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 64
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 64
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Joliet is proud of preserving the names of the pioneers worthy of honor and to her everlasting credit will it be placed that the judge's memory has been perpetuated by naming after him a school and a leading thoroughfare-the Hen- . derson school and Henderson avenue.
1 OHN D. HENDERSON, of Joliet, a son of Judge Hugh Henderson, was born October 16, 1851, in the house where he now resides. Deprived of his father by death when he was too small to realize his loss, he was reared under the wise yet gentle rule of his mother, who gave him good educational advantages and fitted him for an honorable place in the business world. From early boyhood he was connected with railroad companies, being with the Chicago & Alton for
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eleven years, the Santa Fe for six years, and the Rock Island for twelve years. When he began work he carried messages for the operator, who was none other than the present Sir William Van Horn, president of the Canadian Pacific. Dur- ing all this time he was located in Joliet. Owing to failing health he was obliged to resign his position and seek other employment. In 1895 he embarked in the real-estate and loan business, which he has since followed, having his office in the Barber building. The change of occupation has proved helpful to him, for he now enjoys ex- cellent health. At the same time he has been financially prospered and has accumulated a competency through his intelligent and indus- trious efforts. He opened a subdivision on Hen- derson avenue and Jackson street, just east of Spring Creek, and here he platted thirty. eight residence lots.
In politics, though not a partisan, Mr. Hen- derson is a staunch Democrat, adhering to the party in which his father was so prominent a figure for years. Fraternally he is connected with the Modern Woodmen, and is also a member of Powhatan and Rebekah lodges and Eagle En- campment of Odd Fellows. December 22, 1880, at Lyons, Mich., he was united in marriage with Cora E. Coon, daughter of Peter Coon, a mer- chant of that town. Two children have been born of their marriage, Louis J. and Edna L.
ON. HENRY SNAPP. Through his hon- orable record as state senator and member of congress, Mr. Snapp's name and life are worthy of perpetuation in the annals of this county. He was born in Livingston County, N. Y., June 30, 1822, a son of Abram Snapp, who was a native of Pennsylvania (born in 1795) and descended from a Strassburg (Germany) fan- ily that settled in America about 1740. From Pennsylvania Abram Snapp removed to New York, where he worked as a farmer and cabinet- maker. In 1825 he settled in the western part
of New York, and was deputy sheriff in Rochester. In 1833, accompanied by his wife and four chil- dren, he started west, traveling via lake to De- troit, thence by team to Illinois, and establishing his home in what was known as "Yankee Settle- ment" (now Homer Township, Will County). It was then in Cook County, Will County not being organized until 1836. He entered a large tract of land and engaged extensively in farming, continuing until 1863, when lie retired to Joliet. An aceident that resulted in blood poisoning caused his death in 1865. He had served as an officer in the Baptist Church, in the work of which he was long a leader. His wife was Sarah Weed, member of an old eastern family and a cousin of Thurlow Weed. Of their three daugh- ters and two sons, only two daughters are living, Mrs. Johnson, of Kankakee, and Mrs. Mather, of Joliet.
From the age of eleven years the life of Henry Snapp was identified with the growth of Will County. From his father he inherited a strong will and uncompromising integrity, together with intellectual traits of no common order. Upon at- taining his majority he came to Joliet and read law with E. C. Fellows and S. W. Randall, and in 1843 he was admitted to the bar. For the legal profession his ready command of language, his quick wit and keenness of discrimination ad- mirably fitted him. His mind was logical in its processes. He reasoned from cause to result, and the intricacies of complicated cases yielded to his acute reasoning faculties. In spite of his many duties and interests he never ceased to be a student of the law, and thus he kept himself in touch with every advance made in its various de- partments.
The qualities possessed by Mr. Snapp were such as fitted him for the public service. This was recognized by his fellow-citizens, who tendered him offices of responsibility and honor. In 1868 he was elected to the state senate. Four years later he resigned the office in order to ac- cept the nomination to represent the sixth (110w the seventh) congressional district in congress, to fill the unexpired term of Hon. B. C. Cook, resigned. On the expiration of the term he de-
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clined renomination, but returned to Joliet and resumed his law practice, in which his subsequent years were passed. During the long period of his practice he had various partners. At first he was with Mr. Fellows, later was a member of the firm of Snapp & Breckenridge, afterwards was successively with Goodspeed & Snapp, and Good- speed, Snapp & Knox, finally being with his son as Snapp & Snapp, practicing throughout the northern part of the state .. During the war he and his father were stanch Abolitionists and sup- porters of the Union. He assisted in organizing the Republican party in this county and his serv- ices as speaker were frequently in demand at that time. In religion he was of the Baptist faith. He died in this city November 26, 1895, when seventy-three years of age.
