USA > Illinois > LaSalle County > Biographical and genealogical record of La Salle County, Illinois, Volume II > Part 15
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The subject of this article. Adolph Hoss, only child of Adolph and Margaret Hoss, has lived in Peru nearly the whole of his life. After com- pleting his common-school education here he entered the LaSalle Business College, and there learned the principles of commerce. For several years thereafter he was employed as a clerk in the dry-goods house of A. D. Mur- ray, and later assumed the management of his father's business. Having been made a justice of the peace, he conducted the duties of that office and carried on a general insurance business. In 1891 he became assistant cashier of the Peru State Bank, and upon the 21st of January, 1899, was promoted to the cashiership. He is a member of the firm of Hoss & Loekle, insur- ance agents, and is secretary of the board of education. Politically he is independent, and fraternally he belongs to the Sons of Veterans. Gifted with an unusual talent for music, Mr. Hoss was the leader of the famous Northwestern Light Guard Band of Peru for a number of years.
The attractive home of Adolph Hoss is situated at the corner of First and Putnam streets. His first marriage took place October 25, 1882, at Mendota, Illinois, Miss Anna M., daughter of John Huelzer, becoming his bride. She died in 1885, aged twenty-four years, a member of the Catholic church. Two sons were born to this marriage-Gustav Adolph and William Henry, the latter dying in infancy. September 9, 1890, Mr. Hoss married at Secor, Illinois, Miss Emma M. Harseim, a daughter of Rudolph Har- seim, and one child blesses their union, Alberta Mildred. Mrs. Hoss is
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identified with the German Evangelical church and is a well educated, cul- tured lady, who has many friends in this community. Mr. Hoss also is very popular, and possesses marked talent as a financier and as a musi- cian.
JOHN J. LARKIN, D. D. S.
Undoubtedly more serious attention is being paid to the proper care and preservation of the teeth to-day than ever before; and whereas the science of dental surgery as practiced a few years ago was extremely crude and inadequate, it is making rapid strides towards perfection, and great things are already accomplished by it. The successful dentist must be an indefatigable student, keeping posted upon the methods of treatment used by the great specialists in the profession, and sparing himself no work or research which may redound to the good of his patients.
Dr. John J. Larkin, who is specially qualified in the art of modern dentistry and is now engaged in practice in LaSalle, is a native of Streator, his birth having occurred May 27, 1870. His grandfathers were both natives of Ireland. His father's father, Edward Larkin, came to America many years ago, and his last years were spent in the vicinity of Streator, on his son's farm. He reared a number of children, and lived to attain the extreme age of ninety years. Jeffrey Conness, the maternal grand- father of the Doctor, was an early settler in the neighborhood of Streator, and was occupied in farming until his death, when about seventy-five years old. Some thirty-five or forty years ago the father of our subject, Thomas Larkin, came to the United States from his birthplace in the Emerald Isle, and made a permanent location near Streator. He occupied various town- ship offices and has been justly respected among his neighbors and ac- quaintances. He and his faithful wife are members of the Catholic church, and in that faith reared their children. The mother, whose maiden name was Delia Conness, is a native of Illinois. Of their six sons and four daughters, seven are now living, namely: Mrs. E. L. Cavanaugh, of Chi- cago; Edwin J., of San Antonio; Thomas W., of Chicago; Mrs. T. P. Halligan, of Chicago: Dr. John J., of LaSalle; Delia L. and Robert E., of Streator.
The usual routine of work and play which falls to the lot of the farmer's boy was the experience of Dr. Larkin in his early years. The foundations of his education were gained in the district, common and high schools, supplemented by a course at St. Bede College. In 1896 he was graduated in the Northwestern University, of Evanston and Chicago. Illi- nois, where he had spent three years in the study of dentistry. (The dental
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department is conducted in the city of Chicago.) Coming to LaSalle, he opened an office and has since been successfully engaged in practice. When about twenty years of age he took a course in bookkeeping, which knowl- edge is not to be wasted, as he is thereby fitted to keep his accounts and transact business in a systematic manner. His office, situated at the corner of First and Gooding streets, is centrally located, and is equipped with all of the necessary appliances of modern dentistry.
On the 5th of November, 1898, Dr. Larkin married Miss Isabella M. Duncan, daughter of Hon. and Mrs. James Walter Duncan, whose home is chiefly in Chicago. Mr. Duncan at one time was a member of the Illinois senate. On November Ist, 1899, a son, Walter Duncan Larkin, was born.
