USA > Illinois > Henry County > History of Henry County, Illinois, Volume II > Part 104
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On the 10th of November, 1867, Mr. Bloom married Miss Clarinda A. Lucas, who was born in New Philadelphia, Tuscarawas county, Ohio, May 1, 1849. Her father, Eli R. Lucas, was born in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, March 25, 1817, and was a self-made man, for he started in life as a laborer. He had come to Illinois in 1855 and served for many years as a member of the school board. In politics he was a republican. His wife was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, in 1823, and went to Ohio with her parents when she was about fourteen years of age. On the 26th of September, 1841, she was united in marriage to Eli R. Lu- cas, and in the fifty years that the couple were permitted to pass down life's path- way together were blessed with six children. Rebecca, born July 19, 1843, be- came the wife of Samuel L. Stebbins and died March 3, 1895. John was born August 10, 1845, and died the 29th of the same month. James was born August 15, 1846, and died in Omak, Washington, January 10, 1908. Clarinda, the fourth child, is now Mrs. Bloom. George was born May 2, 1853, and died June 21, 1908. David was born October 2, 1856, and resides in Blue Island, Illinois. Mrs. Lucas died November 13, 1904, and was laid beside her husband who had passed away August 23, 1892, in the Grand View cemetery, Atkinson.
Mr. and Mrs. Bloom have had four children. Mary Elizabeth, born December 18, 1869, died March 18, 1872. Bertha, born March 6, 1873, is the wife of
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Thomas Goodman, of Atkinson, Illinois. Lois Gail, born January 26, 1876, is the wife of Frank Moloney, a teamster of Atkinson. They have one little girl, Frances Clarinda, born August 16, 1903. Vinnie, the youngest, was born No- vember 13, 1877, and died the 22d of the same month. The first child was laid to rest in the cemetery at Hannibal, Missouri, the last in Atkinson.
Mr. and Mrs. Bloom are members of the Methodist church, and in his younger years Mr. Bloom was very active in Sunday-school work and in advancing the cause of temperance. In his political views he is a democrat, but usually votes for the man he considers best qualified for office. For seventeen years he ren- dered efficient service as a member of the school board and for four years acted as village trustee. Fraternally he is connected with the Knights of Pythias, and at the meetings of the local Grand Army post revives the memories of his war days, and he derived especial pleasure from attending the national encampment at Toledo a few years ago. Mrs. Bloom has seen Atkinson's entire develop- ment. When her parents located here Indians were not infrequently seen. A few years ago she revisited the Ohio home in which her childhood days were passed, and although time had changed the appearance of things, the trip is one of the most pleasant memories of her later years. She is a member of the Grand Army auxiliary, and her bright smile and happy disposition make her wel- come wherever she goes. Enjoying good health, Mr. Bloom can look back over the sixty-three years of his life as well spent. Financial success and the com- forts which this has made possible, assure him ease during the remaining years of his life. Though discouragement often came to him in his early years, he plodded along manfully, and the whole-hearted good will and respect which his friends and neighbors accord him is satisfaction enough, in his eyes, for the hard- ships of the past. Jovial in his disposition, sincere in his relations with others, he has made a warm place in the hearts of the citizens of Atkinson.
ABRAM J. LEUIS.
Abram J. Leuis, who is now living retired upon his farm on the east half of the northwest quarter of section 9, Cornwall township, was for a long period actively identified with the best agricultural and stock interests of Henry county, the success of his business being indicated by the fact that in addition to the ferile land on which he resides he also owns the southwest quarter of section 21. The Leuis family is of Welsh descent and the name was originally spelled with a "u" instead of a "w". William Leuis, the grandfather of our subject, was born in Pennsylvania, where he grew to manhood and married Miss Elizabeth Lydia. Later he removed to Ohio, where he bought land and lived until the early '50s, when he came to Illinois, locating in Cornwall township, Henry county, where he secured a tract of land for which he paid the government price of a dollar and a quarter per acre.
