USA > Illinois > Warren County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois and history of Warren County, Volume II > Part 77
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early as 1810 he came to Illinois. He was stationed at
Rock Island and
at Davenport, Iowa, where became acquainted with Black
farmed Hawk. After the war he traded with the Indians. Addison S. Smith and was reared in Pike County, Ill., and in 1849 . came to Ellison Township, Warren County. In 1856 he removed to Point Pleasant township, where he bought a farm which he improved and to which he added by subsequent land pur- chases until at one time he owned a section of land. He is a Democrat, and has been Town Clerk, Assessor and Justice of the Peace, was Supervisor eleven years, and has filled the office of Treasurer of the School Board for thirty- six years. He has been twice married, first to Lucinda C. Meacham, daughter of Andrew Meacham, of Ellison Township, by whom he had three children:
Hiram Duboski Smith; Eva Smith, who married John W. Watson; and Sidney D., who lives with his father on the old homestead. His present wife, whom he mar- ried at Macomb, Ill., June 30, 1897, was Grace-
.
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HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
Veech, daughter of John B. and Cynthia (Saun- ders) Veech, natives of Kentucky, who came to Illinois in 1861, and became farmers in Hender- son County, and who, since their retirement from active life, have lived with Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
STICE, FREEMAN SUNDERLAND; farmer and stockraiser, Point Pleasant Township, (postoffice Swan Creek) ; is a son of a pioneer in his part of Illinois, the owner of an excep- tionally good farm and is a successful farmer and stockraiser. He was born in Point Pleas- ant Township, October 28, 1871, a son of George Washington and Phoebe (King) Stice, who were born, the one in Madison county, Ill., July 8, 1832, the other in McDonough County. An- drew Stice, his great-grandfather, was born in Germany. Charles Stice, his grandfather, born in North Carolina, February 11, 1795, married Patsey Whitley, born in 1800. His grandparents in the maternal line were R. T. and Martha (Holden) King, natives respectively of Wash- ington County, Tenn., and Hamilton County, Ohio. Freeman S. Stice was educated at the Western Normal School at Bushnell, Ill. He married at Keokuk, Iowa, March 25, 1899, Cor- delia Vaughn and they have a son, Clarence Freeman, born September 22, 1900. Mrs. Stice was born in Greenbush Township, April 7, 1880, a daughter of Thomas and Zanna (Bond) Vaughn, natives of Illinois, the last mentioned of whom died when Mrs. Stice was a mere child. After his marriage Mr. Stice gave his at- tention to farming and to improving his fine farm of 330 acres in Section 26, Point Pleas- ant Township, whither he removed from Swan Township. His residence is one the
largest, most attractive and hospitable in the township. Politically he is a Democrat and as such takes an intelligent interest in local af- fairs as well as in questions of national scope. Charles Stice, grandfather of Freeman S. Stice, settled in Illinois in 1814, and was a ranger in the Black Hawk War. He located in Green- bush Township in 1832 and later removed to Swan Township, and bought a farm in Sec- tion 20, on which he lived out his days. George W. Stice, father of the subject of this sketch, came to Point Pleasant Township in 1854, and was one of its organizers. His first land pur- chase there was of 160 acres in Section 26. He was a prosperous farmer and stockraiser and came to own 1310 acres of land. He was influ-
ential in the township, was several times elect- ed Town Clerk, and long filled tne office of Su- pervisor. He died June 30, 1899, and his widow is living in Monmouth. They had two sons and a daughter who are still living: Freeman S., George F. and Sylvia Ann. George F. is be- coming widely known as a horseman. Three children are deceased: Charles, Harry H. and Edith.
