USA > Illinois > LaSalle County > Biographical and genealogical record of La Salle County, Illinois. Volume I > Part 26
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teacher as well as farmer, and his religious creed was that of the Presby- terian church.
At the time his father moved to Illinois William H. was a boy of eight years. He attended the district schools here and later was a student at Granville, Illinois, and on his return from school he engaged in farming, which he followed through life. He died on his farm in Farm Ridge town- ship, LaSalle county, June 2, 1881, at the age of fifty-five years. He was married, February 13, 1855, to Maria I. Dolittle, a native of St. Mary's, Georgia, and a daughter of Alfred and Adaline (Garvin) Dolittle, the former a native of Vermont and the latter of Florida. Alfred Dolittle was a merchant. He came to South Ottawa, Illinois, in 1851 and engaged in business and here he died at the age of sixty years. Mrs. Dolittle died at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Rockwood, at the age of sixty-one years. Mr. Dolittle was the father of eleven children, five by a former marriage and six by the mother of Mrs. Rockwood. Mrs. Rockwood was educated in Vermont and Massachusetts, and was before her marriage a popular and successful teacher. To William H. Rockwood and wife were given seven children, of whom only three are living, the others having died in early life. These three are Harry E., the immediate subject of this sketch, who occupies the old Rockwood homestead; Everette C., of Indianapolis, Indiana, engaged in the stock business; and William H., Jr., a teacher, of Grand Ridge, Illinois. The father was a man of local prominence. He filled several town- ship offices, at different times, such as assessor and collector and member of the school board. He was an active church worker, identified with the Presbyterian church and for years one of its trustees. Mrs. Rockwood, his widow, has a pleasant home in the village of Grand Ridge, where she has resided since 1893, having moved here from the farm now occupied by her son Harry E.
The Rockwood farm is one of the best improved and most desirable in LaSalle county. The residence is located on a natural building site; the barn is spacious, and everything is conveniently arranged,-in short, a model farm. While he carries on general farming, Mr. Rockwood makes a specialty of the stock business, raising and marketing cattle.
Harry E. Rockwood was married, in 1893, to Miss Nelly Margaret Shepherd, of Deer Park, this county, where she was engaged in teaching previous to her marriage. Their union has been blessed in the birth of three children: Frank Shepherd, Robert Earl and Mildred, aged five, four and two years respectively.
Mr. Rockwood is one of the progressive, up-to-date farmers of the county, interested in everything intended to promote the general welfare of his locality. He is a Republican and has filled some of the township
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offices. Fraternally he is identified with Occidental Lodge, No. 40; Shab- bona Chapter; and Ottawa Commandery, No. 10, of Ottawa.
In the genealogy of Mr. Rockwood, of the foregoing sketch, we add that the first six generations of his American ancestry are taken from the Genealogical Register of the descendants of the early planters of Sherborn, Holliston and Medway, Massachusetts, compiled by Rev. Abner Morse, A. M., of Sherborn, a member of the New England Historical and Genealog- ical Society, and published in 1855.
The names Rockwood and Rocket were formerly identical, and the latter is a corruption of the former. The name Rockwood was, no doubt, local, derived from Rocky Woods in England, and once common in west England. It was probably the abode of the first person who assumed it. Nothing of their history prior to their arrival in New England had been ascertained so far as known to the compiler of the genealogy referred to; but the Rev. Abner Morse thought that in the further pursuit of their genealogy they must explore the history of their Puritan sire among the Rockwoods of England, in Dorset and Suffolk counties.
Tradition says that a page by the name of Rockwood at the court of Henry VIII, in a game of chess with his king, won a manor belonging to one of the monasteries distributed in his reign. In commemoration of the . victory he received from his king six chess rooks for his arms. The above estate is still occupied by Rockwoods who are of the gentry. Richard Rock- wood was a planter, of Dorchester, Massachusetts, in 1636, having come to this country in 1627 or before. His first wife was Agnes, a daughter of Zachary Bicknell, of Weymouth, Dorsetshire, England. She died in 1643, at Braintree, Massachusetts, and he married a second wife, named Ann. His children were, by his first wife, Nicholas, born in 1628, and by his second wife, John, born in 1647. The latter married Johanna Ford, of Braintree, in 1662; Lydia, who married Edward Adams, a son of Henry Adams, of Braintree, now Quincy.
