USA > Illinois > Hancock County > Biographical review of Hancock County, Illinois : containing biographical and genealogical sketches of many of the prominent citizens of to-day and also of the past > Part 2
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Charles S. Shipman, the only surviv- ing son, was educated in the public and high schools of his native city and in a military academy at Yonkers, New York. His school life being over he assisted his father in the box factory in that city until his removal to the west in 1871, in which year he arrived in Hancock county.
Illinois. He spent the succeeding two years upon a farm, and in 1873 returned to New York, where he conducted his fa- ther's business until 1882, when he re- moved to Dallas City, Illinois. Here he became a clerk and a salesman in the lum- beryard of his father-in-law, H. F. Black. with whom he continued for five years, when he embarked in business on his own account, and was numbered among the successful dry goods merchants of Dallas City for eight years. In 1902 he became bookkeeper and assistant cashier in the First National Bank of Dallas City, and is still acting in that capacity, being well known in financial circles here, while throughout the years of his residence here he has made a most creditable record as an enterprising business man.
On the 29th of June. 1876, Mr. Ship- man was married to Miss Catherine Farn- waldt Black, a daughter of Henry Farn- waldt Black, who for many years was a prominent lumber merchant of Dallas City but is now deceased. Mrs. Shipman was born June 14, 1857, in Grand Rapids. Wisconsin, was educated in Rockford Seminary, at Rockford, Illinois, and was married in Dallas City on the 29th of June, 1876. By this union there have been born three children. Ralph Wells. born Angust 18, 1878, attended the pub- lic schools of Dallas City, was graduated from the high school and pursued a course of study at Fort Madison, Iowa. He mar- ried Miss Letitia Nelson, of Nauvoo. Illi- nois, and now lives at Media, Illinois. where he is superintendent of a lumber- yard for the firm of Black and Loomis. Mary Black Shipman, born August 2, 1884. is a senior in Hardin College. in
HANCOCK COUNTY. ILLINOIS.
Mexico, Missouri, and was graduated from the musical conservatory in connec- tion with that school in April. 1906. Anna Celia, born October 15, 1887, at- tended the same school with her sister for three years, when she became ill with typhoid fever. Her sister then brought her home and she died in Fort Madison Hospital, in December. 1905. She was buried the same day as her uncle, B. F. Black, from his late home, and was laid to rest in Dallas City cemetery. She was a beautiful. amiable and accomplished young lady and was greatly beloved by all. She held membership in the Congre- gational church and took an active part in church and Sunday-school work.
Mr. and Mrs. Shipman reside in the old Black home at the corner of Fourth and Oak streets, which was built by her father forty-eight years ago, and Mr. Shipman also has a farm at Pontoosuc. Illinois, and pasture lands in Henderson county, together with a house which he rents in Dallas City. His political sup- port is given to the republican party and he is recognized as a prominent factor in local political circles. In 1886 he was elected mayor of Dallas City and is now serving as alderman from the second ward. He is a prominent and valued member of the Masonic fraternity and of the Woodman camp, and he and his wife are devoted members of the Congrega- toinal church, in which he is serving as deacon, while since 1889 he has been su- perintendent of the Sunday-school. His wife has been president of the Ladies So- ciety of the church and was organist and choir leader for years but has recently retired from this work. She belongs to
a chapter of the Daughters of the Amer- ican Revolution, and is an intelligent, cul- tured lady. Mr. Shipman is a capable business man and a respected citizen, of genial disposition and a fund of wit and humor, and the home of this couple is the center of many delightful social gatherings.
PROF. WILLIAM K. HILL. A. M. 1
William K. Hill, professor of chemis- try and biology at Carthage College, was born in Armstrong county, Pennsylvania. December 11, 1857. and is descended from an ancestry that was established in east- ern Pennsylvania at an early epoch in its development, the progenitor of the fam- ily in America having come from Eng- land. John Hill. the grandfather, re- moved to Armstrong county. Pennsylva- nia, and built the first school-house in the south half of the county. He employed a man to teach his children and invited the neighbors to send their children and enjoy the benefits of instruction. In the midst of the wilderness he carved out a home and his labors were of a character that contributed in marked degree to the material improvement of the community He also built the first grist mill in his part of the county and he co-operated in many movements for the general wel- fare. He married a Miss Ament and their son, Salem Hill, father of our subject. was born in Armstrong county, where he was reared and educated. He followed both milling and farming and spent his
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BIOGRAPHICAL RETIEN'
entire life in that locality. In early man- hood he wedded Miss Esther Kuhns, also a native of Armstrong county, where they continued to reside until called to their final rest. In their family were seven children. The parents were devoted and active members of the Lutheran church. in which Mr. Hill served as an officer. His wife was a granddaughter of Father Michael Steck. the first Lutheran minis- ter in Westmoreland county, Pennsyl- vania, at which time the county boundaries comprised nearly the entire western por- tion of the state. His daughter Esther married David Kuhns and they became the parents of Mrs. Hill. Salem Hill de- parted this life about ten years ago. but Mrs. Hill is still living upon the old homestead.
