USA > Illinois > Stark County > History of Stark County, Illinois, and its people : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume II > Part 11
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26
JOHN H. STURM.
John H. Sturm is numbered among the honored veterans of the Civil war who are now residing in Stark county and throughout the period of his connection with the Union army he made a most eredi- table military record in defense of the stars and stripes. IIe is now living in Bradford and is one of the native sons of Oseeola township. his birth having occurred August 24, 1841. His parents were Samuel and Elizabeth ( Phenix) Sturm. His paternal grandfather was Mathias Sturm, who was born in Rockingham county. Virginia. and in his boyhood removed to Kentucky and afterward to Ohio, where he remained until 1832, when he became a resident of Peoria county,
137
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
Illinois. It was in that year that the Black Hawk war was waging, determining the right of the white man to the land comprised within the borders of this fair state, but there were still many evidences of Indian occupancy throughont Illinois when in 1833 Mathias Sturm came to Stark county. He located in that section now comprised with- in Osceola township, becoming one of the first settlers of this district.
Samuel Sturm, the father of John H., was born in Shelby county, Ohio, and accompanied his parents on their removal to Illinois. IIe was married in Stark county, October 4, 1838, to Elizabeth Phenix, a native of Luzerne county, Pennsylvania. Following their marriage they went with two other young couples to Peoria county to attend a camp meeting and all were converted, confessing their faith in Christianity. Mr. and Mrs. Sturm lived together for sixty years, their lives characterized by strict adherence to Christian principles. They settled on land in Osceola township and from the raw prairie he developed rich and productive fields, continuing to engage in active farming almost to the time of his death. which occurred when he was eighty-four years of age. ITis widow passed away at the age of eighty-eight. both dying in Bradford. Mr. Sturm served as school trustee and was greatly interested in the educational development of the county.
John H. Sturm attended the common schools near his father's home and worked upon the farm through the summer months. early becoming familiar with the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the crops. But with the outbreak of the Civil war he abandoned the plow in order to shoulder the musket and went to the front as a defender of the Union, having enlisted on the 12th of August, 1862, as a member of Company B. One Hundred and Twelfth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He served with that command until honorably discharged in Chicago on the 20th of June, 1865, and took part in many hotly contested engagements. During the battle of Franklin, Ten- nessee, he partieipated with his command in the four charges which were made by the Union troops and in that battle there was also much hand to hand fighting.
When the war was over and the country no longer needed his aid Mr. Sturm returned to Stark County and assisted in building the railroad through this part of the state. In 1869 he removed to Oak- dale. Shelby county, Missouri, where he began farming, and he is still the owner of his place of eighty acres there, upon which he lived for thirty-two years. At the end of that time he returned to Brad- ford. where he now makes his home, having a good residence in the town.
138
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
On the 28th of March, 1869, Mr. Sturm married Miss Lney A. Libby, and they have two sons: Oliver Perry, who is engaged in the real estate and life insurance business at Tulsa, Oklahoma; and George Wesley, a wholesale and retail merchant of Billings, Montana. Both of the sons have been very successful in business and are now well-to-do.
In politics Mr. Sturm follows an independent course, save where national issues are involved, when he votes with the democratic party. Hle has frequently been solicited to become a candidate for public office but has always refused. He has been a lifelong member of the Methodist church, to which his wife also belonged to the time of her death, which occurred five years ago. On the 20th of June, 1867. he took the Master Mason's degree and became a charter member of Bradford Lodge. He also is identified with the Royal Arch chapter at Wyoming, and he and his wife became members of the Order of the Eastern Star. He maintains pleasant relations with his old army comrades through his membership in the Grand Army post at Brad- ford and proudly wears the little bronze button that proclaims him to have been one of the defenders of the Union during the darkest hour in our country's history.
WILLIAM R. SANDHAM.
William R. Sandham, son of James and Sarah (Connelly) Sand- ham, was born in Northumberland county, Ontario, Canada, Sep- tember 23, 1842. His father was born near Preston, England, and his mother at Loughrea, Ireland. The father died in 1847. In 1851 the mother and two children, William R. and John, moved to Herki- mer county, New York. The sons were educated in the common schools of New York and at Fairfield Seminary, one of the leading educational institutions in that state, located at Fairfield, Herkimer county.