Nicholas Rockwood first located at Braintree, and in 1650 he and the sons of Henry Adams settled the town of Medfield. He married, first, Jane Adams, a daughter of Henry Adams, who died December 15, 1654; and, secondly, Margaret Holbrook, a daughter of John Holbrook, of Weymouth, in 1656. She died April 23, 1670; and his third wife's name was Silence. His children were: Samuel, who was born at Braintree and married Han- nah Ellis; Benjamin; Josiah, who married Mary Twitchell; Elizabeth, who became the wife of John Partridge; Rev. John Rockwood was the next in order of birth; and the youngest was Nathaniel Dea, who was born Feb- ruary 23, 1665, and died September 24, 1721, at Wrenth.
Nathaniel Rockwood Dea (Deacon?) married Johanna Ellis, a daughter
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of Thomas Ellis. of Medfield. and his children were: Margaret, who mar- ried Ebner Metcalf; Nathaniel, who married Margaret Phipps; Benjamin, who married Mehetibel Thomson; Abigail; Ebenezer; Hannah, who be- came the wife of Thomas Lawrence; Mary; and Elisha, who was born June II, 1716, and died December 5, 1788.
Elisha Rockwood settled in Groton. August 18, 1738, he married Elizabeth Adams, who was born September 4, 1719, and died May 16, 1799. She was the daughter of James Adams, of Sherborn, by his wife Abi- gail nee Hill, and granddaughter of Moses Adams, by his wife Lydia nee Whitney, and great-granddaughter of Henry Adams, of Medfield, by wife Lydia Paine, and great-great-granddaughter of Henry Adams, of Braintree; and she was distantly related to Robert Treat Paine, a signer of the Declara- tion of Independence. His children were: Elisha, who was born Novem- ber 9, 1740, and died in February, 1831: Joseph, Ebenezer, A. M., M. D., Abagail, Elizabeth, Lydia, Sarah and Sybil.
Elisha Rockwood, of the above family, married Mary Farnsworth in 1762, and she died in 1765, and he married, secondly, Abigail Stone, in 1771. He removed from Groton, Massachusetts, to Chesterfield, New Hampshire. His children were: Elisha, D. D., who married Susanna Parkman; Will- iam, who married Anna Horton; John, who married Sally Green, of West- moreland; Otis, D. D., married Maria Johnson.
John Rockwood, of the above family, was born July 7, 1782, and died June 29, 1859. He was married June 26, 1817, to Sally Green, of West- moreland, who was born August 1, 1791, and died January 8, 1882. She was a daughter of Captain Levi Green, of Westmoreland, New Hampshire. They resided on the paternal Rockwood farm in Chesterfield, New Hamp- shire, until 1835, when he removed to Ottawa, Illinois, settling on a farm in South Ottawa township, where he resided till his death. His children were: Mary Abigail, who married Rev. James Dunn; Laura Maria; Loring Otis; John Adams, who married Sarah Lewis; William Henry, and Elisha Earl, who married Debora Cox.
ELIJAH B. LOVEJOY.
Elijah B. Lovejoy, a veteran of the civil war, and an honored citizen of Ottawa, is now passing his declining days in the enjoyment of the fruits of many years of diligent toil. In all of the varied relations of life he has endeavored to perform his entire duty, and well does he deserve the praise and admiration which are accorded him by all who are acquainted with him or his history.
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Jacob Lovejoy, the grandfather of our subject, was a native of Connect- icut, and was a descendant of one of the five families that first located per- manently in that state. They originated in England, and eventually went to Neiv Hampshire from Connecticut, and later settled in Hebron, that state. Jacob Lovejoy served as a drummer boy in the war of the Revolu- tion, and his son Phineas (father of Elijah B.) was a "minute" man, and, enlisting in the war of 1812, was commissioned to the rank of lieutenant in that struggle with England. The wife of Jacob and mother of Phineas Love- joy was a Miss Baxter in her girlhood. The birth of Phineas Lovejoy took place in Hebron, Grafton county, New Hampshire, in 1771, and in Janu- ary, 1866, he was summoned to the silent land. He married Annice Blood, a daughter of James Blood. She was a native of Fairlee, Vermont, born in June, 1783, and her death occurred in the town of Landaff, New Hampshire, when she was in her eighty-second year.
Elijah B. Lovejoy was born in Hebron, New Hampshire, November 27, 1816, and in his youth learned agriculture thoroughly, in its various phases. He remained on the old homestead until he reached his majority, and always continued the labors of farming as long as he led an active life. He owned in connection with his farm a saw and shingle mill. In 1872 he decided to try his fortunes in LaSalle county, Illinois, and he accordingly purchased one hundred acres of land in the northern part of Ottawa town- ship, there giving his attention to the raising of crops commonly grown in this region, and raising cattle and hogs to some extent. In 1882 he retired from the active work which he had faithfully followed for so many decades, and has resided quietly in Ottawa ever since.
