USA > Illinois > Henry County > History of Henry County, Illinois, Volume II > Part 27
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It was natural, therefore, that Mr. Hewlett should become connected with the Masonic fraternity which is based upon the recognition of the fact of universal brotherhood. He belonged to the various Masonic bodies represented in Kewanee and was long secretary of the local lodge. He had the distinction of being the first man to be knighted in Kewanee Commandery, K. T., and his association with Masonry dated from November 6, 1877. He found pleasant relations with his old army comrades through his membership in Julius A. Pratt Post, G. A. R. He was a liberal supporter of St. Francis Hospital and was an earnest and en- thusiastic working member of the board of education, doing everything in his power to promote the interests of the schools in this city. His political allegiance was given to the republican party. Said one who was long associated with him in business : "He measured up to every requirement. In ability, integrity and
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all the other qualities of his well rounded manhood he stood out conspicuously." Another said: "Mr. Hewlett was one of those whom to espouse a cause was to make it his own, and so he was a power in all he undertook." His life was an exponent of integrity, honesty, sincerity and all traits which make for true manhood. Always working for the welfare of the city and its people, his one aim seemed to be to help others. His life was a benediction to those to whom it was given to know him intimately.
JAMES ANDREWS.
In a history of the men whose labors have contributed to public progress in Henry county and who, having lived useful, active and honorable lives, have passed on to their honorable reward, mention should be made of James Andrews, for many years one of the leading farmers of this part of the state. His salient traits of character were such as commended him to the confidence and good will of all who knew him, and his memory is enshrined in the hearts of many with whom he came in contact. He was born at Hartford, in the Western Reserve of Ohio, April 17, 1830, a son of the Rev. Wells and Nancy (Harper) Andrews. His father was one of the pioneer residents of the Reserve, where he located when a youth of seventeen years. He went to that state from Connecticut in 1804 with his parents and five brothers, and, determining to devote his life to the work of the ministry, he afterward became pastor of the Presbyterian church of Hart- ford, Ohio. He married Nancy Harper, a Virginian by birth, and a sister of Joshua Harper, one of the first and best known settlers of Henry county, Illi- nois. On leaving Hartford, Rev. Wells Andrews removed to Athens, Ohio, where for several years he occupied a professorship in the university. In 1843 he came to Illinois and purchased a farm near Tremont in Tazewell county, while at the same time he accepted the pastorate of a Congregational church in that locality.
It was upon that farm that James Andrews was reared, receiving thorough training in the work of the fields and coming to love the life to which he devoted his time and energies in his youth. The opportunity for investment at a lower rate than he would have to pay for land in Tazewell county led him to remove to Henry county in 1854 and as his financial resources increased he made wise and judicious investment in farm property. His entire life was devoted to gen- eral agricultural pursuits and his spirit of enterprise and determination enabled him to place his fields under a high state of cultivation and to carry on the farm work in accordance with the most progressive methods.
On the 26th of March, 1862, Mr. Andrews was united in marriage to Miss Mary Campbell of Geneseo, who still survives him. They became the parents of ten children : Charles, of Steele City, Nebraska ; John, of Ottawa, Illinois ; William, of Geneseo; James, of Kewanee, Illinois; Robert, of Geneseo; George, of Ne- braska; Mrs. Mary B. Young, of Shannon, Illinois ; and Jessie, Maude and Wells, all of Geneseo.
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The death of Mr. Andrews occurred in Geneseo, March 12, 1908. George W. Shaw, in writing of him said: "Mr. Andrews was heart and soul a farmer. He loved country life and when absent from his farm was always impatient to return. He was a fine specimen of strong and healthy manhood until within a few of the last years of his life, when he retired from his farm to reside in Geneseo. His closing years were clouded by the advance of an incurable disease. During his whole life, however, he was of a cheerful and even jovial disposition and was fond of social enjoyments. He was not only a man diligent and success- ful in business, but also a reader of good books and a thinker. He loved to dis- cuss public questions from an independent point of view ; and as he grew older took less interest in partisan considerations. Independence of thought and action were prominent traits. To these were joined inflexible integrity and great kindness of heart. He was invariable in his attachments, a lover of his family and friends and of all manhood-one of those men who are the strength and hope of a nation. It is not a flower of the valley that has faded but an oak of the forest that is laid low."
