USA > Illinois > McHenry County > History of McHenry County, Illinois : together with sketches of its cities, villages and towns : educational, religious, civil, military, and political history : portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens, also a condensed History of Illinois > Part 41
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Robert J. Beck, Justice of the Peace, contractor and builder in brick and stone, Chemung, Ill., is a native of County Armagh, Ireland, born Dec. 17, 1851, a son of Isaiah and Eliza (Bell) Beck. His parents came to America when he was six months old and settled in Chemung, where his father died Nov. 22, 1873. His mother is making her home with him. He learned the mason's trade in his youth of his father, and is one of the best workmen in the county. He was elected to the office of Justice in 1878. He
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owns forty acres of land in Dunham Township, adjoining Che- mung, where he resides, and considerable town property. Mr. Beck was married Nov. 29, 1877, to Emma M. Puffer, a native of Chemung, daughter of Samuel L. and Lydia M. (Graves) Puffer. They have two children-Frank E., born Oct. 15, 1878, and Grace E., born Aug. 2, 1880. Mr. Beck is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and is Master of Chemung Lodge, No. 258.
Henry Benjamin, retired, is one of the oldest merchants of Har- vard. He was born in Truxton, Cortland Co., N. Y., Feb. 8, 1822, the second of thirteen children of Elijah E. and Catharine (Vincent) Benjamin. When twenty-one years of age he came to Illinois, and taught school in Putnam County two years. He then returned to New York and was married April 14, 1846, to Carrie C. Hull, a native of Truxton, born Nov. 13, 1825, daughter of George and Sallie (Barnard) Hull, and came the same spring to Illinois and bonght a farm near Bloomingdale, Du Page County. In 1850 he sold his farm and moved to Prospect Park, and engaged in the mercantile business till the spring of 1858, when he moved to Harvard and becaine associated with Hull & Julius, the first regu- lar merchants of Harvard. In 1867 Mr. Benjamin bought the in- terests of the other partners and carried on the business alone till 1874, when he retired from the active cares of business. Mr. Ben- jamin has been one of the most enterprising and influential mer- chants of Harvard, and has seen its business center advance from almost nothing to its present prosperous condition. He has held many local offices of trust and responsibility. To Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin have been born two children-Herbert Elijah, born July 31, 1847, is messenger for the American Express Company, and resides at Milwaukee, Wis .; he married Emma Cheever; Alice E., born Feb. 25, 1851, married Charles C. Sperry, a physician in Chicago, Ill.
David H. Bentley, farmer and stockraiser, sections 11 and 12, Chemung Township, was born in Chemung County, N. Y., Aug. 16, 1840, a son of Rodolphus and Christina ( Price) Bentley. He remained with his mother after his father's death in 1857, assist- ing in the care of the farm and attending school, and after his marriage took charge of the farm, which he bonght in 1873. He owns 203 acres of choice land, which is well cultivated, and im- proved with a pleasant residence and good farm buildings. He is one of the leading farmers and representative citizens of Chemung Township, and although not a native, has been identified with the
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county since his earliest recollection. He was married Dec. 10, 1862, to Mary H. Thompson, a native of Otsego County, N. Y., born May 9, 1843, a daughter of Luke R. and Sarah (Sutliff) Thompson, early settlers of Walworth County, Wis., where her mother still lives, and her father died May 17, 1871. Mr. and Mrs. Bentley have had six children-Sadie, born April 27, 1864; Grace, born April 27, 1866, died March 13, 1869; Frcd., born Feb. 26, 1868; Luke, born Oct. 4, 1871, died Oct. 11, 1871; Rodolphus, born May 21, 1875, and Angelo, born Dec. 17, 1879.
