USA > Illinois > Greene County > History of Greene and Jersey Counties, Illinois : together with sketches of the towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military, and political history; portraits of prominent individuals, and biographies of representative men, History of Illinois > Part 24
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ville, and re-elected in 1872. In 1876, he was again elected to fill that office. HIe was elected to the 43d congress in 1872, and was re-nominated for the same position by the Roodhouse con- vention in 1874, but, for the sake of harmony, declined. In 1876 he was again re-nominated and elected. He departed this life June 24, 1879, a few minutes before six o'clock, A. M. Mr. Knapp was a Knight Templar, and was buried with Masonic honors The bar of the county passed resolu- tions of respect and condolence with the widow and relatives of the deceased.
In the 44th congress, which was first convened in March 1875, this district was duly represented by Scott Wike, of Pittsfield, Pike county, who served one term of two years.
Mr. Wike was succeeded in the 45th national assembly by Robert M. Knapp whom he had followed. This gentle- man served one term of two years at this time.
James W. Singleton, a resident of Quincy, was the accredited representa- tive of this district in the 46th congress, which was organized in March, 1879, and served two years, and was elected to the 47th congress, where he distin- guished himself greatly to the credit of himself and his friends.
By the apportionment act based upon the census of 1880, the state of Illinois was divided into twenty districts, and the counties of Cass, Brown, Adams, l'ike, Scott, Greene, Jersey and Calhoun were grouped together into the 12th dis- trict. In the fall of 1882, James Milton Riggs, a highly respected and talented citizen of Winchester, Scott county, was elected to fill the position of member of
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY.
congress from this district, and occupied a prominent place in the house of the 48th congress. He was re-elected in 1884, and is the present representative in the 49th congress.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY.
When the county of Jersey was organ- ized in 1839, it wasa part of a legislative district, then without a number, com- posed of this county and Greene, and was represented in the senate of the 12th general assembly by John Allen, and in the house by Revell W. English. This general assembly convened in Springfield on the 23d of Nov., 1840, and adjourned Dec. 5, 1840. A second session met Dec. 7, 1840, and continued until March 1, 1841.
The 13th general assembly convened at Springfield, Dec. 5, 1842, and ad- journed March 4, 1843. In the senate this district was represented by Alfred W. Caverly, and Samuel T. Kendall was the delegate to the house of representa- tives.
The 14th general assembly convened at the city of Springfield, Dec. 2, 1844, and adjourned March 3, 1845. The district composed of Macoupin and Jersey counties was represented in the scnate by John Harris, while James Harriott was the representative of Jer- sey county in the lower house.
The 15th general assembly met at Springfield, Dec. 7, 1846, and adjourned March 1, 1847. John Harris continued to serve this district in the senate. In the house Thomas Cummings, an carly settler in this county, served the people of this district to their satisfaction.
Before another general assembly had met the constitution of 1848 was adopted,
and under it a new apportionment of the state was made, and Jersey county, to- gether with those of Macoupin, Greene and Calhoun, were made the 13th sena- torial district and the counties of Jersey and Greene, the 22d representative dis- trict.
The 16th general assembly convened at Springfield, Jan. 1, 1849, and ad- journed Feb. 12, 1849; a second session met Oct. 22, 1849, and continued until Nov. 7, 1849. This district was repre- sented in the senate by Franklin Witt, a resident of Greene county, and in the house, first by Isaac Darneille and John D. Fry, but the former of these dying and the latter resigning, they were suc- ceeded by Joel Cory and Thomas Carlin. The latter gentleman was a resident of Greene county, and is noticed in that connection.
Isaac Darneille came to this county during 1828 or 29, entering land in what is now English township. He is said to have been one of the most social men ever in the county. He is reported to have been much more interested in rid- ing around the country chatting with his neighbors, than attending to the duties of husbandry. He was a relative of Isaac Darneille, of Kaskaskia, the sec- ond lawyer in the state of Illinois, and like him had a penchant for legal matters, although no lawyer. He was often on hand to manage for his friends causes before a justice of the peace, and would, if necessary, follow the cases to a higher court, and stand as chief adviser to the attorney. In fact he never missed an opportunity of attending court, and was frequently found outside the court house, expounding the law to groups of listeners. He removed to Jerseyville,
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY.
but after living there for a few months was stricken down with the cholera in 1849.
