USA > Illinois > Macoupin County > History of Macoupin County, Illinois > Part 63
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RESIDENCE & STOCK FARM OF JAMES W. YORK , SEC. 29, HONEY POINT TP., MACOUPIN COUNTY, ILL.
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James Wilson
AMONG the representative self-made men of Honey Point township none stand forth more conspicuously than does James Wilson. Although not one of the first settlers in the township, yet by industry, coupled with sound practical economy and excellent judgment, he has rightfully as- sumed a place with the largest farmers and most substan- tial business men of the county. As exhibiting an example worthy the emulation of all, especially the young, we here- with present a brief sketch of Mr. Wilson's life and char- acter, feeling as though the history of Honey Point township would be incomplete without a notice of that gentleman.
James Wilson, whose portrait appears above, was born in Sussex county, New Jersey, December 16th, 1833. He grew up to manhood in his native state, and emigrated to Lee county, Iowa, in 1849. He married in the city of New York Rebecca Barr, whose death occurred March 2d, 1879. In 1862 he became a resident of Macoupin county, and has since been engaged in farming in this township. He has five sons and two daughters living in this county, and is the owner of fourteen hundred acres of land within the county limits.
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HISTORY OF MACOUPIN COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
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gomes in york
ONE of the oldest settlers of Honey Point township, is a native of Tennessee, and was born in Williamson county of that state, October 28th, 1813. His ancestors were of English and Irish origin. His grandfather, James York, was an Englishman who emigrated to North Carolina, and married a young lady named Whittaker. Joel York, the father of the subject of this bio- graphy, was born in Surrey county, North Carolina, in the year 1784: he was raised in that part of North Carolina, and when a young man moved to the state of Tennessee, where he married Talitha Jackson, who was of Irish descent, and whose family before coming to Tennessee, had lived in North Carolina. Mr. York's grandmother, on his mother's side, was Charity Boyd, who was born in North Carolina, and was living there during the Revolutionary war ; at the time of the battle of Cowpens she plainly heard the guns used during the engagement, the battle-field not being many miles distant from her father's house. Mr. York was the second of a family of ten children, of whom all came to Illinois; all are now dead, with the ex- ception of four. When he was quite a small child, his father moved from Williamson to Bedford county, Tennessee, where the family lived till 1828. That year his father moved with the family to Illinois, settling in Morgan county, four miles south-east of Jacksonville.
He was about fifteen years old when he came to this state. At that early period Morgan county was thinly settled, and as Mr. York remembers Jacksonville, it was then such a place in size as the present town of Gilles- pie. The farmers had no market for their produce. The emigrants from the older states brought in the only money used throughout the country. Every. body lived in a rough and primitive manner, but all were sociable, good- hearted and neighborly, and were accustomed to have a good time when they gathered together in Jacksonville. About 1835 or 1836, his father moved with the younger children to Macoupin county, on a place about two miles and a half east of Carlinville, on the farm now owned by James McClure. He afterward moved to a farm about a mile further east of that location, where he died in 1847. All the schooling Mr. York received was mostly in Tennessee, where the country was old-settled, and good private schools had been established. After coming to Illinois he went to school only about six weeks, and what education he has acquired, has been the fruit of his own efforts in that direction. He was the oldest son, and was obliged to remain at home and help earn a living for the family. After his father moved to Macoupin county, he stayed in Morgan county a couple of years, and worked on a farm for a man m
fifteen dollars per month. As soon as he had accumulated sufficient money he entered eighty acres of land in section 29, township 9, range 6, Ma- coupin county. This land has been in his possession ever since, and on it now stands his present residence.
