USA > Illinois > Lee County > History of Lee County, together with biographical matter, statistics, etc. > Part 21
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On February 27, 1853, Col. Noble was united in marriage to Miss Jane Ann Herrick, born in Chautauqua county, New York, and was the danghter of Samuel and Sally (Nash) Herrick. She was killed in the great bridge disaster at Dixon, Illinois, May 4, 1873. In 1875 he was married to Miss Mary Augusta Hampton, who was born in Boston, Erie county, New York, and was the daughter of Slater and Manerva (Ellis) Hampton. Genealogy : Col. Henry T. Noble, born 1830, in Otis, New York, son of Henry Noble and Mary A. (Hubbard) Noble; Henry Noble, born 1804, in G. Barrington, Mass., son of David Noble and Patience (Noble) Noble ; David Noble, born 1771, G. Barrington, Mass., son of Preserved Noble and Elizabeth (Hughstand) Noble ; Preserved Noble, born 1723, Westport, Mass., son of Joseph Noble and Abigal (Dewey) Noble ; Joseph Noble, born 1691, Westfield, Mass., son of Matthew Noble and Hannah (Dewey) Noble; Matthew Noble, born 1666, Westfield, Mass., son of Thomas Noble and Hannah (War-
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ren) Noble ; Thomas Noble, born 1632, in England, came to Boston, Mass., thence to Springfield, thence to Westfield, where he died.
JOSIAH POMEROY DANA, merchant, Dixon, was born in Albany, New York, January 11, 1819, and is the son of John Wood and Sophia (Pomeroy) Dana. His father was born in Warwick, Massachusetts, in 1788, and was the son of Daniel Dana who was born near Boston in 1754, son of Daniel Dana, sr., of Boston, Mass. The two latter par- ticipated in the revolutionary war, and were engaged in the battle of Bunker Hill; and in after years figured in the public affairs of the commonwealth. The Dana family was formerly represented in this country by three brothers : John, Joseph, Daniel, who came to this country at a very early date, two settling in Massachusetts, and one in Vermont. The family has many relies and curiosities of ancestral honor, which are carefully preserved for future generations. The sub- ject of this sketch was left fatherless at the age of nine years, and was soon after placed under the care of Daniel Dana, his uncle, who was a successful merchant, and under this influence he acquired a knowledge of the business and never departed from the business customs of his fathers, but at the age of twenty-two roamed westward and landed in Chicago in August 1842; thence to Southport, Wisconsin, where for fifteen years he was engaged in the mercantile and lumber interests of the city. In 1865 he removed to Dixon, Illinois, and engaged in mer- cantile pursuits, in which he has continued until the present time. In 1860 Mr. Dana was married to Miss Winfred Nixon, who was residing near Portage city, Wisconsin. Resulting from this union were three children, one son and daughter living, and one daughter of seven years was lost at the great bridge disaster on May 4, 1873, an account of which is given in another place in this book. Miss Agnis Nixon, sister to Mrs. Dana, also perished at the same time. Mr. Dana's mother died in the city of New York in May of the present year, at the ad- vanced age of ninety-one years.
BENJAMIN F. SHAW, editor and publisher, Dixon, was born March 31, 1831, in Tioga county, New York, and is the son of Alanson B. and Philomela (Flower) Shaw, natives of Bradford county, Pennsyl- vania. His grandparents were born in New England, whose ancestors were from England. His father, Alanson B. Shaw, was the son of Jedediah and Martha (Gore) Shaw. His mother was the daughter of Zephon and Mary (Patrick) Flower. His father died when he was a small boy, and in 1845 he came west and settled in Rock Island in 1847. He came to Dixon in 1851, and assumed the publication of the Dixon " Telegraph," of which he became proprietor. In 1859 he sold the "Telegraph " and bought an interest in the Amboy paper. In 1860 he was elected clerk of the circuit court, and recorder, in which
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capacity he served eight years, during which time he continued his connection with the Lee county " Times." In 1870 he took editorial charge of the Dixon "Telegraph," which he has continued up to this time, having been editor of a paper from 1851 to the present writing, excepting four months, during which time he crossed the plains to Pike's Peak. He spent the winter of 1868 in Washington, and during the session of congress reported for the Chicago "Evening Journal "; was connected with the internal revenue service in 1869, and was one of the commissioners appointed by the governor to locate the Elgin state insane asylum. In 1877 he was appointed canal commissioner, in which office he has continued until the present time. In Novem- ber, 1856, Mr. Shaw was united in marriage to Miss Anna Eustace, daughter of Rev. Thomas Eustace and Fannie (Olmstead) Eustace, of Dixon, from which union resulted the birth of three children : Frede- ric L., Eustace E. and Lloyd Shaw. Mr. Shaw has always taken an active part in politics as a staunch republican. He had three brothers and four sisters : Alonzo, Ellen E., Phoebe, Valney, Philomela, Jude- diah and Martha.
