History of Wayne and Clay counties, Illinois, Part 63

Author:
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Chicago : Globe Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 704

USA > Illinois > Clay County > History of Wayne and Clay counties, Illinois > Part 63
USA > Illinois > Wayne County > History of Wayne and Clay counties, Illinois > Part 63

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).

A., F. & A. M .. and his wife of the Presby- terian Church. Residence, corner of Jack- son and Water streets. Office, corner of Market and Center streets.

THOMAS W. SCOTT, merchant, Fair- field, was born February 1, 1842, in Danville, Ill. His parents, John J. Scott and Mary A. Roland. the former a native of Hardy Coun- ty, Va., and the latter of Maysville, Ky. His father died in 1856, and the year follow- ing. he came to Olney, Ill., where he at- tained his manhood. He received a common school education in the public schools of Dan- ville and Olney. In April, 1861, he enlisted in the three months' services as a member of Company D, Eighth Illinois Infantry, from which he was discharged at the expiration of his term of enlistment. In July of 1862, he en- listed in the Ninety-eighth Illinois Regiment. While a member of this organization, he par- ticipated in a large number of active engaga- ments, in which he won the distinction of a competant leader and a brave soldier. He was raised to the position of Captain of Company K. in 1863, and succeeded signally in gaining the confidence and esteem of those under his command. Among the last acts of the martyred President Lincoln was the sign- ing of the appointment of Mr. Scott to the rank of Major. which was done in recogni- tion of his bravery in the engagement at Selma, Ala. At the close of the war, Mr. Scott returned to Olney, Ill., where for two years he was engaged in the mercantile bus- iness, and was then employed as a traveling salesman, and remained on the road for three years, in the meantime establishing a dry goods business in Fairfield, III. He came to the latter place in 1874, and has remained since, conducting a large and prosperous bus- iness. He is the present Postmaster of Fair- field, to which office he was appointed in 1990. He exerts a very potent influence in

BIOGRAPHICAL:

the political arena, which benefits are enjoyed by the Republican party. He has been a member of the Republican State Central Committee since 1877. He is a member of the Fairfield Lodge, No. 206, A. F. & A. M., Fairfield Chapter, No. 179, R. A. M .: Gorin Commandery, No. 14, K. T., and the Peoria Consistory, S., P .;. R .: S. Mr. Scott was mar- ried in Olney, III., September 26, 1865, to Miss Mary R. Spring, eldest daughter of Henry and Caroline R. Spring, of Olney, where she was born, being the first child born in Olney. Their family consists of two daughters-Carrie and Alice Scott.

WILLIAM SHAEFFER, one of the old and respected citizens of Fairfield, was born in Stark County, Ohio, July 28, 1817. His parents, Daniel Shaeffer and Elizabeth Rine- hart, were of German parentage, the father of the latter having served as a Drum Major in the Revolutionary war. The Shaeffers also were represented in the United States in the latter part of the seventeenth century. Daniel Shaeffer was born in Pennsylvania, and there married to Elizabeth Rinehart, soon after which-in 1812-they settled in Stark County, Ohio. He was the proprietor of the town of Waynesburg, of that county, and was killed in that county March 14, 1846, by the falling of a building. William Shaeffer, in 1838, left Ohio and came to Graysville, Ill., and there engaged at his trade, having learned the trade of house- carpenter in Ohio. He came to Wayne County, Ill., in 1840, and was married, in Fairfield. May 13; 1843, to Miss Maria Alexander, of Carroll County, Ohio, where she was born December 14, 1822. For fif. teen years they pursued the interests of farming, located in Barnhill Township, two miles south of Fairfield; but he, being of a speculative turn, soon found broader fields upon which to bestow his energies, and be-

came variously interested in merchandising. stock-dealing and also dealing in grain, in which he still engages. He has had a family of children as follows : Daniel T. Shaeffer, was born March 8, 1844; Mary E., deceased, wife of W. J. Sailor, was born March 14, 1846; David H. Shaeffer, was born Decem- ber 24, 1847, deceased; Sallie A., wife of C. C. Boggs, was born January 25, 1850; Fran- ces, wife of James A. Odell, was born Jan- nary 13, 1852; William C., born March 28, 1854; Rebecca J., deceased, wife of S. Steiner, born October 17, 1856; Loie B. Shaeffer, born April 9, 1859; Elmer, de- ceased infant, was born February 8, 1862; Arthur, born July 8, 1864, died in infancy, and Julia Shaeffer, born October 16, 1869.

