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 46
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 46
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LISHA C. FELLOWS. In the early period of Will County's history there was no attorney so prominent and influential as Mr. Fellows, who was long the Nestor of the bar in Joliet and one of the leading criminal lawyers of Illinois. Born and reared in Brockport, N. Y., the son of wealthy parents, he was given in youth every advantage which ample means could pro- vide, and was educated in law under the tutorship of successful attorneys in the east. During the year 1836 he came to Joliet, which was then a frontier town in the midst of the wilderness, with few indications of its future prosperity and popu- lation. Largely through his efforts the first char- ter was secured for the city. In many ways he promoted the growth of the town and the enlarge-
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ment of its interests. No movement was started of a public-spirited nature that failed to receive his co-operation.
As the passing of the years brought a constant prosperity to Joliet, they also brought to Mr. Fel- lows an ever-increasing reputation in his chosen profession. His name was connected with the most important cases in the courts of Will County, and as a criminal lawyer he was recognized as unequaled and without a rival. Frequently he was called into other counties of the state in con- nection with important cases. He was a tireless worker in the interests of his clients. Every authority was looked up, every research was made and every clue investigated that would aid him in his professional work. His life was in his work, and it might almost be said that his pro- fession was his life, so closely were the two inter- woven.
After a useful and honorable career, Mr. Fel- lows retired from his activities. For some years before his death he was an invalid. September 5, 1875, his step-son, George Leonard, who had been his partner in law, and was a young man greatly beloved by all, passed away from earth at the going down of the sun. His own health was very poor at the time, and the following year, August 1, he died at the rising of the sun. During his three years' illness he had been tenderly cared for, not only by his wife and daughter, but also by his adopted son, Frank Fellows (a son of Mrs. Fellows by her first marriage). This son was his constant attendant throughout his illness, and Mr. Fellows showed his affection for him by bequeathing him an equal share of his property with his daughter.
At a meeting of the Will County Bar Associa- tion, October 2, 1876, the following resolutions were passed:
" WHEREAS, The death of E. C. Fellows is to the bar a sad occasion and of no ordinary char- acter, and he has given his whole life to practice within its precincts, be it
" Resolved, That we remember with emotion his power as a practitioner, his fervid eloquence, his marked fidelity to his clients, and, as an asso- ciate, his genial social qualities ; and
" Resolved, That these resolutions be made a matter of record in the court and the clerk be in- structed to forward a copy to the bereaved family of the deceased."
During a portion of his life Mr. Fellows was an exhorter in the Methodist Church, and he died in the Christian faith, with the hope of a resur- rection to life eternal. In early life he affiliated with the Democrats of the old school, but during Civil-war times he supported Abraham Lincoln, and afterward he was independent in politics. He was a man of straightforward honesty, and would tolerate no wrong methods, though they might offer tempting professional allurements. His knowledge of criminal law was excelled by 110 attorney of his locality and day, and by his high professional attainments he added to the in- fluence of his home town.
Mr. Fellows married Miss Frances D. Gates, a grand-daughter of Gen. Horatio Gates, the famous Revolutionary hero, and also a relative of Generals Schuyler and Van Rensselaer, who gained renown in the struggle with England. In later days other relatives of Mrs. Fellows have gained fame. Her cousin, Major Anderson, was the one who held Fort Sumter until approaching starvation forced a surrender. Her parents were Seth and Mary (Anderson) Gates; the latter, who was a daughter of a Scotch nobleman, was reared under strict Presbyterian influences, and was a woman of marked ability, gentle in dispo- sition and kind to all. At the time of her death she was ninety-five years of age. Seth Gates was born and reared in Rutland, Vt., but in early manhood removed to Bradford County, Pa., taking with him $1,000 in gold, which was con- sidered a fortune in those days. He purchased a tract of timbered land and hewed a farm from the wilderness, in which wolves and other wild ani- mals made the night hideous with their cries. At the time the family removed to the new home Mrs. Fellows was nine months old; consequently she retains no recollection of her native county. She was one of twelve children, namely: Rufus R., Luther, Schuyler, Herrick, Van Rensselaer, Horatio, William, Aurilla, Demorest, Frances Diantha, Almira and Sarah. Rufus R. Gates
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became a prominent evangelist in the Seventh- Day Advent Church, and made his home in Phil- adelphia. Of the family, Schuyler, Herrick, Horatio and Mrs. Fellows are still living. The only child of Mr. and Mrs. Fellows, Addah, was born in Joliet, and married Lomando Pierce, by whom she had two children, Frank Fellows Pierce and Florence Gates Pierce. Mrs. Fellows and Mrs. Pierce are members of Christ Episcopal Church in Joliet, having been confirmed by Bishop McLaren in Lockport.
