USA > Illinois > Henry County > History of Henry County, Illinois, Volume II > Part 96
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A republican in politics, Mr. Hanlon is active in his support of the party and has rendered it and his district good service as a member of the school board for twenty-five years. He is a member of Galva Grange, No. 1591, Patrons of Hus- bandry, and has been master of the grange and filled all the other offices. He is also a member of the Fraternal Tribune and takes a deep interest in the work of the Ontario Christian church and its Sunday school, of which his wife is a mem- ber.
On October 13, 1879, Mr. Hanlon was married to Augusta A. Brown, a daughter of Jeremiah J. and Catherine (Protsman) Brown, residents of Weller township at that time, but in the fall of 1893 they went further west and have since lived in Oregon and California. Mr. and Mrs. Brown are still living, he being eighty years and she seventy-five years old and both are enjoying excellent health. Mr. and Mrs. Hanlon have had four children, as follows: Jessie, who married Fred M. Lindholm, of Galva, Illinois; Frank J., who is married and farming in Clover township; and Edward A. and Mildred A., who are at home.
Mr. Hanlon has not only made a material success of his life but he has demon- strated that it is possible to influence his community for good while attending to his own affairs. Although he secured but an elementary education he supple- mented it with experience and is one of the well informed men of Henry county.
DANIEL C. KELEHER.
Daniel C. Keleher, who operates his father's farm of four hundred acres, located on section 14, Western township, was born on this place, August 21, 1870, a son of Daniel L. and Ellen (Currin) Keleher. The father was identified with agricultural interests in Henry county throughout a long period but he and his wife are now living retired in Orion.
Daniel C. Keleher was reared on the home farm and began his studies in the district schools, this knowledge being supplemented by a course in the Geneseo Collegiate Institute, from which he was graduated in the class of 1892. After completing his studies he returned to the home farm and resumed work in this connection, assisting his father during the succeeding six year.s He was then
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married and since that time has operated the farm on his own account. This tract embraces four hundred acres, so that he carries on business on a large scale. He is engaged in general farming and also raises and feeds stock on an extensive scale.
It was on the 28th of December, 1898, in Moline, Illinois, that Mr. Keleher wedded Miss Abigail Purse, who was born in Western township, a daughter of Robert and Margaret (Montgomery) Purse. Mrs. Keleher was educated in Shurtleff College near St. Louis, Missouri, and engaged in teaching for several years prior to her marriage. She is the mother of one son, Percy, born in West- ern township, on the 3d of December, 1899.
Mr. Keleher is a strong temperance man, voting for the men and measures or prohibition. He and his wife are members of the Baptist church, in which he has filled various offices, while socially they are identified with the Farmers So- cial Club. Having spent their entire lives in Western township, they are well known, and have a large circle of warm friends.
CHARLES F. SCHROEDER.
Charles F. Schroeder, one of the native farmers and stockmen of Edford township, was born June 21, 1870, and is a son of G. H. and W. C. (Weigand) Schroeder, who were for many years members of the agricultural community here. On the 27th of January, 1897, he wedded Miss Florence B. Whiteline, who was born in Morristown, Osco township, Henry county, November 18, 1871, and whose parents are the late J. J. and Christine (Rapp) Whiteline. Reared to the life of a farmer, Mr. Schroeder has devoted all his energies to that line of work with a success that has made possible the acquirement of some valuable land. He pursues general farming and has also engaged in the raising and feeding of stock.
WILLIAM C. STICKNEY.
To the financiers of every community are due in large measure the financial standing of the locality and its people, for through them are all transactions in- fluenced and commercial ratings based. William C. Stickney, of Woodhull, is one of the ablest of Henry county bankers. He was born in Brighton, Massa- chusetts, September 6, 1846, a son of Henry Stickney, who was born in Grafton, Vermont, January 29, 1807. On June 2, 1837, the father married Mary Ann Wood, of Ridge, New Hampshire. For a number of years he resided at Cam- bridgeport, where he engaged in a grain business, and for several years he was a commission merchant at Nos. 8 and 9, Chatham Row, Boston, in partnership with his brother Isaac Stickney.
