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 83
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 83
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The oldest of the brothers, William T. Hen- ning, purchased one hundred and forty-one acres of unimproved land on section 20, Little Rock Township, and settled thereon soon after his marriage to Marinda Brown. He was one of the first men in the county who successfully engaged in the nursery business. In 1868 he retired from active business and his remaining years were spent quietly in Plano. At his death, in 1881, he left an estate of fifteen hundred acres.
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Gilbert Denslow Henning, usually known as also raised swine. Owing to the ill-health of Denslow Henning, was the fourth son of Corne- his wife, in 1898 he rented his farm and moved to the village of Bristol, where he has since made his home. His grandfather, George Ernst, was a blacksmith in Perry County, Pa. lius Henning, and was eight years old when the family settled in Illinois and pre- empted the land on which Plano now stands. Since then he has been a constant resident of the county. He at tended the first school established in the town- ship. His father, who was a thrifty and pros- perous farmer, died in 1867. He himself is still living and actively interested in local affairs. Farming and stock- raising occupied his attention for years, then he engaged in the grain and mer- cantile business. He built the first warehouse in Plano and established a general banking business here. In the incorporation of the village he proved a valuable aid. He assisted in securing the establishment of the postoffice here and was made the first postmaster. In educational mat- ters he has also been active. Politically he is a Democrat, and he aids in sustaining the Baptist Church, of which his wife is a member.
The first marriage of Denslow Henning was to Nancy, daughter of David and Nancy (Stewart) Beebe; she died in April, 1873, leaving four children: Lillian G., Mrs C. M. Bailey; Ingh D., a postal clerk; Nancy D .; and Effie O. March 30, 1874, he married Agnes Valentine, and they became the parents of seven children. Those who attained maturity are E. Valentine, Marbry, Gilbert D., Jr., Warren and Isabel.
EORGE WASHINGTON ERNST dates his residence in Bristol Township, Kendall County, from October 20, 1851. During all the years that have since come and gone he has filled every duty as a man and a citizen. He has laboriously striven to manage his farm affairs in such a manner as to secure the comforts of life for his family. The management of his farm, the ploughing of the land, sowing of the seed, harvesting, threshing, gathering in the grain, these were a few of the duties that filled each year from his early manhood until his retirement from active cares. In addition to raising farm produce, he was to some extent engaged in dairying and
George Ernst, our subject's father, a native of Bloomfield, Pa., moved to Ohio about 1829 and took up land and cleared a farm in the timber. In order to clear the place for farming he cut down fine old trees and burned them. This same land is now being planted to timber again. In 1851 he drove through with teams from Ohio to Illinois and settled in Kendall County, buying improved land in Bristol Township, just north of the fair grounds, and raising both grain and stock. In 1852 lie hauled his grain to Aurora, but afterward the railroad was in operation and he shipped from Bristol. He continued to reside in this county until his death, which occurred in IS92, at the age of eighty-two years. Politically he was a Democrat. While in Pennsylvania he married Anna, daughter of Samuel Kuney, of that state. They became the parents of seven children, viz .: Caroline, who died in 1891 ; Will- iam and Melinda, of Humboldt, Kans. ; Mary, wife of Samuel Cooney, of Little Rock Town- ship; George W .; Samuel K., of Kansas City, Mo .; and Sarah Emily, who married John Ford, of Marshalltown, Iowa.
In Champion, Trumbull County, Ohio, our subject was born March 10, 1839. He was twelve years of age when the family came to Bristol Township. From his earliest recollec- tions he has been a hard worker. At a time when most boys were giving their attention to play or to study, he was making himself useful on the farm. When twenty-three years of age he left home and started in the humber business at Mendota. This was before the railroad had been built to Yorkville. In 1870, after spending four years in Iowa, he opened a lumber yard at the last-named place, and had Immber shipped to Bristol, from which place he hanled it to York- ville, thus starting the first lumber yard in the village. For fifteen years he continued proprietor of the business. On selling he bought a farm of one hundred and sixty-eight acres in Bristol
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Township, which he still owns. This property is nicely located at the junction of the roads from Bristol to Yorkville and Plano. In 1889 his house was destroyed by fire, and all of the buildings on the place have been erected by him. The value of the land has been greatly enhanced by these and other improvements.
