History of La Salle County, Illinois, Part 131

Author: Hoffman, U. J. (Urias John), b. 1855
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: Chicago : S.J. Clarke Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1286

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WILLIAM H. SMITH.

William H. Smith is the owner of a valuable farm property of three hundred and sixty acres, which he keeps under a high state of cultivation and in addition thereto he is raising a good grade of horses, cattle and sheep. He was born in Waynesburg, Greene county, Pennsylvania, March 15, 1851, and was educated in the public schools of La Salle county, Illinois. His parents were Morgan and Mary Ann (Cain) Smith. The father was born in Waynesburg, Septem- ber 9. 1827, and the mother's birth occurred in the same state May 6, 1831. Mr. Smith came to Illinois with his family in 1852, locating in Brookfield township, and first purchased eighty acres of wild prairie land, becoming one of the pioneer residents of that locality. He had just started to make him a home upon the wild prairie when he was called from this life, passing away in September, 1857. His widow still survives and is now living in Jewell county, Kansas. He was one of the first justices of Brookfield town- ship, elected to that office on the democratic ticket, for he was a faithful advocate of Jack- sonian democracy. In his religious faith he was connected with the old-time Presbyterian church. Unto him and his wife were born nine children : Sarah Ann, the wife of Lafayette Downing, liv- ing in Hastings, Nebraska; William H .; Ary C., the wife of Christ Johnson, who is living in Tonica, La Salle county; Mary Jane, the wife of Henry Burbridge, of Colorado; Elizabeth N., the wife of C. S. Holley, a resident of Denver, Colorado; John, living in Brookfield township; Morgan, whose home is in Arapahoe county, Oklahoma; Aaron, of Kansas; and Florence L.,

the wife of Benjamin VanVenter, of Mankato, Kansas.

William H. Smith was only about a year old when brought by his parents to La Salle county and at the usual age he entered the public schools, wherein he acquired a good practical education. He started out in active life on his own account April 4, 1867, when sixteen years of age, by learning the blacksmith's trade in Marseilles, and he continued in business until 1871, when he began farming on a tract of land of forty acres on section 1, Allen township. He conducted a blacksmith shop on his farm for a time but for many years his attention has been given exclu- sively to general agricultural and stock-raising interests and as the years have gone by and his labors have brought him a merited financial re- ward he has added to his land until today he has three hundred and sixty acres of as fine land as can be found in La Salle county. He also raises a good grade of horses, cattle and sheep and his agricultural interests are valuable and, moreover, are carefully managed, for Mr. Smith is a man of keen business sagacity and unfaltering diligence.

On the 29th of June, 1876, Mr. Smith mar- ried Miss Marie B. Higgins, who was born March 28, 1858, in Allen township, a daughter of John and Jemima (Smith) Higgins. Her father was born on Prince Edward Island in 1823. Early left an orphan, he grew up without parental guidance, but as the years passed by developed through his own training and discipline a character worthy of respect. He came to the United States in 1848 and during three years' residence in Louisiana spent a considerable part of that time on the construction of the levees of the Mississippi river. He then returned to the place of his birth and on June 19, 1851, mar- ried Jemima Smith, who was born August 16, 1828. Soon afterward they became residents of Putnam county, Illinois. Sailing to Boston, they proceeded by rail to Buffalo, around the lakes to Chicago and thence down the Illinois and Michigan canal to La Salle. In 1850, attracted by the discovery of gold in California, Mr. Hig- gins crossed the plains, walking every step of the way and driving an ox team part of the time. Discouraged, however, by the slow movement of the train, he left it when still three hundred miles from their destination and although a range of mountains had to be crossed he started out alone with the sun for his guide and reached the other side two days after his provisions gave out. After spending nearly sixteen months on the coast he returned by way of the Isthmus of Panama, the gulf of Mexico and the Missis- sippi and Illinois rivers. In 1855 he removed

