Historical encyclopedia of Illinois, Volume II, Part 100

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Cunningham, Joseph O. (Joseph Oscar), 1830-1917
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 632

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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).

J. M. WEST, well-known farmer and stock- raiser residing on Section 2, Sidney Township, Champaign County, Ill., was born in Cham- paign County December 29, 1851, the son of James H. and Louisa V. (McGee) West, na- tives, respectively, of Kentucky and Missouri. 'They were early settlers of Champaign County, and followed farming in Sidney Township until 1853, when they moved to Vermilion County, III., where they made their home until 1881. The father died in Kansas in 1884, the mother's death having occurred in 1861.

The subject of this sketch was reared on a farm, and received his education in the dis- trict schools and at a high school at Ladoga, Ind. He owns 240 acres of good land, on which stands one of the finest brick farm resi- dences in the county, with large barns and outbuildings, erected by himself, and having all modern improvements. He makes stock- raising and feeding an important feature of his business.

Mr. West has served as School Director for several years, and in religion, he is connected with the Christian Church, of which his wife is also an active member. On September 21, 1876, he was married to Annie M. Anderson, and they are the parents of two sons: James Harvey, a student in the University of Illinois; and Oliver Clyde, who is attending the district school.

MORRIS WHEATON was born in Seneca County, N. Y., in October, 1826, the son of Esquire and Marcia (Jacobus) Wheaton, who were natives of New Jersey. The former was a soldier in the War of 1812, and moved to

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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.

Delaware County, Ohio, in 1833. There he gaged in the furniture and undertaking busi- engaged in farming, after obtaining his men- tal training in the public schools. There his mother died at the age of sixty years, after which he remained on the farm until 1852. He then spent about seven years farming in Iowa, when he returned to Ohio, and for eleven years followed the trade of tanning to which he had been apprenticed at the age of seventeen years.

In the spring of 1865, Mr. Wheaton came to Champaign County and bought a farm in Condit Township, remaining there until 1884. He then disposed of his possessions and moved to Champaign, where he purchased five acres in the western part of the city, which he divided into city lots. This was an excellent investment, as he paid $2,000 for the property, and when divided, two of the lots were sold for $2,000. He still retains seven of them, on which he now lives. One of the streets, Wheaton Avenue, has been named for him. On first arriving in Champaign, Mr. Wheaton en- gaged in the ice business, which he conducted for about fifteen years. He retired from that line of industry, and took up the trade of a locksmith.

Politically Mr. Wheaton is a Democrat, and religiously, a faithful member of the Presby- terian Church. In 1848 he was united in marriage to Miss Matilda Cook, a native of Virginia, and one daughter, Lenora M., was born to them. Mrs. Wheaton died in 1852. Mr. Wheaton then moved to Iowa where, in 1856, he was married to Miss Augusta Ann Cornell, who was born in New York. Of the children born of this union three survive: Charles O., a carpenter; O. G., a farmer liv- ing in Texas; and Adelbert O., who has been with D. H. Lloyde & Sons for nineteen years. One son, Albert, died in 1878.

JOHN C. WHEELER was born December 17, 1859, at Decatur, Ill. There he attended the public schools, and at the age of nineteen years, secured a position on the Wabash Rail- road as telegraph operator. This he held un- til 1891, when he went into the grain and implement business at Osman, McLean County, Ill., in which he continued until 1897. He then removed to Fisher, Ill., and went into the grain business there, but sold out in 1902. Then, taking J.' H. Hinton into partnership, he en-

ness, in which he is still interested, having bought Mr. Hinton out in 1905.

In politics, Mr. Wheeler is a Democrat, and was Village President of Fisher for five years. Socially he is a member of the M. W. A., the I. O. O. F., and the K. of P.

