USA > Illinois > Biographical and memorial edition of the Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 42
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Hugh Riddle was born near Bedford, Hills- borough County, N. H., August 11, 1822, the oldest son of Gawn and Rebecca (Walker) Riddle. The family was of Scotch-Irish de- scent ; the first to come to this country in 1718, Gawn, having sailed from the north of Ire- land, where the family names of Gawn (Gavins) and Hugh kept the Scotch origin alive. Born, as so many of our ablest men, on a farm, the Hugh of this sketch had for a birthright the elements of success, health, energy, a clean mind, and the ability to work. Hle had a great love for reading. Speaking in Jater life of his boyhood, he wrote: "Books and papers being rare, I took the Bible and read it in course from Genesis to Revelation before attaining the age of seven." In the summer the New England farm boy rode the horse to plow, drove oxen, planted and hoed corn, raked hay, picked hops, apples, potatoes, and not seldom the small stones so generously scattered over most New Hampshire farms. It was a life that made the short winter terms of the "Red School-house" under David McGregor, the stern old Scotch master, eagerly welcome. That Hugh Riddle made good use of his opportunities is shown by the fact that he taught school at sixteen. During the next six years he alter- nated teaching with further study in private schools and with farm work. It was very practical training. The experience gained while boarding in the homes of different pupils may well have made him the keen judge of men he
afterward showed himself to be. When he was eighteen the exciting log-cabin campaign, in which Harrison was elected, and the oratory of Daniel Webster, aroused his interest in poli- tics and history. He was invited, when only twenty-two, to take charge of a large boys' school in Elmira, N. Y. The journey from Bos- ton to Elmira by rail, by steamboat and by stage, lasted from Monday morning until Wed- nesday night, a more serious undertaking than the present journey from Chicago to San Francisco. It was while teaching in Elmira that Mr. Riddle read much about the Erie Railroad then beginning construction near the Hudson River. He had undoubtedly a predi- lection for an active life and this opening rail- road world seemed to offer the opportunity he desired. Others, however, were eager for the same opportunity and he could find no place. So, although well educated, he accepted a chainman's position, the lowest in the engineer- ing world.
He was twenty-four years old when he began his railroad career, and the history of his forty-eight years of continuous service is one of steady advancement and increasing responsibility. Western New York State in the forties was a sparsely populated region with few advantages socially or morally. The life of an engineer was almost that of a frontiers- man. In 1818 Mr. Riddle became assistant en- gineer and remained with the construction work, in charge of various divisions, until its comple-
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tion. In 1851 the Erie road, in token of the end of its long work, had a celebration at Dun- kirk, attended by President Fillmore, Daniel Webster and other distinguished guests. Mr. Riddle then became for a time resident engineer of the Silver Creek and State Line Railroad, and, in 1852, was connected with the engineer ing department of the Canandaigua and Ni- agara Falls Railroad, now a part of the New York Central lines. In 1853 he re-entered the Erie service as assistant engineer was superin- tendent of the Delaware Division in 1855, and in 1865 became general superintendent of the road with headquarters at New York City. This position he resigned in 1869 after a con- nection with this road of twenty-three years. Mr. Riddle left the Erie road because there opened before him again the opportunity of a wider field, this time in the central west. He was invited to become general superintendent of the Rock Island Railroad Company, the road extending at that time from Chicago to Council Bluffs. Successively he was general superin- tendent, vice president, and in 1877 was made president, which position he filled until June, 1SS3, when at his earnest request he was re- lieved of responsibilities which by reason of the expansion of the road and his failing health, had become very heavy. He remained chairman of the executive committee because, as was said, "his ripe experience, steady judg- ment and unswerving honesty made his services too valuable to be wholly surrendered." Under Hugh Riddle's management the road was con- siderably extended, its prosperity increased, and its standing in the railroad world thor- oughly sustained. In 1884 he was associated with Charles Francis Adams on the Trunk Line Committee, and in 1855 was a director of the Union Pacific Railroad Company. From time to time he acted as arbitrator in settling differences between railroad companies. To men like Mr. Riddle the railroad system of the country owes much, and to the railroads they served is largely due the development of Chi- cago and the central west.