In 1853 Henry Stickney brought his family to Woodhull, Illinois, where he had purchased large tracts of land, he and his brother Isaac owning about two thousand acres. Unfortunately, he was accidentally killed November 16, 1866,
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his widow surviving him until February, 1888, when she too passed away, and both were interred in the beautiful Woodhull cemetery. He left his impress upon Woodhull and the county and is still remembered as one of the representa- tive men of his time. He and his wife had the following five children: Henry born November 7, 1838, died April 25, 1881 ; Alfred born July 3, 1840, is a large landowner and capitalist of Woodhull; Idalia, born March 25, 1842, died April 12, 1844; William Curtis is the subject of this review; and Carrie Wood, born October 6, 1856, is now Mrs. Henry W. Crain, of Knox county.
Reared on his father's farm, William C. Stickney helped about the place and attended the public schools of Woodhull as well as Knox College at Galesburg. After the death of his father, in conjunction with his two older brothers, he en- gaged in operating the old homestead, which is still in the family, and occupied by William W. Stickney, a son of our subject, a sketch of whom appears else- where in this work. Here he lived continuously until May 26, 1892, when he re- moved to Woodhull, which has since been his home. Mr. Stickney has met with unusual success and owns in addition to the homestead of three hundred and twenty acres, six hundred and forty acres in Alberta, Canada, and considerable real estate in Woodhull. He and Robert L. Woods own the Farmers Bank of Woodhull, which was the first bank organized in the city and the only one until 1909. His association with this bank commenced in 1880, and his efforts have built it up until it is one of the most reliable in Henry county. It is thoroughly equipped with vaults, time locks and screw lock safes, as complete as any to be found in the large cities and the business done by it, which is of a general bank- ing character, is very large. Mr. Stickney is also connected with the Peoples Bank, which was organized in December, 1908. This is also a private bank and second only to the Farmers bank, and it too is thoroughly modern. Mr. Stick- ney is one of the wealthiest men of Henry county and holds the full confidence of all who know him.
He was married April 13, 1870, to Ida A. Clarke, a daughter of Janson and Grace (Stowe) Clarke, of Woodhull, who came originally from Connecticut. Mr. and Mrs. Stickney had four children, namely: William W., who has been already mentioned; Grace M., who married Walter A. Davis, of Hale, Missouri; Etta C., who died in infancy; and Henry C., who is at home. The wife and mother died April 30, 1891. On January 21, 1903, Mr. Stickney was again married, his second union being with Viola Ridenour, a daughter of Granville J. and Sarah (Green) Ridenour. Mrs. Stickney was born in Seneca, Kansas, although her family came from Ohio. Mr. Ridenour was a farmer who went to Kansas from Ohio at an early day but before his demise in 1907, the family removed to Phoe- nix, Arizona. Mrs. Ridenour died ten years before her husband. Mrs. Stick- ney was the first graduate from the Galesburg Training School for Nurses in 1896, her previous education having been obtained in the common and high schools of Seneca, Kansas. She is an artist of more than ordinary ability, paint- ing exquisitely on china and carving in wood with considerable skill. She is one of a family of thirteen children, all of whom are now living. For several years she was a nurse in Galesburg before her marriage and she is one of the most accomplished ladies in Woodhull, where she has gathered about her a circle of appreciative friends.
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Mr. Stickney is a republican and has been called upon to fill a number of im- portant offices within the gift of his party. In 1894 he was elected to the thirty- ninth general assembly from Henry county and assisted in passing some import- ant legislation. He has been a delegate to numerous district, county and state conventions and was a member from the county of the first board of review appointed after the enacting of the law governing it. He is a man of strong pur- pose and determined character and never fails to accomplish whatever he under- takes.
WILLIS E. ROBERTS.
Willis E. Roberts, one of the prosperous farmers and extensive stock breed- ers of Phenix township, was born on section 14-the same section on which he now lives,-September 29, 1859, and is a son of John J. and Nancy (McHenry) Roberts. On both sides of the family he is descended from pioneer settlers of this county. His maternal grandparents, George and Lucinda (Council) Mc- Henry, came from White county to Henry county in 1837, when there were but two families here and but one house in Rock Island. Chicago was their nearest market and the long journey was made by team. In Phenix township the Mc- Henrys preempted about six hundred acres of land, most of which has remained in the family to this day and some of which Mr. Roberts now owns. His paternal grandparents, John and Susannah (Gates) Roberts, came to Henry county in 1839, and like the McHenrys preempted land. Here they made their home for the rest of their lives. John J. Roberts and Miss Nancy McHenry were married in Phenix township, where as farming people they continued to reside through- out life. They and Mrs. George Roberts died within fourteen days of one an- other in 1890. The parents of our subject were buried in McHenry cemetery in Phenix township, but the grandparents were buried in the cemetery in Loraine township. Two sons were born to John J. Roberts and his wife: William E., the subject of this sketch; and Wilbur L., also a resident of Phenix township.
