History of La Salle County, Illinois, Part 40

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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Dr. Clendenen located for practice in Chicago, whence he afterward removed to Aurora, Illi -. nois, and thence came to La Salle in 1876. Here he has practiced continuously since and a liberal patronage has been accorded him in recognition of the skill and ability which he displays in cop- ing with the intricate problems which continually confront the physician. He has also served as coroner of the county for six years.

Dr. Clendenen was married in 1875 in La Salle to Miss Josephine Whipple, and they have one daughter, Edith, who was born in this city and is a graduate of the Universiy of Chicago of the class of 1903. The Doctor and his family at- tend the Congregational church and for the past forty years he has been an exemplary member of

DR. FLOYD CLENDENEN.

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the Masonic fraternity and his political support is given to the democracy. His time is largely occupied with his practice which has constantly grown, and he makes a study of the diseases of the eye and ear, having gained a high proficiency in that line by constant study and research.

HENRY MAYO.

One of the most distinguished attorneys that has ever practiced at the La Salle county bar is Henry Mayo, of Ottawa, who has not only won success as a practitioner but has also ex- erted a .widefelt and beneficial influence in pub- lic affairs, his service for the public being char- acterized by unfaltering devotion to duty and a keen discrimination in regard to those interests which largely concern the public at large and bcar upon general progress. A native of New York, he was born in Tompkins county in 1836 and spent the days of his boyhood and youth in that neighborhood. He was a young man of eighteen years, when, in 1854, he came to La Salle county, where for four years his time was divided between the occupation of farming and the profession of teaching in the country schools. From 1857 to 1858 he attended Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, Michigan, being one of the charter members of the Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity. He was always ambitious for advancement and from 1858 until April, 1861, he was principal of one of the Ottawa schools, first having charge of the Shabbona school and then of the Jef- ferson school.

All personal considerations and interests, how- ever, were put aside, when, in April, 1861, he responded to the country's call for seventy-five thousand men to crush out the spirit of rebellion in the south. He at once offered his services and became a member of Company I. Eleventh Illinois Volunter Infantry under command of Captain W. L. Gibson. The regiment served at Cairo, Illinois, and Bird Point, Missouri, and following his term of service Mr. Mayo returned to Ottawa, where in 1862 he resumed teaching. Thinking, however, to find a broader and more congenial field of labor in the practice of law. he began studying with that end in view and was admitted to the bar in September, 1865.

Mr. Mayo entered upon practice in partner- ship with Captain Lathrop for a year, when the latter removed to Champaign, Illinois, and for two years thereafter Mr. Mayo was a partner of H. K. Boyle. In 1868 he occupied the office at the corner of Main and La Salle streets, where he

has since continued and in 1869 he became asso- ciated with Major J. H. Widmer, which relation was maintained until April, 1896. He is one of the veteran lawyers of the La Salle county bar and a most forceful orator, having the ability to impart with great readiness, clearness and force the facts in a case and the law applicable thereto. His fellow townsmen honored him with election to the office of county attorney in 1869 in which position he served for thirten years, or until 1881, while for eight years, from 1872 until 1880, he

was state's attorney. During that time he was the prosecuting attorney in many of the most im- portant cases ever tried in the county and estab- lished a most excellent record. His powers at the bar secm not to have diminished as the years have gone by but have rather been strengthened by his continued study, broad experience and ready mastery of intricate legal problems.

Mr. Mayo has figured prominently in political circles for many years. Before he could vote, in the year 1856, he canvassed the county and made speeches for the newly organized republic- an party and has been one of its able and pa- triotic leaders, never faltering in his allegiance thereto and basing his devotion to the party upon a thorough understanding of the correct ques- tions and issues which divide the two political or- ganizations and upon his appreciation for the principles promulgated by the republican organ- ization. He was defeated in the congressional convention for the nomination in congress by only three votes and on another occasion, though legitimately nominated over General Henderson, of Princeton, he withdrew in the interest of har- mony of the party and named Hon. Walter Reeves as his successor, the latter being triumph- antly elected, since which time he has continu- ously filled the position with great honor. Mr. Mayo has represented his party in national, state and county conventions and has ever stood for civic pride and virtue and for public progress and improvement. In the great drainage canal fight he represented the people of Illinois valley with great prominence and ability, and the provision of protecting the interests of the valley in such a drainage law were nearly all brought by his hand. He was president for the recent great deep water way convention at Peoria and served with signal success. He is now postmaster of the city of Ottawa and is deeply interested in all that pertains to municipal progress along ma- tcrial, intellectual and moral lines and the al- ways doing everything in his power to uphold the political and moral status of the community wherein he has resided for more than a half cen- tury. He is well known for his opposition to

