History of Bureau County, Illinois, Part 63

Author: Bradsby, Henry C., [from old catalog] ed
Publication date: 1885
Publisher: Chicago, World publishing company
Number of Pages: 776

USA > Illinois > Bureau County > History of Bureau County, Illinois > Part 63

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).

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HISTORY OF BUREAU COUNTY.

her husband with ability. Religiously she is connected with the Methodist Episcopal Church.

NATHANIEL BOYD, Concord. Charles S. Boyd was a merchant tailor in New York City till 1820, when he closed ont business and came to Illinois with his former partner in the tailoring business, John Dixon. They came most of the distance to the State with ox teams, and when they landed in Spring- field, Iil., Mr. Boyd erected the third cabin there. From 1820 till 1830 he resided at Springfield, and would work at his trade whenever he could during the summer, and would often get paid for his work in cattle, so during the fall he would drive the cattle to the lead mines around Galena, and sell them to the miners, and then stay and work at the mines during the winter, and would then again return to his home. However, in 1830, he came to Bureau County, Ill., and bought the claim of John Dixon at Boyd's Grove, and remained there till 1840, when he removed to Princeton. (More of his early settlement will be found in the General His- tory.) During the Black Hawk war he re- moved his wife and daughters to Ft. Clark, now Peoria, but he and two of his sons re- mained on the farm and made a crop of corn. Mr. Boyd was married in New York City to Eliza Dixon, a sister of John Dixon, and their three eldest sons were born before com- ing West, but their two daughters and young- est son were born in Springfield, Ill. The following are the names of the children: Charles, Alexander, Nathaniel, Elizabeth, John H. and Angelica. The residence of Charles is not known. Alexander, Nathaniel and Mrs. Angelica Paddock, widow of Dr. S. A. Paddock, reside in Bureau County. Eliz- abeth is the wife of Ebenezer Chamberlin, of Jameson, Daviess Co., Mo. John H. Boyd went to California with the early gold hunters, then to Australia, but for many years has been on the Island of Tahiti, one of the Society Islands, as a trader with the natives. Both Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. Boyd died in Princeton, Ill. Nathaniel Boyd was horn October 1, 1820, and came to this county with his parents in 1830, and with little ex- ception has resided here since, and most of his life has been engaged in farming. He

now owns in Concord Township a farm of 425 acres. He was married in this county March 12, 1845, to Mary A. Cummings, who was born February 20, 1827, and was the daughter of Thornton Cummings. (See sketch of William Cummings.) Mrs. Boyd died September 20, 1866. She was the mother of the following children; Frances, born January 13, 1847, wife of Charles Wetherell, of Bureau County; Roxanna, born September 2, 1848, wife of Harry Rawson, of Bayard, Iowa; John W. Boyd, born April 3. 1850, now of St. Louis, Mo .; Comma, born January 18, 1860, at home; Henry, born December 25, 1862, died June 13, 1882, and also three daughters, who died while small. In political matters Mr. Boyd is identified with the Republican party.

ALBERT W. BOYDEN, Sheffield,son of Dr. Wyatt and Elizabeth Woodbury Boyden, was born in Beverly, Mass., May 24, 1833. His father was a practicing physician of Beverly, and intended his son should be a farmer, con- sequently, when old enough, he was placed on a farm during the summer seasons, and was also employed in a bank for some time, and there was taught lessons which have been valuable to him in his business career. In September, 1853, Mr. Boyden came West, clerking a while in Chicago, and for the Stevens firm in Tiskilwa, and then settled on his farm north of Sheffield. Not being suited with farming, he removed to Sheffield in the fall of 1858, when for two years he was Deputy Sheriff of Bureau County under Sheriff David E. Norton. His name was then announced to the Bureau County Re- publican Convention as a candidate for the office of Sheriff, when, fortunately, he did not secure the nomination. After clerking three years for Scott & Porter he bought the interest of Mr. Porter, and the firm was changed to Scott & Boyden. In 1870 Mr. Boyden sold to Scott & Co., and engaged in business with Mr. H. C. Porter, and banking was added to their mercantile business. Mr. Porter died in October, 1875, and January 1, 1876, the firm was changed to Boyden & Dewey. (See sketch of B. F. Dewey. ) Since Mr. Porter's death Mr. Boyden has been Secretary and Treasurer of the Sheffield Min- ing Company. He is also engaged in mer-