A word might be added as to Mr. Riddle's personality, for it is by his personality that
We must explain the confidence placed in bim by high and low, by zich and poor alike. He was as unassuming as he was active and cour- ageous and, although reserved in manner, en- tirely democratic in his thought and association with people. Ilis "relations with large railroad systems had been intimate and important and perhaps no man stood higher in the railroad world," yet he never pressed his views with undue earnestness. Though his nature was direct and he was a maa of great firmmess, his modesty and open-mindedness gave singular etario to his life. it is characteristic of him that when asked to write an account of his life he said: "What is there to write about? I have done nothing unusual." While he de- manded of his employes the utmost fidelity, he was still so considerate of the rights of others that the humblest trainman as well as the highest official trusted him, knowing him to be fearlessly just. It is told of him that when the railroads were beginning to burn coal instead of wood, be was urged to make the change by the largest stockholder of the com- pany, a man whose influence was paramount at that time in the management of many roads. Mr. Riddle replied that he would do so as soon as some small contracts with farmers had ex- pired. He received a telegram "Never mind the small contracts" to which went the immediate response, "The small contracts will stand."
Devoted to the interests of the railroads, de- voted to his country, to his family, and friends. large in his outlook for his city, he was public- spirited and generous. Throughout his busy career he had applied his talents and oppor- tunities to the mastery of the problems imme- diately confronting him. After years of labor, he enjoyed at the last nearly ten years of leisure for thought and culture of the mind. With great interest still in life and with the bearing of a much younger man, he died sud- denly on his seventieth birthday, Angust 11. 1892. Those who knew him best loved him most, and to his friends what would seem ex- travagant praise to those who did not know him, seems but an understatement of a truly noble career.
ORNAN PIERSON.
Ornan Pierson, president of the Greene Coun- ty National Bank at Carrollton. III., was born in Carrollton July 17, 1829. To follow in the steps of his father was his youthful ambition
and his incentive, from the very first, to put his best efforts into anything he might under- take. This was indeed a worthy aim, for David Pierson, pioneer banker, was one of the ablest,
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most brilliant and highly respected citizens of Greene County; a man whose splendid talents were extremely diversified, as is attested by the success attending his operations in farming, retail selling, woolen manufacture, banking, and active politics. Heredity and family influence did much, in the formative period of his youth, to fit the son for the road his ambitions had destined him to follow. Heredity gave him those sterling, characteristic attributes of mind, body, and conscience that had helped his father before him to the position of influence he at- tained. Strict discipline, careful moulding of the plastic mind, the instilling of fitting worldly wisdom by his parents, provided him with the proper prospective and retrospective with which to view life as a problem. His innate earnest- ness of purpose completed his equipment for life's contest, and when he graduated from the public schools of his native town he gave prom- ise of success which his later life has amply justified.
In the year 1854 his father, David Pierson, had established a bank at Carrollton and in 1860 he erected the bank building in which the firm did business for forty-seven years. The returns from the private bank were eminently satisfactory, but it was decided in ISTS to or- ganize as a national bank. Accordingly Ornan Pierson went to Washington and secured a charter from the national government authoriz- ing the organization under the name of the Greene County National Bank with a capitaliza- tion of $100,000. The bank now shows a sur- plus and profits of over $50,000 and total de- posits of nearly $1,000,000. Four years after the granting of the articles of incorporation for the new bank Mr. Ornan Pierson was made cashier. Since that time he held the office for thirty consecutive years and was recently elected
president. Robert Pierson, who was the cashier for the old private bank, was the incumbent of that office for the first four years of its existence. His son, Stuart E. Pierson, a nephew of Ornan's, is at present the cashier.
Ornan Pierson was married when he was twenty-one years old, to Miss Maria Stryker, who was born at Orange, N. J., and educated at Illinois College, Jacksonville, IN., where she was a student under Newton Bateman. Mr. and Mrs. Pierson are the parents of five chil- dren whose names here appear: Louise, who is Mrs. James MeNabb, lives in Carrollton, where her husband is editor of the Gazette; Joseph H., who is postmaster of Carrollton; Albert L., who lives in Carrollton; Eugenia, who is presi- dent of the Civies Club of Carrollton, and other- wise active in local matters; and David O. Pierson, who died in the fall of 1900. Politically Mr. Pierson is allied with the Republican party. Like his father he has held many political offices, among which may be mentioned that of Mayor of Carrollton during 1802, 1893, 1804, 1896, 1895 and as a member of the Thirty-second General Assembly (18$1) from Greene County. He was president of the school board and was recently appointed by Governor Dunne as one of the com- missioners to erect a monument to the memory of Governor Carlin. Governor Carlin lived in Carrollton, Ill., and a bill was lately passed by the Legislature to erect a suitable monument there in his memory. It can most truthfully be said that Mr. Pierson has accomplished the de- sire of his youth. He has climbed a somewhat stony path, similar to that his father trod, and he has now, in the latter years of his life, the satisfaction of looking back on a race well run, of enjoying the well-deserved trust and respect of all with whom he has come in contact.