Rodolphus Bentley, deceased, was born in Berlin, Rensselaer Co., N. Y., October, 1800, a son of Caleb and Mary (Hewitt) Bent- ley. He was the sixth of nine children, seven sons and two daugh- ters. He remained in Berlin till 1833, and then moved to Che- mung County, N. Y., and lived twelve years. In 1844 he moved to McHenry County, Ill., and settled on sections 11 and 12, Che- mung Township, where he died Nov. 20, 1837. He was a member of the Baptist church, and his wife of the Methodist Episcopal church. He was married July 8, 1828, to Christina Price, a native of Greenwich, Rensselaer Co., N. Y., born May 1, 1805. She is living with her son, David H. They had a family of seven chil- dren-John H. married Augusta Cheny, and died in April, 1864, leaving two children-George and Hattie; Caleb J., of Rockton, Ill., married Nettie Gibson, who died in January, 1864, leaving one son, Harry G .; he then married Florence Pollard, and they have two children-Fannie and Tina; Sarah J., wife of J. O. Lewis; James T., of Decatur, Ill., married Nancy J. Murphy and has two children-William and Pauline; David H., of Chemung Township; Harriet L., wife of P. M. Ottman, of Sharon, Wis., has three children-Mary J., David R. and Tina B .; Josephine, wife of D. E. Pixley, of Harvard. Mr. Bentley's father, Caleb Bentley, was a Captain in the Revolutionary war.
William G. Billings, deceased, was born in Pottsdam, St. Law- rence Co., N. Y., Jan. 14, 1822, the eldest of three children of Charles and Rebecca (Gould) Billings. When he was fourteen years of age his father died, and he took charge of his mill till after the death of his mother. When twenty-one years of age he sold the mill and bought a farm in St. Lawrence County. In the fall of 1845 he came to Illinois and bought land in McHenry County, and took charge of the grist-mill, afterward buying an interest. In 1860 he was burned severely, and had not recovered when the war broke out. In 1864 he raised a company and was
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commissioned First Lieutenant. The company was assigned to the One Hundred and Forty-second Illinois Infantry, and joined it in Tennessee, near Memphis. They participated in the defense of the city against Morgan, and then Mr. Billings was detailed to assist the Brigade Quartermaster. After the expiration of his term of service he returned home, and again enlisted and helped to raise another company, of which he was appointed Captain, and in Feb- ruary, 1865, they joined the One Hundred and Fifty-third Illinois Infantry, and was ordered to Tullahoma. While there Captain Billings was taken sick and was obliged to return home in order to save his life, and it was several months before he was able to attend to any business. In 1870 he was appointed Deputy Internal Revenue Collector for the Second District of Illinois, and held the position fourteen years. He died July 20, 1884, leaving a wife and three daughters to mourn his loss. He was a member of the Ma- sonic fraternity, and was Master of Chemung Lodge a number of years. He was married Nov. 2, 1842, to Fannie R. Everest, a native of Pottsdam, N. Y., daughter of Ethan and Fannie (John- Bon) Everest. To them were born seven children; but three are living-Ella J., wife of Melville Lillibridge; Marion E., wife of Darwin E. Barrows, and Grace E., wife of Henry L. Puffer, all residents of McHenry County.
Henry W. Binnie, dealer in foreign and domestic dry-goods, notions, carpets, boots and shoes, groceries, etc., Harvard, Ill., was born in Dundee, Kane Co., Ill., May 16, 1856, a son of David and Christina (Clyde) Binnie, natives of Scotland. His parents were married in their native country, and in 1849 came to America and settled in Kane County, Ill., where the father died Sept. 13, 1873. The mother is living in Chicago. They had a family of ten chil- dren; six are living-Ellen, wife of Wm. M. Thompson, an exten- sive dairyman and wholesale ice-cream dealer of Chicago; David, retired, Chicago, married Emma Ogden; James, a merchant now in Harvard, married Susan Elliott; Ada, wife of W. J. Reasner, a dairyman of Chicago; Henry W., our subject; Alex., of Alta, Iowa, married Grace Clarkson. Henry W. Binnie attended school till nineteen years of age, and then began farming two miles north of Elgin. A year later he bought a farm in Dunham Township, McHenry County. In the fall of 1881 he rented his farm and moved to Harvard, and bought and shipped stock till August, 1883, when he bought the store where he is now doing business. He carries a full stock of everything in his line, valued at $12,000 or 29
