USA > Illinois > Kendall County > Genealogical and biographical record of Kendall and Will Counties, Illinois : containing biographies of well known citizens of the past and present > Part 33
USA > Illinois > Will County > Genealogical and biographical record of Kendall and Will Counties, Illinois : containing biographies of well known citizens of the past and present > Part 33
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87
From the age of thirteen years our subject has made Will County his home. When his educa- tion was completed he took up farm pursuits, which he followed until 1884, and still owns his farm. On the death of his brother, Dr. Haven, of Chicago, he took charge of his estate, having an office in the Reaper block in Chicago. In 1884 he built a residence in New Lenox village, where he now lives in ease and comfort. Con- tinuously since 1854 he has held the office of justice of the peace. From 1865 to 1869 he held office as county superintendent of schools. In 1886 he was elected to the general assembly on the Republican ticket. For several years he served as supervisor and has also held the other local offices.
November 3, 1847, Mr. Haven married Helen L. Savage, who died July 28, 1859, leaving four daughters: Lizzie J., widow of A. A. Francis; Mary E., wife of Charles Francis; Helen L., who married Thomas D. Ferguson, of Normal Park, Chicago; and Emma J., wife of Gilbert Van Duser, of Fredonia, Kans. The second mar- riage of Mr. Haven took place December 26, 1861, and united him with Elizabeth, daughter of James Craig, who was an early settler of Chi- cago. This marriage resulted in the birth of four children who attained mature years, and
.
291
GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
one son, Edward, who died November 8, 1880, four men are employed in the cultivation of the at the age of eleven years and four months. The place. In the raising of oats and corn he has surviving sons and daughters are Dwight C., member of the law firm of Hill, Haven & Hill, of Joliet; Samuel R., of Englewood, Ill .; Edith A., wife of Rev. A. B. Whitcomb, of Jackson- ville, Fla .; and Bertha A., at home.
OHN LARSON, proprietor of the West Side dairy, on section 8, Joliet Township, was born in Sweden, November 18, 1861, and was reared on a farm occupied by his father, Lars, meantime receiving a public school educa- tion. Believing that America offered greater op- portunities for a young man than his own coun- try, he decided to seek a home in the new world. Accordingly, in 1883, he crossed the ocean, landing in New York and thence coming to Joliet. For five years he was in the employ of a dairy farmer in New Lenox Township, and in this way gained a thorough knowledge of the dairy business, to which he has since given his attention. His first independent venture was the purchase of a dairy business in Joliet. A year later he rented forty acres west of the city and embarked in the business on a larger scale. In 1892 he leased tlie Reed estate of two hundred and eighty acres, besides which he had adjoining pasture-land and a farm of his own in Troy Township, keeping upon the latter his young stock and the cows that were not used in his dairy work. Upon the expiration of his five years' lease he renewed it for a similar period, and here he has since remained, gradually in- creasing the business and, in return, receiving greater returns.
Having a large tract of land, Mr. Larson not only conducts a dairy farm, but also gives some attention to general farming, and lias two hun- dred acres under the plow. However, he makes no effort to sell his farm products, but keeps them for winter feed for his stock. Four teams are used steadily on the farm, and from two to
been particularly successful, and has one hun- dren and ten acres in the latter. On his place are a number of horses, these being raised to sell; also Poland-China hogs and about one hun- dred head of cattle. The milk he sells at whole- sale, supplying dealers in the city, and he there- fore is not under the necessity of overseeing the detail work of delivery.
Fraternally Mr. Larson is connected with the Modern Woodmen of America, and the Turn Verein. Since becoming a citizen of the United States he has given allegiance to the Republican party. He was reared in the Lutheran faith, and has always been in hearty sympathy with the work of the church. He was united in marriage June 13, 1891, with Miss Beta Sand- berg, of Chicago.
