USA > Illinois > Madison County > Centennial history of Madison County, Illinois, and its people, 1812 to 1912, Volume II > Part 5
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William Armstrong, who was born at Al- ton, April 6, 1843, and died here, was one of the sterling citizens who promoted the prosper- ity and gave character to the Alton of the last century. He began his career as a farmer, though for many years he manufactured lime and cooperage. The Armstrong home on Dan- forth street, now included within the city lim- its, was an attractive suburban estate, sur- rounded by native trees and fruit orchards. Mr. Armstrong was a Republican and active citizen, served as a member of the city coun- cil four terms, and was among the first to urge brick paving for the streets of the city. He was also a member of the old Alton Board of Trade, was one of the founders of the Piasa Chautauqua, and was identified with num- erous business and public-spirited organiza- tions. He married, at Springfield, Illinois, in 1867, Miss Mary E. Parker, daughter of Thomas and Catherine Parker, natives of Ken- tucky and later residents of Alton. William Armstrong and wife had three children: Wil- liam D., Mary Urania and Paul D.
AUGUST C. BETTMANN. A citizen whose in- trinsic loyalty and public spirit in connection with all matters affecting the general welfare of Madison county, Illinois, make his name eminently well worthy of inscription on the pages of the Centennial History of this coun- ty is August C. Bettmann, who is now the pop- ular and efficient incumbent of the office of superintendent of the creamery of the St. Louis Dairy Company at Hamel, Illinois.
August C. Bettmann was born on his father's farm near Hamel, Illinois, the date of his na-
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tivity being the 14th of October, 1875. He is descended from stanch old German stock, his parents, William and Sophia ( Sanders) Bett- mann, having both been born and reared in the great Empire of Germany. William Bettmann immigrated to the United States on the 8th of January, 1848, proceeding thence to Cairo, Illinois, where he remained for a short time. Subsequently he worked for one year in a brick yard in the city of St. Louis, where was solemnized his marriage to Katrina Schroage. Concerning the four children born to that union, two died in infancy, Henry is a resident of Carpenter, Illinois, and Matilda is now liv- ing at Prairietown, Illinois. Mrs. Bettmann was summoned to the life eternal, and sub- sequently Mr. Bettmann wedded Miss Sophia Sanders, of Madison county, Illinois. Six children were born to the second union, of them three died in infancy and Frederick passed away at the age of twenty-one years ; Louisa resides at Hamel and August is the immediate subject of this review. William Bettmann came to Madison county, Illinois, and he was engaged in farming for a period of about fifty years.
To the district school in Hamel township, Madison county, August C. Bettmann is in- debted for his preliminary educational train- ing, the same having been subsequently supple- mented by a course of study in the German parochial school in Hamel township. After reaching years of maturity Mr. Bettmann was engaged in farming operations on his father's farm for a period of two years, at the expira- tion of which he entered the employ of the Illinois Traction Company. Four years later, in 1907, he launched out into the business world as a hardware dealer at Hamel, continuing as such for the ensuing two years. In 1911 he was proffered a position as superintendent of the creamery conducted by the St. Louis Dairy Company at Hamel and accepting that posi- tion he continued in tenure thereof for four months. In politics he accords an unwavering allegiance to the principles and policies for which the Republican party stands sponsor and in their religious faith he and his wife are devout members of the German Evangelical church at Hamel.
On the 6th of April, 1910, Mr. Bettmann was united in marriage to Miss Anna Reiter, who was born in Morrisonville, Illinois, and reared in Madison county, and who is a daughter of Henry and Sophia (Bartels) Reiter, the for-
mer a native of Germany and the latter a na- tive of Fort Russell township, this county. Mr. and Mrs. Reiter became the parents of nine children, of whom one died at the age of twelve years. The names of the others are here entered in respective order of birth,- Charles, Emma, Louise, Mary, Sophia, Minnie, Caroline and Anna. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Bettmann was solemnized in the home church, the ceremony having been performed by Rev. Bechtold, pastor of the German Evan- gelical church. Mr. and Mrs. Bettmann are the fond parents of one little son, Erwin, born January 26, 1911, whose fair countenance and bonnie blue eyes show plainly his German ex- traction. Mr. and Mrs. Bettmann, as kind and genial neighbors, enjoy the confidence and es- teem of their fellow citizens, who honor them for their integrity.