SILAS FLETCHER WHITE, the oldest at- torney in Champaign County, was born in Decatur County, Ind., February 27, 1829. At the age of twelve years he was "bound out" to Chatfield Howell, with whom he remained until he was nineteen years old. He then went to Cairo, Ill., before that city was built up, and later walked to Salem, and thence went to Carlisle, where he tried to obtain work at his trade, but realizing that it would make him ill, was obliged to abandon his purpose on account of his health. He then held the position of section foreman for four years (1853-56) on the old Wabash Railroad. During the following six months he read law, subse- quently obtained a license and in 1858 began practicing his profession. In 1859, during the gold excitement, he went to Pike's Peak, but not meeting with the expected success, re- turned to his native town. He then practiced law in Sidney for a time, and in 1873 came to Urbana, where he has since continued in his profession.

Politically Mr. White has always been a Dem- ocrat and held the offices of Postmaster and Collector at Sidney, and also served as Post- master under President Buchanan.

One June 5. 1858, Mr. White was united in marriage to Miss Harriet M. Turner, who died December 6, 1883. Mr. White was again mar- ried November 20, 1884, his second wife being Selorah (Kelly) Murdock, who died September 1 7, 1901. Mr. White is still a member of the Champaign County Bar. He is a self-made man and has the reputation of being the greatest divorce lawyer in the State.

STEPHEN C. WHITE (deceased) was born in 1824, near Dresden, Ohio, a son of Stephen and Orpha (Howard) White, natives of Ver- mont. Nr. White was married in Hamilton County, Ohio, September 30, 1852, to Miss Jane Smiley, who was born in Butler County, Ohio, but lived mostly before her marriage, in Ham- ilton County. Her parents were Alexander and

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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.

Mary (McMullen) Smiley, the former having been born in Pennsylvania, and the latter, in Kentucky. Her father died at the age of sixty years, and her mother lived to be eighty years old. The father was a farmer in Ohio.

Mr. White was engaged in farming in Ohio. until 1858, when he removed to Champaign County, Ill., residing one year in Urbana. He then bought eighty acres of land on Section 29, Urbana Township, where his widow now resides. During the Civil War, Mr. White's family resided in Urbana, and for several years afterwards,-about eleven years, in all. He enlisted in Company G, Seventy-sixth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, in August, 1862, and served in the Army of the Cumberland until the close of the conflict.

In politics, Mr. White was always a Repub- lican. Socially, he was a member of Black Eagle Post, No. 127, G. A. R. He was a mem- ber of the Baptist Church, as is Mrs. White. One daughter, Anna, who was born to them, married Geoffrey McDaniel. Mr. McDaniel died about the year 1884. He and his wife had two children: Ernest Claude, who was the main stay of his widowed mother and grandmother, until his death at the age of twenty-three years, and a daughter, Myrtle, who lives at home.

Mrs. White and her daughter, Mrs. McDaniel, reside together and carry on the farm, cheer- fully surmounting the many difficulties which always confront women left alone.

ALEXANDER P. WHITMORE, resident owner of valuable 160-acre farm on Section 4, Philo Township, Champaign County, Ill., was born in Wallingford, Rutland County, Vt., April 15, 1833, and in boyhood removed with his parents to Washington County, N. Y., where he received his early education in the sub- scription schools, and was later trained to va- rious kinds of work, in time locating in New York City, which continued to be his home about four years.

December 9, 1861, Mr. Whitmore was mar- ried to Susan J. Bonen, who was born at Wal- lingford, Vt., December 9, 1839, and in April, 1865, removed to Champaign County, Ill., and there worked at the, carpenter's trade until 1867, when he became agent of the Rockford Fire Insurance Company, a vocation which he still carries on in connection with farming. In 1870 he purchased 'eighty acres of land in

Stanton Township, which he sold out a few years later and bought 150 in Homer Town- ship, upon which he lived several years. Besides his home farm purchased in 187 9, he is owner of a farm near Aberdeen, S. D.

Mr. and Mrs. Whitmore had two children: Susan E., born in Champaign City, Ill., October 10, 1867, and Mae B., born in Philo, Champaign County, December 17, 1879. The first Mrs. Whitmore died in Watertown, N. Y., in 1892, and on February 12, 1898, Mr. Whitmore mar- ried Susan Tucker of Pennsylvania. The daughter, Susan E., married October 15, 1885, George E. Morrow, a Christian minister of Bur- lington, Vt., and since the death of her mother, Mae B. has resided with her sister, Mrs. Mor- row. Mr. Whitmore is a stanch Democrat, and has served for sixteen years as School Director.

