USA > Illinois > Macon County > History of Macon County, Illinois : with illustrations descriptive of its scenery, and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 41
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Mr. Trainer is what he has made himself-an industrious, practi- cal man, a man of few theories ; but when he has one he invariably puts it to the practical test.
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HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
CHARLES LAUX,
THE present proprietor of the St. Nicholas Hotel of Decatur, Ill., was born in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, February 22d, 1843. He came with his father to America in 1854, and settled in Decatur, Ill .; his father remained here until his death in 1859. In 1861 Charles went to California, and while there was employed in different capacities in the hotels of the Pacific coast, and also re- ceived his first instruction and experience in operating hotels. He ยท remained there for four and a half years, when he returned to Decatur, and in connection with his brothers, under the name of Laux Brothers, purchased the St. Nicholas Hotel. The partner- ship continued until January 1st, 1880, when he became the sole proprietor. His business life in Decatur commenced with his con- nection with the hotel interests of the city. Under his vigorous and judicious management the St. Nicholas has earned an enviable reputation among the hotels of the state and with the travelling public. Mr. Laux' long experience in the business has learned him to judge correctly as to the wants of his guests and to admin- ister to their comfort in a manner that has won the approbation and esteem of his patrons. That the St. Nicholas has been and is one of the most prosperous hotels in central Illinois is attributable to that fact. Mr. Laux is of a pleasing and accommodating dispo- sition, which comes naturally to him, and the travelling public soon learn to appreciate efforts made to render them comfortable and give their sojourn with him the pleasant features of a home-like life. Few men in Decatur are better, more widely or favorably known than Mr. Laux. The St. Nicholas is a favorite resort and centre of local attraction, and on all public occasions is thronged with citizens and strangers.
JAMES MILLIKIN.
JAMES MILLIKIN, who since 1860 carried on the banking business in Decatur, is a native of Pennsylvania, and was born in Washington county of that state on the second of August, 1830. On his father's side, his ancestors were from Scotland, and settled in Pennsylvania previous to the Revolutionary war. His father, Abel Millikin, was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania. His mother, whose maiden name was Nannie V. Van Dyke, was of English descent. Her mother was an English woman, and her father also came from England, though the name indicates that the family originally came from Holland. The subject of this sketch was the third of five children. Obtaining his elementary education in the public schools of his native county, at the age of seventeen he entered Washington College, where he was a student for two years. In the fall of 1850, then twenty years of age, he came to Illinois and first made his home at Danville. He began dealing in live stock with what capital he could command, and carried on the business quite extensively for several years. In the year 1855 he began to invest in government land, and entered large tracts in this state and in Iowa. He entered the land, on which the town of Bennet is now built. At one time he was the owner of forty thousand acres in Iowa. Here movements were judiciously made and proved profitable. In 1860 he began the banking business at Decatur under the firm name of J. Millikin & Co. and has carried on the banking business unin- terruptedly from that time to the present. This bank has the repu- tation of being one of the soundest institutions in this part of the state, and has commanded the confidence of the public even in times of the greatest financial depression. Mr. Millikin was brought up
to believe in the doctrines of the old whig party, but when that organization dissolved and the republican party was formed he be- came, and has since remained, a republican. He has never carcd to occupy public office, though he has represented Decatur township in the board of supervisors, and his ward in the city council. He is a man of positive convictions. His business career demonstrates that he posesses a mind of unusual clearness. Few men have been more uniformly successful in their business transactions. He las been a resident of Decatur since 1857.
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SAMUEL POWERS,
Now one of the oldest residents of Decatur, is a native of Saratoga county, New York, and was born on the 18th of May, 1816. The family from which he is descended settled in New York. His grandfather was principally raised in Connecticut. William Powers, his father, was born in Connecticut, and was brought up mostly at Bridgeport, in that state, at the home of Col. St. John, whom his mother married after the death of her first husband. Mr. Powers' mother's name was Abigail Hendricks; she was a native of Connec- ticut and descended from Scotch and English ancestors. After his marriage his father engaged for a time in the boot and shoe busi- ness in the city of New York, which he abandoned to undertake agricultural pursuits. He had a taste for stock and farming. He made his home in Saratoga county, New York, when it was a new and unsettled country. The journey from New York city, up the Hudson river, was made in a sloop and occupied two or three weeks. That was before the day of steamboats. William Powers died at the age of forty-two when the subject of this sketch was in his ninth year.