The wife of Mr. Snapp was Mary Adeline Broadie, who was born in Delaware. One of her paternal ancestors took the side of the second pretender in Scotland and for that reason sought a new home in America. Her father came from Ohio to Kankakee, Il1., in 1833, and the next year settled in what is now New Lenox Town- ship, Will County, where he died. He married a Miss White, of English ancestry. Mrs. Mary Adeline Snapp died in 1884, leaving five chil- dren, namely: Sarah M., who is the wife of Judge Dorrance Dibell, of Joliet; Elizabeth, who married George M. Campbell, of this city; Henry Douglas and Howard M., both of Joliet; and Charles, who is a business man in Memphis, Tenn.
OWARD M. SNAPP. As a potential factor in the work of the Republican party, Mr. Snapp is well known throughout this coun- ty. While he has never been a candidate for public office and has not sought official honors, he has nevertheless wielded a strong influence in all party matters and has perhaps accomplished more than any other citizen to secure victory for Republican principles in this locality. In 1884 he was made secretary of the county central com-
mittee, an office that he filled with efficiency until 1892, when he was promoted to the chairmanship of the committee. It is said that he has held this position for a longer period than any of his predecessors. In 1896 he was chosen a delegate to the national Republican convention in St. Louis, when William Mckinley was nominated for president, and he has frequently been a dele- gate to conventions of lesser importance.
In Joliet, where he now resides, Mr. Snapp was born September 27, 1855, a son of Hon. Henry Snapp. His education was obtained in local schools and in Chicago University. At the close of the junior year he left the university and took up the study of law in the office of Hill & Dibell, continuing to read with that firm until he was admitted to the bar, in 1878, at Ottawa. From that time until 1888 he was with his father and Mr. Breckenridge, and later, with his father, formed the law firm of Snapp & Snapp, which partnership continued until the retirement of the firm's senior member in 1890. Since then Mr. Snapp has been alone. In addition to his private practice he has held the office of master in chan- cery since 1884, having been first chosen by Judge McRoberts and afterward reappointed every two years.
Fraternally Mr. Snapp is a member of Matte- son Lodge, A. F. & A. M., also the chapter and council, Mount Joliet Commandery No. 4, K. T., and Medinah Temple, N. M. S., of Chicago. His marriage in Kansas City, Kans., united him with Miss Alice Halsey, who was born in Henrietta, N. Y., a member of a prominent old family of Monroe County. Three children com- prise their family, Dorrance, Helen and How- ard M., Jr.
OHNSON FOLKERS is a prominent Ger- man-American citizen of Frankfort Station, who keeps abreast with the progress of the times, and has endeavored at all times to advance the interests of his adopted country. Ever since he was a boy, and from an early day in the his-
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tory of this county, he has made his home here. His life of industry and his record for integrity in all relations of life have given him a standing in his community which might well be a source of gratification to any citizen. At one time he had many important business interests in his home town, but for some years past he has been practically retired from business cares, transfer- ring his interests to his sons, in whose hands they have received careful attention.
Mr. Folkers was born in Ostfriesland, Hano- ver, Germany, June 11, 1836, a son of Frank Theilen Folkers and Ariane (Gummels) Folkers. His father was a large merchant in his native place, Neustadt Goedens, Germany, but after coming to America, in 1852, he turned his atten- tion to farm pursuits. He died in Frankfort Sta- tion, Will County, March 14, 1893, when ninety- seven years of age. He wife had died in Ger- many in 1843, leaving five children, viz .: Rica, who lives at Frankfort Station; Angelina, widow of Philip Klaman; Peter, of West Superior, Wis .; Johnson; and Annie, wife of George Stauf- fenberg, of Manhattan Township. The grand- parents of our subject on his father's side were Didde Jansen Hinzaga and Anna Muttera Folk- ers, the former a miller by occupation, and known and honored as a good citizen and an honest man. In religious faith the family were members of the Lutheran Church.
