USA > Illinois > Lee County > History of Lee County, together with biographical matter, statistics, etc. > Part 42
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blood-thirsty savage who long years before, on the western frontier, sent terror to the hearts of the pioneers. Houses were plundered, cattle and horses stolen, and driven off, stages were robbed, and for years robbery, rapine and red-handed murder held undisputed sway. Finally, honest men driven to desperation at the alarming and unceas- ing frequency of these occurrences, saw that speedy measures must be taken to protect their homes against the midnight marauders. A vigi- lance committee was organized, composed of resolute men in all parts of the county. Among the residents of Lee Center township who took an active part in the suppression of this band of outlaws were C. F. Ingalls, Rev. Luke Hitchcock, Dr. Adams, Moses Crombie, Sherman Shaw, Lewis Clapp, Benjamin Whittaker ; also a Mr. Starks and sons, whose full names we are unable to ascertain. By their shrewd manipulations and persistent efforts this organization succeeded in either capturing or driving from the country most of the prominent members of the gang, so that after 1845 the citizens of Lee Center, as well as else- where, experienced a feeling of security.
The descendants of some of these ontlaws still reside in the county, and are men of good standing in the community in which they live. This fact renders it a delicate and unpleasant task for the writer to give to the world even this brief sketch of the wrong-doings of their ancestors. But there are also men residing in this vicinity who, at the peril of their lives, aided in restoring law and order to the community, and it is but justice to them to place their names in their county's his- tory with the credit they justly deserve. Were it not for this fact the writer would gladly leave this dark chapter unwritten, and consign these unpleasant truths to the darkness of oblivion.
VILLAGE OF LEE CENTER
Was laid out in 1846; is situated in the northwestern corner of the township; present population 240; is the polling-place of the town- ship.
The first object liable to attract the attention of the visitor is the old seminary. This building was erected in 1847, at a cost of $2,000. This school was for some years the principal educational point in this part of the state, and attracted to Lee Center many students from ad- joining counties who wished to avail themselves of the excellent edu- cational advantages the school then afforded. The branches taught were the same as are taught in onr preparatory academies of the pres- ent day. A. J. Streetor, who has since that time attained a consider- able prominence as a politician, and who was the greenback candidate for governor in the campaign of 1880, was at one time a student in this seminary. The school first opened in 1847. The first principal was
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY.
Hiram McChesney, a graduate of Rensselaer Institute, of Troy, New York. The average attendance at that time is estimated at 150 pupils, a large percentage of whom were from abroad. Mr. McChesney served one year and was then succeeded by H. E. Leonard, of Napierville,' Illinois. Mr. Leonard after having taught two years was succeeded by the Rev. James Brewer, a native of Massachusetts and a graduate of the Jamestown college in that state. Mr. Brewer presided over the school for one year. Mr. Simeon Wright, formerly of Battle Creek, Michigan, comes next on the list of instructors. Mr. Wright took an active interest in the welfare of the school, and during the three years that he was principal the seminary passed through an era of prosperity never exceeded before or since. The attendance was very large and the school was in a flourishing condition. Mr. Wright was succeeded by Prof. Nash, a native of Massachusetts, who conducted the school until 1859, in which year he died. In the meantime other institutions of a similar character had sprung up in different points that were ac- cessible by railroads: at Amboy a high-school building was erected in 1857; academies had also been established in Dixon and Paw Paw ; so that in 1859, the attendance being very small, an act was passed au- thorizing its incorporation as a graded district school.
CHURCHES.
There are three churches in the village :
The Methodist Episcopal congregation was first organized in 1837, at the residence of Corrydon R. Dewey, at Inlet Grove. Their first church building was erected in 1842, in which services were held until 1858, when a larger and more commodious one was erected, which building they still occupy. The congregation now numbers thirty-four members. Trustees are John Lane, B. F. Lane and S. Trowbridge. The present stewards are S. Trowbridge, John Lane, J. H. B. Thorn- ton, S. Thayer and Mrs. M. A. Fox. Present pastor, J. G. B. Sbad- ford.
The Congregational Church .- This society was organized in 1843 at the residence of Moses Crombie, near Binghamton, in Amboy town- ship; the congregation then consisted of eleven members. First pastor was Rev. Joseph Gardner. The building now occupied by them was erected in 1856, at a cost of $1,500. The congregation now numbers fifty members, and is in a flourishing condition. Present pastor is the Rev. F. C. Cochran.