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misrule in municipal affairs and has taken a live- ly interest in local government and school mat- ters. He has represented South Ottawa for many years on the board of supervisors and for twenty-three years has served as a member of the school board. Because of the many years of his residence here his activity in public life, the influence which he has exerted for high standards of individual and public conduct have made him one of the foremost residents of Ot- tawa. He has been a member of the Reddick Library board of Ottawa since 1893, having suc- ceeded James H. Eckles upon the latter's nomi- nation by President Cleveland as comptroller of currency. Socially he is a member of Occidental lodge, No. 40, A. F. & A. M .; Shabbona chapter, No. 37, R. A. M. ; and Ottawa commandery, No. 10, K. T., of which he is past eminent commander. and as commander he took the commandery to the conclave at Boston a few years ago. He is also past worthy patriarch of the Eastern Star.

JUDGE PARDON KIMBALL LELAND.

A record of efficient service in political and professional circles has made the life record of Judge Leland an honored one, and the fact that he was for thirty-six years a resident of La Saile county well entitles him to representation in this volume. He was born in Grafton, Massachusetts, on the Ist of June, 1828, and died in Kansas City, Kansas, September 5. 1905. The first represen- tative of the name in America as ascertained by the records in the Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England by James Savage was of Hope- still Leland, who came from England among the first settlers who made the journey direct from that country to the new world, and his daughter, Experience Leland, who married Thomas Hol- brook in England, crossed the Atlantic on the Mayflower. Hopestill Leland died in 1655, at Medfield, Massachusetts, when seventy-five years of age. Morse exults in his honor as "one of the most ancient, if not the most ancient. who came to our country", presuming his coming to have been in 1621 and "no monumental inscription in New England will date back of 1580", the year of his birth. Eleazer Leland was a grandson of Captain James Leland, who served in the French and Indian war and was the grandfather of Judge Leland of this review. He was a mem- ber of the Massachusetts legislature, during the time of the Revolutionary war and was called to active service in periods of emergency, one occasion being the battle of Bunker Hill, in which he participated. His son, Colonel Cyrus Leland, lived and died at Grafton, Massachusetts, and

was for years a member of the Massachusetts general assembly. He served as captain, major and colonel in the militia and was a wealthy cot- ton manufacturer and owned a large tract of land. Colonel Cyrus Leland was appointed July I, 1825, justice of the peace of Worcester county, Massachusetts, and on the 17th of March, 1828, was commissioned a trustee of the Hassanamisco (or Grafton) Indians. These commissions are still in possession of Dr. Leland, of Utica, Illinois, and bear the signature of Governor Levi Lincoln and Secretary of State Edward D. Bangs, of Massa- chusetts.

. The maternal grand father of Judge Leland was Noah Brooks Kimball, also one of the heroes of the Revolutionary war. He was born in Graf- ton, Massachusetts, May 19, 1756, and died August 21, 1856. He was twice married, first in 1775 to Persis Brigham, and second to Mary Chase, December 12, 1782. Her death occurred in August, 1806. He was a member of the com- pany commanded by his father, Aaron Kimball, at Lexington Alarm, April 19, 1775, and was in the company which marched to Bennington, Vermont, under command of Captain Warren in Colonel Wheelock's regiment. He resided for a long period in Grafton, Massachusetts, where he was a selectman and a member of the school committee.

Aaron Kimball, father of Noah Brooks Kim- ball and the great-grandfather of Judge Leland, was born in Norwich, Connecticut, February 15, 1729, or 1730, and died in Grafton, Massachu- setts, November 20, 1823. He was married in 1753 to Mary Brooks, who was born on January 29, 1737, and died August 12, 1823. Her parents were Noah and Sarah (Willard) Brooks. In 1757 Aaron Kimball belonged to the training and alarm soldiers of Grafton and was one of the mili- tary men who marched to the relief of Fort Wil- liam Henry on the 16th of August, of that year. He was also captain of the Grafton company which marched on to Lexington Alarm, April 19, 1775, and served until May 15, 1775. On the 5th of April. 1776, he became captain of the Sixth Worcester Company. Betsy Kimball, a daughter of Noah Kimball, was born in Grafton, Massa- chusetts, in 1787, and married Colonel Cyrus Leland.