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cantile, lumber and grain business in Min- eral (W. W. Dewey & Co.), and in mercantile business at Sioux Rapids, Iowa (F. D. White & Co.), and is pre-eminently one of the suc- cessful business men of Bureau County. In politics he is Republican, and an active mem- ber of the Congregational Church. In 1884 he was nominated by the Republican Conven- tion of the Twenty-fifth District one of the candidates for Representative to the State Legislature, and elected the November fol- lowing. Mr. Boyden married, April 2, 1856, Ellen R. Webb, (born in Skowbegan, Maine, April 18, 1837,) daughter of Joseph B. and Martha (Weston) Webb, who came to this county in 1851. They have the following children: George W. Boyden, born January 3, 1858, now a member of the firm of Boyden & Dewey, married in Rock Island, Ill., June 28, 1881, Ella Wiser, and they have Albert W. Boyden second; William C. Boyden, April 6, 1864, in Junior Class Harvard College; Mattie F. Boyden, July 21, 1866; Charles W. Boyden, July 31, 1872; Albert A. Boyden, April 10, 1875.

E. P. BOYDEN, Tiskilwa, who is the subject of the following biography, was born February 16, 1823, in Pelham, Hampshire Co., Mass. His father. Plyna Boyden, was born November 2, 1788, in South Walpole, Mass., near Boston. He was a shoe-maker and farmer by occupation, and died Septem- ber 25, 1866, in Henry County, Ill. The Boyden family is of English descent and are classed among the pioneers of New England. The mother of our subject, Clarissa Fales, was born July 6, 1793. She died June 5, 1861. She was a daughter of Joseph Fales, and was the mother of six children, viz .: Mrs. Adeline Marsh, deceased; Mrs. Clarissa Knowlton, widow of Dr. Perry Knowlton; Sanford Boyden, a resident of Massachusetts; Erastus P. Boyden, our subject; Lydia Boy- den, deceased, and Mrs Lydia A. Crosset. Our subject was educated in Massachusetts, but he is principally self-educated, having gained his fund of general knowledge in contact with the world. In early life he taught school in his native State, after which he followed various occupations. Owing to his popularity and efficiency he was elected to many town offices, and at one time had the

doubtful pleasure of filling nine distinct offices. During his last years in Massachu- setts he was extensively engaged in mercan- tile pursuits. In 1854 he removed to Tazewell County, Ill., where he resided five years and then removed to Geneseo, Ill. In 1860 he opened a general store in Atkinson, Ill. He also bought and sold grain, dealt in real estate, also engaged in farming and dealt extensively in broom corn. During this time he was elected Supervisor of his town- ship and filled that office with tact and abil- ity. In 1876 Mr. Boyden removed to Tiskilwa, where he bought the "Tiskilwa House," and where he now, in the capacity of landlord, dispenses entertainment and comfort to his fellowmen. Our subject has been married twice. His first wife, Mary R. Dunbar, was a native of Massachusetts. She died September 10, 1869. She was the mother of six children, viz .: John D., now a resident of Nebraska; Mrs. Clara E. Welsh, of Dakota; Mrs. Ella A. Crouch, deceased; Frank L., deceased; Charles D., a resident of Dakota, and Hattie M. Mr. Boyden was married a second time to Mrs. Marcia A. Penney (nee Valentine), a daughter of Edwin and Hannah (DeLong) Valentine, natives of Warren County, Penn., the former deceased. Mrs. Marcia A. Boyden has two children from a former marriage, viz .: Mrs. Ella P. Crossett and Norton T. Penney. Mr. and Mrs. Boyden are members of the Congrega- tional Church. He has ever been identified with the Republican Party, is a friend of prohibition, has taken a deep interest in local affairs and has been President of the Board of Trustees.