ANIEL F. HIGGINS is well known, both through his successful practice as an attor- ney, and through his active, efficient service as vice-president of the board of school directors of Joliet. For the past twenty years he has been intimately associated with educational work; probably his most helpful service as a citizen has been in connection with the city schools. Since 1896 he has held office as the board's vice presi- dent. He is a member of the township high school board, and is entitled to the credit of origi- nating the plan and assisting to carry forward to a successful completion the building of the town- ship high school. The decision to erect this building was made in December, 1899. Since then the work has been carried rapidly and sys- tematically toward completion. The building stands on the corner of Jefferson and Eastern avenues and is, without exception, the finest township high school building in the entire state; a result the credit of which should be given the men whose names are indissolubly associated with the enterprise.
The Higgins family was established in New England in an early day. Samuel, the earliest member of whom any definite knowledge is had, served in the Revolutionary war. Prior to 1781 he resided in Killingworth, Conn., but in that year moved to Castleton, Vt. He was twice married, and by his second wife, Temperance Kilsey, had eight children. The second of these
children was Dan, who was born in Castleton, Vt., August 27, 1784. By occupation he was a farmer. In 1806 he married Hannah LeBarron, by whom he had eleven children, Chauncey, the fourth, having been born in Rutland County, Vt. He was reared on the home farm, and during the summer assisted in its cultivation, while in the winter he attended school. However, his educa- tion, which was good, was acquired mostly by his own efforts. When about of age he took up agricultural work in Vermont. In 1835 he came via the lakes to Chicago, thence by the old trail to Dupage Township, this county, where he took up one hundred and sixty acres of government land. He raised produce which he shipped to Chicago, and he also raised stock. At the time of the anti-slavery agitation he was pronounced in his Abolition views. He aided the work of the underground railroad. Though active in local affairs, he would never accept office. He was instrumental in moulding the principles of the Republican party in his neighborhood. For many years he was a leader in politics. Person- ally he was a man of indomitable will and en- ergy, and one of the best business men in his township. He helped to build the first church in Naperville, and for years was a deacon in the Baptist Church near his home. October 23, 1844, in Dupage Township, he married Emily Root, who was born in Benson, Vt., March 18, 1812. They became the parents of five children, namely: Emily Frances and James Chauncey, both deceased; Daniel F .; Olney F., who is man- aging the old homestead; and Charles Sumner, deceased. The father died in February, 1892.
The subject of this article was educated in public schools and in Northwestern College, which was then in Plainfield. When fifteen years old he enlisted in Company C, One Hun- dredth Illinois Infantry, and went with his regi- ment to East Tennessee. On the Ist of July, 1865, he was transferred to the Fifty-first Illi- nois Veterans' Corps, which served in Texas un- til October, 1865. He was then honorably dis- charged from the army. Returning home he was for two years principal of the school at Downer's Grovc. In 1874 he began to read law
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with Judge Cody, one of the leading attorneys of northeastern Illinois. He was admitted to the bar in Joliet in 1877, and has since engaged in practice here. About the time of his election as county attorney (1884) he formed a law partner- ship with E. C. Akin, now attorney-general, and they were together until the latter's removal to Springfield in 1896. Since then Mr. Higgins has been associated with Fred W. Walter. He is a strong Republican, and has been chairman of the county central committee, and a member of the city council. He is a great admirer of William McKinley, and an active campaigner, and has been offered several appointments, which he has declined on account of his private work as a lawyer. His influence has been given to move- ments of a worthy character, and he has been one of the most progressive citizens Joliet has ever had. His entire life has been passed in this county. He was born in Dupage Township and grew to manhood in the midst of the changing scenes of farm life here, witnessing the develop- ment of farms and the growth of towns. In Joliet he has done a considerable amount of building, mostly residences. He was united in marriage May 4, 1881, with Mary Brown, of Jackson, Will County. They are the parents of six sons and two daughters, namely: D. Frank, Jr .; Charles Chauncey, Helen J., Marshall F., Max Brown, Mary Marguerite, Ara Brown and Alfred N.
