USA > Illinois > Jersey County > History of Jersey County, Illinois > Part 54
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY
On February 25, 1880, Mr. IIerdman was married to Helen Allen Parish, born at Delhi, Jersey County, Ill., a daughter of James W. and Mary Ann (Allen) Parish, natives of Hannibal, Mo., and Phila- delphia, Pa., respectively. Mr. and Mrs. Herdman have had the follow- ing children born to them : William James, who lives at Toronto, Can- ada, patent attorney and electrical engineer; Effie Elvera who is Mrs. Charles Lester Cole of Grand Rapids, Mich .; and George W. who died in infancy. The father of the subject of this sketch was a Scotchman, and his mother was an Irish woman. The ancestors of William John Herdman came over to England with the forces of William the Con- queror, and settled in southwestern Scotland, and from therc some of them crossed the channel into north Ireland.
HICKMAN, Dean Page, a general farmer and stock raiser of Fidel- ity Township, Jersey County, Ill., was born in this township October 28, 1868, a son of John B. and Celinda E. (Chapman) Hickman, he born in New Jersey in 1834, and she in Fidelity Township in 1832. John B. Hickman came to Illinois with his parents, James and Ann (Blake) Hickman, natives of Maine and Massachusetts, respectively. In the same party were Thomas and Ann (Crabb) Chapman. The latter located in Fidelity Township, Jersey County, while the former went into Hancock County, and later to Carthage, Mo., both entering gov- ernment land. James Hickman died at the latter place. After John B. Hickman and Celinda E. Chapman were married, in 1865. they located on forty acres of land in Fidelity Township, which she inherited from her father, and on it she had built a brick residence. He carried on farming, although in young manhood he was a carpenter. His death occurred March 31. 1917, the mother of Mr. Hickman having dicd August 23, 1912. Their children were as follows: Anna, who died when twenty years old; J. D., who lives at St. Louis, Mo. ; Dean Page ; and Drew, who died in infancy.
Dean Page Hickman attended the district schools, and Blackburn University at Carlinville Ill., and assisted his father on the farm. On October 7, 1895, he was married to Adeline Robertson, born in Piasa Township January 26, 1871, a daughter of Donald and Lydia (Marston) Robertson, natives of Scotland and Philadelphia, Pa., respectively, and granddaughter of Alexander Robertson and Oliver and Elizabeth (Power) Marston. The paternal grandfather was born October 16, 1826, and came to Ontario, Canada, with his parents, in 1838. There he learned the stone cutting trade, and worked at it for some time in various parts of the United States until 1856 when he came to Jersey County. and assisted in the construction of the Chicago and Alton Rail- road from Kane to Godfrey. On May 6, 1858, he was married to Lydia A. Marston, who died in 1879, and he died January 31, 1887. Mrs. Hickman attended the district schools. She is a member of the Metho- dist Episcopal Church, of Brighton, Ill. In politics Mr. Hickman is a Republican.
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY
HILDRED, William, a prosperous farmer and stockraiser of Otter Creek Township, is one of the progressive agriculturists of Jersey County. He was born in Lincolnshire, England, November 8, 1845, a son -of Joseph and Eliza (Copeland) Hildred, both of whom died in England. In 1869 William Hildred came to the United States, and after spending a few months in Wisconsin, located in Jersey County. Ilere he was employed by farmers in Jersey Township until 1877. In that year he took a lease on the Ritchey land, in Otter Creek Town- ship, and lived on that farm until 1881, when he moved to his present farm of eighty acres in the northeastern part of Otter Creek Township, which he had bought. At that time but little of it was cleared, but since then he has developed the farm, erected all of the buildings and made other improvements. To the original eighty acres, which are now all cleared, he has added eighty acres, all of which he has cleared, and now has it in grain and pasture. Until the spring of 1917 he operated a dairy but then sold it, and is now devoting himself to the raising of Duroc-Jersey thoroughbred hogs. Mr. Hildred defines as his reason for his success the fact that he has always kept busy and has never been afraid of work.
On November 11. 1869, William Hildred was married to Sabina Hildred, born July 2, 1844, in Lincolnshire, England, a daughter of John and Sabina (Dales) Hildred, who died in England. Mr. and Mrs. William Hildred became the parents of the following children : Joseph Henry, who lives in Ruyle Township, was married to Ida Murphy, now deceased. and they had three children, Florence, who was married to John H. Frost, has two children, Clarice E., and Floyd R., and William O. and Jennie E. : Jennie May, who is at home ; John Edward, who is also at home; Jerome, who is a resident of Jersey Township, was mar- ried to Laura Baldridge, and they have three children, William H .. Calista, and Laura E. ; Oscar, who lives at Wellington, Col., was mar- ried to Addie Bentley, and their children are, Bessie I., Richard D., Wanda, Perley, Max B., Margaret L. and Hazel L., these two being twins ; Clarence, who is at home : Elizabeth Mary, who is Mrs. Wesley (". Calhoun, of Fidelity Township, has one child, Elizabeth ; and Amy Sarah, who is Mrs. Noble Calhoun, of Otter Creek Township, has two children, Charles E. and Ruth E. In politics Mr. Hildred is a Repub- lican. The family belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church, to which he donates liberally.