In the fraternities, the Doctor belongs to the Modern Woodmen of America, the Mystic Workers of the World and the Catholic Order of Foresters. Politically he is affiliated with the Democratic party. Both himself and wife are identified with the Catholic church. They have a pretty home at the corner of Third and Joliet streets, in a pleasant residence section of the city.
GEORGE A. ELLIOTT.
Among the earlier merchants who contributed largely to the growth and prosperity of LaSalle. Illinois, is George A. Elliott, a retired citizen of that thriving little city. He was born in the northern part of Ireland. near the city of Dublin, on July 27, 1832. His parents were George and Fanny (Bourne) Elliott, who came to America in 1851. The father was a farmer by occupation in his native country, although he held a number of offices under the English government, serving at one time as deputy sheriff of the county of Louth, Ireland, and later as assessor and tax collector. After bringing his family to this country he did not engage in business, but lived in retirement at LaSalle until his death in the fall of 1870, after hav- ing reached his seventy-second year. His wife was sixty-eight years of age at the time of her death, which occurred in 1868. They were both mem- bers of the church of England, and were worthy Christian people. Their family consisted of thirteen children, of whom nine reached adult years and six are still living. These are as follows: Fanny, a resident of Ireland; Eliza, widow of F. I. Foote, of this city: George A., our subject; Harriet, wife of Jacob P. Bixler, of Augusta, Kansas; Joseph I., of Manitoba; and Charlotte, wife of Thomas Heathcote, who resides three miles north of LaSalle. Both the paternal and maternal grandparents were lifelong resi- dents of Ireland, the latter being a wealthy resident of Dublin, where he spent the evening of his life.
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George A. Elliott was reared on his father's farm and given an educa- tion in the schools of Dublin. When he was nineteen he came to America with his parents and has since been a resident of LaSalle, living here more than forty-eight years. He was industrious and energetic, always finding employment of some kind by which to earn his living. When the discov- ery was made that coal was to be had here for the digging, he was placed in the management of the mines at Hog's Back, the mining village three miles north of LaSalle. This he managed most successfully and then turned his attention to other business. He engaged in selling agricultural imple- ments, in 1862, at the corner of First and Joliet streets, and continued in that line of business for twenty-one years. In connection with this line of goods he handled feed and flour, finding these very profitable articles of commerce. He handled his affairs with success, but on account of failing health had to retire from active work in 1883, since when he has resided at No. 1118 Creve Coeur street, LaSalle, in retirement from active business cares.
On the 28th day of November, 1865, Mr. Elliott led to the altar Miss Jennett, daughter of Aaron and Nancy (Winters) Gunn. The parents of Mrs. Elliott were among the earliest settlers in this county. Her father was born in Massachusetts and her mother was a native of Ohio. Five chil- dren were born to Mr. and Mrs. Elliott, three of whom have been spared to bless the lives of their parents, while two were taken in their infancy, to "blossom in the garden of the Lord." The surviving children are: Francis B., a carpenter; Jessie B., who resides with her parents; and Harriet Eliza- beth. a bookkeeper who has been for several years employed in the office of the Electric Street Railway Company. Mr. Elliott affiliates with the Republican party, and shows an intelligent interest in both municipal and national affairs, but has never allowed himself to be drawn into the whirl- pool of politics. In religion both he and his estimable wife are devout mem- bers of the Baptist church.
SAMUEL G. DUDGEON.
Just forty-five years ago Samuel Grant Dudgeon arrived in Mendota, where he has since been numbered among the most enterprising and public- spirited citizens. The best years of his manhood have been devoted to the upbuilding of this place. When it has prospered he has prospered, when it has suffered financial depression he has shared the burden, and at all times he has sought earnestly to perform his full duty toward the community with whose interests his own are linked.
Mr. Dudgeon comes of the sturdy Protestant Scotch-Irish stock, which
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is one of the best of the old-world race types, its strong traits being of especial value in this democratic country. His paternal grandfather, Rich- ard Dudgeon, was a native of Scotland, and for many years prior to his death he resided in the northern part of Ireland. He attained a ripe age, and died respected and mourned by all. One of his eight sons was Gail Grant Dudgeon, the father of our subject, born in county Donegal, Ire- land. He learned the shoemaker's trade, which he followed for some years after his arrival in America. His first location here was in Pittsburg. Penn- sylvania, whence he removed to Ohio and carried on the manufacture of boots and shoes in Wintersville. Later he executed a contract for a wagon road and then resided in Cadiz and Moorefield, Ohio. In 1857 he came to Mendota, where he was employed at his trade until his death in 1861, in his sixty-fourth year. He had married, in Ohio, Miss Annis McConnell, a daughter of Samuel McConnell, a farmer, who though born in the Emerald Isle was of Scotch lineage. He died at his home in the Buckeye state when well along in years. Mrs. Dudgeon departed this life in 1865, at the age of sixty-five years. Both herself and husband were faithful members of the Methodist church.