HENRY J. WIGGINS, banker of Homer, Champaign County, Ill., was born in Hocking County, Ohio, February 9, 1840, and received his mental training in the public schools. On the paternal side, he is of English ancestry. His father, Zedekiah D. Wiggins, was born in Ross County, Ohio, in 1816. His mother, for- merly Lucinda Haynes, was a native of Penn- sylvania. Mr. Wiggins was reared to hard work and simple living on his father's farm. He responded to the call of his country during the Civil War, enlisting, in September, 1862, in Company A, One Hundred and Fourteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, from which he soon after was discharged on account of illness contracted in the service. Recovering his health he re- enlisted in August, 1863, in Company M, Twelfth Ohio Cavalry, serving until July 4, 1864, when he was made organizer of colored troops at Camp Nelson, Ky. Assigned to Company A, One Hundred and Fourteenth U. S. Colored Infantry as Second Lieutenant, he was later promoted to be First Lieuten- ant and Adjutant of the regiment. As such he served until his honorable discharge, Oc- tober 13, 1866. He afterwards went to Mexico, and subsequently returned to his father's farm.

On December 31, 1867, Mr. Wiggins married Miss Rosalie L. Eggleston, of Hocking County, Ohio, and of this union three children have been born, namely: Pearly E., Charles B., and Nellie R.

Mr. Wiggins came to Champaign County in 1878, and was successfully engaged in farming.

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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.

In 1882 he turned his attention to banking in Homer. He has the ability and inclination for public affairs, and has filled important of- fices, as a Republican. Fraternally he is iden- tified with the Grand Army of the Republic.

FRANK D. WILLARD was born in Urbana Township, Champaign County, Ill., in 1870, and there received a common-school education. His father, Charles Henry Willard, now a resi- dent of Urbana, is a native of Mississippi, where his birth occurred in 1820. His grandparents, John and Elizabeth (Dunn) Willard, were born in Virginia, and died when Charles was a child.

Charles H. Willard was apprenticed to a man in Arkansas, who treated him like a slave, and he ran away, going in a boat up the river. For the following fifteen years, he was em- ployed on boats running on the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. He was also employed for some time on public works and on railroads in Indi- ana. He went to Minneapolis, Minn., at the time when there were only Indian wigwams on the site of the present city. Left an orphan, mistreated by the man who employed him, without a day's schooling, Mr. Willard has fought his way to success, in spite of the many disadvantages of his earlier years. He was married in Putnam County, Ind., November 14, 1850, to Miss Malinda Smith, and, buying an ox-team, the young couple reinoved to Illinois, finally locating in Champaign County, in 1861. He purchased 40 acres of land on Section 24, Urbana Township, and was at first obliged to buy farm machinery on time, but always paid his bills, and his credit has ever been of the best. He progressed steadily, made new pur- chases, and increased his farm to 360 acres. He then bought a tract of land and laid out the village of Gifford, where he erected an elevator, at a cost of $10,000. He subsequently gave most of the land to his children. He has 600 acres in Lawrence County, Ill., which is under the management of his son Samuel. By his first wife he had six children, namely: James M .; Charles Henry, Jr .; Elizabeth, who is Mrs. Claude Hogan, of Urbana; Joseph C .; Grant, and Samuel. Of these only Samuel survives. The mother of this family died in 1865. On November 14, 1869, Mr. Willard was married to Mrs. Ruth A. Ditto, a daughter of William and Margaret Ditto, who were early settlers of Champaign County. Eight children

were born of this union, of whom Frank D. is the eldest.

Frank D. Willard, like his father, has always been very ambitious, and consequently has made a success of his chosen vocation of farm- ing. He remained at home, assuming the management of his father's large farm, when the latter removed to Urbana. In 1895 he purchased 160 acres of land southwest of Champaign, to which he added, in 1900, eighty acres, on Section 23, Urbana Township. The latter tract he cultivates himself, in connection with that of his father, the other farm being . rented. The property comprises 440 acres, in all, most of which is planted in small grain, some attention, however, being paid to stock raising. In politics, Mr. Willard is a Demo- crat, and in religion, he and his family are members of the Universalist church of Urbana.