In August, 1862, Mr. Lovejoy, enlisted in Company D, Thirteenthi New Hampshire Infantry, under the command of Captain John Fair and Colonel Abel Stevens. With his regiment he was ordered to Washington, District of Columbia, and soon afterward participated in the battle of Fred- ericksburg, which lasted for three days. A short time elapsed, and Mr. Lovejoy became seriously ill and was sent to the Garver hospital at Wash- ington. At length he received a certificate of the surgeon in charge of the institution that he was unfit for further duty on account of his impaired health, was granted an honorable discharge from the army, and of late years has been given a pension by the government. As a citizen he has been noted for his patriotism and high regard for what he considers the duties devolving upon every inhabitant of this great republic. He has acted in the capacity of school director, and was once the president of the township board. In politics he has given his allegiance to the Republican party since its organization. For the past fifty-six years he has been an active member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and has held the positions of class
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leader for fifty-six years and steward in the congregations to which he has belonged. His zeal and fidelity in church enterprises have been unwaver- ing, and he has always been safely relied upon to uphold every worthy public measure or movement.
December 10, 1841, Mr. Lovejoy married Miss Maria E. Bullis, the eldest daughter of Hera Bullis, of Addison county, Vermont. Six sons and two daughters were born to this estimable couple, namely: Elvira M., who was born June 28, 1844, and married Allen Giffer, a farmer; Cyrus C., born October 9, 1847, and became a Methodist preacher; Arzilla M., born Feb- ruary 10, 1849, and married Rev. A. Ethridge, a minister of the Congre- gational church; Olin T., born April 18, 1851, became a teacher and served for a time as the president of the board of education of his town, and is serving now; Amen E., born April 8, 1854, and is in business in the state of Washington; Kilburn B., born May 10, 1861, is a truck gardener at Red Wing, Minnesota; Irving B., born June 19, 1864, is a farmer in Ottawa, LaSalle county; and Walter C., born October 3, 1867, is a physician now practicing in Chicago. The mother of these children was born November 15, 1821, and was called to the better land April 7, 1869. On the 17th of November, 1869, Mr. Lovejoy wedded Miss Lorrain L. King, who was born December 6, 1829, at Fairlee, Vermont; and by the latter marriage there was one child, born October 10, 1871, who married Dr. Charles S. Hubbard, and is now residing in Chicago. The last wife of our subject has passed to her eternal rest. She was a lady of many amiable qualities.
FRANCIS M. DAUGHERTY.
Illinois is noted as the leading agricultural state of the Union, the grain raised within her boundaries being shipped to all parts of the world, supply- ing food for countless numbers, and her fine farms are the subject of general observation. Perhaps no part of the state contains more fertile or better cultivated land than that lying within LaSalle county, and among the most productive and well kept farms of this section is the one owned and operated by the gentleman whose name appears above.
Francis Marion Daugherty was born in Nicholas county, Kentucky, on the 22d of August, 1837, his parents, Thomas and Mary (Swartz) Daugherty, being among the oldest settlers in LaSalle county. John Daugherty, the grandfather of our subject, was a soldier in the Indian wars and was a resi- dent of Kentucky, where his son Thomas was born. The latter grew to manhood in that state and there married Miss Mary, daughter of John Swartz. They both lived to attain good old age,-the father passing away
Francis Mr. Daugherty
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in 1894, at the age of seventy-three years, and the mother being seventy-one years of age at the time of her demise. In his political adherency Thomas Daugherty was a Democrat of the old school. He and his wife became the parents of ten children, concerning whom we offer the following epitomized record: John, a resident of Texas county, Missouri; Francis Marion, the immediate subject of this review; Sarah Willis, deceased; Daniel B., whose life was sacrificed on the altar of his country in the war of the Rebellion, in which he served as a corporal of Company F, One Hundred and Fourth Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry; Rebecca Brown, deceased; Mar- garet, deceased; Amos, a resident of Chariton county, Missouri; Nancy Ann Smith, of Sumner, that state; and Andrew and Elizabeth, both of whom are deceased.
