USA > Illinois > Clay County > Biographical and reminiscent history of Richland, Clay and Marion counties, Illinois > Part 65
USA > Illinois > Richland County > Biographical and reminiscent history of Richland, Clay and Marion counties, Illinois > Part 65
USA > Illinois > Marion County > Biographical and reminiscent history of Richland, Clay and Marion counties, Illinois > Part 65
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with the courage of his convictions on all subjects, he is a man of liberal ideas and only requires the same respect for his own opinions that he accords to the opinions of those who may differ from him. Mr. Dew was happily married on the 25th day of No- vember, 1908, to Hattie H. Porter, of Cen- tralia, daughter of William and Rose R. (Ray) Porter, early settlers of Salem. Mrs. Dew's grandfather was one of the large land owners of Marion county and for many years a leading citizen of the county in which he lived.
SAMUEL SHOOK.
The subject of this sketch has for many years ranked among the modern agricul- turists of this section of the state, where his entire life has been spent, resulting in the accomplishment of a comfortable living for himself and family.
Samuel Shook was born in Centralia township, Marion county, September 15, 1845, the son of Amos and Martha (Shel- ton) Shook, the former a native of Penn- sylvania and the latter of Georgia. Amos Shook came to Illinois when a boy with his uncle, Samuel Shook, and located near Belle- ville, when the present state was still a ter- ritory. The uncle procured land in Centra- lia township, being among the very first set- tlers here, early in the nineteenth century. He developed a farm, making a comfortable home. His neighbors were Indians and wild beasts, consequently he never went any place
without his rifle. He spent the remainder of his life farming in Centralia township. He was a Baptist preacher, the first in the locality, preaching around in the homes in log cabins. Amos Shook, the subject's father, who had little chance to attend school, grew up in Centralia township and was a farmer all his life, a leading Democrat in his community, but held no public office. He was a member of the Christian church. He died in 1877, and his wife passed to her rest in 1846. He was twice married, his second wife being Susan Whitchurch, of Centralia township, the daughter of William Whitchurch, of St. Clair county, this state, having been pioneers of that county.
Eight children were born to Amos Shook and his first wife, two of whom are now living, namely: Sallie, deceased; Martha Jane; Roanna, deceased; David, deceased; Lucy Ann, deceased; James H., a farmer in Wayne county, Illinois; Morris, deceased; Samuel, our subject. Two children were born to Amos Shook and his second wife, Robert and Ivy, both deceased.
Our subject had only a limited schooling in the early subscription schools, but he made the best use possible of his opportunities and is today a well read man.
Mr. Shook was happily married March 9, 1865, to Julia A. Garren, of Jefferson county, Illinois, having been born there in 1846, the daughter of Alexander and Betsy (Copple) Garren, natives of Indiana, who came to Centralia township, Marion county, Illinois, having been pioneers of that locality. Mr. Garren died in Marion county and his
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wife's death occurred in Jefferson county. He was twice married, his second wife be- ing Roxanna Hudlow, a widow. Four chil- dren were born to Alexander Garren and his first wife, namely: William, John, Eli, all three deceased; Julia Ann, the subject's wife. The following children were born to Alex- ander Garren and his second wife, namely: Riley, who lives in Missouri; Robert and Phœbe, both deceased; Alexander, Jr., a liv- eryman at Walnut Hill; Lewis, deceased.
Eight children have been born to the sub- ject and wife, five of whom are now living, namely : Melvin, a farmer at Lane, South Dakota; Albert, a farmer in Centralia town- ship; Ira, deceased; Plannie, deceased; George, deceased; Frank, a farmer on the old home place; Elmer, a farmer at Lane, South Dakota; Myrtle May, living in Cen- tralia township.
After the subject's marriage he located where he now lives in Centralia township and erected a substantial house and barn and made all of the improvements on the · place, which are extensive and equal to any in the county. He has lived on this place continuously since that time. He has al- ways been a farmer and stock raiser, having been highly successful at each, being con- sidered by his neighbors and those who know him as one of the leading farmers of the township and an excellent judge of live stock. He is a Democrat, but has held no offices. He is a member of the Christian church.