His son, John Leuis, the father of Abram J. Leuis, was born in Indiana township, Indiana county, Pennsylvania, and was only a small boy when he accompanied his parents upon their removal to Ohio. In that state he married
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Miss Mary Cozad, May 4, 1848, and lived there until the fall of 1851, when he came to Illinois. For a few months he worked in a packing house in Fulton county, but in the spring of 1852 located in Cornwall township, Henry county, laying a soldier's claim which he bought from Henry Cozad, his wife's cousin. The land was situated on section 21 and he paid a dollar and a quarter an acre for it, buying it a few years before his father came to this state. He became one of the leading farmers of his locality and one of the large landholders, for with keen business sagacity he seized the opportunity to buy at a low price property that increased greatly in value as the years passed. Shortly before his death he deeded eighty acres to each of his thirteen children and still retained one hun- dred and twenty acres for himself, which indicates the extent of his possessions. He was a man of influence in his community, although he steadily refused to accept public office, and his voice was ever raised in support of progress and development. Politically he was allied with the democratic party, while his re- ligious adherence was given to the Liberty Baptist church. Upon his death he was laid to rest in Liberty cemetery, Cornwall township, where his father and wife were buried, and where the graves of all the other deceased members of the Leuis family have been made. Of his family William J. is the oldest. Abram J. is the subject of this sketch, Samuel is now living in Geneseo. John U. is a resident of Cornwall township. James Andrew lives in Geneseo. George W. makes his home in Jasper county, Illinois. Francis Marion is living in Texas. Charles A. makes his home in Kansas City, Missouri. Charity A. is the wife of James Fell and they live in Geneseo. Stephen A. is a resident of Omaha, Ne- braska. Alfred Theodore lives in Munson township, Henry county. Robert resides in Barton county, Missouri, and Mary E., who is the wife of George Hudson, also lives in that state.
Abram J. Leuis, whose name introduces this review, was born in Jackson county, Ohio, February 17, 1851, and was but a mere child when his parents established their home in Cornwall township. He grew to manhood upon the farm, assisting in the work carried on there and at the same time becoming acquainted with the fundamental branches of education during the months he was a pupil in the district school. At the age of twenty-one years he married and rented land from his father, deriving such success from his farming that in the course of a few years, on the 27th of July, 1880, he was able to buy eighty acres on section 9, Cornwall township, for fifty dollars per acre. Later he purchased twenty acres on section 4, for forty dollars, and then bought the tract of eighty acres on which he now lives for fifty-three dollars an acre. The last addition to his landholdings comprised eighty acres on section 21, for which he paid sixty- seven dollars an acre. It was entirely through his own efforts that such sub- stantial investments were possible. As young a man he learned the invaluable lesson of industry and economy, and being endowed with rare business ability he was able to conduct his affairs profitably. The natural fertility of the soil well repaid his labors in cultivating it, and the care he took of his stock enabled him to find a ready market and command a good price.
On the 9th of May, 1872, Mr. Leuis wedded Miss Mary C. Reese, of Corn- wall township, and unto them two children were born. Lota became the wife of Warren Dunham, and they live on section 21, Cornwall township, where they
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are rearing their two children. John Roland died at the age of twenty-one months. After the death of his first wife, Mr. Leuis married Miss Martha J. Mc- Farland, of Knox county, Missouri, April 14, 1885, in the city of Geneseo. She was born in Auglaize county, Ohio, December 12, 1859, and was about twelve years of age when her parents, John D. and Samantha (Julian) McFarland, re- moved to Knox county, Missouri, where they are still living. She received a fair common school education and was in Geneseo on a visit, when she became ac- quainted with Mr. Leuis. There was one daughter, Mamie Blanche, born of this union, but she died in infancy.
Mr. Leuis does not support any particular party, preferring to cast his ballot for the candidate he believes most deserving of office or the measure which will prove of greatest benefit to the community. He does not desire office for him- self, however, although he ever evinces a keen interest in public affairs. His life has been quietly passed, and yet there are in his record elements that are well worthy of emulation, for he has sought his success along the legitimate lines of labor and his efforts have at all times conformed to a high standard of manhood.
FREDERICK J. RASTEDE.
