bright by reaping substantial benefits 
 at 75 years. When a member becomes permanently* 
 disabled, he receives one-half of his benefits. The 
 sick are looked after and a home is found for the 
 orphaned. It has for its foundation mutual aid ; for 
 its superstructure reciprocity. This Order is grow- 
 ing and it is in a prosperous condition. They pro- 
 pose in the near future to have a hall of their own 
 for their meetings. 
 
 Lfiderkranz of Monmouth was instituted March 17, 
 1871, and was incorporated Feb. i, 1875. The ob- 
 ject of this society is to further the sociability and 
 unity of the Germans. At the time of the incorpor- 
 ation a beneficiary order was attached to it. The 
 financial matters of each are kept apart and mem- 
 * bers of the Leiderkranz if physically disabled can- 
 not be members of the Beneficiary Order. They as- 
 sume the same charitable duties as most of the 
 other societies, such as taking care of the sick and 
 helping those that are in great need. Should a mem- 
 ber be sick, or rather an invalid, 40 weeks, then his 
 beneficiary claim ends; his case is considered one of 
 chronic illness, and he has no longer any claim upon 
 the society. When a member dies, $30 is given to 
 the family of the deceased for funeral expenses, and 
 one dollar is assessed on each member for their ben- 
 efit. They have a large hall fitted up for their use 
 and have about 50 members. Their financial standing 
 is good and they are as a society, prosperous. Pres- 
 ent .officers : John B. Andrews, President; David 
 Woelber, V. P. ; German Leins, Secretary ; P. D. 
 Good, Financial Secretary ; Reimer Lahann, Treas- 
 urer. 
 
 Supreme Council, Order of the Golden Rule. This 
 order had its inception in Monmouth and was incor- 
 porated under the general corporation act, approved 
 April 18, 1872, with the following officers: O. S. 
 Barnum, S. P. ; John Troutman, S. S. ; W. B. Young, 
 S. T. ; J. H. Wallace, S. M. D. ; T. S. Stamps, S. D. 
 
 As this is a new order it may not be inopportune to 
 
 mention its objects. Like most societies, it is se- 
 cret in its government, with signs of recognition and 
 insignia of office. It aims to unite all persons of a 
 moral character into a social, benevolent and frater- 
 nal society, with the principles of the Golden Rule 
 as its foundation, and to aid its members in the 
 struggles of life in any way that may be suggestive 
 by common feelings of humanity. The Order also 
 proposes to establish a fund by voluntary contribu- 
 tion for the benefit of widows and orphans of de- 
 ceased members. Another feature of this Order is 
 the extending to women the privilege of meeting the 
 men of the country in the halls of secret organiza- 
 lions. It is beneficiary in its operations, afford- 
 ing an opportunity to its members in case of death 
 of leaving a very liberal provision to their families or 
 heirs; also of receiving a certain annuity while liv- 
 ing. Since this order was established there has been 
 several organized in different parts of the State. 
 
 Order of the Golden Rule, Council No. i. This 
 council was instituted March 20, 1884, with 92 char- 
 ter members. First officers were W. C. Norcross, C. 
 H. ; V. H. Webb. C. C. ; D. C. Barnes, C. Capt. ; A. 
 G. McDowell, C. G. ; James Westerfield, F. G.; 
 Frank Downer, S. G. ; David J Parrel, Sentry ; D. 
 E. Ward, Secretary ; Wm. G4endening, Treasurer. 
 This society meets at present in the Odd Fellows' 
 Hall and has a membership of upwards of 100. It 
 was the first local Lodge of this order organized. 
 
 Citizens' League of Warren County. This League 
 was organized in the spring of 1885, and was char- 
 tered July 2d following. There are six directors who 
 are named in the charter for the first year, to-wit : 
 J. Ross Hanna, Robert A. Wilson, W. H. McQuis- 
 ton, C. C. Secrist, Isaac Kirkpatrick and O. S. Bar- 
 num. The objects of this League are to enforce the 
 laws and ordinances enacted for the suppression of 
 the liquor traffic. Headquarters of this society is at 
 Monmouth. Its charter extends for 20 years. 
 
 Woman's Christian Temperance Union. The first 
 Woman's Christian Temperance Union of Monmouth 
 was organized in June, 1872, under the name of the 
 Monmouth Ladies' Temperance Society. Its objects 
 were the education of the old and young in the im- 
 portant truth that it is dangerous and morally wrong 
 to use intoxicating liquors as a beverage; also the 
 recovery of the fallen and the cultivation of sound 
 temperance sentiment. Signing the pledge and 
 
 ' 
 
7 68 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 paying 50 cents fee constitutes a membership. It 
 was the first woman's temperance organization in the 
 county, and was working efficiently 18 months be- 
 fore the Woman's Temperance Crusade was organ- 
 ized in Hillsboro, which was Dec. 23, 1873. When 
 the Illinois Woman's Christian Temperance Union 
 was organized in 1878, it at once became auxiliary 
 and has continued to be one of the most useful tem- 
 perance organizations in the State. In April, 1879, 
 another Woman's Christian Temperance Union was 
 organized in Monmouth, and by way of distinction 
 this Union has been known as the First Woman's 
 Christian Temperance Union. The Union elects 
 annually a President and Vice-President from each 
 Church in the city, a Corresponding and Recording 
 Secretary, Treasurer and Superintendent. The fol- 
 lowing branches of work are recommended by the 
 National and State Woman's Christian Temperance 
 Union : Band of Hope work, Sunday-school work, 
 scientific temperance work, evangelistic and press 
 work, yoang woman's work, work among foreigners, 
 colored people, prisons and jails, and temperance lit- 
 erature. Present membership, 144. This organiza- 
 tion has been useful in creating the strong temper- 
 ance sentiment which exists in Monmouth. 
 
 The Crusade Society. This is another temperance 
 organization, which was started May 10, 1879, with 
 Mrs. A. J. Herbert as President; Mrs. L. M. Reed, 
 Vice-President; and Mrs. H. J. Boyd, Secretary. 
 Mrs. D. Babcock is the present President, and the 
 Society has some 60 members. They hold their 
 meetings regularly, and are very energetic in their 
 endeavors to suppress the liquor traffic in the city of 
 Monmouth. 
 
 CHURCHES. 
 
 The First Presbyterian Church. The Schuyler 
 Presbytery, at their spring meeting in 1836, ap- 
 pointed Rev. Silas Riggs to organize the Presbyterian 
 Church in Warren County. At the September 
 meeting of the Presbytery, held at Monmouth some 
 years later, the committee reported the organization 
 of a society to be named the First Presbyterian 
 Church of Warren County. This was the first 
 Presbyterun organization effected in the county. In 
 October, 1839, it took the name of Fall Creek 
 Church. At this meeting of the Presbytery, when 
 the report of the organization of the Church was 
 
 made and accepted, Revs. Sill and Riggs were 
 appointed to supply the Church as often as they 
 could. The Fall Creek Church, with the consent of 
 its members, was dissolved Aug. 26, 1873. Its mem- 
 bership had run down to less than half a score, 
 owing to the fact that other organizations had been 
 formed, which supplied the wants of those living in 
 their vicinity. This was the outgrowth of the Mon- 
 mouth First Presbyterian Church. The Presbyte- 
 rian Church of Monmouth was organized Sept. 2, 
 1837, by Rev. L. G. Bell, who was appointed to the 
 work by the Schuyler Presbytery, at its meeting in 
 Macomb, April 12, 1837. It was organized with 16 
 members, all of whom being members of the First 
 Presbyterian Church of Warren County, were dis- 
 missed to enter the new Church. James P. Hogue 
 and Hamilton Roney were installed as Elders. The 
 following are the names of the first members : Nancy 
 Jenkins, Margaret Montgomery, Margaret Hogue, 
 Margaret Roney, James Brasselton, M. A. Marick, 
 Lydia Talbert, Mary A. Hogue, Eliza Andrews, 
 Thomas G. Hogue, Benjamin Hercules, Hamilton 
 Roney, and George P. and James P. Hogue. 
 