Among their children was Judge Pardon Kim- ball Leland of this review. He was the youngest of nine children and attended Westfield Academy, while later he was graduated with valedictorian honors from Leicester Academy. He also spent one year as a student in Amherst College and he pursued a literary and scientific course in Brown University but he left Boston, Massachusetts, in January, 1849, sailing in company with his brother

P.Kimball Leland

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Eleazer on the ship Capitol, commanded by Cap- tain Thorndyke Proctor. They went around Cape Horn, the passage requiring one hundred and seventy-seven days, and landed in July, 1849, at San Francisco, after which Judge Leland worked in the gold mines of the north fork of the American river from its mouth to Barnes' Bar, near the present town of Auburn, California, for about two years. He returned to the east, however, with the second party of white miners, making the trip by way of the Nicaraugua route. Three hundred miles were covered in an Indian dugout and because of the hardships of the trip he contracted yellow fever and nearly died at Schagers. While in California he served as a soldier on the occasion of some of the Indian outbreaks.

Returning to Grafton, Judge Leland there resided until the spring of 1851, when he came to La Salle county, Illinois, settling in Ottawa, hav- ing previously visited the city about 1840. He had spent three years at that time in Illinois and Wisconsin. On again taking up his abode here he served as deputy clerk of the supreme court under his brother, Lorenzo Leland, at Ottawa, from 1851 until 1854, and during that period he formed personal friendships with Lincoln, Doug- las and other distinguished lawyers of the state. He. was commissioned by Governor Richard Yates, November 25, 1861, as county judge, to which office he had been elected. He was re-elect- ed and commissioned on the 22d of November, 1865, by Governor Richard J. Oglesby and thus served for two consecutive terms, covering eight years. He was for a long period a distinguished and prominent citizen of La Salle county and one who wielded a wide influence, leaving the impress of his individuality for good upon the public life and progress of the county.

On the 26th of March, 1856, Judge Le- land was married to Miss Elizabeth Mar- garet White, who was born in Pennsylvania on January 12th, 1834. Her father, John White, was a native of Ireland, and a second cousin of President Andrew Jackson. His wife, Mrs. Margaret (Maxwell) White, was of Scotch parentage, having been born and partially reared in Scotland. Her death occurred in Ottawa. Elizabeth Margaret White came to Ottawa in 1854, and in 1856 gave her hand in marriage to Pardon Kimball Leland. Unto them were born the following named: Dr. Kimball White, born November 4, 1857; Cora, who was born Septem- ber 30, 1861, and is the wife of Charles E. Abra- ham, of Kansas City, Kansas; and Lillian, who was born January 1, 1864, and is the wife of Evan H. Brown, of Kansas City, Kansas.

Judge Leland remained a resident of La Salle county until 1886, when he removed to Kansas

City, Kansas, where he resided until his death, which occurred nearly twenty years later. In the latter 'Sos he was commissioned judge by the governor of Kansas under the metropolitan police law and served capably on the bench for about eight years. His professional and judicial record was at all times free from adverse criti- cism because of his unquestioned fidelity to duty and his wise interpretation of the laws. In early manhood while in Amherst, Massachusetts, he had enlisted for service in the Mexican war but was never sent to the front, but the same spirit of patriotism and loyalty that characterized his ancestors was thus manifest. Wherever known he was honored for his splendid qualities of manhood, for his progressive citizenship and for his unfaltering fidelity to duty, and when he passed away his death was the occasion of deep regret wherever he was known. His widow still survives him and yet resides in Kansas City.

RICHARD FARNSWORTH.