Mr. Ernst was the first police magistrate in Yorkville, and filled the position eight years, and also served as mayor. In his work as magistrate he was remarkably successful and settled many cases without recourse to the law. Politically he is a Democrat. He was a charter member of Yorkville Lodge of Odd Fellows No. 297, and continued connected with it until its disband- ment. While he is not a member of any re- ligious denomination he attends the Methodist Church and contributes to its support. Febru- ary 22, 1866, he married Clarissa, daughter of William Hanson, who came to Kendall County in 1845 from Montgomery County, N. Y., and for a period of twenty-six years lived on the same farm in Bristol Township. At the time the family moved from the east, Mrs. Ernst was an infant of three months. The trip was made by wagon and sleigh, through Canada to De- troit, thence to Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Ernst have one son living, Frank Ernst, who is con- nected with the Illinois Central Railroad, and re- sides in Chicago.
EWIS CHRISTIAN. An enterprising and skillful agriculturist, Mr. Christian is the owner of a well-managed and highly pro- ductive farin of two hundred acres, finely located on sections 4 and 5, in Lisbon Township. He was born February 18, 1853, in this township, on the homestead which his father, the late Christian Christianson, secured from the govern- ment half a century ago. The last-named was a son of Christian Christianson and Alice Slaake, who came with their family to this country in 1847. There were five children, Christian being the oldest. The others were: John, Ole and Charles, farmers in Story County, Iowa; and Elizabeth, now deceased, who was the wife of
the late George O'Brien, of Lisbon Township. The father died in Kendall Township in 1865, and the motlier in 1886, aged sixty-five and eighty-five years respectively.
Christian Christianson was born in Norway, near Bergen, May 1, 1825, and there remained until after attaining his majority. In 1847 he emigrated to America, in search of fortune, com- ing without means, and for several years worked by the month. Prudent and economical, he saved some money, and in 1850 or 1851 he took up a homestead claim of one hundred and sixty acres in Lisbon Township, on which he built a small frame house, the only dwelling of any de- scription within a radius of two miles. Begin- ning his life occupation on a limited scale, he gradually enlarged his operations, in which he was invariably successful, and at the time of his death, July 4, 1890, he was the owner of a valu- able and well-kept estate of five hundred or more acres. In politics he was a Republican, and in his religious belief a Lutheran, being a member of the official board of Helmer Church. He mar- ried Annie Larson, who was born near Bergen, Norway, March 9, 1830. Her father died in 1833, leaving three children, namely: Lars Lar- son; Annie, widow of Christian Christianson, now living with her son Lewis; and Susan, who died March 1, 1898, was twice married, her first husband having been Lars Oleson, and her sec- ond husband John Thompson, of Iowa. After the death of her first husband Mrs. Christianson's mother married again, becoming the wife of Rev. Nels Oleson. Of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Christianson seven children were born, namely: Lewis, the subject of this sketch; Christian F., a farmer and land owner of Greene County, Iowa; Martin, an extensive agriculturist in Hardin County, same state; Erick, a successful-farmer of Hamilton County, Iowa; Nels E., who is like- wise prosperously engaged in general farming in Greene County, Iowa; Julia E., wife of William Hillard, of Kendall Township, Kendall County; and Randall, living on the old home farm in Lisbon Township.
Lewis Christian was educated in the district schools, and under his father's instruction was
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well trained in agricultural pursuits. At the age of twenty-one years he engaged in farming on his own account on a part of the parental homestead, which he carried on successfully until 1883, when he purchased one hundred and twenty acres of land in section 4 of Lisbon Township, and to this he added eighty acres by purchase in 1890 and one hundred and sixty in 1900. A man of un- tiring industry, practical and progressive in his methods, he has made marked improvements on his homestead property, having it well tiled and under a good state of cultivation. He carries on general farming after the most approved modern methods, and is also profitably engaged to some extent in stock raising. He is a consistent Re- publican in politics and a faithful member of the Lutheran Church.
February 28, 1878, Mr. Christian married Charlotta Oyen, who was born January 9, 1859, in Throndhjem, Norway, a daughter of Ole and Catherine (Beck) Oyen, who emigrated with their family to this country in 1861, settling in Chicago, Ill., where the death of the mother oc- curred August 22, 1879, and that of the father in November, 1897. Mr. and Mrs. Oyen were the parents of four children, namely: Anton, who was born October 8, 1841, died in Chicago July 10, 1892; Edward E., born May 13, 1848; Mrs. Christian; and one child that died in Norway. Mr. and Mrs. Christian have three children, namely: Otto C., Alvin E. and Frederick O.