TORRANCE, CHARLES; farmer, Point Pleasant Township, (postoffice Swan Creek) is one of the large land owners of Warren County and has been prominently identined with agri- cultural progress in that section of the State. He was born in the town of Jay, Sussex County, N. Y., the son of Riley and Lydia (Foulton) Torrance, the former born at Bennington, Vt., May 13, 1801, and the latter at Plattsburg, N. Y., February 5, 1804. His grandparents in the paternal line were John and Ruth (Hurd) Torrance, who removed from Bennington, Vt., to Essex County, N. Y., in 1808, and were among the earliest white settlers in that local- ity. He purchased a large tract of timber land upon which he opened up a farm, and which continued to be his home for the remainder of his life. He was a soldier of the War of 1812. He and his wife had nine children, of whom eight lived to maturity and became heads of families. Riley Torrance grew up on his fath- er's farm and married Lydia Foulton who, as already explained, was a native of Platts- burg, N. Y., which was the scene of one of the most stirring events of the War of 1812. It is said that her mother was the only woman who refused to leave her home in Plattsburg during the battle, for the reason that her ser- vices might be needed to care for the wounded. Riley Torrance and his wife remained on the old homestead in New York until 1865, when they removed to Warren County, Ill., making their home for the rest of their lives with their son Charles, who had preceded them to that lo- cality-the mother dying October 27, 1873, and the father May 28, 1874. They were the par- ents of sixteen children, thirteen of whom reached years of maturity. Charles Torrance, the immediate subject of this sketch, attended the public schools during the winter and as- sisted his father upon the farm in summer, un- til 1858, when he came to Warren County and obtained employment as a farm-hand. During the following spring (1859) he set out with
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HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
others for Pike's Peak, making the journey across the plains with ox-teams, but being dis- appointed in their hopes of finding rich de- posits of the precious metals, returned the following fall and soon after resumed the life of farmer. Renting land in Henderson County, he remained there until 1868, when he came to Point Pleasant Township, Warren County, where he purchased land on section 17, and established his permanent home. By subse- quent purchases he has added largely to his holdings until he is now the proprietor of 1600 acres, nearly all of which is in a high state of improvement. In addition to his business as a general farmer, he has added that of a buyer and shipper of stock, in which he has been eminently successful. On May 18, 1871, Mr. Torrance was married in Swan township, War- ren County, to Margaret Hindman, born in Green County, Indiana, January 19, 1844, the daughter of Joshua and Lucinda (Hugen) Hind- man, natives of South Carolina, who settled in Swan Township in 1857. Mr. Hindman was a farmer and he and his wife died in their Warren County home. Mr. and Mrs. Torrance have had five children: Bertha A., Carrie S., Laura, Hallie B., and one who died in infancy. Mrs. Torrance died November 13, 1895. In Decem- ber, 1898, Mr. Torrance visited the Island of Cuba and was in the city of Havana when the Spanish flag was hauled down and the Amer- can flag raised in its stead. The trip was made by way of St. Louis and Tampa, Fla., and he was absent from home forty days. On April 23, 1900, he was united in marriage to Madie F. Watson, daughter of B. F. and . E. (Hawk) Watson, of Manchester, Adams County, Ohio, and they have one son, Charles Torrance, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Torrance are members of the Bap- tist church. Mrs. Torrance's father, Mr. B. F. Watson, died March 20, 1888. Mr. Torrance is an extensive land-owner, besides his beautiful home in Warren County, known as "The Maples," being the owner of real estate in Mis- souri, Ohio and Texas. Politically he is a stanch Republican and has served the people of his township as Commissioner of Highways several years, and has been one of the chief promoters of telephone lines in his vicinity, owning the line between his home and Rose- ville.