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to a farm on section 8, Allen township, which he reclaimed from an almost unbroken prairie, con- tinuing its cultivation until 1889, when he re- moved to Ransom. There he died April 21, 1905, after having been for fifty years an es- teemed and respected citizen of the community. He helped to organize school district No. 3 and championed every other measure for the general good and though his own educational privileges were limited he became a well informed man through personal observation, reading and com- prehensive understanding of those matters which came withing his knowledge. He was a kind and faithful husband and a loving and devoted father and was highly esteemed by his neighbors. In the family were a son and three daughters : Matilda ; Hettie, who died November 13, 1899, at the age of forty-three years; Mrs. Smith ; and John F., who resides on the old homestead.

The home of Mr. and Mrs. Smith has been blessed with for children. Frank O., born Jan- uary 17, 1878, is a graduate of the Northwestern University of Chicago, of the class of 1905, and is now studying law in the same institution. Horace G .. born March 28, 1881, was graduated from Northwestern University in 1905 and is now secretary for the Young Men's Christian Association connected with that institution. Louisa M., born May 20, 1883, died in infancy. John W., born March 21, 1885, attended the pub- lic schools and is a graduate of the Grand Prairie Seminary of Onarga, Illinois, of the class of 1906.

Mr. Smith has always been an earnest re- publican and keeps well informed on the ques- tions and issues of the day. He has served as pathmaster for two terms, as school director for fifteen years and as road commissioner for twelve years and his public duties are always discharged with an interest and fidelity that indicate his pub- lic spirit and unfaltering devotion to the general good. He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and his religious faith is undoubtedly a permeating element and influence in his life.

ALEXANDER HARRIS.

Alexander Harris, although a resident of La Salle county for a comparatively brief period, is yet remembered by his neighbors and the friends whom he made as a man of genuine worth, active and reliable in his business inter- ests. He was the owner of the farm which is still in possession of his widow and upon which he died February 14, 1875. He was born in

Beal township, Juniata county, Pennsylvania, Oc- tober 3, 1799, his parents being Thomas and Jane ( Beatty) Harris, the former a native of the Key- stone state and the latter of Ireland. The father was a blacksmith by trade, but also owned a farm in Pennsylvnaia and both he and his wife died in that state. In their family were three sons and five daughters, all of whom are now deceased, the last one having passed away about eleven years ago.

Alexander Harris was reared in Pennsylvania and is indebted to the public-school system of that state for the educational privileges he enjoyed. He lived there during the early days of the re- public and for many years was an interested wit- ness of the events that occurred and the prog- ress that marked the development and upbuild- ing of that section of the country. He, too, learned and followed the blacksmith's trade, be- ing an excellent workman, and he also owned and operated a farm in Juniata county, Penn- sylvania. He and his brother conducted the farm in partnership for many years and he was an enterprising business man, always industrious and energetic. He always kept well informed upon the questions of the day, political and other- wise. He read broadly and thus became a man of good general information. He also attained a high degree of proficiency in penmanship and mathematics and added to his common-school ad- vantages of early youth the broad knowledge that comes from practical experience and read- ing and observation. Upon coming to La Salle county in 1876 he located on the farm in Earl township which is still the home of Mrs. Har- ris. She now owns two hundred and fifty acres of well improved land under a high state of cultivation and equipped with all modern ac- cessories of a model farm.

It was in the year 1859, in Juniata county, Pennsylvania, that Mr. Harris was united in marriage to Miss Margaret Kelley, who was born in Prairie county, Pennsylvania, November 23, 1833, a daughter of Joseph and Margaret (Kennedy) Kelley, who came to La Salle county in 1879. Both died at the home of their daugh- ter, Mrs. Harris, the father passing away in February, 1893, when eighty-two years of age, while his wife died in April, 1881, at the age of seventy-five years. Mrs. Harris had seven brothers, one of whom died in the army, while the other six are living. Of this number one is a resident of Pennsylvania and five of La Salle county. Her only sister died in York, Ne- braska, in March, 1905.