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$13,000. He occupies a building 108 x 24 feet, with a basement 24 x 60 feet, and a warehouse for groceries. Mr. Binnie was mar- ried Oct. 27, 1875, to Hattie Nims, a native of Wisconsin, daugh- ter of Orval and Hannah (Hughes) Nims. They have one child- Lilly H., born Oct. 11, 1880. Mr. and Mrs. Binnie are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
N. E. Blake, Justice of the Peace, Harvard, Ill., was born in Steuben County, N. Y., June 18, 1825, a son of Zerah and Esther (Etheridge) Blake, his father a native of Litchfield, Conn., and his mother of Herkimer County, N. Y. His mother died in 1832, and his father in 1839. Of their ten children but three are living- Electa, wife of Joseph Losey, of Steuben County, N. Y .; Z. H., of Livingston County, N. Y:, married Lovica Dorr; and Nathaniel E. When fifteen years of age Nathaniel E. Blake began to learn the wagon-maker's trade, and when eighteen went to work in a thresh- ing-machine factory. In 1867 he came to Illinois and located in Harvard, and has since been identified with the business interests of the town. He manufactured sash, doors and blinds till 1871, and then converted his shop into a wagon factory, which is still conducted by his son. Mr. Blake has been President of the Town Board several times in the past ten years. In 1882 he was elected Justice of the Peace. He is a member of Harvard Lodge, No. 309, F. & A. M .; Harvard Chapter, No. 91, R. A. M., and Calvary Commandery, Woodstock, No. 25, K. T. Politically he is a Re- publican. He was married Sept. 5, 1844, to Emeline Wellington, a native of Bethel, Vt., daughter of John and Julia (Guile) Wel- lington. They have three children-J. C., manager of the wagon factory, married Louisa Burdett; F. W., a blacksmith and locomo- tive engineer, of Socorro, N. M .; and Lettie M. Mr. and Mrs. Blake are members of the Episcopal church.
Gilbert Brainard, one of the proprietors of Clark & Brainard's pickle factory, and one of the oldest residents of Harvard, was born in Townsend, Huron Co., Ohio, May 4, 1840, the son of Gilbert and Nancy (Giddings) Brainard, natives of. New York, wlio, soon after their marrage, moved to Huron County, Ohio, and in the fall of 1846 moved to McHenry County, Ill., and bought a farm of 400 acres, a part of which is the present site of Harvard. The father died in September, 1849, aged forty-four years, and the mother died May 28, 1881. They had a family of ten children; six are living-El- mira, wife of E. J. Sanford, of Woodstock; Asel, married Eliza- betli Finney, and resides in Gary, Denel Co., Dak .; Janet, wife o
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Edwin Backus, of Independence, Iowa; Marvin R., of Chicago, married Emily Jackson; Gilbert, Jr. ; Fletcher S., of Rockford, Ill., married Ella Brown. When seventeen years of age Gilbert Brainard began clerking for Hull, Julius & Co., the first merchants of Harvard. From 1863 to 1869 he engaged in the grain trade, and then, in company with C. R. Brown, opened a general store. In 1875 he bought Mr. Brown's interest, and conducted the busi- ness alone till January, 1882, when he sold out to Henry Callen- der. He then dealt in grain till the spring of 1883, when he formed his present partnership with J. D. Clark. Their factory has now a capacity for making 20,000 bushels of pickles, and they are in- tending to enlarge it. Mr. Brainard has been identified with the interests of McHenry County since six years of age. He has always taken an active interest in all that tends toward the elevation of the county, socially and morally. He is President of the Young Men's Christian Association and of the Bible Society of Chemung Township. He and his wife arc members of the Methodist Epis- copal church. His father was formerly a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, but was turned out in Ohio for voting the Abo- lition ticket, and then joined the Wesleyan Methodist church. His mother retained her membership and was one of the organizers of the church in Harvard. Politically Mr. Brainard is a Republican, but favors prohibition. He was married March 14, 1867, to Emma Brown, a native of Lawrence, McHenry Co., Ill., daughter of Charles R. and Esther (Thompson) Brown.