JOHN L. BLAIR.
John L. Blair, owning and operating a farm of three hundred and twenty acres on section 18, Kewanee township, likewise devotes considerable attention to stock raising and has met with success in both undertakings. He is numbered among the worthy native sons of Henry county, his birth having occurred in Kewanee township on the 3Ist of August, 1859. His parents, James and Lucy E. (Emerson) Blair, were natives of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Greenbrier county, West Virginia, respectively. The maternal grandparents of our subject, Benjamin and Mary (Hinkley) Emerson, were born in Connecticut and Ohio respectively, the latter's birth occurring in the barracks at Marietta during the Indian war. James Blair, the father of John L. Blair, came to this county in 1854 and took up his abode on a tract of land of ten acres situated north of Kewanee. Subsequently he purchased the farm of one hundred and sixty acres which is now a part of the Blair estate and there carried on his agricultural interests until called to his final rest in 1883, when he had attained the age of fifty-three years. He was widely recognized as one of the substantial and respected residents of the community and his loss was deeply mourned by all who knew him. His widow, who yet sur- vives, lives on the old homestead farm in Kewanee township.
John L. Blair obtained his education in the district schools of this county and when not busy with his text-books he assisted his father in the operation of the home place, thus early becoming familiar with the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the agriculturist. After the demise of his father he assumed charge of the home farm and about ten years ago extended its boundaries by purchasing a tract of one hundred and sixty acres adjoining, so that the property now em- braces three hundred and twenty acres of valuable and productive land on section 18, Kewanee township. In addition to his agricultural interests he likewise raises considerable stock, which branch of his business adds materially to his annual income. When the farm came into his possession the buildings thereon included a
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fine two-story residence and a barn and he has since erected another barn, sixty by sixty-four feet, as well as a corn crib, twenty-four by thirty-six feet. Energetic enterprising and progressive, he has carried forward to successful completion whatever he has undertaken and has long been numbered among the prosperous and respected citizens of his community.
On the 20th of September, 1893, at Kewanee, Mr. Blair was united in marriage to Miss Frances Scott, a daughter of Mrs. Ann Scott, of Kewanee township. They now have three children, as follows : Florence, who is fourteen years of age and attends the high school at Kewanee; Ellis, nine years old; and Arlo, who is three years of age.
Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise Mr. Blair has given his political allegiance to the republican party, while fraternally he is identified with the Modern Woodmen. He is likewise a devoted and consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church and has acted as one of its trustees for many years. Honorable in business, loyal in citizenship, charitable in thought, kindly in action, true to every trust confided to his care, Mr. Blair commands the esteem of a large circle of friends and acquaintances in the county where his entire life has been spent.
CLYDE B. TAYLOR.
Clyde B. Taylor who since 1898 has been cashier of the Farmers National Bank at Cambridge, in which connection he has displayed ability in manage- ment and in the solution of intricate financial problems, was born in Chickasaw county, Iowa, January 16, 1871, being one of the seven sons of Byron E. and Leila A. (Thayer) Taylor, who were natives of New York. The father was reared in the Empire state and when a young man removed to Iowa, settling in the town of Bedford, Chickasaw county, where he was residing at the time of the outbreak of hostilities between the north and south, resulting from the slavery question and its attendant problems of the indissolubility of the Union. At that time he enlisted for active service at the front as a member of Company K, Third Iowa Infantry and remained with the regiment throughout the entire period of the war. He participated in the siege of Vicksburg and in a number of the most important battles which led up to the final victory that crowned the Union arms and on three occasions was wounded. After the war he returned to his home in Iowa and was married there. With his bride he soon went to Nebraska, settling on a farm in Butler county, where he engaged in farming for a number of years, and was also prominent in the public affairs of the district, serving for one term as clerk of the district court. Since his retire- ment from office he has engaged in business and, coming to Cambridge in 1906, now makes his home in this city in the enjoyment of well earned rest. He married Leila A. Thayer, a daughter of Hiram Thayer, one of the pioneer residents of Bradford, Iowa, where he served as postmaster for a number of years. Both he and his wife lived to an old age and reared a family of four sons and four daughters. Both Mr. and Mrs. Byron E. Taylor are consistent and de- voted members of the Baptist church, and his political allegiance is given to the
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republican party. They are parents of seven sons, namely: Foster T., Melvin B., Walter E., Clyde B., Frank R., Joy B., and Lester A.