DR. SIMON PETER BREED, Wyanet. In the possession of William J. Breed, of Raynham, Mass., are records stating that A. D. 1100 a colony of Breeds emigrated from Germany to Sussex County, England, and there founded a town called Breed, which bears that name to the present day. From this colony of Breeds sprang Allyn Breed, of 1601, who came to America and settled in Lynn, Mass., in 1630, and became the sole progenitor of the Breed family in America. One of his great-grandsons, Ebenezer Breed, is noted for being the owner of Breed's Hill, where was fought the battle of Bunker Hill.

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Dr. S. P. Breed, the subject of this sketch, was born in Manlius, Onondaga Co., N. Y., February 1, 1819, and is the son of the late James Breed. In his possession are records by which he can trace his lineage back through his grandfather, Gershom Breed, of 1755; Allen Breed, of 1714, who settled in Stonington, Conn., and therefore called the Stonington branch of the family; thence through John Breed, of 1663, Allen Breed, of 1626, and Allyn Breed, of 1601, who settled in Lynn in 1630. Simon Peter Breed was taken by his parents to Cicero, Onondaga County, in 1820, and there on the farm he was reared till he was seventeen years of age, except one year when the family had returned to Manlius. When seventeen he removed with his parents to Hannibal, Oswego County, and there four years more of his life were spent upon the farm, in a saw- mill, at the carpenter's bench and in the school room. When nineteen years of age he began life's work for himself, having made an arrangement with his father for his time. In 1839 he went to Manlius, where he attended the old Manlius Academy for some time, and also taught three terms of school. May 11, 1843, he started from Oswego, N. Y., for the West, and landed June 11, at his uncle's near Vermont, Fulton Co., Ill., where his first business was teaching at $13 per month. He contin- ued teaching for three terms, and in 1844 began the study of medicine in Vermont. In the winter of 1846-47 he attended his first course of lectures at St. Louis, Mo., in the Medical Department of the Missouri State University. In the spring of 1847 he began the practice of medicine in Schuyler County, Ill., and there continued for eighteen years. However, in the winter of 1856-57 he went to Philadelphia, and attended the Medical Department and graduated from the Pennsyl- vania University. He then continned in his practice in Schuyler County, where he was widely known and eminently successful. In 1865 Dr. Breed removed to Princeton, and in the fall of the same year took part in organ- izing a district medical society, and was its first delegate to the State Medical Society, aud through a report read there was first introduced to the literary medical world, and

since that time has contributed many articles to medical journals, full of interest and value to the profession, but of which our limited space will allow no further mention, only to say that they were characterized by many of the leading physicians in this and other States as able and exhaustive. In a centen- nial address before the International Med- ical Congress at Philadelphia, in 1876, H. I. Bowditch, M. D., President of the Massachu- setts State Board of Health, speaks of Dr. Breed as one of his valuable correspondents. In the published transactions of the nine- teenth annual meeting of the Illinois State Medical Society are given a number of pages taken from his report on Practical Medicine. Not only has Dr. Breed been an able contrib- utor upon medicine, but his ready pen has not been slow to record his thoughts upon other topics, including those on temperance, a tour through Kansas in 1869, woman's crusade, etc., the mere mention of which will call them to the minds of many of the lead- ing citizens of the county. In early life the Doctor was an Abolitionist, and cast one of the two first votes in Vermont, Fulton County, for James G. Birney, the candidate of the Liberty party in 1844. He is now a stanch Republican, and in 1870 he wrote articles against many of the Republicans, who bolted the regular nominee for Congress, after sub- mitting their claim at the primary election. December 25, 1848, Dr. Breed was united in marriage to Miss Alzina S. Powers, of Mc- Donough County, Ill. She was born in Essex, Vt., in 1827, but came to McDonough County in 1833. Her father, Isaac Powers, was a farmer; she was educated in the district schools and at the female seminary of Jack- sonville, Ill. She is the mother of seven children, three of whom died before they were seven years of age. The living are: Lena May, a school teacher; Lizzie Rachel, wife of Charles E. Sisler, who resides near Lincoln, Neb .; Luella and Ralph at home. They were educated in the Princeton High School. In later years Dr. Breed has lived in quiet retirement on Center Grove farm. This farm of 200 acres lies in Wyanet Town - ship, and was settled in 1836 and when Dr. Breed purchased it in 1870 was very much run down, but he has added many valuable

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improvements to it, and has made it a model farm. Although not a member of any church, order or fraternity, he is opposed to none provided they bear the test of being a bene- fit to mankind. He has always been a friend to the poor and especially during the war, he not only assisted the families of the sol- diers by his services as a physician, but his purse was ever open to them, and many kindly words of sympathy did he write to those in the field.