JOSEPH D. SHAEFFER, clerk, Fair- field, is a son of John D. Shaeffer and Barbara A. Koontz, a sketch of whom will be found elsewhere in these pages. Joseph D. was born in Wayne County, Ill., September 21. 1848; grew to manhood in the county and was educated in the public schools. For many years he has been a faithful servant of the county, having performed the duties of Deputy County Clerk for eight years, after which-1877-he was elected to the office of County Clerk, serving five years, and is still performing clerical duties in that depart. ment. He is a member of Fairfield Lodge. No. 206, A., F. & A. M., Fairfield Chapter, R. A. M., and also of the A O. U. W. He was married, in Fairfield. October 15, 1878. to Miss Alice M. Trousdale, daughter of John and Ellen Trousdale. She was born in Fairfield July 20. 1857. They have one daughter-Annie Shaeffer, born in Fairfield September 30, 1879.

CHARLES W. SIBLEY, physician. of Fairfield, was born on October 6. 1841, in Trumbull County. Ohio. His father, Charles Sibley-well and favorably known in Wayne

CITY OF FAIRFIELD.

County-was a native of New York, and was born in 1818. Having removed to Trum- bull County, Ohio, he was there married, in 1840, to Aznba L. Waters, a native of that county. Charles Sibley was a man of rare will-power, and among: the characteristics which marked him as a noble man were his great zeal for the cause of Christianity and his tireless energy as an able exponent of the doctrine of prohibition, being one of its first and most uncompromising advocates in this county. He possessed broad and charit- able views, yet was always found. with un- yielding tenacity, adhering to what he con- sidered the side of right, without regard to self-interest or personal prejudice. He died in Fairfield in 1879, surrounded by a large circle of ardent friends, who admired him for his many virtues. His wife and six of a family of seven children survive him, and are all residents of the town of Fairfield. Mother Sibley was born in Trumbull County, Ohio, in 1821. She is one of the pillars of the Methodist Episcopal Church, as was also her late husband Dr. C. W. Sibley received a liberal common school education, and came to this county with his parents from Meigs County. Ohio, in 1853. In September. 1861. he enlisted in Company D, Thirty-fourth Illinois Infantry. under Capt. Pratt, of Lee County, Ill. Ho received a serions wound at the battle of Shiloh, in consequence of which, in the following September. he was discharged. He read medicine under the in- struction of Dr. J. R. Philson; took a course in the Ohio Medical College, after which he began his practice at Fairfield. He subse- quently entered the Bellevue Medical College of New York, from which he graduated in 1877. He possesses, to a worthy degree, a warm and sympathetic nature. so indispens- able in the true physician. Married, in Raeine, Ohio, in 1867, to Miss Mary C.

Lalance. She was born in Ohio in 1844. and is a daughter of Archie and Catherine Lalance, of French ancestry. Dr. Sibley is an official member of the order of R. T. of T .. and both are honored members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Their family consists of Charles E., Maud (deceased). Theo .1., Frank C., William A. and Mary C. Sibley.

