Historical encyclopedia of Illinois, Part 32

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Gale, W. Shelden
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1388

USA > Illinois > Knox County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32
USA > Illinois > Lake County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32
USA > Illinois > Mercer County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32
USA > Illinois > Kane County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32
USA > Illinois > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32
USA > Illinois > Coles County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32
USA > Illinois > Clark County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32
USA > Illinois > McDonough County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32
USA > Illinois > Schuyler County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 32

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).

EWING, William Lee Davidson, early lawyer and politician, was born in Kentucky in 1795, and came to Illinois at an early day, first settling at Shawneetown. As early as 1820 he appears from a letter of Governor Edwards to President Mon- roe, to have been holding some Federal appoint- ment, presumably that of Receiver of Public Moneys in the Land Office at Vandalia, as con- temporary history shows that, in 1822, he lost a deposit of $1,000 by the robbery of the bank there. He was also Brigadier-General of the State militia at an early day, Colonel of the "Spy Battalion" during the Black Hawk War, and, as Indian Agent, superintended the removal of the Sacs and Foxes west of the Mississippi. Other posi- tions held by him included Clerk of the House of Representatives two sessions (1826-27 and 1828-29) ; Representative from the counties composing the Vandalia District in the Seventh General Assem- bly (1830-31), when healso became Speaker of the House; Senator from the same District in the Eighth and Ninth General Assemblies, of which he was chosen President pro tempore. While serving in this capacity he became ex-officio Lieutenant-Governor in consequence of the resig- nation of Lieut .- Gov. Zadoc Casey to accept a seat in Congress, in March, 1833, and, in Novem- ber, 1834, assumed the Governorship as successor to Governor Reynolds, who had been elected to Congress to fill a vacancy. He served only fifteen days as Governor, when he gave place to Gov. Joseph Duncan, who had been elected in due course at the previous election. A year later (December, 1835) he was chosen United States Senator to succeed Elias Kent Kane, who had died in office. Failing of a re-election to the Senatorship in 1837, he was returned to the House of Representatives from his old district in 1838, as he was again in 1840, at each session being chosen Speaker over Abraham Lincoln, who was the Whig candidate. Dropping out of the Legis- lature at the close of his term, we find him at the beginning of the next session (December, 1842) in his old place as Clerk of the House, but, before the close of the session (in March, 1843), appointed Auditor of Public Accounts as successor to James Shields, who had resigned. While occupying the office of Auditor, Mr. Ewing died, March 25, 1846. His public career was as unique as it was remark- able, in the number and character of the official positions held by him within a period of twenty- five years.

EXECUTIVE OFFICERS. (See State officers under heads of "Governor," "Lieutenant-Gov- ernor," etc.)

161

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

EYE AND EAR INFIRMARY, ILLINOIS CHARITABLE. This institution is an outgrowth of a private charity founded at Chicago, in 1858, hy Dr. Edward L. Holmes, a distinguished Chi- cago oculist. In 1871 the property of the institu- tion was transferred to and accepted by the State, the title was changed by the substitution of the word "Illinois" for "Chicago," and the Infirmary became a State institution. The fire of 1871 destroyed the building, and, in 1873-74, the State erected another of brick, four stories in height, at the corner of West Adams and Peoria Streets, Chicago. The institution receives patients from all the counties of the State, the same receiving board, lodging, and medical aid, and (when neces- sary) surgical treatment, free of charge. The number of patients on Dec. 1, 1897, was 160. In 1877 a free eye and ear dispensary was opened under legislative authority, which is under charge of some eminent Chicago specialists.

FAIRBURY, an important town of Livingston County, situated ten miles southeast of Pontiac, in a fertile and thickly settled region. Coal, sandstone, limestone, fire-clay and a micaceous quartz are found in the neighborhood. The town has banks, grain elevators, flouring mills and two weekly newspapers. Population (1880), 2,140; (1890), 2,324.

FAIRFIELD, an incorporated town, the county-seat of Wayne County and a railway junction, 108 miles southeast of St. Louis. It is the seat of Hayward Collegiate Institute; has an extensive woolen factory and large flouring and saw mills. It has three weekly papers and is an important fruit and grain-shipping point. Popu- lation (1880), 1,391; (1890), 1,881.

FAIRMOUNT, a town of Vermilion County, on the Wahash Railway, 13 miles west-southwest from Danville. The town has a brick and tile factory, although the industrial interests are chiefly agricultural. One weekly paper is pub- lished here. Population (1880), 503; (1890), 649.