Richard Farnsworth is one of the progressive agriculturists of La Salle county. He gives per- sonal attention to his farm, which is situated a half mile from Ottawa and comprises two hun- dred and eighty-two acres of rich and productive land. It is the visible evidence of his life of thrift and enterprise, for without special ad- vantages at the outset of his career, he has worked persistently and earnestly and has achieved both character and success. He was born in Belleville, Hastings county, Ontario, April 15, 1849, and is of English lineage. His paternal grandparents, Abraham and Sarah (Smith) Farnsworth, were natives of Yorkshire, England, and their son, Robert Farnsworth, was born in Yorkshire in 1822. He was only four years old when his parents crossed the Atlantic and settled in Belleville, Ontario, where he de- voted his life to general farming until his declin- ing years, when he made his home with his son Richard and his daughter, Mrs. Sarah Peck. Through a long period he was an active and earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal church and acted as clerk of his congregation for many years. He married Miss Betsy Wilcox, a daughter of Asa Wilcox, and she departed this life in Ontario, Canada, in 1866. They were the parents of six children : Richard ; Sarah, the wife of Henry Peck; David, a resident of Ottawa; Robert ; and J. C., who is living in Ottawa. Asa died when a child and Robert departed this life November 17, 1899.

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Richard Farnsworth spent his boyhood and youth in the place of his nativity, and after ac- quiring his education began learning the black- smith and carriage trade, to which he served a three years' apprenticeship. At the end of that time he removed to Indiana and for two years was employed at farm labor. It was in this way that he eventually gained the capital that enabled him to invest in land, and in 1872 he purchased the homestead property, which is situated a half mile from Ottawa and comprises two hundred and eighty-two acres of land. It is considered a very valuable farm, Mr. Farnsworth having placed the fields under a high state of cultivation. He also erected thereon many substantial and commodious buildings. All the days of his busi- ness career have not been equally bright, how- ever, for at times the storm clouds have gathered. In 1902 he suffered heavy losses, for all of the buildings upon his place were destroyed by fire. With characteristic energy, however, he rebuilt there and now has a beautiful home, large barns and other necessary buildings upon his place.

In 1868 Richard Farnsworth was united in marriage to Miss Edith Pickens, a daughter of James and Elizabeth (Close) Pickens, natives of Massachusetts. Her death occurred February 2, 1889, and she left four children: Walter, on a ranch in Kansas; George; Percy; and Lizzie. In February, 1890, Mr. Farnsworth was again . married, his second union being with Miss Emma Danz, of Peru, Illinois, a daughter of Charles and Margaret (Nebel) Danz. There was one child of this marriage, Gretchen. Mrs. Farnsworth passed away March 3, 1899, her death being deeply regretted not only by her immediate fam- ily, but also by a large number of warm friends. She held membership in the Congregational church, to which Mr. Farnsworth also belongs. He is likewise a member of Occidental lodge, No. 40, A. F. & A. M .; Shabbona chapter, No. 37, R. A. M .; and Ottawa commandery, No. 10, K. T. His political allegiance is given to the republican party. He has served as supervisor of South Ottawa township for eight years and in 1906 was re-elected without opposition, a fact which indicates the unqualified confidence re- posed in him by his fellow townsmen. He has always stood for progress and improvement as well in public affairs as in his private business life, and his efforts in behalf of La Salle county and her welfare have been far-reaching, effective and beneficial. When Mr. Farnsworth started out in life on his own account leaving Canada for the States, he had a cash capital of but two dol- lars and forty cents, and that sum was stolen from his trunk during the first week. Unde-

terred by the obstacles and difficulties which he knew he must face, he has worked persistently and energetically as the years have gone by. His life has been one of continuous activity in which he has been accorded due recognition of labor and today is numbered among the substantial citizens of the county. His interests are thor- oughly identified with those of Illinois and at all times he is ready to lend his aid and co-operation to movements calculated to benefit this section of the county or advance its wonderful devel- opment.

PHILIP G. SCHOCH.

Philip G. Schoch, cashier of the National City Bank at Ottawa, was born and reared in this city, a son of Philip and Caroline (Sulzberger) Schoch, both of whom were born in Strasburg, Germany. The father's birth occurred in Gerst- heim. Alsace. July 26, 1832, while the mother's birth occured in Obenheim, Alsace, May 6, 1835. They came to the United States in 1851, locating in Ottawa, and the father, who had learned the trade of manufacturing light and heavy harness in his native country, entered upon the same line of business here and is still carrying on the enter- prise, which he established in this town nearly a half century ago. His wife was called to her final rest June 1, 1885. Their son, Albert F. Schoch, is prominent in financial circles as vice- president of the National City Bank.