He came to Macoupin county in the spring of 1838, bought an ox team, and began breaking prairie. He was married in Morgan county in February, 1838, to Mary Keplinger. She was the daughter of John and Elizabeth Keplinger, and a sister to Peter Keplinger, a sketch of whose history may be found elsewhere. She was born in Washington county, East Tennessee, and came to Morgan county in 1830. The fall after his marriage he built a log cabin on his tract of eighty acres. At first he found it slow work to get along. He hauled his wheat to Alton and St. Louis, which were the only markets for pork and produce. He was obliged to go to mill to Alton and Edwardsville until later, when a mill was built at Woodburn, and also one three miles this side of Hillsboro', in Montgomery county. In those early times the life of a man who was anxious to better his circumstances, was by no means an easy one, and it was only by continued hard labor and untir- ing industry that money could be accumulated. As soon as he had oppor- tunity he purchased additional land, and finally gained a position where he was in the enjoyment of a comfortable competence. At one time he was the owner of 620 acres of land lying in one body in Honey Point town- ship; he has since given three hundred acres of this tract to his three oldest children. This land he bought at prices ranging from five to twenty dol- lars an acre. Part of his present residence is the old original log house built in the fall of 1838, which has been remodelled and improved, and in 1875 was finally changed into the neat and attractive dwelling which is shown among the illustrations on another page. The death of his first wife occurred on the 24th of November, 1875. His second marriage took place in January, 1876, to Hester Hamilton, of Montgomery county. By his first marriage he had ten children, all of whom died when quite small, except three; Maria, the oldest daughter, is the wife of John H. Shears ; Sophronia E. married John Saunders; Elbert P. York, his son, is farming in Honey Point township, where the other children also reside. He has two children by his second marriage.
When we come to speak of the personal characteristics of Mr. York, we deal with a man who throughout his life has commanded the warm respect and esteem of his fellow-citizens. He has been a man of decided convic-
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Peler Keplingar
FARM RESIDENCE OF PETER KEPLINGER, SEC. 29, HONEY POINT TP., MACOUPIN CO., ILL.
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same freedom of opinion to other men that he has claimed for himself. His political inclinations have connected him with the democratic party. In 1836 he voted for Martin Van Buren for President, and from that time has continued to support the principles of the old and time-honored party of Jefferson and Jackson. Although a sincere and earnest democrat, he has not been so closely attached to party that he has not been able to see merit in opposing candidates, and in county and township elections he has always claimed the privilege of supporting whosoever he considered the best man for the office. He has had opportunities to occupy public position, but has been satisfied to occupy the place of the peaceful and unpretentious farmer. In the days of the old militia organization he was second lieutenant, and af- terward first lieutenant of his company, and was always on hand at the annual musters. On the adoption of township organization he was elected a member of the first Board of Supervisors from Honey Point township ; the duties of this position he discharged in a wholly satisfactory manner, and was twice re-elected, but declined to serve. In January, 1857, he be- came connected with the United Baptist Church, and has remained a member of that denomination ever since. Since 1859 he has filled the office of deacon. He is now a member of the Honey Creek Baptist Church.
Like most men in Illinois who have reached a position of influence or competence, he began life almost entirely without means, and what he has accomplished, has been the result of his own industry and energy. He is known as a man of liberal and generous disposition, and he has not cared to accumulate money for its own sake. His children, on reaching years of manhood and womanhood, have been comfortably provided for, and given an opportunity to start well in life. His generosity has been imposed upon more than once in the payment of security-debts, but nevertheless he has been as ready as most men to do all he safely could to assist others. He belongs to the class of citizens who develop the resources of a country, and he has done his full share in the work of bringing Macoupin county from a wilderness of uninhabited prairie and timber, to a prosperous, thriving and populous community. He has lived a life of usefulness and integrity, and now at the close of a long and industrious career, he can look back over a life which perhaps has been as free from faults and vices as that of most persons, and which has been of some benefit to himself, his family, and his fellow-men.
PETER KEPLINGER.