J. FRANK SMITH, photographer, Fair- field, is a native of Switzerland; was born in October. 1841. He came to the United States with his parents, Anthony and Mary Smith, who settled with their family in the present limits of the city of Chicago. There the par. ents and an older brother's wife and child died. in September, 1853. of cholera. In 1855, the remainder of the family removed to McHenry County, Ill., where they engaged in the pursuit of farming. J. F. Smith was, therefore, early thrown upon his own re- sources for a livelihood, and his opportunities for education materially abridged. He had acquired a tolerable proficiency in reading and writing in German, before leaving his native country. By the economy of time and application to study, he qualified him- self for practical business life. During the late civil war, he was assistant in the Quar- termaster's Department, and while in that position he embraced the opportunity to learn the art of photography, which achievement alone has influenced his subsequent life, as he has followed that profession continuously ever since. Soou after the war. he located at Xenia, Clay Co., Ill . to pursue his trade, and while there became acquainted with Nancy L. Young, to whom he was married on the 15th of March, 1868. She is a daugh- ter of Thomas and Mary (Berry) Young. formerly of Hiekory Hill Township, where Nancy L. was born on the 4th of December, 1847. Thomas Young was born January 21,

BIOGRAPHICAL:

1816, and Mary Berry was born October 10, 1816. They were married in Greene County, Ind., January 23, 1840, and came to Wayne County, Ill., as early as 1844, The former died in 1848, and the latter in 1851. Mrs. Smith, thus early left an orphan, was reared by Mr. Stout Atteberry, of Wayne County. Mr. Smith came to Fairfield in the spring of IS78, after a residence of several years in Minneapolis, Minn . and has a thriving busi- ness and pleasant residence property. H is a member of the Royal Templars of Tem- perance. Their union has been blessed with four children-J. Frank Smith, Jr., born August 13, 1873; Mary M. Smith, born An- gust 27, 1875; Lizzie M. Smith, born Octo- ber 16, 1878; and William T. Smith, born September 6, 1880, and died October 6, 1880.

SAMUEL M. STALEY, merchant, Fair- field, was born in Montgomery County, Tenn., Jan. 22, 1823, and descends from German an- cestors. His father, Frederick Staley, was married in Virginia to Mary Kirk, and reared a family of nine children-Samuel M. being the youngest. Frederick Staley died in, Vir- ginia, and the wife, with her children, after- ward removed to Illinois, and in 1828 lo- cated in White County. Here Samuel grew to maturity, and was married, March 1, 1848, to Harriet Melrose, of Edwards County, Ill., who died nine years later, leaving three chil- dren-George, Ulla S. and Worley Staley; the latter died in infancy. Mr. Staley next married Rebecca Melrose, a younger sister of his former wife, which union resulted in the birth of four children-Douglas M., Charles M., Mary H. and John E. Staley. The maiden name of his present wife, to whom he was married in 1870, was Sarah Renfro. She was born in Illinois in 1832. Their marriage has been blessed with one child- Sarah E. Staley. Mr. Staley is a practical farmer, which pursuit still absorbs a portion

of his attention. He removed to Fairfield in 1875. and engaged in the hardware trade, which he continues successfully. His family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, he sustaining the relation of Stew- ard. George M. Staley, son of Samuel M. and Harriet (Melrose) Staley, was born in Carmi, White Co., Ill., on the 10th of April, 1849. His education was obtained in the common schools of Grayville, and in the Mc- Kendree College at Lebanon, Ill. He became an experienced teacher, and for three years was employed in the Grayville Public School. He was married in Bloomington, Ill., Decem- ber 30, 1874, to Sophia A. Merritt. She was born in Nashville, N. Y., May 10, 1853. Their family consists of John Merritt Staley, born November 30, 1875, and Samuel C. Staley, born January 1, 1878, and died June 15. 1878. George M. Staley came to Fair- field in 1875, and for some years was em- ployed as salesman and book-keeper in his fa- ther's store. He was three years a student in the MeRendree College, aud one year in the State Normal Institute, and being a true gentleman, enjoys the esteem of a large cir- cle of friends. He fills with efficiency the position of Deputy Postmaster at Fairfield, and is an honored member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Ulla S. is a young man of noble parts, universally esteemed. He is present book-keeper iu the bank of E. Bon- ham & Co., Fairfield.