SCAR C. KNUDSON, who is engaged in the livery and ice business in Yorkville as a member of the firm of Knudson & Collman, was born in Kendall Township, Kendall County, Ill., November 11, 1864, a son of Kund W. Knud- so1. His father, a native of Norway, came to America at sixteen years of age and settled in Chicago when that city was a small village. There and at St. Charles, Ill., he followed the shoemaker's trade. Soon after the beginning of the second half of the century he came to Kell- dall County and bought eighty acres of govern- ment land, for which he paid $2.50 an acre. The
land was raw prairie, destitute of improvements. He broke the sod and put up necessary buildings. The produce from his farm he at first hauled to Chicago and sold there: later took it to Morris, and when the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy came through Bristol he found that place a more convenient market. After a time he sold his place and moved across the line in Lis- bon Township, buying one hundred and sixty acres of improved land, and later a tract of the same size in Kendall Township. At the time of his death he left three hundred and twenty acres of finely improved land, on which he had engaged in raising grain and stock.
Politically an active Republican, he was a del- egate to conventions of the party and held some of the township offices. The public school sys- tem had in him an ardent advocate, and he served for many years on the school board. His work in that direction was by no means easy, for the foreigners in his section insisted on having paro- chial schools, and he thus had much to contend with. In religion he was a Lutheran. He was twice married, but the two children of his first marriage are now deceased. One died in infancy, and Mattie C. became the wife of James R. Mc- Hugh. His second wife, Caroline Anderson, bore him six children, three of whom are living: Oscar C., Mrs. Ella C. Collman and Julia A. Knudson. The father died April 17, 1886; the mother is still living.
After studying for some years in public schools our subject entered the Northwestern College at Naperville, from which he graduated in the com- mercial course and took three years in the scien- tific course. Owing to his father's illness he re- turned home before completing his scientific course and assumed management of the farm. This he carried on for two years before his father died, and for three years afterward. He then came to Yorkville and bought the drug business of W. R. Newton, which he conducted for six years, in connection with C. E. Moore. However, the confinement proved injurious to his health, and he therefore sold out and embarked in the livery business with his brother-in-law, Henry J. Coll- man. The firm has a large line of vehicles and
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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
keeps sixteen head of horses. They have a well-equipped barn of two stories, 40x80 feet in dimension. In addition to this business, Mr. Knudson bought out the interests of tlie other heirs to the home farni, which he still owns and oversees, but which is rented to tenants.
Politically lie is a Republican, and while in Lisbon Township he served as collector for two years. In the Methodist Church he has held the office of steward. Fraternally he is a member of Kendall Lodge No. 471, A. F. & A. M., and the Modern Woodmen of America, the local camp of which he was among the first to join.
June 23, 1882, he married Minnie A., daugh- ter of Robert Wilkinson, a sketch of whom ap- pears in this work. They have two daughters: Marguerite Viola and Marjorie.
YELL THOMPSON ALDRICH. The farm which Mr. Aldrich owns is situated in Fox Township, Kendall County, and consists of two hundred and twenty-three acres, this being the tract that was purchased by his father fron the government. The place contains all the im- provements of a first-class, modern farm. The buildings are neat, well-equipped and adapted to their varied purposes, and on every hand are evidences of the owner's thrift and painstaking industry. In fact the estate is one of the best- kept in the township, and Mr. Aldrich still gives it close personal attention, though no longer liv- ing on it.
The birth of Mr. Aldrich took place in Fulton County, N. Y., June 13, 1824, his native town being then known as North Galloway. His fa- ther, Nathan Aldrich, was a native of Rhode Island and a son of Dr. John Aldrich, a valiant soldier in the Revolutionary war and a descend- ant of English ancestors. Nathan Aldrich mar- ried Naomi Kellogg, who was born in Vermont, but moved to New York in girlhood and was living there at the time of her marriage. In 1838 they came west to Illinois and settled on section 18, Fox Township, Kendall County, tak- ing up land from the government and begin- ning its clearing and cultivation. It was here
that the father died in 1844 and the mother a few years later.
