USA > Illinois > Kane County > History of Kane County, Ill. Volume II > Part 45
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ship in Aurora Post, No. 20, G. A. R., and he is also a member of the Knights of Pythias. Mr. Beales has ever taken an active interest in the civic affairs of the city of his adoption, and for the past fifteen years has been a member of the police force, discharging his duties in a faithful and acceptable manner.
JOSEPH BENNEY WALTER.
For a number of years Joseph B. Walter was identified with the business interests of Elgin, in which city he departed this life on the 7th of August. 1889. He was a native of Canada, born in Quebec, February 17, 1826, and was a son of Joseph Walter, who was interested in the Walter factory in Elgin, but practically lived retired during his residence here. The father died in August, 1873, at the ripe old age of eighty-one years, and his wife, who bore the maiden name of Sarah Benney, passed away in January. 1873. at the same age.
Joseph B. Walker, of this review, was only two years old when the family removed to Albany. New York, and he acquired a good practical education in the Albany Academy. On leaving that city in 1845 he accompanied his parents on their removal to Elgin, and here began work in the employ of S. Newton Dexter in the woolen mills business, with which he was connected for eight years. He next conducted a tannery for B. W. Raymond for about ten years. at the end of which time the plant was sold to the Elgin National Watch Com- pany and the site where it stood is now occupied by the Borden Condensed Milk Company. Mr. Walter then embarked in the butcher business on his own account in partnership with Benjamin Stanforth, under the firm name of Walter & Stanforth, located on the southeast corner of Douglas avenue and Milwaukee streets. This connection was continued for three years and was followed by the firm of Miller & Walter, which carried on business at the same location for four years. Mr. Walter was next employed by the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Company as bookkeeper at the east side depot and held that position until he retired from active business, to spend his last days in case and quiet.
On the 24th of January, 1862, he married Miss Jane Smith, a daughter of Richard E. and Sarah (Small) Smith, and they became the parents of eleven children, as follows: Carrie L .: Edwin Forrest, who married Minnie Buxton and had one child, Carrie L., now deceased: Frank S., who is con- nected with the Elgin National Watch Company ; Joseph E., a cooper of Elgin ; Harry, also with the Elgin National Watch Company, who married Minnia Went and has three children, Harold John, Ruth Adeline and Lester Louis: Richard Walter, a lather of Elgin ; George Benney, bookkeeper in a furniture store in Elgin, who married Elizabeth Anderson and has three children, Oliver Kenneth, Robert Edmund and George Edwin: Alice May, the wife of Edmund Glos, who is bookkeeper in the home savings department of the First National Bank of Elgin and by whom she has two children. Beatrice Irene and Harriet Eleanor : Spencer, who was graduated in July, 1908, from Barnes
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School of Embalming, Chicago, and is now in Elgin; Harry, who was born in December, 1866, and died March 5, 1868; and Stella Maud, who was born July 21, 1883, and died March 23, 1885. Mr. Walter was twice married, his first wife being Amanda Fursman, who died in 1861, and there were three children born of that union: Louis Eck, who married Anna Lewis and is a salesman for Swift & Company: Charles Fursman, who was drowned in Fox river at the age of eight years ; and Edwin, also deceased.
In politics Mr. Walter was first a republican but later endorsed the prin- ciples of the democracy, with which he continued to vote throughout the remainder of his life, taking a very active and prominent part in local politics. He served as alderman of the first ward, as constable of Elgin and as tax collector, discharging the various duties of these offices in a most commend- able and satisfactory manner. He was an honored member of the Masonic order and was a popular, pleasing gentleman who had a host of warm friends.
AIE A. MARVIN.
