USA > Illinois > Kane County > History of Kane County, Ill. Volume II > Part 44
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family of four sons and three daughters. The Westover family is of Holland Dutch descent and traces the ancestry back to 1640. The maternal grand- father of our subject was a native of Vermont and a blacksmith by trade.
Stephen Westover came to Illinois from Jefferson county, New York, in 1854, taking up his abode in Aurora, and in 1856 he brought his family to this city. He was a brick-mason by trade and became a contractor here, but in the spring of 1869 went to Fort Scott. Kansas, where he worked at masonry for a time. Later he engaged in the grocery business in the west, but event- ually returned to Aurora, where he died in 1894 at the age of seventy-six years. His wife survived him until the summer of 1907 and died when about eighty- seven years of age. Their family numbered seven children, four sons and three daughters, but only three are now living: Frederick E .; Frank C., of Aurora; and Henry B., who makes his home in Chicago. The others of the family were : Albert E., the eldest ; Emma J., the second, who was the wife of J. H. Long; Sarah, who was the wife of Fred Long and was the fourth in order of birth; and Ida, the youngest, who was the wife of Charles Barker.
The first named was but eight years of age when the family came to Aurora, and here he has since made his home. He attended the public schools of this city and afterward worked on a farm by the month. In his youth he also worked at the mason's trade for a time. In 1865 at the last call for vol- unteers he enlisted as a member of Company B, One Hundred and Fifty-sixth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Although but seventeen years of age, he did not hesitate in the performance of any duty, his valor and loyalty being equal to that of any man of twice his years. When the war was over he returned to Aurora and took up the mason's trade, which he has since followed, thus becoming closely identified with the building operations of the city.
On the IIth of August, 1869, Mr. Westover was married to Miss Mar- garet Kennedy, who was born in Oswego. Kane county, Illinois, February 21, 1848, and is the daughter of Damon and Maria (Ireland) Kennedy. Her father was a son of Elihu Kennedy, a native of New York and a farmer by occupation. He became one of the early settlers of Kendall county, Illinois, but was not long permitted to enjoy his new home, for his death occurred soon after his arrival. His wife, Mrs. Ruth (Babcock) Kennedy, died when well advanced in years. The maternal grandfather of Mrs. Westover was John Ireland, who lived and died in the state of New York and was buried near Troy. His wife, Mrs. Margaret (Traver) Ireland, also lived to an advanced age. Their family numbered three daughters. The parents of Mrs. Westover were natives of the Empire state and came from Albany county. New York, to Illinois early in the '40s, and took up government land. The father was a carpenter by trade and followed that business in the west. He lived in Oswego until a year prior to his death, when he removed to Aurora, where he died in 1894. when more than eighty years of age. He was a veteran of the Mexican war. His wife died in 1860 at the age of forty-one years. They had a family of five children : Lewis, who is living at Tecumseh, Oklahoma; Mary, the widow of George Hopkins and a resident of Chicago; Ruth, the wife of William Dunn, of Omaha, Nebraska; George, also living in Omaha ; and Mrs. Westover. Of this family, Lewis Kennedy was a captain
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of the Fifty-third Illinois Regiment during the Civil war, while George enlisted at the age of seventeen years and served throughout the period of hostilities. Later he joined the regular army, so that his military experience covered thirty years.
The home of Mr. and Mrs. Westover has been blessed with five children : Fred S., who is married and is engaged in the newspaper business at Billings, Montana; Edna, the wife of Jesse M. Cockle, of Aurora, by whom she has three children, Clover, Lawrence and Margaret; Agnes Adele, the wife of C. L. Ludlow of Chicago; Ida, who is living in New York city; and Ella, who occupies a clerical position in the old Second National Bank.
Mr. and Mrs. Westover are well known in Aurora, where they have an extensive circle of friends. Politically he is a republican, unfaltering in sup- port of the principles of the party, and he is now a member of the Grand Army Post, No. 20, of which he has served as commander. He has been faithful and reliable in business and as a citizen is a champion of every measure which promises to prove of benefit in promoting public progress and improvement.
JAMES POWELL, JR.