When a boy our subject lived with his parents on the home farm in New York. He accom- panied them in their removal to Illinois and as- sisted in the cultivation of the land. Reared to farm work and having a taste for the occupation, he naturally chose it for his vocation in life, and for years personally superintended the cultiva- tion of the homestead taken up by his father. In 1888 he retired from the active supervision of the farm and moved to the village of Millington, where he now makes his home. However, he still overlooks the management of the farm, and the estate bespeaks his careful attention, which has not been lessened with his advancing years. In politics he is a Republican, and has been elected on the ticket of his party to a number of offices, among them that of supervisor, which he filled with efficiency.
The marriage of Mr. Aldrich took place No- vember 7, 1850, and united him with Miss Delia A. Southworth, daughter of James and Delia W. (Day) Southworth, who settled in Illinois in 1838, coming from Oneida County, N. Y. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Aldrich consists of two sons and one daughter, namely: Nathan J., a well-known resident of Aurora; Mrs. Lizzie A. Marvin, who is living at Springwater, Living- ston County, N. Y .; and Edward P., a resident of Millington. November 7, 1900, the golden wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. Aldrich was celebrated at their home in Millington, at- tended by a large assemblage of relatives and friends of early days.
A. DARNELL, attorney-at law, Plano, was born in Squaw Grove Township, De- Kalb County, Ill., June 20, 1866. He was the fifth of a family of seven boys. His fa- ther, Benjamin A. Darnell, was born June 12, 1833, in a fort on the Big Sandy Creek, to which place his parents had retreated at the time of the Black Hawk war. His mother, whose maiden name was Anne C. Neer, was born in Mary- land, June 21, 1839.
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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
Mr. Darnell was educated at Jennings' Semi- nary, Aurora, Ill., and at the Union Christian College at Merom, Sullivan County, Ind. He taught school each winter from 1885 until 1897, prosecuting his studies as best he could while teaching for three or four months during the winter, the remainder of the year being spent in school. After leaving Merom, Ind., he devoted his spare time to the study of law and was ad- mitted to the bar March 30, 1897. September 1, 1897, lie began the practice of law at Plano.
Mr. Darnell was married June 15, 1898, to Alice M. Hiscock, daughter of George and Emma Hiscock. She was born near Creston, Ill., April 22, 1875, and is the third ehild in a family of four girls. She is a graduate of the Creston public school, and has taught several terins.
A MOS DAVIS CURRAN. During the eleven years past, Amos Davis Curran's influence in the educational affairs of Kendall Coun- ty has been marked, and every department of this important work now is in a hopeful, flourisli- ing condition. His efforts to improve and per- manently raise the local systems of instructing the young have been unremitting, and great credit is due to him.
Henry Curran, father of our subjeet, was of Scotch-Irish descent, and the greater part of his life was spent in Lansingburg and Williams- town, N. Y. He followed the free, healthful life of a farmer, and owing to his fine constitu- tion and temperate, sensible habits, he attained the extreme age ofone hundred years. He died in 1859, and was survived by his wife, who was born in Rutland, Vt., and who died in 1867, when she was in hier seventy- fourth year. Be- fore marriage she was Miss Sarah Davis. Of their eight sous and two daughters two sons are living -- Charles Curran, of Williamstown, N. Y., and the subject of this sketch, the youngest of the family.
The birth of Amos D. Curran took place in Williamstown, N. Y., August 25, 1836. He completed his education in the seminaries of Ful- ton, Oswego County, and Cazenovia, Madison
County, N. Y., and on the home farm he mas- tered the routine of agriculture by the time that he arrived at his maturity. In 1856 .he came to Illinois, and, after attending Wheaton College for a short time, preparing himself in special branches of learning, he embarked upon his long career of teaching. He was employed in the public schools of Kane and Kendall Counties until 1862, when the need of his country gained the first place in his mind and heart, and all other considerations were placed in the back- ground.
Enlisting in the Eighty-ninth Illinois Infantry, August 12, 1862, Mr. Curran served faithfully at his post of duty until the close of the war. As a private of Company H he was actively engaged in the dreadful battle of Stone River, and for his gallantry lie was then promoted to the rank of sergeant. He participated in the numerous engagements with the enemy in the campaign in Tennessee, and at the battle of Pieketts Mills, Ga., May 27, 1864, was severely wounded. After he had languished in the field hospital for a period lie was removed northward, by stages, being assigned to different regular hospitals, and while still on crutches he taught the post school at Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis. He was mus- tered out of the service August 12, 1865.