Philip G. Schoch completed his education in the public schools of Ottawa and throughout his business career has been identified with banking interests. He entered the National City Bank as a messenger in February, 1881, and after some vears was promoted to the position of book- keeper and later to teller, while on the Ist of May. 1898, he succeeded Edwin C. Allen as cash- ier. All through the intervening years he had given close attention to every detail of the busi- ness until he has become thoroughly familiar with banking in every department and the suc- cess of the institution which he represents is due in no small measure to his thorough knowl- edge and capability.

Mr. Schoch was married to Miss Minnie A. Flick, and they have one child. Philip, Jr. For many years Mr. Schoch has been a member of the Ottawa Boat Club and for a long period has acted as its treasurer. He has also taken an active interest in politics and his interest is that of a public-spirited citizen who upholds prin- ciples from a matter of preference and devotion to the general good without individual desire for

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office. He has a wide acquaintance in Ottawa and throughout the state as one of the active and enterprising young men of the city, always ready to do his part in public affairs and frequently called upon to perform some important service on special occasions. Frank and genial, he is pop- ular, and in public relations has made the same steady progress that has characterized his inde- pendent business career.

EZRA H. BAILEY.

Ezra H. Bailey, starting out in life on his own account at the age of fifteen years, has made steady and consecutive progress until as cashier of the Union National Bank he is a prominent and honored representative of financial inter- ests in Streator and La Salle county. His in- tense and well directed energy, combined with a ready and admirable utilization of every oppor- tunity that has presented itself, has placed him in the prominent position which he now occupies and at the same time he belongs to that class of representative American men who while advanc- ing individual interests also promote the public prosperity.

His life record began on the 25th of December, 1853, in the town of Milford, Massachusetts. where lived his parents, James D. and Abigail (Tyler) Bailey. He is descended in both lines from distinguished colonial ancestry. Authen- tic records state that John Bailey, making his home in Chippenham, England, in 1635 crossed the Atlantic to America and became a resident of Salisbury, Massachusetts. Identified with movements and measures which shaped the pol- icy of New England, the family became stanch advocates of the cause of liberty and when the attempt was made to throw off the yoke of Brit- ish oppression Eliphalet Bailey, the great-grand- father of our subject, joined the colonial army and fought for American independence. From an equally remote and honorable ancestry in the maternal line Mr. Bailey is descended, his mother tracing her ancestry back to Job Tyler, who was one of the first settlers of Andover, Massachusetts, where he arrived about 1640. She also was descended from Thomas Dudley, the second governor of the Massachusetts Bay colony through his daughter, Anne, who was the first American poetess and who married Simon Bradstreet, who was governor of the Massachu- setts Bay colony for ten years. Thus the an- cestral history of the family is closely interwoven with the early annals of America and the same

patriotism, loyalty and fidelity have been charac- teristic of later generations of both the Bailey and Tyler families.

In his youth Ezra H. Bailey profited by the superior educational advantages afforded by his native state and at the age of fifteen years his identification with business life began. He was first employed with his father in a boot and shoe factory and he remained in the east until January, 1874, when he secured employment in the office of Ralph Plumb in Streator, Illinois, and thus entered upon active connection with the interests of Streator, where for almost a third of a century he has now made his home. In No- vember of the same year he accepted the posi- tion of bookkeeper for the Streator Coal Com- pany and in that capacity and as cashier re- mained with the company and its successors, the Luther & Tyler Coal & Coke Company, until 1887, when he became identified with banking interests as cashier of the Streator National Bank. Three years later he was appointed cashier of the newly organized City National Bank and in 1892, upon the death of George L. Richards, cashier of the Union National Bank, he was chosen to the latter position, which he still oc- cupies. From the time of his earliest connec- tion with the banking business he has made it his policy to thoroughly acquaint himself with bank- ing in every department both in principle and detail and this he has done. He stands today as one of the prominent representatives of the moneyed interests of the county and has contri- buted to the success of the varied institutions with which he has been connected. He follows a safe, conservative policy and yet is notable for the progressiveness which is continually looking ahead for broader opportunities and marking out new paths for greater and more successful effort.

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History of La Salle County, Illinois, Part 40

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