Clyde B. Taylor spent his youthful days on his father's farm in Nebraska, until he reached the age of eleven or twelve years, when the family removed to David City, Nebraska, that the father might enter upon the duties of clerk of the court, to which position he had been elected. The son attended the public and high schools of that place and would have graduated had not a cyclone destroyed the high school bunding and temporarily disorganized the schools. Later he pursued a course in the Omaha Commercial College, after which he returned to David City and accepted the position of bookkeeper in the David City Bank. Subsequently he went to the City National Bank as bookkeeper, occupying that position until 1895, when he came to Cambridge. Here he acted as bookkeeper until 1898, when he became cashier of the Farmers National Bank and in that capacity is proving an active factor in the management of financial interests in Cambridge.
On the 5th of October, 1897, Mr. Taylor was united in marriage to Miss Kate L. White, a native of this city and a graduate of its high school. She is a daughter of Henry and Harriett (Sims) White. There are three children of this union, Harry F., Leila E. and Clyde B., Jr. The parents are members of the Baptist church, in which Mr. Taylor is serving as deacon, ' d he is also well known in fraternal circles, belonging to Cambridge Lodge, o. 49, A. F. & A. M .; Cambridge Lodge, No. 199, I. O. O. F .; and Cambridge Camp, No. 28, M. W. A., of which he is clerk. His political endorsement is un- falteringly given to the republican party, and his devotion to the general good has been manifest in his acceptable service as village treasurer for "elve years
WILLIAM R. TRACY.
In William R. Tracy, Oxford township finds one of her representative citi- zens, a man of worth and intelligence. He was born January 26, 1852, in Whist- ling Grove township, Mercer county, Illinois, his parents being Joab and Mary J. (Coon) Tracy. Both father and mother were natives of Montgomery county, Indiana, where they were born, reared and married. The former's ancestors were Kentucky pioneers, the great-grandfather having been killed by Indians in the Bluegrass state. The family is of Irish descent. The mother's family, the Coons, were Ohio pioneers and of German origin. When young people Mr. Tracy's parents left Indiana for Peoria, Illinois, setting forth the day after their marriage and making the journey in a lumber wagon. They had lived in Peoria only a short time when they decided to go to Mercer county. For three years the father farmed as a renter and then decided upon another change of location, this time taking up his residence in Lynn township, Henry county, in 1855, where he preempted a one hundred and sixty acre farm, where he followed agriculture with no small success. He added to his holdings from time to time until he possessed as much as thirteen hundred acres of land. The original one hundred and sixty acres in Lynn township was obtained from the government
V.
MR. AND MRS. JOAB TRACY
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and the patent was signed by President Franklin Pierce. This was never trans- ferred, mortgaged or tax delinquent during the entire life of Mr. Tracy's father. When he died in 1904 the original tract passed to his youngest son, Joab, who is now living upon it. The old homestead is in Lynn township near the town of Ophiem.
Mr. Tracy is of that present day rarity-a large family. There were five sons and five daughters, of whom seven are now living. These are William R., the subject of this sketch; James A., of Chicago; Willard D., of Galesburg; Ellen, now Mrs. Charles Kinsey, of Mercer county; Catherine, now Mrs. John A. Sayre of Rock Island county ; Joab, of Lynn township; and Jennie, now Mrs. Dallas D. Petrie, of Lynn township. Those deceased are Rachel, whose hus- band was Guy D. Fields, of Western township, also deceased; Minnie P., who was unmarried; and Jessie S., of Osco township, who died September 28, 1909. The mother is still living and resides at New Windsor, Mercer county. The father was a Jacksonian democrat, and though ever interested in the public welfare and alert to the signs of the times, he refused all office save that of school director. He was a man who thoroughly understood the importance of good education, and he was given to liberal charity when he knew the object to be deserving. He was an honored and respected citizen and of strong con- victions and positive views, whose motto was "live and let live."