Hon. Joel Cory, one of the pioneers of Jersey county, was born in New Jersey, August 26, 1805. He followed farming in his native state, and was there married to Sarah Cross, a sister of Hugh N. Cross. In 1834 he left New Jersey with his family, consisting of a wife and four children, and moved in wagons to Illinois. He at once entered land, two and a half miles south of the site of the present eity of Jerseyville, where he improved a farm of 400 acres, upon which he resided until his death which occurred Feb. 26, 1872. Mrs. Cory died in 1884. Six of their children survived them in life. They are-Mary, now the wife of D. R. Stelle; Levi D., John, Joel, Sarah, wife of Robert New- ton, and Walter, all of whom reside in Jersey county. Mr. Cory represented his district in the state legislature one term, and often served the people in minor offices. He was a demoerat politically. He gave close attention to his farm and was suecessful financially. He was for many years, a prominent and consistent member of the Baptist church.
The 17th general assembly met at Springfield, Jan. 6, 1851, and adjourned Feb. 17, 1851; a second session con- vened June 7, 1852, and adjourned June 23, 1852, The 13th senatorial distriet was represented by John M. Palmer, then a resident of Macoupin county, afterwards governor of the state. Jersey and Greene counties, then constituting the 22d distriet, were served in the house of representatives by Charles D. Hodges, of Greene, and J. C. Winters, of Jersey.
John M. Palmer was afterward a general in the Union army, during the civil war, and governor of the state of Illinois, and is now engaged in the practice of law at Springfield.
The 18th general assembly convened for its first session, Jan. 3, 1853, and continued until Feb. 14, of the same year; a second session met Feb. 9, 1854, and adjourned March 4, 1854. John M. Palmer still represented the 13th dis- trict in the senate, and Charles D. Hodges and Giles H. Turner, in the house. The latter gentleman was a res- ident of Jersey county.
The 19th general assembly convened at the state capital, Jan. 1, 1855, and remained in session until Feb. 15th fol- lowing. The act of apportionment of Feb. 27, 1854, having placed the eoun- ties of Greene, Maeoupin and Jersey in the 14th senatorial distriet, it was still represented in the senate by that dis- tinguished jurist, John M. Palmer. By the same act, Jersey and Calhoun coun- ties were erected into the 22d represen- tative district, and was served by Lafay- ette MeCrillis, of Jersey.
On the 5th of January, 1857, the 20th general assembly of the state of Illi- nois, met at Springfield, and continued in session until Feb. 19, 1857. Linus E. Woreester, of Greene, was the sena- tor, and Wright Casey, of Jersey, the representative.
The 21st general assembly convened at Springfield, Jan. 3, 1859, and ad- journed Feb. 24, 1859. Anthony L. Knapp, of Jersey, was in the senate from this, the 14th district, and F. P. Rush, of Calhoun, was the representa- tive in the lower house from the 22d district.
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY.
The first session of the 22d general assembly met at Springfield, Jan. 7, 1861, and adjourned the 22d of Febru- ary; a second session was held from April 23, 1861, until the 3d of the month of May. In the senate Anthony L. Knapp still represented this district. In the house John N. English was the delegate from this district and filled the place with credit and honor to himself and to his constituents.
Hon. John Nelson English stands conspicuous in the history of Jersey county, not only as an early pioneer, but also as a citizen who for half a cent- ury has taken an active part in the pub- lic welfare of his fellowmen. Mr. Eng- lish is a native of Henry Co., Ky., born on the 31st day of March, 1810. He is the eldest son of Thomas and Alla (Cooper) English, of French and German ancestry, the former a native of Mary- land, and the latter of Pennsylvania, and the daughter of Jonathan Cooper, who served in the war of 1812. They were married in Kentucky, whence they removed in 1820 to Washington county, Ill., where they resided till 1825, when they settled in Jersey county and here continued to carry on farming till the death of Mr. English, which occurred Oct. 14, 1836; Mrs. English having died July 13, 1833. John N. received his education in the common schools of Washington and Jersey counties, divid- ing his time between study and farm- work. At the opening of the Black Hawk war, in 1831, he enlisted in a com- pany of mounted volunteers, commanded by Captain Carlin, afterward governor of Illinois, and started on a march to Rock Island, where a treaty with the Indians was soon made. Returning home in