In 1889, Mr. Willard was married to Maggie, a daughter of Patrick Murphy, of Urbana. Of this union two children were born-Ervin Elmer and Hazel Gertrude. Their mother died in 1894. In 1895, Mr. Willard was married to Lydia, a daughter of Arthur and Eliza Wade, who was born in 1875, in Tolono Township, Champaign County. She graduated from the Urbana High School in 1893, and was a teacher in Champaign County until her marriage. This union has resulted in five children, name- ly: Agnes Luella, Dora Alta, Harold Bryan, Charles Henry and Frank Glenn, all of whom reside at home.

COL. JOHN S. WOLFE (deceased), attorney and soldier of the Civil War, was born in Mor- gan County, Ill., September 21, 1833, the son of George and Mary (Simms) Wolfe, the father a native of Virginia, and the mother of North Carolina. His paternal grandfather, Henry Wolfe, was a soldier of the Revolution. The family removed in 1839 from Morgan to Ma- coupin County, and in the latter the subject of this sketch grew to manhood on a farm, remaining with his father until twenty-two years of age, meanwhile pursuing his early studies in the country log school house of that period. Early in life he planned entering the legal profession and, in 1857, entered the office of the late Gen. John M. Palmer as a student, and, two years later, was admitted to the bar.

Promptly after his admission to the bar, in partnership with his fellow-student, Col. J. W.

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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.

Langley, he opened a law office in Carlinville, whence, a year later he removed to Champaign, and where, during most of his life he pursued his profession. He was one of the first in Champaign to respond to the call of President Lincoln for 75,000 men to resist the assault of the Southern Confederates upon the integrity of the Union, taking a prominent part in a meeting held in a public hall, and after con- cluding an eloquent address, giving evidence of his sincerity by writing his name at the head of the list of volunteers. He was chosen cap- tain of the company then organized, but owing

COL. JOHN S. WOLFE.

to the large number of patriotic organizations tendering their services to the Government, it was not at once called into service. After remaining in camp some weeks at Joliet, on June 13, 1861, the company was mustered in as a part of the Twentieth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, being one of the first regiments to be organized in this State for the three years' service. After a service of about one year, he was obliged to accept a discharge on ac- count of disability incurred in battle. It was after his return home that he was married to Miss Celestia A. Young, a native of Lorain County, Ohio, who survives him.

Having recovered from the disability incurred during his first enlistment, in 1864 he assisted in the organization of the One Hundred and Thirty-fifth Illinois Infantry, which, on June 6, 1864, was mustered in at Mattoon for 100 days' service, with Captain Wolfe as Colonel. During its period of service the regiment was on duty chiefly in Missouri, guarding the rail- roads and other lines of communication from the incursions of guerrillas and "bushwhack- ers" who infested that region. This service was of great importance to the army in the .field, and assisted to check the atrocities which had so long disgraced the State.

After returning from the field, Colonel Wolfe resumed the practice of his profession, for about three years having an office in Chicago. He then returned to Champaign, where he re- newed his partnership with Col. J. W. Langley, and continued in practice for the remainder of his life, for the last thirty years being local attorney for the Illinois Central Railroad. As a lawyer and citizen he maintained a high reputation for personal integrity and fair deal- ing. Besides devoting his attention to his pro- fession, he was an enthusiastic student of pure literature, to which he gave his leisure mo- ments.

An independent in politics, he was not a seeker for office and never held any political position. He was a Methodist in religious views, and held various positions of trust in connection with that denomination. Socially, he was identified with the Masonic Order, be- ing a member of the Blue Lodge, Chapter and Knights Templar Commandery of Champaign. In his later years he traveled extensively, spending considerable time on the Pacific coast, and during the summer of 1903, in company with his wife, making a tour of the principal countries of Europe. His death occurred at his home in Champaign, June 23, 1904.