HON. JOSEPH CRAWFORD, surveyor and banker, Dixon, was born in Columbia county, Pennsylvania, May 19, 1811, and is the son of Jolin and Catharine (Cassedy) Crawford. In 1830 he removed with his parents to Huntington, Pennsylvania, and at the age of twenty he engaged in school teaching, in which profession he continued for four years. On April 4, 1835, he started for Illinois. Passing Chicago and Dixon's Ferry, he stopped at Galena, where he remained but a short time, returning to Dixon's Ferry, and located on a farin south of Grand Detour, in May of the same spring. He also engaged in busi- ness as surveyor, which he followed extensively until recent years, and made the original survey of most of the villages on Rock river from Rockford to Rock Island. In 1836 he was appointed deputy county surveyor for northwest Illinois, and was elected county surveyor of Ogle county, which then included Whitesides and Lee, and was elected surveyor of Lee county at the time of its organization in 1840, in which office he served for eighteen years. He served in 1841 as mem- ber of the first board of supervisors for the county of Lee, and was elected to represent Lee and Whitesides in the Illinois state legislature in 1849, and reëlected to the same in 1853. In 1852 he settled in Dixon, where he still resides. He has dealt extensively in farming lands, and owns about twelve hundred acres of fine farming land in Lee county ; one farm of 1,000 acres in one body three miles east of the city of Dixon, and one four miles southwest of the city, embracing 200 acres. Both farms are devoted to grain and stock-growing. He was one of the chartered members of Lee county national bank, which
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was organized in 1865, since which time he has sustained the relation of president. He was elected mayor of the city of Dixon in 1873, and reelected the two following terms. On September 16, 18-, Mr. Crawford was united in marriage to Mrs. Huld (Bowman) Culver. Resulting from this union is a son, Joseph Willber Crawford, born August 20, 1859, and still making his father's house his home. Mr. Crawford had two brothers and three sisters. His brother, Dr. John S. Crawford, of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, was killed by a train of cars while crossing the track in his buggy. His brother, Samuel Crawford, resides at Sterling, this state; his two surviving sisters are Sarah and Catharine; the former, Mrs. L. W. Hale, resides in Ohio, and the latter married Mr. John Litle, of Pennsylvania. His parents were born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and his forefathers were of Scotch blood. Mrs. Joseph Crawford was the daughter of John and Mary (Bretten) Bowman; the father was born on the banks of the Delaware river in Pennsylvania, and the mother on Staten Island. Her grandfather, Christopher Bowman, was of Germany.
HON. COL. JOHN DEMENT, manufacturer, Dixon, was born April 26, 1804, in Gallatin, the county seat of Sumner county, Tennessee, and is the son of David and Dorcus (Willis) Dement. When thirteen years of age he removed with his parents to Franklin county, Illinois, and located upon a farm, where he made his home until twenty-two years of age, when he was elected to the office of sheriff, which im- posed upon him also the duties of collector ard treasurer of public funds. He was elected in 1828 to represent Franklin county in the Illinois state legislature, and in 1830 was reelected for a second term, serving four years consecutively as member of that body. Subsc- quently he was elected by the general assembly as treasurer of the state for three successive terms. During his service in this responsible position he successfully closed up the affairs of the old state bank, and rendered efficient service as an officer in the Black Hawk war, being out in three campaigns. In 1831 he was with Gen. Duncan and Gov. Reynolds as aid, and was one of the witnesses to a treaty with Black Hawk when that chief relinquished all claims to the land lying east of the Mississippi. In the following spring (1832), when Black Hawk in violation of his treaty was marching up Rock river, Col. Dement, then residing at Vandalia, responded to a call from the governor for volunteers to march to the relief of the invaded settlements, and was chosen captain of a volunteer company of the spy battalion and moved immediately to the front. Reaching Dixon, Gen. Whiteside sent Col. Dement with a few men to visit Shabbona, the Pottawatomie chief, who was living twenty-five or thirty miles north of Dixon. He moved out with his men, in all about six, some twelve miles toward Shabbona
