USA > Illinois > A history of southern Illinois; a narrative account of its historical progress, its people, and its principal interests > Part 2
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94
John Ruf, Sr., married, in 1875, Josephine Hubert, a danghter of Jacob Hubert, who emigrated from Lorraine, France, his native city, in 1844, to Illinois, becoming one of the pioneer settlers of Clinton county. Eleven children were born of their union, namely : Josephine: Edwin Jacob, deceased ; John. Jr. ; Harry, deceased ; Elsa : Martha, wife of W. P. Hinkel; Ernest : Hubert, dercased : Paul and Brunoe, twins, deceased ; and Leo. Fraternally John Ruf, Sr., is a member of the Independent Or- der of Odd Fellows: of the Modern Woodmen of America, and of the Grand Army of the Republic.
John Ruf, Jr .. was educated in the public schools of Carlyle, where he was well drilled in the rudimentary branches of knowledge. Inheriting a love for journalism, he entered his father's printing office in 1596, and in course of time mastered the mechanical details of the printer's trade. Ile subsequently served with ability in different capacities, and since the ill- ness of his father has assumed the assistant editor's chair, which he is
1094
HISTORY OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
filling successfully. The Union Banner, an interesting and newsy paper, s Republican in politics, and under the efficient management of Mr. Ruf enjoys the largest circulation of any paper in Clinton county.
Mr. Ruf is free from domestie cares and tribulations, never having be- come a benedict, but he has led a busy and useful life, and being a man of liberal views, energetic and progressive, he is held in high esteem as a man and a citizen. He is an enthusiastic musician, playing the cornet and the clarinet, and is a member of the American Federation of Musi- cians. Fraternally Mr. Ruf belongs to the Ancient Free and Accepted Order of Masons and to the Mutual Protective League.
LEONIDAS J. MAY, M. D. Dr. May has been established in the town of Cobden, Union county, Illinois, ever since beginning his practice in 1905, and in that time has built up a fine practice and enjoys the confidence of the community to whose ills he has ministered so wisely. He is a con- stant student of his profession and is never ceasing in his efforts to keep in touch with the latest discoveries of the science to which he has elected to devote his life and to which so many of the greatest men the world has produced are devoting their powers. Dr. May, who is still to be counted of the younger generation, is a native son of Illinois, his eyes having first opened to the light of day in Marion, Williamson county. Ile is a son of Rev. G. W. May, a minister of the Cumberland Presby- terian church and well known for his ability and services in the high cause of his honored calling. The elder gentleman is a native of Jolin- son county and a son of William May, a native of Tennessee, who mi- grated to Johnson county and had the distinction of being one of the earliest settlers of Southern Illinois. He was prominent in the simple, friendly, wholesome and strenuous life of the new section and his good life has been recorded as a legacy to his descendants. He took as his wife a Miss Simpson, a member of another pioneer family. Four of the brothers of William May and four of his wife's brothers were soldiers in the Civil war, their sympathies being enlisted in the cause of the Union.
The youth of the Rev. G. W. May was passed in both Johnson and Williamson counties, the family removing to the latter when he was ten years of age. He married Sarah L. Davis, a native of eastern Tennessee. When she was nine years of age her parents migrated to Williamson county. The father was born in the year 1850 and has been a minister for twenty years, being at the present time located at Owensville, Indiana. He reared a family of six children, namely : Edna, now Mrs. MeLain. of Union county ; Ada Pearl, wife of Dr. Stewart, of Anna, Ilinois ; Myrtle (Barekmann ) ; Daisy (Cantwell ) : Cecil ( Wilder) ; and Leonidas .J.