FALLOWS, (Rt. Rev.) Samuel, Bishop of Re- formed Protestant Episcopal Church, was born at Pendleton, near Manchester, England, Dec. 13, 1835; removed with his parents to Wisconsin in 1848, and graduated from the State University there in 1859, during a part of his university course serving as pastor of a Methodist Episcopal church at Madison; was next Vice-President of Gainesville University till 1861, when he was ordained to the Methodist ministry and became pastor of a church at Oshkosh. The following year he was appointed Chaplain of the Thirty-

second Wisconsin Volunteers, but later assisted in organizing the Fortieth Wisconsin, of which he became Colonel, in 1863 being brevetted Briga- dier-General. On his return to civil life he became a pastor in Milwaukee; was appointed State Superintendent of Public Instruction for Wisconsin to fill a vacancy, in 1871, and was twice re-elected. In 1874 he was elected President of the Illinois Wesleyan University at Bloomington, Ill., remaining two years; in 1875 united with the Reformed Episcopal Church, soon after became Rector of St. Paul's Church in Chicago, and was elected a Bishop in 1876, also assuming the editorship of "The Appeal." the organ of the church. He served as Regent of the University of Wisconsin (1864-74), and for several years lias heen one of the Trustees of the Illinois State Reform School at Pontiac. He is the author of two or three volumes, one of them being a "Sup- plementary Dictionary," published in 1884. Bishop Fallows has had supervision of Reformed Episcopal Church work in the West and North- west for several years; has also served as Chaplain of the Grand Army of the Republic for the Department of Illinois and of the Loyal Legion, and was Chairman of the General Committee of the Educational Congress during the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893.

FARINA, a town of Fayette County, on the Chicago Division of the Illinois Central Railroad, 19 miles northeast of Centralia. Agriculture and fruit-growing constitute the chief business of the section; the town has two newspapers. Popula- tion (1880), 318; (1890), 618.

FARMER CITY, a city of De Witt County, 25 miles southeast of Bloomington, at the junction of the Springfield division of the Illinois Central and the Peoria division of the Cleveland, Cincin- nati, Chicago & St. Louis Railways. It is a trading center for a rich agricultural and stock- raising district, especially noted for rearing finely bred horses. The city has hanks, two news- papers, churches of four denominations and good schools, including a high school. Population (1880), 1,289; (1890), 1,367; (1899, estimated), 1,600.

FARMERS' INSTITUTE, an organization created hy an act, approved June 24, 1895, de- signed to encourage practical education among farmers, and to assist in developing the agricul- tural resources of the State. Its membership consists of three delegates from each county in the State, elected annually by the Farmers' Institute in such county. Its affairs are managed by a Board of Directors constituted as follows: The Superintendent of Public Instruction, the'

162

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

Professor of Agriculture in the University of Illi- nois, and the Presidents of the State Board of Agriculture, Dairymen's Association and Horti- cultural Society, ex-officio, with one member from each Congressional District, chosen by the dele- gates from the district at the annual meeting of the organization. Annual meetings (between Oct. 1 and March 1) are required to be held, which shall continue in session for not less than three days. The topics for discussion are the cultivation of crops, the care and breeding of domestic animals, dairy husbandry, horticulture, farm drainage, improvement of highways and general farm management. The reports of the annual meetings are printed by the State to the number of 10,000, one-half of the edition being placed at the disposal of the Institute. Suitable quarters for the officers of the organization are provided in the State capitol.

FARMINGTON, a town and railroad center in Fulton County, 12 miles north of Canton and 22 miles west of Peoria. Coal is extensively mined here; there are also brick and tile factories, a foundry, two steam flour-mills and a cigar manufactory. It is a large shipping point for grain and live-stock. The town has two banks and two newspapers, five churches and a graded school. Population (1880), 1,111; (1890), 1,375.

FARNSWORTH, Elon John, soldier, was born at Green Oak, Livingston County, Mich., in 1837. After completing a course in the public schools, he entered the University of Michigan, but left college at the end of his freshman year (1858) to serve in the Quartermaster's department of the army in the Utah expedition. At the expiration of his term of service he became a buffalo hunter and a carrier of mails between the haunts of civilization and the then newly-discovered mines at Pike's Peak. Returning to Illinois, he was commissioned (1861) Assistant Quartermaster of the Eighth Illinois Cavalry, of which his uncle was Colonel. (See Farnsworth, John Franklin.) He soon rose to a captaincy, distinguishing him- self in the battles of the Peninsula. In May, 1863, he was appointed aid-de-camp to General Pleasanton, and, on June 29, 1863, was made a Brigadier-General. Four days later he was killed, while gallantly leading a charge at Gettysburg.