HOMER, James William, who is successfully engaged in farming in the vicinity of Grafton, is one of the energetic men of Jersey County. He was born at Springfield, Ill., January 9, 1870, a son of Matthew and Mary (Welsh) Homer, the latter of whom died in October, 1912. Their children were as follows: Sarah Shaw, who lives at Fieldon, Ill. ; and James William. When the parents came to Illinois they stopped first at Springfield, and then went to Calhoun County.
When he was about twenty years old, James William Homer came to Grafton, where he was united in marriage with Miss Laura Davis.
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born in Jersey County, May 19, 1874. Her four sisters and three brothers are all living in Jersey County. Mr. and Mrs. Davis survive and make their home with their daughter, Mrs. Homer. Mr. and Mrs. Homer have five children, namely: James Clifton, Charles Wesley, Clara Marie, Mary L. and Preston Edwin. Mr. Homer has lived in the vicinity of Grafton ever since he came to Jersey County. He owns and operates land, and is making a success of his undertaking because he understands farming in all its details. He is a member of the Presbyterian Church. In politics he is a Republican, but has been too much occupied with his farming to care to enter public life.
HOUGHTLIN, William H. H., was born near Gettysburg, Pa., November 6, 1840, one of a family of eight children, of whom an elder sister of Kingfisher, Okla., and he are the only survivors. In the spring of 1843 the family moved to Ohio, but returned to Pennsyl- vania in the spring of 1849. From the spring of 1853 to that of 1855, William II. II. Houghtlin worked in a general store, and then he spent three consecutive summers working on a farm, attending school during the winter months. During the winter terms of 1857, 1858, 1859, he taught school, and in the spring of 1859, he apprenticed himself to the stone cutter's trade. During the Civil War, he served as a noncom- missioned officer. Late in 1866, he came to Springfield, Ill., but re- turned to Pennsylvania in 1867, to superintend the construction of a monument to the soldiers of the Mexican War, which was placed in the capitol grounds at Harrisburg, which monument he had designed prior to going to Springfield.
On May 7, 1868, Mr. Houghtlin was married (first) to Miss Jennie L. McFettridge, at her home in Philadelphia, Pa., after which he returned to Springfield, Ill., to work on the construction of the State House. His brother, David M. Houghtlin, was foreman of the setting, and Mr. Houghtlin was made foreman of the stone cutting. The foun- dation walls of the State House are 8 feet wide and 8 feet deep, and the foundation for the dome rests on a bed of coal, 18 feet below the surface. All of the columns rest on inverted arches. During the ses- sion of the legislature of 1868, it was determined to have some of the stone cutting done by inmates of the penitentiary. When Mr. Houghtlin and his brother discovered that such a condition existed, they felt that it would not be consistent with their understanding of the ethics of mechanics to continue on the works and they resigned and came to Jerseyville, where they went into business for themselves, under the style of Houghtlin Bros., which they kept for over ten years, and then changed it to that of the Jerseyville Granite and Marble Works. David M. Houghtlin died in 1904, and since that time Mr. Houghtlin has had other partners.
Mr. Houghtlin had only been in Jerseyville three weeks when his first wife died, April 28, 1869, and he took her remains back to Phila- delphia, and had them laid to rest in Laurel Hill Cemetery. On Octo- ber 20, 1872, Mr. Houghtlin was married (second) to Susan L. Love,
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY
at her home in Calhoun County, Ill., and she died August 25, 1915. She was the mother of five children, three of whom survive.
HUNT, David W., one of the substantial and successful real estate operators of Jerseyville, is a man well and favorably known through- out Jersey County. He was born in Mercer County, N. J., October 22, 1844, a son of John D. and Lucy (Servis) Hunt, natives of New Jersey, where their useful lives were spent.
