USA > Illinois > Whiteside County > History of Whiteside County, Illinois, from its earliest settlement to 1908, Vol. II > Part 46
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Mr. and Mrs. Wolber began their domestic life upon a farm in Hopkins township and as the years passed four children came to bless their home: Frank J., who was born August 13, 1890, in Hopkins township; George A., who was born in that township, August 5, 1892; Ida Mary, born in Clyde township, April 1, 1897; and Lilly May, born December 10, 1902. The family eirele yet remains unbroken by the hand of death and the children are all yet under the parental roof. The family attend the German Luth- eran ehureh.
Mr. Wolber exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party, but while negleetful of no duty of eitizen- ship he has never been an offiee seeker. His farm elaims his time and ener-
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gies and he works diligently and persistently to keep it at its present high standard of development. For eleven years he has here operated more than two hundrd and fifty acres of land, and evidence of his untiring industry is seen in the well cultivated fields.
HON. DANIEL RICHARDS.
On the list of Whiteside county's distinguished dead appears the name of Hon. Daniel 'Richards, a man of national prominence, whose citizenship was of the highest character. He was one to whom was intrusted important public service and over whose record there fell no shadow of wrong or sus- picion of evil. His unbending integrity of character, his fearlessness in the discharge of his duties and his appreciation of the responsibilities which rested upon him were such as to make him a most acceptable incumbent in office and a man whose worth then as now was widely acknowledged.
Daniel Richards was born April 5, 1821, in Orangeville, Wyoming county, New York, his parents being Paul and Lois (Stone) . Richards. The father was the first judge of the county court of Wyoming county, a lawyer of distinction and a man of more than ordinary ability. He was not only connected with the interpretation of the laws but also in framing them as a member of the legislature of New York. Unto him and his wife were born a large family, but all are now deceased.
Daniel Richards was provided with liberal educational advantages, which he improved, remaining throughout his life a student of the great poli- tical, sociological and economic questions affecting the welfare of the country while at the same time he thoroughly qualified for the duties that devolved upon him in connection with his professional and business career. His views were always so sanc, his ideas so tangible and his methods so practical that he was ever recognized as a leader in any community in which he sojourned. At an early day he began following the profession. of teaching, to which he devoted his time, energies and thought for many years. He was also engaged in merchandising for a period at Orangeville, New York, and in the conduct of his store brought to bear the same thoroughness and concentration which characterized everything that he did. His advent into Illinois came in the year 1844. He started westward on a visit to the state and spent the entire year traveling mostly on foot, over its broad prairies, gaining knowledge of its conditions and its possibilities. In 1854 he made his second trip to the state and was so pleased with its prospects that the following year he brought his family and established his home in Sterling. Here he entered into part- nership with Henry Garrettsee in the hardware business but they had con- ducted their store for only a brief period when a disastrous fire occurred in 1856 and their stock was destroyed. With characteristic energy, however, they made preparations for continuing their business and were soon established in the Keystone block, where a liberal trade was accorded them in recognition of their straightforward business methods and their earnest desire to please their patrons.
DANIEL RICHARDS
LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
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Mr. Richards was never so busy with private interests that he could not find time nor opportunity for active participation in public affairs and he be- licved it the duty as well as the privilege of every man to express and uphold his opinions on matters of vital interest. In 1860 he became an active factor in the most memorable presidential campaign in American history and deliv- ered inany speeches in support of Abraham Lincoln. He was a man of fine address, presenting clearly and forcibly the points in issue and strong ar- guments in their support. His ideas were new, original and convincing and many who came to listen to him prompted merely by curiosity or because of opposing views came to see the righteousness of the cause which he espoused. In 1862 he was nominated by the republican party for the position of state senator and was elected by a most flattering majority. Soon after this he dis- posed of his hardware business and as was characteristic bent every energy to the discharge of his legislative duties, working untiringly for the interest of his constituents and the state at large. His position was never an equivocal one and his stalwart support was always the outcome of his honest belief in the cause which he championed.