ON. JOHN CORLETT. During the long period of his residence in this county Mr. Corlett has been identified with the agri- cultural interests of Wesley Township; and, while he has made Joliet his home since 1895, he still maintains a general supervision of his farm of six hundred and seventy. acres in the town- ship named, not only overseeing the cultivation of the land, but also feeding each year about one hundred head of cattle and two hundred head of hogs. In addition to this property he is the owner of a section of land in Hamilton County, Kans. While he has given close attention to his private business affairs, he has never neglected his duty as a citizen, but has kept posted con- cerning the problems that confront our nation and has intelligently studied the issues of the age. He is a firm believer in Republican prin- ciples and always supports the party platform by his ballot. Frequently he has been chosen to serve in official positions of trust, and in these he has invariably proved himself efficient and faith- ful. During the twelve years lie served as high- way commissioner he greatly improved the roads
.
292
GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
of the township and was instrumental in securing the building of the dry run. For two terms he held the office of supervisor and for some years served as a school director. His party, in 1890, nominated him to represent the district in the state legislature and he received a good majority at election. During his term of service occurred the memorable John M. Palmer battle, when for three months he voted every day. As a member of the committees on schools and live stock he was able to render able service to the state. His influence was always cast in favor of measures for the benefit of the people and the advancement of those interests that would contribute to the greatest good of the greatest number. In spite of the fact that the house was Democratic and he therefore belonged to the minority side, his in- fluence was nevertheless felt for good among the legislators, and his service was most satisfactory to his constituents.
The Corlett family has been identified with the history of the Isle of Man as far back as records can be traced. Hugh and Jane (Kane) Corlett, lived upon a farm on that, their native island. Their son, John, became a farmer in the same place, but first spent some years in the British army, serving under Wellington in the battle of Waterloo and other noted engagements. He re- mained in the service from the age of fourteen until twenty-three, when, having lost an arm in the Holland campaign, he was honorably dis- charged and given a life pension of sixpence a day. He served in the command of Colonel Isaac, with whom he was a great favorite and who, at his death, bequeathed his property to the surviving members of the regiment. Mr. Cor- lett was one of the three surviving comrades who inherited the bequest. He lived to be eighty- three years of age, and died in 1870. His wife, Ann (McGregor) Corlett, was born near Gallo- way, Scotland, and accompanied her mother to the Isle of Man at twelve years of age. There she spent the remainder of her life, dying when ninety-six years of age. She was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, while her hus- band was identified with the Church of England. They were the parents of six sons and two daugh-
ters, viz .: Isaac, who was named for Colonel Isaac and is now living in Leavenworth, Kans .; William, a farmer of Leavenworth, Kans .; John; Christopher, a farmer in Bates County, Mo .; Philip, who is also living on a farm in Bates County; Edward, who died at the home place when twenty-one years of age; Becky, deceased; and Ann, who resides in Wilmington, Il1.
On the Isle of Man occurred the birth of John, son of John, Sr., August 4, 1832. When he was nine years of age he began to herd cattle, receiv- ing twenty-four cents per week. Afterward his wages were increased. May 20, 1855, he left Liverpool on the sailing vessel "Manhattan," which after twenty-three days landed in New York City. He proceeded by railroad to Cleve- land, Ohio, thence to Chicago and from there to Kankakee and Rockville, Ill., having a brother, William, in the latter place. For some years he had charge of seven sections of land owned by a widow. After his marriage, in 1859, he moved to this county and settled on the farm that he still owns. During the forty years that have since elapsed he has been prospered in his undertakings and has accumulated a valuable property, at the same time gaining the respect of his acquaintances. He has sometimes been called upon to settle es- tates and his work has always been satisfactory. He has come to be known as a whole-souled, large-hearted man, one whose character is irre- proachable and whose reputation is the highest. While living on the farm he was for years Sun- day-school superintendent and a steward of the Methodist Episcopal Church there, and since coming to the city he has been a member of the official board in the Ottawa Street Methodist Episcopal Church.