There could be no more fitting conclusion of this sketch of a patriotic and honored citizen than the following extract from a memorial prepared by his life-long friend, Judge J. O. Cunningham, and adopted by the Champaign County Bar a few days after Colonel Wolfe's death:

"Coming from what is known in our country as the great middle class, that class which has built up and made mighty this great State,

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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.

he began his life on a farm, where he not only acquired that strong physical organization which bore him through the struggles of an arduous professional career of great length, but he also acquired and habituated himself to the practice of those homely virtues which adorn all great characters, and which are necessary to success in any career. From the farm to the bar-the path pursued by so many American youth-was the course chosen by our friend, and was most successfully pursued by him for more than forty years, until fortune and fame were his-until he won the respect and affection of his associates of the bar, and, finally, the reverence of every man in this county, which he had seen grow from an open, vacant waste of prairie to be one of the most populous and productive of the State. His professional career was only interrupted by his answer to the call of his country, made when its life was imperiled, which call Col. Wolfe was among the first to obey of that vast number who answered it.

"To the end he was what he had been for many years, learned, persuasive, eloquent of speech. To the end he was to us all courte- ous, kindly in manner, affectionate. To the end he was the safe counselor, the true friend, the loyal citizen, unmoved by flattery, un- swerved by mercenary appeals, uninfluenced by the prestige of great names, disassociated from the right as he saw it.

"His place at the bar is vacant, never to be filled; but the marked career is be'ore us as a model, while in yonder cemetery that great in- dividual is merged into the narrow mound of earth. Gone is the dear friend, the loyal citi- zen, the affectionate husband. Among our- selves as his intimate associates, and with her who mourns alone in her widowhood the loss of a life companion, we mourn his loss, yet we may rejoice that-

" 'Having won the bound of man's appointed years, at least,

Life's blessings all enjoyed, life's labors done, Serenely to his final rest has passed;

While the soft memory of his virtues yet Lingers like twilight hues, when the bright sun is set.' "

The high esteem in which Colonel Wolfe's memory is held by his townspeople, is at-

tested by the fact that their Board of Edu- cation has erected a new school building-the most beautiful and most complete in the city- and has named it "The Colonel Wolfe School," thinking that this is such a monument as he would most wish to have erected to his mem- ory. Here, where happy children gather to do the joyous, pleasant tasks of schcol life, that shall fit them for future usefulness, is written the name "Colonel Wolfe" -the name of one whose sweet and pure character and noble citizenship are worthy of highest emulation of all the youth of the land.

EDWARD A. WOLFRAM, retail liquor mer- chant, Champaign, Ill., was born in 1866, at Buffalo, N. Y., and obtained his education in the private schools of Hart, Minn. His parents were Charles H. and Clara (Buerger) Wolfram, natives, respectively of Germany, and of Buf- falo N. Y. While still a child, the subject of this sketch moved with his parents to Hart, Minn., where his father was engaged in the carpenter line. In 1887 he came to Champaign, Ill., as a representative for the Schmidt Brewing Com- pany, which position he held for two years. He was then engaged as a bartender for seven years, and in 1901 entered into his present business, which is located at No. 109 N. First Street, his residence being at 606 East Vitee Street.

In 1893 Mr. Wolfram married Louise Unike, a native of Champign, and a daughter of John and Bertha (Blaudes) Unike, who were born in Germany, and became early settlers of Champaign. To them have been born two chil- dren,-Walter and Ethel.

WILLIAM FRANCIS WOODS, attorney-at- law, was born in Farmer City, Ill., July 16, 1876. His parents, Thomas and Catherine (Kirk) Woods, were natives of Ireland, where they at- tended the common schools. They emigrated to the United States in the 'fifties, locating in Logan County, Ill., and were married at At- lanta, in the same State. They came to Cham- paign County in 1879, settling in Harwood Township, where the husband died May 3, 1899, at the age of sixty-two years. He was a member of the Catholic Church, with which his wife is still connected. At the age of sixty- five years, she now resides in Urbana 111.

