USA > Illinois > Morgan County > History of Morgan county, Illinois : its past and present, containing a history of the county; its cities, towns, etc.; a biographical directory of its volunteers in the late rebellion; portraits of its early settlers and prominent men [etc., etc.] > Part 95
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Walters Harvey, farmer, Sec. 30, P.O. Jack- sonville
Webb Thomas, farmer, Sec. 30, P.O. Jack- sonville
Welsh Peter, farmer, Sec. 32, P.O. Jackson- ville
White Tunis, farmer, Sec. 22, P.O. Jackson- ville
Wilhoit Benjamin, farmer, Sec. 15, P.O. Liter Williams Samuel, farmer, Sec. 4, P.O. Liter Williamson William I. farmer, Sec. 19, P.O. Arcadia
WILSON JOHN M. farmer, Sec. 17, P.O. Arcadia ; he was born in Gallatin Co., Ky., Jan, 14, 1815, and came with his father to Morgan Co., in 1823 ; unmarried ; his father, James Wilson was born in Pennsylvania Oct. 23, 1772, and died Aug. 24, 1858 ; he married Bridget Custer May 3, 1796 ; she was born in Virginia, Dec. 1775, and died May 8, 1851 ; they raised twelve children, five of whom are still liv- ing
YOUNG WILLARD, farmer, Arcadia
BUSINESS CARDS.
DOWNTAIN AZAEL, post master and wagon maker, Arcadia
HARRISON THOMAS, farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 31, Township 16, Range Io West, P.O. Jacksonville
HARRISON WILLIAM H. farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 31, Township 16, Range 10 West, P.O. Jacksonville
LOAR GEORGE, raiser of Berkshire swine, cattle, etc., Sec. 18, P.O. Arcadia
MATTINGLY SHELTON J. Sec.9, nine miles north of Jacksonville, P.O. Liter
OGLE JOHN W. raiser of Berkshire swine, cattle, horses, etc., etc., Sec. 19, P.O. Jacksonville
TOWN 16 NORTH RANGE 11 WEST.
A BERNATHY JAMES H. farm-
er, Sec. 27, P.O. Concord. Was born in Van Buren Co., Iowa, Sept. 28, 1853; married to Miss Emma Kershaw, Dec. 23, 1873; she was born on the farm where they now live, Jan. 6, 1854; have two children : Arthur Allen and Eva Gertrude. When he was about seven years old, his mother died, and he was bound out to a farmer; he left him after a few years; kept on farming till '71, when he came to Concord about the Ioth of August. He visited Iowa several times before his marriage. He has a fine farm, and raises large numbers of cattle
Ater Basio, farmer, Sec. 4, P.O. Arenzville, Cass Co.
Ater Jacob, farmer, Sec. 7, P.O. Concord
Ater Jas. J. farmer, Sec. 7, P.O. Arenzville, Cass Co.
Ater Nancy, widow James, farmer, Sec. 12, P.O. Arcadia
Ater William, farmer, Sec. 4, P.O. Arenzville, Cass Co.
Angel John, farmer, Sec. 36, P.O. Jackson- ville
Antles Freman, farmer, Sec. 23, P.O. Con- cord
Ayers Theop, carpenter, Concord
BAKER FREDERICK, farmer, Sec. 7, P.O. Concord
Bebout Frederick, farmer, Sec. 27, P.O. Con- cord
Beeley Joseph, farmer, Sec. 6, P.O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co.
Birch Eli, carpenter, Concord
Blimbling Casper, farmer, Sec. 34, P.O. Jack- sonville
Blimbling George F. farmer, Sec. 34, P.O. Jacksonville
Blimbling Jacob, farmer, Sec. 34, P.O. Jack- sonville
Blimbling John F. farmer, Sec. 34, P.O. Jack- sonville
Bobbitt Drury A. teamster, Concord
Braner Catherine, widow John, Sec. 14, P.O. Arcadia
Braner Elias, farmer, Sec. 24, P.O. Arcadia Braner George, farmer, Sec. 13, P.O. Arcadia Braner George W. farmer, Sec. 3, P.O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co.