At the close of his legislative service Mr. Richards took up the study of law in the office of Perkins & Bass, of Chicago, and after a most critical examina- tion was admitted to the bar. Through the efforts of Hon. E. B. Washburnc, late minister to France, he was tendered the position of tax commissioner for the state of Florida by President Andrew Johnson. But his ambitions were not in that direction and he did not care to accept the position but was urged to do so, as it was very desirable that some perfectly loyal and honest man should assume the duties at once. > Thus presscd by the urgency of the case, he started at once for Fernandina, Florida, and was made president of the board, a position which he filled until his term of office expired. Judge Richards, as he was always called while in the south, won not only the respect and trust of the citizens of Florida, but also the earnest friendship and love of many prominent men of the state. When Governor Reed was impeached and on trial he sent a special train for Judge Richards to come and defend him, saying, "You are the only man in the state that can save me." Mr. Richards practiced law in Florida during reconstruction times, continuing in the active work of the bar until failing health compelled his retirement. He spent altogether about five years in the south, although cach year he visited for about five months with his family in Sterling.
On the 29th of August, 1850, was celebrated the marriage of Daniel Richards and Miss Frances Barrett, a native of Orangeville, Wyoming county, New York, and a daughter of Theodore S. and Caroline (Damon) Barrett, who in 1855 came to Whiteside county. The former was a son of Moses and Betsey (Sedgwick) Barrett, who lived in Madison county, New York. He following farming, making his home for a time near Cazenovia. He died at the age of cighty-four years while his wife also reached an advanced age. They were parents of four children. The maternal grandfather of Mrs. Rich- ards was Isaac Damon, also a resident of Madison county, New York, and his wife bore the maiden name of Diadema Tarbox. He reached the very vener- able age of ninety years. Their family numbered five children, including
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Caroline J. Damon, who in early womanhood became the wife of Theodore S. Barrett. As stated, the parents of Mrs. Richards arrived in Whiteside county in 1857, settling first in Sterling and afterward removing to a farm near Galt. While residing in New York Mr. Barrett had taken a prominent part in public affairs and official life but after his removal to the west lived more in retirement. He died at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Richards, in 1894, at the age of eighty-six years, having long survived his wife, who died in 1860, at the age of fifty-three years. Their family numbered four children, of whom Mrs. Richards is the eldest. Theodorc H. Barrett served with distinction during the civil war, commanded a regiment in the last battle of the war and attained the rank of general. He died at his home in Herman Minnesota, but was laid to rest in the Sterling cemetery. Lucia C. died at the age of fifteen years. Lorenzo M .; who was born at Orangeville, New York, August 8, 1836, died at the home of his sister Mrs. Richards, May 23, 1895. He was well known in Whiteside county and was uniformly esteemed.
The family of Mr. and Mrs. Richards numbered three daughters: Ella G., Mrs. Caroline B. Utley, the widow of J. F. Utley, who is mentioned elsewhere in this volume, and Grace Frances, the wife of Charles E. Windom, a furniture dealer and undertaker of Sterling. Mrs. Richards still resides in Sterling, where the esteem in which she is held is indicated by the large num- ber of her friends.
The death of Mr. Richards occurred January 21, 1872. He was justly accorded a place among the prominent and representative citizens of the state, for he belonged to that class of men whose enterprising spirit is used not alone for their own benefit, but for the advancement of general good and the promo- tion of public progress. His public career was ever above suspicion. The good of the nation he placed above partisanship and the welfare of his constituents before personal aggrandizement. He commanded the respect of his fellow legislators and men prominent in public life, and where he was best known he inspired personal friendships of unusual strength, all having the highest admiration for his good qualities of heart and mind.
REV. E. LEE FLECK.
Rev. E. Lee Fleck, pastor of St. John's English Evangelical Lutheran church in Sterling, was born near Altoona, Pennsylvania, one of the eleven children born unto Conrad and Mary (Crossman) Fleck, who were likewise natives of the Keystone state. The paternal grandparents were Jacob and Ellen Fleck, natives of Pennsylvania, where they were reared and followed farming and lived to the ages of seventy and ninety-four years respectively. The maternal grandfather was a farmer and lumberman, who settled in Indiana county, Pennsylvania, and bought a large tract of timber land. Cutting down the trees he rafted the logs down the river to Williamsport and after making extensive sales he went to Williamsport to collect the money duc him. He was seen within one mile of his home on the return trip but
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never reached there. He was known to have had as much as ten thousand dollars with him at the time and it is supposed that he was murdered for the money. His wife died when a young woman, leaving three children.