AMONG the old residents and worthy citizens of Honey Point township is Peter Keplinger, whose portrait with that of his wife appear on another page. He was born in Washington county, Tennessee, August 7th, 1815. His ancestors were of German descent, and were early settlers of Pennsylva- nia. His grandfather was Jacob Keplinger. His father's name was John Keplinger, who was born in Pennsylvania, and when he was about grown the family removed to East Tennessee, and settled in Washington county. John Keplinger was married in East Tennessee to Elizabeth Rubel. This marriage took place December 18, 1806. The Rubel family came from Germany about the year 1760. There were two brothers, Mathias and Peter ; Mathias settled on a farm near Lewistown, Mifflin county, Pennsylvania. Peter Rubel settled near Hagerstown, Frederick county, Maryland, and was married March 19, 1770, to Catherine Wirt. His daughter Elizabeth, the mother of the subject of our sketch, was born December 22, 1787. In 1798 the family moved to East Tennessee, locating in Washington county. The Rubel family became a very large one in Tennessee, and several branches moved to Illinois at an early date and settled in Morgan and Cass counties. Among the de- scendants several became physicians, and also engaged in the work of the ministry. Mrs. Keplinger's uncle, Jacob Rubel, was in the war of 1812, and was killed in an engagement on Lake Erie.
John and Elizabeth Keplinger were the parents of ten children, of whom Peter Keplinger was the fifth in the order of his birth. He lived in East Tennessee until he was fifteen years of age. His father owned a farm there in a rough and mountainous district. The schools of that section afforded poor advantages for getting an education. They were subscription schools held in log school-houses, and the nearest was three miles from his father's residence. After coming to Illinois he settled in a thinly inhabited district of country, where the school advantages were poorer still. In 1830 his father moved with his family to Morgan county, Illinois, and lived for a few months on Indian Creek, and in the summer of 1831 removed to and settled six miles east of Jacksonville. The country immediately around Jackson- ville contained quite a number of settlers, but the prairies still existed in their
native wildness. Wolves and deer could be found in great numbers. The settlements were in the edge of the timber. At that time no one thought of settling out on the open prairie, which was considered good for grazing cattle but not for farming. A few years later however demonstrated the fact that it is the prairie and not the timber that contributes to the wealth of this state. There was no market for any produce, and the little money in the country was brought in by emigrants from the older states. But the people were sociable and neighborly, and when they met in Jacksonville were accustomed to enjoy themselves in an old-fashioned and hearty manner.
Mr. Keplinger remained at home and worked for his father until he was twenty-one, and then began life on his own account. He received of his father one hundred dollars in money, a horse, saddle, and bridle. He rented land during his stay in Morgan county. He was married, February 28, 1839, to Miss Sarah E. Harris. She was also a native of east Tennessee, and was born in Elizabethtown, Carter county, May 10, 1820. Her father, Benjamin Harris, was a hatter by trade; he was born in Maryland, but moved to Ten- nessee, at an early date. He was a soldier in the war of 1812, and married Mary Ragan, whose father, Jeremiah Ragan, was a native of Virginia, and had been a soldier in the revolutionary war. Benjamin Harris moved to Morgan county, Illinois, in the fall of 1831. Mrs. Keplinger's brother, Thomas Jefferson Harris, served in the Black Hawk war. Mr. Keplinger had a brother, Isaac, in the same war.
Mr. and Mrs. Keplinger commenced housekeeping after their marriage in a primitive style. They had no money with which to buy furniture, and were obliged to get along with household articles, mostly of their own manu- facture. He was industrious and economical, and finally earned money enough to purchase, in 1842, eighty acres of land in section 29, town 9, range 6, but was obliged to go partly in debt for it. This land has remained in his pos- session since, and is the eighty acres on which stands his present residence. He moved on this tract in the fall of 1843, and put up a little log house, and began improving the land. Mr. Keplinger has been living here since, and has been engaged wholly in farming. He naturally is the possessor of strong traits of character and practical common sense, and has attended to business in such a way as would reflect credit on any man. The disadvantages were great under which he labored.
There was no market nearer than Alton for farm products. To this place Mr. Keplinger hauled his wheat, selling it for forty cents, and oats for ten cents a bushel. Flour mills were scarce, the nearest being at Edwardsville, in Madison county. There were horse mills much nearer, but they turned out a black-looking substance which no housewife now-a-days would think of making into bread. He has lived and braved the hardships of a pioneer life until he has seen the country dotted over with farm-houses of modern style, which would be creditable to the richest of the older states. First class flour mills exist in every town in the county, and a good home market is found for every kind of farm produce. As Mr. Keplinger prospered and made money he invested it in lands from time to time, until he was the owner of altogether seven hundred and twenty acres, all of which lay in Honey Point township. He has given to his children three hundred and twenty acres ; the balance he still owns, and it is under a state of superior cultivation. He also owns three hundred and twenty acres in the state of Minnesota.