Braner John, farmer, Sec. 12, P.O. Arcadia Braner John, farmer, Sec. 14, P.O. Arcadia Braner Peter, farmer, Sec. 13, P.O. Arcadia Braner Simon, farmer, Sec. 14, P.O. Jackson- ville
Braner Stephen, farmer, Sec. 13, P.O. Ar- cadia
Brennan Edward, farmer, Concord
BRIDGEMAN HEZEKIAH, re-
tired farmer, Concord. Was born in Withe Co., Va., Jan. 18, 1797. Married there Aug. 4, 1820, to Miss Jane Brown, born same place, Jan. 16, 1797; had nine children; lost two --- Franklin, born March 3, 1822; Mary, Aug. 29, 1823; Martin, Nov. 6, 1825; John, Aug. 27, 1827; James, June 3 1829; Isaac, May 20, 1831; Rhoda, July 4, 1834; William, July 18, 1836; died July 14, 1839; his wife died Feb. 26, 1847; mar- ried again to Miss Leah Deaton, born in Va .; had two children, living : Martha, born March 10, '51, and Eliza, April 14, '53; his second wife died April 21, 1853; married again to Mrs. Nancy Brown, born in Withe Co., Va., March 10, 1802; no chil- dren by her; she had eleven children by her first husband, four living now-James Washington Brown, born Nov. 23, 1824; Andrew Jackson Brown, Jan. 30, 1830; Napoleon B. Brown, Oct. 21, 1833; Mary Brown, March 19, 1838, now Mrs. P. Kiser. He came to this county in the Fall of 1830 with a team and $14 in money-a poor man, and by hard work at farming and prudent management has become inde- pendent. He quit farming twenty years ago, settling down in Concord, living on the interest of his money. Though 81 years old, his memory of early days is vivid ; there is no man in his neighborhood who appreciates a joke and laugh as much as " Uncle Kiah ;" his conversation is pointed, racy, and interesting, bristling with anec-
740
MORGAN COUNTY DIRECTORY.
dotes of early days. The genuine interest he takes in the welfare of those surround- ing him, and the public spirit he shows in affairs concerning Concord and the neigh- borhood, have given him the name of " Uncle Kiah " far and wide
BRIDGEMAN JOHN, deceased, farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 10, P.O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co. Born in Virginia, Aug. 27, 1827; married June 28, 1855; have one son living : Henry A., born on this farm, June 19, 1857; married July 18, 1875, and have one child : John William, born Sept, 30, 1876. Mr. John Bridgeman was one of the county's earliest settlers; his death hap- pened some thirteen years ago. He once held the office of constable. Mrs. John Bridgeman's father is Aaron Henderson, born in Virginia, and married a Miss Sarah Bowles, also born in Virginia. Mrs. J. Bridgeman owns 265 acres of good land, value about $10,600
Bridgeman Samuel, farmer, Sec. 24, P.O. Con- cord
Bridgeman Virginia Mrs. farm, Sec. 24, P.O. Concord
Bridgewater Hannah, wid. William, Sec. 26, P.O. Jacksonville
Bridgewater Henry, farmer, Sec. 26, P.O. Jacksonville
Brown Felix G. farmer, Sec. 17, P.O. Con- cord
Brown Franklin, farmer, Sec. 17, P.O. Con- cord
Brown George P. farmer, Sec. 18, P.O. Con- cord
BROWN JAMES M. was born in Tennessee, May 22, 1825; married Oct. 6, 1847, to Miss Sarah Ann Buxton ; had six children : James Franklin, Felix G., Sarah Abigail, George P., Mary Jane, and Charles Oscar, dead. He is one of the oldest set- tlers in this township; his parents moved here in 1830. In 1831 his father was killed in digging a well; his mother married again, making the home uncongenial to him; he faced the world alone when 18 years old, and is to-day among the wealthy farmers of this county. In 1857 he bought his present place. Politically he is a staunch Democrat