January 4, 1859, Mr. Corlett married Mrs. Betsey (Franklin) McGilivrey, who was born in Wayne County, N. Y., and died in this county, July 1, 1892, at sixty-three years of age. Her father, Samuel Franklin, who was a native of Vermont, settled in 1830 in what is now Will County and in 1849 started across the plains to California, but died en route and was buried at Fort Kearney. At her death Mrs. Betsey Cor- lett left four children, viz .: William, a farmer in
293
GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
this county; Mary, who married E. L. McKim- mey and died August 24, 1899; Minnie, wife of R. E. Babcock, of Wheaton, Ill .; and Ella, who married George Lancaster, of this county. After the death of his first wife Mr. Corlett married Mrs. Emma Harbaugh, who was born in West Salem, Wayne County, Ohio, and in 1863 settled in Will County, accompanying her parents, Joseph and Elizabeth (Jacobs) Neiswender. Her father, a native of Germany, was a child when he crossed the ocean with his parents, and he sub- sequently became a farmer, continuing in that occupation until he died at sixty-five years. He was a Republican and a member of the German Methodist Episcopal Church. Her mother, who was born in New York, went to Ohio in girlhood and married there. She survived her husband, dying when seventy-six years of age.
ON. SAMUEL J. DREW. Whoever labors for the development of his country, striving to bring out its latent resources; who is de- voted to the general welfare of the people; who seeks to promote the cause of justice and to ad- vance our civilization, becomes a public bene- factor, and is worthy of mention on the pages of history. Such is the character and such the record of Mr. Drew, member of the forty-first general assembly of Illinois, and an honored citi- zen of Joliet. In the fall of 1898 he was elected to represent Will County in the lower house of tlie Illinois legislature, the nomination having been tendered him, unsolicited, by tlic Republi- cans, who regarded him as a representative of the working men of the county. His majority in Joliet was almost two thousand and in the county nearly three thousand. Since entering upon his duties he has served as chairman of the commit- tee on labor and industrial affairs, and as a mem- ber of the committees on elections, mines and mining, judicial department and practice, judi- ciary, and canal, river improvement and com-
mierce. Doubtless his most important work in the house has been in connection with the in- dustrial interests of the state and his most im- portant bill was one forbidding the importation of workmen under false pretenses, an act pro- hibiting the- use of deceptive representation, false advertisements and unlawful force in the procuring of employes to work in any department of labor in the state, and fixing penalties for any violation of this law. To this bill he gave his at- tention during the entire session, endeavoring to win friends to the policy therein contained and fighting the underhanded policy of its enemies. During the last week of the session he was so engrossed with the bill that he did not get more than seven hours' sleep in the entire time. Among his other bills was one revising the mining laws of the state, which resulted in Illinois having the best mining laws of any commonwealth in the United States, one to protect men in case of ac- cident, and another to enforce the placing of labels on cigars and other articles of manufacture. He was deeply interested in creating free employ- ment bureaus, which was brought before his committee for action and so changed and modified that it will be a lasting benefit to the cause of labor. Constantly, throughout the session, he labored for the welfare of the working people, and it was said of him that he kept every prom- ise he had made to the laboring classes. Tlie revision of the arbitration law was another im- portant step toward uniting labor and capital and its good results will be an inheritage to future generations who will hold in loving remembrance the men who so faitlifully labored for their wel- fare. The praise bestowed upon him for liis active, honorable and successful service in the legislature was richly deserved. While he never antagonized capital, yet his preference has always been given to the side of labor, for he realizes that of the two, the working people most need help and counsel. Believing that prison labor is injurious to working people, as it brings the two into an unjust competition, he introduced a bill to abandon the competition of prison with free labor; and, while the bill was held in abeyence by agreement during that session, yet it accom-
294
GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
plished much good, for, as a result, a resolution was passed asking the governor to appoint a commis- sion to investigate the matter and recommend to the next legislature a bill to do away with prison labor. A measure to repeal the butterine bill was introduced into the legislature, but through his own vigilance and that of his colleague, Hon. John Kohlstedt, and a few other members, and also that of Charles Y. Knight, secretary of the Illinois Dairy Union, the bill was defeated, to the entire satisfaction of the farmers of the state and the people in general. On retiring from the legislature he resumed the practice of law in Joliet, and is attorney for the board of highway commissioners.
Born in Tipton, Staffordshire, England, April 22, 1863, our subject is a son of Joseph and Sarah (Allen) Drew, natives of the same shire. His grandfather, Joseph Drew, was a member of a very old family of the shire and was a miner by occupation, while the other grandfather, Edward Allen, was foreman of the Tipton iron works. For years Joseph Drew, Jr., was a coal operator in Staffordshire, and while thus engaged his mine was flooded with water and he was ruined finan- cially. For this reason he sought a home in America, crossing the ocean in 1881 and settling at Braidwood, Il1., where his family joined him the next year. For two years he was mining in- spector for this county. He is still interested in coal mining at Braidwood. His wife died there in 1897. They were the parents of five children, one of whom, Mrs. Mary Edwards, resides in Tipton, England. The others are Samuel J., Joseph, Mrs. Louisa Cox and Jennie, all but our subject living in Braidwood.