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grove and encamped for the night. Having no rations only what their guide had provided for himself, they consumed the last of their supplies for their breakfast and renewed the march toward the Indian settle- ment. Meeting a band of Black Hawk's party they learned the location of that chief and his people, and late in the evening they turned toward camp, riding all night after a fatiguing day. They returned to Dixon on the following day and reported to the commanding general. After Stillman's defeat and Gen. Whiteside's expedition the volunteers were disbanded because of expiration of time, and a new levy of troops were called out by the governor. Col. Dement returned home, and arranging his official matters returned to the volunteer headquarters, where he was elected commander of a battalion of spies, and assuming command he marched in advance of the main army toward Rock river, searching the groves and Bureau woods for Indians who had been committing depredations on the settlers, and reported to Gen. Taylor at Dixon. From this point he soon advanced in search of Black Hawk, leading to the brilliant engagement with that warrior referred to in the chapter on the " Black Hawk war." Black Hawk admitted the loss of seven warriors and two favorite chiefs; says this is the only battle of the year in which he personally took part, and paid a high compli- ment to the courage and fighting qualities of Col. Dement. In 1836 he was elected representative. To accept this he resigned the state treasurership, turning over his books and accounts, which were audited and approved by the finance committee of the general assembly. In 1837 he was appointed by President Jackson receiver of the land office at Galena, which was removed to Dixon in 1840. He held this position until removed by President Harrison ; reinstated by President Polk; was again removed by President Taylor; again reinstated by President Pierce, continuing in position until the land office was re- moved to Springfield, under the administration of President Buchanan. In 1844 he was chosen presidential elector for James K. Polk. He was a member of three state constitutional conventions of 1847-48, 1862, and 1870, and has been a member of all the conventions called to re- vise the Illinois constitution since the formation of the state govern- ment in 1818. In the first two conventions he served as chairman of the committee of the legislative department, and in the last convention, 1868, he was chairman of the committee on suffrage. The colonel has been elected to the office of mayor of Dixon for four terms, while his name, means and energy have been associated with most of the leading enterprises and public improvements of the city of Dixon. In 1835 he was united in marriage to Miss Maria Louisa Dodge, daughter of Gov. Dodge, of Wisconsin. His eldest son, Henry Dodge Dement, is the present secretary of State for Illinois.
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WILLIAM W. HEATON, deceased, late chief justice of the appellate court of the first district and for many years a resident of Dixon, was one of the foremost members of the legal profession in the State of Illinois. He was born in Western, Oneida county, New York, April 15, 1814, and was the son of John and Sarah (Weed) Heaton. . He received an academical education, and was for a short time engaged in teaching, but soon relinquished that pursuit for the more congenial profession of the law. He entered upon his studies in 1835 and in 1838 was admitted to the bar at Terre Haute, Indiana, and soon attained a good practice. In 1840 he removed to Dixon and practiced law until 1861, when he was elected judge of the circuit court and occupied that position until 1877, having been twice reelected. The appellate court having been established by act of legislature in 1877, Judge Heaton was elected one of its justices, and on the assembling of the court in October he was chosen chief justice. He died very suddenly in Chicago, on the 26th of December, 1877, being but a few moments before his sudden taking off in apparently his usual good health. Meetings of the bar in the several counties comprised in his district were held, at which resolutions were adopted eulogizing his public and private career and lamenting his untimely demise, which was all the more sad as it occurred only the day before the one appoint- ed for the nuptials of his youngest daughter. Judge Heaton was married three times, his first marriage taking place in Oneida county, New York, the second at Terre Haute, Indiana, and on the 17th of March, 1851, he was united to Mrs. Lucinda McCumsey, of Dixon, who survives him. Four children are still living : Dwight, a lawyer resid- ing in Dixon; Edward, who is living in Nebraska and engaged in farming ; Mary, married to Prof. J. F. O. Smith, now of Fort Lara- mie, Wyoming territory, and Virginia, wife of Chas. H. Gardner, at present a resident of Dakota.