Brunk Christopher C. farmer, P.O. Concord Brunk George, farmer, Sec. 8, P.O. Concord
BURBANK EDWIN S. farmer, Sec. 27, P.O. Concord. Was born in Mass., Aug. 16, 1825. He came to Cass Co. in 1853; married in Beardstown, March 31,. 1853, to Miss Caroline Shaw, born in Maine, Jan. 22, 1822; had five children : Howard D., born Dec, 27, 1853; Carrie M., March 12, 1855; Frank E., Feb. 27, 1857; Ida May, Sept. 27, 1859; Sarah Jane, May 6, 1860. His wife, at Mrs. Leonard's house, at Concord, Aug. 31, 1873, was burned fatally by a spark from the stove - setting her dress on fire before help could be rendered. She died there on Sept. 16, 1873. Married again April 5, 1876 in St. Louis, to Miss Ada St. John De Haven, who was born in Beardstown, June 24, 1854; has one child by her : Arthur W., born Aug. 23, 1877. The present Mrs. B. is a niece of Lieut. Edwin DeHaven, com- manding the original Arctic expedition, in which Dr. Kane was surgeon, but getting snow blinded after his first voyage, he re- tired, and died in Philadelphia, Dr. Kane getting all the credit. Mr. Burbank enlisted in the IOIst Regiment, Co. B, and was with his regiment through the entire war. In '64 he received a sunstroke, after which he was a great portion of the time in commissary department. Joseph Shaw, Mr. Burbank's father-in-law, was born in Maine, Jan. 21, 1794; he came to this county in 1830, and died in 1867. His father, Dana Burbank, born in Mass., Jan. 18, 1796, manufactured paper in his native State, came to Scott Co. in 1868, and died May 6, 1876
Burbank Frank E. farmer, Sec. 34, P.O. Con- cord
C ARE JAMES L. farmer, Sec. 6, P.O. Arenzville, Cass Co.
Chamberlain Elizabeth, widow, Concord
CHARLSWORTH GEORGE, farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 3, P.O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co .; born in Yorkshire, Eng- land, Aug. 18, 1826; married Nov. 28, 1852, to Mary Kenworthy, born in York- shire, England, Nov, 26, 1831 ; have five children living, Anna L., born in Cass Co., Ill., May, 18, 1857; Joseph T., born Feby. 16, 1860, on this farm ; John W., born March 5, 1863, on this farm ; George L.,
741
TOWN 16 NORTH RANGE 11 WEST.
born July, 15, 1868 ; died March, 28, 1871; Mary L., born Sept. 22, 1871, on this farm; James Richard, born May, 17, 1874, on this farm; Mr. George Charlsworth left Eng- land in 1849 ; prior to this time he was on his father's farm, farming and weaving be- ing his occupation at the time; he landed in Boston, 1849; went to Lowell, Mass .; here his employment was that of weaving, and remained six months ; in Oct. 1849, he went to Peacedale, R. I .; remained here three years, engaged as weaver ; then he went to Westerly, Conn. ; here he remained one year ; occupation during this time, weaving; then he settled in Cass Co. in 1854, near his present place ; moved to his present farm Nov. 10, 1859