 The Church had supplies until September, < 
 1839, when they secured their first settled pastor, 
 Rev. Samuel Wilson. Revs. L. G. Stewart, M. 
 Hammer, James Stafford, W. K. Stewart and Jos. Gray 
 were the supplies. Mr. Wilson's services were ter- 
 minated by his death, which occurred Aug. 15, 1847. 
 During his pastorate 67 members were added to 
 the Church. Up to 1842 this society had no church 
 building, but held their services in different places, 
 sometimes in a store, sometimes in the old American 
 hotel and at priyate houses. On the i7th day of 
 April, 1842, Theodore Cobur* and his wife gave a 
 deed conveying to the trustees of the Church lot 6, 
 in block 32, old to.vn plat of Monmouth, upon which 
 a church building was constructed at a cost of about 
 $800. This they used as a place of worship until 
 1851, when the building was taken down and the 
 brick sold to James Hill. In 1848 the Rev. William 
 F. Ferguson became the supply of the Church, serv- 
 ing it until 1851. It was very hard times in those 
 days, but this zealous congregation was resolved to 
 have a new house of worship. During the year 
 1851 many of the congregation, aided by their pastor, 
 were engaged in hauling lumber from Oquawka for 
 the new building. That season was a wet one, and 
 it was impossible to get the lumber to their church 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 769 
 
 building. During the construction of their new 
 edifice they were tendered the use of the Method- 
 ist building every alternate Sabbath. In the latter 
 part of December, 1851, Rev. Robert C. Mathews, 
 a talented young man from the South, was called and 
 Engaged to preach for them for three months. He 
 was subsequently engaged and served the Church 
 until death took him away, Nov. 15, 1879." (See bi- 
 ography in this volume). Mr. Mathews did more to 
 harmonize the discordant elements among the vari- 
 ous Churches of this community, by his Christian 
 spirit and his great devotion to his Master's work, 
 than all the other clergymen together. 
 
 "In his duty, prompt at every call, 
 
 He watched and wept, he prayed and felt for all." 
 
 In 1852 the edifice was so far completed as to en- 
 able the congregation to hold their meetings in the 
 basement. It was finished and dedicated in 1853. 
 It cost about $3,000. In 1863 the church building 
 was enlarged by the addition of 22 feet to the length 
 of it, at a cost of $1,500. In 1876 the society de- 
 termined to erect a larger and more commodious 
 edifice, and for this purpose a building dommittee 
 was appointed. They were unable to raise the nec- 
 essary funds that year, however, but secured the lots 
 for the building, for which they paid $(,350. The 
 matter rested here until the early part of 1880, when 
 measures were again taken to raise funds to go on 
 with the work. A portion of the money necessary 
 was raised, and in October the contract was let. 
 The contract price was $14,700, the building to be 
 completed by October, 1881. To give more room an 
 additional lot was purchased, at a cost of $150. The 
 building was completed and dedicated May 7, 1882. 
 The total cost of the building, with lots, furniture, 
 organ, etc., was $21,058.83. The pipe organ cost 
 $1,350. The edifice is a large handsome structure 
 of Gothic architecture ; the walls are built of brick 
 trimmed with stone, and rest on a stone foundation. 
 The auditorium is 48x84 feet, and is very neatly fin- 
 ished. In the basement there is a lecture-room, 
 parlor, a Sunday-school room, a study and a kitchen. 
 The whole building is heated by a furnace. 
 
 In 1881 the Rev. A. H. Dean, the present pastor, 
 was called and took charge. The Church is now out 
 of debt and is prosperous, having 350 members and 
 a large and interesting Sunday-school. The latter 
 was started in 1838. In 1864 it was divided into 
 three departments, the Bible class, intermediate and 
 
 infant. Each department has its separate room. 
 The total membership of the Church since its or- 
 ganization numbers 987. From this Church and 
 Sabbath-school 12 persons have entered the minis- 
 try. Two of this number became Missionaries to 
 foreign countries. 
 
 The Methodist Episcopal Church of Monmouth. 
 As the organization of this Church was the com- 
 mencement of Methodism in the county, and a 
 great deal of the early history of the Church is con- 
 nected with this society as well as the general early 
 pioneer life of the county, a somewhat extended ac- 
 count of the history of this Church is given. Abraham 
 Swartz came into Warren County in April, 1829, 
 and located near Monmouth. The county was then 
 new and there were not more than a dozen families 
 then residing in it, and Mr. Swartz and wife 
 were the only Methodists; and as a few Methodists 
 had settled in Knox County, Mr. Swartz and his wife, 
 in order to be with his Church people, left Warren 
 County and moved into Knox, which left the former, 
 without a Methodist. Field Jarvis settled at the 
 head of Ellison Creek in the summer of 1829, and, 
 in the winter following, John F. Eberman, whose ^ 
 wife was a Methodist, came in and settled near Mr. J 
 Jarvis. Daniel McNeil Jr., settled at what was then 
 Yellow Banks (Oquawka), in 1830. Jonathan Buf- j 
 fun settled at Cedar Creek the same year. Nathan- 
 iel Hopper, a young man, with his father, settled 
 near by in the spring of 1831. Jacob Mills, a 
 brother of Mr. Mills of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, came from the East in the autumn of 1831, 
 and rode through the counties of Knox and Warren 
 for some three months, preaching wherever he could 
 get a hearing. These were nearly the only meetings 
 in Warren County of the Methodists until the au- 
 tumn of 1832, when Elder Barton Randall was sent 
 as a circuit preacher on the mission. The first 
 quarterly meeting of the mission was held in Knox 
 County, at which time Thomas Pearce and Daniel 
 McNiel, Jr., were appointed as Stewards of Warren 
 County. The second quarterly meeting was ap- 
 pointed to be held at Thomas Pearce 's residence, 
 March 18, 1833. The weather was cold and blus- 
 tering, and the Methodists were so scattering that 
 no person attended, and the meeting was dismissed 
 by the preacher. 
 
 The third quarterly meeting was held in June, 
 1833, at the house of Mr. Samuel Jamison, five miles 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 south of Yellow Banks, in Henderson County, at 
 which meeting the Presiding Elder, Peter Cart- 
 wright, attended and presided. On Sunday the sac- 
 rament was administered for the first time in this 
 section. The weather was fine and some of the 
 members had traveled 30 miles in order to be pres- 
 ent. There was a general turn out from all parts of 
 this county. At this meeting three children were 
 baptized, ten persons joined the Church on trial, and 
 the seven following named members surrounded the 
 table of the Lord and partook of the emblems of His 
 body and blood shed for them: Barton H. Cart- 
 wright, Robert Bell, Thomas Pearce, Daniel Mc- 
 Neil, Field Jarvis, Elisha Griffith and his wife. 
 
 There were at this time a number of preaching 
 places in Warren County. A class was formed at 
 Brother Pearce's, called at that time Bowling Greeni 
 and one at Jamison's Settlement, yet there were few 
 names returned belonging properly to this county. 
 In the autumn of 1833, the Conference appointed 
 
 [Rev. D. R. Trotter, as circuit preacher. In 1834, 
 a class was formed in Monmouth and one at the 
 head of Ellison Creek, while the old classes at Bowl- 
 "ing Green and Jamison's Settlement grew a little 
 land the mission, upon the whole, prospered so that 
 Brother Trotter, at the annual Conference of 1834, 
 l-held at Mt. Carmel, 111., urged the necessity of a 
 division of the mission. Knoxville Mission was 
 then formed out of Henderson River Mission and 
 included Knox and Henry Counties, while Hender- 
 son River Mission included Warren and Mercer 
 Counties. Rev. Barton H. Cartwright was appointed 
 to the Knoxville Mission and Rev. Peter R. Boerin 
 to the other. Brother Boerin taking sick, Rev. Bar- 
 ton H, Cartwright was ordered to take charge of 
 both Missions. 
 
 In the summer of 1830, Daniel McNeil, Jr., 
 opened a Sunday-school about two miles from the 
 Yellow Banks, which continued for about three 
 months. He had in this school about 16 scholars. 
 The next year he opened a Sunday-school in the 
 Court-house at Monmouth, but it was discontinued 
 for want of help. In 1832 the school was again 
 opened in Monmouth under more propitious circum- 
 stances, but the Indian disturbances broke up the 
 school for a time. 
 
 Rev. Asa D. West, who settled in Monmouth, in 
 1834, was the first local minister of any rank who 
 
 settled in Warren County, except Barton H. Cart- 
 wright, who was licensed to exhort and then licensed 
 to preach. In 1834, there were in Warren County 
 eight preaching places, one local elder, one local 
 preacher, three class leaders, and about 50 Church 
 members. Rev. Asa D. West, George Pearce, Field 
 Jarvis, Nathaniel Hopper and Daniel McNeil con- 
 stituted the first Board of Trustees for Monmouth, 
 who were elected Dec. 13, 1834, when there was 
 neither church nor parsonage buildings in Monmouth, 
 and but little prospect of having any very soon. At 
 the next Conference, held in 1835, Rev. Justus 
 Woodworth was appointed for this circuit. In Octo- 
 ber, 1836, the Henderson River and the Knoxville 
 Missions were discontinued, and the two Missions 
 were formed into a circuit called the Knoxville Cir- 
 cuit, in the Quincy District, and Rev. Joel Haring- 
 ton was appointed preacher. 
 