The Episcopal Church .- Congregation organized in 1855, and the church building erected in 1857, costing $2,500. The windows of the church were presented to the congregation by Bishop Whitelionse. The present rector is Rev. N. W. Herrmans, who has presided since 1879.
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LEE CENTER TOWNSHIP.
The only secret organization now in existence in Lee Center is the Masonic Lodge, No. 146. This lodge was organized on July 28, 1854 ; charter granted on October 2 of the same year. The first officers were A. P. Stinson, worshipful master; John Gilmore, senior warden ; Daniel Frost, junior warden ; Simeon Wright, secretary ; Lot Chad- wick, treasurer. This was the second Masonic lodge organized in the county ; and from the time of its organization to the present date 142 members have reached the degree of master mason. James A. Haw- ley, who was for two years grand master of the Grand Lodge, was here initiated into the mysteries of Masonry. The present membership of the organization is thirty-one members. Present officers are Win. Y S. Frost, worshipful master; Wallace Hicks, senior warden ; W. W. Depew, junior warden; B. F. Lane, secretary ; Willard Salsbury, treasurer.
Shaw station, situated on the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy rail- road, near the center of the township, promises to be one of the prominent trading points of this part of the county. Mr. F. D. Clapp, an enterprising young merchant, is here engaged in the dry-goods and grocery business and also owns a half interest in a large and commodious elevator on the north side of the railroad track. Surrounded by an excellent farming country, this station promises to become one of the thriving villages of Lee county. Prominent among the celebrities of which this village can boast is Mrs. Eva Katharine Mink, a young authoress of growing popularity, who has recently embarked upon the sea of literature, and whose productions have created quite a sensation in the literary world.
ROBBERIES.
Among the many daring robberies perpetrated by the banditti in different parts of the country is the case of Mr. Haskell at Inlet Grove. On a stormy night in June, 1844, Mr. Haskell's residence was entered by masked men, one of whom afterward proved to have been the notorious Fox. Creeping silently into the bed-room occupied by Mr. Haskell and wife they succeeded in dragging a trunk containing money from under the bed. The noise caused by sliding of the trunk on the floor was drowned by the rumbling thunder, and so cunningly was the deed planned and executed that the sleepers were none the wiser until the next morning.
Formado -
CASUALTIES.
On the evening of June 3, 1860, a terrible tornado passed through the northern portion of the township, spreading death and desolation in its path. Isaac Gage, now a resident of Lee Center village, lost two sons in this terrible storm. The loss of life and property was not so
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY.
great in this as in other portions of the county, however, but persons who were in or near its path will remember it to their latest day.
WAR RECORD.
In the spring of 1861, when the news came over the wires that Fort Sumter had fallen and the banner of the stars had been trampled under rebel feet, the citizens of Lee Center were among the first to send up the shout," down with the rebellion," her hills and forests echoed to the stirring strains of the "red, white and blue" and " star spangled banner;" and when the long roll sounded scores of her patriotic sons stepped to the front and helped to swell the vast throng of troops hurrying forward in response to their country's call ; many of them took their places by the side of the flag-staff and followed it to the sea. In the great battles of Stone river, Pittsburg landing, Lookout mountain, and Chickamauga, her sons bore a noble part, and many of them fell, mangled and bleeding, under the shadow of the banner they had so bravely defended. Lee Center township furnished troops for the 13th, 75th and 34th Ill. Inf., and for the 7th Ill. Cav.
BIOGRAPHICAL.
CHARLES F. INGALLS, farmer, Sublette, Lee county, Illinois, born in Windham county, Connecticut, in 1817. At the age of twelve went to Windsor county, Vermont, attending school for some time and afterward teaching. In the summer of 1834 came to Morgan county, Illinois, where he also taught school two years. In 1836 he in com- pany with his brother George A. Ingalls removed to Lee county and entered elaims in the southern part of Lee Center township. Mr. Ingalls was married September 6, 1838, to Miss Sarah Hawkins. At that time an Indian village stood on a part of his farm, the inhabitants of this village were Pottawatomies. Mr. Ingalls frequently found buffalo horns and carcasses in the vicinity of his farm, which, from their fresh appearance, convinced him that among the former inhab- itants of the country the king of the prairie had been a conspicuous member. Mr. Ingalls is father of five children : Charles H., Ephriam F., Sarah D., Ara M. and Mary S. With the exception of the latter named daughter they are all grown and married. He has been a member of the Baptist church since 1841. In 1850 he had an attack of the gold fever and consequently took a berth in a wagon-train bound for California, and was there four years, during which time he was engaged in mining and stock raising. He returned in 1854 by way of New York city. Mr. Ingalls was left an orphan at an early age, and was cast adrift to fight life's battles single-handed and alone. By in- dustry and enterprise he has acquired a respectable portion of the
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world's goods. He has a beautiful residence, surrounded by all the Inxuries necessary to make a bright and happy home. His parlor- walls are adorned by beautiful oil paintings, the handiwork of his accomplished daughters. And here in this seqnestered spot, surrounded by the fruits of his toil, under the shadow of the tall oaks who have been his silent companions in his adversities and triumphs, he will spend his remaining years. Mr. Ingalls furnishes an instance of how, in this great broad land of ours, an orphan boy with nothing to rely upon but a strong will and an energetic brain may, by industry, econoiny and honesty acquire both wealth and honor.