Dr. May, immediate subject of this review, was edneated in part in the Marion schools, finishing nine school grades when fifteen years of age. Ile was for one year a student in the Anna high school and one year in that at Patoka, Indiana. Ile finished his classical education in Oak- land College, Oakland City, Indiana. in 1898. Meantime, however, he had been working at various occupations and his studies were frequently interrupted while earning a livelihood. The family was in modest cir- eminstances, as is proverbial with the families of ministers. When eleven years of age he was working on a farm near Cobden and first and last he did a good deal of work of this kind in the vicinity of Cobden. Later he engaged in sawmill work for three years in the vicinity of Anna, Ilinois. lle also worked in a brick plant in the Hoosier state for a year and in 1897 began teaching. His pedagogical services extended over a period of six years and included a year near Princeton, Indiana : two years in the Francisco high school ; three years as principal of the high school at Mon- roe City, Indiana. In the meantime he had come to the conclusion to make
1095
IHISTORY OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
the medical profession his own and while teaching pursued his studies in the Indiana State University at Bloomington, completing the course in two years. In the spring of 1902 he entered the Kentucky School of Medieine at Lonisville and studied for four years, graduating in 1905. While pursuing his studies in the Keystone state he was interne in the Louisville City Hospital. In October, 1905, he passed the Illinois state board examinations and immediately located at Cobden, where he has built up an excellent practice and where he enjoys the regard of the com- munity. He is affiliated with the Union county, the Illinois State and the American Medical Associations, and with the Masonic order at Cob- den. He is a Presbyterian in church faith.
Dr. May was happily married February 26, 1908, Miss Stella Stout. of Cobden, daughter of Henry P. and Susan ( Rich ) Stout, becoming his wife. They have a small sou, Robert Leon.
B. CLEMENS NIEBUR. One of the successful farmers of Clinton county. whose progressive views have done much for the section, is B. Clemens Niebur. When he came to Breese, Illinois, where he now resides, he found nothing but wild prairie land, while the town itself was only a tiny set- tlement of a few houses clustered around a church. With characteristic enterprise he first proceeded to get his land into proper condition for farming and then he turned his attention to the affairs of the town. In the position of supervisor of this township he accomplished much toward the building up of the country around Breese, and in looking now over the thriving eity one must remember the man who had a hand in its de- velopment.
B. Clemens Niebur was born in the province of Hanover, Germany, on the 12th of September, 1838. Ilis father, John Henry Niebur, was also a native of Hanover, the date of his birth being the 23rd of January, 1802. As a young man the father was a tenant farmer, carrying on at the same time a brisk trade in Holland. The commodities in which he dealt were an odd mixture, such as bacon and wooden shoes, cheese and clothing. At the age of thirty-two he was married to Gasina A. Mana. of the province of Hanover. His wife was born on the 23rd of Jamary, ISOS, and four children were born of this union. Joseph, Clemens. Christina and John. Excepting Clemens, John is the only one of the children now living. In 1852 Mr. Niebur immigrated to America, bringing the whole family. He bought two hundred aeres and located in Germantown township. a farm which he worked until his death on the 14th of September. 1882. Mrs. Niebur did not long survive her husband. dying in 1884. Both Were members of the Catholic church. When Mr. Niebur came to America his first aet, as soon as it was possible, was to become a citizen of the l'nited States and his political allegiance was always to the Democratic party.
The youth of B. Clemens Niebur was spent in Germany, his education being obtained in the common schools. At the age of fourteen he came to America with his parents and for a time he attempted to go on with his education by attending evening school, but this was given up after a short time. As a mere boy he then started to work in a brick yard at German- town. and stayed in this work for two years when, his father needing os tra help with his Farm, he began to work for him. He later hired ont as a farm hand to a neighbor and worked in this capacity for three years
At the age of twenty-three he married Anna Maria Mbers, the dangl ter of Frank Albers, of Germantown. The date of this event was the 11th of February, 1862, and afterwards he took his young wife to a farm in S1. Rose township. Here he not only engaged in agriculture but managed to lay by a few dollars by operating a kiln for burning lime. After a
1096
HISTORY OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
few months Mr. Niebur decided to move to his present location northwest of Breese. Here he has passed the remainder of his successful life.
Mr. Niebur owns his farm and also has considerable money invested in real estate in St. Louis. In polities he is a Democrat and his party has always found him a willing and hearty worker whenever occasion offered. In religious matters Mr. Niebur clings to the belief of his fathers, and is a communieant and devout attendant at the Catholic church.
Mrs. Niebur was born on the 31st of October, 1839, and died on the 26th of March, 1883, at Breese, Illinois. She and Mr. Niebur became the parents of eight children, of whom five are living. Henry, a merchant at New Baden ; Frank, a huekster at St. Louis ; Mary, who is dead ; Joseph and Theodore, both of whom are farmers; Elizabeth, who is Mrs. Josen Boennighansen, of St. Louis, and two who died in infancy.