1832, he enlisted in Capt. Patterson's company, and participated in the battles of Wisconsin and Bad Axe, receiving an honorable discharge from the service when peace was declared. The soldiers who were thus engaged received about $1 per day, and congress afterward ceded to each, 80 acres of land. After his return home, Mr. English was em- ployed by D. A. Spaulding in surveying the lands around Lake Michigan, and in 1834, entering land in Jersey county, engaged in farming. Upon the organi- zation of the county he was elected sheriff, and was re-elected at the expira- tion of his first term. At the close of his service in this capacity, in company with Messrs. Magee and Terry, he erected a steam saw and grist mill, five miles out of Jerseyville, the location now being in English township, which he conducted about two years, and then engaged in steamboating with the rank of mate; after following this vocation two seasons he purchased a farm in what is known as "Rich Woods," now English township, where he settled in the fall of 1847 and continued to reside until the fall of 1867, when he removed to Jerseyville, his present home. His attention has been almost unremittingly given to agri- culture and stock-raising, and by an industrious and upright course, he has accumulated a liberal competence. Poli- tically, Mr. English is a staunch denio- crat, and he has been a delegate to nearly all the conventions of that party since he began to mingle in political affairs. He has taken a high stand, and has exerted a wide influence and his fellow- citizens have shown their appreciation of his worth by honoring him with many positions of trust. In the fall of 1860 he
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was elected to the state legislature from Jersey and Calhoun counties, and there rendered efficient service, being of that class of legislators who were in favor of coercing the Southern states. At the expiration of his first term he was re-elected with a larger majority, and filled the position with honor to himself and satisfaction to his constituents. Mr. English then lived a private life till the fall of 1875, when he was again nomin- ated as a candidate for the legislature, and was elected by a good majority and served three consecutive terms. Mr. English has been twice married. On the 17th day of Dec., 1840, to Elizabeth Belt, daughter of H. N. Belt, of Jersey county. She died, after a lingering illness, on the 5th of January, 1872. Of four child- ren, three survive her in life-Lloyd, present supervisor of English township; John N., Jr., present township clerk, both farmers in English township, and R. B., a lawyer at Hardin, Calhoun county. In Oct., 1873, Mr. English mar- ried Catherine C. Selby, nee DeLong, she being the widow of John Selby, of Jersey county. Mr. English, or Col. English, as he is familiarly known, resides in the west part of Jerseyville city, where he has a pleasant home, sup- plied with all the accessories of the best social life. He owns 80 acres of land, for which he gave $16,000, 40 acres of the land lying within the city limits of Jerseyville. At the present writing he is 75 years of age, but enjoys good health and life. Every day he is seen up-town, and is always surrounded with friends who enjoy his conversation. He is always ready to appreciate a good story or joke, and rejoices in the prosperity of his fellow-men. Mr. English is a
man remarkably well preserved for one of his age. He stands just six feet, and is straight, well built, and from all appearances bids fair to enjoy yet many years of life. He weighs 195 pounds, is not a fleshy person but, is built from the "ground up," and presents a very commanding appearance.
The twenty-third general assembly of Illinois convened at Springfield, Jan. 5, 1863, and adjourned Feb. 14, 1863, until June 2, 1863. On the latter date it again met, in pursuance to the adjourn- ment, and was, on the 10th of June, prorogued by the governor until Dec. 31, 1864, on which day it convened and adjourned. By the act of apportion- ment of Jan. 31, 1861, the county of Jersey was, together with Calhoun, Greene, Scott and Pike, made into the 6th senatorial district, and the counties of Jersey and Calhoun still kept together under their old number, as the 22d rep- resentative district. Linus E. Wor- cester, of Greene, represented this dis- trict in the senate, and John N. English in the house.
On Jan. 2, 1865, the 24th general assembly met in regular session, at Springfield, and adjourned the 16th of February following. The 6th district was still represented by Linus E. Wor- cester, and in the house of representa- tives by John MeDonald, a resident of Hardin, Calhoun county.
The 25th general assembly held three sessions, the first commencing Jan. 7, 1867, which adjourned Feb. 28; the second convened June 11, and adjourned June 13; and the third commenced June 14, and adjourned June 28, 1867. In the senate William Shephard, of Jersey- ville, represented the district, and in
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY.
the house Robert M. Knapp, after- wards the member of congress from this district, was the representative. Mr. Shephard was largely identified with the growth and development of the city of Jerseyville, and is mentioned, at length, in that connection.
The 26th general assembly, which convened at Springfield, the 4th of Jan., 1869, contained as the representatives of this district William Shephard, of Jerseyville, in the senate, and Thomas B. Fuller, of Hardin, Calhoun county, in the house. This assembly adjourned April 20, 1869.