William E. Roberts received a fair education in the country schools. Reared on the farm, he worked upon it when not busy with his lessons and remained with his father even after his marriage, until he was about twenty-six years old. In 1885 he purchased one hundred and thirty acres of land from his maternal grandfather and entered upon his career as an agriculturist. He paid twenty- . four and a half dollars an acre for the land, cleared the timber from a large part of it and made all the improvements. He threw himself heart and soul into his work and in a few years had not only made this farm a paying investment but was able to buy land in other places. He now owns one hundred and ten acres on section 14, Phenix township, three hundred and twenty acres in Phil- lips county, Kansas, and some residence property in Geneseo. He lives upon the land first mentioned and there in addition to general farming raises some fine stock of pure breed-Oxford Down sheep, Poland China hogs and Guernsey cat- tle.
On the Ist of November, 1883, Mr. Roberts was united in marriage to Miss Rettie E. McGinley, of Phenix township, a daughter of John and Charlotte
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(Aldrich) McGinley. Politically Mr. Roberts is a republican and has taken an active part in matters of local interest and in political affairs, for he has served as school trustee and as trustee of the cemetery and has been a delegate to several of the party conventions, notably that at which Governor Deneen was nominated. He has made many stanch friends among his fraternal brothers of camp No. 40; M. W. A., whose meetings he attends by way of social diversion and relaxation. A successful farmer and a careful breeder he has won substantial success. More than that he enjoys the respect of those who have come in contact with him and have found him a man of sound principles.
FRANK E. GOOD.
Frank E. Good, one of the substantial and representative farmers of Henry county, is a man who has for years been convinced of the importance of agri- cultural life and the future this locality offers to the modern farmer. He was born east of Kewanee, December 20, 1860, and has spent his life in this locality. After being educated in the district school and those of Kewanee, he taught school during the winter for four years from the time he was twenty, and then rented a farm for twelve years. By this time he had saved sufficient money to buy one hundred and eight acres of land, which was the beginning of his home- stead. To this he added one hundred and sixty acres more in 1905 and now has one of the best farms in Kewanee township. In addition to his farming property he is interested in the Kewanee National bank.
On June 7, 1887, Mr. Good married Miss Franc Porter, a daughter of James and Amanda Porter, a complete sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this his- tory. Three children have been born of this marriage: Leslie Porter, Glenn Samuel and Frank Allen James.
Since attaining his majority Mr. Good has been very active in the work of the republican party and has often been called upon to represent it upon the ticket and for three years he has served as assessor, for the past quarter of a century he has been school director, and has also been road overseer. In each office Mr. Good has always striven to do his full duty and that he has succeeded is proven by his being reelected so often. Fraternally he is a member of the Improved Order of Red Men. A hard working man, he has succeeded in his farming and takes a pride in his premises and the results of his efforts. He belongs to one of the old families here and is a worthy representative of it.
EDGAR C. LOVE.
Energy, industry and perseverance have characterized the efforts of Edgar C. Love, an enterprising and progressive young farmer of Western township, his native township, his birth occurring in Orion in 1882. His parents, William and Isabelle (Lloyd) Love, were natives of Ireland and Illinois respectively. The
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father, a farmer by occupation, was numbered among the veterans of the Civil war, serving for almost four years as a member of Company B, Sixty-fifth Illi- nois Volunteer Infantry. He passed away in Rock Island, Illinois, in 1895, while his wife survived until 1909, her death also occurring in that city. She was the second daughter of Mahlon B. Lloyd, the first settler of Western township, who took up his abode within its borders in 1837. Her sister, who married Leonard R. Bothwell, is the only surviving member of the Lloyd family. The subject is one of a family of five children born unto Mr. and Mrs. William Love, only two of whom survive, the other being an elder brother, William A., a lawyer of Chi- cago, Illinois, who was educated in the University of Michigan.