William R. Sandham tanght school several terms in Herki- mer county. He came to Illinois in March, 1866, and located in Henry county, where he was a teacher for four years. He came to Stark county in September. 1871, to take charge of the Bradford schools. In August, 1873, he applied for and received a state certifi- cate which is good for life and entitles him to teach in any school dis- trict in the state of Illinois. In September. 1873. he assumed charge of the South Side school in Wyoming, which position he held until the end
MR. AND MRS. WILLIAM R. SANDHAM
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA
141
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
of the school year 1879. During the last named year he purchased the Wyoming Post and later he bought the Wyoming Herald. The two papers were united and called the Wyoming Post-IIerald.
In September, 1882, Mr. Sandham was elected county superin- tendent of schools of Stark county and was reelected in 1886, 1889 and 1894, serving the people in that office from December 4, 1882, to December 4, 1898. By appointment of the board of supervisors he held the same office from December 1, 1891, to December 1, 1902. In recognition of his practical knowledge of school affairs he was appointed in the year 1885 by Governor Richard J. Oglesby a men- ber of the state board of education, which position he held until March, 1893. He was reappointed in 1897 by Governor John R. Tanner and held the position until August, 1913.
Mr. Sandham was one of the organizers of the State Historical! Society in 1899 and is still a member of that society. He has written numerous Illinois historical sketehes for the Wyoming Post-Herald and a somewhat lengthy appreciation for the Ilinois Historical Jour- nal of the Hon. James H. Miller, of Stark county, who at the time / of his death was speaker of the Illinois house of representatives and by whose efforts the Illinois IHistorical Library was established at Springfield.
After retiring from school work, Mr. Sandham was for six years assessor of the township of Toulon, one of the richest townships in central Illinois. He is a member of Wyoming Lodge, No. 479, A. F. & A. M., and was its secretary for six years. He was one of the principal workers in the establishment of the Wyoming public library and was the first president of the library board. He has also been secretary of the Stark County Telephone Company since 1905.
Mr. Sandham was married at Atkinson, Illinois, July 16, 1871, to Miss Rhoda S. Tuttle, who was born in Naugatuck, New Haven county, Connecticut, January 17, 1849. They have had one child, Arthur, who was born December 13, 1874, and died May 15. 1883. On her father's side Mrs. Sandham traces her ancestry back to William Tuttle, one of the first English settlers in Connecticut, who at one time owned a part of what later became the grounds of Yale University in New Haven. On her mother's side she traces her ancestry to Andrew Sanford, who came to Connecticut from Eng- land in 1636. She is eligible on both sides for membership in the society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She was one of the organizers of the Tuesday Club in Wyoming and was its president for six years.
In 1861 Mr. Sandham's mother married Joseph Schlosser, who
142
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
in response to President Lincoln's call for volunteers to aid in put- ting down the rebellion, enlisted in the Fourteenth New York Heavy Artillery and was killed at the battle of Weldon Railroad. Mrs. Schlosser was a United States pensioner until the time of her death at Annawan, Ilinois, January 31, 1901. Mr. Sandham's brother John lives in Harlan, Iowa. He has two sons: Josiah Dow, of Omaha, Nebraska; and Ralph R., of Harlan, Iowa. His only sister, Mrs. Margaret McCartney, died in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in Janu- ary. 1913.
HYMEN DE WOLF.
Hymen De Wolf is now living a retired life in La Fayette but for a long period was actively engaged in general agricultural pursuits in West Jersey township, where he still owns a farm of one hundred and forty acres, from which he derives a substantial annual income. He followed the most practical and progressive methods of farming when living upon that place and the result of his labors was seen in the large crops which he annually gathered.