William F. Woods was an only child; his

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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.

primary education bring obtained in the public schools supplemented by a course in nice's Collegiate Institute, at Paxton, Ill. La'er, he took a classical course in the University of Illi- nois, from which he was graduated in 1900, with the degree of A. B., and the distinction of being class orator. He was a member of the University debating teams, and paid special attention to political science and public law.

After graduating, Mr. Woods entered the law office of Wolfe & Savage, at Champaign, at the same time taking a regular law course in the University of Illinois, and being graduated from the College of Law in 1902, at the head of his class. In the same year, he was admitted to the bar, and has practiced ever since in Urbana, to which town he came after the death of his father, in 1899. He is the attorney for, and one of the directors in, the Farmers' Savings &. Loan Bank, in Urbana. Politically. Mr. Woods is a Democrat, and takes an active interest in the success of his party. In religion, he is a member of the Catholic Church, and so- cially, is affiliated with the Catholic Order of Foresters, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, and was elected Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus on the establishment of the order at Urbana, in August, 1904. Mr. Woods has been quite successful in his law practice, and enjoys the confidence and esteem of his profes- sional brethren, and of a large circle of ac- quaintance.

FRANCIS M. WRIGHT, lawyer and jurist, was born August 23, 1844, at Briar Ridge, Adams County, Ohio. When Mr. Wright was eleven years old his father died. Up to that time he had attended the common schools, but after the death of his father he was obliged to take charge of the farm, and for the time being, was actively engaged in agriculture. In 1861, shortly before reaching his seventeenth year, he enlisted as a private in Company I, Thirty-ninth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. By succesive promotions he attained the rank of Lieutenant of his company, and was mus- tered out with that rank at the close of the war in 1865. He served over four years, participat- ing in all the campaigns of the Army of the Tennessee. He was wounded-but not seri- ously-during the siege of Atlanta.

After the war Mr. Wright returned to his old home in Ohio, where he studied law, later

taking a course at the Cincinnati College of Law, from which institution he was graduated in the class of 1867. In 1868 he married Miss Elizabeth West, of Decatur, Ohio, and shortly afterwards came to Illinois, establishing his home in Urbana. He had practiced law a short time in Ohio, but practically began his profes- sional career here. About 1870 he became associated with Judge W. H. Somers, as junior member of the firm of Somers & Wright, which continued in existence until about 1885, being known as one of the strongest law firms in this part of the State. From 1885 to 1891 Judge Wright practiced alone. In the year last named he was elected Circuit Judge of the old Sixth Circuit, and in 1897 was re-elected to that position. He served on the circuit bench nearly twelve years altogether, and during nine years of that time was also on the bench of the Appellate Court by appointment of the Supreme Court of Illinois. In January, 1903, he was appointed by President Roosevelt Judge of the United States Court of Claims, as suc- cessor to the late Lawrence Weldon, and re- moved to Washington, D. C. He was regarded as one of the ablest members of the State judiciary during his term of service, and has added to his honors as a jurist in the position he now holds as a member of the Court of Claims. Judge Wright was closely identified with the political, social, and business life of this part of the community during his long res- idence in Urbana, and was prom nent as a. member of the Masonic and other fraternal orders, and was also a member of the Loyal Legion and the Grand Army of the Republic.

ROYAL WRIGHT, well-known lawyer, Ur- bana, Ill., was born in Urbana, September 13, 1870, the son of Judge Francis M. Wright, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this work. Mr. Wright was educated in the public schools of Urbana, and at the University of Illinois, from which institution he was gradu- ated with the degree of Bachelor of Letters in the class of '92. He read 1 ~~ under the preceptorship of his father, and was admitted to the bar by the Supreme Court of Illinois in 1893. He began the practice of his profession the same year in Urbana, and has since taken a leading place among the members of the local bar. Since 1896, he has served as Master in Chancery of the Circuit Court.

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HISTORY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY.

Mr. Wright has been prominent in the local councils of the Republican party, taking an ac- tive interest in political campaigns from time to time. He is a 32nd degree Mason, affiliat- ing with the Oriental Consistory of Chicago, the Knights Templar, and also with Masonic bodies at Urbana.