EMANUEL STEINER, clothier, Fair- field, of the firm of Bach & Steiner, was born in Austria on June 27, 1850, where he resided until coming to the United States in 1863, being educated in his native country. His parents, Isaac Steiner and Bertha (Hof- man) Steiner, are both natives of Austria, and are now living in St. Louis, Mo., where they located in 1863. They have a family of five children, one of whom is dead, and

CITY OF FAIRFIELD.

two are now residents of Fairfield, Ill. Emanuel Steiner came to Fairfield in 1874, and in connection with I. Bach opened a store, which they have continned until the present time. They keep an extensive stock of clothing, boots and shoes, trunks and gents' furnishing goods, and enjoy a very satisfactory trade. Mr. Steiner was married in St. Louis, September 3, 1876, to Bertie Loebner, daughter of Isaac Loebner and Lena (Freuna) Loebner. She was born April 16. 1857, in Austria, and came to St. Lonis with her parents in 1867. They have one child, Blanche Steiner, born April 20, 1883. Family residence is on the corner of Main and Church streets. Mr. Steiner is a member of the Fairfield Lodge, No. 206, A. F. & A. M .; Fairfield Chapter, No. 179, R. A. M., and also of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He is Treasurer of the Town Board and a Director of the Fairfield Loan As- sociation. Sigsmond Steiner, younger brother of Emanuel Steiner, was born in Austria May 9, 1857, and came with the family, con- sisting of five children, to the city of St. Louis in 1863. On the 9th of June, 1876, he was married to Rebecca Shaeffer, daugh- ter of William Shaeffer, of Fairfield. She having died, he was married to Miss Georgia A. Steves, daughter of P. S. and Louisa Steves, of Flora, Ill., where her father died in 1878. Her mother is still living, and makes her home with Mrs. Steiner in Fairfield. Georgia A. Steves was born in Elkhorn. Wis., May 25, 1860. They have two chil- dren-Fannie A. Steiner, born July 9, 1880, and Charles Steiner, born December 5, 1882. Mr. S. Steiner is a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and has been Treasurer of the Council since 1881.

COL. H. TOMPKINS, lawyer, Fair- field, was born September 14, 1830, in York- town, Westchester Co., N. Y. He was on the

farm until fourteen years old, when he was placed in the Ellington Institute, of Con- nectient, where he took a four years' course of study. From the time of leaving this school until coming to Chicago in 1852, he was engaged in teaching school, with the ex- ception of one and a half years' law study in Glens Falls, N. Y. In 1853, he located in Champaign County, Ill., where for some years he engaged in farming and in the prac- tice of law. In 1861, he enlisted as a private in the Twenty-fifth Illinois Infantry, but was soon after promoted to the rank of Ma- jor of the Thirteenth Missouri Mounted In- fantry. by John C. Fremont and Gov. Gam- ble. He was subsequently detached by re- quest of Gov. Yates, to organize the Fourteen Illinois Cavalry, which he did, re. signing his commission in the former regi- ment to take the commission of Major in the latter, with which he served until the close of the war. He was detailed on the staff of Gen. Sturgis in the East Tennessee cam- paign, and on the staff of Maj. Gen. Stone. man in the Atlanta campaign. For some years immediately following the close of the war, he was engaged in the practice of law, and in writing the "Laws of Municipal Bonds." He is regarded as an able chancery attorney, and has charge of the complicated question of swamp lands of Wayne County.

WILLIAM H. VAN DE WATER, Justice of the Peace, Fairfield, Ill., a native of New York City, was born on the 25th of November, 182S. When he was two years old, his parents, Joshua and Caroline Van De Water, removed to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he attained his manhood, meantime receiving a fair education in Woodward College. Early in life, he engaged in the drug business in Cincinnati, remaining in that city until 1853, when he went to St. Louis, and, until 1860, was employed by different business firms as