MARTIN BRENNEMAN, Selby, was born in Lancaster County, Penn., March 12, 1819. His parents, Martin and Varunaca (Kendick) Brenneman, were both natives of Lancaster County, Penn., but their ancestors came to America among the first German immigrants to the New World, coming from Rhinelyran over 200 years ago, and of their descendants in the country the sixth generation is now living. When our subject was about eleven years old he removed with his parents to Wayne County, Ohio. His mother died in Stark County, Ohio. She was the mother of ten children, four of whom are living, viz .: Anna, widow of John L. Messenkop, of Gales- burg, Ill .; Mary, widow of M. Kaufman, of Rushville, Ill .; Martin, and Christian, a res- ident of Orrville, Wayne Co., Ohio. Our subject's father died in this county, lacking but a few days of being eighty-five years of age. His occupation was always that of farming, and he was considered one of the best in Lancaster County, Penn., and also in Wayne County, Ohio. At one time he was quite wealthy, but lost his property, through being security and bondsman. In 1853 our subject, who had heard of the land in Illi- nois, where there were no stumps or rocks, determined to see for himself, and finding it even better than he'had hoped for, he returned home, and in 1854 removed to Bureau County, and settled on his present farm in Section 6, Selby Township, where he has since resided. He has always been a farmer, and as was said of his father, he also has been one of the best. Although he began with little, he has accumulated considerable property through his industry. His farm contained 640 acres, but as he believes in helping his children while he is still living, he divided with them, and now owns but 240 acres. Mr.

Brenneman was married, in Stark County, Ohio, to Lydia Young; she died in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, leaving two children, viz. : Mary A., born July S, 1843, wife of James Lewis, of Jackson County, Kan .; Henry, born November 3, 1844, drowned in the Lit- tle Osage River, Bates County, Mo. Mr. Brenneman was married, in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, February 8, 1847, to Mary Garman, who was born December 25, 1822, in Frank- lin County, Penn. She is the mother of seven children, viz .: John, born July 16, 1848, of Clay County, Neb .; George, born February 22, 1850, of Selby Township; Amanda, born August 17, 1853, wife of Levi Shettle, of Clintou County, Iowa; Martin V., born April 27, 1855, of Clay County. Neb .; Maggie, born October 6, 1857, wife of L. H. Kaufman, of Clay County, Neb .; Hattie, born May 26, 1860, at home; Daniel, May 8, 1863. at home. In politics Mr. Benneman is a life-long Democrat. He is a member of the English Lutheran Church.

JOSEPH H. BRIGHAM, Dover. The Brigham family came to this country at a very early date in the history of America, having formerly resided on a tract of land called Brigham lying between Scotland and England, and at that time belonging to neither country, but now owned by England. From this family are descended all the Brig- hams now in America. They are of remark- able longevity ; ou one tombstone in the old burying-ground in New Hampshire is re- corded the age of one hundred and three years. Another family of seven children lived till their average age was eighty years, and one member yet survives. Such being the physical nature of the family they were well adapted to a pioneer life in a new coun- try. Joseph Brigham was born in Cheshire County. N. H., in 1774. He cleared a farm among the hills and timber of his native State and resided there till 1832, when he sold out and came to Illinois. He lived near Hennepin till the Indian trouble was over, and then in the spring of 1834 came to Bureau County, and settled on the farm now owned by James Hensel, in Dover Township, occupying a log-cabin built by his son Syl- vester Brigham. The family resided here until 1837, and then moved on to the present