Conrad Fleck was a shoemaker by trade and for many years followed that pursuit. He also worked on farms in the summer seasons and took contracts for chopping wood for collieries for making charcoal. He enlisted in the Civil war as a member of Company G, Twelfth Pennsylvania Cavalry, and served until the close of hostilities. In one of the skirmishes in which he participated he was severely wounded in the leg, which disabled him for over a year. He took part in a number of important battles and others of lesser importance, and in the engagement of Bolivar Heights he lost the sight of one eye. He was in the advance line on scouting duty most of the time. For a brief period he was in a hospital with smallpox. After the war and when he had regained liis health he engaged in building fences for a num- ber of farmers and thereby secured a small traet of land and followed truek farming until he was obliged to retire on account of his age. He spent his entire life near Altoona, Pennsylvania. His wife died February 25, 1895, at the age of sixty-two years, one month and three days, and he passed away January 17, 1908, in his eighty-third year.
His family numbered four sons and seven daughters, of whom six are yet living: Benjamin C., a resident of Indiana, Pennsylvania; Rev. E. Lee, of this review; Bliss L., twin sister of E. Lee, and now the wife of Levi Knott, of Altoona, Pennsylvania; Martha, the wife of Jacob Otto, living near Montieello, Indiana; Irene, the wife of Joseph Tate, of Altoona, Penn- sylvania; and Sarah, the wife of Jacob Emery, living near that city.
Rev. E. Lee Fleck was reared on a farm in Sinking Valley, Blair county, Pennsylvania, near Altoona, and attended the district schools. He remained at home until nineteen years of age and worked at farm labor by the month in the neighborhood. When a young man of nineteen, however, he came westward to Illinois and settled at Polo, where he again was employed at farm labor. In the fall of that year he removed to Des Moines, Iowa, and secured employment on the old Keokuk & Des Moines Railroad, now owned by the Pennsylvania system. He aeted as brakesman until June, 1876, when he resumed farm work at Clarence, Cedar county, Iowa, and so continued until about the close of the year 1877. In the meantime he had become imbued with a desire to get a better education than he had been able to acquire in early life, realizing its value in the business world. Accordingly he entered the high school at Clarence with a view of preparing himself for teaching but changing his plans in the fall of 1878, lie matriculated in the Carthage (Illinois) College, with the intention of preparing for the ministry. He completed the course there in May, 1884, and during that time continued to reside in Clarenee, Iowa. He engaged in teaching during three spring terms and worked as a farm hand during the summer seasons for five years in order to earn money to complete his college course. The spirit of self- reliance and enterprise which he thus displayed have been carried with him into his new field of labor and have been. salient elements in his success. In the fall of 1884 he matriculated in the theological sehool in Springfield,
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Ohio, known as the Wittenberg Theological Seminary, from which he was graduated in June, 1887.
Immediately afterward Rev. Fleck entered upon his pastoral work at Springfield, Ohio, organizing the third Evangelical Lutheran church of that city and building the present cdificc in which the congregation is now wor- shiping. In this he displayed excellent executive ability ; while in the pulpit his words of wisdom and instruction carry with them weight and influence. At the same time he had charge of the Rockway congregation, situated two miles beyond the corporation limits of Springfield and succeeded in lifting a debt for his people, organizing a strong congregation there.
In the meantime Mr. Fleck was married March 7, 1888, to Miss Harriet Olive Hosford, of Hamilton, Illinois. He continued to carry on his work so untiringly and unfalteringly that his health failed and after a year and a half spent at Springfield he resigned his pastorates and returned to Ham- ilton, Illinois, where he spent a year in recuperation. On the 1st of Sep- tember, 1889, he took charge of a congregation at Sidney, Nebraska, con- tinuing there until the 1st of November, 1893. He next went to Dayton, Ohio, where he organized the second Lutheran congregation and built the church in which they are now worshiping. That his labors in that field were very successful is indicated by the fact that he left the congregation with a membership of about two hundred and twenty-five and with a good church free of all incumbrance. Since September, 1900, he has preached continuously for St. John's Evangelical Lutheran church at Sterling and there are many tangible evidences of his labor here. Under his guidance his people have remodeled the church, put in a steel ceiling and redecorated the interior. Four years later they celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the church by installing a new pipe organ. Today there is a inembership of over five hundred, a strong active church that is proving a marked power for good in the community.
