USA > Illinois > Whiteside County > History of Whiteside county, Illinois, from its first settlement to the present time, with numerous Biographical and Family Sketches > Part 52
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ANDREW T. BRACKEN was born in Erie county, Pennsylvania, in 1802, and settled in Portland in 1837. He married Mrs. Mary Crook Pennell, daughter of Asa Crook. The children by this marriage are : James M., living in Iowa; William, who married Miss Eva Poor, and lives in Iowa; and Jackson, who married Miss Sarah Besse, and lives in Portland. Mrs. Bracken had one child by her first marriage, Nelson, who married Miss Tinnie Fones, and resides in Henry county, Illinois. Mr. Bracken died in 1870; the widow still resides in Portland.
ROBERT WOODSIDE was a native of Erie county, Pennsylvania, and born in 1812. He came to Portland in 1837, and married Miss Lucy Crook in 1842. There were no children. Mr. Woodside died in 1873.
JAMES GRAHAM was born in Ireland in 1796, and came to the United States in 1836. He settled in Portland in 1837. He married Miss Eliza Mar- tin, and their children have been : Mary A., wife of John T. Reynolds, living in Portland; Eliza Jane, who married Burton T. Bosworth, and is now dead; Thomas W., who married Miss Sarah Dunbar, and lives in Portland; Emily, wife of Henry Marquet, living in California; Wesley, who married Miss Lucina Fuller, and lives in Portland; Eva, living in Portland; Margaret, wife of Willis Fuller, living in Portland; and Isabella, wife of Alfred Booth, living in Port- land.
JOHN P. WELDING came to Portland in 1837, and was a carpenter by trade. He married Miss Lucy C. Fuller. Their children were : Lucina, now dead; Ovid P., who married Miss Harriet Lanphere, and lives in Portland; Simeon, living in New Mexico; Arthur, who married Miss Mary Witt, and lives in Portland; and William, living in Davenport, Iowa.
JAMES, WILLIAM T., and ANDERSON S. CROZIER came to Portland from Washington county, New York. James died in 1846, without family; William T. is now living in Henry county, Illinois. Anderson S. married Miss Steele, and lived near the county line; he died in 1871, leaving a family of six chil- dren.
CHARLES TILLOTSON came to Portland from Massachusetts in 1837, and worked a number of years for Guy Ray. He is now a resident of Missouri.
ROBERT MEAD was a native of Meadville, Pennsylvania, and came to Port- land in 1837. He was unmarried, and died in 1848 at the age of forty-eight years.
JOHN KEMPSTER was born in Berkshire, county, England, in 1794, and came to the United States in 1819, first settling in Oneida county, New York. He married Miss Lydia Hall, and came to Portland in 1837. The following are the children of this marriage : Julia Ann, wife of Washington Rowe, living in Henry county, Illinois; J. Henry, who married Miss Eliza Ann Rowe, and lives in Portland; William W., who married Miss Margaret Hahn, and lives in Port- land; and Ephraim H., who married Miss Rachel Spicer, and also lives in Port- land. Mr. Kempster died in 1869.
CHAUNCEY REYNOLDS was born in Connecticut, in 1812, and moved early to Erie county, New York, where he remained until the fall of 1837, when he
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came to Portland. His death occurred in 1851. Mr. Reynolds married Miss Amanda Aylesworth in 1835. Their children were : Smith, killed in battle during the War of the Rebellion; Gardner, who married Miss Elizabeth Stakes; Augustus, who married Miss Ella MeKenzie; and Edwin, who married Miss Mary Lanphere-all of whom live in Prophetstown.
D. PORTER BREWER, a native of Berkshire county, Massachusetts, was born in 1809, and came to Portland in 1837. He is still residing on his old farm. In 1834 Mr. Brewer married Miss Emeline Hollister. Their children have been : Fernando N., who married Miss Delia Frary, and lives in Lyndon; Elizabeth, wife of H. L. Osborn, living in Lyndon; Lucelia, wife of S. A. Lang- don, living in Lyndon; James O., who married Miss Rebecca Wenner, and lives in Portland; and Esther M., wife of Harrison Upton, living in Lyndon.