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farm of Joseph H. Brigham, where Joseph Brigham died in 1846. He was married, in his native county in New Hampshire, in 1802, to Polly Fullum, also a native of Cheshire County. She died in 1861 at the age of eighty-three years. They were the parents of nine children; three died in youth. The following reached maturity: Sylvester, Lucy (widow of David Chase, of Dover), Polly (widow of Christopher Corss, who lives in Princeton), Nancy (wife of Thomas Mercer, died in Oregon), Eliza (wife of James Por- terfield, died in Dover), Joseph H. (lives in Dover Township.) Sylvester Brigham, when twenty two years old, left his native State in company with Warren Shirley. They crossed the lakes, and then traveled through Michi- gan. Indiana, Illinois, and into Iowa on foot. In 1829, while traveling through the country, be located his claim in Dover Township, Bureau County, where James Hensel now lives In the fall of the same year he returned to his native State, New Hampshire, traveling as before on foot. In 1830 he again came to Bureau County and settled, and remained here during the Black Hawk war, in which he was engaged. He resided in Bureau County until 1855, when he removed to Cordova, Ill .. and from there to Wilson County, Kan., in 1870, where he died Jan- mary, 1872, at the age of sixty-four years. He was twice married, first to Lucy Gunn in 1840, who died two years later. He was again married, in 1843. to Mary Bingham, in Fitzwilliam, N. H. She is still living, and is the mother of five sons and three daugh- ters. Joseplı H. Brigham was born January 31, 1823, in Fitzwilliam, N. H. He was but a boy when he came to this county with his parents, and has resided here ever since. His education was chiefly obtained in the log schoolhouse. His occupation has always been that of farming; he now owns the old homestead where his father settled. £

His farm contains 360 acres. February 29, 1848, he was married to Jane Elizabeth Mercer. She was born January 22, 1830, in Tusca- rawas County. Ohio, a daughter of Aaron Mercer, who came to this county in 1834. Mrs. Brigham died June 22, 1871, leaving seven children, viz .: Harriet, Sylvester, Sarah, Mary, Joseph, Eliza, John. Mr.

Brigham was married, January 1, 1873, to Carrie Dunbar, born April 21, 1841. She is the mother of two children-Curtis and Charles. Mr. Brigham has always been a Republican in politics. He and his wife are members of the Congregational Church of Dover.

E. H. BROOKS, Wyanet. The gentleman whose name heads this paragraph was born in Bucks County, Penn .. February 29, 1824. and is the son of William and Mary (Worth- ington) Brooks, both natives of Pennsylva- nia. The father was born October 3, 1793, and died June 9, 1880. The mother died August 8, 1850, at the age of fifty-two years. They were the parents of fifteen children, all of whom yet survive. Our subject remained in his native county till 1850, when he re- moved to Belmont County, Ohio, and the fol- lowing year to Bureau County, Ill., where he has since resided. His occupation in early life was that of a farmer, and he continued farming near Princeton for two years after coming to Bureau County, but when the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad was completed to Princeton he began dealing in grain. He continued in the grain business at Princeton till 1860, when he came to Wyanet, where for twenty years he continued in the same business; however, in 1880, he sold out and retired from active life. Po- litically he is identified with the principles of the Republican party, but not an active politician. Of the Brooks family one other member now resides in Bureau County, Mrs. Susan (Brooks) Trego. In the spring of 1865 she removed to Mercer County, Ill., where her husband, Cyrus Trego, died in De- cember, 1866, and in 1867 Mrs. Trego came to Wyanet, and has since resided in this county. She is the mother of two children. viz .: Edwin A., now of Cass County, Iowa, and Ella, wife of William A. Weaver, of Wyanet. The Trego family is one of the oldest families in Pennsylvania, as their an- cestor, Peter Trego, came to America with the Penn colony.

CAPT. ROBERT BRUTON, Bureau, was born near Dublin, Ireland, April 26, 1838. He came to the United States with his par- ents when about ten years old, and resided in Bergen, N. Y .. until 1857, when he came

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to Bureau County, Ill. He was reared on a farm and educated in the academy at Riga, Monroe County, N. Y. July 24, 1861, he enlisted in the service of his country in Com- pany I, Twelfth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Capt. F. B. Ferris, He passed through the successive ranks from private to Captain, and served in that capacity till his discharge at Louisville, Ky., July 10, 1865. At the bat- tle of Shiloh he was with Capt. Ferris when he received his fatal shot. At the battle of