TITUS PAUL YERKES, M. D., has practiced medicine at Upper Alton since 1867, and is one of the oldest members of the profession in Madison county. His preparation for his life work was concluded during the last years of the Civil war, and his experience began in the hospital at Camp Butler. His family has been identified with Upper Alton for more than fifty years, and as physician and citizen he has a well deserved distinction in this com- munity.
Dr. Yerkes was born in Montgomery coun- ty, Pennsylvania, December 24, 1836, a son of Robert A. and Regina K. (Husband) Yerkes. llis father, also a native of Pennsylvania, was a manufacturer of cotton goods in that state. He was descended from German ancestors, while his wife came from English stock. In 1854 the family moved to Illinois, settling at Metamora.
In 1858 Titus P. Yerkes entered Shurtleff College and was a member of the class which graduated in the first years of the war. En- tering Rush Medical College at Chicago, where he received the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1864, he was at once appointed assistant surgeon in the department hospital at Spring- field. He served there until the end of the war, and received promotion to the rank of surgeon and as such had charge of the hos- pital.
Dr. Yerkes has since 1867 been permanently identified with the old town of Upper Alton. His home on Washington avenue is a good ex- ample of the comfortable, commodious resi- dences that are so characteristic of this portion
Mit Rome
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of the modern city of Alton. Dr. Yerkes is one of the older members of the Madison County Medical Society, and also of the State Medical Society and of the American Medi- cal Association. A prominent Mason, he af- filiates with Alton Lodge, No. 15, A. F. & A. M., Temple Chapter, No. 25, R. A. M., and Belleview Commandery, No. 2, K. T.
He was married at Upper Alton in 1863 to Miss Susetta B. Bostwick. The children born to them were Lathy L., Harriet L. and Blanche A.
WILLIAM H. KROME, president of the Bank of Edwardsville, has been prominently identi- fied with the legal, business and public activities of this city for more than forty years. His na- tive and acquired ability and equipment is such that he has ever been generally recognized as one of the ablest lawyers in the state. He was born at Louisville, Kentucky, July 1, 1842. At the age of nine years he, with the rest of his family, removed to Madison county, where he was reared as a farmer's boy and his education was begun in the district schools. In 1858, at the age of sixteen, he became a student in Mc- Kendree College, at Lebanon, and the honors of student achievement were paid him at his graduation in 1863.
After completing his college course Mr. Krome gave his time to farming in summer and teaching in winter, and in 1866 he entered the law department of the University of Michigan and was graduated with the degree of LL.B. in 1868. He began to practice at Collinsville, but soon afterward came to Edwardsville, where he formed a partnership with John G. Irwin, which continued until the latter's election as county judge in 1874. He then formed a part- nership with W. F. L. Hadley and for many years the firm of Krome & Hadley was one of the strongest in this part of the state, and was only terminated when Mr. Hadley was elected to congress. Mr. Krome's public career began in April, 1873, with his election as mayor of Edwardsville, and he proved an excellent municipal officer, among the events of his term being the establishment of the fire department. In November, 1874, the Forty-first district elected him to the state senate, where he served four years. He was perhaps the youngest member of that body, yet was recognized by being assigned to the chairmanship of the com- mittee on judicial department and won the po-
sition by his ability and attention to work. He was county judge from 1890 to 1894, and dur- ing that time he decided many questions of local municipal improvement assessments that came before that court. He was very fre- quently called to other counties to hear cases of this character. For a number of years Mr. Krome has been an influential factor in the larger business affairs of Edwardsville. He was one of the organizers of the Madison State Bank, and is a director and was president of the institution. When it became the Bank of Edwardsville, in 1898, he was chosen a di- rector and vice-president of the latter and was subsequently made president, a position he has filled with signal ability. He was one of the directors of the Edwardsville Water Company.
It is Judge Krome's distinction to have been endorsed by the entire bar of Madison county for a seat on the supreme bench. In its en- dorsement of him for that position, the bar used the following language in its petition to the judicial convention :
"Feeling ourselves qualified by an intimate acquaintance covering the entire period of his professional life to do so, we do not hesitate to recommend Judge Krome to the bar and to the people of the district as a gentleman eminently qualified by literary and legal attainments, pro- fessional experience and success, integrity of character and judicial qualities of mind and heart, for the high place to which his political, personal and professional friends in this county are urgently calling him and to which he aspires for that reason only. In presenting this testimonial to the people of the district we feel well assured that if Judge Krome should be their choice he will not only discharge the duties of the office acceptably, but with a dis- criminating, intelligent and conscientious re- gard for the rights of all classes, that will reflect distinguished honor upon himself, the bench and his constituency."