BIOGRAPHICAL:

book keeper. From 1862 to 1870, his time was variously spent with mining and mer- chandising on the, Pacific Coast, and mer- chandising in Missouri, losing in the latter place what he had accumulated in the former. Since 1870, he has been a resident of Fair- field. III., where for three years he served as Deputy Circuit Clerk, and is now serving his second term of office as Justice of the Peace. He is a Democrat, and a member of the Royal Templars of Temperance. In addi- tion to his official duties, he is selling the celebrated Mason & Hamlin organs, and also is agent for the Continental Insurance Com- pany. Mr. Van De Water was married, Octo- ber 20, 1857, in the city of St. Louis, to Miss Annie E. Stuart. She was born in Cin- cinnati, Ohio, September 18, 1831, and died February 3, 1871, leaving two children, Hat- tio E., wife of B. Rider, of Fairfield (she was born in St. Louis August 25, 1858), and Walter A. Van De Water, born May 11, 1865. The parents of W. H. Van De Water were both natives of New York. The father died in Cincinnati in June, 1877, and the mother died in the same city July 19, 1883. Their family of six children, of whom William H. is the oldest, are all living.

Z. B. WEST, lawyer, Fairfield. Samuel West, father of Z. B. West, was of Irish de- scent, born in Illinois in 1827, and is still living. Samuel West, grandfather of Z. B., was a native of Pennsylvania, born in 1794, and died in 1844. His wife, grandmother of Z. B., was a native of Ohio, and of En- glish descent, and died in 1873, at the age of seventy-four years. Margaret A. (Hoover) West, mother of Z. B., was born in Illinois in 1830; was of German descent, and is still living. Her father, Peter Hoover, was born in Germany in 1778; came to America in 1809, and died in 1871. Margaret A. West's mother was of German descent; born

in Pennsylvania in 1802, and died in 1854. Mr. Z. B. West was born March 1, 1854, in Wayne County, Ill. His early education consisted of what could be obtained by a somewhat irregular attendance in the district schools. He there succeeded throngh per- sonal effort in preparing himself for the pro- fession of a teacher, which duties he first as- sumed in the year 1873. Inspired by a thirst for knowledge, he appropriated the means thus acquired to carry him through a collegiate course. In the spring of 1874, lie entered Holbrook Normal School of Leb- anon, Ohio, and graduated in the teachers' and business courses in 1876. He subse- quently became a student in the Ladoga (Ind. ) College, at present the Danville (Ind.) Normal College, taking the scientific course, and receiving the degree conferred by that institution in 1881. In the interims of his attendance at college, he has been actively engaged in teaching, having taught forty- eight months. His reputation as a teacher in Grayville, Fairfield, and in fact through- out Wayne and Edwards Counties, is well known, and requires no comment here. In the fall of 1881, Mr. West was appointed to the position of County Superintendent of Schools for Wayne County, and was the choice of the people for the same position, to which he was elected in the fall of 1882, and which he is now filling with universal acceptance. Though Mr. West has chosen the legal profession, he justly looks with a degree of pride upon his experi- ence in the interest of education, and is the author of a School Superintendent Record, which is destined to meet with favor wher- ever and whenever examined. Mr. West read law under the instruction of Messrs. Hanna & Adams, of Fairfield, and was regu- larly admitted to practice on the 29th of August, 1883. He is a member of the Fair-

CITY OF FAIRFIELD.

field Lodge, No. 206, A., F. & A. M., and in politics a Democrat.

ANDREW WILSON, native of Northum- berland, England, was born in 1788. Grew to manhood, and married, in his native coun- try, to Mary Hall. She was born in 1790 on the coast of the North Sea, England. The father was by trade a tailor, and came with his wife and eleven children to the United States in 1835, and, until 1838, he located in New York City, where he followed his trade. Came in the fall of 1838 to Illinois, and set- tled in Fairfield. Here he engaged in the pursuit of his trade, which he followed for many years. In England, he was early iden- tified with the Presbyterian Church, and, on coming to the new country, he at once let his light shine by taking an active part in the work of the Sabbath school. It is gen- erally known that no man has been more faithful in his mission than was this old vet- eran; always at his post as Superintendent of the Presbyterian school, until so enfeebled by age that he could no longer walk to the school, and even then so necessary were his services that often he was waited upon by loving hands, and, supported between two friends, would make his way to the place he had so long and so ably filled. He died in Flora, Ill., in October, 1864. But few men, if any, in the history of this county have left fewer faults to be deplored, or more vir- tues to be emulated by his many friends; and, though old as he was and enfeebled by age, his place is difficult to till. Mrs. Mary Wilson, who died in August, 1859, was an active member in the Presbyterian Church, and was respected and loved by all who knew her. Of their family, which consisted originally of twelve children, but six are now living, and but two in Wayne County, John Wilson, of Fairfield, and Ellen, widow of Johu Trousdale. John Wilson was born