 At a Quarterly Conference held at Knoxville, in 
 June, 1837, Thomas Jones, Justus Woodworth, Dan- 
 iel McNeil, Alfred Allen and Jesse Coleman were 
 appointed Trustees to build a meeting house at 
 Monmouth. 
 
 In the fall of 1837, Rev. Henry Summers was 
 made Presiding Elder, Rev. Chauncy Hobert, 
 preacher in charge. 
 
 At the Annual Conference of 1838, Rev. Asa D. 
 West was appointed to take charge. In the Annual 
 Conference held in October, 1839, the .Knoxville 
 Circuit was divided, the line of Warren and Knox 
 Counties to be the division line. There were at this 
 time about 550 members in the circuit, or about 275 
 members in each of the counties of Warren and 
 Knox. Rev. William H. Clark was appointed circuit 
 preacher. The first Quarterly Conference for Mon- 
 mouth Circuit, was held at the head of Ellison 
 Creek, near New Lancaster, on the i6th day of No- 
 vember, 1839. There were present Revs. N. G. 
 Berryman, William H. Clark, Asa D. West, and Local 
 Elder, Joseph Williams. The next Conference re- 
 turned Mr. Clark to Monmouth Circuit. Rev. 
 William Haney was afterward placed in charge, Mr 
 Clark having taken sick. At the Annual Conference 
 in 1841, Rev. Zadock Hall was appointed circuit 
 preacher. 
 
 The Illinois Conference, held in August, 1842, 
 formed a new district called Peoria, and appointed 
 Rev. A. E. Phelps, Presiding Elder. The Method- 
 
WARREN COUNTY 
 
 ist chapel was so far completed that on Sept. 23, 
 1842, it was opened for worship. 
 
 William Justice succeeded Brother Royal, and 
 John Morey followed Brother Justice. In 1844, 
 Richard Haney was appointed Presiding Elder. In 
 1845, Rev. Barton H. Cartwright was appointed to 
 take charge. In 1846, Rev. William Haney was the 
 preacher in charge. At this time Monmouth Circuit 
 embraced Monmouth, Oquawka, Olena, Warren, El- 
 lison, Stringtown, Berwick, besides several other 
 preaching places. 
 
 In 1847, Monmouth was placed in the Rock Island 
 Circuit, with the Rev. John St. Clair, Presiding El- 
 der, Joseph O. Gilbert, preacher in charge. In the 
 fall of 1848, the district was again changed, so that 
 Monmouth Circuit was in the Knoxville District, with 
 John Morey, Presiding Elder ; James Taylor, preach- 
 er in charge. In answer to tha question as to the 
 number and condition of the Sabbath-schools in the 
 first Quarterly Conference for the year, held at Mon- 
 I mouth, Sept. 30, 1848, it was said that there are none 
 I on the circuit. At the Fourth Quarterly Conference 
 it was reported that there was one Sunday-school on 
 
 Ithe circuit. At the Annual Conference, Rev. B. Ap- 
 plebee was appointed preacher in charge. He was 
 returned for the second year. Brother Applebee 
 seems to have been the first preacher who served 
 the Church here two years in succession, and judg- 
 ing from the increase of the number of Sunday- 
 schools in the circuit during his first year, the 
 appointment was a good one. At the Quarterly Con- 
 ference held at Ellison, Sept. 7, 1850, the report 
 showed the number of schools to be 1 1 ; officers 
 and teachers, 96; scholars, 300. 
 
 In 1851 the Monmouth Circuit was divided so as 
 to leave Berwick and Ellison to another circuit. 
 James F. Chaffee was appointed to the Monmouth 
 Circuit, Feb. 21, 1852. In 1853 Monmouth was 
 made a station, with Rev. John P. Brooks in charge. 
 The first quarterly meeting for Monmouth station 
 was held Oct. 23, 1852. At this meeting the Su- 
 perintendent of the Sunday-school reported that the 
 Sunday-school was in an extremely critical condi- 
 tion, and witho at efficient co-operation of the Church 
 it must cease to exist. At the next Conference Rev. 
 B. C. Swarts was appointed preacher in charge, and 
 at the next Rev. Richard Haney was appointed Pre- 
 siding Elder, and H. Richey preacher in charge. In 
 
 1855 Brother Elijah House succeeded H. Richey. 
 In the fall of 1856 Rev. J. Soule was stationed at 
 Monmouth, with Rev. R. N. Morse as Presiding El- 
 der The Rock River Conference was divided, and 
 Monmouth placed in the Peoria Conference. During 
 1857 $6,200 were secured on subscription to build a 
 church. The lot was purchased where the building 
 now stands, and the work on a new edifice com- 
 menced. Rev. A. D. McCool succeeded Rev. J. 
 Soule. In the spring of 1858 the old church build- 
 ing was sold, and the basement of the new one used 
 for worship. At the Conference held in 1858, Rev. 
 Henry Summers was appointed Presiding Elder. 
 In 1859 the name of the Conference was changed 
 from Peoria to Central Illinois Conference, and the 
 name of Monmouth given to the district. Rev. R. 
 
 C. Rowley was appointed for Monmouth station, 
 Rev. O. C. Price was sent to Monmouth as pastor 
 and Rev. John Morey succeeded Rev. H. Summers 
 as Presiding Elder for Monmouth district, in the fall 
 of 1 86 r. Rev. John P. Brooks was appointed next 
 to succeed Rev. O. C. Price, but having been elected 
 Superintendent of Public Instruction, he resigned 
 the charge. Rev. J. Tubbs was appointed to fill 
 out the term, ; Rev. C. Springer was sent to Mon- 
 mouth, and Rev. Francis Smith appointed as Pre- 
 siding Elder. In 1865 Rev. J. S. Cummings was 
 appointed to the charge at Monmouth, and at the 
 close of this year was made Presiding Elder at 
 Onarga district and Rev. E. Wasmuth appointed 
 to Monmouth, with Rev. W. H. Hunter as Presiding 
 Elder. Mr. Wasmuth remained three years, being 
 the first pastor to remain on the charge that length of 
 time. In the fall of 1868 he was succeeded by Rev. 
 A. Magee, with Rev. Richard Haney Presiding El- 
 der. In 1870 Rev. P. Warren was appointed pastor 
 of Monmouth station. He was succeeded by Rev. 
 G. Evans, who remained until the fall of 1872, and 
 was succeeded by Rev. William Underwood. Mr. 
 Underwood was followed by Rev. S. Jones, and Rev. 
 J. S. Cummings Presiding Elder. Mr. Jones re- 
 mained two years and was succeeded by Rev. John 
 
 D. Smith. During Mr. Jones' term the parsonage 
 was erected, at a cost of $r,8co. Mr. Smith re- 
 mained two years and was followed by Rev. J. S. 
 Cummings, and A. K. Falis was appointed Presiding 
 Elder. In 1880 Rev. S. W. Barnes was sent in 
 charge, remaining two years, when he was followed 
 by Rev. R. G. Pearce, who remained one year and 
 
772 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 was succeeded by Rev. G. R. Palmer, who remained 
 one year, when, on account of failing health, he 
 was obliged to resign. In May, 1885, Rev. George 
 C. Wilding was transferred from the West Virginia 
 Conference and stationed at Monmouth. He is the 
 present pastor, and Rev. M. C. Bowlens the Presid- 
 ing Elder of the district. When Mr. Wilding took 
 charge of the Church he found it in rather a disor- 
 ganized condition, and in some financial embarrass- 
 ment. He has re-stored harmony in the Church and 
 also pat it in a good financial condition. The mem- 
 bership of the Church at present is 304. 
 