MICHAEL F. KANAN.
Forty-eight years have rolled away since that notable body of men gathered, on April 6, 1866, at Decatur, Ill., and organized the Grand Army of the Republic, with its motto of charity and loyalty and its avowed purpose of teaching fa- triotism to the younger generations. Among the leaders in this movement were soldiers who, on many a fierce field of battle, had proved their valor and their patriotism, and they were well fitted for the task they had undertaken. The great organization then formed still con-
tinues, although, in the course of nature, it yearly grows less and less in membership, but it has proved a mighty factor in the lessons it has taught and in the work it has done in the upbuilding of solid American citizenship. To have been the first commander of the first Grand Army of the Republic post ever organized, as was the late Captain Michael F. Kanan, was an honor which he prized throughout life, and he lived to survive all the comrades of his own post, with one exception. Aside from his mili-
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tary life and connections, Captain Kanan was a man of business enterprise and of great public usefulness.
Michael F. Kanan was born near Troy, N. Y., and died at Decatur, Ill. Little is known of his early life, but he was of Irish parentage and possessed many of the admirable characteristics of such descent. In 1850 he came, as a youth, to Decatur and secured work as a clerk in a store. When the Civil war broke out Mr. Kanan enlisted and was made first lieutenant of Company A, Forty-first Illinois Volunteer In- fantry, soon after was promoted to the cap- taincy and participated in many of the most serious battles of the war, including Fort Don- elson, Corinth, Hatchie, Cold Water River, Vicksburg, Jackson, the Red River expedition, Atlanta, Guntown and Kenesaw Mountain. His qualities as a soldier were tested at the time of the disaster to a portion of the Union forces at the attack on Jackson, Miss. After the sur- render of Vicksburg, General Lauman had com- mand of the right wing of the advance on Jack- son and orders were not to attack. Captain . Kanan had command of the skirmish line and General Lauman ordered that he advance the line 200 yards. Kanan, knowing that he had already placed his line as far forward as was prudent and that General Sherman did not wish to bring on a battle, replied, "Sir, we will be in a fight before we advance 100 yards." General Lauman, however, insisted, with the result that a battle opened as soon as the line advanced and among the worst sufferers in the disaster that followed was the Forty-first regi- ment. Military history relates that for this rash act General Lauman was censured and later was courtmartialed and dismissed from the service. Had he given heed to Captain Kanan the result would have been very differ- ent. In every other emergency this young officer proved his efficiency and the testimony of his comrades was that he was a perfect soldier, cool, poised and deliberate when under fire, ever at the post of duty but never willing to risk the lives of his men rashly and always endeavoring, through personal interest, to make camp life as endurable as possible to those over whom he had charge. Hle thus greatly endeared himself to his command and regret was univer- sal when in 1964 he resigned from the service.
Captain Kanan returned to Decatur and be- came connected with the Decatur Furniture
Company, first as bookkeeper and later as sec- retary-treasurer, which position he continued to fill until he went out of business in 1650. Cap- tain Kanan was a prominent man in the Re- publican party for fifty years and was closely identified in party attiliation with many of the distinguished men of the state. He was thus connected with Governor Oglesby, although be- tween them there was also a close tie of per- sonal friendship, both having served as officers in the Civil war, enlisting at the same time but being assigned to different regiments. For years Captain Kanan served on the county cen- trat committee and was always consulted on party moves. During the administration of President Grant he was appointed postoffice in- spector, his work being mainly in the West and Southwest, and he was instrumental in unearth- ing the "Star" route frauds for the government, an achievement that made his name known from coast to coast. In 1SS5 Captain Kanan was elected mayor of Decatur and it is said of his administration, which continued until 1891, that it advanced the town into a city and brought about reforms and public improvements that have been of lasting benefit. During his terin brick paving was adopted and public utili- ties were introduced, and on account of the incorruptibility of the mayor, the work was honestly done. When he left the office miles of brick paving had replaced the old board and earth walks and streets, and the finances of the city were in satisfactory condition. He was never anxious for public office, but served faith- fully when elected. In 1895 he was elected to the State Senate and served through one term.