WOLF, WILLIAM T .; farmer; Point Pleas- ant Township (postoffice Swan Creek); began the active battle of life when yet a mere boy
and worked by the month for farmers until he was able to buy his present farm of 160 acres in Section 29, where he has achieved a notewor- thy success in raising stock and producing gen- eral crops. He was born in Canton, Ill., April 2, 1868, a son of David H. and Margaret (Or- pen) Wolf. His father, who was a native of Johnstown, Penn., was a son of David H. Wolf, Sr., who was also of Pennsylvania birth. Wil- liam and Hannah Piper, the parents of his mother, were Irish, and he was born in Maine, she in Ireland. Davd H. and Margaret (Orpen) Wolf brought their family to Fulton County, Ill. in 1854, and Mr. Wolf, who was a carpenter, worked at his trade at Canton until September, 1864, and afterward in Iowa until he was dis- abled by paralysis. Mrs. Wolf died September 6, 1880. William T. Wolf is a helpful brother of the United Brethren church and, as a Re- publican, has long been active in local affairs and for nine years has held the office of Treas- urer of the School Board. He married, in El- lison Township, November 2, 1882, Flora Roff, who was born there May 3, 1859, a daughter of John H. and Nancy Ellen Roff. Mr. Roff was born in 1833, his wife July 9, 1836. They were married in 1853 and immediately after- ward settled in Ellison Township, where they still live. Mr. Roff was a native of Delaware, Mrs. Roff of Ross County, Ohio. The former went, when young, to Ohio, thence to Indiana, and thence, in 1850, to Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Wolf have children named Alda G. (Mrs. Dent Bible), Nina L., Cora H., Raymond, Artie, Ethel A. and Wilda.
CHAPTER XLIX.
ROSEVILLE TOWNSHIP.
(Township 9 North, Range 2 West. )
Hat Grove was the first name of this town- ship, given by the committee named by the County Court on the first attempt at township organization in the county. The name was given because of a grove of timber which stood about one mile northeast of the present town
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HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
of Roseville, and had the appearance of a man's hat as it came into view on the horizon. The grove was called Hat Grove in the early days, and was originally the stopping place in that locality. Upon the permanent organization of the township in 1854 it was given the name of Roseville. The township is second from the south in the middle row of townships in War- ren County. It is watered by Cedar creek, and the north and south branches of Nigger Creek, which meander in an easterly direction through the township. There is considerable timber along the streams, especially in the eastern part, where the land is quite broken. Broad rolling prairies, however, predominate in the township, and the farmers are thrifty and many of them wealthy. The land is well adapt- ed to both farming and stock-raising. The St. Louis division of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad passes through the western portion of the township, about one mile from the west line, deflecting a little westward as it nears the south line. Roseville is the only town in the township.
The election for the organization of the township was held at Union Church, in the northeast part of the township, April 4, 1854. Truman Eldridg was moderator and John C. Franklin clerk of the town meeting. The offi- cers chosen were: Supervisor, William John- son; town clerk, Samuel Cole; assessor, W. B. Smith; collector, Elijah Hannon; highway commissioners, James W. Ray, S. T. Hadley, Reuben Holeman; justices of the peace, John Riggs, Isaac L. Pratt; constables, Thomas H. Riggs, G. W. Kirby; overseer of the poor, Ste- phen Dilley. The present officers are: Super- visor, Frank S. Rayburn; town clerk, Orville Hamilton; assessor, George F. Meacham; col- lector, James W. Blue; highway commissioners, John B. Fernald, Seth Atkisson, Alpheus Lewis, Jr .; justice of the peace, F. B. Davis. Those who have held the office of supervisor in this township to the present time are: William Johnson, 1854; John Riggs, 1855; James Bar- rett, 1856-57; D. C. Riggs, 1858; John Riggs, 1859; D. C. Riggs, 1860; John Riggs, 1861; D. C. Riggs, 1862; John Riggs, 1863; Thompson Brooks, 1864; D. M. Taliaferro, 1865-69; S. M. Eldred, 1870; D. M. Taliaferro, 1871; William Dilley, 1872-73; Alpheus Lewis, 1874; T. J. Morris, 1875; Alpheus Lewis, 1876-80; T. A. Dilley, 1881-83; R. L. McReynolds, 1884; H. T. Lape, 1885-87; Clement Pierce, 1888; J. W.
Coghill, 1889-90; Alpheus Lewis, 1891-94; W. T. Gossett, 1895-96; S. W. Taliaferro, 1897-1900; Frank S. Rayburn, 1901-03.