Mr. Wright was married in 1894, to Miss Maie Candy, of Princeton, Ind.

MRS. MARY J. WRISK, widow of the late Charles N. Wrisk, resides in a comfortable home in the village of Sidney, Champaign County, Ill., and is the owner of a valuable estate in Sidney Township. Charles N. Wrisk was born in Ripley County, Ind., in June, 1833, and at the age of fourteen years, went to Jacksonville, Ill., where he secured work at the carpenter's trade, in the meantime attend- ing the public schools. In 1849 he went to Coles County, bought a team, and hauled ties for the railroad company, which was then building in that section. He worked at car- pentering, saved his money, and bought a small tract of land in Sidney Township. After his marriage he operated a farm in Coles County, which he later sold and then moved to Sidney, where he worked as a carpenter, and later be- came the possessor of 970 acres of fine land. In 1885, he bought a home in Sidney, in which Mrs. Wrisk now resides.

Mr. Wrisk was married in 1860, to Mary J., a daughter of William and Sarah A. (Beaver) Ashley, early settlers of Coles County, the for-

mer of whom died in 1897, and the latter, in 1898. To Mr. and Mrs. Ashley ten children were born, of whom four survive, namely: Mary J., Marion, John and Frank. Mr. and Mrs. Wrisk became the parents of two children: Flora, who married William Swearingen, and John F., a farmer of Sidney Township. In 1894 Mr. Wrisk suffered a stroke of paralysis, which subsequently caused his death Septem- ber 18, 1898. In her religious association, Mrs. Wrisk is a consistent member of the Presby- terian Church.

WILLIAM WYKLE was born in 1863, at Pe- oria, Ill., where he obtained a common-school education, at the completion of which he en- gaged in the dairy business at Danforth, Ill. In 1894 he removed to Buckley, Ill., continuing in the same business. There he remained until 1899, when he removed to Stewart, Iowa, to engage in the grain trade on an extensive scale. He came to Mahomet, Champaign County, Ill., in 1903, and has since conducted the business formerly owned by J: V. Black. He is the pro- prietor of a large elevator, the capacity of which is 85,000 bushels, and is also a dealer in coal.

Mr. Wykle was married in 1887, to Miss Alice Stafford, a native of England, who lived in Peoria, Ill., at the time of her marriage. Five children have been born to them, as follows: Ethel; Bertha; Jennie, deceased; Wilber, and Stewart.

ALONZO ALLEN RICHARDS.

Alonzo Allen Richards, farmer, Ogden Town- ship, Champaign County, Ill., was born in the township where he now resides, October 20, 1850, the son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Pat- terson) Richards, who were early settlers on Salt Fork. On March 6, 1877, he was married to Miss Parmelia Jane Frederick, daughter of Eugene P. and Mary (Parris) Frederick, and to them five children have been born: Sarah Elizabeth, born March 1, 1878, married, Sep- tember 18, 1893, to William F. Miller, a farmer of Homer Township, and they have two chil- dren-Leon Guy and Charles Allen; Eugene Allen Albert, born July 31, 1881 resides with

his parents on the homestead; Asa Walker, born February 11, 1884, married, October 27, 1903, Pearle Grace Thompson, daughter of Oliver ^nd Rebecca (Black) Thompson, of Vermilion County, and they have one daughter, Ora Lavon, born October 28, 1904; James Les- ter, born May 7, 1887; Clarence Flenard, born June 17, 1890. Mr. Richards is a member of the Christian Church, and politically is inde- pendent, always casting his vote for whom he considers "the best man." He is identified with the Modern Woodmen of America, belong- ing to the Fraternal Army of Homer and the Woodman Lodge of Ogden.

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA

977.366B31H C003 HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS AND 2

3 0112 024746734

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Historical encyclopedia of Illinois, Volume II, Part 100

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Cunningham, Joseph O. (Joseph Oscar), 1830-1917 Publication date: 1905 Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 632

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Cunningham, Joseph O. (Joseph Oscar), 1830-1917
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 632