 The Trinity Episcopal Church was organized as a 
 Mission July 15, 1878, with 13 members. The ves- 
 try were co nposed of W. P. Rupp, John W. Litten 
 E. I. Camm and V. H. Webb. The church building 
 was erected in 1883, and was consecrated on the 
 22d of November, of the same year. The corner- 
 stone of this chapel was laid July 3d, and com- 
 pleted at a cost of $3,600, including lot. This soci- 
 ety has been supplied by Rev. George H. Higgins, 
 of Galesburg, C. W. Leffingwell and E. H. Rudd, of 
 Knoxville. Service once a month. During the in- 
 terval lay service is held by Rev. V. H. Webb. The 
 first installed clergyman was Rev. W. F. Lloyd, serv- 
 ing 18 months, commencing January, 1881. Follow- 
 ing Mr. Lloyd was Rev. E. H. Rudd, with monthly 
 service. He served one year and was succeeded by 
 Rev. R. G. Walker, who remained with the Church six 
 months, with service every Sunday. Following Mr. 
 Walker was Mr. Rudd, who served uniil September, 
 1884, and was the last regularly installed pastor, 
 Rev. V. H. Webb, who was ordained a Deacon June 
 23, 1885, has had charge of the Church. Since his 
 installment there has been regular service every Sun- 
 day, either by a clergyman or a lay-reader. Present 
 communicant membership, 35. A Sunday-school 
 is connected with the Church numbering 50 schol- 
 ars. Mr. Webb presides over this school. The 
 present vestry is V. H. Webb, E. I. Camm, John S. 
 Spriggs, James R. Marshall and E. C. Morgan. 
 
 United Presbyterian Church. The first society of 
 this Church was organized May 9, 1853, by Rev. 
 Robert Ross, with 21 members. It was organized 
 in the south room of the Academy, where they held 
 their services until 1856, when they used the old 
 College Chapel. Rev. D. A. Wallace, from East 
 Boston, Mass., was their first regular pastor, who was 
 
 installed the first Sabbath in October, 1856. Mr. 
 Wallace served the Church until 1860, when he was 
 succeeded by Rev. Alex. Young, who had charge 
 until 1862. Rev. D. G. Bradford accepted a call 
 and commenced his services Nov. 26, 1863, and con- 
 tinued until August, 1867, when he resigned. In the 
 spring of 1868 Rev. R. B. Ewing took charge of the 
 Church and remained until June i, 1870. Rev. J. 
 G. Barnes was the next pastor, who entered upon his 
 duties the second Sabbath in May following, and 
 served the society until he died, which was in 1880. 
 Mr. Barnes was succeeded by Rev. P. H. Hanna, 
 the present pastor. The first house of worship for 
 this congregation was completed in 1858 and was 
 dedicated July 4th, the same year. They had at the 
 dedication a union service, Rev. John Scott deliver- 
 ing the first address. It was a frame building, cost- 
 ing about $6,000. They have a membership at 
 present of 436, with a Sabbath-school numbering 250 
 scholars. A committee has been recently appointed 
 to take into consideration the construction of a new 1 
 church edifice in the near future. 
 
 Second United Presbyterian Church was organized^ 
 Oct. 25, 1862, by Rev. D. A. Wallace and Elders'! 
 Wm. Goudy and W. J. Thompson, with a member- 
 ship of 19. At a meeting of the congregation, Nov. 
 12, 1862, it was decid.d to call Rev. Alex. Young 
 and D. A. Wallace as pastors. The call was ac- 
 cepted and the Church was served by these gentle- 
 men for several years. At the close of the year, 
 1868, Mr. Wallace retired and Mr. Young was 
 retained as pastor, and remained with the society 
 until July, 1871. The first service of the Church, 
 and all the meetings were held at the residence of 
 Mr. A. Y. Graham, until June, 1863. From this 
 date on, and until their church building was com- 
 pleted, the meetings were held in the College Chapel. 
 Their house of worship was completed in the spring 
 of 1867. It was a frame structure, built on the site 
 of the present edifice, and cost about $to,ooo. It was 
 torn down to make room for the new church in the 
 fall of 1879. The new building was completed in, 
 1880, and dedicated Dec. i2th, of the same year, 
 by Rev. W. T. Campbell, assisted by Revs. Alex. 
 Young, D. M. Ure and J. B. McMichael. Mr. Young 
 was succeeded by Mr. Ure, August, 1872, who 
 served as pastor until August, 1874. November 28, 
 Rev. W. T. Campbell received a call, which he ac- 
 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 773 
 
 cepted, and on Feb. 28, 1875, was duly installed as 
 pastor. 
 
 The present edifice is situated on the corner of 
 East Garden and College Streets, and was completed 
 at a cost of about $20,000, in 1880, and was dedica- 
 ted Sept. 12, the same year. It is a large, commo- 
 dious brick structure, with an auditorium 54 x 84 
 feet, and is well finished. In the basement there is 
 a lecture room, two Sunday-school rooms, a study 
 and a kitchen. The building is heated by a furnace. 
 Mr. Campbell is the present pastor and has a con- 
 gregation numbering 350 souls. A Sunday-school 
 numbering 255 pupils is one of the interesting fea- 
 tures of this Church. In connection there is a 
 Ladies' Missionary Society, who are laboring for the 
 salvation of the heathen. 
 
 Christian Church of Monmouth. Soon after the 
 village of Monmouth was laid out it was found that 
 20 believers in this faith resided adjacent to the 
 town, and, on the 3ist day of March, 1839, a meet- 
 f ing was called for the purpose of organizing a con- 
 gregation. At that meeting Elders Pliny and Livy 
 1 Hatchett and James R. Ross were present and as- 
 7 sisted in forming an organization. Elijah Davidson 
 was chosen Clerk and Deacon, and Alexander Da- 
 vidson, Elder. There were 19 members forming 
 this first congregation : Hezekiah Davidson, Eleanor, 
 Alexander and Rachel Davidson, William C. and 
 Ann Hall, William C. and Rebecca Butler, James 
 S. Hodgens, Jacob L. and Nancy Burgan, Elijah, 
 Nancy, Gamelia Ann, Solomon S., Thomas H., Eliz- 
 abeth and William B. Davidson. During the year 
 1839 several meetings were held, at which the ques- 
 tion of building a house of worship was discussed, 
 and a committee appointed to secure funds for this 
 purpose, the result of which was that a church build- 
 ing was erected, at a cost of some $800. It was a 
 frame structure, and located on the northeast corner 
 of the block upon which the Baldwin House now 
 stands. On the igth of April, 1843, a meeting was 
 called to choose additional officers, when Elijah 
 Davidson and James Hodgens were chosen Elders, 
 and John H. Sparling, Solomon S. Davidson and 
 David Smith, Deacons. On the 4th of November, 
 1843, N. A. Rankin, Elijah Davidson and Ira F. M. 
 Butler were chosen Trustees. In 1861 a new build- 
 ing was erected and dedicated by Rev. Isaac Errett, 
 of Cincinnati, who delivered an able address on the 
 occasion. The present number of members is 136. 
 
 The Church has enjoyed many seasons of prosperity, 
 adding largely to its membership, but emigration 
 westward has from year to year depleted its num- 
 bers. Since the organization services have been held 
 every Sunday morning and evening, and a prosper- 
 ous Sunday-school is connected with the Church, 
 which was organized about the time the congregation 
 ,was. The following pastors have served the Church 
 since its organization : Revs. Pliny and Livy Hatchett, 
 James R. Ross, Alex. Davidson, A. J. Kane, James E. 
 Gaston, T. J. Matlock, John Errett, Lawrence S. 
 Wallace, John LaGrange, J. M. Williams, A. P. 
 Aten, F. M. Bruner.'N E. Corey and J. W. Kelsey, 
 who is the present pastor. They have a plain, neat 
 and substantial church building, and the congrega- 
 tion is in a thriving condition. 
 
 The Third United Presbyterian Church of Mon- 
 mouth, was organized in May, 1868. During this 
 year a church building was put up at a cost of $2,- 
 500. Rev. John N. Henderson was the first pastor, 
 and served the Church untill 1872. They had sup- 
 plies then until 1874, when Rev. Daniel Inches as- 
 sumed the pastoral duties, and remained until Au- 
 gust, 1876. At this time the Church was disbanded 
 by the Presbytery. A Union Mission School has 
 been organized here which is under the control of 
 the Second United Presbyterian Church. Mr. H. 
 H. Bell is Superintendent of this school, and has 
 about 175 scholars. 
 
 Unity Church. This society was organized in 1882 
 under the auspices of the members of the Unitarian 
 and Universalist Churches, with Rev. Arthur Bevis 
 as their preacher. They purchased the old Presby- 
 terian building and used that as a house of worship. 
 There were about 25 members at the formation of 
 this society. Mr. Bevis remained two years when he 
 was succeeded by Rev. C. K. Gibson, who remained 
 until June, 1885, when he terminated his relations 
 with the society. Since Mr. Gibson left they have 
 had no pastor, and it is doubtful if they will ever 
 have another, as the organization was effected only 
 by great effort on the part of a few of its members. 
 