Bennett S. Brown, one of the old settlers and leading farmers of McHenry County, was born in Addicon County, Vt., May 4, 1823, a son of Daniel R. and Phoebe (Lewis) Brown. When he was sixteen years old his parents moved to St. Lawrence County, N. Y., where his father died a year later, leaving seven children, of whom Bennett was the eldest son and second child. He remained with his mother till 1856, when he came to Illinois and lived in Seneca Township, McHenry County, a year; then bought a part of his present farm, to which he has since added and now owns 358 acres of choice land, on sections 25, 33 and 34, Chemung Town- ship. He has been a resident of the county nearly twenty-nine years, and in that time has been one of the foremost in every good work. He was married Aug. 25, 1847, to Orpha C. Heaton, a native of St. Lawrence County, N. Y., born Jan. 19, 1827, a dangh- ter of Isaac and Mary (Clark) Heaton. Mr. and Mrs. Brown liave had eight children-Silas A., of Baraboo, Wis., is an engineer for
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the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad; Mary E., died at the age of fifteen years; Eveline A., married E. C. Powers, of Harvard; Charles I., unmarried, is with his parents; George G., of Sanborn County, Dak., married Mary Orr; Lewis B., unmarried and at home; William Heaton, of Sanborn County, Dak., married Emma Hickok; Julia S., wife of Henry M. Hickok, of Sanborn County, Dak.
Charles R. Brown, one of the most extensive stock-raisers and farmers in the county, was born in Sharon, Litchfield Co., Conn., April 3, 1818, a son of Charles and Marilla (Beard) Brown. When he was three years of age his parents moved to Erie County, N. Y. He was the eldest of seven children, and, his father being a poor man, he was early obliged to depend upon himself and assist in the maintenance of the family. He was married May 16, 1844, to Esther Thompson, a native of Erie County, N. Y., daughter of James C. and Mehitable (Gould) Thompson. The next fall he came to MeHenry County. When he arrived in the county he had $109. He took $100 and bought eighty acres of Government land, and with the rest commenced housekeeping. In 1857 he sold his farm and moved to Harvard and bought another in the corporation of Harvard. He owns seventy-five acres in Harvard and 465 acres outside the corporation. He raises grain, but makes a specialty of raising Norman horses and Victor hogs. He also has a fine apiary of fifty-two swarms. In addition to his farm he'owns a large brick business block in Harvard, and ten lots with three dwelling houses. Mr. and Mrs. Brown had a family of eight daughters; five are living-Emma, wife of Gilbert Brainard; Ellen, wife of S. F. Barnard; Mary E., wife of C. A. Griswold, a merchant of Chicago; Frances, wife of A. P. Upham, of Chicago; Alice, wife of Hugh Megraw. Mrs. Brown died Nov. 4, 1883. Mr. Brown has held several offices of trust in the township, among them Super- visor three term s, Justice of the Peace four years, and Assessor three years. He is purely a self-made man, starting when a boy to take care of himself. He has, by industry and honesty, made for himself a good property, and is now one of the representative men of the county.
William A. Brown, farmer, Chemung Township, McHenry Co., Ill., has been a resident of the township since October, 1843. He was born in Warsaw, Geneseo, now Wyoming Co., N. Y., Jan. 31, 1821, a son of Stephen G. and Sallie (Jones) Brown, natives of New York. William A. was the third of four children and sec-
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ond son, and is the only one living. He was four years of age when his mother died, and his father subsequently married Bethuna Davis. Both are now dead. They had a family of ten children. When fifteen years of age William A. Brown went to work ou a farm in Geneseo County. In 1843 lie came West, and bought the farm in Chemung Township where he still resides. He has had many hardships to undergo but has been successful, and now lias a fine farm, and has been one of the most successful raisers of grain and stock in the county. His farm contains 200 acres, ou sections 22 and 23, with a pleasant residence and commodious farm buildings. He was married Oct. 26, 1845, to Mary S. Hutchinson, a native of Erie County, N. Y., a daughter of Daniel P. and Urania (Pray) Hutchinson. To them were born three children; but one is liv- ing-George W., who runs a pack team in Colorado, with head- quarters at Crested Butte. His wife died Dec. 10. 1862. April 17, 1865, he married Mrs. Julia Miller, widow of C. J. Miller, and daughter of Amasa and Marilla (Baird) Cook. Mr. and Mrs. Brown have two children-Archie D., and William A., Jr. Mr. Brown is a member of Harvard Lodge, No. 309, F. & A. M .; Harvard Chapter, No. 91, R. A. M. His wife is a member of the Presbyterian churchi.