William K. Hill is the second in order of birth in the family. After attending the district schools he continued his stud- ies in Pennsylvania College, at Gettys- burg, and was there graduated in the class of 1879 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts, while later the Master of Arts de- gree was conferred upon him by his alma mater. Following his graduation he en- tered upon a course of study in Gettys- burg Theological Seminary of the Lu- theran church, of which he is an alumnus of the class of 1884.
In the fall of that year Professor Hill came to Carthage to accept the chair of science at Carthage College, with which he was continuously identified until 1893. when he resigned his position and for eight years thereafter was superintendent of the public schools of the city of Carthage. During that period the work of the schools were rapidly developed and improved.
Professor Hill maintaining a high stand- ard of proficiency in all his work and in- spiring his teachers and the pupils with much of his own zeal and interest in the work. The attendance at the high school increased threefold during that period and there was a marked improvement mani- fested in all departments of public educa- tion in this city. In 1901 Professor Hill was re-elected to his old position in the college and since that time has filled the chair of chemistry and biology. His spe- cial work has been along the line of and study of biology of fresh water algae but his life work has been that of teaching. As an educator he has won high rank, im- parting knowledge in clear, concise man- ner, which fails not to make a strong im- pression upon the minds of his pupils. He has also become known in business cir- cles in Carthage, where for a number of years he has been director of the National Bank.
Professor Hill was married December 21, 1887, to Miss Kate Griffith, a daugh- ter of Dr. A. J. Griffith and a graduate of Carthage College. To them have been born ten children, nine of whom are yet living, namely: Esther Margaret. Wil- liam Griffith. Katharine. Robert Mc- Claughry, Lewis Rowland, Ralph March- and. Constance. Edward Llewellyn and Imogen. Professor and Mrs. Hill arc members of the Lutheran church, in the work of which they take a very active and helpful part. Professor Hill has served as elder for many years and has done all in his power to advance the work of the church and extend its in- fluence. His political views are in ac- cord with the republican principles but
IL.INCOCK COUNTY, ILLINOIS. 21
he has never been an aspirant for office. Hle has a beautiful home on Wabash ave- one, where his well filled library and other attractive furnishings indicate the wealth of refinement and culture to be found there. Throughout his entire pro- fessional career he has remained in Car- thage and his strong intellectuality and broad, scholarly attainments have made him a leader in its educational progress.
GEORGE WALKER BARR.
George Walker Barr, a retired farmer of Dallas City, is one of the few residents of America who can claim the distinction of being the grandson of a Revolution- ary hero. The ancestry of the family can be traced back to the year 1607. when a representative of the name settled at Jamestown. Virginia, among the first per- manent residents of the new world. Adam Barr, grandfather of our subject. was a native of the Old Dominion and served throughout the Revolutionary war as a teamster. He was with the immedi- ate command of General Washington for seven years and underwent the various hardships and privations which were he- roically borne by the soldiers who fought for independence, marching at various times when his footprints were marked by blood. George W. Barr of this review can well remember when at the age of ten years he dropped corn after his grand- father Barr, who was then ninety-five years of age. Adam Barr was married
in Baltimore, Maryland, and subsequent- ly removed to Kentucky, where he lived for many years. In his family were thir- teen children, of whom four sons fought in the famous battle of New Orleans in- der the command of General AAndrew Jackson and two of the number never re- turned, giving their lives in defense of their country in the second war with Eng- land.