 The Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Church of the 
 Augustana Synod, was organized in 1859 by Rev. T. 
 N. Hasselquist, then pastor of the Lutheran Church 
 at Galesburg, 111. The members of this first organ- 
 ization were as follows: John Beck. Mons Cassel, 
 Ake Nelson, Louis Nelson, James Olsson, James 
 Skibber, Olof Johnson, Truls Swensson, Jorgen Han- 
 
774 
 
 WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 sen and their families. Services were held in private 
 houses by Rev. T. N". Hasselquist, until 1866. 
 From 1866 to 1868 they were conducted by Rev. A. 
 W. Dahlston. During this year the Church was re- 
 organized and services were held in the Court House, 
 in the basement of the Presbyterian Church, and 
 also in the second story of John Beck's shoe store. 
 In 1870, the church edifice was erected at a cost of 
 about $1,600, and in 1871 it was dedicated. From 
 1870 to 1875 services were conducted by the Rev. 
 N. T. Winquist and other ministers in the vicinity. 
 The first installed pastor was Rev. A. V. Holmgren, 
 who took charge of the congregation in 1876. He 
 was succeeded in 1877 by Elias Peterson, who left in 
 1878. From thence until 1885, services were con- 
 ducted by professors and students from the Theo- 
 logical Seminary in Rock Island, 111. On July i, 1885, 
 Rev. J. E. Floren took charge and is the present pas- 
 tor. Mr. Floren was born in Sweden, in 1859, and 
 came to this country, in 1872. He was graduated 
 at Augustana College, in 1^83, and at the Theolo- 
 gical Seminary at Rock Island, in 1885 ; and was or- 
 dained in Rockford, 111., June 28, 1885. Under the 
 administration of this 'talented young man this 
 Church is rapidly increasing in numbers and stand- 
 ing. They have a Sabbath-school of about 30 mem- 
 bers. With the society there is a parsonage costing 
 about $1,500. 
 
 African Methodist Episcopal Church, was organ- 
 ized in 1868, in a hall on Main Street. Some 12 
 members were present at the organization, of whom 
 Francis and Zachariah Price and A. H. Knight were 
 the leaders. In 1869, they erected and dedicated 
 their house of worship, which cost, including lot, 
 about $800. They had supplies for several years, 
 when the Rev. S. F. Jones came in and took charge. 
 A large Sabbath-school is connected with this organ- 
 ization which belongs to the Circuit of Monmouth 
 and Macomb. They have at present about 35 mem- 
 bers, who are under the charge of Rev. W. G. Reyn- 
 hart. 
 
 African Baptist Church, was organized in 1865, 
 at the house of Mrs. Miller. They had only a few 
 members at the time of the organization. Rev. J. C. 
 Graves was their first pastor. Two years later they 
 erected a church building at a cost of $1,500. At 
 present their membership numbers 30, with Sabbath- 
 school of 35. They have no regular pastor but are 
 served by preachers from outside. 
 
 Immaculate Conception (Catholic) Church. Rev. 
 James Ryan was the pioneer Father of the Church 
 in this part of the country. Services were first held 
 after the manner of the primeval days, under a cot- 
 ton-wood tree about the center of what is now the 
 city of Monmouih. This service had this pleasing 
 feature it was voluntary and of choice, not forced 
 as of necessity, for fear of violence as in the days 
 when persecution was rank and dominant. This 
 little band of pilgrims representing some 15 families 
 assembled about thirty years ago, as stated, under the 
 cotton-wood tree, with Father Ryan from Galesburg 
 as their spiritual counsellor. They afterward held 
 their meetings in a. log cabin, the home of Stephen 
 Cannon ; subsequently in the Court House with Rev. 
 Michael Powers, the Missionary in charge. This 
 was a quarter of a century ago. While this society 
 was under the charge of Father Powers, the first 
 church building was completed, which was in 1864, 
 at a cost of $3,000. At this time there was a mem- 
 bership of 35 families. Soon after the completion of ^ 
 the church, Rev. D. Bowles took charge and was the 
 first resident pastor. He added to the Church prop- 
 erty by the purchase of a parsonage. Father Bowles 
 was succeeded by Rev. James Halpin, who founded J 
 the Churches at Alexis, Raritan and Keithsburg. The 
 membership was increased under Father Halpin's J 
 administration to 70 families. Rev. Thomas O'Far- 
 rell succeeded Mr. Halpin, remaining three years. 
 He was followed by Rev. William Murphy who 
 served the Church three years when he was suc- 
 ceeded by Rev. F. C. Duffy, the present pastor, who 
 took charge in 1883. Under Father Duffy's able 
 and energetic pastorate the present grand church 
 edifice was erected and the membership largely in- 
 creased. Lots were purchased on Broadway west 
 of the Court House at a cost of $3,75, upon which 
 the finest church structure in the country was erected, 
 costing $22,000. It was dedicated Oct. 5, 1884, by 
 Bishop Spaulding of Peoria. This is one of the 
 best constructed buildings in the county. Its archi- 
 tecture is graceful and complete in its style. The 
 ground was first tiled and then a cement bed was 
 made, upon which a stone foundation was built. The 
 superstructure is constructed of Chicago pressd brick 
 trimmed with Ohio stone. A graceful spire towers 
 up into the heavens, surmounting the whole. The 
 inside is neatly finished and furnished with beauti- 
 fully frescoed walls and ceiling. The altar is con- 
 
WARREN COUNTY. 
 
 775 
 
 structed with elegance and classical taste. The 
 present membership is about 150 families. 
 
 Baptist Church. As the ALBUM of Warren County 
 appears with the history of the Baptist Church at 
 Monmouth left out, we feel it a duty we not only 
 owe to our patrons, but to ourselves, to make the fol- 
 lowing statement and place the responsibility where 
 it properly belongs : The historian, in gathering up 
 material for Church history, called, as the natural 
 and first place to go, on the Pastor of this Church, 
 by whom he was referred to one of the Deacons of 
 the Church, who was Steward or Clerk, and had the 
 records. The Pastor knew but little about the 
 Church, having been Pastor, as he stated, only two 
 years and a half ! After repeated solicitations from 
 the Clerk, and much importuning, the historian was 
 obliged to leave the county without any data regard- 
 ing this Church, and with the belief that an account 
 of it was not desired by those in authority. After 
 leaving the county, the parties having the records of 
 the Church were further solicited by the historian 
 through the mails, for the necessary data, but with- 
 out success. Hence, having failed to procure any 
 information from the parries upon whom we had to 
 [ depend, and to such as we always look for infortn- 
 I ation regarding Churches, this Baptist Church has 
 no representation in this book. 
 
 MONMOUTH CEMETERY. 
 
 It would seem that when the people of Monmouth 
 
 first laid out grounds for the interment of their dead, 
 they did not expect their town to grow very much, 
 for they only set aside an acre for this purpose, and 
 in what is now the settled portion of the town. This 
 cemetery is now located in the northeast corner of 
 the southwest quarter of section 29. As a natural 
 sequence to the growth of the town, this ground was 
 in a few years all taken up and it became necessary 
 to have new and larger grounds. 
 
 In 1858, a new cemetery was raid out. It was lo- 
 cated on the northwest corner of the northeast quar- 
 ter of section 20. In 1880 an addition was made to 
 this from the southwest corner of the southeast quar- 
 ter of section 20. The ground now enclosed for the 
 cemetery embraces about 20 acres. It is rolling and 
 beautifully located, having rare natural advantages 
 for this purpose. 
 
 The interments here are more numerous than 
 would be supposed, calculating the time of its loca- 
 tion and the population. 
 
 There are many costly monuments, and most of 
 the tombstones display refinement and taste. The 
 lots are usually well cared for and in the season of 
 flowers,are adorned with those emblems which speak ' 
 to the heart and move it to deeper emotions than 
 the cold marble. 
 
 If some of the tombstones were righted, the grass 
 and weeds removed, and the unsightly fences around 
 the lots taken away, it would add much to the beauty 
 of this cemetery. 
 