LEWIS B. REX, teacher, Lee Center, born in Summit county, Ohio, in 1831, received his early education in that county, and attended one term at the Mount Vernon Seminary, after which he was three years a student in the Otterbise University, at Westerville, Ohio. He after- ward taught school in different parts of the state until 1859. In that year he came west to Mendota, Illinois, and tanght one year in that place ; afterward taught one term in Sublette. Devoted his time entirely to teaching until 1862, when he enlisted in the 75th Ill. Inf., and served three years in the army. Was married in 1866, to Miss Electa Jane Minnerly, a native of Ohio, and is father of two children.
EDWIN MOREY, farmer, Shaw Station, born in Cortland county, New York, in 1820, came with his father in 1836, to Calhoun county, Michigan, where he resided nine years. In 1845 he removed to Cook county, Illinois. Worked three years on a canal in that county. At the end of that time he came to Lee county, and located in Lee Center township. Mr. Morey brought the second grain separator ever used in the county. Was married in April 1849, to Miss Harriet Mayo, a native of New York state. Is a member of the Masonic Lodge, No. 146, at Lee Center.
JOHN DERR, farmer, West Brooklyn, born in Columbia county, Pennsylvania, in 1820. In 1863 removed to Lee county, where by industry and careful calculation he has become possessor of a large tract of excellent land. Mr. Derr is a member of the Reformed church, with which he united in 1840. Was married in 1849, to Miss Re- becca Gersinger; is father of ten children, nine of whom are living.
MOSES CROMBIE, grain dealer, Lee Center, was born in Cheshire county, New Hampshire, in 1804. He was married in 1828, to Miss Lonisa Morse, a native of the same state. In the same year he removed to Rochester, New York, where he resided nine years. In 1837 he removed to Lee county, residing near Rock river, opposite Grand Detour, where he resided three years. During that time he was engaged in millwrighting and other work of a like nature. He done the wood-work on the first plows made in Lee county. He re-
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY.
moved to the village of Lee Center in 1840. In 1841 he took the contract for building the seminary at that place. Was on the grand jury in the first court held in Lee county. Is now dealing in grain at Shaw Station, in Lee Center township.
THOMAS NICHOLSON, farmer, Lee Center, was born in England in 1826; resided there until twenty-three years of age. Came to Lee county in 1848. Bought land in China township, where he resided four years. In 1852 went to California, and was there engaged in the mining business for three years. In 1855 sailed to Australia, where he also spent three years in the mining district near Victoria. From there he sailed to England and spent several months in the home of his boyhood; while there he was married to Miss Ann Burrows. He then returned to Lee county. Located in Lee Center township in 1859. Is a member of the Episcopal church, and is also a Freemason.
ORRIN M. LEWIS, farmer, Amboy. Mr. Lewis' father, Hiel Lewis, settled in Lee county in 1842. Orrin M. was born in China township in 1847; received most of his early education in a district school in that township. Removed with his father to St. Croix county, Wisconsin, in the spring of 1855, where he resided until 1860, when they returned to Lee county, and resided in Amboy one year; then bought land about three miles northeast of Amboy, where he now resides. Mr. Lewis united with the United Brethren church at the age of twenty- five. Was married in 1871, to Miss Luella Matteson, a native of Wisconsin, who died in March 1881.
SABIN TROWBRIDGE, merchant, Lee Center, was born in Broome county, New York. He received his carly education in the town of Windsor. In 1821 came to Illinois. Located in Lee Center in 1858, where until the year 1868 he earned a livelihood by tilling the soil. In that year he embarked in the dry-goods and grocery business. Was made postmaster under Grant's administration; is doing a thriving business and is a very popular merchant.