The press of the entire section was equally enthusiastic, and, among a host of encomiums was this from the Edwardsville Intelligencer:
"Judge Krome's reputation at the bar and with the people is of the very highest character for ability, integrity and honor. Since he has been on the bench he has frequently been called to other counties of the state to hear cases which involved important issues. His de- cisions are marked with clearness and a thor-
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
ough acquaintance with the principles of the law. He has an eminently judicial mind, is in the prime of life and usefulness and discharges faithfully every duty that falls to him. He would fill a position on the supreme bench with distinguished honor."
In politics Judge Krome has ever been loyal to the Democratic party and willing to do any- thing, to go anywhere to bring about its suc- cess. He was chosen as a member of the Democratic state committee in 1880; in 1884 he was a delegate to the Democratic National convention.
Judge Krome's parents were Charles W. and Anna ( Wesseler) Krome, natives of Hanover, Germany. Both came to America in 1836, the father being then twenty-one and the mother fifteen. They were married in Louisville in 1841, and thence removed to St. Louis in 1849 and to Madison county in 1851. The father was a substantial farmer of this county and served as a justice of the peace of his com- munity for many years. William H. was the eldest of their twelve children.
On May 4, 1875, Judge Krome married Miss Medora L. Gillham. Her father was Shadrach Bond Gillham, a member of one of the oldest and most distinguished families of Madison county. Mr. and Mrs. Krome have seven children : Clara, now Mrs. P. L. Wilson, whose husband is connected with the Florida East Coast Railroad ; Minnie, now Mrs. Ernest A. Delicate; Belle; Nora, now Mrs. G. R. Smiley; Anne ; Mary ; and William J., the only son, of whom mention is made below. Detailed record of Mrs. Krome's family, the Gillhams, is given on other pages of this work. The sub- ject's fraternal relations are with the Knights of Pythias.
William J. Krome, only son of the subject, was born in Edwardsville, February 14, 1876. In this place he received his preliminary educa- tion, being graduated from the high school. He subsequently attended a trio of well-known colleges, namely : Northwestern, at Chicago ; DePauw (Indiana) University ; and Cornell, receiving the degree of C. E. at the latter. His first practical work after leaving college was surveying road from Albany, Georgia, to Jack- sonville, Florida. He subsequently made the preliminary surveys through Florida and still later was made assistant construction engineer of the Florida East Coast Railroad's extension to Key West and is now its construction engi-
neer. Mr. Krome was married in Miami, Flor- ida, to Miss Isabella Burns, of that place.
WILLIAM NEUMEYER. A fine type of the old pioneer citizen in Madison county, Illinois, is William Neumeyer, who became identified with farming operations in llamel township in 1862. Although he has now reached the venerable age of eight-eight years, Mr. Neu- meyer is still erect and hearty, retaining in much of their pristine vigor the splendid men- tal and physical qualities of his prime. He is a man of high ideals, and his exemplary life and sterling integrity of character have won to him the unqualified confidence and esteem of all with whom he has come in contact.
William Neumeyer was born in the village of Berndorf, in Waldeck, Germany, the date of his birth being the 18th of November, 1823, and he is a son of Hermann and Elizabeth ( Schulze) Neumeyer, both of whom passed their entire lives in the great Empire of Ger- many. William was reared to maturity in his old home place and he received an excellent common-school education in his youth. For a number of years after reaching his legal majority he was identified with the freighting business in Germany, and in 1861, at the age of thirty-eight years, he immigrated with his family to the United States. Landing in the harbor of New Orleans, he proceeded thence to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, where he re- mained for one year, at the expiration of which he came to Madison county, eventually set- tling on a farm of eighty acres in Hamel town- ship. On this fine estate, which has been mod- ernized with every possible improvement, he has continued to reside during the long inter- vening years to the present time. His crops consist chiefly of wheat and corn and he is also deeply interested in the raising of high grade stock. For the past ten years Mr. Neu- meyer has lived virtually retired, his son Charlie assuming the active responsibility of running the farm.