Allatoona, Ga., Capt. Brnton was shot

through the shoulder, and was sent to Rome, Ga., but after thirty days received a fur- lough, and came home. As soon as he was able he joined his company in North Caro- lina, and was with them at the grand review at Washington, D. C. Capt. Bruton is the son of Michael Bruton, who had three sons and one daughter. All of the sons entered the service as privates. Christopher C. enlisted in the 100-day service in the Eighteenth New York Infantry, but was wounded and discharged. He afterward raised a company at Rome, N. Y., and later was commissioned Captain in the Twenty- second New York Cavalry. While in com- mand of a battalion he captured the head- quarters of Gen. Early, and had the honor of receiving the sword from him. He was after- ward placed on Gen. Custer's staff, and at the close of the war was on the staff of Gen. Sheridan. He died from disease contracted on the Rio Grande River, Texas. Patrick Bruton, another brother, was Sergeant in a New York regiment; he now resides near Grand Rapids, Mich. After his return from the war, Capt. Bruton engaged in farming in this county for five years on a farm rented from J. V. Thompson. He purchased a farm near Atchison, Kan., but a year later traded it for his present farm of about 200 acres in Bureau Township. He was married August 16, 1863, to Martha Matson, daughter of Peter Matsou, deceased (see sketch of Enos M. (Matson). Capt. and Mrs. Bruton have five children, viz .: Emma, born October 30, 1864; Maggie L., born October 24, 1869, died January 17, 1884; Joseph V., born De- cember 4, 1876; Leslie V., born August 31, 1880; Vida C., born June 4, 1883. In poli- tics Capt. Bruton is identified with the Re-

publican party. He is a member of the Wal- nut Lodge No. 722, A. F. & A. M.

THE BRYANT FAMILY. The progeni- tor of the Bryant family was Stephen Bryant, who immigrated from the west of England to America in 1643. He settled in Plymouth County, Mass., where his son, Stephen Bry- ant, Jr., was born February 2, 1657. The latter's son, Ichabod Bryant, was born July 5, 1699, in Plymouth. He was a farmer by occupation, and a man of great physical powers. He died of apoplexy, away from home, aged sixty years. His son, Philip Bry- ant, was born December. 1732, in Plymouth County, Mass. He was a physician, and died February 7, 1817, in North Bridgewater, Mass. He was married to Silence Howard, born 1738; she died June 1777. She was the mother of eight children, viz .: Oliver, who was a soldier in the Revolutionary war; Ruth, Daniel, Bazaliel, Peter, Cyrus, Mrs. Anna Kingman, and Mrs. Silence Bryant and Charity Bryant. Her grandfather, Ephraim Howard, was born in 1666. He died August 11, 1750, in Bridgewater, Mass. Her father, Abiel Howard, M. D., died January 10, 1777, in Massachusetts, aged seventy-three years. Her mother, Silence (Washburn) Howard, was born 1713; she died August 17, 1775. Peter Bryant, son of Philip and Silence (Howard) Bryant, was born August 12, 1767, in North Bridgewater, now called Brockton, Mass. Early in life he became imbued with a desire to fit himself for the medical profes- sion. He read medicine with his father, and also had a French surgeon named La Preliet as his preceptor for two years. For one year he was on board of one of Uncle Sam's men- of-war. After that he followed his profes- sion in Cummington, Mass., to which place he came in 1792, and where he died in 1820 of consumption. His professional career was one of activity and usefulness. He was the preceptor of forty pupils, and the author of many articles to medical journals. He was married to Sarah Snell, who was born De- cember 4, 1768, at North Bridgewater, Mass. She died in Princeton, May 6, 1847. Her parents, Ebenezer and Sarah (Packard) Snell, were also natives of North Bridgewater. The former was born October 1, 173S. He was a farmer by occupation, and removed to Cum-

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History of Bureau County, Illinois, Part 63

Author: Bradsby, Henry C., [from old catalog] ed Publication date: 1885 Publisher: Chicago, World publishing company Number of Pages: 776

Author: Bradsby, Henry C., [from old catalog] ed
Publication date: 1885
Publisher: Chicago, World publishing company
Number of Pages: 776