LEWIS COMPLON, stone dealer, Lee Center, was born in the southern part of France in 1823; married to Miss Julia Henry in 1860; came to Lee Center in 1861. Has four children : the elder, Emil Alfonso, born 1861; Alfred, born 1863; Theodule, born 1866; and Leona Alice, born 1876.
CHRISTOPHER WELLMAN, farmer, Lee Center, was born in New Mil- ford, Susquehanna county, Pennsylvania, in 1821; here he received his early education ; married in 1850 to Miss Amanda E. Brown, also a native of Pennsylvania; came to Lee county in 1851; resided in the village of Lee Center seven years; in 1858 removed to Knox's grove, in Sublette township, where he resided five years; then bought land in W. ¿ of Sec. 7 in Lee Center township, where he has since resided.
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LEE CENTER TOWNSHIP.
Is the father of four children : Annie D., the elder child, now the wife of James Johnston, and resides in Brooklin township, born in Deeem- ber 1851; Levi William, born in 1853, died in 1877; Mary Ann, born April 1856; Henry H., born in 1859.
L. CYRENUS SAWYER, farmer, Lee Center, Illinois, was born in Clarke county, Ohio, in 1818; came west in 1835; entered a claim in N.E. ¿ of Sec. 1 in Lee Center township; married in 1842. His father, Joseph Sawyer, was the first postmaster in Lee Center township, ap- pointed during the administration of James K. Polk. Mr. Sawyer has three children. Was a democrat up to the time of the formation of the republican party ; since that time has been a staunch republican ; owns 240 acres of good farm land, and is surrounded by all the modern im- provements and conveniences of the model Illinois farmer.
WILLARD SALSBURY, carpenter, Lee Center, was born in 1820, in Susquehanna county, Pennsylvania; resided where he received his early education ; came west in 1847 and bought land near Temperance Hill, in China township, where he resided two years; then removed to Lee Center. Mr. Salsbury was married in 1849, to Lydia Jane Frost, a resident of Lee Center. Is father of three children : Florence, born in 1850, died in 1854; Frederic Augustus, born in 1853; and Willard Aurthur, born 1859. Mr. Salsbury is a prominent member of the Epis- r copal church, with which he united at an early age.
VOLNEY BLISS, farmer and stock raiser, Lee Center, was born in Milan, Huron county, Ohio, in 1827; in 1829 removed with his father, Adolphus Bliss, to Michigan. The family remained in that state until 1834; in that year they removed to what is now Lee county, then a part of Jo Daviess. His father entered a claim on W. ¿ of S.W. ¿ Sec. 4, and N. ¿ of N.E. ¿ Sec. 9. Volney received his early education in a log school-house that stood eighty rods west of his present residence. When at home his only playmates were Indian boys who lived in a village that stood near his father's dwelling. Mr. Bliss was married in 1853, to Miss Paulina Tredwell. Deals largely in stock, and by in- dustry and economy has become owner of a half-section of excellent land. His residence is beautifully situated in the center of a beautiful and spacious lawn, and possesses all the beauties and attractions of a model country residence. Mr. Bliss was a lieutenant in Co. D, 15th Ill. Inf.
EBENEZER WOODBRIGE, farmer, Lee Center, was born in Wayne county, Pennsylvania, in 1814,- removed from there to Tioga county, New York, where he received his early education; resided there eighteen years, then removed to Jay county, Indiana, in 1838; was married in 1840, to Eliza Ripley, a native of New York state ; remained in Indiana until 1855 ; in that year he removed to Illinois; desiring to
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY.
locate in a place possessing good educational advantages he selected Lee Center ; bought N.E. ¿ of Sec. 1, where he erected a residence and has since resided. Mr. Woodbrige is a prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal church, with which he united in 1840. Has four children, the elder being Sarah B., now the wife of B. I. Hitchcock, of Chicago, born in 1841; Joseph Egbert, born July 1844; Ann Eliza, born March 1848; and John Ripley, born 1851.
JOHN WEDLOCK, farmer, West Brooklyn, was born in Cornwall, England, in 1825. At twenty-three years of age he came to Lee county, and bought land in China township near Temperance Hill, where he resided eight years. He then removed to Lee Center township, where he has since resided. Was married in 1858, to Miss Mary Jane Phillips, a native of New York, who died in 1876 ; was again married in 1880, to Mrs. A. L. Miller. In politics he is a republican.