Stark county numbers him among her native sons, his birth having occurred in West Jersey township, March 5, 1855. His father, Joseph De Wolf, was born in Canada and was there reared to adult age. Making his way to the United States he settled at once in Stark county. Illinois, and was here married on the 6th of April. 1841, to Miss Mary Ann Gibbs, a native of New Jersey and a daughter of Joseph Gibbs, who at an early day removed from New Jersey to Illinois and established a home in Stark county. In the early days of his residence here Joseph De Wolf purchased a small traet of land. split rails and fenced his farm. He also built a good house upon his place and carried on the work of development and improvement. However. he had worked as a farm hand by the month for several years before he was married. He led an active, busy and useful life. was careful and conservative in the management of his property and was industrious and energetic in carrying on the labors of the fields. Upon his farm he reared his family and spent his remaining days, there passing away at the age of sixty-four years, six months and nineteen days, his death occurring on the 3d of January, 1881. His wife survived him for a brief period, her death occurring January 19, 1884. when she had reached the age of sixty-two years, four months and fifteen days.
143
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
Hymen De Wolf was reared on the old homestead and assisted his father on the farm until he attained his majority, thus becoming familiar with the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the crops. On the 9th of February, 1876, he married Miss Arminda Kennedy, who was born in Knox county. Illinois, but was reared and educated in Stark County. Her father, George Kennedy, was a native of Tennessee, where he was reared, coming when a young man to Illinois. He cast in his lot with the pioneer settlers of Knox county and afterward removed to Bates county, Missouri, where he spent his remaining days upon a farm, his death occurring in 1884. His widow survived him for a number of years and returned to Illinois, making her home with her daughter, Mrs. De Wolf, for twenty-one years. She died on the home farm of the De Wolfs in 1907.
For two years after his marriage Hymen De Wolf lived upon his father's place and then rented another farm across the road, devoting his attention to the cultivation of both tracts of land until his father's death. Later he rented and cultivated the old homestead for several years and afterward purchased the farm. He also bought land adjoining and he now owns one hundred and forty acres, which he brought to a high state of cultivation. Most of it was covered with timber but he cleared away the trees, planted erops and made the farm a most productive one. He erected a good residence, also built good barns and sheds for the shelter of grain and stock, and divided his land into fields of convenient size by well kept fences. In fact he added all modern equipments and accessories to the place, including the latest improved machinery to facilitate the work of the fields.
In 1912 Mr. De Wolf removed to La Fayette, where he purchased a good residence and is now living practically retired. He was one of the promoters of the La Fayette Fair Association, of which he is still a stockholder, and he has been actively and helpfully interested in many movements which have resulted beneficially to the community. Mr. and Mrs. De Wolf are now alone. They have had but two chil- dren and both sons are married. Llewellyn, the elder, owns and operates a farm in West Jersey township, and to him and his wife have been born two children. Ray, the younger son, is farming the old homestead. He is married and has a son and daughter.
In his political views Mr. De Wolf is a democrat but has never been an aspirant for public office. His wife belongs to the Christian church. Throughout his entire life IIymen De Wolf has lived in this part of the state and has therefore witnessed the greater part of the growth and development of Stark county. He has seen the establish- ment of many of its leading industries, the growth of its towns and
144
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
the development of its farming district until Illinois claims no richer or more valuable land than the farms of Stark county. His own busi- ness affairs have been wisely and carefully managed, and his labors have brought him the substantial measure of success which is today his. Ile has a wide acquaintance in the county and wherever he is known he is spoken of in terms of warm regard.
J. C. FLEMING.
J. C. Fleming, who carries on general farming on section 33. Elmira township, was born a half mile north of his present home on the 12th of February, 1858, his parents being Samuel C. and Rebecca ( Bonsell) Fleming, both of whom were.natives of Clearfield county, Pennsylvania, where they were reared and married. They afterward removed to Illinois and the father purchased what became known as the old Fleming homestead, then a tract of raw land upon which not a furrow had been turned or an improvement made. He had the land broken in 1865 and the work of developing the farm was begun. He was a carpenter by trade but lived upon the home farm up to the time of his retirement from active business, when he removed to Toulon, where his remaining days were passed. He died in 1907, at which time he laeked only six days of being ninety-five years of age. He had long survived his wife. who passed away upon the farm in 1867.