Aie A. Marvin, who is prominent in the business circles of Kane county as a farmer and real-estate dealer, is a native son of the county. born on a farm in Virgil township, May 27, 1867. His father, George W. Marvin, was born in Madison county, New York, December 1, 1832, and came to Illinois with his parents in 1844, the family home being established at St. Charles, where the father worked as a blacksmith. George W. Marvin acquired his education in a select school at St. Charles, which he attended to the age of seventeen years, when he entered his father's blacksmith shop, learning the trades of a blacksmith and wagon maker. There he continued to work until he had reached the age of twenty-eight years, when he removed to Iowa, where he worked at his trade for four years. He then returned to his home city and engaged in business with his father. About that time he was united in marriage to Miss Robena Parker, who was born in Scotland. Following his marriage Mr. Marvin purchased a farm of three hundred and twenty acres situated in Virgil township, on which he took up his abode. He is still engaged in farming and also conducts an apiary, having one hundred and fifty stands of bees of the Italian variety and marketing from seven to ten tons of honey annually. Mr. Marvin has placed most of the improvements on his farm and it is now a valuable property, situated on the Maple Park and St. Charles road. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. George W. Marvin was blessed with one son and five daughters, as follows: Aie A., whose name introduces this review ; Ella, the wife of L. O. Kilmer, a resident of DeKalb: Jennie J., the wife of O. M. Blood, also of DeKalb; Nettie N., the wife of W. F. Austin, who makes his home in that city ; and Virginia and Minnie M., who have passed away.
Aie A. Marvin, whose name introduces this record, is the eldest child and only son of his father's family. He was reared on the home farm in Virgil township and attended the district schools until he had reached the age
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of seventeen years, when he entered the Sycamore high school, where he continued his studies for two years. Upon the completion of his education he returned to the home farm, where he has since continued. assisting his father in its management and care. He is also engaged in the real-estate business, having made a close study of land values, so that he is able to make judicious purchases and profitable sales for his patrons. In this connection he has traveled extensively. visiting Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Indiana, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, accompanying land seekers on these trips. At the present time he is associated with the Moody Land Company, who own two hundred thousand acres of land in western Texas. He is a lover of good horses and is part owner and keeper of a fine Percheron stallion, Keefer. which won first prize at the International Stock Show held in Minnesota and won second premium in the stock show of Iowa.
Mr. Marvin chose as a companion and helpmate on the journey of life Miss Lillian Davis, who was born in Mercer county, Pennsylvania, and this union has been blessed with two children, Lawrence and Laurel. Mr. Marvin gives his political support to the men and measures of the republican party. while his fraternal relations are with the Masons, the Modern Woodmen of America and the Knights of the Globe, in all of which he is popular with the brethren of these various orders. He possesses untiring energy, is quick of perception, forms his plans readily and is determined in their execution, and his close application to business and his excellent management have brought to him the high degree of prosperity which is today his.
MARVIN QUACKENBUSH.
Marvin Quackenbush, who for many years was prominently associated with the educational interests of this section of the state and for five terms was elected county superintendent of schools, left the impress of his indi- viduality upon the public-school system in that he instituted many improve- ments and held to a high standard of efficiency in the work done in the different grades. He was widely recognized as a man of scholarly attain- ments and one whose clear insight and sound judgment made his work of the utmost benefit to his fellow citizens along the specific lines of his labor. He was born at Hartwick, Otsego county, New York, November 25, 1842. His father, Abram Quackenbush, was also a native of the same county. born in 1801. and the grandfather, James Quackenbush, was likewise a native of the Empire state. The family, however, is of Holland descent and was estab- lished in New York in the seventeenth century. At that time two brothers came from Holland, one settling at Fort Orange, now Albany, New York, and the other in New York city. Professor Marvin Quackenbush of this review is a direct descendant of the Albany branch. The name, however, was originally Quackenbos.
James Quackenbush served his country as a soldier of the war of 1812 and afterward settled at Otsego, New York, where he followed the occupa-
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MARVIN QUACKENBUSH
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tion of farming. His son, Abram Quackenbush, was there reared and edu- cated and after arriving to years of maturity he married Miss Delancy Wolf. a native of New York. He then took up agricultural pursuits in Otsego county, where he carried on business until 1850, when he came to Illinois, set- tling first in Kane county near St. Charles. There he purchased a tract of land and devoted a few years to its cultivation and improvement, but after- ward removed to Laporte City, Iowa, where he spent his remaining days dying at the advanced age of eighty-four in the year 1885. His wife died in 1882.