In Germany Mr. Neumeyer was united in marriage to Miss Dorothea Henkelmann, a daughter of George and Anna (Runff) Hlen- kelmann, of Hessen. Germany. To this union three children were born while the family still resided in Germany, namely,-Louisa, whose birth occurred on the 9th of February. 1855: William, deceased; and Charlie. After their arrival in America, in 1861, Mr. and Mrs. Neumeyer became the parents of five more children, of whom Caroline was born in 1863; August died at the age of one year, in 1870;
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
Maria died at the age of two years and two months; and Berta is the wife of Rev. Joseph Oesch, a German Lutheran minister, whose present pastorate at Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Mr. and Mrs. Oesch are the parents of nine children, five sons and four daughters, of whom one, Anna, died in infancy. The names of the others are as follows: Willie, Mary, Adelbert, Clara, Gertrude, Arnold, Charlie and Paul. The eighth child of Mr. and Mrs. Neumeyer is Charlie, whose natal day is the 6th of February, 1859, and who is now asso- ciated with his father in the work and manage- ment of the old homestead, as previously noted. The old home of merry boys and girls was often the scene of happy, spirited gatherings but of late years it has been saddened by the recurring visits of the death angel. On the 5th of September, 1903, Mrs. Neumeyer was sum- moned to her Heavenly home. Her loss is mourned by a large circle of devoted and ad- miring friends, in whose hearts her memory will ever be green. She was a woman of most gracious and kindly personality and was a strong influence for good in the home and the community. Mr. Neumeyer is now passing the evening of his life on the farm which has been the scene of his many activities, and he is comforted and cared for by his three chil- dren, Charlie, Louisa and Caroline, whose ten- der ministrations and pleasant, genial com- radeship go far toward brightening the attrac- tive and spacious home. Three grandchildren, Willie, Mary and Adelbert, aged fourteen, thirteen and eleven years respectively, reside in the Neumeyer home. These are children of Berta Oesch, mentioned above. Willie is a remarkably bright boy, writing and speak- ing both German and English and manifesting great talent for painting and music.
Mr. and Mrs. Neumeyer early became mem- bers of the St. Paul's Lutheran Evangelical church at Hamel, and to that denomination Mr. Neumeyer still accords a stalwart alleg- iance, contributing in generous measure to all philanthropical movements projected for the good of the community. As an old and honored citizen of this section of the state, William Neumeyer is eminently well worthy of repre- sentation in this Centennial History of Madi- son County.
MILTON E. COPLEY, chief engineer of the Stanard-Tilton Milling Company at Alton, be- longs to a family which settled in Madison county nearly eighty years ago and which has produced a number of men expert in the me- chanical professions.
William B. Copley, his grandfather, was born at Granby, Connecticut, April 1, 1786. On July 6, 1834, he arrived with his family in Madison county, and during the remainder of his life was identified with the notable set- tlement at Godfrey, where he died April 6, 1846. In 1810 he married, at Worcester, New York, Miss Olive Cole, who was born in Massachusetts, June 25, 1787, and died at Godfrey, January 8, 1873. Their five children who came to adult age were: William Cole, born September 30, 1811, died at Valley, Wis- consin, in 1880; Milton E. S., born June 24, 1816, died at Brighton, Illinois, May 27, 1881 ; Mary Olivia, born October 7, 1818, still living, at Iola, Kansas; John Singleton, born Janu- ary 16, 1821, died at Godfrey, February 23, 1908; George W., born November 21, 1826, was a veteran of the Civil war, and died at Quincy, December 16, 1910.
Milton E. S. Copley, father of Milton E., was a native of New York state, and was eighteen years old when the family came to Madison county. He was an expert steam- boat engineer during a period when the trans- portation facilities of the west consisted chiefly of river craft, and from 1842 to 1877 he was employed on many rivers and many boats. His first experience was with the late Capt. W. P. Lamothe, owner of the steamboat Luella. He was one of the first passenger en- gineers in the employ of the C. & A. Railroad. Mr. Copley spent his last years at Brighton, Illinois, where he died May 27, 1881. His wife survived until February 27, 1902. They were married in 1846, and her maiden name was Eliza Allington. They had four chil- dren : Alice, who died in infancy; Milton E .; Frances Eunice, born March II, 1851; and Charles W., born November 27, 1858.
Milton E. Copley was born in Alton, May 14, 1848, and spent his childhood near the city. He attended the public schools at Brighton and in the vicinity of Alton. He then adopted the profession of his father, and at the age of sixteen began working under his instructions. In 1873 he became chief engineer of a river boat and spent a number of years on the rivers of the north and south. In this .capacity he was on the St. John river of Florida for a long time. In 1889 he became chief engineer for the Kehlor Milling Company at St. Louis, this being followed by three years' river ser- vice with headquarters at Memphis, and from 1893 to 1902 he was chief engineer for the Missouri Pacific Railroad, with headquarters at St. Louis. In 1902 he moved to Alton and
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has since been chief engineer for the Stanard- Tilton Company.