Samuel G. Dudgeon was born in Jefferson county. Ohio, January 29, 1831, one of six children, four of whom were girls, and he now is the only survivor of the family. He passed his boyhood chiefly in the town of Moore- field, Harrison county, Ohio. Having learned the carpenter's trade by the time he was twenty, he proceeded to take up the burdens of life, and has since been actively occupied in various kinds of building and contracting. On the 11th of May. 1854, he landed in Mendota, and, being favorably impressed with the place. he decided to locate here. He found plenty of employment. and as the years rolled by specimens of his skill were to be seen upon every hand. In 1889 he opened a lumber-yard, which he is still successfully carrying on. Many of the substantial business blocks and houses of this town and vicinity were constructed by Mr. Dudgeon, whose work has been thoroughly satisfactory to all concerned. Honorable and exact in the fulfillment of his contracts, prompt and reliable in every respect, he enjoys the esteem of his fellow citizens. Great changes have come to pass in the town during his residence here, as may be judged when it is stated that the first railroad through the place was not completed until some time after his arrival.
Prior to the organization of the Republican party Mr. Dudgeon was allied with the Whigs, and of later years has given his allegiance to the first-named party. In 1890 his fellow townsmen honored him by electing him to the mayoralty, where he served acceptably for two years. During a period of nine years he officiated as one of the city fathers. using his
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influence in the council for progress and advancement in all lines. He was the assessor and collector, also, acting for one year in each position. Fra- ternally he is a master Mason.
In September, 1856, Mr. Dudgeon married Miss Mary Finley, a daughter of Alvin and Hannah Finley, and after nearly sixteen years had elapsed she was summoned to the silent land, in August, 1872. She was a member of the Methodist church, and possessed many admirable traits of disposition which endeared her to all. Of the six children born to this worthy couple, John A. married Mayme Wallace, and has two sons and a daughter,-Carrie, Samuel and John. Francis Grant married Annie Thelo, and has two children,-Oran and Pearl. Alice J. became the wife of Emil Otto, and their three sons are Edgar, Walter and Samuel. Charles W. wedded Vie Freeland, by whom he has two children,-Gladys and Grant. Samuel O. married Sarah Lawrence and their little son is named Harold. Miss Carrie Belle, the youngest daughter of Mr. Dudgeon, is living at home. He was united in marriage with Mrs. Augusta C. Baum- bach in April, 1880. Mrs. Dudgeon, who is a daughter of Jacob and Au- gusta Stalil, was the wife of Dr. Baumbach in her early womanhood, and the only child of that union, Tillie, is now Mrs. W. P. Butler, of Bloom- ington. Mrs. Dudgeon is identified with the Methodist denomination. In 1896 the beautiful residence of the family at the corner of Indiana and Jeffer- son streets was erected by our subject. and here, surrounded with the com- forts which his own industry has provided, he passes his happiest hours.
GEORGE W. LEE.
Thirty-six years ago, on the 21st of February, 1864. George W. Lee was born in Utica township, and in this immediate vicinity his industrious, peaceful life has thus far been spent. His father, Dwight F. Lee, was a native of Connecticut, and after residing in LaSalle county for many years he was called to his reward, in June. 1883, at the age of sixty years. The wife and mother, whose maiden name was Isabella Piercy, was born in England, April 7, 1829, and when twelve years of age came to the United States with her parents, James and Jane Piercy, who located upon a farm in Utica township, and there Mrs. Lee continued to dwell until her marriage.
George W. Lee is one of six children, his three brothers being: Gilbert. now a citizen of Harvey, Illinois; Walter, of McHenry county, this state; and John, of Utica. A sister, Nettie, became the wife of Edward Allin, of Marseilles, Illinois, and Nellie, the youngest of the family, resides in Utica.
