USA > Illinois > Biographical and memorial edition of the Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 14
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THOMAS G. LAWLER.
The late Colonel Thomas G. Lawler was one of the most distinguished residents of Rockford for many years, his name being recorded with two or three others in the biennial "Who's
Who?" of Rockford. Of him it may truly be said that his life was full of kindness and use- fulness; his unfailing loyalty, his love of jus- tice, his ideals of goodness, his knowledge of
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Thomas . G . Lawler
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men and his earnestness of purpose, made bim one on whom all could rely; it was recognized that he never acted from any motive but the best; he exemplified in his conduct all the at- tributes of the real altruist. Civil war veteran, business man, home-lover and loyal citizen, Colonel Lawler rounded out his period of life as a true man, and departing, left an enduring record of military and civil life that all might emulate. Colonel Lawler was born at Liver- pool, England. April 7, 1834, and died at Rock- ford, Ill., February 3, 190S. When he was ten years old, his parents came to Rockford, so that he practically grew up in the city to which it was destined he should add such honor in after life. From childhood he displayed a strong Interest in military affairs, so that at his coun- try's call for service it was but natural that he should early offer his service when our Union was in danger. He eulisted and was enrolled as a private in Company E, Nineteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, September 17, 1861. He gave three years and three months of arduous and dangerous service to his country and he was honorably mustered out at the close of the conflict. Through merit in camp and field he was promoted to the rank of sergeant, and was breveted first lieutenant for honorable serv- Iv. His regiment was engaged in some of the severest and most decisive battles of the war, which left their imprint of victory upon the his- tory of the preserved nation. He was in the battles of Stone River, Chickamauga, Mission- ary Ridge, Resaca, and through the entire At- lanta campaign with Sherman to the sea, never shirking duty and always distinguishing him- self by valiant service; he was twice slightly wounded and his clothing often pierced by the enemy's missiles. General William Starke Rose- cranz placed his name on the coveted "Roll of Honor" for bravery in the field.
After being mustered out, Colonel Lawler re- turned to Rockford, where he devoted his tal- ents towards the establishment of himself in business, and the betterment of his community ; actuated at all times by a strong desire to se- cure a large moral uplift for self and comrades. Two years after his return from the army, the young hero was married December 24, 1866, to Miss Fannie A. Rodd, who survives him, residing at the family homestead, No. 218 Kish- waukee street, Rockford. His home was his
refuge and fortress from the surgings and con- fiets of public life.
Colonel Lawler was a keen business man, fru- gal, quick to see and seize legitimate oppor- tunities. Having accumulated some capital, he associated himself with other solid men in coal, fuel and lumber interests, which he aided in developing to a remarkable degree. The Rock- ford Lumber and Fuel Company was for years the largest concern of its kind in northern Illi- nois. To the time of his final illness, Colonel Lawler was active with his associates in its management. In 1579, his fidelity to his coun- try and city was recognized by President R. B. Hayes in his appointment as postmaster of Rockford and for thirty years he practically held this responsible office. His long connection and prominence with postal affairs at Rockford received merited and distinguished recognition. He was honored from year to year by election to the treasurership of the National Association of Postmasters, First Class Offices, from its organization in 1898 to the time of his death. At his death the Department at Washington ordered the acting postmaster at Rockford to suspend all business of the office from one to four-thirty o'clock, P. M., the day of his funeral, so that all the attaches of the office might at- tend the funeral, which they did, marching in a body. No citizen of Rockford was so hon- ored in his death and burial as Colonel Lawler. Flags floated at half-mast on all the public . schools, the court house, Memorial Hall, city hall, and many other buildings; the entire city being in deep mourning for the loss of its dis- tinguished citizen. The bells of all the churches tolled as the cortege passed through the streets; the schools were closed, and business was sus- pended during the hours of the funeral. The school children of Rockford, wishing to express their admiration and love for him, gave an American flag made of flowers, so large as to cover his entire grave. So generous and spon- taneous was this giving, that a large sum re- mained which later was used to purchase a flag for each of the twenty schools of the city. This flag is used as a patriotic "contest" flag on Memorial day and goes from room to room in the building. His love of the flag was a devo- tion; he was instrumental in having a flag placed on every school house in the county.