Abner J. Burbank, station agent for the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad, Harvard, Ill., was born in Lowell, Mass., Dec. 17, 1834, a son of Abner and Elizabeth M. (Badger) Burbank, natives of Ver- mont. His father was overseer of the Hamilton Corporation Cotton Factory, Lowell, Mass. In 1847 his parents came West, and his father engaged in the grain and produce business till his death, in 1874. His wife died in 1872. Three of their six children are liv- ing-Susan B., wife of I. W. Webster; Emma, wife of Ed. E. Ayer, and A. J. After leaving school Abner worked at the ma- chiinist's trade six months and then went to Newburg, N. Y., and ran a stationary engine three months; thence to Lowell, Mass., and six months later to New Market, N. H. In 1854 lie came West and clerked in the dry-goods store of E. G. Ayer, at Big Foot, Wis., six months; then went to Kenosha, Wis., and attended school, read law and taught school thirteen or fourteen months. He then was employed as clerk for the contractor of the grading of the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad six or eight months; tlien at- tended Chicago Commercial College, and subsequently was em- ployed as bookkeeper till the fall of 1856, when he was appointed station agent at Harvard. He remained in the employ of the rail-
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road company filling different positions till 1872, when, with A. E. Low, he engaged in the manufacture of barley malt. In 1874 he was again employed by the railroad company, and in 1879 was ap- pointed agent at Harvard. Mr. Burbank was married Jan. 8, 1858, to Anna M. Ayer, a native of Walworth County, Wis., daughter of Judge E. G. and Maria E. (Titcomb) Ayer. They have had three children-Elbridge A., born Sept. 10, 1859, is a portrait painter in St. Paul, Minn .; Henry C., born August, 1862; Lillie N., born April 15, 1865. Mr. Burbank is a charter member of Harvard Lodge, No. 309, F. & A. M., and Harvard Lodge, No. 147, A. O. U. W. Politically he is a Republican.
Benjamin B. Butts, deceased, was one of the first settlers of Mc- Henry County. He was born in New Lisbon, Conn., October, 1805, the eldest of five children of Simon and Esther (Pettingill) Butts. When a boy he went with his parents to Monroe County, N. Y. He lived on the home farm till he was twenty-one years of age, and then learned the carpenter and joiner's trade. In June, 1837, he came West, and in 1838 settled on the farm on section 26, Chemung Township, where his widow still lives. He went to California in 1858 and died there in 1865, of heart disease. He was married Jan. 1, 1834, to Roba A. Sprague, a native of Syra- cuse, N. Y., born Dec. 6, 1815, the only child of Daniel and Anna (Warren) Sprague, her father a native of New York and her mother of Massachusetts. Mrs. Butts's father died in 1816, and when she was eleven years old her mother moved to Monroe County, N. Y., where she mnet and married Mr. Butts. To Mr. and Mrs. Butts were born three children-Frances A., born May 24, 1840, was the first white child born in Chemung Township; she married Oliver Udell, a farmer of Alden Township; Scebra M., of Harvard, born Aug. 17, 1842, married Mary Whitmarch; Harvey W., of Harvard, born Sept. 15, 1847, married Rosa Russell. There are fourteen grandchildren. Both sons enlisted in the Rebellion in a McHenry company. Mrs. Butts, as was her husband, is a mem- ber of the Advent church. She owns a fine farm of fifty-six and a half acres, which was in a wild state when she came to the county. She and her mother and sister-in-law, Mrs. Farnsworth, were the first white women in Chemung. They lived there four weeks while their house was being built. Wolves and deer were plenty, and neigh- bors scarce. The Indians often passed their house, but were peace able. Mrs. Butts is one of the very few living who came to Che mung Township in 1838.