On October 25, 1868, Mr. Copley was mar- ried to Mary Foster, who bore him five chil- dren: Francis M., born October 1, 1869; Oli- ver, born in 1874; Arthur, born in September, 1881; Harold, who died in infancy; and Mabel. On February 4, 1898, Mr. Copley married Miss Henrietta G. Cady, who was born in St. Louis. They have two children : Edward Reese, born November 20, 1898; and Marsden Henry, born June 20, 1901. In poli- tics Mr. Copley is an independent Republican. The various members of his family have usually been noted for their proficiency in the mechanical arts, but one of them attained na- tional and international distinction in the fine arts-John Singleton Copley.
WILLIAM K. SUHIRE. A prominent and in- fluential farmer and stock-raiser of Madison county, Illinois, William K. Suhre enjoys the unqualified confidence and esteem of his fel- low men, who honor him for his fair and straightforward methods and his exemplary life. A native of the great Empire of Ger- many, Mr. Suhre was born at Linen, that country, on the 25th of July, 1836, and he is a son of Henry and Mary ( Huerlander ) Suhre, who immigrated to the United States, arriving in 1846. After their arrival in Amer- ica the family home was established on a rented farm of eighty acres in Madison coun- ty, Illinois, and subsequently Henry Suhre purchased a farm of eighty acres in Alham- bra township, this county. He continued to be identified with agricultural pursuits during the greater part of his active career, and at the time of his demise was the owner of an estate of about three hundred and fifty acres. He was a man of sterling integrity of character and he was a powerful influence for good and progress in the community in which he so long resided. Mr. and Mrs. Suhre became the par- ents of four children, namely,-William K., Rudolph, Ernest and Frederick.
At the time of his parents' immigration to America William K. Suhre was a child of but nine years of age. He received his preliminary educational training in the public schools of Madison county and he early became associ- ated with his father in the work and manage- ment of the old homestead farm. After his marriage, in 1860, he initiated his independent career as a farmer, locating on an estate of eighty acres in Hamel township, where he turned his attention to diversified agriculture and the raising of thoroughbred stock. He has
been eminently successful in his various ven- tures and has now gained a competency. Since 1910 Mr. and Mrs. Suhre have been members of the household of their daughter and son- in-law, Caroline and William Hosto, who own a finely modernized farm of one hundred and ninety-two acres in Alhambra township, Madi- son county. While Mr. Suhre has never man- ifested aught of ambition for the honors or emoluments of public office of any descrip- tion, he is ever on the alert and enthusias- tically in sympathy with all measures and en- terprises advanced for the good of the general welfare. In politics he renders an unswerv- ing allegiance to the cause of the Republican . party, believing that the principles of that or- ganization stand for the best form of govern- ment. In religious matters he and his wife are consistent members of the German Evan- gelical church at Salem and they have reared their children in accordance with the tenets of that denomination.
In the year 1860 W. K. Suhre was united in marriage to Miss Katrina Sander, a native of Germany and a daughter of Rudolph and Sophia Sander. This union was prolific of four children, two of whom died in infancy. Sophia became the wife of Fred Klaustermeier and died at the age of thirty-six years, being survived by four children whose names are here entered in respective order of birth,- Mary, Anna, Paulina and Alma. William R. F. Suhre, the only survivor of the above chil- (Iren, was born in 1868 and he married Anna Hosto. They have four children,-Arthur, Walter, Theodore and Alfred. Mrs. Suhre died in the year 1873 and subsequently Mr. Suhre wedded Miss Fredericka Bloemker, a daughter of Ernest and Katherine Bloemker, natives of Germany. Mrs. Suhre was the youngest in order of birth in a family of four children,-Ernest, Rudolph, Sophia and Fred- ericka. By his second marriage Mr. Suhre is the father of four children, of whom Fred- erick is deceased; Herman married Emma Schuette and they have two children, Edwin and Elmer; Caroline is the wife of William Hosto and they are the parents of three chil- dren, Lydia, aged eleven years (1911), Clara, aged eight, and Leonard, aged four years ; and Maria is the wife of Edward Gaetner, of Al- hambra township, and they have one child, Martha.
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