The subject is one of those patriotic citi- zens who felt it their duty to offer their
services in defense of their country during the sixties, consequently he enlisted in 1864 in Company F, Forty-eighth Regiment, Illi- nois Volunteer Infantry, at Centralia. He was sent to Scottsboro, Alabama, and was wounded three times, first at Resaca, hav- ing been shot through the right shoulder. He was later wounded at Fort McAlister, hav- ing been shot through the right leg, at which battle he was also shot through the left thigh. He was under Sherman and Gen. John A. Logan in the Fifteenth Army Corps, Fourth Brigade and Fourth Division. He took part in all the battles and engagements of his regiment. After he was wounded he was first sent by boat to Bedford, South Carolina, later to New York, and then to Quincy, Illinois, where he was discharged May 13, 1865.
Mr. Shook is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, Post No. 55, at Cen- tralia, Illinois; also a member of the In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows at Wal- nut Hill, this state; the Knights of Pythias at Centralia, also the Farmers' Mutual Ben- efit Association.
HENRY L. RHODES.
No compendium such as the province of this work defines in its essential limitations will serve to present in detail the interesting life career of the subject of this sketch who is well known in Marion county, where he has long maintained his home, being now a retired railroad man and a leading member
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of the Free and Accepted Masons, No. 101 -a man who is entitled to the respect of his fellow men owing to the well ordered life he has led.
Harry L. Rhodes was born at Port Jar- vis, Orange county, New York, May 24, 1829, the son of Simeon and Jane (Mc- Daniels) Rhodes, the latter of Scotch-Irish ancestry, the former a native of New York and of German ancestry. Two children were born to them, Henry L., our subject, being the oldest of the two. When eight years old our subject went on the tow path where he remained for ten years. When eighteen years old he was captain of a boat on the Erie canal. After he entered the ser- vice of the Erie Railroad which was taking the place of the boat, and was afterward conductor for seven years on the New York & Erie Railroad. In April, 1856, he came to Centralia and was conductor on the Illi- nois Central Railroad for a period of thirty- four years, then retiring to private life. He gave these roads the very best of service and was regarded by them as among their best and most trusted employes. By his economy and industry and his judicious in- vestments, he acquired a handsome compe- tence and is now considered one of the well- to-do men of Centralia, where he has a good home, nicely and comfortably furnished. His success has been worthy his honorable business career.
Henry L. Rhodes married in Port Jarvis, New York, in 1853, to Sarah E. Smith, and the following children have been born to this union: George H .; Libbie is the
wife of B. F. Statlemeyer, of St. Louis; William A. died in St. Paul, Minnesota, when twenty-three years old.
Our subject came to Illinois in 1856 and began railroading as a passenger conductor on the Illinois Central, where he remained for a period of forty-three years. He was also train master for six years.
Having ever taken considerable interest in the development of Marion county in all lines, especially politically, he was elected Mayor of Centralia which office he very ably and acceptably filled for two terms. He ex- ercises the franchise of men and measures of the Republican party, and he feels a deep interest in all political affairs and is well in- formed on all the leading issues of the day. He has been a frequent delegate to the county, congressional and state conventions, and in 1896 was a delegate to the Republi- can National Convention.
Mr. and Mrs. Rhodes attend the Presby- terian church at Centralia, which they liber- ally support. Mr. Rhodes is a Master Ma- son, having filled all the stations in the local Blue Lodge. He was made mark master, past master, most excellent master and Royal Arch Mason of No. 93; then council of No. 28, having filled the highest offices of these illustrious masters for five years. He went to the Commandery and served six terms as eminent commandery of the Scottish Rite, thirty-third degree, and as a life member served as sovereign grand and inspection general in the thirty-third and last degree. Mr. Rhodes is one of Cen- tralia's best known men.
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BIOGRAPHICAL AND REMINISCENT HISTORY OF
FATHER JOHN H. BRUNS.
Although yet a young man the gentleman whose name introduces this biographical sketch has accomplished much toward ameli- orating the condition of his fellow men, often laboring with disregard for his own welfare if thereby he might attain the ob- ject he sought-to make some one better, happier. Such a life as his is rare and is eminently worthy of emulation, being singularly free from all that is deteriorating or paltry, for his influence is at all times uplifting and thousands of people have been made better for having known him.