William R. Tracy made his home within the parental abode until the at- tainment of his majority, during the winter months gaining his education in the little red schoolhouse on the hill, and in the summer finding an even more practical training near to nature's heart. This was supplemented by four years attendance at the Prairie Home Academy at Orion. He then proceeded to teach school for the ensuing eight winters, farming as before in the spring and summer. His career as a pedagogue both preceded and followed his marriage in 1873. Having lived for six years after marriage on his father's farm in Lynn township, in the spring of 1879 he decided to become an independent landowner and bought a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Mercer county. There he resided until the spring of 1884, when he removed to his present farm in Oxford township, Henry county. This property is a very large one, consisting of five hundred and thirty-six acres of land, all in one body. It is all tillable land, and all well tiled and under a high state of cultivation. Mr. Tracy engages in general farming and raises sufficient cattle and hogs to consume his grain. The study of soils and the practice of rotation of crops prevent any deterioration in the quality and abundance of his crops. The subject of the sketch has other land interests in addition to those in Oxford township.
In April, 1873, Mr. Tracy was united in marriage with Miss Mary D. Bar- rett, a daughter of James M. Barrett, her mother, Abigail (Matthews) Barrett, having died when she was an infant. Her father, who was a farmer in Andover township, died several years ago. Mrs. Tracy like her husband was liberally educated and taught school from her sixteenth year until her marriage. Two children have blessed their union: Grace, now Mrs. Alban J. Amlong, resides on a farm adjoining her father's; William R., Jr., is also married and lives on the old homestead, his parents occupying a new and modern house nearby. The bride of William R., Jr., was Miss Eunice Brooks, a daughter of Benjamin F.
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and Ellen (Bester) Brooks, both of her parents being now dead. These young people have a daughter named Ruth. Father and son are farming together, the latter being also an advocate of scientific agriculture. He received his educa- tion in the district schools and in the schools of New Windsor and later took a course in the Brown Business College at Galesburg. The daughter, Grace, at- tended Knox College.
Mr. Tracy is a stalwart republican and has been active in public affairs. For a number of years he has been a member of the county central committee of which he is now secretary. He is also a member of the township election board and has frequently been a delegate to county, district and state conventions. His service as a member of the local school board extends over many years. In 1886 he was elected as the Oxford township member of the county board of supervisors and served four years or until 1890. In 1897 he was again elected and served ten years in that capacity. He has given valuable counsel as a public officer and a member of important committees. He is a progressive citizen, al- ways advocating that which is best calculated to advance the best interests of all the people, and he stands high in the opinion of all who know him.
WILLIAM F. BAILEY.
The life record of William F. Bailey is a credit to the city of his adoption for Galva found in him a progressive merchant, whose methods are reliable and whose enterprise has given to the city one of its chief mercantile establishments, for he is now at the head of the Bailey Dry Goods Company, owners of a well appointed dry-goods and department store. He was born in Circleville, Ohio, June 14, 1844, his parents being William D. and Eliza (Smith) Bailey, natives of Penn- sylvania and Maryland respectively. The latter was a daughter of a sea captain, who died, however, when Mrs. Bailey was an infant. He represented one of the oldest American families, being a descendant of Captain John Smith.