Returning to Kendall County Mr. Curran re. sumed his former work, teaching in the graded schools of Bristol until 1871, also being connected with the mercantile interests of the place for three years. Unfortunately lie then went to Chicago, where lie liad just become well started in merchandising when the great fire swept away all of his possessions. He was brave and plucky, and, little daunted, he soon embarked again in business, and for five years was quite successful. Then coming back to Bristol he began teaching onee more, for his heart always has been in this work more than in any other.
Always a loyal Republican Mr. Curran has been an active worker in its ranks. He was ap- pointed and served for four years as postmaster of Bristol, and in 1889 he was called to the posi- tion he has since filled, that of superintendent of the schools of Kendall County. The graded
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system, practically, has been in force here for some time, and the qualifications of all teachers employed are of a much higher standard than for- merly. The schools of Kendall County under Mr. Curran's supervision are in a prosperous condition, and rank with the best of the state.
For many years Mr. Curran has been an hon- ored member of the Grand Army of the Repub- lic, and for one year he served as commander of Post No. 522, of Yorkville, and at the present time is chaplain of the post. He is also secretary and treasurer of the Eighty ninth Illinois Re- union Association, and of the Company H As- sociation. He is a trustee and member of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Bristol, and for twenty-five years he has been superintendent of the Sunday-school.
November 29, 1866, Mr. Curran married Henrietta W. Edwards, of Sheboygan, Wis. Their eldest-born, Charles, is engaged in busi- ness in Chicago; Lola E. is the wife of D. R. Sterling, a teacher in the township high school at Harvey, Ill .; Harry E. is a salesman for a New York firm; Paul is a student in the Chicago Dental College; Clarence, his twin, is traveling for a Chicago manufactory; Mabel L. is at home; and John is attending the Chicago Dental Col- lege.
HOMAS DOWDSWELL WAYNE, SR. Throughout a long and useful life, cover- ing the greater portion of the nineteenth century, Mr. Wayne has maintained a high standing as a man. Both among his acquaint- ances in England and in America his reputation is the highest. As a result of keen and energetic business methods he has accumulated a com- petency that enables him to spend the evening of his days in the enjoyment of all the comforts of life. While he is retired from active business cares he nevertheless still superintends the man- agement of his property, including eight hun- dred acres of farm land in Kendall County. That he is a good landlord is evinced by the fact that his tenants remain with him for long periods, one family having been on the same
place twenty-five years, and others in proportion.
Mr. Wayne was born in Cricklade, Wiltshire, England, November 16, 1817, the oldest son among the four children of William and Sarah (Dowdswell) Wayne. His father, who was an architect and builder and had contracts for a great deal of railroad construction, successfully carried on a large business, and for years en- gaged extensively in the building of railroads in his native country. As a citizen he attained local prominence and wielded an influence for good in his neighborhood. In religion he was connected with the Church of England. He died at Brighton, England, when advanced in years, and after his death his widow came to America with the family. Our subject at the time was fourteen years of age. He grew to manhood in Montreal, and there and in Quebec engaged in business as an importer, frequently visiting Europe for the purpose of making pur- chases. At the time of the discovery of gold in California, in 1849, he went to California via the Isthmus of Panama, and was engaged in mer- chandising there eighteen months, after which he spent four months on the Sandwich Islands. Returning to San Francisco he took passage for New York by way of the Isthmus. He has al- ways been an ardent sportsman, and, hearing that great quantities of fine game could be found in Illinois, he was induced to come to this state. He settled at Oswego, which was at that time the county-seat of Kendall County.
Some time after his arrival in Oswego, Mr. Wayne built an elevator and engaged in the grain and produce business, which he continued many years, meeting with success. In 1887 he retired from business and returned to England, where he resided until the time of the World's Fair in 1893. However, though attached to the land of his birth, he never forgot his old home in Illinois, and in 1893 returned here to spend the remainder of his life. From a business point of view he has been a very successful man. His possessions are the result of his energy, good judgment and wise investments, and are well deserved. After becoming an American citi- zen he identified himself with the Democratic
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