WARREN D. CLINK, farmer, West Brooklyn, was born in Susque- hanna county, Pennsylvania, in 1835; came with his father in 1841 to Bradford township, their postoffice being at Bliss's Grove, now known as Inlet Grove, in Lee Center township; was married in 1862, to Miss Amelia Perkins. Mr. Clink has been a successful farmer and stock raiser, and has accumulated considerable property. Was a witness to the great storm that passed through the county in 1860, and after the storm had passed he assisted in giving relief to many of the sufferers.
JAMES W. WINBOLT, farmer, West Brooklyn, was born in Port Round, Canada east, in 1835; removed with his father in that year to Cuyahoga county, Ohio; received his early education in Cleveland. In 1850 he again removed with his father to Chicago, Illinois, and was there for seven years, engaged in the upholstering business on Ran- dolph street ; was married in 1864, to Miss Sarah A. Hart; united with the Methodist Episcopal church in 1877; has been a staunch repub- lican since the organization of the party.
EPHRAIM WHITNEY, farmer, Amboy, was born in Somerset county, Maine, in 1801; removed to West Virginia in 1816; resided for a num- ber of years in that state and then removed to Ohio; in 1845 he moved from that state to Lee county ; was married in that year to Miss Mary Livingstone, a native of Ohio. Mr. Whitney is now eighty years of age, and in so feeble a state as to render his memory very poor ; conse- quently the information the writer receives from him in regard to his past life was very meager.
JOSEPH A. HODGES, farmer, Sublette, was born in Lawrence county, Indiana, in 1825, where he remained until twenty years of age. Came to Lee county in 1845, and settled in Sublette township, where he resided until 1850. In that year he bought land in the southern part of Lee Center township, where he located and still resides. Mr.
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Hodges was married in 1850, to Miss Olive Tourtillott. Is a promi- nent member of the Baptist church, with which he united in 1876; is also a Freemason. Mr. Hodges is quite an extensive farmer and stock raiser, and owns one of the model farms of the county.
SHERMAN SHAW, stock raiser, Lee Center, was born in Ontario county, New York, in 1811 ; received his early education in Erie county in the same state. In 1837 Mr. Shaw packed his earthly possessions into a wagon and started toward the setting sun. He drove from New York to Lee county in this rude conveyance, bringing two hogs, which followed after the wagon the entire distance. Mr. Shaw is a member of the Baptist church, with which he united in 1841. Was married in 1835, to Miss Malinda Dewolf. Is father of seven children, three of whom are living. Owns quite a large amount of land in different parts of the township. He is one of the landmarks of Lee county, and one of its most respected citizens. He came to the county when the great State of Illinois was almost a wilderness, and has lived to see towns, vil- lages, churches, school-houses and beautiful dwellings rise, as if by magic, where but a few years ago nothing greeted the eye of the observer but a vast expanse of prairie, over which bounded the wild deer and the prairie wolf.
JOHN W. D. BLAKE, merchant, Lee Center, born on Staten Island in 1833, resided there until eighteen years of age, then removed to New York city, where he was for two years employed in a wholesale dry-goods house. Came to Logan county, Illinois, in 1853; remained there until June 1854, at which time he removed to Lee Center and embarked in the dry-goods and grocery business. Remained in Lee Center until 1857; in that year he removed to Niles, Michigan, re- maining until 1877; then removed to Kansas and bought land, and was there engaged in farming until 1879. In that year he returned to Lee Center, where he has since been engaged in the dry-goods and grocery business.
DR. CLARK E. LOOMIS, Lee Center, was born in November 1839, at Pulaski, Oswego county, New York; and in 1845 he removed to Auburn, Cayuga county, where he lived until 1856. He came west and stopped at Chicago one year, and in October, 1857, settled at Franklin Grove in this county. The next spring he began the study of medicine. with Dr. G. W. Hewitt ; and on the 15th of February, 1862, graduated from Rush Medical College at Chicago. He located at once in Grand Detour, Ogle county, to practice his profession. At this place, on the 15th of July 1863, he married the only daughter of John Parkhurst, by whom he has become the father of four children, all daughters, the youngest of whom died in 1879. From Grand Detour Dr. Loomis went to the army in 1864, and served until the
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY.
elose of the war as first assistant surgeon of the 115th reg. Ill. Vols. Shortly after his return home he settled with his family in Lee Center, where he has since had his residence. On February 1, 1881, he pur- chased from E. W. Faxon & Co. the " Amboy Journal " newspaper and job office, and has done the editorial work of the paper in connec- tion with his practice at Lee Center.
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