The growth and progress of a city or community do not depend upon the machinery of government or even upon the men who control public affairs as much as upon those who are active in business circles, for the industry and en- terprise, which are manifested by the merchants and other business men, consti- tute the standard of the city's development. Among the well appointed and well equipped grocery houses of Geneseo is that owned by the firm of Rastede & Wenke, of which the subject of this review is the senior partner. He has become widely and favorably known during the thirty-one years of his residence in this city and, therefore, the history of his life cannot fail to prove of interest to many of our readers.
Frederick J. Rastede was born in Elsfleth, in the dutchy of Oldenberg, Ger- many, September 4, 1851, and was the second in order of birth in a family of four children whose parents were Frederick and Helena (Gode) Rastede, who were likewise natives of the same country. The grandfather, Otto Rastede, was also of the Teutonic race and was a farmer by occupation. His wife, Mrs. Olga Margaretta Rastede, lived to a very advanced age and reared her family of one son and five daughters. The maternal grandfather of our subject was Eilert Gode, who died in Germany when about eighty-one or eighty-two years of age. His wife, however, was only about thirty years of age when called to the home beyond. He had been a lifelong farmer, providing for his family in the tilling of the soil. Frederick Rastede, Sr., was also a farmer and died in Germany in 1864, when fifty-two years of age. His wife survived for about twenty-six years, passing away in 1890 at the age of sixty-eight. They were adherents of the Lutheran faith and were consistent in their religious lives. Their children were: Otto, now deceased; Frederick J .; Amelia, who is living near Albany, Whiteside
1
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county, Illinois ; and Henry, who makes his home in Whiteside county, near Morrison.
In the schools of his native village Frederick J. Rastede acquired a good edu- cation, continuing his studies in accordance with the laws of his native land, to the age of fourteen years. He then started out in life for himself as a seaman and remained on shipboard for three years. During that period he heard attrac- tive stories concerning the new world and its advantages and, heeding the call of the American continent, he came to the United States in December, 1867. landing at New York. He did not tarry in the eastern metropolis, however, but made his way at once to Clinton, Iowa, where lived his uncle, Henry Gode, who was the owner of a grocery store there. Mr. Rastede entered his employ and re- mained in the store for seven and a half years. On the expiration of that period he removed to Albany, Illinois, joining his mother who, in 1872, had come from Germany with the other children of the family and was living on the farm near Albany with her two younger children. For a time Mr. Rastede remained with his mother but, finding commercial pursuits more congenial than agricultural life, he formed a partnership with Stephen Smith and engaged in the grocery business in Albany for a year. In 1878 he removed to Geneseo, bought a lot and built his present store building. He then opened a grocery store, which he has conducted continuously since. He was alone in the business for sixteen years and then admitted his brother-in-law, Henry Wenke, to a partnership, which has since been maintained under the firm name of Rastede & Wenke. This is now one of the old grocery firms of the city and the store contains a large and care- fully selected line of goods, such as meets the demands of the general public. They are among the foremost in introducing what is new to the market and their reliable business methods constitute, moreover, a salient feature in their success. In addition to his commercial interests Mr. Rastede has made extensive investment in real estate and is the owner of a valuable farm of four hundred acres in Carroll county, Iowa, and another of two hundred and forty acres in Plymouth county, Iowa. He also has desirable city property in Geneseo, all of which is evidence of his life of well directed energy and thrift.
Mrs. Rastede, in her maidenhood, bore the name of Lizzie Wenke. She was born at Hampton, Illinois, a daughter of John and Lena (Oldman) Wenke, who were natives of Oldenberg, Germany. Coming to America, they settled in Rock Island, Illinois, and continued their residence in this state throughout their re- maining days. The father died in Geneseo at the age of eighty-four years and the mother is still living in this city at the age of eighty years.
Mr. and Mrs. Rastede have become the parents of six children : Fred J., who married Eva Mohrman and lives in Pierce, Nebraska; Louis, who wedded Laura Weidlein, of Geneseo and has a daughter, Marjory ; Hulda, at home; Arthur, who died at the age of ten years; and two who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Ras- tede were members of the Lutheran church and they occupy an enviable place in the social circles of the city. He is a stalwart democrat in his political faith and that his fellow townsmen have appreciation for his worth as a citizen is in- dicated in the fact that his ward, the second, twice elected him to the city coun- cil, where he served for four years. He has also been a member of the school board for six years and is a stalwart champion of progressive education. His
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record is altogether a most creditable one and he has justly gained the proud American title of a self-made man. Coming to this country where labor is un- hampered by caste or class, he has steadily worked his way upward and the suc- cess which he has achieved is as creditable as it is desirable.