SAMUEL ILART is the able and conspicuous representative of the con- inercial phase of activity in Marion. His establishment is the mecea for all who want satisfactory dry goods and ready made garments, and "Harts" has been known as an up-to-date and progressive store for a number of years.
The Hart family, of which this popular merchant is a member, was founded by J. Hart, who was born in the town of Bochum, Prussia, in 1818. He was the son of a large and successful stock raiser of Bochum, near Ebersfeld, but he longed for the freedom and the unknown seenes of that United States, of which he had heard so many fascinating tales. He left. his Fatherland in 1839, and upon landing in this country made his way to Missouri, where he began the foundation of his fortune, as have so many others of his race, as a peddler with a pack strapped on his back. These traveling merchants were quite common at this time and in some places met with hostility and harsh treatment from those prejudiced against his race. Perseentions were directed against him be- canse once when utterly wearied by the weight of the heavy burden upon his back, he dared to lean against the fence of some Gentile. It would have fared badly with him had he not had a letter of introduction to Indge Martin, of Lincoln county, who came to his aid and took him into his home, and, lending his sympathy and personal interest, put an end to the intolerant attitude of those arrayed against him. At first he was only allowed to ply his trade on sufferance, but after a time the poor and industrious young commercial adventurer won the friendly co-operation of his fellow citizens. This was all due to the championship of Judge Martin, and from that time the Judge and the young Hebrew were fast friends.
When by careful management and strict economy Mr. Hart had saved enough money he established himself in the mercantile business in Troy, Missouri. He prospered as a merchant and as fast as the money rolled in he invested it in other lines of business. In this way he acquired considerable landed property and became a successful farmer by proxy. The farmers all knew him as a good man with whom to dispose of their produce, so they brought him their grain and stock, upon which he made a considerable profit in the St. Louis markets. His mercantile house. meanwhile, became one of the chief ones of the county and his estate was reckoned one of the largest in Troy. He must not be thought of as a mere money maker, for his personal popularity became so well known that he was appointed by President Lincoly as an officer to aid in the establishment of order in Lincoln county during the period of the Civil war. In this sort of provost marshal position Mr. Hart's reputation as a careful administrator of justice waxed strong. In polities he was at first a Democrat, but during the campaign of 1896, when his party inserted
1097
HISTORY OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
the "free silver" plank in their platform, he changed his allegiance and espoused the cause of Republicanism, to which he ever after remained loyal.
Joseph Hart married, in Lincoln county, Missouri, Miss Temperance Stuart, a daughter of Robert Stuart, who had come into this region from Kentucky. The death of his wife occurred in 1873, and for his second wife Mr. Hart married Rose Steiner. The children of his first marriage are: Adolph, of Worthington, Minnesota; llermann and JJacob, mem- bers of the mercantile firm of J. Hart Sons; Chester, Illinois; and Sam- uel, of Marion. The three sons of his second marriage are : Louis J., who is with the Federal Mercantile Company, of Bartlesville, Oklahoma ; Isaac O., who is with the Globe Shoe and Clothing Company, of St. Louis; and Dr. E. R., whose dental offices are in the Third National Bank Build- ing in St. Louis.
Samuel Hart, the second youngest son of his mother, was born in Troy, Missouri, on the 18th of August, 1869. His literary education was gained in the public schools of his home town, and his business training was had through actual experience as a clerk in his father's store, the most practical and useful training that can fall to the lot of a future merchant. When he was ready to engage in an independent venture he established himself in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, and conducted a gen- eral dry goods business there for six years. Deeiding that Marion, Illi- nois, offered him better chances for investment, he came to the city and since then has spent almost a decade in active business here. In 1903 he bought the stock of Mrs. Shannon Holland and has since given its management the benefit of his years of training and mercantile experi- enee.