When a boy our subject attended the national school at Tipton. At thirteen years of age he began to assist his father in the mine. In 1882 he began to work in a mine at Braidwood, his first work being the pushing of cars to the foot of the shaft. After three months he began to dig coal. In the spring of 1884 he and his father and brother were given a room and worked together.
With the exception of six months in the Alle- gheny region of Pennsylvania he continued at Braidwood for some years. Meantime, he began to study the primary branches in the evenings, hoping to finally fit himself for the profession of law. Not feeling satisfied with the knowledge gained at night, he began to take books into the mine with him, and during lulls in the work he studied by the light of a miner's lamp. In 1886 he entered a school of shorthand and telegraphy at Janesville, Wis. Six months later his father was injured and he returned home to care for the family by taking his father's place in the shaft until his father was able to resume work. He then entered the Northern Indiana Normal College, graduating in August, 1887. Coming to Joliet he became a court reporter and stenographer, but soon entered the office of Haley & O'Donnell, attorneys, and under the preceptorship of Mr. Haley studied for the bar. In 1892 he was ad- mitted to the bar. Meantime, he had accepted a position as stenographer for the Illinois Steel Company, and had applied himself to the posi- tion with such diligence, gaining so compre- hensive a knowledge of the company's business, that he was given the position of chief clerk. He continued with the company until the spring of 1896, when he resigned in order to engage in professional work. About the same time he was elected township clerk, which office he held, by two re-elections, until the spring of 1899, when1 he refused further nomination. While filling this position he engaged in general law practice, es- tablishing an office in the Barber building. Since his retirement from the legislature he has resumed his practice, much of which is with working men. Fraternally is connected with the Order of Foresters of America, Royal Arcanum and the Paul Revere Lodge, K. of P., also Mount Joliet Lodge, A. F. & A. M. He was married in Braidwood to Miss Lizzie C. Parsons, a daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Parsons, of that city. Mr. and Mrs. Drew have one child, Alberta L. Drew.
Chave Werkes
GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
297
JUDGE CHARLES H. WEEKS.
UDGE CHARLES H. WEEKS. For sixty- six years a resident of this county, closely identified with the development of its re- sources and intimately connected with its public affairs, the life of Judge Weeks was an eminently useful one and his reputation that of an honora- ble and public-spirited citizen. He was a boy at the time his father, Nathaniel Weeks, migrated from the east, making the long journey to Illinois with team and wagon, and settling in Homer Township, this county. On every hand the sur- roundings were indicative of the frontier. Will County was at that time a part of Cook, and both were sparsely settled and unimproved. He therefore became familiar with the experiences and hardships of pioneer existence and assisted in bringing the county to its present high stand- ing among the counties of the state.
The ancestry of the family appears in the sketch of Horace Weeks, of Joliet, a brother of the judge. The latter was born in New Hamp- shire June 7, 1821, and accompanied his father to the west in 1833, settling with him in Homer Township, where he helped to break a tract of prairie land and also learned the trade of a har- ness-maker in Joliet. After a time he turned his attention to the study of law, in which he had the advantage of the preceptorship of prominent pioneer lawyers of St. Charles and Lockport. For years he was one of the prominent public men of the county and a leader in the Whig party. On the organization of the Republican party he be- came identified with it and afterward supported its principles. For two terms he served as coun- ty treasurer, for one term as deputy county treas- urer, and later held the office of county judge for
one term. He was known for his sturdy cham- pionship of every measure calculated to benefit the county, and was always progressive, fearless and honest. To such as he the early advance- ment of the community was due. A genuine pioneer, aiding in the development of his locality, and a citizen of strict integrity, ever lending a helping hand in matters affecting the common weal, he was held in high respect and was num- bered among the county's leading men. Upon his retirement from office he established his home upon his farm in New Lenox Township and there resided for seven years. He then withdrew from active labors and afterward lived retired in Joliet, where he died June 5, 1899, at the age of seventy- eight years.