Sheldon Lockwood is believed to have been the first resident of Roseville Township, al- though he did not remain very long. He pre- empted a claim on the northwest quarter of Section 1 in 1828 or 1829, residing there a short time, then selling and removing to Lenox Township. Shortly afterward James and John Armstrong settled temporarily on Section 1, moving to Berwick Township after selling out to Thomas Pearce, who came from Ohio in 1831. Mr. Pearce was the father of a large family, including Mrs. Mary E. Haney and Mrs. Sarah T. Whitenack, who are yet living in Mon- mouth. He died in August, 1853. John Smith came from Kentucky in the winter of 1831-32, taking a claim on Section 11. He died in 1837, and his widow married William Gunter, who had come to the county in 1834 and settled in Swan Township. Mr. and Mrs. Gunter re- sided on the home place on Section 11 until their death. Caleb Hedges also came in the early '30's, and made his home on Section 11. He was a soldier of the war of 1812, and had served under Jackson at New Orleans. He died in July, 1836, and his widow married a man named Owen, who lived near Oquawka. John Long, father of John T. Long, came from Ten- nessee in 1833 and located on Section 1, where the son now lives. He also was a veteran of Andrew Jackson's campaign at New Orleans. John Murphy, from Kentucky, also came in 1833, buying from Richard H. Ragland a part of Section 2. He was the father of a family of seventeen. He died on Section 2. Otha and William Carr came from Indiana in 1835, and made their homes on Section 13, Otha dying there in 1883 and William in 1879. Garland Ray came the same year from Kentucky, spend- ing a year on Section 2, then removing to Lenox Township. John Riggs, after a brief residence in Floyd and one season in Lenox, settled on Section 2. John Hanan was also an early settler on Section 1, selling to Robert Bay and leaving the township during the '30's. Frank George, a stepson of Thomas Pearce, was also an early settler in the township. Tru- man Eldridg, a native of Massachusetts, came from that State in 1836 and took a claim where the village of Roseville now stands. After three months he went back to Massachusetts, return- ing again to his claim and building his home
980
HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
on it in 1839. The old house built at that time still stands, but not now occupied, while Mr. Eldridg is spending his declining days in a large and pleasant home adjoining. He was the first postmaster at "Hat Grove." Solomon Sovereign came about the same time, settling about a mile south of Mr. Eldridg's. N. A. Eldridge settled later a little to the west. Wil- liam Hiett and his brother-in-law, Thompson Brooks, came in 1836, also from Kentucky, and the Lofftus family came in 1837. Also in the latter year, after a short stay in Monmouth, came Porter Phelps, whose sons, Samuel and Dewitt, are living in Monmouth, and another son, Delos W., is a practicing attorney in Chi- cago. The Phelps family moved soon into Len- ox Township. Francis Staat, a German, and father of Henry Staat, of Greenbush, came also in 1837, settling for a year in this township, then moving over into Greenbush. Other set- tlers of the early days were Joel McKee, Wil- liam Dilley, Alanson Bostwick, Julius Lath- rop and William Talley. Most of the early set- tlers in the northeast part of the township, that part first settled, were from Kentucky, and for that reason the settlement was known as "Old Kentuck."