On the 24th of January, 1894, Samuel Hart and Miss Anna Graves were married in Montgomery City. Missouri. She is a daughter of Dr. J. F. Graves, who had migrated from Virginia many years ago. Mrs. Hart was born in Montgomery City, on the 29th of November. 1872. and she and Mr. Hart are the parents of two children, Fannie Temperance and Eugene Graves. In political matters Mr. Hart is a Republican, but is contented to limit his activities to easting the ballot. He is an inter- ested member of the local Masonic chapter, and is a member of the Blue Lodge. He is also a member of the Elks Club. Being a strong advocate of the organization of retail merchants everywhere, he is an enthusiastic member of the Retail Merchants Association of Illinois.
Although the life of Samuel Hart does not show the indomitable reso- lution to overcome all odds, or the patience to endure whatever was in- flieted, as was found in the life of his father, yet these qualities are ovi- dently latent in him or he could never have reached the important position that he holds today. His keen sense and his thorough knowledge of his business have won him the admiration of his business acquaintances, both friends and foes. On the other hand. his many fine qualities of mind and heart have caused to be gathered about him numberless friends.
FRANK ERNST, secretary and general manager of the New Baden Mill- ing Company, organized principally by him in 1900, is one of the solid men of his distriet. All his life connected with the milling industry, he is regarded as one of the foremost millers of this favored section of Illi- nois. His efforts have been rewarded with a degree of success consistent with his labors, and as a man of splendid traits, both in his capacity as a man of business and as a valuable citizen, he takes a high rank in his com- munity.
Born .June 8, 1863, in Hanover, Germany, Frank Ernst is the son of Henry and Theresa ( Engelke) Ernst, of Ilanover, Germany, in which
1098
HISTORY OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
town the parents were reared and passed their lives. They were the parents of a family of six children : Henry, Frank, Jauchaim, Lena, now Mrs. John Moehle, Josephine, the wife of Frederick Schroeder, and Therese. The father died in 1901 and the wife and mother passed away four years later. They were communicants of the Roman Catholic church all their lives.
Frank Ernst came to America on March 6, 1879, locating first in St. Louis, Missouri, where he was employed in a wholesale flour house. From there he went to Belleville. where he secured work as shipping elerk for the Crown Mills, and he remained with them for some years, studying the business in every detail. the one dominant idea of his life to become estab- lished in a business for himself. IJe labored so well that in 1886, on New Year's day, he started up a grain business in Belleville on his own respon- sibility. He continued there for the space of one year, then removing to Mount Vernon, where he again entered the grain business, and after an- other year he sold ont and went to Clinton, Missouri. His time there was as brief as in the other places, and he went on to New Memphis, Illinois, continuing there for some little time, and on July 1, 1890, he established a milling business in New Baden, Illinois, which is now known as the New Baden Milling Company. incorporated under the laws of the state, with Mr. Ernst as secretary and general manager of the organization. The company has done a splendid business in the years of its operation, the bulk of their meal and grits going to the south and the feed to Penn- sylvania, corn being the product they utilize. Mr. Ernst has run the business with a view to conservative advancement, and as a result the New Baden Milling Company is one of the most stable and reliable con- cerns in the community.
Mr. Ernst is a Demoerat in his political leanings, but is in no sense what might be termed a politician. He is averse to any politieal entangle- ments and his interest in the party is in a purely impersonal sense. He has served his village four terms in the capacity of president, proving himself to be competent in affairs of civie administration, but further than that he has not gone. Like his parents. Mr. Ernst is a devout church- man of the Roman Catholic faith, as is also his family.
On October 23. 1895, Mr. Ernst married Miss Lillian Hoffman of St. Louis, Missouri, and of their union four children have been born. They are : Katherine, born January 22, 1897 ; Elenora, born December 30, 1899; Franeis, born August 8, 1901 ; and Frederick Richard, born December 28, 1905. Their first born, Katherine, passed away on October 27, 1902.
FRANCIS MARION HEWITT. As long as diseases and accidents assail humanity and render health and life uncertain among men the good drug- gist will be ever with them and they will regard him with esteem, or even veneration. in proportion to their needs and the extent and value of the service he is able to render them. So, on account of the nature of his busi- ness, if for no other reason, the people of Carbondale and Jackson county would have a high regard for Francis M. Hewitt, one of their leading pharmacists and chemists.