Mrs. Harris was reared in Prairie and Juniata counties, Pennsylvania, and was married in her native state. They traveled life's journey hap-

MR. AND MRS. ALEXANDER HARRIS.

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pily together for sixteen years and became the parents of five children. Jane is now the wife of John Landis, of Wichita, Kansas, and they have a farm near Nickerson, that state. Mrs. Mary E. Murphy is living in Helena, Oklahoma. John A., who resides upon a farm adjoining the old home place, married Miss Whitaker, of Earlville, and is operating his farm of eighty acres in La Salle county, in addition to which he owns one hundred and sixty acres of land in Oklahoma. Samuel C. resides near Saskatoon. Canada, where he follows farming, having eight hundred acres of land there, and he married Miss Mary Frick, of Nickerson, Kansas. Mrs. Matilda Farnham died at Farnhamville, Iowa, eleven years ago.

In political views Mr. Harris was a stanch democrat, always giving his aid to the party in the principles of which he was deeply interested. He was reared in the faith of the United Pres- byterian church, but he and his wife attended the services of the Methodist Episcopal church in Earlville. He was a man of earnest Chris- tian spirit, kindly and sympathetic, devoted to his family, faithful in friendship and loyal in citi- zenship, and his many good qualities made friends of those with whom he came in contact, so that although his residence in La Salle was of comparatively brief duration he is yet re- membered by many who knew him here. Mrs. Harris still survives her husband and lives upon the old home property in Earl township, where for more than thirty years she has made her home.

WALTER B. PALMER.

Walter B. Palmer comes of an ancestry which in its lineal and collateral branches has been dis- tinctively American through many generations. Early in the history of New England the Pal- mers were found in that section of the country. He is a direct descendant of the intrepid pioneer of that name, who was born in London, England, in 1585 and built the first house in Charlestown, Massachusetts, in 1629. He was a very promi- nent man in the colonies of those days and was the first representative of the general court of Plymouth. Later he founded the city of Ston- ington, Connecticut, and the old Wequetequock burial ground at that place contains a pretentious monument recently erected to his memory.

Ephraim Palmer, great-grandfather of Walter Palmer, was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, December 17, 1760. Having reached mature years Ephraim Palmer was married August 27, 1786, to Miss Margaret Force, and his death oc-

curred June 30, 1852. He was a loyal defender of the cause of the colonists during the Revolu- tionary war, joining the army and rendering effective service in behalf of independence. He was captured June 17, 1779, imprisoned in the old Sugar House and Smallpox Hospital in New York for nine- months and was exchanged Feb- ruary 1, 1780. He re-enlisted in the summer of that year and took an important part in the closing scenes of the struggle for independence. He was one of those intrusted with the guard- ianship of the notorious Major Andre.

Thomas Force Palmer, the eldest son of Eph- raim Palmer and the grandfather of Walter B. Palmer, was born June 13, 1787, and was mar- ried May 30, 1815, to Rebecca Snow. The chil- dren of this marriage were six in number, the third child and second son being Ephraim M. Pal- mer, who was born December 13, 1828, in Cat- taraugus county, New York. When he was in his third year the family removed to Ohio, set- tling in Medina county, and there Ephraim Pal- mer was reared to farm life, spending the succeed- ing eighteen years in the Buckeye state. The year 1847 witnessed his arrival in Illinois, at which time he took up his abode at Sugar Grove, Ken- dall county, but in the spring of 1849 came to La Salle county, settling in Freedom township. He had previously purchased a land warrant for one hundred acres and located this in the south- western corner of Freedom township, securing thereby eighty acres of land which was the first property that he had ever owned, receiving the deed direct from the government. This land is still a part of his estate. Attracted by the dis- covery of gold in California, in the same year, 1849, he crossed the plains, traveling over the long hot stretches of sand and through the moun- tain passes until he reached the Pacific coast. He drove a stage coach in and about Sacremento during the days of lawlessness and was an eye witness of many acts committed by the vigi- lantes to preserve law and order. For nearly eight years he remained there and in his different business ventures met with a fair measure of prosperity, so that he brought back with him a good sum of money when he returned to Free- dom township, La Salle county, in 1858. Not long afterward he invested his savings in one hundred and sixty acres of land in Ophir town- ship and became actively identified with farming interests.