HIRAM MCKENZIE was born in Essex county, New York, in 1817, and came to Portland in 1837. He is a cooper by trade, and worked some time for Job Dodge, making pork barrels. He is now a resident of Yorktown, Bureau county. Mr. Mckenzie married Miss Cordelia Chubbuck, in 1837. The chil- dren of this marriage are : Virgil A., who married Miss Nettie Brown; Lovina M., who married Ansel Burdick; Albert E., who married Francis Hodgeborn; and Lucinda A., who married Austin Foy. Mrs. MeKenzie died, and in 1875 Mr. Mckenzie married Elsie Pelton.
JEREMIAH H. JOHNSON was born in Whitehall, Washington county, New York, in 1797, and married Miss Harriet Getty in 1828. Their children have been : George, now dead; Caroline, now dead; Helen S., who first married W. C. Whitmore, and, after his death, Thomas Young, and now lives in Henry county, Illinois; Harriet E., wife of Dr. E. J. Talcott, living in Portland; and Adams, living in California. Mr. Johnson died in 1871.
JOHN LAIRD came from Canada, and was born about 1815. He married Miss Fanny Warren, and had one daughter, who is in California. Mr. Laird went there in 1850, and died four years ago.
HIRAM UNDERHILL was born in Dorsett, Vermont, in 1794, and came to Portland in 1838, remaining in the village of Portland until 1839, when he made a claim near Jefferson Corners. He married Miss Martha Washburn in 1813. Their children have been: Horace, who married Miss Irene Wellington, and is now dead; Julia Ann, who first married Benjamin Dow, and after his death, Jared Hurlburt, and now lives in Oregon; Abram, who married Miss Olive Marvel, and lives in Oregon; Jane, wife of Ezra W. Hill, living in Proph- etstown; and Mary, wife of George Coon, living in Iowa.
LODOIC UNDERHILL was born in Jefferson county, New York, in 1819, and married Miss Goodell in 1842. They have had one son, Emmet, who married Miss Frances Gage, and is living in Prophetstown. Mr. Underhill is now a resi- dent of MeDonough county, Illinois.
GEORGE MCCORMICK was born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, in 1811, and came to Portland in 1838. He married Miss Lucinda Brooks, their children being: Frank, Nettie, Mary, Charles, Belle, Lucy, Frederick, Richard, Gertrude, and Eunice, all living in Prophetstown.
ASA MAYNARD was a native of Litchfield county, Connecticut, and born in 1780. In 1812 he moved to Genesee county, New York, and in 1838 settled in Portland. He was a carpenter by trade. Mr. Maynard married Miss Asenath Mack in 1799. Their children were: Dolly, who married Col. E. Secly, and is now dead; Ezra, now dead; Lydia, wife of Alzera Williams, living in Cattarau- gus county, New York; Deborah, who married Merritt Hotchkiss, and is now dead; Henry, who married Miss Purmela Hubbard, and is now dead; Asenath, wife of Darius Mendall, living in Portland; Mary Ann, wife of Ira Camp, living
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HISTORY OF WHITESIDE COUNTY.
in Portland; Abby Ann, wife of E. B. Latham, living in Portland; William, who married Miss Lucy Crossman, and is now dead; Nancy, wife of Amos Fos- ter, living in Jo Daviess county, Illinois; and Allen, who married Miss Eliza A. Wood, and is now dead.
WILLIAM MAYNARD was born in Berkshire county, Massachusetts, in 1805, and in 1839 came to Portland, and settled on what is now the Wm. Booth farm. He married Miss Emily P. Barrs, in 1827. Their children were: Hannah, Jane, and Almina, all of whom are dead. Jane married David B. Seely, and Almina married Martin V. Seely. Mrs. Maynard died in 1855, and Mr. Maynard after- wards married Lucy Pomeroy. He is now living in Geneseo, Henry county, Illinois, but every year his genial face is seen at the Old Settlers' meeting, which he usually entertains with reminiscences of the olden time put into flow- ing verse.