James Powell, Jr., member of the real-estate, loans and insurance firm of Powell & Reid, of Aurora, his native city, was born in 1875, being the fourth in order of birth among the five children of James and Melissa (Dent) Powell, who were natives of New York. The father was reared in the Empire state and lived in Roxbury, Delaware county, upon a farm. In 1865 he came to Illinois, settling in Aurora, where he engaged in the lumber busi- ness, but for the past twenty years he has been a representative of the in- surance business and has enjoyed a liberal clientage in this connection. Both he and his wife are Congregationalists in religious faith and both are representatives of old families of New York. They became the parents of two sons and three daughters: George A., Ella M., Grace, James, Jr., and Mina.
James Powell, Jr., spending his boyhood days under the parental roof in the city of his nativity, was educated in the public schools, passing through consecutive grades to his graduation from the East Aurora high school in 1894. He then engaged in clerking in a clothing store, where he remained for four years, after which he embarked in the real-estate business. In 1901 he retired from that field and for five years was manager of the Kane County Title & Trust Company, at Geneva. In 1903, however, he formed a partner- ship with Joseph Reid and they have since been together under the firm style of Powell & Reid, although Mr. Powell retained his position with the Kane County Title & Trust Company until 1906. He has made it his purpose to inform himself thoroughly concerning the property that is upon the market and is thus enabled to make judicious investments or purchases for his clients and to place loans so that they will be of advantage to all parties. He also writes considerable insurance each year and is rapidly forging to the front
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in business circles, being now widely recognized as a young man of sound judgment, whose ability seems to promise increased success in the future. His political allegiance is given to the republican party. Admirable social qualities render him personally popular and he has an extensive circle of warm friends in this city.
ROBERT SPENCER HADLEY.
Although Robert Spencer Hadley's dwelling is in Kendall county, just over the boundary line, the greater part of his fine and well-improved farm of seventy-three acres is in this county, in section 31 of Aurora township. The place is known as Pleasant View farm, and both in a material and a social way it well deserves the name. It is the seat of a refined and bounteous hospitality and a social life embodying every grace of advanced cultivation, the domestic atmosphere within the residence being in full accord with the beauties of nature without.
The proprietor is a native of Dutchess county, New York, where he was born November 14. 1849. His parents, Chauncey Dewey and Mary Elizabeth (Mead) Hadley, were also natives of Dutchess county, New York, and came to Kane county, Illinois, in 1854. The father was born November 20, 1812. and died in 1874. The mother's life began October 12, 1821, and ended August 17, 1899. When they came with their children to this county they located on Big Rock creek between the towns of Big Rock and Sugar Grove, where the father operated a sawmill for a number of years. Many of the buildings erected in Sugar Grove and Big Rock townships in the '50s were built of lumber sawed at his mill, which was an important industry during those early years and of great service to the people in the undeveloped state of the country at the time.
The father was also a farmer, and the son, as he approached the dawn of manhood. helped to break up the prairie with a plow specially designed for the purpose and drawn by two yoke of oxen. The farming operations were carried on in both Big Rock and Kaneville townships. It was a strenuous life the pioneers lived, and one that developed both strength of muscle and flexibility of function. It has oft been told in song and story but its interest is perpetual for it is a phase of American history and experience that has passed away forever. The days were full of arduous toil and the nights were frequently beset with peril. Wild beasts were still prowling in the forests and often threatened the home of the settlers, making night horrible with their howling and intended violence to the inmates, whose utmost watchfulness was required for safety.
Mr. Hadley's three sisters shared this life of labor and privation with him and their parents. They were: Susan Ann, the late wife of Myron Brackett, of Big Rock township, who died in December, 1906; Mary Elizabeth. the wife of Ira Jacobs, of Kaneville; and Lorinda, now the wife of Hanson Murphy, of Big Rock township. While the life was hard and laborious, it had its compensations in the self-reliance it begot in those who had to endure it,
MR. AND MRS. ROBERT S. HADLEY
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in the resourcefulness and independence it gave them, and in the sense of conquest and progress it engendered.
In his boyhood Mr. Hadley attended the country school near his home and those in Big Rock and Kaneville, and he made such use of his opportunities that he obtained a good common-school education. The exigencies of his sit- uation did not, however, give him a chance for the more advanced courses, and the exactions of his later life have left him no leisure to pursue at greater length the studies in which he found entertainment and profit.