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Reared to agricultural pursuits, George W. Lee decided to continue in the pathway marked out for him, and surely has no occasion to regret his decision. He received a liberal public school education, and has increased his fund of knowledge by observation, experience and reading. Upon arriving at his eighteenth year, he started out to make his own independent way in the world, and at present is cultivating a snug little farm of twenty- seven acres, conveniently situated near the corporate limits of Utica. Mr. Lee rents a considerable amount of farm lands and carries on farming extensively, being one of the most successful farmers of Utica township. In 1896 Mr. Lee was elected to serve as a highway commissioner, and in 1899 was again called to occupy this important office. Fraternally he belongs to the Modern Woodmen of America.
In 1887 Mr. Lee wedded Miss Achsa Leech, a daughter of Joseph and Prudence (Brown) Leech, of Utica. Mrs. Lee died November 26, 1889, and left two sons, Warren and Du Fae, to mourn her loss.
ARCHIBALD MEANS.
Archibald Means, deceased, a distinguished citizen of Peru, LaSalle county, for many years past, will long be remembered with gratitude and affection by the people of this community as a friend of the working man and the promoter of institutions which tended to elevate and upbuild the municipality. Shrewd and sagacious, he was at once an excellent financier and a kind employer, gaining the earnest support and co-opera- tion of those in his employ to advance the interest of the institution for which he labored.
He was born in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, March 31, 1833, and traced his ancestry back to county Tyrone, Ireland, where his grandfather was born. in 1750. In 1787 the attractions of the New World enticed him to America, causing him to settle in the state of Pennsylvania, where the father, William Means, was born September 15, 1803. William Means removed to Steubenville. Ohio, in 1836, and was engaged in the foundry business at that place for fourteen years. Abandoning that employment he gave his attention to agriculture until his death, which occurred in his sixty-eighth year. He was married in Allegheny county to Miss Nancy Dawson, February II. 1832, and through her Mr. Means traced his family tree as far back as 1656, when one Garret von Swearinger, a native of Holland, emigrated to America and located in New Castle, Delaware, and in 1664 moved to Maryland. Nancy Dawson was the immediate descend- ant of Nicholas and Verlinda (Blackmore) Dawson, her grandfather, Samuel
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Archibald Meant
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Blackmore, Jr., having come from his native land, England, and settled on a tract of land in Maryland which had been granted to his father by Lord Baltimore. This tract included the grounds on which stands the national capitol at Washington. The lives of these early settlers were filled with toil and privation; and the suffering and hardships endured by them in the wild, unbroken country, as they labored perseveringly in the wilderness to build their rude log huts and rear their families to lives of independence and industry, made possible the grand heritage of a free and independent nation,-America.
To such antecedents Archibald Means owed his origin, and it is but natural that he should have inherited many of the predominant traits of their character. We will take a brief glance at his life from childhood. When a child of three years his parents moved to Steubenville, Ohio, where he grew to man's estate. He was given an academic education, but close application to study had undermined his health, never robust, and it was deemed advisable to try country air to perfect a cure. At the age of eighteen he engaged in farm work and continued it three years, until he reached his twenty-first birthday. He then went to Ashland, Kentucky, in 1854, remaining there until 1861, employed in the bank of Thomas W. Means. This gentleman, although of the same name, was in no way related to our subject.
His first presidential vote was cast for the Democratic candidate, James Buchanan, but his sympathies were soon enlisted in the cause of freedom and he became a strong supporter of the Republican party. He was one of five men in the precinct, and of eleven in his county, who cast their vote in 1860 for Abraham Lincoln. During those troublous times it was dangerous for a man to express his allegiance to the federal govern- ment. as many of the southern states, among them Kentucky, counted it basest treason; and an opposition to slavery was often expressed at the expense of the life of the bold speaker. Mr. Means was known as a man who had the courage to fearlessly stand by any view he considered right, and he was a strong opposer of the laws of slavery, expressing himself freely on the subject. As soon as hostilities began Mr. Means tendered his services to the cause of the nation, and in June, 1861, began to recruit a company of Union soldiers from his district, which was known as Company E. Fourteenth Kentucky Infantry. Of this company he was elected, and afterward commissioned, captain, and at once he went with it to the front, where he served under General, then Colonel. Garfield against Humphrey Marshall, on the Big Sandy river, in January, 1862. His company was one of a number which formed the nucleus of what afterward became the East Tennessee troops, and consisted of seven regiments. While actively en-
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gaged in service at the battle of Cumberland Gap, Captain Means was taken seriously ill, granted a furlough and sent home to die, as his friends regretfully believed. However, under the tender nursing of a devoted mother he slowly recuperated and was able to return to the front of battle, where he was assigned to the staff of General A. J. Smith and given charge of the pontoon bridge at Cincinnati. His health again failing, with much regret he was obliged to tender his resignation, in October, 1862.