Colonel Lawler was eminent in the Grand Army of the Republic, having been elected Com-
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mander of Nevius Post No. 1, G. A. R., forty times, serving thirty-seven terms consecutively, a record unsurpassed in this great patriotic and fraternal order. He was chosen Department Commander in 1881, and the coveted honor of Commander-in-Chief of the G. A. R. was be- stowed upon him in 1894 at Pittsburgh, he serv- ing his term with added honors. He was the first Commander-in-Chief to visit all the south- ern states in a deep spirit of fealty and conseil- iation. His rank of Colonel was gained for meritorious service in the Third Regiment, Il- linois National Guard. Colonel Lawler was in- strumental in the formation of Company K of this regiment, of which he was the beloved and efficient drill master, thus continuing until Jan- uary 5, 1877, when he was elected first lieu- tenant. Later, on November 8, 1886, for ef- ficiency and appreciation, he was elected colone!, and held the office until 1892, retaining an bon- orary membership in the regiment until his death. Charitable in a marked degree, he was particularly generous to old soldiers; he loved his comrades like a brother and none ever suf- fered when Colonel "Tom," as he was affec- tionately called, knew of his need. He was a member of the Centennial M. E. Church of Rock- ford, serving on its first board of trustees with helpful distinction, and as Sunday school super- intendent with rare efficiency and fidelity. Colonel Lawler was equally prominent in Ma- sonic circles. He was Past Master of Rock- ford Lodge No. 102, A. F. & A. M., having served as Master from 1878 to 1886. He was a mem- ber of Winnebago Chapter No. 24, R. A. M .; Crusader Commandery No. 17, Knights Tem- plar; Freeport, Illinois, Consistory ; S. P. R. S. ; thirty-second degree Masons, and of Tebala Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, Rockford. In addition he belonged to Rockford Lodge No. €4, B. P. O. E., of which he was a charter mem- ber, and was on its first board of trustees.
In politics he was a staunch Republican. Al- though often urged to permit his name to be used on his party's ticket, Colonel Lawler con- sistently refused, even though at almost any period in his history he could have been mayor of Rockford or governor of the state, had he chosen to enter public life. It was his belief, however, that he could better serve his party and the people of his beloved city as a private citizen, and no promise of political distinction could move him from this decison.
The following tribute was paid to Colonel Lawler by a comrade :
"TOM" LAWLER
"Like the black eagle, the soldier brave Whose valor helped the land to save ; In peace, a leader tried and true, Beloved by everyone he know.
Quick with aid to those in need, Without deceit or hate or greed, A comrade and friend en God's own plan, "Tom' Lawler was every inch a man."
This distinguished citizen of Rockford, who in life had achieved a national reputation, was tenderly laid to rest wrapped in a beautiful silk dag which was presented to him at Louis- ville, Ky., in 1895. At that time the flag was suspended over both Colonel Lawler and Gen- eral Buckner, the latter having been a Con- federate soldier during the Civil War. To Illustrate the present close connection between the North and South, the flag was dropped to cover the two men, who once had been the valiant and vigorous exponents of the "Blue and the Gray." Colonel Lawler always highly prized this flag, and by personal request and the wish of the donors, it was appropriately used as his final winding sheet. Rockford feit the loss of this exemplary citizen, but its people did not mourn alone, for throughout the state and the Union profound tributes of respect and admiration were bestowed, governors and presi- dents vieing with each other in paying high compliment to his virtues and attributes in glowing words of well-deserved praise. His in- timates knew for a long time that he was suffer- ing from enlargement of the heart ; this brought on complications that ultimately caused his death in the midst of active life when his busi- ness and home associations were of the most value. He bore his illness with the fortitude of a soldier, cheering his family and associates up to the final struggle, when he surrendered to the Conqueror of all withont a murmur. In death as in life, he proved himself a hero. He had the patriotism which realizes that there is no contribution to be made to a community so valuable as a man whose shield is stainless, whose helmet glows with eternal sunlight. Such
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A man leaves behind him something so much richer than his fortune, that the rising genera- tion will do well to stand by his grave, and In a time of wild devotion to unscrupulous money-getting, reflect upon his unblemished
career and self-sacrificing spirit of duty. Of him it may well be said :
"He blazoned duty's stainless shield, And set a star in honor's sky."