On March II, 1874, he celebrated his first marriage, in which he was united with Miss Margaret Way, a native of Baden, Germany, born October 14, 1850. She died April 12, 1883, and on July 4, 1887, he was married to Miss Mary Dyer, who was born January 12, 1861, in New Jersey, and died May 2. 1895. On June 10, 1896, he took unto himself his third and present wife, Mrs. Mary Eliza Bailey, a daughter of Lysander C. and Susan K. (Wormley) Breese, and a sister-in-law of George Christopher Yates, in a sketch of whom on another page will be found the history of her family. She was born in Kane county, March 25, 1855, and married Mr. Bailey, a native of Steuben county, New York, who came to Kane county at the age of sixteen with his parents and grew to manhood on a farm adjoining that of Mr. Breese. He was born November 18, 1852, and died March 10, 1890.
With the exception of five years, during which he was farming in Iowa, Mr. Hadley has passed his life in Kane county. He has retired from the active management of his farm, having rented the greater part of it. But he still cares for a few fine Jersey cows and cultivates a few acres of ground in garden products, fruit and pasturage. He has a wide reputation as an excellent judge of horses and deals in them extensively, handling many superior draft horses which he sells in Chicago at fancy prices. He is a valued member of the order of Knights of the Globe, and Mrs. Hadley has deserved prom- inence in that of the Eminent Ladies of the Knights of the Globe. She is also a member of the Methodist Episcopal church in Montgomery. Both are con- stant in good works for the benefit of the community in general and their neighbors, friends and acquaintances in particular. Their lives have been upright and serviceable, and the firm hold they have on the regard and good will of their community is not only fixed and lasting but well founded on demonstrated merit.
IDA MATILDA HENDRICKS.
Ida Matilda Hendricks, a resident of Elburn, is a representative of one of the early families of Kane county. She was born September 14, 1871, in Batavia, Illinois. Her father, John Henry Hendricks, was a native of Sweden, born November 10, 1850. He came to America in the early '40S and, as his financial resources were very limited, for some years he had a hard struggle to gain a place of substantial benefit in the business world.
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As the years passed, however, he prospered in his undertakings until there came to him a gratifying measure of success as the reward of his persistent, earnest labor. He married Anna Johnson, who was born January 14, 1841, also a native of Sweden. She arrived in Batavia in 1869 and the following vear gave her hand in marriage to Mr. Hendricks. Unto them were born four children : Edward, who is now a mail carrier in Chicago; Julia Augusta, the wife of William West, a farmer residing in Ontario, Canada; Emma L., the wife of Albin Johnson, of Wasco, Illinois, now deceased ; and Ida M., of this review. The death of the father occurred in December, 1901, and was the cause of deep and widespread regret, for he had come to be known as one of the respected and representative citizens of Kane county, where for long years he had successfully followed the occupation of farming.
Reared in her father's home, Ida M. Hendricks pursued her education in the schools of Kaneville until sixteen years of age, when she returned to the paternal roof. She takes an active and helpful interest in all work for the progress of the community, and has been especially helpful in the various lines of church and temperance work. A stanch advocate of the cause of prohibi- tion, she has labored earnestly and effectively to make Elburn a strictly tem- perance town. She belongs to the Methodist church and to the Epworth League, of which she was the first vice president. She is likewise a worker in the Ladies' Aid Society of the church and of the Royal Neighbors, of which she was a charter member. She is well known socially in Elburn, having many warm friends here.
FRED HENNINGSON.
Fred Henningson, who owns and operates a farm of one hundred and forty-seven acres in Campton township, was born in Sweden, July 4, 1868. the son of Henning and Johannah ( Anderson) Johnson. Both of his parents are natives of Sweden, the father having been born at Fallshiping in 1833. while the mother's birth occurred in 1829. They now reside in America. having come to this country in 1906. They are the parents of five children, namely : Albert L., residing in St. Charles, Illinois, where he is employed in a milk condensing factory ; Frank N., a farmer ; Helya E., residing in Chicago ; Fred; and Mary E., residing at home.