Professor Marvin Quackenbush was but a lad of seven summers when brought to Kane county. Here he acquired his education in the public schools and in Jennings Seminary at Aurora. He also pursued a course in Bryant & Stratton's Commercial College at Chicago and at the outbreak of the Civil war he offered his services as a member of a regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry, but was rejected on account of an injury which he had sustained in his foot. In November, 1864, however, he raised a company of forty men and joined the One Hundred and Fifty-third Illinois Volunteer Infantry, with which he went to the front. He served in the paymaster's department until July 21. 1865, when he was discharged on account of disability. He proved a capable and loyal soldier and it was his deepest regret that he could not be with the army throughout the period of hostilities.
Mr. Quackenbush had taught three terms of school prior to the outbreak of hostilities between the north and the south and upon his return from the war he resumed teaching, being first employed in the country schools, while afterward he was connected with the St. Charles schools for six years. Later he spent a year as a teacher at Geneva, this county, and eleven years in Dundee. He proved an excellent disciplinarian and had the ability to impart clearly and readily to others the knowledge that he had acquired. He became recognized as one of the able educators of this part of the state and was eventually elected superintendent of the county schools, wherein he discharged his duties so capably and satisfactorily that he was at once reelected without opposition. He did much to raise the standard of the schools and to promote the cause of public education in this part of the state and the work which he did still continues as a lasting monument to his memory in the public-school system of Kane county.
Mr. Quackenbush was married at Clintonville ( now South Elgin), Illi- nois, in August. 1870, to Miss Eleanor Boynton, a native of Dundee, and they have one son, Edward, who is a practicing lawyer of the Aurora bar and is mentioned elsewhere in this work. Her grandfather was Brigadier General McClure, a soldier of the war of 1812 and one of the honored pioneers of the county, who died in Elgin in 1850.
Professor Quackenbush was a stalwart republican, inflexible in his allegiance to the party. He was a member of the Masonic fraternity and also took the degrees of chapter, the commandery and the consistory. That lie was one of the prominent representatives of the order is indicated by the fact that he filled all of the chairs in the local lodge and represented the organiza- tion in the grand lodge of the state and also the commandery and the grand
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commandery of Illinois. His religious faith was indicated by his member- ship in the Congregational church, with which he remained identified up to the time of his death on the 18th of April, 1903. Almost his entire life was spent in this part of the state and his fellow townsmen find in him a man whose devotion to the public good was ever above question, whose loyalty in citizenship was most marked and who ever held friendship inviolable.
JOHN PLAIN.
.Among the men whose depth of character, fidelity to principle and stal- wart purpose in carrying out well defined plans have commanded for them the respect of their colleagues and the admiration of their contemporaries is numbered John Plain, the president of the German-American National Bank. In manner he is modest and unostentatious but the specific and distinctive province of biography is not to give voice to a man's estimate of himself and his accomplishments but rather to leave the record establishing his position through the consensus of public opinion.
Mr. Plain was born in Germany, January 17, 1830, and his parents, Peter and Elizabeth ( Haubert) Plain, were also natives of that country. The father followed agricultural pursuits and John Plain was reared upon the home farm, his labors in the field being alternated with study in the public schools. In 1852 he determined to emigrate to the new world and, bidding adieu to friends and native land, he sailed for America, being at that time a young man of twenty-two years. After one year spent in Canada he removed to Aurora and worked for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company for six months, laying track from Aurora to Mendota. Early in life he mnaifested traits of character which have molded his destiny, chief among which were industry and adaptability. He was not only diligent but also economical and has never been afraid of work. At the end of six months in the railroad service he and his brother Jacob, who in the meantime had come from Ger- many and joined him in Aurora, purchased twenty-five acres of timber land in Big Woods and with youthful energy and unfaltering purpose began to clear away the trees and cultivate the fields. They sold the timber, burned the brush and grubbed up the stumps. As the result of hard work and exposure to inclement weather, John Plain contracted fever and ague, which was very prevalent in the county before the days of drainage. He then determined to remove to town and selling his interest in the land to his brother Jacob, he came to Aurora, where he invested his small capital in a stock of groceries and began business as a merchant on the west side. There he remained until 1857, when he sold out and came to the east side. At the new location he conducted a store for twenty years, carrying it on most successfully. He not only built up a reputation for an excellent line of goods and reasonable prices but also for irreproachable commercial integrity. As the years passed he advanced in business lines and his labors brought to him a very gratifying remuneration. After twenty years spent in the grocery trade on the east side
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he turned his attention to the real-estate business, as he felt that he was entitled to at least a period of partial rest and desired to get away from the close con- finement and strenuous labor necessary in mercantile lines. He had accumu- lated considerable money and in 1890 became associated with a number of other substantial citizens in organizing the German-American National Bank. of which he was the first vice-president. In 1893 he was elected to the presi- dency, which office he has since filled. The bank has had a most successful existence and is regarded as one of the solid financial institutions of this part of the state. Its prosperity is due in no small degree to the personal popu- larity, the good management, the executive ability and the administrative direction of Mr. Plain.