WILLIAM IRVINE.
William Irvine, who was for years one of the substantial farmers of Atkin- son township and is now living in retirement in Mansill's addition to the city of Atkinson, is one of the men in this county who has attained to success and afflu- ence through his own unaided efforts. He was born in County Down, Ireland, in September, 1861, and is a son of John and Sarah (Hall) Irvine, both natives of Ireland. In 1872 the parents and children came to America, making their way to Illinois. They settled first upon a farm in Cornwall township, Henry county, and after two years went to Alba township, where the parents passed the re- mainder of their lives. In the old country John Irvine had been a tax collector and upon coming to this land he affiliated with the republican party. Reared in the Presbyterian church, he died in that faith on the 7th of January, 1896, in the eightieth year of his age. His widow survived until June 19, 1899, when she too passed away and was laid to rest in the cemetery at Geneseo. She was eighty- two years of age at her death. Nine children were born to them, four of whom have died. Those living are Thomas, who resides in Chicago; William, of this review; Jane, the widow of Robert Fulton and a resident of Atkinson; Sarah, the wife of James Purse, of Denver, Colorado; and Ellen, the wife of William Purse.
William Irvine attended the public schools of Ireland and assisted his father in farming in the old country. Upon coming to the United States, he worked with his father on rented land in Cornwall township, this county, for three years, and then bought one hundred and twenty acres in Alba township. This he im- proved greatly and by diligence and good management was able not only to bring it to a paying condition but also to buy land in Atkinson township from time to time, until he had two hundred acres there, which brought his holdings up to three hundred and forty acres. In March, 1906, he retired from active farming and removed to the handsome home which, in 1905, he had built in Mansill's addition to Atkinson. Confident that his fields are under the excellent care of good tenants, Mr. Irvine can enjoy the comforts to which his long years of ardu- ous toil entitle him. His life was a struggle in the beginning and the rest he now enjoys is very desirable.
On the 30th of March, 1874, Mr. Irvine wedded Miss Margaret McWen, who was born in Ireland, in 1863. She was a member of the Congregational church and died in that faith February 3, 1892. Two of her family have since passed away. The others are: William, who lives in Denver, Colorado, and has two sons, Theo and Ernest; Nellie, the wife of John Graham, the proprietor of the Graham Hotel of Atkinson, by whom she has three children, Harold, Bernice and Carl; Ernest, who lives in Denver; Gertrude, the wife of William Nowers,
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of South Dakota, by whom she has two children, Margaret and William; Sarah, the wife of Ralph Swaney, of Atkinson township; Clara, the wife of Fred Fos- ter, of South Dakota ; and Nora May, a teacher in Atkinson township. In June, 1895, Mr. Irvine married again, his second wife having been Miss Agnes Bailey, who was born in Ireland in 1861 and is a daughter of James and Eliza (McQuoid) Bailey. Her parents are of Irish birth and were both born in 1829. They are members of the Presbyterian church and are still living in their native home, surrounded by many of their family. Six of their seven children are living, namely : Hugh, who lives with his parents in the old country ; James, a resident of Belfast, Ireland; Frank, of Chicago, Illinois; Annie, the wife of William Alex- ander, of Belfast; Sarah, the wife of James Johnson, of Ballyobican, Ireland; and Agnes, who is the wife of Mr. Irvine. Of this second union there has been one child born, a son, James, born January 18, 1898, now attending the public schools.
Mr. and Mrs. Irvine are members of the Congregational church, and she belongs to the Royal Neighbors. In his political views Mr. Irvine is a repub- lican but is liberal, voting usually for the best man irrespective of party. He is endowed with an attractive personality, is easy of approach, genial and kind- hearted. His friends are numerous and are ever accorded a sincere welcome in his home in Atkinson, for his wife possesses those graces that make her a de- lightful hostess. Her assistance has been invaluable to her husband, especially in those first years of their married life when she cared so fondly for his motherless children.