David W. Hunt spent his boyhood in his native state, and attended a preparatory school at Pennington, N. J., and when he was eighteen years old he began working for neighboring farmers. After a year at this kind of work, he began learning blacksmithing, and served an apprenticeship of three years. He then enlisted in the Second New Jersey militia as a reserve, and served about three months. During 1868 he came to Illinois, and spent a short time visiting at Jerseyville before proceeding to near St. Louis, Mo., where he worked on a farm for five years. He then returned to Illinois, and was engaged in farm- ing in Sangamon County for four years. Coming then into possession of his father's homestead in New Jersey, he returned to it, and was there engaged in farming for twenty years. At the expiration of that time he moved to Jersey County and bought a farm in Jersey Township, conducting it for four years. Selling it he came to Jersey- ville and went into the real estate business with the Flemming, Dolan Realty Company, but after four years withdrew and established his present business which he has since conducted.
On January 21, 1869, Mr. Hunt was married to Georgiana Davis, born in Jersey County, Ill., a daughter of John W. and Eliza (Fitz- gerald) Davis, natives of North Carolina and Jersey County, Ill., respectively. Mrs. Hunt died in New Jersey. Mr. and Mrs. Hunt became the parents of the following children : John Lewis, who lives at New York City; Harry, who died at the age of twenty-six years ; Judson D., who lives in Jersey County; A. S., who is a physician of Jerseyville; Douglas, who lives in Morgan County, Ill .; Charles, who lives in Jersey County, Ill .; Nellie, who is Mrs. James Parcell of Jer- sey County ; and Lorenzo Dow, who died at the age of eight years. Mr. Hunt was married (second). January 20, 1901, in Jersey County to Lucy J. Hutchens, widow of Delaney Hutchins. They have had five children : Eva J., Walter A., Gertrude M., Callie S., and Clarence, who is deceased. Mr. Hunt and his wife are members of the Baptist Church. A Democrat, he served for four years as commissioner of highways in New Jersey, and in Illinois, in 1909, he was elected a justice of the peace and has held that office ever since. Since 1909 he has served continuously also as deputy coroner. A Mason in good standing he belongs to Jerseyville Lodge No. 394, A. F. & A. M., and served as master of the lodge at Hopewell, N. J.
JACOBY, Louis C., secretary and manager of the undertaking and furniture firm of Jacoby Bros., is one of the substantial men of Jersey-
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ville. He was born at Brighton, Ill., April 10, 1869, a son of Henry and Catherine (Peiter) Jacoby, natives of Germany, who came to the United States in December, 1855, by way of New Orleans, La. From that city they came up the Mississippi River to Cairo, Ill. At that point the vessel carrying them was frozen fast in the ice in the river, and while they were thus detained, one of the children, Casper J. Jacoby, was born. After being released from the ice, the little party went with teams to Macoupin County, Ill., where the father obtained work as a stone mason, later becoming a farmer. He died in 1885, and the mother in 1901. The children of this marriage were as follows: Lizzie, Eliza- beth, Rev. Philip, and Philipina, all of whom are deceased; Casper J., who lives at Alton, Ill. ; Minnie, who is Mrs. H. A. Hoffmann, who lives at Alton, Ill .; Henry C., who lives at San Jose, Cal., is a Methodist minister ; William C., who lives at Bunker Hill, Ill .; Mary, who is Mrs. Henry Hanold of Brighton, Ill., owns the family home; and Louis C., who is the youngest.
Louis C. Jacoby attended the district schools and worked on his father's farm until he was seventeen years old, at which time he went to work for his brother in a furniture and undertaking business at Bunker Hill, Ill. After three years he went to Highland, Ill., and was employed in a furniture store for a few months, when he came to Jersey- ville, and with his four brothers. Philip W., C. J., Henry C. and William C., formed a stock company, in March, 1891, and opened a store. On December 24, 1899, Philip Jacoby died, and in 1901 the heirs of his estate were bought out by the four other brothers. In 1903 the brothers bought the Bunker Hill store, making it a branch of the Jerseyville establishment, and Louis C. Jacoby is secretary of the corporation and manager of the Jerseyville store. The company handles all kinds of furniture, and conducts a first-class undertaking business. The officers of the company are as follows: William C., president ; Henry C., vice president ; C. J., treasurer ; and Louis C., secretary and manager.
On May 3, 1892, Louis C. Jacoby was married to Charlotte E. King- ston, born at Fidelity, Jersey County, Ill., a daughter of Dr. Thomas A. and Kate C. (Frost) Kingston, natives of Kentucky and Jersey County, respectively. Mr. and Mrs. Jacoby became the parents of the following children : Evangeline : Leslie K., who is in business with his father : Pauline and Paul, twins; and Alice Louise, Theodore Louis, Maurice Henry, and Rodman Charles. Politically he is a Republican, and fra- ternally is a Mason and Odd Fellow, serving in all the offices of the I. O. O. F. and the Encampment, and also belongs to the Modern Wood- men of America. In addition to his other interests, Mr. Jacoby is a director of the Jerseyville Building and Loan Association.