While always a public-spirited man, Mr. Plain has never been an office seeker but has done what he could for the welfare of the community and its development along substantial lines. Many instances of his active interest in the city might be mentioned but perhaps one will suffice. In early days he, with a number of others, realizing the need of a cemetery, found a suitable place, bought the land and improved it and remained in control until it was placed on a paying basis, when they turned it over to the city. It is today a beautiful cemetery, handsomely adorned with trees and flowers and well kept grass, and Mr. Plain is still serving on the board of directors. As his finan- cial resources have increased he has invested from time to time in real-estate and now owns considerable property, but devotes most of his time to banking interests.
In 1857, in Aurora, occurred the marriage of Mr. Plain and Miss Susanna Lies, a native of Germany and a daughter of Nicholas Lies, who came from that country and purchased two hundred and ten acres of land in what is now the heart of Aurora, paying for the property with German gold. The tract is bounded by Claim, Ohio and Union streets and First avenue. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Plain were born twelve children.
Mr. Plain belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and is a man of charitable spirit and kindly disposition, whose loyalty to his friends is one of his strong characteristics, while in his life he also manifests many of the sterling traits of his German ancestry. He has never had occasion to regret his determination to seek a home in America, for here he has found and improved good opportunities and has made steady progress in business lines, while he has constantly advanced in the respect and esteem entertained for him by those who know him.
ROY WILLIAM YOUNGS.
Living on a well improved and highly productive farm of two hundred and five acres at the edge of East Plato, which belongs to his father, and culti- vating that and two hundred and thirty-five acres of additional land in part- nership with one of his brothers, Roy William Youngs, has plenty to occupy his
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time. engage all his energies and furnish him opportunity to contribute essen- tially to the development and improvement of the country around him.
He was born in Elgin township, Kane county, December 1, 1879. His father, William Henry Youngs, is a native of the state of New York, where he was educated and reared to the age of fifteen years, when he came with his parents to this county, and here he has ever since resided. He married Miss E. A. Webster, a native of New York, who came to Illinois with her parents. William H. Youngs is a cattle dealer in Elgin. Their son Roy has two brothers and one sister: Walter Charles, who is living on this farm; Grace, who is the wife of Mert Wahl ; and Eddie W., who is also still a mem- ber of the parental household.
Roy William Youngs attended the district school near his home until he was sixteen, then returned to the farm and became for some years one of its regular workers. Since taking charge of it in connection with his brother, he has enlarged his operations by the addition of an active and enterprising dairy business which is supplied by the yield of his forty-five excellent Holstein cows. The brothers have seventy-five acres in corn, the same quantity in oats. and the rest of their land is devoted to hay and pasturage. The farm is in fine condition, with plenty of water and fruit, and under the skillful manage- ment of these brothers has become one of high value.
ALFRED JOHNSON.
Alfred Johnson, an enterprising farmer and dairyman of Campton town- ship, where he owns and operates fifty-three acres of land, was born in Sweden. December 23, 1865, the son of John and Mary ( Hanson) Anderson. Both parents were natives of Sweden, where the father served two years in the regular army and afterwards followed agricultural pursuits. He is now deceased. Religiously he was a member of the Lutheran church. Mr. Johnson has one sister, Josephine, the wife of John Anderson, a carpenter, residing in Sweden.