Abbey, George 197 
 
 Adams, John 23 
 
 Adams, John Quincy 39 
 
 Adcock, Joseph W 618 
 
 ,. Adcock, William 640 
 
 Alexander, E. D 642 
 
 Alexander, J. E 484 
 
 Allard, David 400 
 
 Allen, Wm. A 512 
 
 Almond, Wm. S 255 
 
 Amos, James E 395 
 
 Anderson, Perry 502 
 
 Armstrong, A. W., M. D 418 
 
 Arthur, Chester A 99 
 
 Arthurs, James F 198 
 
 Atchison, Capt. E. C 454 
 
 Aylesworth, Flora A 388 
 
 Babcock, Draper 218 
 
 Babcock, Elijah C 221 
 
 Bagley, James 448 
 
 Bailey, J 261 
 
 Baldwin, Hiram 536 
 
 Baldwin, Jacob 411 
 
 Baldwin, M. S 587 
 
 Barber, J. W 215 
 
 Barnes, John 402 
 
 Beck, R. A 210 
 
 Beckner, George W 309 
 
 Bellinger, George W 576 
 
 Bengtson, Olof 268 
 
 Bennett, John 342 
 
 Bennett, Lorenzo 400 
 
 Bennett, Mrs. M. M 424 
 
 Beveridge, John L 171 
 
 Billings, A. B 318 
 
 Billingsley, David S 324 
 
 Bird, Daniel 230 
 
 Birdsall, P. D 654 
 
 Bissell, William H 151 
 
 Black, A. H 353 
 
 Blackburn Charles E. 596 
 
 Blayney, John C 534 
 
 Blodgett, Edward L 47* 
 
 BIythe, J. C .554 
 
 Bolon, J. W 457 
 
 Bond, J. W 189 
 
 Bond, Major John C 189 
 
 Bond, Jesse W 616 
 
 Bond, Shadrach m 
 
 Bond, W. G 485 
 
 Booth, Franklin 244 
 
 Boyd, Drury B 287 
 
 Boyd, Drury B 639 
 
 Boyd, W. T 260 
 
 Bradshaw, Charles O 286 
 
 Brent, David C 572 
 
 Brent,G. W 638 
 
 Brent, W. P 645 
 
 Brent. Paul 330 
 
 Brewer, J. W., M. D 604 
 
 Bristol, C. B 663 
 
 Brooks. Chester 249 
 
 Brooks, W. H 205 
 
 Bruen, John N 460 
 
 Bruington, George 648 
 
 Bruington, N. P 464 
 
 Bruner, George F 528 
 
 Buchanan, James 75 
 
 Bullman, Theodore F 507 
 
 Burchfield J. G 567 
 
 Burford, A 381 
 
 Burke, J.H 638 
 
 Burt,D. W 518 
 
 Bute, Cyrus 544 
 
 Byers, Jacob 253 
 
 Cable, Ezra 229 
 
 Cable, W. H 335 
 
 C alder, J 571 
 
 Caldwell, John 242 
 
 Campbell, James .431 
 
 Campbell, JohnP 199 
 
 Capps, I M 441 
 
 Capps, Orville 326 
 
 Capps, T. L 224 
 
 Carmichael, C. A 538 
 
 Car* J.O 317 
 
 Carson, Walter 505 
 
 Catt, Jesse 446 
 
 Cayton, A. J 494 
 
 Chapin, N. A 573 
 
 Chapman, A. A 369 
 
 Chapman, Orson G 299 
 
 Chatterton, Mrs. Sarah J 327 
 
 Christie, I.L 515 
 
 Clark, John S . . .763 
 
 Clarke, E. J 578 
 
 Clarke, T. S 501 
 
 Claycomb G. W S4 8 
 
 Cleveland, S. G rover 103 
 
 Coats, J. W 620 
 
 Coddingtonj John 472 
 
 Coghill, J. W 281 
 
 Coles, Edward '.115 
 
 Colver, Charles S 304 
 
 Conlee, J. W 667 
 
 Cowan, William. 583 
 
 Cowick, Levi B 202 
 
 Crandall, Emery H 360 
 
 Crane, S. B - .233 
 
 Crawford, S. K., M. D 650 
 
 Crosby, William 348 
 
 Cullom, Shelby M.... 175 
 
 Cummings, J. K 321 
 
 D 
 
 Davidson, J. W 664 
 
 Davis, L. B 503 
 
 Dawdy, W. H 644 
 
 Day, Coridon D 528 
 
 Diffenbaugh, Samuel 526 
 
 Dixson, Eli ; 646 
 
 Dixson, Stephen 359 
 
 Douglas, H . S 200 
 
 Douglas, Samuel 566 
 
 Douty, L. S 394 
 
 Duffey, Rev. F. C. 774 
 
 Duffield, David 366 
 
 Dull,C. M 270 
 
 Duncan, Joseph 131 
 
 Dunkle, D. D 595 
 
 E 
 
 Edelman, Leonard W 429 
 
 Edwards, Ninian 119 
 
 Edwards, William 406 
 
 Eldred, Arnold 431 
 
 Eldred, Sarah M 493 
 
 Eldredg, Truman 262 
 
 Elliott, R. A 651 
 
 Emans, E. P 276 ** 
 
 Evans, James A 279 
 
 Ewing, W. L. D 127 
 
 Field, J.I 341 
 
 Fillmore, Millard 67 
 
 Firoved, James P. 384 
 
 Fish, George W 303 
 
 Flake, John 666 
 
 Fletcher, Charles S 420 
 
 Ford, Thomas 139 
 
 Forwood, B. F 227 
 
 Frantz, H. M 234 
 
 Frantz, J. H 317 
 
 Frantz, W. H 195 
 
 Freeman, Mary K 637 
 
 French, Augustus C 143 
 
 G 
 
 Galbraith, James 532 
 
 Gallaugher, William 533 
 
 Galloway, C 667 
 
 Gardner, Benjamin H 481 
 
 Gardner, James 628 
 
 Garfield, James A 95 
 
Gerlaw.R. W 357 
 
 Gibson, R. A 629 
 
 Gibson, Samuel 607 
 
 Giddings, H. C 306 
 
 Gilliland, H. R 547 
 
 Gilliland, S 585 
 
 Gilmore, James T 291 
 
 Gilmore, J. H 587 
 
 Gilmore, L. H 270 
 
 Glasgow, James L 602 
 
 Glenn, Hon. John J 636 
 
 Godfrey, liurton 371 
 
 Gordon, John A 458 
 
 Gordon, N 577 
 
 Gossett, George 298 
 
 Gowdy, Joseph S 199 
 
 Graham, A. R 47= 
 
 Graham, D 668 
 
 Graham, J. R 275 
 
 Grabam, Samuel 552 
 
 Grant, Ulysses S 87 
 
 Grigg, John D, 294 
 
 Grooms, Samuel K 330 
 
 Guilinger, J. F. . . , 430 
 
 H 
 
 Hall, Frank L 554 
 
 Hall, Leonard 280 
 
 i Hall, Mrs. Mary 436 
 
 .HaII,M. W 557 
 Hall, Wm. E 583 
 Hallam, I). M 281 
 Hamilton, John M "79 
 
 Hamilton, Rev. G. W 658 
 
 Hamilton, S. M., M. D 316 
 
 Haney, Richard 581 
 
 Hanna, William 613 
 
 Hanna, J. R 505 
 
 Ha rdin, Chancy .. 363 
 
 Harding, H. G 491 
 
 Harding, Gen. A. C 541 
 
 Harrington, H. I.., M. D 487 
 
 Harrison, Wm. H t. 51 
 
 Hartman, J. T 608 
 
 Hayden, I). S 574 
 
 Hayden, Jacob 418 
 
 Hayes, Alfred . .306 
 
 Hayes, Rutherford li 91 
 
 Hebbard, C. A -.654 
 
 Heinzman, Frederick 659 
 
 Henderson, S. S 210 
 
 Henry, R. H 503 
 
 Hess, Thos. M., M. D 388 
 
 Hibbard, Luther C 486 
 
 Higgins, Capt. J. P 557 
 
 Hodgson, John 465 
 
 Hogan, H. M 300 
 
 Hogue.J.C 620 
 
 Holeman, H. 13 659 
 
 Hole man, Reuben 358 
 
 Holliday, W. S., M. D 524 
 
 Holloway, Robert 623 
 