LUKE HITCHCOCK, D.D., presiding elder of the Dixon district of the Methodist Episcopal church, was born in Lebanon, Madison county, New York, on April 13, 1813, and is the son of Julius and Myra (Ingersoll) Hitchcock. He was brought up and educated in his native town, attending the neighboring schools. In the fall of 1834 he united with the Oneida conference of the Methodist Episcopal church. His fields of labor for the next five years were principally in the counties of Onondaga and Tioga, in the State of New York. In August, 1839, he removed to Illinois, and settled at Inlet Grove, Lee county, and during the winter of 1839-40 was in charge of the church at Dixon, being the first regular pastor after its organization. He soon after went to Chicago, and became pastor of the only Methodist Episcopal church then in existence in that city. In the fall of 1842 the society
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divided and built the Second church on Canal street. This was the original foundation of what is now known as the Methodist Episcopal Centenary church. Soon after, on account of his health being poor, he returned to Lee county, and being disqualified for preaching he engaged in business pursuits for the next two or three years. He was one of the founders of Lee Center, and held for a time the office of postmaster He was also one of the original projectors and stockholders of the Lee Center Academy and a member of the first board of trustees. On the passage of the state school law the grounds and building were turned over to the town without compensation, to be used as a free school, provided the system of education should be kept at a certain standard, which trust was accepted by the school directors of the district. Dr. Hitchcock reentered the ministry in 1847, and for thirteen years was presiding elder of the district, which then contained all the territory now embraced in the Rock River conference and a large portion of the present Central Illinois conference. In 1860 he was elected by the general conference of the Methodist Episcopal church an agent of the Western Book Concern. His services in this position were extremely valuable, and gave him a high reputation as a business manager. He filled this position until 1880, having been at five succeeding quadren- nial conferences. He has also been elected a member of every general conference since the year 1852. In the, fall of 1880 he again be- came presiding elder of the Dixon district, which position he still fills. He has been honored by the Wesleyan University of Middletown, Connecticut, with the degree of A.M., and with that of D.D. by the Cornell College, of Mount Vernon, Iowa, both being conferred without the knowledge of the recipient. Dr. Hitchcock was married in 1837, to Miss Jane E. Birdsall, of Fabius, New York, who is still living. They have seven children : Birdsall I., residing in Colorado ; Eliza- beth, who is married to J. E. Wilson, Esq., of Chicago, a member of the well-known firm of Wilson Brothers; Myra, married to Dr. C. H. Fowler, of New York ; Mary, married to Charles E. Smith, Esq., of Cincinnati ; Ella, married to E. C. Wilson, Esq., of Wilson Brothers, Chicago; Adelaide, married to Archer Brown, Esq., of Cincinnati, and Charles A., engaged in business in Chicago. Dr. Hitchcock has an unblemished record, during nearly half a century of service, as a spotless man, intelligent patriot, and devout christian.
WILLIAM UNIL, dealer in agricultural implements, Dixon, was born in Alleghany county, Maryland, 1819, and is the son of Daniel and Mary (Lind) Uhl. He was educated in Gettysburg College, Pennsyl- vania, graduating abont 1845. He entered the ministry of the Evan- gelical Lutheran church, and in 1851 removed to Peru, Illinois, re- maining in that pastorate until 1853, when he removed to Dixon,
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where he organized a church of the denomination to which he belonged, of which he was the pastor for about two years, being at the same time engaged in farming. In 1860 he resigned his pastoral charge on ac- count of ill health, and having purchased the " Farmers' Mill " was engaged in the milling business until 1867, when he returned to farm- ing. In February, 1851, he purchased the agricultural implement business from the Farmers' Association, placing his son, E. C. Uhl, in charge as manager. He was a charter member of both the banks located at Dixon, and has been an officer and director of each at various times since their organization. Mr. Uhl was married in 1840, at Wellersburg, Pennsylvania, to Miss Lucinda Cook, and has four chil- dren. The eldest is Jonathan, born in 1841, and now residing in Page county, Iowa, engaged in stock farming; E. C., who was born in 1844, and is a resident of Dixon ; Ellen, born in 1842, and married to J. H. W. Bennett, and Josie E., born in 1847, and married to Z. D. Mathuss. Both daughters now reside at Shenandoah, Page county, Iowa, where their husbands are engaged in business. E. C. Uhl, who manages the business at Dixon, was born at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, and accom- panied his father during the various removals before mentioned. He was married in 1874 to Miss Virginia Roe, daughter of Col. E. R. Roe, of Springfield, Illinois. Mr. William Uhl has been a life-long democrat, while his son is a firm supporter of the principles and policy of the republican party.