Elias Barr, son of Adam Barr, was born in Breckinridge county, Kentucky December 8. 1807, and after arriving at years of maturity was married to Sallie A. Beauchamp, whose birth occurred in Hardin county, Kentucky. December 4. 1808. She was a daughter of Jerry B. Beauchamp, who was descended from the French nobility. His parents went to England at the time of the emigration of the Huguenots because of the religious persecution in their own country and Jerry Beauchamp and his two brothers were born in England. He was a lawyer. scholar, statesman and aristocrat-one of the most distinguished residents of Ken- tucky at an early day. He served for eighteen years in the Kentucky senate. leaving the impress of his individuality upon the laws which were enacted at that early period and aiding in shaping the pol- icy of the state. He was a typical Ken- tucky gentlemen, a man of fine presence. standing six feet, four inches, in height. At one time he owned over ten thousand acres of land in Kentucky. He kept open house and delighted in the sports which were always enjoyed by the southern gen tlemen. He kept fine racing horses and a pack of greyhounds and participated in many of the big hunts of the time. Hle
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BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
also owned a large number of slaves and on one day before the war he liberated sixty-three of his bondspeople. Some- thing of the prodigality of the hospitality of his home may be indicated by the fact that a whole ox was roasted at the wed- ding of his daughter Sallie to Elias Barr. He lived to a very advanced age and when he passed away Kentucky lost one of its distinguished, representative and typical citizens-a man of the old regime who represented the aristocracy of the south.
The year 1859 witnessed the removal of Mr. and Mrs. Elias Barr from Kentucy to Hancock county, Illinois. The father engaged in farming and stock raising on section one. Rock Creek township, owning over four hundred acres in Hancock county, and there carried on general agri- cultural pursuits up to the time of his death. which occurred in 1875. He was a democrat in his political views and both he and his wife held membership in the Methodist Episcopal church, in which he also served as class leader. When he came to Illinois he owned over one thousand acres of good Kentucky land and also some of the finest horses in the United States. He was a man of enterprise, suc- cessful in his undertakings, and his wife was of great assistance to him, being trained to the work of the household as was the custom in those days. She spun and wove and capably managed the house- hold affairs and there are several pieces of table linen in the family of George W. Barr which were woven by her. Elias Barr passed away on the 18th of July, 1875. his wife surviving for a number of years, or until the ist of May, 1892, when she also departed this life. In their family
were twelve children: Daniel Thomas. who was born in 1831 and died in 1846; Newell Robinson, who was born in 1834 and died in 1892; Elmira A., who was born in 1836 and is the wife of John Hur- dle, living near Disco, Illinois; Mary E., who was born in 1838 and is the widow of Thomas L. Ray, of Dallas township; Bluford B., who was born in 1840 and died in 1898; Kitty Ann, who was born March 5, 1842, married Sylvester T. Tur- ney. and died in 1886; George Walker, of this review; Sarah E., who was born in 1846 and is the widow of David Wright. her home being near Disco; John Adam. who was born in 1848 and is a successful physician of Fountain Green, Illinois: Martha Jane, who was born in 1850 and is the wife of M. Bross, of Prescott, Iowa; Franklin P., who was born in 1852 and is living in Clarinda. Iowa ; and Amanda M., who was born in 1856 and is the wife of Daniel Showers, of Fresno, Cali- fornia.
George W. Barr was born in Breckin- ridge county, Kentucky. February 25, 1844, and in his boyhood days accom- panied his parents on their removal to Hancock county. He pursued his edu- cation in the district schools of this county and in Mount Vernon, Illinois, and re- mained with his father until twenty-five years of age, assisting in the cultivation and improvement of the home farm. An- bitious to have a farm of his own and enter upon an independent business ca- reer, in 1868 he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land in Dallas town- ship. To this he afterward added as his financial resources increased until he owned two hundred and twenty-five acres
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HANCOCK COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
of good land in that township, on which he made many modern improvements. converting the place into a splendidly im- proved property. There he lived for a third of a century, or until 1902, when he retired from farming and purchased a beautiful home and two lots on Third street in Dallas City, where he is now liv- ing, surrounded by many of life's com- forts.