ILLARD W. GIFFORD, county treasurer, is a veteran of the Civil war, in which he served with a valor and fidelity that en- . title him to the lasting gratitude of all who love their country. He was born near Mayville, Chautauqua County, N. Y., a son of Edson and Lydia (Whipple) Gifford, also natives of that state, and descendants of New England pioneers. His grandfather, William Gifford, who was of remote Welsh descent, brought his family from Massachusetts to New York, and cleared a farm from the woods of Chautauqua County, where he
continued to make his home until he died, at the age of about eighty years. Some years after his marriage, Edson Gifford brought his wife and two children to Illinois, making the trip by the lakes and settling in Grundy County on the Ken- dall County line. There, out of the raw prairie, he improved a fine farm of one hundred and sixty acres. After a few years he settled in Lisbon, Kendall County, where he engaged in the mer- cantile business. In 1866 he settled in Morris, Grundy County, where he was proprietor of a store. The year 1872 found him settled in El- wood, Will County, where he engaged in mer- chandising. His death occurred in this village in 1894, when he was seventy-four years of age. His wife died during the early days of their resi- dence in Grundy County. Of their three chil- dren, a son and daughter are living. He was a second time married, and by that union there are two sons now living, one being a business man in Elwood.
The subject of this sketch was born March 4, 1844, and was a child of four years when his parents came to Illinois. His education was ac- quired principally in Lisbon, Kendall County, and Lisbon Academy. July 15, 1861, he en- listed in Company D, Thirty-sixth Illinois In- fantry, which was mustered in at Aurora and sent to Missouri. After the battle of Pea Ridge the company was ordered to Mississippi and took part in the siege of Corinth, later was sent in pursuit of General Bragg, and took an active part in the battles of Perryville and Stone River. During the latter engagement he was captured, but was soon paroled and sent to Columbus, . Ohio, where he remained until his exchange in May, 1863. He joined his regiment at Mur- freesboro, immediately before the campaign against Chattanooga, and took part in the battle Chickamauga, where he was shot in the leg. The Union army retreated to Chattanooga and he was left on the field, within the rebel lines for seven days, after which he was taken into a Confederate hospital and his leg was amputated by a Federal surgeon. Four days later he was taken in an ambulance to the Union lines at Chattanooga and was exchanged and taken to a Union hos-
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pital, where he remained for some time. In the latter part of October, 1863, he was honorably discharged on account of physical disability, and returned to his home, but it was a year before he had recovered sufficiently to engage in any busi- less.
After a year in an academy Mr. Gifford was appointed postmaster under President Lincohı, which office he held until 1872, meantime also engaging in the mercantile business. On resign- ing his office he removed to Elwood and became a member of the firm of E. Gifford & Son, pro- prietors of a general mercantile store. Later the firm became Gifford & Co., a brother and son being admitted as partners. Under Presidents Garfield and Arthur he also served as post- master at Elwood. During much of this time he was a member of and president of the board of the village trustees. Several time he has been a member of the county Republican central com- mittee. In the fall of 1898 he was elected county treasurer by a majority of twenty-seven hundred, and in December of that year he took the oath of office for a term of four years. In the spring of 1899 he moved to Joliet, where he now re- sides. He is a member of Bartleson Post No. 6, G. A. R.
In Cambridge, Ill., Mr. Gifford married Miss Lydia Bryan, who was born in Stark County, Ill., daughter of an old settler there. They are the parents of four children: Edson, who is deputy county treasurer; Estella, Mrs. R. J. Hemphill, of Aurora, Ill .; Katie and Grace, at home.
ETER POLSON. With the energy charac- teristic of his nationality, Mr. Polson has devoted himself to contracting and build- ing in Joliet. He arrived in this city from his native land May 22, 1881, and at once secured employment in carpentering. Realizing that a knowledge of the English language was necessary in order to carry on business success- fully, he devoted his evenings to study, and soon
mastered the language. About a year after he came he began to take contracts for the erection of houses, and he has since continued in the busi- ness. Besides building residences in different parts of the city, he has had the contracts for the Lemont Orphans' Home. In 1890 he laid out Polson place, between Jackson and Benton streets, on Hickory Creek, and this property he improved with residences which he later sold. In 1899 he erected a double brick two-story building on Jackson street. He has also built over fifty residences for himself, selling them as opportu- nity presented.