JEWSBURG, Charles S., the capable and courteous express agent for the American Express Company at Jerseyville, is one of the sub- stantial men of Jersey County. He is a son of Ebenezer Calvin and Martha J. (Brown) Jewsburg. His father was born in Morgan County, Ill., of English parentage, and his mother was born in Macoupin
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HISTORY OF JERSEY COUNTY
County, Ill., of Irish parentage. They had the following children: Joseph R., who lives in Calhoun County, Ill., is a farmer and fruit grower; Harriet C., who was married to Oscar Clarke, resides at Alton, Ill .; Charles S .; Maude, who is deceased; Harry C., who resides in Jersey County ; John C., who resides at St. Louis, Mo., is a quarter- master in the United States Army; Martha J., who married Clark Landis, lives at Alton, Ill .; Elizabethi J., who married Samuel Sewell; and Mary E., who lives at Jerseyville. The father of this family died in 1914, and the mother died December, 1915. They were consistent members of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church.
Charles S. Jewsburg attended the schools of Jerseyville, and was graduated therefrom in 1898. Following that he was engaged in farming for six years. Desiring a change, he went to Los Angeles, Cal., and for two years worked as a paperhanger and painter, and when he returned to Illinois, he worked along the same lines at Jacksonville. Coming to Jerseyville, he conducted a grocery for two years, and then in April, 1917, the American Express Company secured his services as agent for their company, which office he is still holding. In politics he is a Republican, while in religious faith he is a Baptist.
On October 8, 1904, Mr. Jewsburg was married to Mae Young of Jacksonville, who died in 1909, having borne him a son, Lloyd E., who died in 1911. Mr. Jewsburg was married (second) to Miss Fannie Catt, whose parents are honored residents of Jerseyville. Mr. and Mrs. Jewsburg have one son, Donald C,. who was born October 29, 1916. Mrs. Jewsburg is also a member of the Baptist Church.
JOHNS, Charles Wesley, one of the substantial business men of Jerseyville, is sole proprietor of Johns' Smokeless Fuel Economizer, which is one of the modern inventions which are so revolutionizing methods in these days. He was born at Medora, Ill., October 23, 1880, a son of William F. and Anne Locella (Simpson) Johns, he born in Ger- many and she in Medora, Ill. When he was six years old, the father came with his parents to the United States, having been born January 5, 1841. In 1851 they came to Medora, Ill. and here he later met and married Anne L. Simpson. They settled at Medora after their mar- riage, and here he conducted a tinning business until 1909, and then embarked in a photographing business at Jacksonville, Ill., which he is still operating.
Charles Wesley Johns attended the grammar and high schools of Medora until he was sixteen years old, and then went into a laundry business at Shreveport, La. Later he was at Long View, Tex., for a time, but subsequently went to Chicago, and was there employed in a laundry until 1901, at which time he came to Jerseyville and bought a laundry and conducted it until 1915, when he secured a patent upon the device which bears his name, to which he is selling rights, and his success shows that people are appreciating its value and usefulness.
On April 3, 1901, Mr. Johns was married to Mattie B. Rhoades, born at Medora, Ill., a daughter of Walter A. and Sarah E. (Rhoades)
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Rhoades, he born at Charlottesville, Va. and she at Medora, Ill. Mr. and Mrs. Johns have two children: William W., who was born Decem- ber 23, 1902; and Eula F., who was born September 18, 1905. They are members of the Baptist Church. In politics a Republican, he served as a member of the city council from the Fourth Ward for one term. Fraternally he is a Royal Arch Mason, an Odd Fellow, Elk, and Modern Woodman of America, and Mrs. Johns is a member of the Eastern Star and the Rebekahs. The son is a boy scout, and both children are very talented musically. This is a patriotic family, and is typical of the element of true Americanism that has made this country what it is, and promises to keep up the high standard raised by Revolutionary fore- fathers.
KIRBY, Charles Henry, one of the substantial farmers of Jersey County, owns and operates a fine farm in Richwoods Township, and also owns additional property in this township. He was born in Mississippi Township October 10, 1854, a son of George W. and Margaret E. (Utt) Kirby, natives of New Jersey and Ohio, respectively. After their mar- riage, in this section of the state, they settled on a farm in Mississippi Township, and here the father died in 1872, the mother surviving him until 1904. Their children were as follows: Charles Henry ; Etta, who is the widow of George Reed of Texas; Fannie, who is Mrs. Abbott, of California.