Father John H. Bruns, who has done such a commendable work in promulgating the interests of the Catholic church and school in Centralia, Illinois, was born in Borken, Germany, June 30, 1870, the son of Joseph and Adalaid (Rademacher) Bruns, being the oldest child of a family of eight children. He came to America in 1880. His early education was obtained in the common schools of Europe and partly at Pinckneyville, Illinois. Under the Fran- ciscan Fathers at Tentrepolis, near Effing- ham, he studied the classics and graduated in 1891 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts and as the valedictorian of his class. He af- terward took a degree, Master of Arts, in a school of philosophy at Quincy, Illinois. Then he took a tree years' course in theology at St. Francis, near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Being ambitious our subject applied himself in a most assiduous manner to his studies and made an excellent record in all those schools.
Father Bruns was ordained to the priest- hood June 16, 1895, and soon thereafter as- signed to be assistant pastor at St. Peter's cathedral, Belleville, Illinois, where he re- mained for a period of eight years, having in the meantime accomplished much in the builing up of this organization and winning a lasting monument in the hearts of the people of that church. He was appointed pastor at Centralia August 20, 1903, and is at this writing, 1908, carrying on the work here with that discretion, energy and de- votion that insures abundant success. Many improvements have been inaugurated since his coming, among which might well be mentioned the installation of a new and modern heating system in the church and school, an addition to the school building, costing about three thousand and one hun- dred dollars, the purchase of a cemetery at a cost of one thousand and five hundred dol- lars, also the purchase of a hospital site at a cost of four thousand dollars. He has la- bored faithfully in the building up of the church and the school, the former now rep- resenting one hundred and sixty families, and there are at this writing one hundred and fifty-six pupils enrolled in the school. Three teachers are employed and the course includes the eighth grade work and a com- plete course of bookkeeping. Six sisters are employed to take care of the sick. When the work on the new hospital is completed a large number of sisters of the highest efficiency will be constantly engaged to care for the sick and those who are brought for treatment. The church building is one of the handsomest in the city and would be
LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS.
REV. JOHN H. BRUNS.
ST. MARY'S CATHOLIC CHURCH. Centralia, Illinois.
LIKKANT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS.
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a pride to any city, having cost fifty thou- sand dollars. The parsonage cost four thousand dollars, and the school building proper cost five thousand dollars, the second floor of the school building having an ele- gant hall and stage, where entertainments and other exercises are held, such as socials for the church and the school. The original building of the hospital will cost when com- pleted about twenty-five thousand dollars. It will be so built that new additions can be added without marring the beauty and unity of any part.
It has been no small task to do what Father Bruns has done .. It required much hard work and a zeal and perseverance that only those who were closely connected with and took active part in the work of the parish can clearly understand and appreciate. Beside the business end of the work, he has been busy in building up the parish and raising the spiritual standing of the congre- gation, which is now in a good condition, both temporal and spiritual.
In the purchase of property, the erection of buildings and in looking after the trans- actions attendant upon them he has shown business tact and energy, as well as a spirit of devotion to his church. His acts, both spiritual and temporal, have met with the united approval of his own people and all others. But these are too well known to require further detailed mention, and the writer knows that whatever of good the reverend priest may have accomplished he would far rather have it engraved on the hearts of the people than to be put into
print, and that the approval of his own conscience and of his Divine Master are the reward he wishes for his labors in behalf of the church.
LEWIS H. REED.
The subject of this sketch has well earned the honor to be addressed as one of the progressive, public-spirited men of Marion county, since from the beginning of his residence here he has been conspicuously ac- tive, securing for himself the comforts of life and home and an ample competence for his declining years. Mr. Reed's home is at Centralia, where he is engaged in the drug business and wherever he is known he is held in the highest esteem owing to his life of honor and industry.