Francis M. Daugherty came to Illinois in 1858, with his parents, and when he was twenty-four years of age his loyalty and patriotism prompted him to enlist as a member of Company F, One Hundred and Fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, with which he served as sergeant. He was offered a commission in the Seventh Kentucky Cavalry, but preferred to remain with his company. He was in a number of the important encounters with the Confederate forces, taking part in the battle of Hartsville and was captured, and also participating in the celebrated battles of Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge. He was also in the Atlanta campaign, in which he took part in the engagements at Buzzard's Roost, Rocky Face Ridge, New Hope Church, Peach Tree Creek and the siege of Atlanta, and in the engagement at Eutaw Creek he was wounded. He served three years, or until the close of the war, being mustered out on the 6th June, 1865. He was with his command in following Hood into Alabama, participated in the famous march to the sea, thence through the Carolinas and on to Washing- ton, where he took part in the Grand Review.
Returning home after his effective service in defense of the integrity of the nation, Mr. Daugherty turned his attention to the peaceful vocation of agriculture, locating upon a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, which is his present place of abode. In the matter of permanent improvements the farm is well equipped, having a good house and substantial and convenient outbuildings, while the place is kept in a fine state of cultivation. Mr. Daugherty is an acknowledged leader in the farming community in which he has so long made his home. He was the first breeder of Poland-China hogs in the county, and was the first man in his township to use tile to drain his land. In politics he renders stanch allegiance to the Republican party and its principles, and fraternally he keeps alive his interest in his old com- rades in arms by maintaining membership in Post No. 68, Grand Army of the Republic, at Streator.
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On the 15th of November, 1865, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Daugherty and Miss Ruth Jefferson, daughter of Robert and Ann (Lock) Jefferson. Of this union nine children were born, of whom seven yet survive. Of the children we give the following brief record: Thomas, a commercial traveler, who resides in Streator, married Miss Lida D. Sederbrand, of that place; Mary Alberta, a successful teacher, is now the wife of F. K. Garver, a commercial traveler of South Bend, Indiana; Robert married Emma E. Holland, of Streator; Jane, wife of Dr. C. G. Reno, of Louisville, Kentucky, was a successful teacher in Otter Creek township, this county; Hattie P. is a graduate of the Streator high school, in the class of 1899; Francis is a student in the Streator high school; William D. is the next in order of birth; Anna died at the tender age of three years; and Rosa, a young woman of exceptional talent, who was a very successful teacher and who gave great promise for the future, was summoned to her heavenly home at the untimely age of twenty-two years, deeply mourned by a wide circle of devoted friends.
Robert Jefferson, the father of Mrs. Daugherty, was a native of Eng- land, and his wife was born in Ireland. They came to America and at first took up their residence in Michigan, whence they later came to DeKalb county, Illinois, and from there, in 1852, to Streator, where they passed the residue of their days. The mother died at the age of sixty years, but the father survived her many years, attaining the venerable age of ninety-one years. He was a lifelong Republican, and both he and his wife were mem- bers of and earnest workers in the Methodist Episcopal church. They became the parents of five children, namely: Alexander, deceased; Mary Richards, of Bruce township, this county; William, who was a soldier in the One Hun- dred and Fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, participated in all the battles in which his company took part, and on July 21, 1864, while on the skirmish line in front of Atlanta, he was killed by a Confederate sharpshooter; Thomas, who also was a soldier, was a member of Company E, Twenty- sixth Illinois Regiment, and he died at Scotsboro, Alabama, April 17, 1865, from an attack of pneumonia; and Ruth, who was born near Romeo, Macomb county, Michigan, June 15. 1842, is the wife of Mr. Daugherty, the immedi- ate subject of this sketch.
WILLIAM F. McNAMARA.
Young Irish blood is having a powerful influence in the municipalities of the west. This is true no less of the small cities than the large ones. At the head of the municipal government of LaSalle is a man of thirty-two, who has been prominently connected with it since he was twenty-two years
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of age. This man is certainly young for one of his prominence and experi- ence. Both lines of his family descent have been Irish of the purest blood.
William F. McNamara was born on a farm in LaSalle county, Illinois, March 16, 1867, a son of Michael J. and Bridget (Burke) McNamara. Michael J. McNamara was a son of Martin McNamara, and was born at Schenectady, New York, and came with his father to LaSalle county in 1847. The family located first at LaSalle, and later on a farm some distance from that town, where Martin McNamara died. The parents of Bridget Burke settled in the county about 1847 also. After their marriage Michael and Bridget (Burke) McNamara located on a farm in LaSalle county, and lived upon it until 1884, when they removed to LaSalle, where Mr. Mc- Namara embarked in the grocery trade, in which he has since continued with success.