It was on the 13th of June, 1861, that Eph- raim M. Palmer wedded Miss Sarah Butler, of Ophir township, who was born in Anson, Maine, November 16, 1834, and is the eldest child of Ebenezer and Nancy (Butterfield) Butler. On the father's side of the family are descended

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from Nicholas Butler, who was born at Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, in 1662. His son, Benjamin Butler, was married in 1769 to Amy Daggett and in 1790 they became the parents of a son, Benjamin Butler, Jr., who was born at Martha's Vineyard and who on reaching adult age was married to Hulda Bradford, a relative of Governor Bradford, the first chief executive of the colony of Massachusetts. They afterward removed to Avon, Maine, and there their sec- ond son, Ebenezer Butler, was born May 18, 1808. When he was grown he wedded Nancy Butterfield, the wedding being celebrated on the 24th of December, 1833, and on the 16th of No- vember, 1834, they became the parents of a daughter, Sarah, whose birth occurred in Anson, Maine, and who in 1861 gave her hand in mar- riage to Ephraim Palmer. On the maternal side Mrs. Palmer traces her ancestry back to Jonas Butterfield, who was born in Dunstable, Massa- chusetts, September 12, 1742. He was a member of the Home Guards of Minute Men and marched from Dunstable to Concord at the time the alarm was given arousing the colonial troops on the 19th of April, 1775. Four of his brothers were soldiers of the Revolutionary war and the family military record is one of which the de- scendants may well be proud. His son, John Butterfield, was born April 16, 1780, and was married June 25, 1800, to Sybil Willard, whose birth occurred August 17, 1782. Their daughter, Nancy Butterfield, was born September 25, 1808, and became the wife of Ebenezer Butler and the mother of Mrs. Palmer. To Mr. and Mrs. Ephraim Palmer were born two children. Car- rie, born September 1, 1865, died on the 30th of September of the same year; and Walter B., the surviving son, was born June 22, 1868.

In the spring of the latter year the father re- moved to his farm in Freedom township, La Salle county, the place being a valuable tract of land of two hundred acres. In 1881, Agnes, a niece of Mrs. Palmer, then an infant, became an inmate of their home and has since been a daughter in the household. In his farming operations Mr. Pal- mer was extremely successful and his business capability and executive force were manifest in his able management of his property, resulting in the acquirement of a handsome competence. He was moreover prominent and influential in pub- lic affairs and his co-operation could always be counted upon to further any movement or plan for the general good. He voted with the re- publican party and did all in his power to pro- mote its growth and extend its influence. His fellow townsmen called him to various political positions and he served at different times as assessor, commissioner and a member of the

school board. He was especially interested in the cause of public education and for nearly thirty years was regarded as a leader in every move- ment that tended to advance the school interests of his community. His life was actuated by high and honorable principles and worthy motives and at all times would bear the closest investigation and scrutiny. He was considerate of others, was always just and upright and was never known to take advantage of the necessities of his fellowmen in any business transaction. In Jan- uary, 1892; he became ill with la grippe, which was followed by pneumonia and on the 30th of that month he passed away. His death was the occasion of deep and wide-spread regret, for he had endeared himself to many with whom he came in contact. His family lost a loving hus- band and father, his business acquaintances a trusted associate and his country a faithful and loyal citizen.