His early life was spent in his native county, working on the farm during the summer months and in the winter attending school, after the usual way in which the boys of that day received their education. When he became twenty-one the farm of which he had the management since he was fourteen, was sold, and he concluded to go to Alabama, in which state his older brothers had become successfully engaged in business. At Mobile one of his brothers was carrying on a large commission and exchange business, and he spent one winter in that city. He then went to Tuscaloosa, where his brother, Orlando Powers, was conducting a mercantile business. Not liking an in-door life, and being fond of stock and accustomed to farming, he decided not to accept the situations which were offered him, but to come to Illinois. In company with his next elder brother, George Powers, he made the journey from Alabama on horseback through Tennessee and Kentucky, crossing the Ohio at Shawneetown and arriving at Decatur in July, 1839. At that time Decatur was a small town. Some railroads had been sur- veyed, with Decatur as a prominent point on the proposed lines, and in his judgment it gave promise of becoming a thriving inland town. The best private residence then in the place was the old building south of the court-house, now used by Mr: Powers as an office. His capital at that time consisted of only a few hundred dollars. He and his brother bought the land, which Mr. Powers still owns, adjoining the town on the east and went to farming. For six months, having obtained the contract, he carried the mail between Decatur & Homer and other points in Champaign county. In three or four years he managed to accumulate sufficient capital to engage in a small way in the stock business. Stock then sold at low prices. A fat hog was worth then about two dollars, and a good four year old steer brought eight or eight and a half. He had
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HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
good judgment about stock, and for a considerable number of years he carried on the business successfully. His means were at first limited, but he proved himself prompt and unfailing in meeting his obligations, thus obtaining an excellent credit, on which he trans- acted a large business. There were no banks in the county for many years, the state banks having gone under in the financial panic, and an abundance of cash or the best of credit was necessary for success in any considerable transaction. Sellers of stock would give him the preference because they were sure of their money, and to this fact he attributes his snecess. He lived on the farm he first purchased till 1868, and then moved to his present residence in the south-west part of Decatur.
In February, 1854, he was married to Caroline M. Giles, a na- tive of Massachusetts. He has had eight children: William L. Powers, the oldest son, died in his twenty-third year. Myra is also deceased. George Powers is engaged in business at Jacksonville ; Carrie, Theorou, Frank, Edward and Chauncey are at Decatur. Mr. Powers was first a member of the Whig party, with which he voted as long as that organization remained in existence, and then became a Republican. He has always been busy with his private affairs, and has never cared to occupy any public position. He was, however, elected a member of the board of supervisors from Decatur township. He deserves considerable credit for what he has done to improve the breed of horses. To this business he has given a great deal of attention for a number of years, and as a breeder of fine horses his name is favorably known throughont the United States. Among those he has bred and owned are some that have 'competed successfully with the best horses in America. Mr. Powers' history is a good illustration of what may be accomplished by good business management and upright and honorable dealing. He has been identified with the history of Decatur almost as long as any other of its citizens, and his name justly deserves a place in the permanent history of Macon county.
DR. J. STEBBINS KING.
DR. KING's ancestors were early settlers of New England. His father was named Alexander C. King, and his mother was Emeline Fitch Stebbins. The King family settled at Suffield, Connecticut, in 1816. The Stebbins family came from England, and settled at Roxbury, Massachusetts, in the year 1630. This was only ten years after the landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock. His mother was connected with the Fitch family, one of the members of which was John Fitch, who built the first steamboat in 1788, and navigated it on the Delaware river. Dr. King's parents were mar ried at Hatfield, Massachusetts, September 29th, 1831, and the same day started for Terre Haute, Indiana, where they arrived on the 12th of October.
Their oldest child, Janics Stebbins King, was born at Terre Haute, Ind., May 9th, 1836. Alexander H. King was one of the early mer- chants in Terre Haute, having located there in 1823.