But there are other reasons, and strong ones, for the high place Mr. Hewitt occupies in the public estimation of the city and county of his home and the seat of his business operations. He is an enterprising and progressive man, with a cordial practical interest in the welfare of the community around him, and great energy and intelligence in helping to promote it in every way open to him. He is always among the first to come forward in support of every worthy enterprise for the good of the people, or the development and improvement of the region in which he
1099
HISTORY OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
lives, and in everything that pertains to good citizenship he is second to nobody in loyalty or the striet and prompt discharge of duty.
Mr. Hewitt is a native of Johnson county, Illinois, where he was born on May 3, 1870. His parents, John L. and Mary Ann (Casey ) Hewitt, were farmers, but Mr. Hewitt remembers very little about them, as when he was but two and a half years of age his father died, and when he was but nine death robbed him also of his mother. He was therefore thrown on his own resonrees at an early age, and had to work his way through school and into some luerative channel of employment before he could seenre even a foothold for advancement in the struggle for supremacy among men.
Hle was able to attend the public schools in Johnson and Williamson counties in a remittent sort of a way while working for a meager recom- pense on farms and at other employment, and he made such good use of his limited opportunities that he acquired considerable elementary schol- arship, even in this fugitive way and at the age of nineteen taught school in Williamson county. the district joining the Marion city school on the north. Ilis aim was lofty and he kept his eye steadily on the goal of his hopes, using every means at his command to advance toward it. He worked for his room and board while he attended the department of pharmacy in the Northwestern University, Chicago, and in 1893 he came forth as a graduate of that great institution and qualified to prac- tice pharmacy according to all the legal requirements.
For a few months after his graduation he clerked in drug stores in Chicago and St. Louis, then came to Carbondale in the autumn of the year last mentioned. He remained in the city three years employed in his chosen line of work. . But in 1896 he learned of a good opening in Padneah, Kentucky, and immediately took advantage of it, remaining in that city until 1899. Ile passed the next year in Clarksville, Tennessee. and in 1900 returned to Carbondale and started the business in the drug trade which he is still conducting here, and in which he has built up a large and representative patronage, with its accompanying publie conti- dence and esteem.
From his advent in the city Mr. Hewitt has been very zealous and energetic in his efforts to promote its welfare and advance its progress and improvement. In every department of its being he has made his in- fluence felt for good, and has been especially forceful and effective in connection with its civic affairs. In 1911 he was one of the leading workers for the establishment of the commission form of government for the city, and did more than almost any other man to bring it about. After it was adopted the people insisted that as he had been so potential in bringing the issue to a successful conclusion, and had shown so much wisdom in reference to the matter, he was one of the best men they had to put the new plan in operation and must take his share of the responsi- bility involved in starting it properly. He was made commissioner of health and public safety, an office which he is now filling with great ale- ceptability to the whole population.
Mr. Hewitt was also one of the founders of the Carbondale National Bank and is now one of its directors and its vice president. He is an active and zealous member of the Christian church, and has served as one of the trustees of the Carbondale congregation of that sert. In the fra- ternal life of the city and county he has been active and serviceable as a Knight of Pythias, an Odd Fellow and a member of the Order of Elks. In the Knights of Pythias he has been the chancellor commander of his lodge, and in the Order of Odd Fellows has twice occupied the chair of noble grand. In the Order of Elks he belongs to Paducah, Kentucky. Lodge No. 236.
1100
IHISTORY OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
On January 24, 1907, Mr. Hewitt was married to Miss Winifred Harker, of Carbondale, a daughter of Hon. Oliver A. Harker, judge of the Court of Chancery. They have two children, their son Francis Marion and their daughter Winifred Harker, who cheer and brighten the family hearthstone and add greatly to the attractiveness of the home for the numerous friends of their parents who frequent it for the enjoyment of its air of intellectual and social culture and the genuine hospitality which is one of its leading and most characteristic charms.
OLIVER ALBERT HARKER. A quarter of a century on the bench of the higher courts of Illinois and many years as an educator in the field of the law, have earned for Hon. Oliver A. Harker, of Carbondale, a most sub- stantial eminence in all that concerns the highest prestige of his profes- sion. In 1897 he commenced his influential identification with the College of Law of the University of Illinois as a lecturer, and since 1903 has served as dean of its faculty.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.