Fred Henningson attended the district schools of Sweden until he was fifteen years of age, when he discontinued his school life in order to aid his father in the work of the farm. He remained under the parental roof until he was nineteen years of age, and in 1887 he set forth to seek his fortune in the new world. The hope that led him to leave his native land has been more than realized, as he now not only owns a valuable farm but also has a dairy of seventy-two Holstein cows, which yields him a steady and substantial income. He possesses the energy, resolution and perseverance so characteristic of his nation and his activity in his chosen line of work has not only contributed to his
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individual success, but has also been a factor in the industrial life of the community.
The maiden name of Mr. Henningson's wife was Hulda G. Carlson. She was born in Sweden in 1876. Five children have been born to their union, namely: Edward E., born August 6, 1892; Arthur E., born May 24, 1898; Ernest W., February 3, 1901 ; Gunner A., December 22, 1904; and Bertha W., March 26, 1906.
Politically Mr. Henningson is a republican but he has never made politics the ruling spirit of his life, preferring to give his entire time to his farming and dairy interests. Religiously he is a member of the Lutheran church.
WILLIAM H. GOETTING.
In a history of business enterprise and progress whereby the interests of Elgin have been promoted along substantial lines, mention should be made of William H. Goetting, the president of the Elgin Steam Laundry Company. He was born in Cook county, Illinois, October 9, 1859, and since starting out in life on his own account he has manifested those sterling traits of industry and perseverance which constitutes the basis of all industrial, commercial or professional success. His parents were both natives of Germany, and on coming to America they settled in Addison, DuPage county, Illinois. The father, Charles Goetting, was a mason by trade, and from DuPage county removed to Cook county, this state, where both he and his wife passed away.
In the rural schools William H. Goetting acquired his education, and to the age of twenty years was engaged in farming, assisting largely in the work of the fields from the time that he was old enough to handle the plow. Start- ing out in life on his own account, he learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed until he turned his attention to the laundry business in 1886. For four years he was employed in what is now the Improved Method Steam Laundry, owned by L. M. Rose, and during that period his diligence and care- ful expenditure brought him capital sufficient to enable him in 1889 to pur- chase the laundry outright. He continued to manage this in the original plant until 1895, when he erected his present laundry, a large two story brick build- ing, which he equipped with all of the latest and most improved methods and machinery, outfitting it at great expense and making one of the best laundry plants in this part of the state. In 1902 the business was incorporated as the Elgin Steam Laundry Company, with Mr. Goetting as president and manager. He also holds the majority of the stock, and the business is returning him a substantial annual income. He employs about forty men and women, and has met with gratifying prosperity in the undertaking. The work which he turns out is equal to that of any of the laundries in the larger cities, and his patronage is steadily increasing. He recently purchased a lot adjoining his laundry and is now sinking a well, so that he will have his own water plant as well as power, making it one of the finest laundries in the United States.
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In June, 1886, occurred the marriage of Mr. Goetting and Miss Mary Borchert, of Elgin, and they have one child, Ida. They also lost two children. The parents are members of St. Paul's church, take an active and helpful inter- est in its work and contribute generously to its support. Mr. Goetting is now serving as superintendent of the Sunday school and does all in his power to promote its interests. He is a self-made man in every sense of the word, having worked his way upward to a position of prosperity, although he started out in life as a poor farmer boy. He has been energetic, determined and diligent. and has carried forward to successful completion whatever he has undertaken. He has never figured prominently in political circles, preferring to devote his time outside of business hours to the enjoyment of the compan- ionship in his own home.
SAMUEL BEALES.
Samuel Beales, a well known member of the police force of Aurora, was born in Lockport, Orleans county, New York, on the 4th of September, 1847, a son of James and Mary (Burk) Beales. His father was a native of Suffolk county. England, where he resided at Hegritt Hall, twenty-two miles from the city of London. His father was John Beales, who ran a tavern in England and who died there at an advanced age. His wife, Elizabeth Beales, lived to the advanced age of ninety-three years. Of this union there were born eight daughters and two sons.