In 1848 he moved to Clinton, Indiana, and in 1852 settled at Leroy, McLean county, in this state. In both places he was engaged in the mercantile business. Dr. King had good ednca- tional advantages. He attended the common schools, and after- wards a select school at Leroy. When seventeen he became teacher of a school at Leroy, which he taught about a year, and then taught six months at Toronto, Indiana. He began the study of medicine in 1856, with Drs. S. A. Noble and J. W. Coleman, of Leroy. He matriculated at the Rush Medical College of Chicago, in the autumn of 1858, and the next fall began his second course of lectures at the
Ohio Medical College of Cincinnati, from which he graduated with distinction in March, 1860.
Immediately after his graduation he was elected resident physi- cian to St. John's Hotel for Invalids at Cincinnati, which position he held for a year. He then established himself in practice at Le Mont, near Chicago, where he remained till 1863, when he offered his services to the government, and was appointed acting assistant , snrgeon in the regular army.
From October, 1863, to March, 1864, he was surgeon in charge of the Thirty-Fifth Iowa regiment. From March to July 1864 he was post-surgeon at Vicksburg on General McPherson's staff. He afterward acted in the same capacity at Natchez, and had charge of the hospitals at that post, till his resignation in the fall of 1865.
After his resignation from the army, he was placed in charge of the state hospital at Natchez, and established himself in general practice. The unsettled condition of affairs in the South indnced him to return to Illinois, and in May, 1874, he became a resident of Decatur, where he has since been engaged in the active practice of his profession.
He was married on the thirty-first of December, 1860, to Mary E. Carter, a native of St. Catharines, Canada. He has two children. In his politics he has generally voted the democratic ticket, though he has occupied an independent position, holding himself free to support the best men of either political party.
In 1876 he served as county physician. He is a member of St. John's Episcopal Church. He is connected with the Masonic Fra- ternity, and is a member of Beaumanoir Commandery, Knights Templar, of Decatur. He belongs to the Decatur Medical Society, the District Medical Society of Central Illinois, and the American Medical Association.
JOHN DINNEEN.
JOHN DINNEEN, who in 1878 was elected coroner of Macon county, is a native of Ireland, and was born in the county of Cork, in November, 1836. His parents were Daniel Dinneen and Catharine Maloney. He was the second of a family of three children. His mother died when he was about six years old. In the year 1847 his father emigrated to America with two of his children, Mr. Dinneen and a sister. The oldest child, a boy, died in Ireland. They came in a sailing vessel from Cork to Montreal, Canada. For about a year they lived at St. Catharines, Upper Canada, and then moved to Worcester county, Massachusetts. Mr. Dinneen had gone to school a little in Ireland, but obtained almost his entire education in Massachusetts, where he attended school pretty regu- larly. At fourteen he went to work in a cotton factory, and at odd spells worked on a farm. In March, 1856, then twenty years old, lie came to Springfield, Illinois. He was employed several years on the Great Western railroad, now the Wabash. Until 1861 he worked on the track, and was then promoted to take charge of the yard at Decatur. Angust, 1875, he opened a grocery store on Broadway, Decatur, which he has since carried on. January, 1864, he married Rose McDonald, a native of Ulster, Ireland, by whom he has two children, Catharine and Daniel. Until February, 1880, his residence was on a small farm which he owned, a short distance from the city limits. He was raised among the Whigs in Massachusetts, but subsequently became a democrat, and in 1860 voted for Douglas. In 1878 the democrats of Macon county nominated him for coroner. His popularity proved so great that he ran ahead of his ticket, and was the only democrat on it elected. He again received the nomination in 1880. He has many friends throughout the county.