FARNSWORTH, John Franklin, soldier and former Congressman, was born at Eaton, Canada East, March 27, 1820; removed to Michigan in 1834, and later to Illinois, settling in Kane County, where he practiced law for many years, making his home at St. Charles. He was elected to Congress in 1856, and re-elected in 1858. In

September of 1861, he was commissioned Colonel of the Eighth Illinois Cavalry Volunteers, and was brevetted Brigadier-General in November, 1862, but resigned, March 4, 1863, to take his seat in Congress to which he had been elected the November previous, by successive re-elections serving from 1863 to 1873. The latter years of his life were spent in Washington, where he died, July 14, 1897.

FARWELL, Charles Benjamin, merchant and United States Senator, was born at Painted Post, N. Y., July 1, 1823; removed to Illinois in 1838, and, for six years, was employed in surveying and farming. In 1844 he engaged in the real estate business and in banking, at Chicago. He was elected County Clerk in 1853, and re-elected in 1857. Later he entered into commerce, beconi- ing a partner with his brother, John Villiers, in the firm of J. V. Farwell & Co. He was a meill- ber of the State Board of Equalization in 1867; Chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Cook County in 1868; and National Bank Examiner in 1869. In 1870 he was elected to Congress as a Republican, was re-elected in 1872, but was defeated in 1874, after a contest for the seat which was carried into the House at Washington. Again, in 1880, he was returned to Congress, making three full terms in that body. He also served for several years as Chairman of the Republican State Central Committee. After the death of Gen. John A. Logan he was (1887) elected United States Senator, his term expiring March 3, 1891. Mr. Farwell has since devoted his attention to the immense mercantile busi- ness of J. V. Farwell & Co.

FARWELL, John Villiers, merchant, was born at Campbelltown, Steuben County, N. Y., July 29, 1825, the son of a farmer; received a common- school education and, in 1838, removed with his father's family to Ogle County. III. Here he attended Mount Morris Seminary for a time, but, in 1845, came to Chicago without capital and secured employment in the City Clerk's office, then became a book-keeper in the dry-goods establishment of Hamilton & White, and, still later, with Hamilton & Day. Having thus received his bent towards a mercantile career, he soon after entered the concern of Wadsworthi & Phelps as a clerk, at a salary of $600 a year, but was admitted to a partnership in 1850, the title of the firm becoming Cooley, Farwell & Co., in 1860. About this time Marshall Field and Levi Z. Leiter became associated with the concern and received their mercantile training under the supervision of Mr. Farwell. In 1865 the title of the firm

163

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

became J. V. Farwell & Co., but, in 1891, the firm was incorporated under the name of The J. V. Farwell Company, his brother, Charles B. Far- well, being a member. The subject of this sketelı has long been a prominent factor in religious circles, a leading spirit of the Young Men's Christian Association, and served as President of the Chicago Branch .of the United States Christian Commission during the Civil War. Politically he is a Republican and served as Presi- dential Elector at the time of President Lincoln's second election in 1864; also served by appoint- ment of President Grant, in 1869, on the Board of Indian Commissioners. He was a member of the syndicate which erected the Texas State Capitol, at Austin, in that State; has been, for a number of years, Vice-President and Treasurer of the J. V. Farwell Company, and President of the Colorado Consolidated Land and Water Company. He was also prominent in the organization of the Chicago Public Library, and a member of the Union League, the Chicago Historical Society and the Art Institute.

FARWELL, William Washington, jurist, was born at Morrisville, Madison County, N. Y., Jan. 5, 1817, of old Puritan ancestry ; graduated from Hamilton College in 1837, and was admitted to the bar at Rochester, N. Y., in 1841. In 1848 he removed to Chicago, but the following year went to California, returning to his birthplace in 1850. In 1854 hie again settled at Chicago and soon secured a prominent position at the bar. In 1871 he was elected Circuit Court Judge for Cook County, and, in 1873, re-elected for a term of six years. During this period he sat chiefly upon the chancery side of the court, and, for a time, presided as Chief Justice. At the close of his second term he was a candidate for re-election as a Republican, but was defeated with the re- mainder of the ticket. In 1880 he was chosen Professor of Equity Jurisprudence in the Union College of Law (now the Northwestern Univer- sity Law School), serving until June, 1893, wheu he resigned. Died, in Chicago, April 30, 1894.