In 1849 Johnson Folkers came to America with his uncle, Diederich Brumund, and settled on a farm where Mokena now stands, near Hickory Creek, Frankfort Township. For a few years he made his home with his uncle. Later he settled in what is now Greengarden Township. When he was fifteen he began to work out by the month, and continued as a farm hand until lie was twenty-five. During the construction of the Rock Island Railroad he was employed as a teamster near Mokena. In 1853 he worked on the Michigan Central Railroad near Joliet. In 1863 he bought a piece of land adjoining Frank- fort Station. Settling here, he embarked in the meat business, which he carried on until 1889, being the first to open a meat market in the town. Some years later he bought out the livery, and
this he carried on in addition to his market. Later he bought the Doty hotel. These three lines of business he conducted successfully until 1889, when he turned them over to his three sons, Frank, William and Peter.
While he never cared for office nor desired to be active in politics, Mr. Folkers takes an inter- est in public affairs and is a firm Republican. In April, 1861, he enlisted in Company F, Twentieth Illinois Infantry, and served in the same until 1862, when he was discharged on account of dis- ability. With his regiment he was engaged prin- cipally in service on the frontier. He fought in the battle of Frederickstown with the western division of the army under Colonel Marsh. As a soldier he was prompt, reliable and faithful. On his return home from the front he married Sophia, daughter of John Eberhard, their wedding occur- ring February 23, 1862. Besides their three sons, they have reared two adopted daughters, Hattie and Mabel, bestowing on them the most careful attention and giving them excellent educational advantages.
M ORRIS NIVER, a retired farmer living at Lockport, was born at Ulster County, N. Y., January 23, 1818, a son of James and Sarah (Terwilliger) Niver. His father was a farmer, shoemaker and local Methodist preacher. In 1853 he came to Illinois. After three years he moved to Clinton County, Iowa, where hc en- gaged in farming for some years, and then re- tired, removing to Clinton, where he died at ninety-three years of age. His grandfather, Godfrey, was a German, and emigrated to Amer- ica long before the Revolutionary war, settling in Ulster County, N.Y.
The subject of this sketch was the oldest of nine children, eight of whom grew to maturity and six are still living. He remained at home until he was seventeen, when he began to work on a farm and in a sawmill at $10 and $12 a month. After- ward, until he was twenty-one, he paid his father $100 per year for his time. In 1839 his em-
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ployer, Martin Rich, sent him to Michigan with a threshing-machine, but he worked there only three weeks, when he came to Will County, Ill., and secured a job of threshing on Hickory Creek. A week later he went to Plainfield, where he was employed in threshing, using the first horse- power threshing-machine brought into the coun- ty. During the season he followed threshing for seven years. Hethen rented a farm one mile south of Plainfield, where he lived for four years. Meantime he bought wild land three and one-half miles southeast of Plainfield, paying $100 for eighty acres. Thirty-seven years later he sold the property for $100 an acre. On locating in Lockport he bought seven lots, three of which he sold for residence lots.
In 1843 Mr. Niver married Mrs. Lucina Stowe, who was born in Lewis County, N. Y., September 9, 1820, and came to this county with her parents in 1840. Her father, a native of Connecticut, settled in Lewis County in boyhood and there learned the carpenter's trade. On coming to Illinois he settled near Plainfield. A few years later he moved near Ottawa, Ill., thence went to Wheatland, Iowa, where his wife died at fifty-two years of age. Afterward he made his home with his daughter until his death, when eighty-one years of age.
ILLIAM CORRIE is assistant general manager of the Joliet Limestone Company, which lias its main office in the Chamber of Commerce building, Chicago, and its Joliet office on the corner of Rowell and Fourth ave- nues. The officers of the company are: Hugh Young, president; R. C. Harper, vice-president and general manager; and C. S. Metcalfe, secre- tary. The quarries owned by the company are the most extensive and their business the largest of any in Joliet. Besides the quarrying of stone, they are engaged in the manufacture of sawed and machine-dressed stone of all descriptions, curbing, engine beds, limestone sidewalks, etc.