Passing the years of his boyhood and youth on his father's farm in Henry county, Edgar C. Love acquired his early education in the public schools and later supplemented this training by a course of study in Knox College of Gales- burg, from which institution he was graduated with the class of 1903. After leaving college he took up the occupation of farming in Henry county and is to- day engaged in the conduct of the old home farm, which consists of two hun- dred and forty-two acres located on section 27, Western township. This farm under his careful and wise management has been brought under a high state of cultivation and is one of the valuable and desirable properties in the township. He has carried on his enterprise in accordance with progressive and up-to-date methods and as a reward for his care and labor he annually reaps rich golden harvests.
It was in 1906 that Mr. Love was united in marriage to Miss Gertrude K. Baker, who was born in Davenport, Iowa, a daughter of James and Mat -. tie (Davis) Baker, both of whom passed away in Iowa. The father was born in Pennsylvania and the mother in Davenport, and in their family were two chil- dren: Gertrude K., the wife of our subject; and Lamont, residing in Minneap- olis, Minnesota. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Love has been born one child, Katherine Isabel, whose birth occurred on the 22d of June, 1907, and who is the light and life of the household. In politics Mr. Love supports the republican party and is public spirited and loyal in his citizenship. Although still young in years, he has attained a degree of success which augurs well for a bright future. He has many friends in Western township, where almost his entire life has been spent, and is held in high regard and esteem by all who know him.
WILLIAM G. WOLF.
William G. Wolf, one of the larger farmers and stockmen of Geneseo town- ship, was born in Hooppole, Yorkstown township, this county, September 13, 1868. His parents, Jacob and Margaret (Shafer) Wolf, were both born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, but came to America singly and before their parents, though these followed them to the United States after their children had made a place to receive them. Jacob Wolf was a soldier in the German army and after the conclusion of the war that was then waging he came to America. Upon his arrival in this part of the country he secured employment in a packing house in
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Peoria and while there the woman he had loved and courted in his old home came over. The couple were married in that city and then removed to York- town township, this county. After a short residence there they located in Gene- seo, where Mr. Wolf purchased forty acres of land just east of the fair grounds. This place remained his home until his death. Thirteen children were born to him and his wife, but only five grew to years of maturity, namely: Catherine, who married Henry Ott; Jacob, who lives in Hooppole; Aaron, deceased in 1906, who married first Miss Christina Smith, by whom he had one child, and then Miss Leva Swanson, by whom he had another child; William G., of this review ; and Amelia, who married William Miller and lives in Yorktown township.
William G. Wolf was reared at home and was about eight years old when his parents removed to Geneseo. He received a fair common school education, worked with his father during his boyhood and youth and after the latter's death continued on the farm to assist his mother. In 1888, when he was twenty years old, he married, and in the spring of the following year he removed to the James Mahon farm, which he rented. Subsequently he bought the Daniel Hoit place, which is situated near his present home, and a few years later purchased the land where he is living today, which increased his holdings to three hundred and fifty- six acres, all in one farm. The many modern buildings that are to be seen upon the place are the result of his labors, as are the many other improvements that bespeak the skill of the thrifty farmer. For more than fifteen years Mr. Wolf has been raising melons. He began on a small scale, planting only three acres, but has several times devoted twenty-six acres to that fruit and is the most ex- tensive raiser of melons in Henry county. He has also given considerable atten- tion to the breeding and feeding of pure blooded black polled Angus cattle and as his animals are of high grade he finds a ready market and good price for them.
At Cooper, Iowa, on the 3d of November, 1888, Mr. Wolf and Miss Minnie Dewey were united in marriage. She was born in Geneseo township and is a daughter of Henry and Sarah A. (DeGolia) Dewey. Seven children have been born of this marriage: Grace, Hazel, Wanda, Grant, Eva, Clarence and Bonnie.
While not a politician nor an office seeker, Mr. Wolf is always at the polls on election day, when his ballot is cast for the candidates of the republican party. He takes an interest in local affairs and for several years served his township as one of the school directors. He is a member of camp No. 40, M. W. A., and not only enjoys the society of his fraternal brothers but is willing to exert himself to their advantage.
PETER HEDLUND.