Mr. Polson was born near Helsingborg, Skåne, Sweden, May 31, 1846. His father, Paul, a son of Nils, was born in the same vicinity, and engaged extensively in the distilling busi- ness until his death, at forty-three years. Twice married, he had two children by his first union, and one of these is still living. His second wife was Boel Nelson, who died in Skåne in 1889, when eighty-three years of age. Of their chil- dren, Johanna died in Sweden; Nels is a farmer in Skåne, and Kerin also resides in that coun- try. The youngest of the four, Peter, was five years of age when his father died, and he was reared on the home farm by his mother. From fourteen to seventeen years of age he worked on the farm. At an early age he formed a resolu- tion to learn the carpenter's trade, and when he was eighteen he hired a man to take his place on the farm while he apprenticed himself to the trade. After three years he entered the Swedish army, where he served for two years in a hussar cavalry regiment. On leaving the army he worked at his trade, which he followed in his native land, in conjunction with farming, until he came to the United States in 1881.
Though not active in politics, Mr. Polson is a stanch Republican, and keeps posted concerning public affairs. He is a member of the Joliet Bnilders' Association. From the organization of the Swedish Lutheran Church he has been one of its leading members, and at the time of the erec- tion of a house of worship he served on the build- ing committee. For nine years he held office as a deacon, and for fourteen years he assisted in
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the Sunday-school work as a deacon. He has also represented his congregation in the synod. Before leaving Sweden he married Batilda Swen- son, daughter of a farmer. She died in Joliet, September 30, 1882. They were the parents of five children, namely: Samuel, a carpenter in Joliet; Pauline, in Chicago; Marie and Josephine, at home, and Carl L., who died in infancy.
AVIER BIETH, who is engaged in farming in Troy Township, was born in 1831 in Al- sace, then a part of France, but now a Ger- man province. He was reared on a farm operat- ed by his father, John Bieth, and from an early age assisted the latter in his work. At sixteen years of age he was apprenticed to the shoemak- er's trade, which he followed for some years af- terward. He was not, however, content to re- main in his native land, where the opportunities for success were so few and the hardships so many. He therefore resolved to seek a home in the new world. In 1853 he took passage on a sailing vessel that anchored in New York after a voyage of thirty-six days. Coming direct to Illinois, he secured work in the construction of the Chicago & Alton Railroad, but after he had been working forty-one days, the contractor left secretly, and he received no remuneration. His first experience in our country was far from encour- aging, but he had the faith to believe that better things awaited him. His next employment was as a farm hand, for which he was paid $8 a month.
After having worked for others for eight years Mr. Bieth rented a farm and for six years en- gaged in its cultivation. Meantime he frugally saved each year's profits and was finally able to buy a place of his own. His first purchase con- sisted of eighty acres in the southern part of Troy Township, and he remained there for some time, working with painstaking care upon the place and increasing its value by his improvements. In 1881 he bought a farm of two hundred and twenty acres. In the cultivation of the land he
met with success from the first. He has added to his holdings until he now has three hundred and sixty acres, of which he operates one hun- dred and twenty acres, and rents the remainder. Among the improvements he has made is a wind- . mill seventy-five feet high.
While Mr. Bieth has not been active in poli- tics, he is a stanch Democrat, and never fails to cast his ballots at elections. In 1860 he married Ellen Lynk, by whom he has seven children, namely: John; Mary, wife of John Stepher; Jo- seph; Frank; Josephine, wife of George Stephens; Theresa and Emma. The family are members of St. John's Roman Catholic Church. In all of his business transactions Mr. Bieth is exceed- ingly cautious; this trait of character being prob- ably emphasized by reason of his early unfortu- nate experience in America. Conservatism is one of his most marked traits. When, however, he is convinced of the value of an enterprise, he is ready to give it his co-operation and assistance. All through his active life he has been a hard- working man, and his industry and perseverance have been rewarded by the accumulation of valu- able farm property.