Mr. Corrie was born in Greenock, Scotland,
December 12, 1846, a son of William and Isa- bella (Maine) Corrie, also natives of that coun- try. His father, who was an expert silk buyer, brought his family to America in 1850 and settled in New York City, where he was employed by A. T. Stewart and James Beck as an expert in silk. In 1862 he removed to Tipton, Cedar County, Iowa, where he engaged in farming until he died. His wife, who was a daughter of John Maine, a carpenter, and a member of a very old and prom- inent family of Scotland, is still living in Iowa, and is now about ninety years of age. Of their two sons and two daughters, all are in Ida County, Iowa, except William, the oldest of the family and the subject of this sketch. He at- tended ward school No. 35, on Thirteenth street near Sixth, New York. In May, 1861, at the first call for volunteers, he enlisted as a drum- mer boy in the Twelfth New York Infantry, and afterward took a part in all the engagments of his regiment, including the first battle of Bull Run, Antietam, Gettysburg, etc. At Gaines' Mill he was struck by a spent ball and lay un- conscious for some time, and was reported among the killed. At this battle his regiment was so badly cut up that it was consolidated as guard for headquarters. On the day before the battle of Gettysburg he was mustered out at Frederick City, Md., but accompanied the command to Gettysburg and took part in that memorable en- gagement. Afterward he returned to New York and then went to Iowa, where his father had moved during his absence at the front.
At Muscatine, Iowa, Mr. Corrie again enlisted in the army, and was assigned to the scouting troops of the Mississippi marine brigade, attached to the treasury department, and ordered to pro- tect the Mississippi River. They were mounted and took their horses with them on boats, going down the Mississippi from Memphis to New Orleans, then up the Red River, and having a skirmish with some of the southern troops almost daily. Near Rodney, Miss., Mr. Corrie was wounded in the leg, but soon returned to active service. At other times he was wounded, though not so seriously. He continued in the army until February, 1866, when he was honorably
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discharged. After the war he came to Illinois, and resided successively in Ogle, Winnebago and Carroll Counties, being for a time in the employ of the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Com- pany as baggage-master and at Winnebago.
In 1887 Mr. Corrie came to Joliet, where he was time-keeper for the Young & Farrell Dia- mond Stone Sawing Company, with whom he was later employed as superintendent. For two years he was superintendent of the Detroit Brownstone Company, of Detroit, Mich., and for a similar pe- riod was superintendent of the Portland Stone Company in Indiana. Returning to Joliet in the spring of 1898, he became assistant general mana- ger of the Joliet Limestone Company. He isa past commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, and a past officer of the local lodge of Odd Fellows, also a member of the Knights of Pythias. In poli- tics he is a Republican.
While living in Ogle County, Mr. Corrie mar- ried Miss Annie M. Black, who was born there, a daughter of William Black, who in an early day came to Illinois from Virginia. They are the parents of six children. The eldest, Belle, is the wife of Henry Schumann, who is one of the largest stone contractors in San Francisco, Cal., and, among other contracts, had that for the build- ing of the Leland Stanford University. The other children are as follows: William Albert, a painter and paper-hanger, living in Joliet; E. J., who is connected with the Joliet Limestone Com- pany; Mrs. Blanche Mathers, of Joliet; Bessie and Ruby, at home.
HOMAS LANGDON. A lifelong resident of this county, familiar with its growth and interested in its prosperity, Mr. Langdon is especially qualified to discharge with efficiency his duties as supervisor of Troy Township. Four times he has been elected to this office, and his repeated selection for the place is ample evidence of his ability to fill it and the high esteem in which he is held by his fellow-citizens. He is
one of the local leaders of the Democratic party and takes the liveliest interest in the success of its candidates and principles. Besides the office he now holds, he has served as highway commis- sioner for two terms. By the board of supervisors he was appointed a member of the building com- mittee in charge of the erection of the county poor farm buildings, on which $22,500 was ex- pended, and he faithfully discharged the trust re- posed in him. For several years he was a men - ber of the board of the poor farm, and at this writing he is a member of the committee to settle with the sheriff and the committee on fees and salaries.