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
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IS. Hays
F. L. HAYS, who has now been engaged in the dry goods busi- ness longer than any other merchant in Decatur, is a native of the town of Delaware, Delaware county, Ohio, and was born on the 23d of August, 1836, the son of Thomas and Abby (Johns) Hays. His ancestors were early residents of Ohio, and located at Marietta, the first permanent settlement in the state. He was raised in the town of Delaware. He had excellent opportunities for securing an education. He attended the common schools till the age of sixteen, and then entered the Ohio Wesleyan University, in his native town, in which he was a student two years, pursuing the regular classical course. After leaving college he went into a dry goods store, in the town of Delaware, thus gaining his first experience in the mercantile business, with which he has been connected from that time to the present. In 1855, he came West, arriving at Decatur in July of that year. He became a clerk in the store of Stamper and Elliott, with whom he remained till October, 1857, when he began business on his own account, opening a store under the firm name of F. L. Hays & Co. He was at that time only twenty-one years of age, without capital, but showed that he pos- sessed excellent business qualifications. His father furnished a capital of three thousand dollars, with which business was begun, at first in a modest and cautious way, but afterward, as soon as the firm saw that success was certain, on a larger scale.
In August, 1862, the second year of the war of the Rebellion, he raised a company of men, which became Co. F. of the 115th Illi- nois volunteer infantry. He received a commission as captain. Taking the field in October, 1862, his regiment first saw service against the Confederate Gen. Bragg, in Kentucky. In January,
1863, the regiment was sent into Tennessee, and formed part of the Reserve Corp of the Army of the Cumberland. It participated in the battles of Chickamauga and Resaca, Georgia, and took part in several long and trying marches. In June, 1864, he was pro- moted to major, and made additional paymaster, and served as such till February, 1865, a short time before the close of the war, when he resigned. While acting as paymaster, he was stationed at Louisville, Springfield, Illinois, and Indianapolis. After re- turning to Decatur, he devoted his whole attention to the dry goods business, which had been carried on uninterruptedly in his absence. In 1865, the firm built the present store on Water street, and thus gained enlarged facilities. The firm remained as first formed till 1872, when Thomas Hays retired, and a partner- ship was formed with G. M. Bruce, under the firm name of Hays & Bruce. Business was carried on in that manner till 1876, when he became associated with E. D. Bartholomew, under the firm name of Hays & Bartholomew. Mr. Bartholomew gave place to Thomas Hays in 1879, and the old firm name of F. L. Hays & Co. was again restored. Major Hays needs no commendation to the people of Macon county as a dry goods merchant. He has always endeavored to sell reliable goods at a minimum cost, and to make his profits rather from a large amount of sales, than high charges for any particular articles. A general dry goods business has been carried on, and he has found it to pay best to direct his attention to the sale of standard and reliable articles. His store is well- known to the residents of this part of the state, and customers have invariably received generous and fair treatment.
He was married in September, 1861, to Miss Hattie White, a
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HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
native of Bainbridge, Ohio, and a resident of Decatur at the time of her marriage. He has four children. In his political affilia- tions he has always been connected with the republican party, and has voted for every republican candidate for president since Abraham Lincoln, in 1860. He has paid close attention to busi- ness, and has never filled any public office.
J. B. AND W. J. WAYNE.
THE WAYNE BROS., who have been in the carriage-making business at Decatur since 1872, are natives of Greensburgh, West- moreland county, Pennsylvania. Their ancestors belonged to the same family as Gen. Anthony Wayne of revolutionary celebrity. Their parents, Jacob S. Wayne and Fannie (Clark) Wayne, were born in Westmoreland county. J. B. Wayne was born in 1833, was brought up in Westmoreland county, and learned the trade of a carriage-maker at Greensburgh. W. J. Wayne was born on the twelfth of October, 1845. When he was thirteen years old the family removed to Shelbyville, Kentucky, resided there from 1858 to 1861, and then came to Quincy, Illinois. At fifteen he began to learn the trade of a carriage-painter and draughtsman with E. M. Miller & Co., of Quincy, working during the summer months, and in the winter attending school. He mastered the trade in all its departments, and gained an excellent reputation as a first-class painter on carriage-work. In 1868 the brothers opened a carriage shop at Quincy, and in 1872 came to Decatur, which they believed to offer better business opportunities than any other town. They began without means, and at first employed two men. They turned out a superior article of work, their business increased rapidly, and as many as twenty-six hands have been employed at once in their factory. They manufacture anything on wheels, from a sulky to a street-car (except farm wagons), and have gained especial praise for the work furnished the fire departments of several cities. They have taken premiums and diplomas at the Adams County Fair, Sangamon County Fair, St. Louis Fair, Iowa State Fair, the Illi- nois State Fair, and at the fairs of other agricultural associations. W. J. Wayne was married in 1873 to Elizabeth Bishop, born near London, England. He represented the first ward in the city coun- cil in 1877 and 1878. He has taken a deep interest in the fire department of Decatur, and is now first assistant chief. In 1876 he was Secretary of the State Firemen's Association. Both are republicans in politics.