J. C. Fleming was educated in the common schools, which he attended through the winter seasons, while the summer months were devoted to work upon the home farm. After attaining his majority he was employed as a farm hand through the neighborhood up to the time of his marriage, which occurred when he was twenty-seven years of age. IIe then leased the farm from his father and eultivated it for five years, at the end of which time he purchased one hundred and six acres of the old home property and thereon has since given his attention to general agricultural pursuits, bringing his fields under a high state of cultivation and adding many modern improvements to the property.
In 1885 Mr. Fleming was united in marriage to Miss Annie J. Moffit and they became the parents of six children, namely: Esther, at home: Rebecca Jane, who is a school teacher: Emma. who is engaged in teaching music: Elsie. a student in Monmouth College: and Mary and Robert R., both at home.
In his political views Mr. Fleming has always been a demoerat
145
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
and for two years he filled the office of tax collector. He belongs to the Masonie lodge at Toulon and the Modern Woodmen camp at Elmira and he and his family are members of the United Presbyterian church, in the work of which they are much interested, contributing generously to its support and taking a helpful part in promoting the growth and extending the influence of the church. Mr. Fleming has spent his entire life in this county and therefore through fifty- eight years has been a witness of its growth and development, so that there is little of coneern in connection with its history with which he is not familiar. He has always been regarded as one of its substantial citizens, his worth being widely acknowledged by friends and neigh- bors.
D. HARRY WHISKER.
That Stark county offers excellent advantages to its citizens is indicated by the fact that many of its native sons have remained with- in its borders, never feeling the necessity of seeking opportunity else- where. Such is the record of D. Harry Whisker, whose home is on section 7, Osceola township. It was upon the farm where he now resides that he was born on the 31st of July. 1888, a son of Daniel Richardson Whisker, also a native of this county, and a grandson of Daniel Richardson Whisker, Sr., who was the first progenitor of the family in Stark county, arriving here in pioneer times. The father followed farming throughout the entire period of his active business career but is now living retired at No. 733 Morton avenue in Ke- wanee, Illinois. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Isabelle Brock, died four years ago.
D. Harry Whisker attended the public schools of this county and has spent his entire life here save one year which he passed in Minne- sota. He was reared to the oeeupation of farming, early becoming familiar with the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the erops. He worked in the fields through the summer months and attended school in the winter seasons and since his textbooks have been put aside he has concentrated his entire attention upon his farming interests. Ile now operates one hundred and eighty acres of rich and productive land and he has a well equipped farm supplied with all the latest improved machinery and farm implements, including a tractor. He is making a specialty of the feeding of hogs.
On the 11th of September, 1909, Mr. Whisker was married to
146
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
Miss Lillian Swearingen, a daughter of Thomas Swearingen and a native of Bureau county, Illinois. They have become parents of four children: James Earl, Ina Octavia and Helen Loran, all at home: and Dorothy, who has passed away.
Mr. Whisker exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party. He does not seek nor desire office but concentrates his efforts upon his business affairs and is a progressive and enterprising young farmer who is meeting with excellent and well deserved success in his undertakings.
THOMAS HALL.
Among the highly esteemed residents of Bradford is Thomas HIall, a retired farmer, who was born in Derbyshire, England, on the 27th of September. 1840. His parents, John and Elizabeth (Smed- ley ) Hall, were also natives of that county and were there reared and married. The father was in the employ of a gentleman of that locality for some time but in June, 1856, emigrated with his family to the United States. He at once made his way to Stark County, Illinois, where he had a brother and sister living. He rented a farm near Brad- ford and subsequently purchased eighty acres of land. to which he added from time to time until he owned two hundred and forty acres. He passed away when eighty-one years old but his wife died in the year that they emigrated to this country at the early age of forty years. They were the parents of seven children: John, who died in Missouri: Thomas: Isaac, who passed away in Bradford: Mary, the wife of Henry Grife, a resident of Iowa; Elizabeth, who married William Warwick and is living in Nebraska: Charlotte, the wife of Frank Brock. also a resident of Nebraska; and Martha, who gave her hand in marriage to John Camey, a resident of Colorado.