"Long rails of steel in the sunlight glisten. The winding trains through the valley roll. The hardy settlers no longer listen

For Indian yells with a fear of soul. The Concord Kings of the olden highway Now lie and rot in storm or sun. In the old corral or the alley byway

All battered relics of work well done. But gone is the fearless intrepid band,

The boys who drove on the Overland."

Walter B. Palmer, the only surviving child, was married in September, 1889, to Miss Ina Lardin, of Triumph, Illinois, a daughter of John and Elizabeth Lardin and a sister of Judge A. T. Lardin, of Ottawa. A lady of innate culture and refinement, she had many warm friends, who deeply regreted her death when in May, 1891, she passed away. In November, 1893, Mr. Pal- mer and his mother came to Ottawa, taking up their abode in a beautiful modern residence which they had erected and which they yet oc- cupy. In December, 1894, he married Miss Mary Frances White, a daughter of William and Nellie (Barger) White, formerly of Davenport, Iowa, in which city her father attained prominence as a lawyer. Two children grace this marriage: Burton White, born June 28, 1901 ; and Mar- garet, born December 28, 1905.

Mr. Palmer has several farms in La Salle county, on one of which, Sunnyside Farm, two miles west of Ottawa, his noted horses are kept, while his sale barn in town always contains some splendid specimens. Mr. Palmer has always been a lover of fine horses and has owned some of the best in the country, a number of which have made splendid records on the race track.

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He also has a number of fine trotters and pacers that are displayed at fairs. Born with an in- herited love for fine horses on an extensive stock farm and having his father, an accomplished horseman, as a tutor, it is not strange that Walter Palmer early identified himself with the breed- ing and development of fine horses. The success he has attained will be realized when we say that wherever the light harness horse is known the fame of his stable and his reputation for fair dealing go hand in hand. Among the horses that Mr. Palmer has owned or driven to their records are the following: Little Boy, 2:0112 to wagon, a world's record; Frank Agan, 2:033/4; The Admiral, 2:0714 ; Colbert, 2:071/2; Warren D., 2:0914; Nellie M., 2:1014; Jessie C., 2:101/4; Lord Sumrall, 2:1014 ; May Fern, 2:111/4 ; Eddie B., 2:13 ; Regret, 2:1374 and a score of others of lesser note. His keen judgment and fairness are appreciated and he is engaged each year as judge at some of America's most important shows, his work at the World's Fair at St. Louis having been especially commendable.

Mr. Palmer has spent his entire life in La Salle county, where he has a wide acquaintance. He is a capitalist, his attention being given to the supervison of invested interests, and in business and social circles his position is a most enviable one. In politics he is a stanch republican and has served in the city council for four terms. His strong and salient characteristics are such as win for him unqualified confidence and favorable re- gard and from an early day down to the present the name of Palmer has been an honored one in La Salle county.

HON. JAMES H. ECKELS.

Chicago, whose growth has been one of the wonders of the world, owes its pre-eminence not alone to the men of light and learning of the early days, but as well to the men of ability who are being continually attracted by the ever broadening opportunities of the city which has become one of the world's centers of commerce and finance. A representative of its later-day development, James H. Eckels, financier and banker, has left and is leaving the impress of his individuality upon its business development, while his study and mastery of problems of large im- port to the country have gained him national fame not disassociated from the grave respon- sibilities of a most important office.

Born in Princeton, Illinois, in 1862, James H. Eckels is a son of James S. and Margaret (Her- ron) Eckels. Nathaniel Eckels, the founder of

this family in America, was a native of Belfast, Ireland, and came to America at an early epoch in the development of the new world. The pa- ternal grandparents; William and Jane (Starr) Eckels, were natives of Cumberland county, Pennsylvania. The former was born March 3, 1787, and devoted his life to general agricultural pursuits. He was, moreover, a most devoted and active member of the Presbyterian church, whose life was permeated by his religious faith. He died November 15, 1861, having for many years survived his wife, who passed away December 23, 1830, when about forty years of age.