CONOVER JAMES, farmer and preacher, born in Woodford Co., Ky., Oct. 12, 1804; married June 5, 1828, to Miss Martha M. Reding ; born in same county, Dec. 24, 1812 ; had nine children : Richard A., born Dec. 28, 1831 ; Alvina, Jan. 10, 1835 ; she was thrown from a buggy going to the fair in Cass Co., Ill., dying from her injuries, Nov. 1, 1875 ; Henry Clay, Sept. 16, 1838; Mary C., Aug. 8, 1841, now Mrs. M. D. McMannus, living with them ; Eliza Ann, Jan. 20, 1845, died Oct. 6, 1845 ; Thaddeus, Dec. 18, 1833, died in his in- fancy ; Charles Clinton, April 28, 1847. died Feb. 9, 1857 ; Martha Helen, Oct. 6, I849, now Mrs. Normal Eurton ; James Scholey, April 25, 1853; all his children live near Peculiar, Mo., with exception of Henry Clay, who lives near Butler, Bates Co., Mo .; Mr. Conover came to Illinois, landing on Jersey Prairie, eight miles north of Jacksonville, Oct. 18, 1827 ; he was farm- ing there till 1855 ; the first Lord's day in. Feby. 1831, he, his wife. and others, thir- teen in all, organized the first " Christian church " in this county, if not in Illinois, he taking an active interest in its welfare ; he was a deacon from its organization, and ordained a preacher a few years after, preaching from that time till 1855, when he moved to Eureka, Woodford Co., Ill. ; he was appointed immediately after his arrival, trustee of the college (Eureka college), and soon after elder of the church there, holding both appointments till July, 4, 1868, when he moved to Pleasant Hill, Cass Co,, Mo .; he was farming there as in Illinois ; the
town Peculiar was started soon after he settled, only two miles from his farm ; he there found a sinall church organization; preaching there during his stay of five years ; leaving there he returned to Con- cord, Nov. 18, 1873, since which time he has been living a retired life ; he is at pres- ent an elder of his church, and still preaches occasionally, waiting contentedly to be called by Him, for whom he has worked during life
COOPER ARMSTRONG, farmer,
Sec. 22, P.O. Concord ; born in Roan Co. East Tennessee, March, 23, 1812; he came to this county Nov. 3, 1835 ; was married Oct. 8, 1838, to Miss Mary Silcox, born in Tennessee, March, 18, 1818 ; had ten chil- dren : Eliza Jane, born Oct. 29, 1840, now Mrs. F. Roberts ; Azariah Coffman, Dec. 18, 1842, died 1853 ; William Henry, Sept. 15, 1844; Mary Ellen, born Oct. 31, 1846, died 1855, was Mrs. Orlando Pratt ; John Armstrong, Sept. I, 1850, died 1853; Aman- da C., Oct. 3, 1852, now Mrs. Bailey Rexroat ; Albert and Robert, March IO, 1855, both died same year ; James Buch- anan, Aug. 23, 1856; Edward Scott, July, 17, 1860, died 1862 ; he first came to Jack- sonville where he opened a family grocery store, sold out, and came to Concord, and in 1845 he entered the land he now lives on ; has been school director and super- visor of roads seven terms ; politically he has always been a Democrat, though in county elections. the best men on either side would always be his choice
COOPER WILLIAM HENRY,
farmer, Sec. 22, P.O. Concord ; was born in Morgan Co., Sept. 15, 1844; married Oct. 18, 1874, to Miss Carrie M. Burbank, born in Morgan Co., March, 12, 1855 ; have two children, Perry Howard, born March, 4, 1876 ; Cora May, Aug. 24, 1877 ; was born and raised here; farmed with his father till his marriage ; politically he has always been a Democrat; was elected school director of District No. 5 last April Cowder Stephen, farmer, Sec. I, P,O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co.
Cowdin Frank P. farmer, Sec. 33, P.O. Jack- sonville
Cowdin P., farmer, Sec. 33, P.O. Jacksonville Craig Moses H. farmer, Sec. 18, P.O. Con- cord
742
MORGAN COUNTY DIRECTORY.