On the 20th of April. 1869, was cele- brated the marriage of Mr. Barr and Miss Mary E. Dean, who was born in Clinton county. Ohio. October 3. 1848. a daugh- ter of William B. and Margaret .A. ( Ran- kin) Dean. . The mother was born in Brown county, Ohio, in 1807 and the father's birth occurred in Ireland in 1806. Crossing the Atlantic, he arrived at New York at the age of fifteen years after a voyage of three months. He traveled for some time and afterward became a farmer of Henderson county, Illinois, where he settled in 1853. In his family were seven children: Bartley R., who died in Ar- kansas in 1906: William L., living near Disco, Illinois : Albert and Alfred, twins, the former a resident of Chico, Califor- nia, and the latter of Eldon, lowa: Mary E., now Mrs. Barr: Arthur, of Dallas City : and Charles Edward Franklin, who died in May, 1869. The father was reared in the Roman Catholic church and the mother died in the same faith. Mrs. Barr was educated in the South Hill school in Burlington, Iowa. By her marriage she became the mother of three children : Ettie FRANKLIN C. LITTLE. E., born January 25. 1870, was married May 12, 1897, to Elmer V. Royse, of Franklin C. Little, starting out in life with forty acres of land. is now the owner Aledo, and they have two children, George Frederick and Cleo Ray; Robert A., a of a valuable farming property of four
sketch of whom appears on another page of this book, is the second of the family : and Mary Ottilia, bom August 4. 1885. is a graduate of the Dallas City high school in the class of 1905. In 1901-2 she attended St. Mary's Academy at Nauvoo, Illinois, and is a skilled musician. now at home with her parents.
Mr. Barr is a democrat in his political faith, voting for the state and national candidates of the party, but at local elec- tions casts an independent ballot. He has held some township offices, including that of road commissioner, and he has been school director, while his wife has also acted in that capacity for three years. They attend the services of the Christian church, of which Mrs. Barr is a member. She is a lady of very genial and cheerful disposition and their friends in the com- munity are almost co-extensive with the circle of their acquaintances. Mr. Barr is a man whose success is attributable to his industry and business integrity and through careful management in an active career, through diligence and persever- ance he has acquired a handsome compe- tence that now enables him to enjoy life without recourse to further labor. His son is operating the home farm and the family is one of which the parents have every reason to be proud.
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BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
hundred acres and the increase in his realty possessions is an indication of the industry and enterprise which have char- acterized his life and made him one of the men of affluence in Pontoosuc town- ship. His success enables him to enjoy the comforts and some of the luxuries of life in the evening of his days-for Mr. Little is now seventy-seven years of age. He was born in Green county, Ohio, De- cember 12. 1829. He had an uncle, Da- vid Little, who served in the war of 1812. serving as a guard at Sacketts Harbor. His parents, Martin and Sarah (Ritnour) Little, were both born in the vicinity of Winchester, Virginia, the former in 1794 and the latter in 1796. After some years' residence in Ohio they came to Hancock county, arriving on the 25th of April, 1847. They settled in Appanoose town- ship but after a brief sojourn there the father purchased land in Pontoosuc town- ship from a Mormon elder of the name of Fullmer and lived in a little log cabin for a few years, when he made better im- provements, owning four hundred acres, having paid high for those times, paying as high as $5.25 per acre, in order to get good title. He aided in the pioneer de- velopment and upbuilding of the county and was identified with its farming inter- ests until his death in 1854. His wife long survived him and in 1882 was laid by his side in Pontoosuc cemetery. They had seven children: Lorenzo, who lives in Pontoosuc township; D. A .. of the same township: Catherine, the widow of Archibald Jackson, of Nauvoo : Sarah, the wife of Charles Rogers, of Nebraska ; Mil- lie, deceased: F. C .; and Jane, the wife of Adam Coffman, of Pontoosuc.
Franklin C. Little largely acquired his education in Ohio and for one term at- tended school in this state, whither he came with his parents when a youth of seventeen. At the age of nineteen, in 1849, he was married to Miss Nancy Mc- Cauley, who was born in New York state in 1829, a daughter of Major and Polly McCauley, both New York people but formerly of Ireland. Her father was a distant relative of MacCauley, the Eng- lish historian. Mr. and Mrs. McCauley came to Illinois at a very early day, set- tling in Hancock county in 1832, and he participated in the Mormon war of 1844. while with many other events of the early days, which have become historic, he was also associated. Of his family of ten children six are now living: Elea- nor, the wife of Isaac London, of Pay- son, Illinois; Lydia, the widow of Je- rome Langdon, and a resident of Payson : Henry and Robert, both of Kansas; Su- san, wife of John Schwartz, of Nebraska : and John, also of Nebraska. Three sons. William, Henry and Robert, all served for three years in the Union army in the Civil war.