AUGUSTUS FREDERICK NIGHTINGALE.
There is, probably, no better known figure in the Illinois field of education than Dr. Augus- tus Frederick Nightingale. For forty years a resident of Chicago, he has constantly filled high positions of trust and responsibility, and has forcibly impressed himself upon the life and institutions of the community in a manner alike creditable to himself and productive of lasting benefit to the city. He was born No- vember 11, 1843, at Quincy, Mass., a son of Thomas J. and Alice ( Brackett) Nightingale, and is a descendant of one of the oldest Ameri- can families. The environment of the New Eng- land fathers was calculated to bring out and develop all that was sturdy and vigorous in both mind and body, and their descendants con- tinne to manifest the traits of character which enabled them to survive the hardships they wote compelled to endure, and which rendered prosperity possible in the face of the most for- bidding conditions. Both the Nightingale and Brackett families were of early New England origin, and both were prominent during the colo- nial epoch of this country.
In the acquirement of his education, Doctor Nightingale attended successively the public schools of Quincy, the Newbury Academy of Vermont and the Wesleyan University of Con- necticut, being graduated from the last named with valedictorian honors as a member of the class of 1866 and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society. His ripe scholarship of late years has received recognition in the honorary degree of Master of Arts, received in 1869, Doc- tor of Philosophy, in 1891, and Doctor of Laws in 1901. Following the completion of his col- lege course, he accepted the professorship of Latin and Greek in the Upper Iowa University, with which he was connected for two years. In 1868 he was called to the presidency of the Northwestern Female College, at Evanston, 111., where he continued until 1871, and during the following year he acted in the capacity of pro- fessor of Latin and Greek in Simpson College, Indianola, Iowa. From 1872 to 1874, he was superintendent of the public schools of Omaha,
Neb., whence he came to Chicago, and for six- teen years remained as principal of the Lake View high school. He was then elected assist- ant superintendent of the Chicago public schools, in 1590, and for two years supervised the gram- mar and primary schools of the North Side, fol- lowing which, from 1992 until 1901, he was superintendent of all of the Chicago high schools. In 1902 he was elected superintendent of the Cook County schools, and was re-elected in 1906, serving in this capacity until December 5, 1910. He has been a trustee of the University of Illi- nois since 1598, and was president of the board in 1902 and 1903. He was president of the Nebraska State Teachers' Association in 1873, and of the Illinois State Teachers' Association in 1857, while in 1SSS he served as president of the secondary department of the National Edu- cational Association. He has long ranked with the conspicuous educators of the country by reasons of achievements in systematizing and coordinating the work of the secondary schools. From 1×95 until 1899 he was chairman of the committee of the National Educational Associa- tion on college entrance requirements, and in 1898 was president of the North Central Asso- ciation of colleges and secondary schools. He was the author of "Requirements for Admission to American Colleges," and is even more widely known because of his work as an editor of one hundred volumes published under the title of "Twentieth Century Text Books." Governor Deneen appointed him a member of the educa- tional commission to revise and perfect the school laws of Illinois. The honors which were conferred upon him in connection with the sys- tem of public education have been well-merited and modestly borne. One of the leading Chi- cago newspapers said of him editorially in No- vember, 1900, "Doctor Nightingale has made education and the organization and direction of educational activities his life work. He has been remarkably successful. In almost every field of the work from the primary to teaching the classics in a University, from grade to superintendent of high schools, from instructor
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in Greek and Latin to College President, he has left the mark of an earnest student and apt instructor, and intelligent organizer and a ju- dicious director."