Lewis H. Reed was born in Vermilion county, Indiana, December 20, 1849, the son of John W. and Sarah (Ralston) Reed, the former having been born August 3, 1822, in Stokes county, North Carolina. He came to Indiana in 1832 with his par- ents, whose family consisted of six children, five boys and one girl, of whom the subject of this sketch was the third in order of birth. His mother was born February 7, 1827, in Brown county, Ohio, near Georgetown, and she came to Indiana when quite small, her family having located in Vermilion county. She was one of a family of five children, being the youngest child. John W. Reed was a Republican and a member of the
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Methodist Protestant church. His wife was a Presbyterian in her youth, having been so reared, but later in life became a Metho- dist Protestant. There were eight children in the family of the parents of our subject, six boys and two girls, the subject being the oldest in order of birth.
Lewis H. Reed was educated in the pub- lic schools of Vermilion county, Indiana. He worked on his father's farm until twenty years old. He then entered Ascension Semi- nary in Sullivan, Sullivan county, Indiana. After obtaining a good education, having made a splendid record for scholarship in the last named school, he began teaching, which profession he followed with great success for a period of ten years, during which time he became well known as an able educator and his services were in great de- mand, having taught many successful terms in both Illinois and Indiana.
Believing that a better field for his talents was to be found in the drug business he entered the same on March 28, 1879, in St. Bernice, Indiana. He continued in the drug business at St. Bernice until 1888, having built up an excellent trade and mak- ing a success of the business from the first. During that time he held the office of post- master under President Rutherford B. Hayes, having begun in May, 1881, and con- tinued the same with much credit to himself and to the entire satisfaction of all concerned for five years, five months and fifteen days, when he resigned and moved to Mississippi, having remained one winter at Ocean Springs. In 1889 he removed to Centralia,
Illinois, and held the office of Town Clerk for two terms, in a manner that elicited praise on every hand.
Mr. Reed is still in the drug business, having one of the best equipped and neatest stores in Centralia and he has an excellent patronage numbering many customers throughout the county. Owing to his court- eous treatment of customers and his inti- mate knowledge of the drug business his trade is always all that could be desired.
Mr. Reed united in marriage to Isabella Benefiel on July 13, 1881. She is the daughter of Robert and Mary (Ingram) Benefiel, of Carlisle, Indiana. She was edu- cated in Edgar county, Illinois. Her father met an untimely death by being killed by a horse.
Mrs. Reed is a member of the Pythian Sisters, Lotus Temple No. 8, having passed all the chairs. She is a teacher in the First Methodist Episcopal church Sun- day school, having been identified with Sunday school work for many years. She is a member of the Ladies' Aid and the Missionary societies of the church. Both Mr. and Mrs. Reed are faithful members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
Politically our subject is a loyal Repub- lican and he takes a great interest in the affairs of his party. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Queen City No. 179, having been identi- fied with the same for the past twenty-five years and having passed all the chairs. He has been representative to the Grand Lodge twice at Springfield, Illinois. He is also
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a past chief patriarch of the Centralia En- campment No. 75, having represented the Encampment twice at Springfield. He is also a member of Helmet lodge No. 26, Knights of Pythias, and has passed all the chairs in the same.
JULIUS REINHARDT.
Mr. Reinhardt is one of those characters whose integrity and personality must force them into an admirable notoriety, which their modesty never seeks, who command the respect of their contemporaries and their posterity and leave the impress of their in- dividuality upon the lives of those with whom they come in contact.
Julius Reinhardt, jeweler and musician of Centralia, Marion county, and one of the representative business men and honorable citizens of this locality, was born in Leba- non, Illinois, May 16, 1874, the son of Charles, Sr., and Marie (Blass) Reinhardt. The father of the subject was born in Ger- many, near Saxony, and the subject's mother was born in Bavaria, Germany. They came to America when young and were married in St. Louis, Missouri. They are now both deceased, the father having been called from his earthly labors in 1905 and the mother passed to her rest in 1904. There were eight children in their family, seven of whom are living in 1908, our sub- ject being the youngest in order of birth.
The early education of the subject of this sketch was obtained in the public schools of Lebanon, Illinois. Later he attended Mc- Kendree College, taking a business course in this institution and making a splendid record for scholarship.
The domestic life of our subject dates from September 12, 1900, when he was united in marriage to Alberta Allmon, the representative of an influential family of Salem, Illinois, and to this union two sons and one daughter have been born, namely : Edwin A., Virginia M., and Julian, the two oldest being in school at this writing, 1908.