Mrs. Fleck is a granddaughter of Truman Hosford, who was a native of Vermont, whence he removed to Ohio and later to Illinois. In 1849 he inade the long and arduous journey across the plains and through the moun- 'tain passes to California and engaged in merchandising in San Francisco. He died there at an advanced age. His wife was Mrs. Elizabeth Hosford. Their son, Harlow Hosford, was born in Ohio and from the vicinity of War- ren, Ohio, removed to Illinois when about nine years of age, the family home being established near Warsaw. For many years Harlow Hosford followed farming. He wedded Mary Wright, a native of Scotland and a daughter of William and Anna Wright, who were also born in that country and on coming to America settled near Warsaw, Illinois, where Mr. Wright died at an advanced age. His wife lived to the very remarkable old age of ninety- eight years and retained her mental faculties unimpaired to the last. Their daughter Mary became the wife of Harlow Hosford and they were well known farming people near Warsaw. Mr. Hosford died December 18, 1896, at the age of seventy-two years, while his wife dicd April 6, 1895, at the age of seventy-one. They were the parents of six children: Harris T., a resident of Urbana, Illinois; Anna E., the wife of Monroe Hanson, of Bedford, Iowa;
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Isaac N., of Hamilton, Illinois; Edwin W., also of Hamilton; Harriet O., now Mrs. Fleck; and Mary J., the wife of S. J. IIyndman, of Elvaston, Illinois.
The marriage of Rev. and Mrs. Fleck has been blessed with five children, Vera, Harlow, Irene, Donald and Elmer. Rev. and Mrs. Fleck are well known in social circles of the city, while he is recognized as one of the ablest divines connected with pastoral interests here and is one of the strongest preachers of the Lutheran church in this part of the state. He is a man of scholarly attainments and broad, general information, who has been a student of humanity as well as theology, and he has thus come to know the needs of his fellowmen and their possibilities for development. He has a ready sympathy and a word of encouragement for all, while his discourses are marked by an earnestness and intellectual force that indicate thorough familiarity with his subject.
NOAH W. LANDIS.
Noah W. Landis resides upon his farm in Genesee township but is prac- tically living retired, leaving the active work of the fields to others, while he is enjoying the rest which has come to him as the reward of earnest, persistent and indefatigable labor, manifested both in his general farming pursuits and in stock raising. He was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, November 4, 1843, and his parents, Jacob N. and Eliza (Weaver) Landis, were also na- tives of that state. The father was born January 23, 1813, and the mother's birth occurred December 11, 1809. They were reared, educated and married in Pennsylvania, where they continued to make their home until 1852, when they renioved westward to Whiteside county, Mr. Landis purchasing one hun- dred and sixty acres of land in Sterling township. Upon this property he built a house, which is now standing, on what is known as the Fred Schuler farm. During the cholera epidemic of 1854 he lost his wife and three daugh- ters and two sons, and two years later he passed away. The death of his wife occurred in 1854, while he was called to his final rest on the 17th of March, 1857. In their family were eleven children, of whom five are yet living, name- ly: Mrs. Eliza Fisher, a resident of Pennsylvania; Mrs. Anna Crider, living in the same staic; Noah W., of this review; Mrs. Graeff, of Polo, Illinois; and Jacob, whose home is in Philadelphia.
Noah W. Landis was a little lad of eight years when he accompanied his parents on their removal from Pennsylvania to Illinois. He was a youth of fourteen when left an orphan by the death of his father, after which the chil- dren of the family returned to Pennsylvania and lived with an uncle for seven years. Noah W. Landis then again came to Whiteside county, Illinois, and bought eighty acres of the farm upon which he now resides. He immedi- ately began its development and improvement and has added to the property from time to time until he now owns a valuable and productive farm of two hundred and fifty-four acres, the fields in early spring time giving promise
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of golden harvests in the autumn. Seldom does Illinois fail to produce good erops in return for the care and labor bestowed upon the fields by her agricul- turists, and as the years have passed Mr. Landis has met with a gratifying measure of success. He has always made a specialty of raising and feeding hogs and has thus added materially to his income. For years he continued an active factor in business eireles but is now practically living retired, although he still makes his home upon the farm.