William D. Bailey was a printer by trade and for fifty-three years was iden- tified with that business. He established the Des Moines Register, but afterward returned to, Pennsylvania, residing successively in Harrisburg, Williamsport and Wellsboro, after which he took up his abode at Bellefonte, where he died when about sixty-three years of age. His wife long survived him and passed away at the age of eighty-four years. They attended the Episcopal church, but Mr. Bailey was not strongly sectarian, being on the contrary a liberal supporter of church work and maintained a seat in every church in town. During the Civil war he went to the front on an emergency call about the time of the battle of Gettysburg. In community affairs he was prominent, serving as registrar and recorder of Tioga county, Pennsylvania, for six years. In antebellum days he was a stanch abolitionist, joined the republican party on its formation to prevent the further extension of slavery and was elected to office on the first republican ticket that was placed in the field in his district. He was a warm personal friend of Horace Greeley and frequently entertained him and others prominent in the political history of the country at his home. Unto him and his wife were born
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seven children, two sons and five daughters, namely: William F., of this review ; Frances, who died at the age of twenty-one years; Mrs. Mary Elmore, a widow ; Adelaide, the wife of W. B. Rankin of Bellefonte, Pennsylvania; Newton S., a United Brethren minister at Bellefonte; and one who died in infancy.
William F. Bailey was reared in Pennsylvania, the family home being estab- lished in Harrisburg when he was but six weeks old. There he remained to the age of four years when a removal was made to Wellsboro, where he resided until he reached the age of seventeen. Just before he reached the age of seventeen he offered his services to the government in response to the need for troops to serve in the Union Army. He joined Company H, Sixth Pennsylvania Reserves, a regi- ment whose history is unique and creditable. They were the first troops rushed into Washington following the first battle of Bull Run. Mr. Bailey enlisted on the 22d of April, 1861, and served continuously until April 27, 1865; or for more than four years. He joined the army as a private and was promoted through suc- cessive grades to the rank of first lieutenant. He was wounded in the shoulder at the battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, December 13, 1862, and again on the 30th of May, 1864, at the battle of Bethesda Church when bullets pierced his foot and his leg. He took part in the battles of Drainsville, Fredericksburg, Gettys- burg, the ten days' fight in the wilderness, the second battle of Bull Run, Spott- sylvania Courthouse, North Ann River and many others of importance together with numerous skirmishes, and after being captured was incarcerated in Libby Prison at Andersonville and at Florence. Few can show as extended military record or one which indicates more strenuous service.
After the war Mr. Bailey studied in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, for six months and then went to Atchison, Kansas, where he remained for a year and a half, engaged in the dry-goods business. He next went to New York city, where he lived for three and a half years and during that period was married in Brook- lyn, New York. While in the metropolis he acted as buyer for a syndicate owning a dry-goods store. Later he went to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, where he re- mained for several years and for three years was proprietor of a store at Rebers- burg. At Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, he engaged in the publication of a news- paper for a year and in May, 1879, became a resident of Illinois, at which time he located in Galesburg, there conducting a dry-goods business until 1895, when ill health caused him to seek a change of climate and he went to North Carolina. On the 12th of December, 1898, he came to Galva, where he opened a dry-goods store, which has since been conducted under the name of the Bailey Dry Goods Company. This establishment occupies a large double store room and a number of sales people are employed. The company maintains a high standard in the personnel of the store, in the line of goods carried and in the service rendered to the public and its patronage has continually increased as the result of the re- liable business methods of the house and the earnest efforts puts forth to please the patrons.
On the 3d of December, 1868, Mr. Bailey was married to Miss Henrietta Graves, a daughter of Major William Graves. Mrs. Bailey was born amid the far-famed lakes of Killarney and leaving the Emerald isle when a maiden of thirteen summers came to America and was reared in Brooklyn, New York. She traces her ancestry back to the Earl of Vincent and even back to William the
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Conqueror. Her parents were natives of England and her father, who served in the war of 1812, was wounded in the knee at the battle of New Orleans. Mr. and Mrs. Bailey have but one daughter, Marcella Henrietta. The parents are members of the Episcopal church, in the work of which they take active and helpful part, Mr. Bailey frequently leading the church services.
His political endorsement is given to the republican party and while residing in Galesburg, he served for one term as alderman. He holds membership in Galva post, G. A. R., and in all his life he has been as loyal to the duties of citizenship and to the interests of the country at large as when he followed the old flag on southern battle fields. While he is one of the more recent additions to the business circles of Galva, he is today regarded as one of the city's most enterprising and progressive merchants and his record is a valuable asset in her commercial history.
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