The Cedar Creek Baptist church was organ- ized in 1833 in a tent on the land of John Smith on Section 11, now a part of John Long's farm, with John and Ursula Smith, Shedon and Parthenia Lockwood, and John and Eliza- beth Hanan as charter members. Mr. Smith was clerk. This church afterward became the Berwick Baptist church. Members of the Ber- wick church organized the Union Baptist church July 10, 1841, Rev. John Murphy acting as moderator of the meeting and Thomas Brooks as clerk. The church started with twenty constituent members, viz: Thomas Brooks, Elizabeth Brooks, Asenath Brooks, John Murphy, Rosanna Murphy, Ursula Smith, Elizabeth Smith, Jane Smith, Julany Shirley, Wilson Gunter, Jane Gunter, Melvina Gunter, W. L. Brooks, Ann Brooks, David Smith, An- drew Smith, Nancy Fields, Harriet Ray, Eliza- beth Robb, and Wm. Hiett. A series of meet- ings was held in John Murphy's barn in May, 1842, by Elders Wilbur and Murphy. In 1844 a house of worship 24 by 30 feet in size was built on an acre of land offered by John Mur- phy on the southwest corner of the tract on which he lived, a short distance north of the present church, which stands a little south of
the center of Section 2. January 1, 1855, it was decided to build a new house, and the one now in use was the result. It is 40 by 60 feet in size, and cost about $1,900. The pastors have been: John Murphy, John G. Ward, John Jones, J. L. Trower, Wm. Whitehead, H. H. Parks, W. R. Welsh, S. Pickard, J. F. Foley, . V. B. Ingram, J. E. Alward, W. W. Morgan. The present membership is 98.
Coal is mined at different places in the township. Just at the east edge of the village of Roseville quite extensive mining opera- tions are carried on by John Willard, who fur- nishes much of the supply of coal used in the village.
The first school in the township was taught by Miss Jane Allen in a little wagon and work shop on John Smith's place in the northeast corner of the township, in the winter of 1835. Miss Allen was afterwards the wife of Judge Ivory Quinby of Monmouth. The second school was about a mile south of the old Hat Grove. The latest reports on file in the office of the County Superintendent show nine school dis- tricts in the township, with one brick and nine frame school buildings. Three male teachers are paid salaries of $65 a month each, and fif- teen female teachers receive $25 to $45. There are 208 males of school age, of whom 205 are enrolled in the schools, and 327 females of school age, of whom 217 are enrolled. There are two school libraries, with 28 volumes, valued at $14. The tax levy for schools is $5,050; the value of school property, $17,710; and the value of apparatus, $350.
The assessment list for 1901 shows that there were then in the township 615 horses, 2,246 cattle, 26 mules and asses, 167 sheep, and 2,160 hogs. The total value of personal property was $402,515, and the assessed valuation was $83,- 295. The assessed valuation of lands in the township was $264,290, and of lots $50,835.
The population of the township in 1900, in- cluding Roseville village, was 1,664, against 1,475 in 1890, a gain of 189.
ROSEVILLE.
This is the only town in the township, and was laid out May 25, 1870, though there had been a little settlement there before that time. The site was the southwest corner of the north-
981
HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
west quarter and the east side of the south- west quarter of Section 30, and the owners of the property were Truman Eldridg, E. P. Emans, Benjamin Morford, and others. John A. Gordon made the surveys, laying out nine blocks.
In 1875 the village had .a population of a lit- tle more than 500, and on petition to the coun- ty court, an election to vote on the question of incorporating as a village was ordered for May 8, and the proposition carried by a vote of 73 to 43. May 30, 1873, the same proposition had been defeated, 44 yeas and 47 nays. The first election of officers was held in Dr. Ragan's office, with R. L. McReynolds, R. B. Ostrander and Truman Eldridg as judges. The trustees chosen were J. C. Turnbull, Ezra P. Emans, John A. Gordon, James S. Reed and J. T. Loth- rop. In organizing the board elected Ezra P. Emans president, Benjamin Ostrander clerk, and R. L. McReynolds treasurer. The present officers are: Frank S. Rayburn, president; Eugene Jared, clerk; A. M. Horrell, treasurer; M. G. Rambo, marshal and street commis- sioner; Will H. Taylor, chief of fire depart- ment; and George W. Rayburn, J. L. Daven- port, Robert Gray, W. H. Carr, S. H. White- nack, A. M. Griffin, trustees.