in August, 1820, in England, and in his rearing had the advantages of a common school education. He was married, in the town of Fairfield, October 8, 1846, to Miss Eliza J. Harper, daughter of Thomas and Esther Harper, of Edwards County, III. Soon after marriage, they moved to a farm adjoin- ing the town, where they remained for the space of thirty-six years. Their union has been blest with eight children-Edward, Thomas, Mary L., Anna Belle, Lewis H., William H., Ellen and Maggie Wilson. Ed- ward and Lewis are deceased. In 1849, Mr. John Wilson and wife united with the M. E. Church of Fairfield, and have held their membership continuously to this time. Since IS53, MEr. Wilson has been a member of the Quarterly Conference of his church. He is now retired from the farm, and a resident of Fairfield, where he has surrounded himself with many ardent friends.

JOSEPH E. WILSON, County Clerk, Fairfield, is a son of Alfred and Elizabeth Wilson, well known residents of Wayne County. Alfred Wilson was born in Ken- tucky, on the 22d of February. 1806, going from his native State to Missouri, when a young man. There, in 1836, he was mar- ried to Miss Elizabeth Laughlin, who was born in Missouri April 6, 1819. In 1839, they came to Wayne County, Ill., and settled where the widow still lives, in Hickory Hill Towaship. Alfred Wilson was a successful farmer, a man of strong force of character, and in politics an Old- Line Whig during the existence of that party, after which his in- fluence was given to Democracy. He was by trade a carpenter, by profession a Baptist minister, and died in Wayne County, Ill., December 12, 1875. He had a family of four children, viz .: John J., born in 1837; Eliza A., widow of Thomas M. Clark, and born in 1841, who has seven children; An-

BIOGRAPHICAL:

geline, wife of Samuel B. Griffith, of Wayne County; and Joseph E. Wilson, who was born January 3, 1849. He was reared on the farm, receiving the advantages of a'common school education, and by application quali- fied himself for the profession of teaching, which, in connection with farming, he fol- lowed from 1871 until 1882. In the fall of 1882, he was elected to the office of County Clerk of Wayne County, on the Democratic ticket. He is a member of the Hickory Hill Lodge, No. 759, A., F. & A. M .: Fairfield Chapter, No. 179, R. A. M. He was married in Louisville, Clay County, Ill., Oc- tober 11, 1876, to Miss Julia V. Galbraith, daughter of Col. A. T. Galbraith, now of Flora, Ill. See was born in Wayne County October 23, 1857. Their two children-Ed- gar A. and Robert A. Wilson, were each born in Wayne County, the first, March 21, 1879, and the latter January 31, 1881.

PROF. GEORGE H. WOODWARD, Nor- mal instructor, Mound City, Pulaski County, Ill. Among the teachers and normal instruct ors of Southern Illinois who have done so much for the advancement of refinement, cult ure and education in general, and who have raised the standard of teaching and teachers, we connt him among one of the first and fore- most whose name heads this sketch. Prof. Woodward was born in Albany, Ohio, July 5, 1847. He is a son of Rev. John M. Woodward, a native of Smithfield, Ohio, where he learned and followed the carpenter trade, and afterward devoted his attention to milling. He is yet living in Zanesville, Ohio. His life has been one that may well serve as an example to posterity. He has been a minister of the Methodist Church for thirty years, and is a man of high standing in that body, where his services as pastor and friend to all benevolent enterprises are duly recog- nized. He has also been President of the

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.

History of Wayne and Clay counties, Illinois, Part 63

Author: Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Chicago : Globe Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 704

Author:
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Chicago : Globe Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 704