 Holman, Perrine 360 
 
 Hoornbeek, Jeremiah ....... .315 
 
 Hoornbeek, Dr. Nathaniel B-445 
 
 Houlton, E. R 648 
 
 Houlton, F. R.. 190 
 
 Hughen, Elisha J 425 
 
 Huston, S. W 383 
 
 Howk, Capt. R. A 652 
 
 Ingcrsoll, Hiram 348 
 
 Irwin", James C 628 
 
 Ivey, John J 345 
 
 Jackson, Andrew 43 
 
 Jared, Israel 269 
 
 Jefferson, Thomas 27 
 
 Jenkins, Isaac 200 
 
 Jenks, W. B 206 
 
 Jewell, Henry L 436 
 
 Jewell, Jacob 578 
 
 Jewell, John 401 
 
 Johnson, Andrew 83 
 
 Johnson, Wm. D 597 
 
 Johnston, E. C 304 
 
 Jones, Furney 469 
 
 Jones, N. W 666 
 
 Jones, Parker S.. 498 
 
 Jones, Wm. P 365 
 
 K 
 
 Karns, Philip J 205 
 
 Kellogg, Oscar N 588 
 
 Kelsey, John 414 
 
 Kelsey, James 255 
 
 Kettering, Benj. T 323 
 
 Kidder, Almon 377 
 
 Kidder, Henry H 4 8 7 
 
 Kidder, Larnard 426 
 
 Kidder, Nathaniel 298 
 
 Kidder, William O 311 
 
 Kirby, I. B 198 
 
 Kir by, Joseph us 208 
 
 Klingingsmith, Mrs. Mary C.2o8 
 Kobler, G. J. 494 
 
 Laferty, Wm 440 
 
 Lahann, R 662 
 
 Lair, Wm. M 492 
 
 Lanphere, J. E 478 
 
 Lathrop, Julius T 275 
 
 Lee, Dr. J 407 
 
 Lester, Lambert 660 
 
 Lewey, Alfred 526 
 
 ^ewis, Hon . H . M 285 
 
 Jncoln, Abraham 70 
 
 .inn, E. C., M. D 413 
 
 >ippy, J. H 247 
 
 Evermore, Derrick 459 
 
 Lo rimer, John 655 
 
 Loudon, Wm. F 656 
 
 Lowther, John F 535 
 
 Lucas, J. C 217 
 
 Lusk, J- W 615 
 
 Lusk, Lem M 619 
 
 M 
 
 Madison, James 31 
 
 Maley, Levi 543 
 
 Malony, Joseph B 527 
 
 Marshall, Hugh, M.JD 601 
 
 Martin, Joseph .293 
 
 Martin, H ugh. . 342 
 
 Mather, Miss Desire E 382 
 
 Matson, W. St. Clair 516 
 
 Matthews, Rev. Robert C 522 
 
 M atteson , B . P 294 
 
 Matteson, Colby 223 
 
 Matteson, Joel A 147 
 
 Matthews, John W 537 
 
 McClanahan, John 653 
 
 McClannahan, j . A., M . D.286 
 McClanahan, John P., M . D. 55 i 
 
 McConnell, Rev. W. T 603 
 
 McCosh, George G 511 
 
 McCoy, William 523 
 
 McCurdy, R. W 288 
 
 MeKnight, John A 565 
 
 McMahill, George W 3S2 
 
 McMichael,J.B., A.M.,D.D.6o4 
 
 McNeil C 645 
 
 M cOniston James H 438 
 
 McWilliams, John T 419 
 
 M each am, F. W. 216 
 
 M each um, Harrison 322 
 
 Meacham, Wm 483 
 
 Meadows, Thomas 661 
 
 Meginnis, J. B 625 
 
 Miles, Henry C 568 
 
 Miles, John 497 
 
 Miller, John A 513 
 
 Miller, J. W 
 
 Miller, William D 563 
 
 Mitchell, William A 47 8 
 
 Mtnroe, James 35 
 
 Moore, Robert 647 
 
 M oore, Wm . V., Sr 279 
 
 Morey, G. W 330 
 
 Morford, Rebecca 248 
 
 Morgan, James W 574 
 
 Morris, A. K 626 
 
 Morris, F. K.,M. D 206 
 
 Morris. J. C 651 
 
 Morris, Easton 280 
 
 Morris, Thomas J 311 
 
 Morse, David E 577 
 
 Murdock, J. H 291 
 
 N 
 
 Nance, R. H . 649 
 
 Nash, J. IJ 625 
 
 Nesbit, John A 235 
 
 Nevins, J. R 446 
 
 Nicol, W J 352 
 
 Nisely, G. W .'420 
 
 777 
 
 O 
 
 Ogden, Rufus 435 
 
 Oglesby, Richard J 163 
 
 Osborn, Mrs. Mary 477 
 
 Owen, James 452 
 
 Owens, J. F 405 
 
 Paddock, Merrit 453 
 
 Page, Charles T 516 
 
 Paine, John Edward 407 
 
 Palmer, G . W 222 
 
 Palmer, John M 167 
 
 Palmer, Schuyler 259 
 
 Parker, A G 211 
 
 Parker, Barzillai 396 
 
 Parrish, P. R 417 
 
 Parry, Hon. D. D 235 
 
 Parsons, H. C 366 
 
 Patch, L. D 668 
 
 Patch, William 243 
 
 Pattee, Henry H 537 
 
 Patton, N. Thomas 433 
 
 Patterson, Hon . Azro. , 328 
 
 Patton, RobertS 558 
 
 Paxton, William S 476 
 
 Pearce, TheodoreC 354 
 
 Perry, L. B 310 
 
 Perry, Marvin 346 *c 
 
 Perry, Timothy P., Jr 525 
 
 Phelps, Delos Porter .591 
 
 Phelps, Porter 633 
 
 Phelps, DeWitt 315 
 
 Phillips, A. S.... 299 
 
 Pierce, C. H 640 
 
 Pierce, Clement 382 
 
 Pierce, Franklin 71 
 
 Pine, Frank J 546 
 
 Pine, Joseph 657 
 
 Pinkerton, Wm. M 644 
 
 Pittman, W. E., M. D 639 
 
 Polk, James K . . 59 
 
 Pollock, James F 438 
 
 Porter, Hon . John 626 
 
 Porter, Joshua 333 
 
 Porter, T. J 333 
 
 Porter, William E ..465 
 
 Porter, Wm 630 
 
 Parsons, Charles Henry 366 
 
 Postlewait, C. W 498 
 
 Pratt, IsaacL.... 641 
 
 Pressly, Wm, P 665 
 
 Pruitt, Willis 201 
 
 Q 
 
 (Juinby, Ivory .375 
 
 Randall. Asal I 1 556 
 
 Randall, O 370 
 
 A' 
 
778 INDEX. 
 
 9 
 Randall Dr William 64 
 
 Sawtell, Mrs. Jemima 228 
 
 Sykes, William P 267 
 
 Van Tuyl, Mrs. Elizabeth A. 495 
 
 Rankin, C. G 324 
 
 Rankin, George C 532 
 
 Seymour, A. G 212 . 
 Shaw D J 351 
 
 T 
 
 
 w 
 
 Wagy, Lemuel 448 
 
 
 
 Ray J C * 658 
 
 
 Ray M B 370 
 
 Sh Id ' H" 
 
 Ray Orville 565 
 
 Sh ' W'l 
 
 Taylor, Warren K., M. D. ..506 
 Teare, Henry 228 
 
 Rayburn, W. R 309 
 
 
 Reed, John T 442 
 
 Shultz, R. H 254 
 
 Reid, Andrew J 341 
 Rees M . S . . . 643 
 
 Shultz, C .254 
 
 
 Wallace, James H., M. D.... 5 2i 
 
 
 Reichard, John T 536 
 
 
 Thayer, George. .. 372 
 Thomas, Timothy -...218 
 
 Watson, James 598 
 Weakley, T. A 288 
 
 
 
 Reynolds, John 123 
 
 Simmons, Andrew W 482 
 
 Webster, John R., M. D 439 
 Weir, William S . 605 
 
 
 Rhinehart. D. W 211 
 
 Sisson, Asahel D. B 390 
 
 Thomson, James F 306 
 
 Whelan, J. S 66t 
 
 Riggs, Jesse 353 
 Ritchey, Andrew Jackson 389 
 'Roberts, Peyton 615 
 Roberts, Ransom 425 
 