Peter Hedlund, deceased, was one of the well-to-do farmers of Henry county, living on section 7, Galva township. Of Swedish birth and parentage he was born February 21, 1840, in Handbu, Helsingland. His parents, Carl and Anna (Olson) Hedlund, both claimed Helsingland as their birthplace and America as the land of their adoption. The father died in middle life on Lake Michigan while on his way to Bishop Hill, but the mother survived the journey and
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reached the little Swedish colony. In 1862 she removed to Galva township, where in 1886 she died at the advanced age of eighty years. Three sons and one daughter were born to Carl Hedlund and his wife: Olof, of Sweden; Carl, deceased; Peter, of this review ; and Anna, the wife of Eric Nystrum, of Bishop Hill. The two oldest sons were both soldiers, Olof in the regular army of Sweden and Carl in the Civil war in this country. The father was a tailor by trade and also a farmer.
Peter Hedlund was but ten years of age when the family came to this coun- try, and he grew to manhood in Bishop Hill. His days were devoted to farm work, and on many an occasion he drove a yoke of oxen in breaking prairie. In 1862 he removed to Galva township, where he first shared a small tract of land with the Bishop Hill colony, and later bought a little place of his own, to which he added continually until at the time of his death he had accumulated about one hundred and seventy-eight and a half acres. On this tract he made his home, having improved it with a good house, a barn and other buildings and brought the soil to a greater productiveness.
Mr. Hedlund was married on the 22d of June, 1867, to Miss Anna Ander- son, a daughter of Andrew and Anna (Peterson) Anderson. She was of Swedish birth, having been born in Westmanland, July 30, 1837, and of Swedish ancestry. Of her parental grandfather, who died before she was born, Mrs. Hedlund remembers very little, but her maternal grandfather was Peter Gregu- lius, a native of Sweden and a farmer. His wife was Catherine Gregulius and was about eighty years of age at the time of her death. They had six daughters and one one son: Catherine, Christine, Gregulius, Anna, Beta, Brita and Mar- garet. Mrs. Hedlund's parents, also of Swedish birth, came to America in 1850 with the Bishop Hill colony, in whose midst the children grew to maturity. In 1863 the family came to Galva township, which was their home until the death of the parents, the father dying in 1886 at the age of seventy-nine, the mother the following year at the age of eighty. There were five children, three sons and two daughters born to the couple: Peter, Andrew, John, Anna and Catharine. The last named died on the Atlantic, while coming to America.
To Mr. and Mrs. Hedlund were born four children, two sons and two daughters : Peter E., Laura A., Alice A. and Charles A. Three of the children live at home, but Alice has married Charles Stoneberg, who lives two miles north of Bishop Hill, and they have two sons, Charles H. and John E. Mr. Hedlund gave allegiance to no political party, but cast his vote as seemed to him right. A good man and true, he was deeply mourned when, at the age of fifty-five years, he was called away, June 9, 1895.
ALFRED BOHMAN.
The characteristics of thrift and energy, so strongly manifested in the Swe- dish race, are notable factors in the life of Alfred Bohman, who operates a valu- able farm of two hundred and seventy-five acres, located on section 21, Western township. He was born on a farm in Oxford township, Henry county, April 15,
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1872, the only child of Gust and Hannah (Lindburg) Bohman, both of whom were natives of Sweden. The father came to America in 1869, when a young man, and the mother was fourteen years of age when she accompanied her parents to the new world. Both located in Oxford township and it was there the two young people became acquainted and later married. Although the father was in very limited financial circumstances when he landed on American shores, he possessed a determination that is alawys sure to win success and as the years passed he worked on earnestly and diligently and is now a well-to-do man. Both parents still survive and make their home in Oxford township, which has been the place of their residence for many years.
Alfred Bohman was reared to farm life, assisting his father in the work of the home place during the spring and summer seasons, while in the winter months he gave his time to the acquirement of an education in the district schools. He was married on the 23d of September, 1897, in Oxford township, to Miss Anna Person, who is a native of Sweden but came to the United States with her parents when a young lady of seventeen years. After his marriage, Mr. Bohman continued with his parents on the home farm until 1901, when he removed to his present farm of two hundred and seventy-five acres on section 21, Western township. He has here such a home as is always found in possession of his countrymen, for investigation usually reveals the fact that the best improved farms and the most modern country residences in this section of the county are those that belong to the Swedish race. Mr. Bohman follows general farming to some extent but is also largely engaged in raising and feeding stock, which he ships to the city markets. He keeps only the best grades and therefore his stock always demands good prices.
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