FAYETTE COUNTY, situated about 60 miles south of the geographical center of the State; was organized in 1821, and named for the French General La Fayette. It has an area of 720 square miles; population (1890), 23,367. The soil is fer- tile and a rich vein of bituminous coal underlies the county. Agriculture, fruit-growing and mining are the chief industries. The old, historic "Cumberland Road," the trail for all west-bound emigrants, crossed the county at an early date. Perryville was the first county-seat, but this town

is now extinct. Vandalia, the present seat of county government (population, 2,144), stands upon a succession of hills upon the west bank of the Kaskaskia. From 1820 to 1839 it was the State Capital. Besides Vandalia the chief towns are Ramsey, noted for its railroad ties and tim- ber, and St. Elmo.

FEEBLE-MINDED CHILDREN, ASYLUM FOR. This institution, originally established as a sort of appendage to the Illinois Institution for the Deaf and Dumb, was started at Jacksonville. in 1865, as an "experimental school, for the instruction of idiots and feeble-minded children." Its success having been assured, the school was placed upon an independent basis in 1871, and, in 1875, a site at Lincoln, Logan County, covering forty acres, was donated, and the erection of buildings begun. The original plan provided for a center building, with wings and a rear exten- sion, to cost $124, 775. Besides a main or adminis- tration building, the institution embraces a school building and custodial hall, a hospital and industrial workshop, and, during the past year, a chapel has been added. It has control of 890 acres, of which 400 are leased for farming pur- poses, the rental going to the benefit of the insti- tution. The remainder is used for the purposes of the institution as farin land, gardens or pas- ture, about ninety acres being occupied by the institution buildings. The capacity of the insti- tution is about 700 inmates, with many applica- tions constantly on file for the admission of others for whom there is no room.

FEEHAN, Patrick A., D.D., Archbishop of the Roman Catholic archdiocese of Chicago, and Metropolitan of Illinois, was born at Tipperary. Ireland, in 1829, and educated at Maynootlı College. He emigrated to the United States in 1852, settling at St. Louis, and was at once appointed President of the Seminary of Caronde- let. Later he was made pastor of the Church of the Immaculate Conception at St. Louis, where he achieved marked distinction. In 1865 he was consecrated Bishop of Nashville, managing the affairs of the diocese with great ability. In 1880 Chicago was raised to an archiepiscopal see, with Suffragan Bishops at Alton and Peoria, and Bishop Feehan was consecrated its first Arch- bishop. His administration has been conserva- tive, yet efficient, and the archdiocese has greatly prospered under his rule.

FELL, Jesse W., lawyer and real-estate opera- tor, was born in Chester County, Pa., about 1808: started west on foot in 1828, and, after spending some years at Steubenville, Ohio, came to Dela-

164

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

van, Ill., in 1832, and the next year located at Bloomington, being the first lawyer in that new town. Later he hecame agent for school lands and the State Bank, but failed financially in 1837, and returned to practice; resided several years at Payson, Adams County, but returning to Bloomington in 1855, was instrumental in securing the location of the Chicago & Alton Railroad through that town, and was one of the founders of the towns of Clinton, Pontiac, Lex- ington and El Paso. He was an intimate personal and political friend of Abraham Lincoln, and it was to him Mr. Lincoln addressed his celebrated personal biography ; in the campaign of 1860 he served as Secretary of the Republican State Cen- tral Committee, and, in 1862, was appointed by Mr. Lincoln a Paymaster in the regular army, serving some two years. Mr. Fell was also a zeal- ous friend of the cause of industrial education, and bore an important part in securing the location of the State Normal University at Nor- mal, of which city he was the founder. Died, at Bloomington, Jan. 25, 1887.

FERGUS, Robert, early printer, was born in Glasgow, Scotland, August 4, 1815; learned the printer's trade in his native city, assisting in his youth in putting in type some of Walter Scott's productions and other works which now rank among English classics. In 1834 he came to America, finally locating in Chicago, where, with various partners, he pursued the business of a job printer continuously some fifty years- being the veteran printer of Chicago. He was killed by being run over by a railroad train at Evanston, July 23, 1897. The establishment of which he was so long the head is continued by his sons.

FERNWOOD, a village of Cook County, on the Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad, 12 miles south of Chicago. Population (1890), 818.

FERRY, Elisha Peyre, politician, horn in Monroe, Mich., August 9, 1825; was educated in his native town and admitted to the bar at Fort Wayne, Ind., in 1845; removed to Waukegan, Ill., the following year, served as Postmaster and, in 1856, was candidate on the Republican ticket for Presidential Elector; was elected Mayor of Waukegan in 1859, a member of the State Con- stitutional Convention of 1862, State Bank Com- missioner in 1861-63, Assistant Adjutant-General on the staff of Governor Yates during the war, and a delegate to the Republican National Con- vention of 1864. After the war he served as direct-tax Commissioner for Tennessee; in 1869 was appointed Surveyor-General of Washington

Territory and, in 1872 and '76, Territorial Gov- ernor. On the admission of Washington as a State, in 1889, he was elected the first Governor. Died, at Seattle, Wash., Oct. 14, 1895.