DAVID WELTY, Dixon, was born in Williamsville, Erie county, New York, September 30, 1811. His parents were Jacob and Betsy (Horshey) Welty. His parents removed to Buffalo when he was twelve years of age, and he acquired the greater part of his education at that place. When he became of age he engaged in the dry-goods business, which he followed for several years. At the time of the patriot war in Canada Mr. Welty served as aid on the staff of Gen. Burt. His health being in a very precarious condition he removed to Dixon, in 1838, and has sinee resided in Lee county, part of the time in the city, and the remainder has been spent on his farm lying near Dixon. He was elected probate judge in 1854, and served two terms of four years each, and also held the office of drainage commissioner for several years. Judge Welty was married at Buffalo, New York, on October 23, 1834, to Miss Seraphina Scott, daughter of John and Brilliant (Holmes) Scott, and a native of Mayville, Chautauqua county, New York, who is still living, and they have nine surviving chil- dren : Emily, who married Leander Devine, December 26, 1866, and is residing at Dixon ; Ellen, married to E. K. Sibley, December 7, 1870, and living in St. Louis; John, employed in pension office at Washington, D. C .; Maxwell A., who resides in St. Louis; Adeline,
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Anna, Charles, William and George, all of whom are at present living in Dixon.
CHARLES W. LATIMER, marble dealer, Dixon, was born in Sodus, Wayne county, New York, September 5, 1845, and is the son of Henry M. and Ann E. (Williams) Latimer. His parents removed to Lyons, New York, during his infancy, and he acquired his education at the Lyons union school. After leaving school he worked for two years at the trade of marble cutting. He enlisted, December 1863, in the 9th New York heavy artillery, and serving through the remainder of the war was mustered out September 29, 1865. On returning home he worked at his trade at Albion, New York, and Erie, Pennsylvania, and in June, 1867, entered the marble works of Day & Ashcraft, at Norwich, New York, with whom he remained until 1874, when he removed to Dixon, and in company with M. L. Young purchased the marble works of J. Y. Westervelt, carrying on the business under the firm name of Latimer & Young. June 1, 1876, he purchased the inter- est of Mr. Young, and with the exception of a few months has since conducted the business solely on his own behalf. Mr. Latimer was married January 8, 1873, to Miss Ella Backus, of Palmyra, New York, who died September 7, 1876. They had only two children, the eldest of whom died in November 1875, and the second soon after birth. Mr. Latimer ranks high in the Masonic fraternity, being at present recorder of the Dixon Commandery, K.T. He is also superintendent of Oak- wood cemetery, and the neat and beautiful appearance of this " city of the dead " speaks well for his watchful management. A visit to the works of Mr. Latimer will prove that in the quality of his work, its du- rability, and in all other respects, he ranks head and shoulders over the establishments of a similar character in far larger cities, and his integ- rity and urbanity is daily extending the already large circle of his friends.
THOMAS P. HODNETT, pastor of the Catholic church, Dixon, was born in Glin, county Limerick, Ireland, February 2, 1845, and is the son of Thomas P. and Elizabeth (Hanlon) Hodnett. At the age of seventeen he left his native town and entered the Jesuit college at Limerick, where he remained for four years, and was for one year at the Catholic university of Ennis, county Clare. He then passed his ex- amination at Dublin, after which he entered the Irish college at Paris, France. He remained there for three years, and then came to America, and after passing eight months at St. Mary's of the Lake seminary, he entered St. Francis seminary, and was ordained September 30, 1866, and was appointed assistant to Right Rev. John Henry Morris at Water- town, Wisconsin, where he remained a year, when he was transferred to the pastoral charge of Potosi, Wisconsin, and afterward to Lancaster,
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Sincerely yours John Dement
THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
ASTOR. LENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS K L
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Wisconsin, and several other pastorates. In 1871 was appointed by Bishop Foley, pastor at Dixon, and assumed charge in January 1875. He has a school in connection with his church under the charge of four sisters belonging to the order of St. Dominic, with an average at- tendance of 150 pupils. The grades are arranged similarly to those of the city schools, and a public examination is held each year, conducted by prominent and influential citizens of Dixon. The cost of the pres- ent church and the ground was about $30,000, and the value of the property belonging to the church in the city is estimated at $40,000. The congregation consists of about 175 families, and the church has a seating capacity of 650 persons. There are also affiliated missions at Harmon and Ashton, in Lee county. The value of the property be- longing to the former is estimated at $7,500, and to the latter at $5,000. Father Hodnett has an able assistant in the Rev. James F. Clancy, who was appointed associate pastor at Dixon early in 1879.
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