His oldest son, James T. Keplinger, is farming on land adjoining the homestead. James T. took an active part as a soldier in the great rebellion. He enlisted in the 30th Illinois regiment. He served about one year, and was with Sherman on his celebrated march " from Atlanta to the sea," and was discharged in Kansas at the close of the war. Mr. Keplinger's oldest daughter, Ann M., was married to Thomas Wilhite, and settled on a farm adjoining her father. She died September 17, 1869. John B. Keplinger, the next child, served in the first marine brigade of Illinois volunteers. He left the farm in full health, with all the prospects of a bright manhood before him, to engage in the service with his regiment on the Mississippi river. He served about one year, when he was taken down with the consumption. His father brought him home from the hospital at Vicksburg, and by the advice of physicians, sent him to Minnesota, hoping that the uniform, dry, cold atmosphere of that northern region would accomplish his restoration to health. His hope, however, was not realized. His health continued to de- cline in spite of the efforts of friends and physicians, and he died at North- field, Minnesota, August 10, 1866. Lucien C., another child, died when an infant. Sarah Ellen, the youngest daughter, married Luther J. Wylder, a farmer of Honey Point township.
Mr. Keplinger's father was an old Jackson democrat, and he himself was raised to a great respect for that party, but when he became old enough to act
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and participate in politics he became a whig, and voted for Harrison in 1840; he afterward became a republican. He has not been a strong party man or a politician, but has preferred to quietly attend to his farm. Through the war he warmly supported the administration in its efforts to conquer the re- bellion, and cheerfully permitted two sons to go into the army, one of whom did so, as it afterward proved, at the sacrifice of his life.
While Mr. and Mrs. Keplinger were yet living in Morgan county, they became connected with the Methodist church, of which they have since been members; they now belong to the Mount Pleasant church, on Spanishneedle prairie.
Mr. Keplinger is a man who began life with nothing on which to rely ex- cept his own energy and perseverance, and he has fought his way up in the world by his own efforts. He had neither family influence nor money to help him in carving out his fortune. The main element that has entered into his success has been his untiring energy and industry. The prosperity which Mr. and Mrs. Keplinger now enjoy has been well earned by a life of labor, and now that they have reached a hale and hearty old age they have the satisfaction of being surrounded with plenty on every side, with a competence at their command, and of seeing their children well and comfortably situated in life. While too much credit cannot be given to Mr. Keplinger's energy and business sagacity, equal praise should be bestowed on the good qualities of his amiable wife, who has assisted him with her hearty sympathy and co- operation, and to whose strong common sense and intelligence much of their prosperity is owing. Over forty years of married life have been spent in peace and harmony, and their history appropriately appears together in these pages. Mr. Keplinger's character has never been tarnished by any acts of dishonesty, and he bears the reputation of a man of strict integrity. Among the illus- trations published in this work is a view of his farm and residence. He be- longs to that class of men who contribute to the development and growth of the country and the building up of its material resources, and as such we give a place to a sketch of his life.
JOHN CROMWELL
WAS born in Montgomery county, Ohio, November 11th, 1836. His father, Richard Cromwell, was born and raised in Maryland, as was also his mother, Caroline Eichelberger. They were married in Ohio, and John Cromwell was the oldest of their nine children. In 1842 the family came to Illinois, and settled in the southern part of Hilyard township. He lived at home till twenty-one, and then rented land and went to farming for himself. In 1865 he bought and moved on the farm he now owns in section fifteen of Honey Point township. He was married May 3d, 1868, to Mary C. Hut- ton, daughter of Daniel Hutton. She was born at Alton, and was living in Cahokia township at the time of her marriage. Mr. Cromwell has a farm of 240 acres. He has always been a democrat in politics. In 1866 he was elected county coroner, and held that office two years. He was the first collector of Honey Point township after the adoption of township organiza- tion, being elected in 1871. In 1872 he was elected a member of the board of supervisors, and also served in the same capacity in 1878. He has lived in the county from early boyhood, and is well-known throughout the county. His father is still living, and resides at Bunker Hill.