At Kansas City, November 11, 1903, Captain Kanan was married to Miss Jane Mcclellan, a daughter of Edmiston and Judith (Snyder) MeClellan, who survives him. At time of death Captain Kanan was the only surviving Decatur man who was a charter member of old Post L, Grand Army of the Republic, which was given the name of Encampment No. 1. He loved to meet with the veterans and could always recall some stirring event or relate a story of the days when these grizzled men as youths hazarded their lives for love of country. Although he was a valued member of the Masons and the Knights of Pythias as well, his old army comrades de- manded the honor of conducting his funeral and of laying the last tributes of love on his bier.
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JACOB AREND ROELFS.
In reviewing the history of this country, the thoughtful person is impressed by the number of foreign-born men who have risen to high places among the leaders in almost every line. The question arises whether the older coun- tries give their men a better early training than can be obtained here, or whether in the United States those who have labored under disad- vantages of a more constricted form of gov- ernment, expand under the liberal laws of this republic. However, whatever the cause, the effect appears to be the same, the men of foreign birth who have succeeded, exceed those who come of strictly American stock. In politics, in industrial life, in commerce, in the professions and the arts, the man who has come from a foreign shore appears to forge ahead of his associates who were born here, and in the end ranks them. There are notable in- stances of this all over the country, and there is no doubt but that the ingrained strain of sturdy effort against discouragement and unre- mitting thrift combines well with opportunities offered within the United States.
Pekin, Ill., at one time was proud to num- her among its eminent men, Jacob Arend Roelfs. and sorrowed when he was removed by death. Mr. Roulfs came from that country which has given the United States so many of its desir- able citizens, as he was born in Ostfriesland. Germany, December 11th, 1847. His grand- father, Jacob A., and his father, Luitjen J. Roelfs, were both natives of Ostfriesland, the latter having been born there October 2Sth, 1815. and succeeding in early manhood in establishing himself as a prosperous merchant at Emden, Germany, subsequently emigrating to America, in 1867, where he again embarked in business, in which he continued for many years. Luitjen J. Roelfs was married to Catherine Van der Velde, the mother of the subject of this sketch, in 1845. A happy married life of almost fifty years was broken by her death on November 14, 1892, the death of her husband ensuing some years later, on June 20, 1900.
Jacob Arend Roelfs, who was the second in the family born to his parents, spent his early youth in his native land, but when sixteen years old, sailed from Bremen and landed in New York City in October. 1863. From there he came direct to Pekin. Ill .. and realizing the necessity of a thorough knowledge of the lan- guage of his new land, attended first the pub-
lie schools of Pekin and later the Central Wesleyan College of Warrenton, Mo., supple- menting this by a course at Brown's Business College at Quincy, IN. Having thus prepared himself to meet others in a business field, he became traveling salesman for the grocery house of H. Velde & Co., continuing in this capacity for three years. He then became a clerk in the retail hardware department of Smith, Velde & Co. of Pekin. During his asso- ciation with this house as an employe he dis- played such admirable characteristics, that he was admitted in partnership in 1STS, although the name was not changed until 1885, when it became Velde, Roelfs & Co. This business con- tinned to expand and still stands as a monument to Mr. Roelfs' energy and foresight. Employ- ment is given to a number of traveling sales- ruen who carry the goods of the company into many localities. In addition to his interest in this firm, Mr. Roelfs was president of the Hinners Organ Company, as well as a large owner of its stock. He continued actively in business until his death which occurred May 11, 1912.
On October 4, 1871, Mr. Roelfs was married to Adeline Frances Feltman, of Pekin, a daugh- ter of Henry and Catherine (Van der Velde) Feltman, both natives of Germany, Mr. Feltman being born in Westphalia, April 28, 1828, and Mrs. Feltman at Wirdum, Ostfriesland, January 12. 1825. Mr. Feltman came to the United States when five years old and lived at Albany, N. Y., for about three years. His family then moved to Chicago, and Mr. Feltman, having lost his father, began learning the cabinetmaking trade, attending night school at the same time in order to gain an education. In 1847, he went to Kenosha. Wis., and there married, on Sep- tember 23, 1848. After the birth of Mrs. Roelfs, Mr. Feltman came to Pekin and embarked in the lumber business, which he developed to large proportions, becoming a man of consid- erable means. In addition to his lumber in- terests, he became president of the German- American National Bank of Pekin. Mr. Felt- man died at the age of seventy-eight years, December 16, 1906, having been preceiled by his wife, whose memory is held in veneration by all who knew her for her many lovable traits of character, on April 20, 1900.