Alfred Johnson attended the district schools of Sweden until he was fourteen years of age, receiving the rudiments of a good education. He then left school to aid his father in the work of gaining a livelihood from the farm, remaining under the parental roof until he was twenty-two years of age, when he emigrated to America, where he secured work as a farm hand near Elburn. He followed this line of work for fourteen years, or up to the time of his mar- riage, when he rented a farm near Lily Lake, which he operated for eight years in succession. From his profits he was then able to purchase his present place. which is ideally situated only a few rods from Lily Lake and is one of the most attractive places in Kane county. It is well watered, and Mr. Johnson has set out a splendid young orchard, which will doubtless yield him a substantial income in the course of a few years. Mr. Johnson is now adding to the in- provements a modern, nine-room cottage with cement basement and furnace heat which will greatly add to the attractiveness and utility of the place. The
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success which has come to him has been well merited, resulting from his thrift and industry. In 1904 he visited his native land, remaining with his parents three months.
In 1901 Mr. Johnson was married to Miss Hulda Hansen, who was born in Sweden, April 12, 1863, and came to America with her brother. Her parents still reside in Sweden. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have become the par- ents of two children, of whom Ruth is deceased. Leonard was born May 15. 1899. In politics Mr. Johnson is a republican. Religiously he is a faithful and consistent member of the Lutheran church.
HENRY B. DOUGLAS.
Henry B. Douglas, as the name would indicate, is of Scotch descent, his father having emigrated to this country from Dumfrees, Scotland, in 1834, as did six of his brothers and their father, who came to America and settled on a farm in Jackson county, Wisconsin, where he lived to be nearly ninety years of age. His wife, whose maiden name was Dalrymple, died in Scot- land. His son John, the father of our subject, was educated for a physician in London, England. On coming to America he first settled at Constantine. Michigan, whence he came to Aurora in 1836. Quick to discern the resources of the fertile soil of this section he engaged in farming in Aurora township, two miles south of the city, where he acquired four hundred acres of land, which he improved and brought to a high state of cultivation. Here he remained until the time of his death, which occurred in 1852, when he was but forty-two years of age. In 1836 he wedded Caroline M. Bryan, of Geneseo county, New York, and two children were born of this union : Charles T., who died in 1890 from the effects of wounds received in the Civil war; and Henry B., of this review. Their mother died in 1887 at the age of sixty-eight years. Both parents were members of the Congregational church and the father was supervisor and high- way commissioner in the early days. John Bryan, the maternal grandfather of our subject, was a contractor and builder. While living at Ypsilanti. Michi- gan, he secured the contract for building the old state house in Detroit. He finally settled in Michigan, and died there at an advanced age.
Henry B. Douglas was born in Aurora, Illinois, February 16, 1840. Deprived of the advantages of an early education, he was fourteen years of age when he first entered the public schools of Aurora, but that he then made up for lost time is evidenced by the fact that at the age of nineteen he suc- cessfully passed an examination for a teacher's certificate and entered upon the work of teaching school, having previously spent two years in Oberlin College. On leaving school he spent one summer in the office of a newspaper at Detroit, known as the Michigan Farmer, his duties being that of proof- reader and mailing clerk. He taught school the following winter at Big Rock, Illinois.
The year 1861 witnessed the outbreak of hostilities between the north and south and Mr. Douglas was among the first to rush to the defense of
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the Union, enlisting in Company A Cavalry, attached to the Thirty-sixth Illinois Infantry. He served in the Union army for two years and three months, attaining to the rank of sergeant. He was in the Missouri campaign. including the battle of Pea Ridge, and made the famous march of over a thousand miles through Arkansas and Missouri and then went by boat up to the Tennessee river to Hamburg Landing. thence to Corinth, Tennessee. On the 19th of September. 1862. he participated in the battle of luka and was left in charge of the battlefield by General Rosencrans with instructions to bury the dead and gather up the government property. In October he engaged in the battle of Corinth, where he was on duty with the medical director of General Rosencrans' army and wrote up the official records of both battles. He was then detailed on duty at General Grant's headquarters in the engi- neering department. While at General Grant's headquarters he was captured and made a prisoner of war, but was paroled the same day-December 2, 1862-being sent by General Grant to Chicago, there to await an exchange of prisoners, the order written and signed by General Grant reading as follows :
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