The first regular session of the 27th general assembly began on the 4th of Jan., 1871, and on the 17th of April
. following it was adjourned until Nov. 15, 1871. A special session commenced May 4, 1871, and lasted until June 22, and a second special session met Oct. 13, and adjourned Oet. 24. It again met in regular adjourned session Nov. 15, 1871, and on the 9th of April, 1872, ad- journed sine die. This was the first assembly under the constitution of 1870. This instrument made the senate to consist of 50 senators, and the house of 175 representatives. Jersey county, associated with those of Calhoun, Greene, Scott and Pike, made up the 6th senatorial district, and was at first represented by William Shephard and J. M. Bush, but the former gentleman having resigned, was succeeded by William H. Allen. In the house, the minority representation system having been adopted in the constitution, by which three members from each district were entitled to seats, the county of Jersey, under the title of the 38th district, was represented by George W.
Herdman and Robert A. King, both citizens of the city of Jerseyville. G. W. Herdman is the present circuit judge of this judicial circuit, and is spoken of, at length, in connection with the history of that court.
Robert A. King was born in St. Louis county, Mo., July 5, 1830. He was the eldest of a family of six children of George Y. and Mary (Dougherty) King. The parents resided upon a farm until 1835, when they removed to Washing- ton, Franklin Co., Mo,, where they lived until overtaken by death. Robert A. worked on the farm until his 17th year, attending school during the win- ter. In 1846 he went to Cape Girardeau county, Mo., and studied privately with Rev. A. Munson for two years. He aft- erwards studied law with his uncle, Judge Andrew King. He served two years as deputy in the county and cir- cuit clerk's office, at St. Charles, and two years as deputy sheriff. He ob- tained his license to practice law in 1853, and the year following returned to Washington and opened an office. Here he entered the political field and filled several positions. Ile was mar- ried May 24, 1859, to Jennie L. Bibb, and by this union they had one child- James B. King. His wife died Jan. 11. 1861, and one month later the child died. On the 22d of May, 1864, he was again married to Miriam Munson, by whom he had three children-Louis M., Robert A. and Arthur S. Robert A., Jr., died Feb. 26, 1875. In 1865 Mr. King came to Jerseyville, and entered into a law partnership with E. A. Pinero, to which firm George W. Herdman was admitted later. In the summer of 1867 Mr. King retired from the firm on ac-
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY.
count of ill-health. In 1869 he was elected a member of the constitutional convention. In 1870, he became a member of the general assembly, and in 1872 was appointed probate judge, and the year following was elected to the same office. After the expiration of his term of office in 1883, he went to Los Angelos, Cal., where he is now liv- ing.
The 28th general assembly convened at Springfield Jan. 8, 1873; adjourned May 6, 1873, until Jan. 4, 1874; and met in adjourned session on the latter date and continued until March 31, 1874, when it adjourned, sine die. The senatorial districts had been changed according to the act of March 1, 1872, previous to the meeting of this assembly, and Ma- coupin and Jersey counties were associ- ated together as the 40th senatorial dis- triet, and was represented by Beatty T. Burke, of Carlinville, Macoupin county. In the house the distriet was ably rep- resented by William McAdams, of Jer- sey, and Jonathan Plowman and Archi- bald Virden, of Macoupin county.
Ilon. William McAdams, Jr., was born in Butler county, Ohio, Dee. the 28th, 1839, and is the eldest of a family of seven children of William and Eliza McAdams. The subject of this sketch received his early education principally under the tuition of Professor Nathan- iel P. Firman, an eminent educator of Ohio, by which he attained a thorough knowledge of the English branches. He was passionately fond of the study, and practiced investigation of the seienee of geology, and in the state geologieal reports of Illinois frequent mention is made of his name, in connection with the many important discoveries that he
has made in that profound science. Pre- vious to becoming a resident of Illinois, he was engaged in teaching for three or four winters in Ohio, but his principal occupation has been that of farming. In the spring of 1865 he was married to Anna Curtis, of Jersey county. They have had six children. In early life he became a member of the democratic party, to which he has since strictly adhered. He was elected a member of the Historical Society of Illinois, sev- eral years ago, and his attainments in the scientific field have won him many golden opinions. He is now president of the State Natural History Society of Illinois. In 1878 he beeame a mem- ber of the American Association for the Advancement of Seience, and has sinee read many scientific papers before this body. At the Ann Arbor meeting of this association he was elected to be a Fellow and placed on the committee for the nomination of officers. He employs mueh of his time in scientific work for the government. In the fall of 1872 he was elected a member of the legislature of Illinois and was a promi- nent member of that body two sessions.
In Springfield, on the 6th of January, 1875, the 29th general assembly of the state assembled, and remained in ses- sion until the 15th of April following, when it adjourned, sine die. Beatty T. Burke, of Carlinville, was the senator from this district. In the house, the interest of this and the adjoining county of Macoupin, constituting the 40th dis- triet, was in the hands of Samuel G. Gilbert, of Carlinville, Oliver P'. Powel, of Jerseyville, and Henry F. Martin, of Brighton.