Mr. and Mrs. Roelfs became the parents of two children: Lucien Jacob, who died in in-
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fancy; and Josephine Catherine, the wife of Hielo J. Rust, a progressive and enterprising business man of Pekin, being secretary and treasurer of Hinners Organ Co., and active in civic affairs. Mr. Rust has been repeatedly elected to offices of trust in county and city governments, being at this writing commis- sioner of accounts and finance of the City of Pekin, and also a member of the Board of Education. Mr. and Mrs. Rust are the parents of the following children: Louis John, Frances Adeline, Harold Jacob, Kathryn Muriel, Flor- ence Grace and Marion Josephine.
Mr. Roelfs was a very staunch supporter of the principles of the Republican party all of his life, and served his city as an alderman for
a number of years. Not only was he a con- scientious member of the German Methodist Episcopal Church of Pekin, but he served on its official board for ten years. For a long period he was a member and active factor in the Tazewell Club of Pekin.
The work such a man accomplishes does not pass with him, but lives on, just as the influence of a good deed is never lost. He did not display his charities, preferring to give quietly and unostentatiously. Few applied to him in vain, for his success did not harden him, but rather mellowed an already kind and generous nature, and broadened sympathies ever ready to re- spond to any worthy call made upon them.
GEORGE F. BEARDSLEY.
"Colonel Nodine Post mourns the loss of one of its oldest and one of its most esteemed members, Comrade George F. Beardsley, who fell asleep in death on the morning of May 6, 1913. Great-hearted, broad-minded, he was for nearly half a century one of Champaign's fore- most citizens. Energetic, industrious, enter- prising, he did more for the upbuilding of the community in which he so long had his home than any man of his generation. Generous be- yond most men, no one who was worthy ever called upon George F. Beardsley in vain. But now the silver cord is loosened, the golden bowl is broken and our comrade has passed from our midst and gone to that brighter and better land where sorrow is unknown and where the weary are at rest.'" Such was the glowing tribute paid to the memory of George F. Beards- ley by his comrades in Colonel Nodine Post. of the Grand Army of the Republic, and no further eulogy of his life is necessary. He was born May 26, 1627. in Ohio, the early rep- resentatives of his family having emigrated to this country from England, it being a family tradition that their native place was in the vicinity of the home of Shakespeare. His father was one of the pioneer settlers of Ohio, where he located in the wilderness on government land.
George F. Beardsley was reared to agricul- tural pursuits and received his education in the pioneer schools of the Buckeye State. Upon reaching manhood. he commenced farming on his own account, and so continued in Ohio until 1867. In that year he came to Illinois, locating at Champaign, where he established himself in
the business of handling real estate, mortgages and bonds. Mr. Beard ley enlisted in 1864 in the National Guards, doing military service around Petersburg and in the meantime en- gaging in several skirmishes with the enemy. After the close of the war he located at Cham- paigu, Ill., where he was successfully engaged in the handling of real estate and loans up to the time of his death. Mr. Beardsley was uni- versally recognized as one of the big men of his community, closely identifying himself with its every interest. If it were a mass meeting called to talk over civic improvements, George Beardsley was present; if a school meeting to plan for the education of the children, he was there. No matter what the call, he could be relied upon to stand on the side that built up the future good of all concerned. With J. W. Stipes he built the Hotel Beardsley, in 1895-6, and March 1, of the latter year, It was opened. Mr. Beardsley made a fortune and spent much of it in building houses and factories, more than fifty residences being erected by him. He was interested in several factories, chief among which was the tile factory. Always public- spirited, he gave Beardsley Park to the city, and among other buildings erected those occu- pied by the Citizens Bank, the Elks' billiard hall and Times office. Mr. Beardsley continued in business until ill-health compelled his retire- ment a few months prior to his demise, main- taining offices at No. 10S South Neil street. He was a charter member of the Grand Army of the Republic, Colonel Nodine Post, and served as commander thereof. A stalwart Republican, he fought loyally for the principles of his party.
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