After restoring his shattered health in some degree, Captain Means moved to Pittsburg, where he engaged in the iron business and later in the pottery manufacture in Manchester, Ohio. In 1871 he came to Peru in order to close out the zinc works here in the interest of the stockholders. The plant was then a small affair, which had never been conducted on a paying basis, and it had been thought useless to try to continue it. After looking it over Mr. Means decided that it could be made a paying invest- ment and at once set about putting his plans in operation. The Illinois Zinc Company was formed and Mr. Means, one of the stockholders, was made vice-president and manager. He at once began to add improvements, doing this in a cautious manner, and increased the works, having the supreme satisfaction of seeing his plans materialize in financial success for the investors. This plant has assumed large proportions and is one which contributes in no small way to the prosperity of Peru, giving employment, as it does, to hundreds of workmen. As the promoter and successful manip- ulator of the scheme, Mr. Means proved himself a benefactor to the entire community, while his general bearing and conduct since he became a resi- dent of the city placed him in an enviable position among the business men and he was universally esteemed.
Captain Means was married three times, his first matrimonial alliance being with Isabella, daughter of Thomas W. Means, who was born in Law- rence county, Ohio, and moved to Ashland, Kentucky. This marriage was contracted June 2, 1858, and five years later, on January 20, she died without issue. Three years passed when. on April 26, 1866, he led to the altar Sarah Jane, daughter of William Ellison, near Hanging Rock, Ohio. This union resulted in the birth of five children: Annie, who died in child- hood; William E .: Archibald L., who died in August, 1898; Robert W., who was drowned; and Sara. January 24, 1880, the mother of these children was called to her reward and Captain Means was once more left a widower. August 16, 1881, he joined his lot with Miss Jennie Schleich. a daughter of General Newton S. Schleich of Lancaster, Ohio, and to them one child was born, Alan Hay Means.
Our subject was an active worker in the E. N. Kirk Post, G. A. R., and served as commander of the same. and was also a member of the Illinois
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Commandery Military Order of the Loyal Legion. While president of the school board he made many opportunities to advance the cause of education, and indeed was always interested in the growth and welfare of the city. Al- though a Presbyterian in faith, he contributed to the support of the Con- gregational denomination in a most liberal manner, there being no Presby- terian church in Peru. He was benevolent when a worthy object was presented to his notice, although intolerant of shams. Industrious and progressive, with keen, sound judgment, and alert to wise suggestions, he was a rare acquisition to the commercial circles and a strong addition to what was best in society; and it is no wonder that his death, which occurred in Chicago May 22, 1898, while there for medical treatment, was felt a great loss by the community and by an endearing family.
CHARLES K. HALVERSON.
America can boast of no better or more patriotic citizens than those which Norway has furnished, and LaSalle county had no more worthy, industrious, honorable pioneer than the father of the subject of this narra- tive, who, with all of his sons, have been ready to do all within their power for this land, the land of their love and pride.
Born near Christiania, Norway, in 1813, Knute Halverson continued to dwell in his native land until 1838, when he sailed for the west, believing that greater opportunities awaited him here. Landing in the harbor of New York, after a long, weary journey on the old-style sailing vessel of the period, he went to Chicago by way of the great lakes, and from that place, then a tiny hamlet comprised of a few rude cabins, he pursued his way on foot to LaSalle county. Beginning at the bottom rounds of the ladder leading to success, he worked at whatever he could find to do whereby he might earn an honest dollar, and frequently-for money was scarce among the settlers-had to accept farm produce or provisions in lieu of other payment. In 1840 he married Elizabeth Olson and settled upon a little farm. Years rolled by and in 1858 he was enabled to purchase the fine place known as the Halverson farm, in Adams township. Here he spent the remaining years of his life, respected by all who knew him, and at his death he left a valuable estate, accumulated solely by his thrift and good business talents. He was a true-blue Republican, and voted for every presidential candidate of his party from William H. Harrison to William McKinley. One of the organizers of the Lutheran church in his commu- nity, he held the office of deacon and contributed liberally to the support of religious enterprises.
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