J. W. KEENER.
J. W. Keener, a hardware merchant of Annawan, who has one of the finest herds of Jersey cattle in his locality, was born in Grafton, West Virginia, in 1865. Grafton was also the birthplace of his parents, James and Matilda (Means) Keener, the former of whom was born in 1838, the latter the year following. In his native home James Keener was engaged in farming and there he passed away two years after the birth of his son, J. W., who is the younger of his two children. Susan, the daughter, became the wife of D. O. Stover and lives in Enid, Oklahoma.
J. W. Keener came to Illinois in 1867 and here he has since resided. He had less schooling than the average boy, even of that period, for all told he received but eighteen months' instruction, and yet, despite this serious handicap, he has prospered in his affairs. His first experience in business was as a farmer, for he assisted his stepfather in the conduct of his agricultural work until he was thirty years old. He then found employment as a clerk with L. T. Dows, who was the proprietor of a general store in Annawan. After nine years' experience, in January, 1903, he purchased the hardware stock of the firm and embarked in business on his own account, opening a shop on Front street. He carried a gen- eral line of hardware and is well supplied with different makes of stoves and with house furnishings, and as he does everything in his power to satisfy his patrons he has built up a large trade. Though so intimately connected with the affairs
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of the town, Mr. Keener also keeps in touch with agricultural pursuits. He lives on Front street, at the west edge of Annawan, on a pretty place to which he has given the name of Dairy Maid Jersey Farm. Here he has a herd of Jersey cat- tle, some of them being related to stock that was exhibited at the St. Louis fair, and one cow being the sister of a prize winner there. From these he obtains an excellent quality of butter which he delivers to many families in Chicago, and intends in the near future to give more and more time to this part of his business, both as regards dairying and the breeding of pure blooded animals.
Mr. Keener has been married twice. In October, 1897, he wedded Miss Mary E. Baldwin, a native of Annawan and a daughter of J. B. Baldwin, whose sketch appears elsewhere in this volume. They became the parents of a daughter, Myrtle E., who was born in Annawan, April 11, 1899. Mrs. Keener died in August, 1902, and was buried in the cemetery of this village. She was a devout member of the Congregational church. In February, 1905, Mr. Keener married Miss Millie Mumford, who was born in Annawan and is a daughter of George and Catherine (Myers) Mumford. The father was a farmer of Henry county, and both he and his wife have passed away. They had four children, three of whom are living: Wendall J., of Annawan township; Millie, now Mrs. Keener ; and Belle, who is the wife of George Carter, of Freeport, Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Keener have one child, Catherine, who was born January 19, 1907.
Politically Mr. Keener is in sympathy with the platform of the prohibitionist party, but he has never sought any public office. He enjoys pleasant relations with the Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen, and is regular in his attendance at the meetings of the local lodges of these organizations. Among his fraternal brothers and in the town of Annawan he has made many stanch friends, for he possesses those traits of character which naturally attract others to him. Eager to satisfy the desires of his customers and broad and liberal in his ideas, he richly deserves his success and the good name he holds among the citizens of his section of the county.
JOHN E. GUSTAFSON.
John E. Gustafson, one of the young and successful farmers and stockmen of Western township, where he operates a tract of two hundred acres belonging to his father, was born in Lynn township, this county, near what is known as Swe- dona, January 6, 1875, his parents being John and Elizabeth (Weech) Gustaf- son, a sketch of whose lives appears elsewhere in this work. He was one year old when the family left the farm in Lynn township and removed to the place on which he now lives, although at that time it embraced but little more than a third as many acres as at present. Here he grew to manhood and has passed the greater part of his life. He attended the country schools first and later the pub- lic schools of Orion, after which he entered a business college in Davenport, Iowa, where he spent one winter. He thus received a good education, which, united with the practical training he had obtained under his father's guidance, amply prepared him for the responsibilities of life.
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Mr. Gustafson remained under the parental roof until his marriage and then assumed the management of the large tract which has since been under his care. In addition to purely agricultural pursuits, he has engaged to some extent in the stock business, making a specialty of the raising and feeding of fine bred Poland China hogs. From both branches of his business he has obtained an income that is gratifying and places him among the substantial men of Western township.
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