When his parents came to LaSalle William F. McNamara, future mayor of the city, was seventeen years old. He had spent his life thus far since his childhood in helping his father about the farm work and attending the public schools. After the family took up their residence in LaSalle he was for several years a student at the parochial school of the Brothers of St. Patrick at LaSalle. At twenty-one he became a clerk in a clothing store, and was thus employed for eight years.
Mr. McNamara's political experience began in 1889, when, as a Dem- ocrat, he was elected alderman, and by successive re-elections he filled that office until 1897, when he was elected mayor, which office he still holds, and which he has filled with a zeal and ability that have made him popular with all classes of citizens.
Mr. McNamara is a Roman Catholic, and is a member of the Catholic Order of Foresters, the Royal Arcanum, the Court of Honor, the Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen of America, and is always prominently identi- fied with every movement having for its object the enhancement of the welfare of the people of LaSalle and LaSalle county.
THOMAS N. HASKINS.
Thomas N. Haskins, a prominent attorney of LaSalle, was born Octo- ber 29, 1862, in this city. He is a son of Thomas and Mary (White) Haskins, both of whom were born in Ireland. They were married in Lexington, Missouri, and moved to LaSalle in 1850, since which time they have resided here. The father was a large contractor and dealer in lumber at one time, and later lived on a farm in Woodford county for three years before moving to LaSalle.
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Thomas N. Haskins was reared in LaSalle and received his education in that city during his early years. This was supplemented with a three- year course in the Seminary of Our Lady of the Angels, now the University of Niagara. Returning home he learned the trade of carpenter, at which be worked only a short time, as it proved most uncongenial labor. He had an inordinate love of books and decided to choose for his vocation the pro- fession of law. Accordingly he began his studies in the office of the firm of Meer, Duncan & O'Conor; had soon mastered the intricacies of that profession, and was admitted to the bar in January, 1887. He has been a practitioner in this city ever since, first in the firm of Hall & Haskins, then alone, afterward in the firm of Duncan, O'Conor & Haskins, later as Duncan, Haskins & Panneck, and still later as Haskins & Panneck, which is the style of the firm at this time. He is a lawyer of more than average ability, keen and shrewd in his judgment, and a forcible speaker who carries con- viction to the mind of his hearers.
In 1890 he was united in marriage to Miss Mary Conerton, of Dimmick, this state. They are both devout members of the Roman Catholic church, and are highly esteemed for their many worthy qualities. Mr. Haskins is also connected with a number of fraternal orders, belonging to Royal Arca- num, the Modern Woodmen of America and Court of Honor. In politics he is a strong Democrat, and for four years made one of the ablest and most efficient city attorneys ever elected to that office in LaSalle. In 1894 he was the party candidate for state senator, and in 1897 was in the field as candidate for circuit judge, in both races receiving a flattering vote. He has many friends in both parties, and is deservedly popular among the great mass of people, as well for his kindly, genial manner as his upright honesty of purpose.
M. J. WELSH.
The subject of this review is one of the popular and well-known citi- zens of Brookfield township, LaSalle county. His entire life has been spent in this locality, for he is one of LaSalle county's native sons. His birth occurred in 1866, his parents being Thomas E. and Ellen Welsh, both of whom were natives of Ireland. The father was a farmer by occupation, and in 1849 became a resident of this county, making his home here until his death, which occurred in 1887. He had a family of four sons and four daughters, namely: Edward, who died in 1885, at the age of twenty-four; Dennis, of Verona, Illinois; Mrs. Dennis O'Donnell, who resides in Minne- apolis, Minnesota; Mrs. William Coughlin, of Brookfield township: Thomas, Ella and Mary, of Seneca, Illinois; and M. J., the subject of this review.
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Mr. Welsh, whose name heads this article, was reared in LaSalle county, and early became familiar with all the duties and labors of the agriculturist. He attended the public schools and later was a student in the college at Valparaiso, Indiana. At the age of eighteen years he began teaching school and successfully followed that profession for ten years, his services giving excellent satisfaction in the schools where he was employed. Since that time he has devoted his energies uninterruptedly to his farming interests. He owns, occupies and operates two hundred and forty acres of land, which is under a high state of cultivation, the well-tilled fields yielding to the owner a golden tribute in return for the care and labor he bestows upon them. He follows progressive methods in his farming operations, is prac- tical and enterprising, and has one of the best-improved farms in his town- ship.
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