Charles Henry Kirby attended the schools of his district until he was sixteen years old, and then took a three-year course at Shurtleff College at Upper Alton. In 1879 he began farming for himself in Mississippi Township, remaining there until 1886, when he sold the farm he had bought in 1879, and came to Richwoods Township where he owns 586 acres of land. Until 1910 he superintended the farming of the whole property, but in that year and since has rented a portion of it. With the exception of 160 acres of timberland, the property is all under cultivation.
In 1879 Mr Kirby was married (first) to Lara Darlington, born in Mississippi Township. There were no children by this marriage. Mrs. Kirby died in 1884. In 1886 Mr. Kirby was married (second) to Nancy Reddish, born in Richwoods Township, a daughter of Jacob and Han- nah Reddish, and they have one son, Harry L. Kirby, who married Dora Beatty and lives at home. Mr. Kirby served as an alderman of Fieldon, and as a Republican has always taken a deep interest in the success of his party. Fraternally he belongs to the Modern Woodmen of America. A man of large means, he has many interests in Jersey County, and is naturally anxious to forward its development in every way.
KIRBY, Jett A., one of Jersey County's prominent and representa- tive men, distinguished in public life and successful in business affairs, belongs to one of the honorable old families of Jersey County. He was born here April 1, 1853, and his parents were L. L. and Sarah M. (Post) Kirby, the former of whom was born in New Jersey and the
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latter in Vermont. The paternal grandparents were Nathaniel and Elizabeth (Gaston) Kirby. and the maternal grandparents were James T. and Ardelia (Whitford) Post.
Nathaniel Kirby, the paternal grandfather, died in New Jersey, leaving his widow with four sons and two daughters. Not many rec- ords of this admirable woman have been preserved but it is evident she was courageous and resourceful, otherwise she would scarcely have undertaken the long overland journey, practically alone, a part of it through a wilderness, to Jerseyville, Ill., arriving with her children, July 4, 1839, her son, L. L., having ridden all the way on horseback. They soon settled on a farm in Mississippi Township. Prior to 1839, a Vermont family, James T. and Ardelia (Whitford) Post, had come to the same neighborhood, in the same way. They settled on a farm two and one-half miles west of Jerseyville. James T. Post was born in Ver- mont in 1799 and his wife in 1803. These two families became united through the marriage of their children in 1848.
L. L. Kirby, father of Jett A. Kirby, was born February 3, 1823, and died in 1905. He married Sarah M. Post, who was born February 13, 1829, and died July 19. 1910. They became the parents of the following children: Elizabeth Ardelia, who was born January 1, 1849 and died in 1851: James H., who was born September 5, 1850, died August 5, 1893; Jett A., who was the third in order of birth ; George W., who was born March 25. 1855, died July 20, 1858; Charles L., who was born October 9, 1857, died April 8, 1858 ; Edward A., who was born July 30, 1859, died December 11, 1877; William L., who was born Au- gust 2, 1861, died August 18, 1863, Lora O., who was born August 17, 1863, died May 11, 1877 ; and Hattie M., who was born April 14, 1865, is now Mrs. Edwin F. Smith, of Springfield, Ill.
Following their marriage, L. L. Kirby and his wife settled on a rented farm of forty acres situated two and one-half miles north of Jerseyville. It was wild land covered with a growth of hazel and Mr. Kirby grubbed out the roots and through hard labor converted it into arable land. On that place he built the log cabin in which his son. Jett A., was born. In 1856 he bought a farm located five miles north west of Jerseyville and resided there until 1876, when he retired and moved to Jerseyville, buying property in the northwestern part of the city and adding to it until he owned eighty acres there.
Jett A. Kirby enjoyed excellent educational advantages. After completing the common school course, he took a Normal School course at Platteville, Wis., and a business course in Brown's Business College, Jacksonville, Ill. For some time after his return home he engaged in farm work and then accepted a position as bookkeeper and cashier in the Carlin-Bagley Bank, which later became the M. E. Bagley Bank. In 1893, when misfortune fell upon this institution and the bank failed, Mr. Kirby, having spent fourteen years with the bank, was chosen assignee. After satisfactorily settling up the business, he took a trip to California, and upon his return to Jersey County, embarked in a real estate business, handling farm land and city property. He pur-
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chased a handsome modern residence in the center of the city and has resided here ever since. His personal holdings aggregate many acres. He owns 320 acres in Gage County, Neb., 320 acres in Thomas County, Kans., 1,000 acres on the Illinois River bottom, and with his sister, owns the old homestead of 320 acres and he also owns 200 additional acres adjoining. He owned the property that he divided into 222 lots and laid out as Woodlawn addition to the north part of Jerseyville.
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