Craig Nancy Jane, widow Noah, Concord Craig Robert, farmer, Sec. 18, P.O. Concord Crocker Ulrick L, blacksmith, Concord
CULLIMORE THOMAS M. M.D. P.O. Concord ; born in Carrollton, Greene Co., Illinois, Nov. 22, 1849; graduated at the University of the City of New York in 1877
D ALEY PATRICK, blacksmith and
wagon maker, Concord; was born in Tip- perary Co., Ireland, March 16, 1837; left Ireland Sept. 1851 ; landed in New York in Oct. the same year; then went to New Salem, where he learned the trade of black- smith, and worked nearly three years ; moved to Pennsylvania; stayed there till 1855 ; then went to Auburn, N. Y., and was married June 15, 1856, to Miss Bridget Carey, of Watertown, N. Y. ; she was born in Ireland ; had five children by her, lost two; those living are: James, born at Skaneateles, N. Y., June 17, 1857 ; Nora, born at Chapin, this county, Jan. 24, 1859 ; Michael, born at Bethel, this county, Feb. 2, 1862; his wife died June 9, 1875; mar- ried again to Mrs. Rebecca Hamilton, who was born in this county, Oct. 22, 1845 ; has one child by her, John Carl, born here, Aug. 5, 1877 ; her maiden name was Rebecca Webb; was married to Noah Hamilton, May 5, 1864; has two children by him, Arthur Hamilton, born Feb. 27, 1865, and Charles Hamilton, born Feb. 12, 1867 ; Mr. Daley came to Chapin Aug. 1858, engaging in his trade till 1862 ; enlisting in the IOIst Illinois, Co. "E;" at Holly Springs, was captured and paroled, sent to Memphis five days after, on the 3Ist Dec. ; steamed up the Mississippi on the "Creole;" at island No. 34, she struck a sand bar ; after forty-eight hours futile attempt, were trans- ferred to steamer Curlew ; making Cairo, there they waited till the "Creole " came and arrived at St. Louis ; a trip he will al- ways remember ; he was exchanged Jan. 1863 ; rejoined his regiment, skirmishing around in Western Kentucky and Tennes- see, till Sept., thence to Louisville and Bridgeport, Ala .; at latter place he was till Oct. 28 ; was in a fight at Owahatchie; re- mained in Lookout valley till Nov. 23 ; . was in battle of Mission Ridge ; wintered in Bridgeport, Ala. till May, 1864, thence
to Chattanooga, and then "going through Georgia;" was in the battles of Rocky Face, Resaca, in the charge on Kennesaw Mountain, Peach Tree Creek, and at the siege of Atlanta ; remained in the city a few weeks; was in Savannah six weeks ; then on to Richmond ; the war closed, he was mustered out in Washington, June 7, 1865; discharged in Springfield, June 25, 1865; went back to Chapin, at his old business, and came here in 1874, carrying on the business at the present time
Dalton James W. farm hand, Sec. II, P.O. Concord
Daub Christian, farmer, Sec. 9, P.O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co.
Daub Conrad, farmer, Sec. 8, P.O. Arenzville, Cass Co.
Daub John, farmer, Sec. 8, P.O. Arenzville, Cass Co.
DEAN LEWIS, farmer, Sec. 28, P.O. Concord ; was born in St. Albans, Vt., Sept. 12, 18II, where he was raised and worked on a farm till 1830; in 1830 he left home, and travelled in the States of New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Missouri, and Virginia ; he taught school in all, but Ohio; the Fall of 1838 he settled in this county, teaching school that fall and winter for six months; he took an active part in organizing and dividing this township into school districts ; in 1844 he was elected township trustee, which office he held for ten years, being elected four times in succession ; in 1839 he entered his land, and was married June 2, 1839, to Miss Maria Ratcliff, who was born in Louisa Co., Va., 1868 ; had four children: Dwight, born March, 1844, wlio enlisted in the 11th Illinois cavalry, Co. " B," in Nov. 1861, and died a few months after at Camp Butler; Lucy, Sept. 1842, died Oct. 1, 1862 ; Susannah, Sept. 1846, now Mrs. Henry Suger, and Josiah, July, 1857; his wife died April 13, 1860; he married again April 3, 1862, to Miss Eleanor Richhart, born in Ohio in 1826; had one child by her, Nathan, born April 29, 1863, died Sept. 1873 ; the first pork he sold was in Jacksonville, 1841, at $1.75 nett per hundred ; the first corn he hauled to Mere- dosia in 1843, at 1272 cents per bushel ; his nearest neighbors then were Henry, John, and Thomas Park, Archibald Mel- lon, William Moss, Adam Gaddis, and
743
TOWN 16 NORTH RANGE 11 WEST.