 Smith, James 256 
 
 White, J. M 207 
 
 Tinkham, Joseph 423 
 
 Wickersham, E.I 236 
 
 Sofield, J. B 339 
 Sorenson, Frederick 451 
 
 Tinkham, Mrs. Cordelia A.. .585 
 
 Wilson, W. W 224 
 
 Trulock, Henry F. 402 
 Tucker, Rev. Anson 614 
 Tucker, John 657 
 
 Wonderly, John 247 
 
 Robinson, G. W 201 
 
 Soule, Melville C 553 
 
 Wood, John 155 
 Wood, Samuel 303 
 
 
 Speakman, William P 209 
 
 Turnbull, J. C., Sr 327 
 
 Wood, William 598 
 Wood, Cyrus J 197 
 
 Rockwell Alfred H -393 
 
 I H 
 
 lurnbull, Captain John M..6i7 
 
 Rockwell, Albert J 411 
 Rodgers, A 372 
 
 Spriggs, John S., Jr .535 
 Spriggs, John S., M. D 586 
 
 Tuttle, David 656 
 
 Woodward, Dr. Norwood S...424 
 Woodward, R. B 336 
 
 1 Rodgers, S. W 636 
 Rodgers, Hon. Calvin M 514 
 Rogers, Charles 514 
 
 Standley, James W. M.D... 5 88 
 Stark, William 353 
 
 Tyler, John 55 
 
 V 
 
 Van Arsdale, J B 378 
 
 Wray, Mrs. S.E 586 I 
 
 Y -< 
 
 > Rogers, Prof. Thomas H....5g6 
 1 Roney, Hercules 274 
 Russell, Charles E 423 
 
 
 Stewart, David B 488 
 
 
 
 Stewart, William K 250 
 
 
 Ryner, James S 466 
 
 s 
 
 Slice G W . . . 662 * 
 
 Van Gilder, David 312 
 Vanhoorebeke, Dr. A. G ...469 
 
 Yarde, Charles F. P 451 J 
 Yates, Richard 159 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Salter, John, Sr .. .548 
 
 
 Van Tasell, James W -62 
 
 VI R 
 
 Alexander, E. D 461 
 - Brooks. W. H 204 
 
 Forwood, B. F 246 
 Gerlaw, R. W 356 
 
 
 
 Mitchell, Wm. A 461 
 
 
 
 Buford, A 380 
 
 
 
 
 Calder. J 57 o 
 
 Haney, Mrs. M. E 438 
 
 Palmer, Schuyler 258 
 
 
 Parrish, Parker R 416 
 
 bisson, . J 296 
 
 Carson, William 450 
 
 
 
 
 Chapman, A. A ..368 
 
 
 Ray, N. B 368 
 
 
 Coats, Joshua W 416 
 Crane, S. B 232 
 Edelman, L. W 428 
 
 Jewell, Henry L 404 
 Lair, William M 428 
 
 Rayburn, W. R 308 
 
 
 Rees, M . S 474 
 
 
 Weakly, Thomas A 284 
 
 
 
 Rockwell, A. H 392 
 
 Frantz J H 258 
 
 
 Wonderly, John 246 
 
 Frantz, W. H 192 
 
 Matteson, Colby 220 
 
 < j 
 
 Roney, Hercules 272 
 
 Yarde, Aaron 474 
 
 
INDEX. 
 
 779 
 
 Adams, John 22 
 
 Adams, John Qumcy 38 
 
 Arthur, Chester A g8 
 
 I'everidge, John L 170 
 
 Bissell, Wm. H i so 
 
 Bolon, J. W 45 6 
 
 Bond,Maj.J.C 188 
 
 Bond, Shadrach no 
 
 Buchanan, James. 74 
 
 Byers, Jacob 252 
 
 Carlin, Thomas 134 
 
 Chatterton, L. B 326 
 
 Clarke, T. S 500 
 
 Cleveland, S. G rover 102 
 
 Coles, Edward 114 
 
 Cullom, Shelby M 174 
 
 Duncan, Joseph 130 
 
 Edwards, Ninian n8 
 
 (Evans, James 278 
 
 Ewing, Wm. L. D :2 6 
 
 Fillmore, Millard 66 
 
 Ford, Thomas 138 
 
 Forwood, I!. F ..226 
 
 Frantz, W. H 193 
 
 French, Augustus C 142 
 
 Gardner, B. H 480 
 
 Garfield, James A 04 
 
 Gilmore, J. T 290 
 
 .Grant, Ulysses S 86 
 
 Haney, Rev. Richard 580 
 
 Hanna, William 610 
 
 Harding, Gen.A.C 540 
 
 Harding, Harry G 490 
 
 Hardin, Chancy 362 
 
 Harrison, \Vm. H so 
 
 Hayes, Rutherford B go 
 
 Holloway, Robert - .622 
 
 Hoornbeek, Jeremiah 314 
 
 Hoornbeek, Dr. N. B 444 
 
 Jackson, Andrew 42 
 
 Jefferson, Thomas 26 
 
 Johnson, Andrew 82 
 
 Lincoln, Abraham 
 Madison, James 
 Matthews, R. C 
 M attcson, Joel A 
 McClanahan, Dr. J. P 
 McCosh, G. G 
 Monroe, James 
 Ogclen, Rufus 
 Oglesby, Richard J 
 Palmer, John M 
 Phelps, Delos P 
 Phelps, Porter 
 Pierce, Franklin 
 Polk, James K 
 Pratt, Isaac 
 Quinby, Hon. Ivory 
 Randall, Dr. William 
 Rankin, N. A 
 Reynolds, John 
 Rice, Thomas H 
 
 78 
 
 . . 30 
 523 
 146 
 550 
 510 
 
 34 
 434 
 162 
 166 
 590 
 632 
 
 70 
 
 58 
 640 
 374 
 648 
 214 
 122 
 386 
 
 Rockwell, A. J 410 
 
 Shaw, D . J 350 
 
 Sheldon , Wilson 530 
 
 Staat, Frances 238 
 
 Staat, Mrs. Margaretha 239 
 
 Stewart, Hon. James H 398 
 
 Swain, A. H 338 
 
 Sykes.Wm. P 264 
 
 Sykes, Anna 265 
 
 Taylor, Zachary 62 
 
 Terpening, John P 560 
 
 Tinkham, Joseph 432 
 
 Tyler, John 54 
 
 Van Buren, Martin 46 
 
 Vanhoorebeke, Dr. A. G 468 
 
 Wallace, Dr. J H 520 
 
 Washington, George 18 
 
 Wood, John 154 
 
 Wood, Hon. Samuel 302 
 
 Yates, Richard 158 
 
 INTRODUCTORY 665 
 
 EARLY SETTLEMENT 667 
 
 Organization of County 669 
 
 INDIAN HISTORY 672 
 
 The Black Hawk War 674 
 
 CIVIL GOVERNMENT 679 
 
 Board of Supervisors 682 
 
 TOPOGRAPHICAL 684 
 
 LEGAL HISTORY 685 
 
 Trial of the Murderers 
 
 of Wm Martin 686 
 
 Trial of Joe Smith 687 
 
 John Baxter 688 
 
 Brockner & McMahill 690 
 
 Probate Court 690 
 
 County Court 690 
 
 Judges 691 
 
 State's Attorneys 693 
 
 Members of the Bar 694 
 
 PUBLIC BUILDINGS 695 
 
 County Jail 695 
 
 County Poor Farm 697 
 
 WAR FOR THE UNION 698 
 WARREN COUNTY LI- 
 BRARY 702 
 
 RAILROADS 704 
 
 Chicago, Burlington & 
 Quincy R. R. 704 
 
 Central Iowa Railway 706 
 MISCELLANEOUS 707 
 
 County Officials 707 
 
 Educational Matters 709 
 Old Settlers' Association 709 
 
 Agricultural Fair 
 TOWNSHIPS 
 Berwick 
 Cold Brook 
 Ellison 
 Floyd 
 Greenbush 
 Hale 
 Kelly 
 
 710 
 711 
 711 
 
 7H 
 718 
 720 
 722 
 724 
 728 
 
 Lenox 
 Monmouth 
 Point Pleasant 
 Roseville 
 Spring Grove 
 Sumner 
 Swan 
 Tompkins 
 
 CITIES AND VILLAGES : 
 
 Berwick 
 Cameron 
 
 Ellison 
 
 Greenbush 
 
 Larchland 
 
 Roseville 
 
 Alexis 
 
 Gerlaw 
 
 Little York 
 
 Youngstown 
 
 Swan Creek 
 
 Kirkwood 
 
 CITY OF MONMOUTH 
 
 73 
 733 
 734 
 
 735 
 740 
 
 745 
 749 
 75 2 
 
 716 
 720 
 723 
 732 
 
 737 
 742 
 
 744 
 748 
 
 75' 
 75i 
 754 
 
3 
 
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m 
 
 v* *.- 
 
 
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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA 
 
 PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL ALBUM OF WARRE