The farm which Mr. Langdon occupies is situated in Troy Township, five miles west of Joliet. He was born in this township September 27, 1846. His father, John Langdon, came to the United States in early manhood and for a time made his home in New York state, but in 1835 settled in Illinois, taking up land in this township, of which he was one of the first settlers. After a time he purchased eighty acres, which made his farm one of two hundred and forty acres, and to the cultivation of this property hie gave the subsequent years of his life. Prior to coming to America he married Bridget Gillespie. They became the parents of twelve children, of whom two sons and three daughters are now in this county: Mrs. Eliza Green and Mrs. Sarah Ryan (twins); Francis E .; Thomas; and Nellie, wife of Martin Langdon, of Omaha.
After having acquired a thorough knowledge of agriculture by working on the home farm, our subject started out for himself at twenty-two years of age. For four years he rented a place, after which he bought and removed to a farm of his own. However, since 1880 he has operated lis present estate, where he farms two hundred and forty acres, making a specialty of raising corn, oats and hay. He also engages in raising cattle, mostly of the Durham breed. He is a member of St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church of Joliet, to the work of which he is a regular contributor. Jannary 3, 1871, he married Catherine Talbot, of this county. They are the parents of five children now living, namely:
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John Ambrose, who is traveling front Omaha for the Cudahy Brothers; Richard T., who assists in cultivating the home farm; Blanche Lorene; Catharine Frances, a student in the Joliet high school; and Elizabeth Agnes (Bessie) Langdon.
UGUST MAUE, principal of the Eastern avenue public school, is one of the success- ful teachers of Joliet. He represents the third generation of his family resident in Will County and was himself born here, at Mokena, in 1866. His grandfather, Francis Maue, a na- tive of Bavaria, Germany, grew to manhood at his native place on the banks of the Rhine. In addition to farming he learned the tailor's trade. About twenty years after his marriage he decided to seek a home in the United States. Accom- panied by his family, in 1847 he set sail for the new world. After a voyage of twenty-one days, which was considered remarkably short for the time, he reached New York. Thence he pro- ceeded up the Hudson River and along the Erie canal to Buffalo, and from there via the lakes to Chicago, from which point he drove into the country, looking for a good location. Finding the farm land in this county fertile, he settled in Frankfort Township and took up one hundred - and sixty acres of land, which he began to im- ยท prove and cultivate. Besides farm pursuits, he followed his trade, working at Mokena.
Through his excellent management he was able to spend his last years in ease, having given his children a good start in life. He died at the age of seventy-six years on the old homestead at Mokena. His wife survived him seventeen years, departing this life at the age of eighty- seven.
When the family came to this county the only son, Daniel, was a boy of sixteen years. The succeeding years were busy ones for him, be- cause much of the business devolved upon him. In those days the absence of railroads made it necessary to do much teaming to the Chicago
markets. This fell to his part of the work. When he married he became the owner of the major part of the homestead, which has since been acquired by him in full. He built a home of his own, when married, near his father's place. He is still in active life, carrying on his work on the farm with the aid of his youngest son, now just grown to manhood. In late years he moved to an adjoining farm which he had purchased. He has never aspired to public work, although he assumed his just share of the work in township offices. He has adhered to the Re- publican party in politics.
His wife was Sarah Mast, daughter of German parents, who came to this country in the same year, 1847. She is a woman of domestic habits and strong character, which has impressed itself upon the children. The large family has none not honored by neighbors and friends for in- tegrity and industry.
Ten children were born of their union, namely: Francis, a farmer, living one mile from the old homestead; Daniel, at home; Julius, who died in childhood; Carl B., a business man of Minne- apolis; George, who operates the original home- stead of his grandfather; Edward, who farms an adjoining place; August; Amelia, wife of Will- iam Cleveland, of Frankfort Township; Ida, who keeps house for her brother George; and Albert, who is with his father.
The education of August Maue was commenced in district and continued in village schools. The fund of knowledge thus acquired was sup- plemented by a course of study in the Adrian Normal College, from which he graduated in 1885. He taught for a year at Goodenow and then became principal of the Monee school, being at the time the youngest principal in the entire county. Feeling the need of even- broader knowledge than he had hitherto acquired, he en- tered the University of Illinois at Champaign, where he took a course of belles-lettres, graduat- ing in 1891 with the degree of B. L. Having decided to follow the occupation of a teacher he accepted the principalship of the Elwood schools, and a year later took charge of the Mokena school. He resigned this position after one
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