Robert Kershaw, all good men ; politically he has always been a democrat
Decker James M. farmer, Sec. 24, P.O. Ar- cadia
Deitrich Daniel, farmer, Sec. 30, P.O. Con- cord
Deitrich Samuel, farmer, Sec, 30, P.O. Con- cord
Dewees Cornelius, farmer, Sec. 35, P.O. Jack- sonville
Dickerson Wilmer W. constable, Concord
Diggins Robert, carpenter, Concord
Driver Nicholas, farmer, Sec. II, P.O. Arcadia Driver Richard, farmer, Sec. 2, P. O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co.
Dyer A., farmer, Sec. 9, P.O. Concord
Dyer George F. farmer, Sec. 9, P.O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co.
Dyer Joseph, farmer, Sec. 9, P.O. Arenzville, Cass Co.
DYER WILLIAM ANDERSON,
farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 9, P.O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co., born in Grange Co., Tenn., Jan. 29, 1807 ; married March 12, 1833, to Margaret Bridgeman, born May 25, 1808, died Jan. 13, 1878 ; have seven children living : George Franklin, born Nov. 27, 1833: William R., born Feb. 3, 1836; Ro- dy Ann, born Jan. 20, 1838 ; Joseph, born April 23, 1841; Ellen Jane, born March 26, 1842 ; John C., born April 8, 1851; Martin J., born Oct. II, 1854. Lost three children : Martha, Emeline, Thomas L. Mr. W. A. Dyer left Tennessee when thir- ty-one years old; came to this county in 1838, with eight dollars and three picka- yunes in his pocket; he now owns 140 acres of improved land, and good farm house on same. His religion is of the Baptist school. He was the first school director under the free school system, which office he held in Tennessee. His father, William Dyer, was born in Virginia, at the time of the revolutionary war, 1776, and married a Miss Ellen Dyer. His wife's father, Frank- lin Bridgeman, fought in the revolutionary war of 1776, and married a Miss Roda May. Has learned four different trades in his life
Dyer William R. farmer, Sec. 9, P.O. Arenz- ville, Cass Co.
E AGLE THOMAS, merchant, Con- cord, was born at Yarmouth, England,
July 18, 1812 ; married in Wisbech, Eng., June I, 1834, to Miss Elizabeth Watson Stagles, born at March, Eng., Dec. 27, 1815; had twelve children (lost seven), living : Hannah, now Mrs. J. C. Sanders ; Elizabeth, now Mrs. A. J. Bell; John Thomas, Charles William, and Mary Jane, now Mrs. Robert Diggins. He left Eng- land April 17, 1854, settling in Ohio ; stayed there till July, '55, then locating here, engaged in merchant tailoring till '67, then moved to Abingdon, Knox Co., and in '71, to Bushnell ; he stayed there till '75, when he came back to Concord, since which time he has been keeping a general store and merchant tailoring estab- lishment. He enlisted in '61, in the three months' service, in the 68th Ill. Reg., Co. B, volunteering on the 4th of July; his regi- ment had to do a great deal of marching and counter-marching, but was in no bat- tles. He was mustered out in October, same year
Evans Rebecca, widow, Concord
Ewing John S. farmer, Sec. 31, P.O. Concord EWING WILLIAM H. blacksmith, P.O. Concord, born in Wheeling, Va., May 13, 1831; married Oct. 23, 1855, to Marga- ret Filey, who was born in Pennsylvania, Nov. 20, 1831. Have six children: Charles, Alexander H., William, Hattie, Susan Ann, and Robert C. Came to Logan Co. in 1837
FAIRBANK ALLEN, farmer, Sec. 29, P.O. Concord
FAIRBANK JOHN B. was born in New Ipswich, N. H., March 16, 1796. At the district schools of his native town and at New Ipswich Academy, he obtained a fair education, which, on leaving home, at the age of twenty, he made use of by engaging in teaching. For four years he was principal of a high school in Stamford, Ct., where he became acquainted with and married Miss Hannah M. Crissey, with whom he lived to celebrate their golden wedding. Soon after marriage he removed to Massachusetts, and there established an extensive manufactory of palm-leaf hats, and ladies' straw bonnets, one of the first of the kind in the United States. For the sale of the goods manufactured, he opened a wholesale store in New York City,whither
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744
MORGAN COUNTY DIRECTORY.