James Beales, the father of our subject, was a miller by occupation and, seeking the larger opportunties which the new world afforded, came to Amer- ica in 1836, settling in Troy, New York, for a time, after which he went to Canada, being attracted to that section through the fact of its being a province of his native land. There he met Miss Mary Burk, a recent arrival from Limerick, Ireland, to whom he was shortly after married, and he took his bride to Lockport, New York, where they lived continuously until 1860. In April, 1860, Mr. Beales brought his family to Rockford, Illinois, where his practical knowledge of the milling business easily gained him a position in the mill of Mr. Rodd, with whom he remained some years. In 1864 he bought a flour and grist mill in Ogle county, known as the Shirley Mills, which he sold in 1867, and then went to Oswego, Kane county, and ran a mill for Switzer Brothers for one year. He then came to Aurora, where he conducted the Black Hawk mill for Mr. Jameson, being there when the mill burned down, after which he secured a position at Montgomery, with Hord Brothers, and later conducted a mill at Plano, where he remained until the time of his death, which occurred October 9, 1887, when he was seventy years of age. His wife survived him, dying on the 21st of November, 1906, aged eighty- five years. Both were members of the Catholic church.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. James Beales were born twelve children, as follows : Ann, who died in infancy : Mary Ann, formerly the wife of William H. Tripp, now deccased. and at present the wife of Seymour Barker, of Rockford,
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Illinois ; Henry J., deceased; John, of Rock Falls, Illinois; Samuel, of this review; Elizabeth, deceased wife of Daniel Kipp, who was killed on the Chi- cago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad; Adelaide, wife of William Clancy, of Aurora; Alice, who died at the age of twelve years; Caroline, wife of John Doran, of Chicago; William, now a resident of Aurora; Jane Ann, wife of John Saxton, of Aurora ; and Jeremiah, also a resident of Aurora. The mater- nal grandfather of our subject was John Burk, who died in Lockport, New York, in 1847, where he was a farm overseer for many years. His wife, Ann (O'Brien) Burk, was ninety-seven years of age at the time of her death.
Samuel Beales was but twelve years of age when his parents removed to Rockford, Illinois, and when a lad of only fourteen years he enlisted in Com- pany C. Sixty-seventh Illinois Infantry, afterward reenlisting in Company M, Eighth Illinois Cavalry, known as the "Abolition Regiment," the name being given it, it is said, by Abraham Lincoln. He continued in the service for three years and four months, during which period he sustained severe injuries by a tree falling on him at Fairfax Court House, Virginia, while in winter quarters there. He was in many of the hard-fought battles of the Civil war, his regi- ment opening the battle of Gettysburg, the first shot being fired by Captain Jones, of Wheaton, Illinois, who belonged to Company E.
Following in his father's footsteps, Mr. Beales on his return home went into the milling business, and as the occupation was one in which a person who understood it need never be idle, he did not confine his labors to any one local- ity, but investigated various sections of the country in search of a suitable home. This he ultimately found in Aurora, settling there in 1868, since which time he has made it his permanent residence.
On the 5th day of July, 1873, was celebrated the marriage of Samuel Beales and Miss Mary D. Robbins, of Rock Falls, Illinois. Unto them were born four children, three of whom died young. The only surviving child, Idella May, is now the wife of Richard Wood, of Aurora. Mrs. Beales was born in Wyanet, Bureau county, Illinois. Her parents were natives of Ohio, and her father, William E. Robbins, was a carpenter by trade. He came to Illinois about 1834 and settled in La Salle, going thence to Wyanet, where he engaged in farming. There he met and married Miss Chlora M. Hunt, whose father. Elisha Hunt, a veteran of the war of 1812, moved to Bureau county, Illinois, from Ohio, and was one of the pioneer settlers of that section. There he prospered and became quite wealthy, acquiring some seven hundred acres of land. At the time of his death, which occurred in Rock Falls when he was eighty-seven years of age, he bequeathed to each of his heirs-eight children and thirty-one grand-children-the sum of five thousand dollars. His wife died in 1880, several years prior to his death, at the age of fifty-nine years. Mrs. Beales' brothers and sisters were as follows : Helen, deceased, who was the wife of John Hall; Susan, the deceased wife of William Butcher, who died in Tama, Iowa; Charles and Henry, both deceased ; Joanna, the wife of Joseph Applegate, of Pike county, Illinois ; Samuel, a resident of McPherson, Kansas ; and Ambrose, of Hannibal, Missouri.
Mr. Beales' political support is given to the republican party. He main- tains pleasant relations with his former army comrades through his member-
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