Thomas Hall remained in his native land until he was sixteen years of age. when he accompanied his parents to the United States. Following his mother's death the home was broken up and he began working for Josiah Deyo of Stark county. in whose employ he re- mained for four years. At the end of that time he purchased a team and rented eighty acres of land, which he cultivated until he was able to buy an eighty acre tract. paying therefor one thousand dollars. He had to borrow some of the money, but his industry and good management soon enabled him to pay off that debt and as the years passed his resources increased. He continued to invest in land and
147
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
at length acquired title to nine hundred acres in Stark and Marshall counties. He was actively engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1906, when he rented his farms to his sons and removed to Bradford, where he has since lived retired. His investments return him a hand- some income, and he is enjoying a period of leisure which is well deserved.
On the 5th of April, 1877, Mr. Hall was united in marriage to Miss Rosie M. Wilson, who was born in New York on the 22nd of September, 1854, but was brought to Stark county when nine months old by her father. Her mother passed away when she was but six weeks old. Mr. and Mrs. Hall have become the parents of five chil- dren: Nettie Elizabeth, who died when a young woman of twenty-five years: Richard T., who is farming land belonging to his father in this county ; George IL., who is operating his father's farm in Marshall county; and Albert R. and Frank C., both of whom are farming land belonging to their father in this county.
Mr. Hall is a stanch republican in polities and has served with credit as school director and has also held other minor offiees. Ile and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he is also a trustee, and they seek to extend its influence in every way possible. Their lives are guided by high principles and Mr. Hall is recognized as a man of great personal worth and as a public-spirited citizen as well as an efficient and progressive agriculturist.
A. OLIVER TURNBULL.
A. Oliver Turnbull, a resident farmer of Elmira township, living on section 31, was born in Bureau county, Illinois, April 29, 1861, a son of John HI. and Mary ( Armstrong) Turnbull, both of whom were natives of Scotland, where they were reared. The former was a son of William Turnbull and with his father crossed the Atlantic to the new world in early life, the family home being established in Stark County, Illinois. When John II. Turnbull started out in life on his own account he removed to Bureau county but afterward returned to Stark county, where he passed away on the 8th of May, 1915. Ilis wife died about eight years ago. They had long been well known farming people of this section of the state and their genuine personal worth endeared them to all with whom they came in contact.
A. Oliver Turnbull was for two years a pupil in the schools of Burcan County and continued his education in the common schools
148
HISTORY OF STARK COUNTY
of Stark county. IIe received ample training in farm work upon the old homestead, upon which he resided until about fourteen years ago. when he purchased his present farm, situated on section 31, Elmira township. This is an excellent tract of land of two hundred and thirty-four acres upon which he has placed good improvements, and he always keeps barns, buildings and fences in a state of good repair. He both raises and feeds stock quite extensively, making a specialty of hogs, and at the present time he has upon his place two hundred and forty-five young pigs for the spring market. His business affairs are systematically and wisely managed and he has met with a gratifying measure of success in his undertakings.
In 1893 Mr. Turnbull was united in marriage to Miss Mary McHoffey, who was born in Henry county, Illinois. and they have two children, Susie and Raymond, the latter assisting in the work of the farm. The parents are members of the Presbyterian church and Mr. Turnbull belongs also to the Masonic lodge at Toulon. In politics he has followed in his father's footsteps and is a stalwart republican. He has served as road boss but has never sought or desired other office. His time is fully ocenpied with the labors and duties of the farm and as the result of his careful management and close applica- tion his place has become one of the attractive farm properties of the neighborhood.
GEORGE ARMSTRONG.
George Armstrong, a representative of farming interests in Elmira township, living on section 32. was born in Roxburghshire, Scotland .- the land of the erag and glen, of mountain peak and mountain lake. of lowland heath and plain, of liberty. poetry and song, of religious and educational zeal, the home of Wallace and Bruce, of Scott and Burns, and the ancestral home of many of America's brightest, best and most distinguished men. George Arm- strong continued his residence in that country to the age of seven years and was then brought to the United States, the family arriving in Kewanee, Illinois, June 4, 1835.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.