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Benjamin F. Carey, dealer in organs, pianos and sewing ma- chines, Chemung, Ill., was born in Chemung, Chemung Co., N. Y., May 14, 1837, a son of Absalom and Rebecca (Tillman) Carey. Ab- salom Carey was a drummer boy in the war of 1812, and in the war of the Rebellion was Chaplain of the One Hundred and Third New York Infantry. He began teaching before he was twenty- one years of age. He subsequently attended the Newberg Sem- inary, and after his graduation, was elected the first President of the Wyoming College. He was ordained a minister in the Bap- tist church, when a young man. He was married to Elizabeth Halleck, sister of the late General Halleck. She died leaving one son-Absalom H., who resides in Florida. Mr. Carey then married Rebecca Tillman, and to them were born five sons and two daughters; four sons and one daughter are living-Benjamin F., our subject; David W., of Dover, Del .; Peter V., Mayor of Des. Moines, Iowa; Charles M., of Wyoming, Del. ; and Ann E., of New York City, widow of Harry Lewis. His four sons were all in the Union army during the war of the Rebellion. Peter lost three fingers from his right hand, by a ininie-ball. Mr. and Mrs. Carey reside in Wyoming, Del. He is now in the eighty-third year of his age. Benjamin F. Carey received a good education, finishing his studies at Roberts Seminary, Elmira, N. Y., when nineteen years of age. He then went with his brother to Fredericksburg, Va., and was an engineer on a railroad seven years. In March, 1861, he was conscripted into the rebel army, in Company A, Sixteenth Virginia Infantry. In the summer of 1862 he escaped and went to Washington and New York, and assisted in raising the Twenty-first New York Light Artillery, and was elected Sec- ond Lieutenant. They were assigned duty at Fort Schuyler, New York Harbor. After the close of the war he went to Wyoming, Del., and engaged with his brother in the fruit business. In 1869 he moved to Chemung, and has since traveled for different whole- sale houses. He was married May 31, 1871, to Julia Antoinette Wooster, a native of Chemung, McHenry County, daughter of George and Susan (Devine) Wooster. They have two sons- George B., born Feb. 1, 1874, and Ralph Le Grand, born Oct. 6, 1878. Mr. Carey is a member of the Odd Fellows order, and a member of the Grand Lodge of Illinois. He was a representative of the Grand Lodge of Good Templars, of Delaware, to the Grand Lodge of the United States, in 1868.
David W. Chilson, son of William and Rachel (Westfall)
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Chilson, was born in Schoharie, N. Y., Oct. 25, 1842, and came with his parents to MeHenry County, Ill., in the fall of 1849. When twenty-one years of age be returned to New York, and Jan. 1, 1863, enlisted in Company L, Fifteenth New York Cavalry, and remained till the close of the war. He was thrown from a car while being transferred, and had his shoulder dislocated. After the war he returned to MeHenry County, and engaged in farming till 1872, and since then has dealt in live stock, buying and sliip- ping to the larger cities. He built his residence in Harvard in 1876. He was married Jan. 1, 1867, to Ellen Warren, of Wal- wortlı County, Wis., daughter of A. P. and Ambrosia (Gates) Warren. They have two children-Willie H., born Dec. 19, 1867, and Kittie M., born Jan. 24, 1872. Mr. and Mrs. Chilson are members of the Baptist church. He is a member of Harvard Lodge, No. 147, A. O. U. W., and Harvard Legion, No. 24, Seleet Knights. Politically he is a Republican.
William Chilson, farmer, was born in Schioharie County, N. Y., June 18, 1820, a son of James and Charlotte (Stevens) Chilson. When twenty-two years of age he came West, and was offered eighty acres of land where the Northwestern depot, Chicago, stands, for $200. He passed through McHenry County to Wal- worth County, Wis., and worked on a farm till September, 1842. Then went to Milwaukee, Wis., and from there returned East, and, Oct. 18, 1842, was married to Rachel A. Westfall, a native of Albany County, N. Y., daughter of Abraham and Eliza (Worrick) West- fall. He worked on a farm in Schioharie County till 1845, and then came West to Cook County, Ill., and settled between South Grove and Deer Grove, on Squire Bradwell's farm. The next fall he came to McHenry County, and bought a farm in Chemung Township, about a mile from his present residence. Mr. and Mrs. Chilson have liad eight children-David, of Chemung Township; William Henry, a dentist of Appleton, Wis .; Charles, enlisted in Company C, Ninety-fifth Illinois Infantry, and died from expos- ure while a prisoner at Andersonville; Lodemia, wife of Robert Wheeler, of Harvard; Jennie C .; James K., a passenger conduc- tor on the Santa Fe Railroad; George, a grocer of Lawrence, mar- ried Abi Page; Libbie, at home. Mr. Chilson has a pleasant farm, near Lawrence. He has lield several offices of trust in the Township.
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