On August 24, 1866, Doctor Nightingale was married to Miss Fanny Orena Chase, daughter of Rev. C. H. Chase, of New Hampshire, and they became the parents of six children, namely : Florence, born May 22, 1868, who became the wife of Dr. W. Ruffin Abbott, and died October 24, 1912, leaving one son, Augustus Frederick Nightingale Abbott, born June 25, 1906, who is living with his grandfather, Doctor Nightingale; Carl Fred, born September 26, 1869, who died September 27, 1870; Harry Thomas, born Octo- ber 11, 1871, who is an instructor in Northwest- ern University, Evanston, Ill .; Jessie Irma, born February 27, 1873, who is the wife of Harrison M. Angle, of Evanston, Ill., and had one son, John Harrison Angle, born January 30, 1900, who died November, 1906; Winifred, born Oc- tober 20, 1874, who is the wife of Vaughn Lee
Alward, of Evanston, Ill., and has three chil- dren, Winifred Lee Alward, born March 4, 1906, Vincent Alward, born June 3, 1908, and Betsy Alward, born June 16, 1914; and Pearl Romeyn, born December 12, 1875, who is the wife of Win- ter D. Hess of Evanston, Ill., and the mother of three children, Chase Nightingale, born October 27, 1900, Richard David Hess, born June 2, 1902, and Frederick Winter Hess, born November 11, 1910. Doctor Nightingale resides at No. 916 Sheridan Road, Evanston, with a summer resi- dence at Lake Geneva, Ill., and is well-known in social circles of the city. He has not been back- ward in contributing to movements calculated to promote the public welfare and has given liberally of his time and means to charity. A man of broad learning, his activities have been so directed as to best serve his city and his State, and few men have succeeded in a greater degree in gaining and maintaining the con- fidence and regard of their fellow citizens.
JOHN P. HOPKINS.
It is not given to every man to excel in both business and politics. Every line of endeavor demands certain specific characteristics, and few there are who either have so many differen- tiating ones, or are able to adapt those they possess so as to make them eminently fitting for divergent avenues of progress. Chicago is exacting; it demands much from its citizens before it crowns them with the laurel wreath of success. Its civic conditions are such that the man who rises to desirable heights in poli- tics must have a close and practical knowledge of the needs of each section of this immense metropolis. On the other hand its business interests are so numerous and many of them conducted upon so extensive a scale, that it would appear that in order to outelass competi- tors, it would be necessary for a man to devote every effort to the perfecting of his commercial and industrial connections. Yet there are men of this city whose names are equally well known in political and business circles, and perhaps no one who can honestly lay claim to this distinction, is more widely recognized as en- titled to the honor than John P. Hopkins, one time mayor of Chicago, and at all times a sue- cessful business man.
Mr. Hopkins was born at Buffalo, N. Y., Octo- ber 20, 1858, a son of John and Mary (Flinn) Hopkins. He was educated in the public schools
and St. Joseph's Academy of Buffalo, but early in life became self-supporting, commencing to work when only thirteen years old. In 1871, be entered upon a three and one-half year apprenticeship with the David Bell Company, of Buffalo, for the purpose of learning the ma- chinist trade, and was later weighmaster for the Evans Elevator Company, filling that posi- tion for two years. In December, 1880, he came to Chicago, and in the following March, he associated himself with the Pullman Palace Car Company, remaining with that corporation for seven years, and rising from timekeeper to paymaster. In September, 1SSS, Mr. Hopkins severed this connection to devote all of his time to the Arcade Trading Company, which he had established at Pullman in 1855, and of which he was secretary. The business later developed to such an extent that it was reorganized as the Secord and Hopkins Company, and eight. general stores were conducted by this concern. Mr. Hopkins became president of the Aurora Automatic Machinery Company, director of the Chicago Pneumatic Tool Company, the Chicago and Great Lakes Dredge and Doek Company, the Consumers Company and the Peabody Coal Company. He is a man of superior business qualifications and few keep better posted on current issues.
In his political connections, Mr. Hopkins has
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always been a stanch Democrat and has been exceedingly active in the work of his party. He was the promoter and organizer of the an- nexation movement for a greater Chicago, and as chairman of the annexation committee he conducted the campaign which resulted in the annexation of Hyde Park, Lake, Cicero, Jeffer- son and Lake View to Chicago. In 1894, he was elected mayor of Chicago to fill the unexpired term of Carter H. Harrison, Sr., and discharged the duties of that distinguished position capably and with fidelity to the best interests of the people. He was chairman of the Cook County Democratic campaign committee during 1890, 1591 and 1892, and was vice-chairman of the National (Gold) Democratie committee in 1896, and chairman of the Democratic State commit- tee in 1001, 1902, 1903 and 1904. He was a delegate to the Democratic National Conven- tions of 1892, 1900 and 1904, and was one of the organizers and for four years president of the Cook County Democratic Club.