JOHN McREYNOLDS,
ONE of the substantial farmers of Honey Point township, was born on Ridge Prairie, in Madison county, April 1st, 1835.
His ancestors were Scotch-Irish, who emigrated to Pennsylvania at an early date, first settling in Massachusetts, and afterward residing in Canada, Pennsylvania and Virginia. His grandfather, Benjamin McReynolds, was a Methodist preacher, who settled in Butler county, Kentucky. His father, Thomas Jefferson McReynolds, was born in Logan county, Kentucky, in 1803, and first came to Illinois in the year 1823, and remained for a few months on the Mole Star in the present counties of Scott and Cass. From Illinois he went to New Orleans, and from there to Mexico and South America. He returned to Kentucky, and in 1826 married Sarah J. Dixon, daughter of William Dixon, who had lived in Campbell county, Virginia, before settling in Kentucky. Mr. McReynolds' mother was born in 1809. His marriage took place in Butler county, Kentucky, to which part of the state the Dixons and McReynolds had moved so that they might pasture their cattle on the cane-brakes which there abounded. After his marriage
Mr. McReynolds' father went into the saw-mill business in Kentucky, in partnership with his father-in-law, William Dixon. About 1833 he moved to Madison county, Illinois, where he lived till 1836, and then came to Macou- pin county, where he entered the south half of section 31 of Honey Point township, and also a large tract in Brushy Mound township. He lived on section 24 of Brushy Mound township till his death in October, 1869. He was a man of energy, and had many striking traits of character. His fam- ily connections in Kentucky were quite wealthy, and he came into the pos- session of a number of slaves, but was opposed to slavery, and so set the negroes free. When he came to Illinois he only had a horse and fifteen dollars in money, but with his industry and energy he was successful in life and managed to secure a competence. He was a decided anti-slavery man before the slavery question assumed the national importance it attained at the birth of the republican party, and on the formation of the republican party was a republican. He had six children, of whom only two, John McReynolds and D. McReynolds, of Montgomery county, are now living. John McReynolds was a little over a year old when his father moved to Macoupin county. He was raised in Brushy Mound township. January, 1864, he married Lydia J. Davis, daughter of Stephen Davis, an old resi- dent of Madison county, and moved on his present farm, which he had im- proved four or five years previously. He owns 969 acres of land.
GUY A. SNELL
Is one of the leading farmers of Macoupin county. He was born in Jersey county, March 14th, 1839. He is the eldest child of Dr. Asa Snell and Per- cilla E. Landon, his wife. Dr. Snell and wife were both natives of Addison county, Vermont. He came to Illinois in 1835, and settled in Jersey coun- ty, engaging in the practice of medicine. He was a man of more than ordinary ability. His death occurred January 21st, 1875, aged 78 years. His widow still survives.
The subject of our sketch received his early education at the district schools, but subsequently attended the university at Galesburg, Illinois. He was married May 27th, 1863, to Miss Abbie Voorhees, the daughter of Peter P. Voorhees, of Jersey county, Illinois. At about the age of 23 Mr. Snell set out to do for himself, and by dint of energy, industry and economy he has made a success in life. He moved to Macoupin county in the spring of 1864, and engaged in farming in Polk township, and continued there for five years, and then moved to his present home in Honey Point township, in March, 1869. He had bought the farm two years before. He now owns 510 acres of land in this county. Few men have been more successful than Mr. Snell. In his political views he has always used his judgment. He voted for Lincoln in 1860. In 1868 he became a democrat. In January, 1879, he became identified with the greenback party.
In taking a retrospective view of Mr. Snell's life, we find a man who has always acted on his own judgment in all matters, whether social, religious, or political. No man is more respected in Macoupin county than the subject of our sketch. It is said of Guy A. Snell, by those who know him, that his word is as good as his bond. And it is with pleasure that we present this brief record of his life to our numerous readers.
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