D. S. SHELLABARGER.
THIS gentleman, who has been prominently connected with the milling interests of Decatur since 1858, is a native of Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and was born on the eleventh of July, 1837. His ancestors had been residents of that part of Pennsylvania for a long number of years. His father, David Shellabarger, and his mother, whose name before marriage was Catharine Byerly, were natives of the same county. The subject of this sketch was the fifth of a family of ten children. His birth-place was on the banks of the Conodogwinet creek, eight miles above Carlisle, the principal town of the Cumberland valley, a region noted for its .
beauty and fertility. IIe was brought up on a farm. He attended the public schools, but his education is chiefly the result of study and experience after reaching years of maturity. He was the oldest son at home, and after he became large enough to be of much service, his time was principally employed in work about the farm.
In his nineteenth year he made up his mind to come west, and in
the spring of 1856 reached Decatur. He soon afterward engaged in the lumber business, which he abandoned in 1858, to purchase a one-third interest in a mill which then stood on the present site of Priest's mill, but which has since been destroyed by fire. At that time he had no practical experience at milling, although he came from a family of millers. His grandfather owned a mill adjoining the farm on which he was raised in Pennsylvania, and other members of the family had followed that occupation. Busi- ness was carried on under the name of Henkle, Shellabarger & Co., till 1863, when he disposed of his interest in the firm, and pur- chased one-half of the mill, which he now owns. His partners were I. Shellabarger and B. Dillehunt, and the firm was known as I. Shellabarger & Co. In 1869 the present firm of D. S. Shella- barger & Co. was established. Under their enterprising and liberal management their business has reached large proportions. The mill has been enlarged several times, and in 1879 a new mill was built in addition to the old structure. The mill is one of the principal business features of Decatur, and is the largest in Central Illinois. Mr. Shellabarger also has an interest in a mill at Topeka, and another at Wichita, Kansas, which are among the best mills in that state. With all the practical details of milling he has made him- self thoroughly acquainted, and gives close personal supervision to every branch of his business.
His marriage occurred on the seventh of January, 1862, to Miss Anna E. Krone, who was born in Decatur. He has seven children, three sons and four daughters. From the time he was old enough to take an interest in political matters, his sympathies have been with the Republican party. His first vote for President was cast for Abraham Lincoln in 1860. Though engrossed in the manage- ment of a large business, he has given considerable time to public affairs, and has filled several public positions. He acted as alder- man in 1869, 1870 and 1871, and was again elected to the same office in 1880. In 1872 he served as Mayor of Decatur. For two terms he also represented Decatur township in the Board of Super- visors. He has been for many years a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. For the last ten years he has been superinten- dent of the Sunday-school connected with Stapp's Chapel.
R. L. PERRY.
R. L. PERRY, who has been a resident of Decatur since 1867, was born in the town of Lee, Oneida county, New York, May 7th, 1826. His grandfather, Robert Perry, emigrated from England, and settled in New York City, when it was a place of small size and importance, where he carried on the printing and book- binding business. His father, whose name was also Robert Perry, learned the trade of a printer and book-binder, which he followed till he settled on a farm in Oneida county, New York, where he died. The subject of this sketch was the oldest of seven children. His mother was Chloe Wilkinson, whose parents were natives of New Hampshire. At fifteen he learned the cabinet-maker's trade, and before he was twenty-one was foreman of a large shop at Rome, New York. He afterward went into the pattern shop of the Syracuse and Utica railroad, now a part of the New York Central, and in a few months was transferred to the company's car shops at Oneida. He was next put in charge of a gang of men, and placed on the track. In 1854 he laid the track of the .road from Syracuse to Binghampton, and in 1855, the southern division of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western road from Syracuse to the Delaware river. From 1857 to 1867, he was road-master of the New York Central, and had charge of the track from Roches-
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