he removed in 1835, and, his store being in the immediate vicinity, he was present as an interested and not idle spectator at the great fire of December of that year. In
1837 he removed to Morgan Co., Ill .; set- tling on a farm on the north side of Dia- mond Grove, one mile south of Illinois College. Here he lived nine years, during which time his older sons received their education at the college. He was very fa- vorably known as a friend by the students of those days, many of them receiving help at his hands in their time of need, and all having a cordial welcome at his hospitable home. In 1846 he removed to the now vi- cinity of Concord, where he retained his residence until the close of his life. A short time previous to this removal, a church had been organized in the neigh- borhood, out of a variety of elements found in the region, on a union basis, and be- cause of this feature of the organization, and because some of the members were from Concord, N. H., it received the name Concord. With this church Mr. Fairbank, with his family, at once identified himself, and at a cost to him of several hundred dollars over and above his subscription, he built its first house of worship. The build- ing was located where Concord now stands, and this was the starting of the town. In 1850, in connection with D. Wilder, his third son, Mr. F. opened a store near the church, and soon after platted the town, and named it after the church. When the Rock Island and St.Louis R.R.was project- ed, he interested himself in it at once, and was for a number of years one of its direc- tors. From 1854 to 1862, he acted as general agent for Central Illinois, in the sale of McCormick's Reaper and Mower, and thus formed a very extensive business acquaintance throughout this part of the State. Mr. F. was very decidedly a public spirited man, and was always ready, accord- ing to his ability, and indeed, often be- yond his ability, to give a helping hand in the furtherance of everything which had in view the public good, whether in the sphere of civil affairs, education, philan- thropy, or morals. In early life he became a Christian, and thereafter was most heart- ily identified with all moral reforms and religious enterprises. While as yet it was
an unpopular thing to do, he adopted total abstinence principles, as to temper- ance, which he ever uncompromisingly maintained, and his practice was from first to last in perfect consistency with the prin- ciples he advocated. He was especially interested in the cause of Foreign Missions, to which he gave gladly his eldest son and a grand-daughter, who had grown up in his home as his own child, together with a not small portion of his yearly income. Politically he was an old-line Whig, until the formation of the Republican party, with which he allied himself at once, be- cause of its advocacy of the anti-slavery principles he had always held. Through a long life of mingled prosperity and adver- sity, in all relations of whatever nature, he ever maintained the character of a true Christian gentleman, and succeeded re- markably in the effort that was always his to be both just and generous. He died June 17, 1873, at the age of 77, and was buried in Diamond Grove Cemetery, where his body sleeps in a grave almost in sight of his first Morgan Co. home. In Mr. Fairbank's family there were ten children, five sons and five daughters. The latter all died in infancy, while the former all grew to manhood and four still live. The, oldest, Rev. Samuel B. Fairbank, D.D., was born at Stamford, Ct., in 1822. He graduated from Illinois College, at the age of eighteen, and from Andover Theologi- cal Seminary at twenty-one. The follow- ing year he went as a missionary of the Am. Board, to India, and was stationed at Ahmedungger, 200 miles east of Bombay, where he still continues to labor, having been in the foreign field over thirty years. Before going out he was married to Miss Abbie Allen, of Oakham, Worcester Co., Mass., who died in India, leaving two chil- dren, one of whom, now Mrs. Emma F. Smith, is still living, and is herself a mis- sionary, being the wife of Rev. Thomas S. Smith, of Jaffna, Ceylon. He was married again in 1856, this time to Miss Mary Bal- lantine, daughter of a missionary, and born in India, who is his present wife. They have seven children living, three of whom, two daughters and a son, are in this coun- try being educated. James C. Fairbank, the second son, was born at Oakham,
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