At the time of his marriage Mr. Lit- tle's father gave him forty acres of prai- rie land in Pontoosuc township and. lo- cating thereon in 1849. he built a house and has made all the improvements of every kind upon the farm. the boundary of which he has also extended from time to time. He owns altogether four hun- dred acres in Pontoosuc township and although well advanced in years is still actively engaged in general farming and stock raising. This has been his life work. Ambitious to succeed he has put
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HANCOCK COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
forth carnest, unremitting effort, guided by sound judgment, and his prosperity has resulted.
In 1877 Mr. Little lost his wife, who died on the 14th of June of that year and was laid to rest in Pontoosuc cemetery. She was a devoted member of the Meth- odist church and a consistent Christian woman. Of their ten children, six are living: Martin, a resident of Pontoosuc township, has four sons. Muriel. Franklin, Lee and Ilarry: Melissa, the wife of James Lamb, of Pontoosuc township, by whom she has seven children-Edith. Delmer, George, John, Daisy, Millie and William: Arthur, a resident farmer of Pontoosuc township, who married Lizzie Avis and has three children-Jessie. Leola and Gladys: Mary. wife of Hiram Long- shie. of Pontoosuc township, and the mother of two children, Edward and Min- nie: Samuel, of the same township, who married Emma Cress and has three chil- dren-Claude, Nora and Nellie: Anna, the wife of Henry Byler, of Durham township, has one child and by a former marriage has three children. Mabel. Otis and Irene Hamilton (all Hamiltons) : Flora, wife of Robert Alston. of Ilamil- ton, Illinois, by whom she has three chil- dren-Flossie, Frankie and Grace: and Frank G., who married Grace Mitchell. of Dallas City, and has one child. Donald Ray.
On the 23d of January. 1884, Mr. Lit- tle was again married, his second union being with Miss Emma A. North, who was born in Springfield, Illinois, in 1853. a daughter of Alfred A. and America . 1. ( Miner) North, both coming from Ohio and settling in Sangamon county, this
state, when the eldest sister of Mrs. Lit- tle was only two years old. Mr. North served for three years in the Civil war as a member of Company .A. Tenth Illi- nois Cavalry, and was mustered out as brevet major. Of his five children four are living : Kate. the widow of Samuel Lamb. of L'ontoosue township; Mrs. Lit- tle: Milfred, of Galveston, Texas; and Alfred A., living in Springfickl.
Mr. Little is a stalwart republican who has given unswerving support to the party since its organization and has served as supervisor. school director and assessor. He belongs to the United Brethren church and is a man worthy of the respect so uniformly accorded him wherever he is known. lle has lived in this county for almost sixty years and events which to others are matters of history are to him matters of personal observation and ex- perience. Pioneer life in Hancock county in all its phases was familiar to him and he has taken justifiable pride in what has been accomplished in the county in the passing years.
JAMES BABCOCK.
James Babcock, a leading business man of Durham township engaged in general farming and also representing the finan- cial interests of the community, as vice president of the Farmers Exchange Bank of Dallas City, was born November 2. 1849. in the township where he still makes his home. His father, Samuel Babcock.
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BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
was a native of New York, born in 1810, and as a child of a few years he was taken with his parents who settled on the Miami Bottoms near Cincinnati and there he grew to maturity being reared to the oc- cupation of farming. In 1835 he became a resident of Henderson county, Illinois. There he lived in a log house in true. pio- neer style for a number of years, there being but few settlers there. He learned and followed the carpenter's trade and he also operated a water mill there until his removal to Hancock county, having purchased a farm in Durham township. He served as a soldier in the Mormon war and was identified with many events which now find place upon the historic annals of this part of the state. He was married in Henderson county in early manhood to Miss Nancy Logan, a daugh- ter of Samuel Logan. She was born in Indiana in 1825, and as a child was brought here. For many years they traveled life's journey happily together. The death of the father occurred Octo- ber 7, 1886, while his wife survived until January 18, 1902, and both were laid to rest in a cemetery in Henderson county, Illinois. Of their family of ten children five are now living: Susan, the wife of Arthur Gates, of Welkin, Minnesota ; Euphama, the wife of Lee Shaw. of Dallas City; James, of this review; Anna, the wife of Ami Huffman, of Clyde. Mis- souri; and Florence, the wife of James Farren, of Durham township, living on the old homestead of her parents.
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