The exact date of the establishment of the Roseville postoffice has been lost, but it is be- lieved 10 have been in 1842. The earliest rec- ords now to be found are for 1843. The office was first known as Hat Grove, and Truman Eldridg was postmaster. He kept his office at his residence just south of the grove which gave the name to the postoffice, and the old building still stands across the street from Mr. Eldridg's fine home. The change of name to Roseville was made in August, 1852, and was because there was another office in the state named Hart Grove, and the mail for the two offices often got mixed. At Mr. Eldridg's sug- gestion the name Roseville was given in honor of Major Rose, a friend of his who lived in Henderson County, in the Shokokon neighbor- hood, and in whose cabin at Swan Creek Mr. Eldridg had spent his first winter in Warren County. Mr. Eldridg gave up the office at the time the name was changed, and secured the appointment of Benjamin C. Morford as his successor. Mr. Morford lived a little south of Mr. Eldridg, and kept the office at his residence until 1861, when he was succeeded by E. P. Emans, who was conducting a store where the
Syndicate block now stands. Amos Pierce fol- lowed him in 1866; W. T. Gossett was appoint- ed in 1871, serving until November, 1855; W. H. Buckley took charge in 1855, C. A. Hub- bard in 1889, S. W. Taliaferro in 1893, W. T. Gossett again in 1897, and J. W. Prouty, the present postmaster, in 1902. The office is a presidential one.
The first store was opened by John Adams in 1856 in a room on the southwest corner of the square, where Pierce's brick building now stands. He sold to N. W. Baker, and he to Dally & Arter, who were succeeded by E. P. Emans. A blacksmith shop was built in the neighborhood about 1843, while the first resi- dence within the present confines of the village was that of Mr. Eldridg, built in 1839. After the completion of the railroad in 1870, the first train entering Roseville July 4 of that year, the most of the town of New Lancaster, in El- lison Township, was moved to Roseville, and from that time on the place has had a steady growth. From being the "corners," it rose to a town with its attendant privileges. The popu- lation in 1900 was 1,014.
The village owns its own water works, with a standpipe, pumping apparatus, and several blocks of street mains. The plant was erected in 1894 at a cost of about $6,000. In the spring of 1902 a bond issue of $2,000 was authorized for the purpose of digging a deep well for a water supply for the village. The pumping is done by the Electric Light and Heating Co., and beside twenty fire hydrants, water is furn- ished to seventy consumers.
The Roseville Fire department was organ- ized in the spring of 1895, largely through the efforts of Will H. Taylor, editor of The Times, who was chosen chief and served in that capac- ity for several years. B. Gilbert was assistant chief, and F. S. Rayburn secretary. Three com- panies made up the department, an engine com- pany, a hook and ladder company, and a hose company. The department has a good supply of hose, good apparatus, and the chemical en- gine has a capacity of 250 gallons. The pres- ent officers are: Will H. Taylor, chief; W. A. Carr, assistant chief; M. G. Rambo, secretary and treasurer. The first hook and ladder com- pany was organized May 27, 1876, with nine- teen members and E. P. Gilbert as foreman. The hook and ladder wagon was bought in April of the next year.
The electric lighting system is owned by the
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HISTORY OF WARREN COUNTY.
Roseville Electric Light Compnay, which was established in 1896. The plant is a good one and is well patronized. The company also furnishes heat for several of the business houses, using the exhaust steam from the works.
SCHOOLS.
The first school in the community was a small log school house about a mile south of the town. The next was east of town, and near it was a shop and a small store. The place was then called "Stringtown," and its people entertained hopes of its being a town some time. This lat- ter school was removed to the village in 1873, a two-story building having been erected where the opera house now stands. It accom- modated two hundred pupils, and employed three teachers. The district now has a large two-story brick school building with six rooms, erected in 1880. The school is thoroughly graded, has a high school, and is doing excel- lent work. The principal for 1902-03 is Pro- fessor Vincent Barker, and his corps of teach- ers are: Mrs. Rhoda A. Hope, Miss Josie An- derson, Miss Flora Wilson, Miss June Russell, Miss Gertrude Patch.
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