James S. Eckels, son of William Eckels, was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, De- cember 7, 1827, and spent his boyhood and youth upon the home farm in his native state, acquiring his preliminary education in the district schools. He afterward entered Jefferson College, of Penn- sylvania, where he pursued the regular course and was graduated with honors in the class of 1853. Having made choice of the practice of law as a life work he supplemented his preliminary reading by a course in the Albany Law School, of which he is an alumnus of 1857. Having re- ceived his diploma he sought a home in the new but rapidly developing middle west and thereafter for many years practiced his profession as one of the able lawyers of Princeton, Illinois, where he is now living retired. He had no superior and few equals as a trial lawyer in Bureau county, and won prominence as well as a counselor. His ready command of language combined with his thorough and comprehensive knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence rendered him an ef- fective speaker, while his analytical mind made his address to court or jury at all times logical. On the 19th of October, 1854, James S. Eckels was married at his old home in Pennsylvania, to Miss Margaret D. Herron, a daughter of James and Isabelle (Johnson) Herron, of Cumberland, county, Pennsylvania, where Mrs. Eckels was born December 23, 1830. They became parents of three sons and a daughter, Frank J., James Herron, Jane Isabelle and George M. Eckels. The mother departed this life March 7, 1892. She had long been a devoted member of the Presbyterian church and like her husband, took great interest in its work and contributed gen- erously of her means to its support.

James H. Eckels, reared in his native city, entered the public schools at the usual age and passed through successive grades until he had completed the high-school course by graduation as a member of the class of 1877. Almost im- mediately afterward he entered upon the study of law with Leland & Gilbert, prominent attor- neys of Ottawa, as his preceptors, and his more

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advanced professional training was received in Albany ( New York) Law School, of which he is a graduate of the class of 1883. Returning to Ottawa he at once entered upon the practice of law and was associated with the firms of Leland & Gilbert, Gilbert & Eckels, Duncan, O'Conor & Gilbert, O'Conor, Duncan & Eckels. At the bar he won the ready recognition which comes from a thorough understanding of legal principles and correctness in their adaptation to the points in litigation. He feared not that laborious atten- tion to detail which is as necessary in the practice of law as in any other line of business and his devotion to his clients' interests soon became pro- verbial. Moreover he was a student of the im- portant questions claiming state and national at- tention. He investigated with the analytical mind of the lawyer the important issues which divide the two great political parties of the na- tion and became a recognized power in the ranks of democracy in Illinois. While in Albany he formed the acquaintance of Grover Cleveland who was charmed with the young democrat, who showed such excellent knowledge of the political situation in the west and could so intelligently dis- cuss the issues of the day. A personal as well as a political friendship was then formed between them, which has existed to the present time. During Mr. Cleveland's first term Mr. Eckels was given the patronage of his congressional district that he might dispose of it as he saw fit, and without his knowledge was appointed by the president as comptroller of the currency. It is now a matter of history that he discharged his duties with signal ability and made a brilliant reputation as an official and financier. He es- tablished a new and progressive policy in con- nection with the administration of the duties of his office and James H. Eckels is spoken of by many as the most competent man who ever filled the position. Following his retirement from of- ficial service Mr. Eckels was elected president of the Commercial National Bank of Chicago, one of the strongest financial institutions of that city, in which position he has been a potent force in moneyed circles in the western metropolis. His record is creditable alike to Ottawa, his adopted city, his native state, and to his county, and his career there have been manifest those solid sub- stantial qualities which accomplish lasting re- sults. He stands as a splendid type of a higher citizenship.

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History of La Salle County, Illinois, Part 131

Author: Hoffman, U. J. (Urias John), b. 1855 Publication date: 1906 Publisher: Chicago : S.J. Clarke Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1286

Author: Hoffman, U. J. (Urias John), b. 1855
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: Chicago : S.J. Clarke Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1286