Mr. Landis has been married twice. On the 10th of November, 1872, he wedded Miss Elizabeth Bristley, who was born February 26, 1855, in Ohio, a daughter of George and Dora (Eslinger) Bristley, in whose family were four children. Mrs. Landis died May 8, 1893. There were six children of that marriage: Dora, now the wife of Charles Gifferour, of Genesee town- ship; Emma, who is living in Morrison; Fannie, the wife of Benjamin Herr, of Genesee township; Enos, who is cultivating the old homestead farm; Aman- da, deceased; and Olive, at home. On the 8th of January, 1898, Mr. Landis was again married, his second union being with Miss Sarah Kuntz, who was born in Ohio, a daughter of David and Elizabeth Kuntz, who were natives of Pennsylvania and in whose family were eight children. The mother is still living in Ohio, at the very advanced age of eighty-seven years. Mrs. Landis came to Whiteside county January 1, 1897, and was married in January, 1898.
Mr. Landis belongs to the Mennonite church and is interested in the various measures and movements which pertain to the intellectual and moral progress of the community as well as its material growth and develop- ment. He is well known here and in all of his dealings with his fellowmen has demonstrated his right to their regard and confidence.
JAMES W. NEWCOMER.
Among the residents of Sterling who are now living retired, is numbered James W. Newcomer, an honored veteran of the Civil war. For many years lie was identified with newspaper publication, while his last business interest was in connection with the Methodist Book Concern of Chicago. He was born in Center county, Pennsylvania, November 23, 1841, his parents being George W. and Margaret (Wolf) Newcomer, natives of the Keystone state. The father was one of six children, whose parents were farming people of Pennsylvania. He engaged in agricultural pursuits as a life work, retaining his residence in the east until the spring of 1846, when he came westward to Freeport, Illinois, where he made his home throughout the remainder of his life. He was a mechanie and painter. At the time of the Civil war he went to the south with the army as a sutler, and died in northern Alabama in 1865, just at the close of the war. His wife was a daughter of Peter and Margaret Wolf, natives of Pennsylvania, the former a farmer and miller. Both died in the Keystone state when well advanced in years. They had four children, including Mrs. Margaret Newcomer who, long surviving her hus-
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band, passed away in 1905. Both Mr. and Mrs. Newcomer were members of the Methodist church. Their family numbered the following children : James W .; Sarah, who died in early womanhood; Mary, the wife of W. W. Lewis, editor of the Greenville Advocate and postmaster at Greenville, Illinois; John B., who died from wounds sustained at Vicksburg in the Civil war; and Agnes, the wife of O. D. Barnum, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
James W. Newcomer, brought to Illinois when five years of age, was reared in Freeport, attended the public schools and in due course of time was graduated from the high school. He was but twenty-one years of age, when, in the spring of 1862, he offered his services to the government as a defender of the Union cause and enlisted as a member of Company D, Ninety- third Illinois Infantry, with which he served until the close of the war. He was slightly wounded at Altoona. Joining the regiment as a private he was afterward quartermaster sergeant and acting commissary and subse- quently became first lieutenant of Company D. In addition to the battle of Altoona he participated in the Atlanta campaign, in the siege of Vicksburg, in many skirmishes, and was with Sherman on the celebrated march to the sea and in the grand review at Washington, D. C. In the thickest of the fight, on long hard marches, on the lonely picket line, he was ever found loyal to the cause which he espoused.
After the war Mr. Newcomer returned to Freeport but soon became a resident of Chattanooga, Illinois, and worked at' the printing trade there for a little more than a year. He then returned to Freeport, where he engaged in the printing business and in 1869 he took up his abode at Lena, Illinois, where he published a paper for a number of years. In 1878 he came to Sterling and was appointed government storekecper, filling that position for two years. He next became interested in the Sterling Standard with Theo- dore Mack, and a few years later Professor Alfred Bayliss purchased Mr. Mack's interest and became Mr. Newcomer's partner, with whom he con- tinued until he sold his interest to Thomas Diller. Mr. Newcomer continued with the paper until 1895, when he sold out to his partner, while later he accepted the superintendency of the printing department of the Methodist Book Concern in Chicago. After a year, however, he retired from that position and has since lived in Sterling in the enjoyment of well earned ease. His life for many years was one of untiring activity and enterprise and well directed labor and perseverance intelligently applied, brought him a gratifying measure of success.
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