FEVRE RIVER, a small stream which rises in Southern Wisconsin and enters the Mississippi in Jo Daviess County, six miles below Galena, which stands upon its banks. It is navigable for steam- boats between Galena and its mouth. The name originally given to it by early French explorers was "Feve" (the French name for "Bean"), which has since been corrupted into its present form.

FICKLIN, Orlando B., lawyer and politician, was born in Kentucky, Dec. 16, 1808, and admitted to the bar at Mount Carmel, Wabash County, Ill., in March, 1830. In 1834 he was elected to the lower house of the Ninth General Assembly. After serving a term as State's Attorney for Wabash County, in 1837 he removed to Charleston, Coles County, where, in 1838, and again in '42, he was elected to the Legislature, as he was for the last time in 1878. He was four times elected to Congress, serving from 1843 to '49, and from 1851 to '53; was Presidential Elector in 1856, and candidate for the same position on the Democratic ticket for the State-at-large in 1884; was also a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions of 1856 and '60. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1862. Died, at Charleston, May 5, 1886.

FIELD, Alexander Pope, early legislator and Secretary of State, came to Illinois about the time of its admission into the Union, locating in Union County, which he represented in the Third, Fifth and Sixth General Assemblies. In the first of these he was a prominent factor in the ejection of Representative Hansen of Pike County and the seating of Shaw in his place, which enabled the advocates of slavery to secure the passage of a resolution submitting to the people the question of calling a State Constitutional Convention. In 1828 he was appointed Secretary of State by Governor Edwards, remaining in office under Governors Reynolds and Dun- can and through half the term of Governor Carlin, though the latter attempted to secure his removal in 1838 by the appointment of John A. McClernand - the courts, however, declaring against the latter. In November, 1840, the Governor's act was made effective by the confirmation, by the Senate, of Stephen A. Doug- las as Secretary in place of Field. Douglas held the office only to the following February, when he resigned to take a place on the Supreme

165

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

bench and Lyman Trumbull was appointed to succeed him. Field (who had become a Whig) was appointed by President Harrison, in 1841, Secretary of Wisconsin Territory, later removed to St. Louis and finally to New Orleans, where he was at the beginning of the late war. In Decem- ber, 1863, he presented himself as a member of the Thirty-eighth Congress for Louisiana, but was refused his seat, though claiming in an elo- quent speech to have been a loyal man. Died, in New Orleans, in 1877. Mr. Fiekl was a nephew of Judge Nathaniel Pope, for over thirty years on the bench of the United States District Court.

FIELD, Eugene, journalist, humorist and poet, was born in St. Louis, Mo., Sept. 2, 1850. Left an orphan at an early age, he was reared by a rela- tive at Amherst, Mass., and received a portion of his literary training at Monson and Williamstown in that State, completing his course at the State University of Missouri. After an extended tour through Europe in 1872-73, he began his journal- istic career at St. Louis, Mo., as a reporter on "The Evening Journal," later becoming its city editor. During the next ten years he was succes- sively connected with newspapers at St. Joseph, Mo., St. Louis, Kansas City, and at Denver, Colo., at the last named city being managing editor of "The Tribune." In 1883 he removed to Chicago, becoming a special writer for "The Chicago News," his particular department for several years being a pungent, witty column with the caption, "Sharps and Flats." He wrote con- siderable prose fiction and much poetry, among the latter being successful translations of several of Horace's Odes. As a poet, however, he was best known through his short poems relating to childhood and home, which strongly appealed to the popular heart. Died, in Chicago, deeply mourned by a large circle of admirers, Nov. 4, 1895.

FIELD, Marshall, merchant and capitalist, was born in Conway, Mass., in 1835, and grew up on a farm, receiving a common school and academic education. At the age of 17 he entered upon a mercantile career as clerk in a dry-goods store at Pittsfield, Mass., but, in 1856, came to Chicago and secured employment with Messrs. Cooley, Wadsworth & Co .; in 1860 was admitted into partnership, the firm becoming Cooley, Farwell & Co., and still later. Farwell, Field & Co. The last named firm was dissolved and that of Field, Palmer & Leiter organized in 1865. Mr. Palmer having retired in 1867. the firm was continued under the name of Field, Leiter & Co., until 1881, when Mr. Leiter retired, the concern being since

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

Historical encyclopedia of Illinois, Part 32

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Gale, W. Shelden Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1388

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Gale, W. Shelden
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1388