Mr. Hopkins has been prominently identified with the business, financial and political in- terests of Chicago for more than three decades, and during this time he has reached a broad field of useful operation. In business life he is alert, sagacious and reliable, while as a citi- zen he is honorable, prompt and true to every engagement. Genial and whole-souled, he is a delightful host and always a welcome guest.
Mr. Hopkins is a member of the Catholic Order of Foresters, the Catholic Mutual Benevolent Association, Knights of Columbus, the United States Catholic Historical Society, the American Catholic Historical Society, the Chicago His- torical Society, the Bibliophile Society of Boston, the American-Irish Historical Society, the Art Institute and the Field Museum of Natural His- tory. His social associations are with the Chi- cago Athletic, Midway, South Shore Country, the Germania, the Pullman, Press, and Jefferson clubs; and the Illinois Manufacturers Associa- tion and the Chicago Association of Commerce of Chicago; the Manhattan and Tilden clubs of New York ; the American Academy of Polit- ical and Social Science of Philadelphia and the National Geographic Society of Washington, D. C. Though quiet and unassuming in man- ner, he has made countless warm, personal friends, and all who know him recognize in him a man of earnest purpose and progressive principles. Always deeply interested in the wel- fare of Chicago, he has been one of the im- portant factors in advancing its interests, and the city owes to him a debt it can never dis- charge, inasmuch as he materially increased its area and aided in bringing to it in large meas- ure many of its important industrial concerns, while at all times he has assisted in raising the standard of its civic requirements.
JOHN WILLIAM BARWELL.
Dignity, sympathetic bearing, scholarly at- tainments and a business sense developed far beyond the ordinary, are a few of the character- istics which distinguish John William Barwell, one of the leading figures in the business circles of Waukegan, as well as a forceful personality in its social life. A man of ripened experience, he has brought his knowledge of men and affairs to bear upon his conduct of the several concerns with which he is connected, to such an extent that they have not only enjoyed a long era of prosperous activity, but they have their influence in determining the standards of other houses of a similar character. In his career, Mr. Bar- well is an earnest refutation of the claim that too much mental development is a handicap in the business world. Had he been less learned, his life history might have been entirely differ-
ent. As it is, his scholarly pursuits lend a char- acter to all that he undertakes, and not only have proven beneficial to others, but vastly en- tertaining to himself.
John William Barwell was born at Leicester, England. November 2, 1854, a son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Hannam) Barwell, natives of Eng- land. The father was engaged in marketing agricultural seeds, corn and oil cakes, and so continued to operate until his retirement in 1SS4. Ilis death occurred July 6, 1896 in England. The mother died in 1858, also in England. The ma- termal grandmother of John William Barwell, Mary ( Bickley) Hannam descended from the Diekley family of England, noted for their pos- session of the famous Bosworth field on which occurred the defeat and death of Richard III of England.
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Until he was fourteen years old, John William Barwell attended a private school in his native place, but at that time went to Trent College in Derbyshire, and remained there from 1868 to 1872. Later he passed the Oxford senior local examinations as an associate in Arts. To learn the foreign trade, he engaged in handling cotton and general produce in a broker's office at Liver- pool, England, and so continued until 1876. In that year he entered his father's business in Leicester, and remained for two years. He was a member of the Leicestershire Country Club. Then he left his native land for the United States, his objective point being Chicago, pur- posing arranging for the shipment of seeds, oil cakes and cotton cakes, from the United States to his father and the importing European houses. In order to facilitate his operations, he became a member of the Chicago Board of Trade, and in 1881 became connected with E. W. Blatchford & Co., in the manufacture of Blatchford's Calf Meal, which is recognized as being one of the best brands of its kind on the market. When his father died, Mr. Barwell returned to England to settle the affairs of the estate, and upon his return bought out the Blatchford interest and transferring the business to Waukegan, erected his present plant in 1900, and has continued in this line of business, having added the manufac- ture of poultry foods, and milk substitutes for pigs and lambs, to the original product. While giving much attention to the multitudinous du- ties of his concern, Mr. Barwell has found time to be interested in other directions, and since December, 1912, has been president of the Waukegan National Bank, being elected at the time the bank was organized.
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