The marriage of Judge Weeks was solemnized in New Lenox Township, May 6, 1846, and united him with Miss Jane C. McDonald, who was born in Syracuse, N. Y. Her father, Asa McDonald, was a native of Connecticut and of Scotch descent. He settled in Onondaga County, N. Y., and engaged in the manufacture of salt for some time, but later became interested in farming. In 1836 he brought his family to this county, the trip being made almost entirely in wagons and consuming six weeks. At first he settled in Joliet, but soon removed to a farm in Manhattan Township, at Five Mile Grove, where he carried on a dairy farm. Two years later he purchased a farm in New Lenox Township, three and one-half miles east of Joliet, and there made his home until he died, at fifty-six years. He married Olive Rudd, who was born in Rutland, Vt., of an old established New England family; she died on the home farm in New Lenox Town-
298
GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
ship. Judge and Mrs. Weeks celebrated their golden wedding May 6, 1896, when a large num- ber of relatives and friends assembled to enjoy the occasion and tender them the congratulations of the day. They were the parents of an only child, Eva, Mrs. George H. Munroe.
AMUEL B. FRASER, who resides on section 28, Wheatland Township, has made his home in this county since 1847. During all these years he has been a witness of the wonder- ful transformation that has taken place. He has seen cabins replaced by commodious residences of frame and stone, villages and cities spring into populous life, and raw prairies transformed into fertile farms. In all possible ways he has aided in the development of its agricultural interests, instituting a system of tilling the soil, draining the land and harvesting the crops that proves him to be a man of excellent ideas. He has made farming his life work, and by his enterprise and industry has become one of the substantial men of the township. Always public spirited, he has aided in the establishment of schools and churches, the building of roads, and the carrying forward of other worthy movements. An hon- ored pioneer, he is highly respected and esteemed.
When a young man Robert Fraser, our sub- ject's father, came to America from Ireland. He enlisted in the war of 1812 and at its close began to farm in Sullivan County, N. Y., clearing a tract of heavily timbered land. In 1847 he brought his family to Illinois via Buffalo and the lakes to Chicago, thence by wagon to this county. At that early period all travel between Chicago and Joliet was conducted by wagons, as rail- roads had not yet been built, and the canal was not opened until the spring of 1848. His wife was taken sick while on the lake and died in Chicago. In religion he was connected with the Associate Reformed (now the United Presby- terian) Church. Politically he favored the Dem- ocratic party. He married Elizabeth Brown, of
Sullivan County, daughter of William Brown, a hotel keeper, and also an engineer of local promi- nence. Eleven children were born to the union of Mr. and Mrs. Fraser, five of whom are living, viz .: Thomas, whose home is in Manitoba; Mrs. Elizabeth Smiley, of Plainfield; Samuel B., Har- vey R., of Denver, Colo., and Louisa.
Born in Sullivan County, N. Y., in September, 1832, our subject was seventeen years of age when he came west with his parents. Three years later he started out for himself, renting a farm in Plainfield Township. Later he moved to Lockport Township. Saving his earnings each year he was enabled to buy eighty acres in Iowa, but later had an opportunity to get a farm in Lockport Township, so remained in Will County, cultivating one hundred acres. In 1865 he bought eighty acres forming the nucleus of his present property. As he prospered he added to his land until he now has two hundred and forty acres, devoted to the raising of cereals and stock. He has a number of Durham cattle on his place, usually milking from fifteen to eighteen cows. He assisted in the organization of the creamery company, of which he was the first president and in which he is still a stockholder. Having the welfare of the Prohibition party at heart he sup- ports its principles in the national elections, and in township and county affairs supports the man rather than any special party. In 1878 he was elected road commissioner, and continued in the position until the spring of 1899, when he re- signed. He is a stockholder in the Normantown elevator, which is owned by the farmers of his locality. In religion he is connected with the United Presbyterian Church and has for many years served as an elder in the same. In 1891 he erected the handsome residence now occupied by his family; all of the other improvements, other than a part of the old residence (now occupied by his son), were made by him.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.