Mr. Reinhardt's business life properly be- gan in 1889, when he launched in the jew- elry business in Centralia, having first lo- cated in Buck's drug store, conducting a re- pair shop. Since that time Mr. Reinhardt has been known as a conscientious as well as a skilled workman. He conducted this business for a period of three years, when he conducted a similar business with like success for a period of two years in Zar- beck's hardware store. He started in with a stock of jewelry in 1889 and he has gradually built up a trade, having been ex- tensively patronized from the first, until he now has a very extensive and beautiful stock of goods in commodious and elegant quar- ters, and he enjoys a liberal income, al- ways treating his numerous customers with the utmost courtesy and giving them full value received, having an intimate knowl- edge of the jewelry business and giving them the benefit of this knowledge by plac-
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BIOGRAPHICAL AND REMINISCENT HISTORY OF
ing the best goods obtainable in his store.
In politics Mr. Reinhardt is strictly inde- pendent. There are many features of each of the great parties which commend them- selves to him, but, from his observation and experience, he has decided that far more depends on the man than on the platform. It has often been demonstrated that party pledges have never yet been fabricated out of indestructible material and sensible peo- ple know that more reliance can be placed upon the word and work of a truly honest man than upon the most sacred pledge of the best political party that was ever or- ganized. Hence the man and not the party should be the first consideration of the voter. That the subject is a man of much origin- ality of thought is clearly evidenced by the position he takes in politics.
The parents of the subject were Presby- terians, but Mr. Reinhardt is not affiliated with any church organization, but his. sup- port can always be depended upon in the advancement of any movement looking to the religious, moral, civic or educational welfare of the community. In his fraternal relations he is a member of the modern Woodmen.
Mr. Reinhardt is a musician and is a member of the McNeil's orchestra of the Pittenger Grand Opera House in Centralia, one of the leading musical organizations in this part of the state. Our subject has thor- oughly mastered the English language, be- ing able to speak either English or German fluently. He is a man of genial personality, a perfect type of the true gentleman.
JOHN L. DAVIS.
A man of marked individuality, the sub- ject of this review is a typical representative of that large and enterprising class of busi- ness men to whom the great commonwealth of Illinois owes much of its prosperity and development, and his record shows him to have been faithful in the performance of his duty in the community, to his neighbors and to himself.
John L. Davis was born in Centralia, Marion county, April 30, 1858, the son of Thomas P. and Wilhemina C. (Beal) Da- vis, the former having been born in Tennes- see, March II, 1827. The mother of the subject was born in Steinfeld, Germany, April 8, 1835. They were married in Belle- ville, Illinois, in 1853, and they were the parents of ten children, eight boys and two girls, our subject being the second child in order of birth. The subject's father was a carpenter and contractor in Centralia, to which place he came in 1855. His death occurred in 1899, and that of his wife No- vember 6, 1908. Thomas P. Davis was a soldier during the Civil war, enlisting in 1862 in Company H, Eightieth Illinois Vol- unteer Infantry, as a private. He served with bravery and valor in many hard-fought battles in which his regiment participated, and became corporal of his company. He was mustered out in the fall of 1864.
John L. Davis worked first on the fruit farms in Centralia township, until he was eighteen years old, having in the meantime attended the public schools in Centralia,
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where he received a fairly good education, having applied himself in a most diligent manner to his text-books. He went to work on the Illinois Central Railroad when a young man and continued in the employ of the same until 1901, having given this com- pany entire satisfaction. Two years were spent in the shoe business, and in 1901 he returned to the same business and he is now to be found daily in his store where he has a liberal patronage owing to his courtesy and his intimate knowledge of the shoe business, always giving his customers, many of whom come from remote parts of Marion county, the worth of their money, for he handles a high-class line of goods. His store is well kept, everything about it showing system and careful management. The store is lo- cated at 144 East Broadway.
Our subject was united in marriage to Mary C. Marsh, December 16, 1880. She is the refined daughter of R. L. T. and Catherine (Sherwood) Marsh, who were the parents of four children, our subject's wife being the second in order of birth.
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