ILLIAM H. HUNTER was born in Joliet, Ill., August 1, 1854, the only son of Thomas R. and Lucinda (Smith) Hunter. He has an only sister, Fatha, who is the wife of J. Q. A. King, of Kansas City, Mo. His father was a native of Sullivan County, N. Y., born February 2, 1818, and grew to manhood in his native county; when he was but seven years of age, his father, Robert, was killed by a tree fall- ing on him while he was engaged in clearing a piece of timber land.
During the early life of Thomas R. Hunter he was engaged in rafting logs down the Delaware River. Later he served an apprenticeship to the blacksmith's trade, on the completion of which, in 1837, he started for the west. Locating in Joliet, Il1., he opened a shop on Bluff and Oneida
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streets, and formed a co-partnership with a Mr. McMasters. Much of his work was the making and sharpening of the tools used in the construc- tion of the Illinois and Michigan canal. The co-partnership continued until the spring of 1850, when, in March of that year, he started across the plains for California with a party of Argonauts bound for the " Golden Gate." After a journey of six months he arrived at his destination and located a claim on the Feather River, in Califor- nia. In about seven months he had worked out his claim, at which time he returned east via the Isthmus, arriving at home fifteen months from the day he started. With him he brought back $5,000, the fruits of his mining venture. He then built a residence on Oneida street and Broad- way, and resumed work on Oneida and Bluff streets, in the old stone shop that is still standing.
In 1856 he purchased what is now block 70, S. S. Addition to Joliet; here, having retired front blacksmithing, lie engaged in fruit raising. To this land he added until he owned some twenty- nine acres in the same vicinity. Some of his original purchase of block 70 is still in the pos- session of his son. In politics he was a Repub- lican, and on that ticket he was twice elected an alderman of Joliet. The last six years of his life were spent in his son's home, where his death occurred April 22, 1888.
The ancestry of the Hunter family is traced back to Scotland on the one hand, and, also, through the Davenports, to colonists who crossed in the " Mayflower."
The wife of Thomas R. Hunter was born in Tennessee April 25, 1826, being a daughter of Bar- ton and Fatha Smith, who came from Indiana to Joliet in 1835. She passed away at her home in Joliet March 15, 1882. For a number of years Barton Smith was a justice of the peace in Joliet, where he died September 22, 1863.
The subject of this sketch was reared in Joliet, and has always made this city his home. For about eighteen years he was engaged in the coal business, but in 1893 he sold out his interests to O. W. Curtis. Later he had the agency for various agricultural implements, and in the meantime also took the agency for the Stempel
Fire Extinguisher. The latter proving a success- ful venture, he gave up the former agency, and since 1898 has given his undivided attention to the extinguisher business, and also sells the Eads chemicalizer and chemical engines, hav- ing his office at No. 613 the Rialto Building, Chicago, Il1.
November 13, 1878, Mr. Hunter married Miss Mollie P. Turner, of Lockport, Ill., a daughter of S. S. and Caroline Turner. Her father, who was born in Pennsylvania in 1822, came west in 1850, settling in Plainfield, in this county, where he followed his trade of a moulder and pattern- maker. Later he bought from John Griffin what is now known as the McGuire farm, west of Lockport. His wife died in Lockport December 24, 1860, and he then moved with his family to Buchanan, Mich., where he again followed his trade, but returning to Lockport in 1862. Novem- ber 15, 1861, he married Mrs. F. H. Richards, of Plainfield, Ill., who died October 2, 1867. He was again married April 12, 1871, his wife being Mrs. Mary E. Sayre, by whom he had one child. He died May 25, 1882, on the sixtieth anniversary of his birth.
Mr. and Mrs. Hunter have two children, Caroline L. and Robert S. The family have all united with the Ottawa Street Methodist Episcopal Church, of whose choir Miss Caroline is a prominent member. Fraternally Mr. Hun- ter is connected with Matteson Lodge No. 175, A. F. & A. M., of Joliet.
D HARLES V. BARR. To those in the least familiar with Plainfield's industries thie name of Mr. Barr is well known. He is junior member of the firm of Whipple & Barr, and has the personal oversight of the firm's busi- ness at this point, Mr. Whipple having charge of their elevator at Caton Farm. They have built up a large business in grain, and also deal exten- sively in coal and lumber. By their reliability and energy they have gained the respect of ac- quaintances and the confidence of business men.
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