O. P. Powel was born in Tennessee,
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY.
March 17, 1819, and came to this county during the year 1848. He was twice county judge, his first term being from 1857 to 1861, his second from 1865 to 1869. He was married in his native state; Oct. 27, 1846, to Sarah E. Russell, a daughter of Joseph Russell. He is a democrat in politics and a Presbyterian in religion. He is still a resident and large land owner in the county.
The 30th general assembly met in regular session at Springfield, Jan. 3, 1877, and adjourned the 24th of May, the same year. George W. Herdman, of Jerseyville, was in the senate, and the district was represented in the house by Richard Rowett, of Carlin- ville, Hampton W. Wall, of Staunton, and John N. English, of Jerseyville.
The 31st general assembly convened at the state capital, Jan. 8, 1879, and continued in session until May 31. Geo. W. Herdman was again in the senate, and in the house were the three follow- ing gentlemen as representatives of the 40th district : Hampton W. Wall, of Staunton, and John N. English and George E. Warren, of Jerseyville.
Hon. George E. Warren was born at Worthington, Franklin county, Ohio, on the 16th day of August, 1817. His father, Thomas Warren, by profession a physician, a native of New Hamp- shire, was lineally descended from the Puritans. In about 1810 he removed to Bristol, Rhode Island, and there united in marriage with Martha, daughter of Charles De Wolf, a prosperous merchant and ship-owner of that port; in fact, he was part owner of the noted privateer "Yankee," that figured in the war of 1812. In 1814 Dr. Warren moved to Ohio, and there resided until the spring
of 1818, when they returned to Bristol and there remained till 1835. His wife having died in 1829, in 1835, the family, then consisting of a daughter and two sons, of whom Judge Warren is the only survivor, again moved west and settled at Alton, Ill. Dr. Warren en- tered considerable land within the limits of Jersey county and resided here at the time of his death, which occurred in 1853, at the residence of his son, Judge Warren. He was a gentleman of . rather extensive literary culture. Geo. E. Warren received an education, partly collegiate, having entered Brown Uni- versity, at Providence, R. I., at 14 years of age, and remaining till the middle of his senior year. After his removal to Illinois he commenced reading law in the office of Woodson & Hodges, of Carrollton, Ill., and also assisted M. O. Bledsoe, clerk of both the circuit and county commissioners' courts. His health having become seriously impaired by close application, in the spring of 1837 he made a visit to his former home and friends in Rhode Island, for the purpose of recuperating, and there, the following August, he was married to Harriet S., daughter of S. S. Allen, Esq., collector of the port of Bristol. He soon thereafter returned to the West, and in the spring of 1838 settled at Alton, Ill., where he completed his law studies and was admitted to prac- tice in the Illinois courts, in 1839. Owing to the financial depression then prevalent in Alton, and other causes, that place offered but little inducement to the aspiring young lawyer, and his father having purchased for him a large farm near Jerseyville, with money be- queathed by his grandfather, Charles
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De Wolf, he removed thither in the spring of 1840, and engaged in farming. If he did not acquire wealth at his new pursuit, he gained a vigorous constitu- tion and a practical knowledge of hard work. In politics Judge Warren was a whig till the declension of that party. Ile then cast his fortunes with the repub- licans, and is still ardently attached to their principles. In 1841 he was elected justice of the peace, without solicitation on his part, and he thereafter continued in that capacity till 1849, when, under the state constitution of 1848, he was elected the first county judge of Jersey county. He performed the duties of that office to the satisfaction of the peo- ple for eight years. In Jan., 1862, he resumed the practice of law in connec- tion with his son-in-law, William H. Pogue, which business relation existed until the election of Mr. Pogue to the office of county judge in the fall of 1883. In 1875 Judge Warren was elected mayor of the city of Jerseyville, as the anti-license candidate, and thus became the first republican mayor of the city. In the fall of 1878 he was elected to represent his district in the legislature. The district was then composed of Jersey and Macoupin counties, both democratic. Judge Warren served one term in the legislature He has fre- quently been a delegate to state con- ventions. Thus it can be seen that the life of Judge Warren has been one of moderate success. He never aimed at the acquirement of immense wealth or political notoriety, but sought and found satisfaction in a quiet home life, finding his chief happiness in his home circle, the society of genial friends, and the pursuit of knowledge. Hle has always
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