DR. A. PLYMPTON came from Ashtabula county, Ohio, in 1839, and prac- ticed his profession for about a year in Portland, and then went to Prophets- town. He was a sincere Christian, and frequently preached to the good people of the township. He practiced medicine in the county for about fifteen years, and then returned to Ohio, where he died soon afterwards.
MARTIN REIS was born in Ahrang, Prussia, in 1804, and came to Portland in 1839. He married Miss Mary Ahart, the children of this marriage being: Elizabeth, wife of George Shelhammer, living in Geneseo, Henry county; Adam, who married Miss Lora Brooks, and lives in Henry county; Herman, who mar- ried Miss Ellen H. Bessor, and lives in Portland; Hattie, wife of H. P. Blais- dell, living in Portland; Ella M., wife of Alonzo F. Ocoboek, living in Henry county; and Martin, and Franklin, both of whom live in Portland. Mr. Reis died in 1874.
PHILIP RAPP was born in France in 1811. He married Miss Christene Saun. Their children have been: Aaron, who married Miss Christene Harms, and lives in Henry county; Abraham, who married Miss Clara Arnett, and lives in Henry county; Christene, wife of John Whiteline, living in Henry county; Harriet, wife of Jacob Westerling, living in Chicago; Emeline, wife of Mr. Goemble, living in Henry county; and John, Samuel, Frederick and Louisa, who live in Portland.
WILLIAM S. CRANE was born in Caledonia county, Vermont, in 1815, and located in Portland in 1838, where he engaged with Dodge & Wiggins in the mercantile business. He died in 1842.
A. T. WIGGINS was a native of Montpelier, Vermont, and was born in 1816. He came to Portland in 1838, and in 1839 formed a partnership with Job Dodge, in the mercantile business, remaining until 1841, when the partnership was dis- solved. He then beeame connected with William Pollock, in the same business, at Como, and died in 1845.
BENJAMIN Dow was born in Caledonia county, Vermont, in 1811. Upon leaving his native State he located in Jefferson county, New York, and from there came to Portland in 1839, and settled at Jefferson Corners, where he died in 1865. He married Miss Julia Ann Underhill, their children being: Erwin, who married Miss Susan Bunnell, and resides in Oregon; Clayton, who married Miss Hurlburt, and lives in Oregon; Irene, wife of John Turner, living in Ore- gon; and Hiram, who also lives in that State.
THOMAS JEFFERSON DOW was born in Caledonia county, Vermont, in 1800, and eame to Portland in 1840, settling at Jefferson Corners. It was from him that Jefferson Corners derived its name. He was familiarly known as Unele Jeff. IIe married Miss Susan Gray. The children of this marriage have been: Thomas, who married Miss Belinda Burgess, and lives in Tampico;
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Abigail, now dead; George, living in Iowa; Daniel W., who married Miss Martha Carter, and lives in Iowa; Chauncey, who married Miss Mary Jane Atkins, and lives in Colorado; Roxana, wife of Mr. Kemp, living in Tampico; William H. H., living in Tampico; Mary, wife of B. W. Edmonds, living in Colorado; Schuy- ler, living in Tampico; and Noble, living in Iowa. Mr. Dow died in 1871.
ARBELA ADAMS is a native of Rutland county, Vermont, and first came to Ottawa, Illinois, in 1835, and in 1840 to Portland, settling upon the same place where he now resides. He married Miss Olive Hawes in 1826. Their children are: Helen E., wife of W. H. Wellington, living in Sterling; Charles F., who married Miss Sarah Brown, and lives in Portland; Sarah F., wife of David B. Seely, living in Sterling; Egbert, who married Miss Sally Paget, and lives in Portland; and Mary, living in Portland. Mr. Adams was born in 1804.
WILLIAM P. TABOR was born in Erie county, New York, in 1821. He came to Illinois with his father in 1828, and settled in Knox county, where he remained a few years, and then moved to Henry county, near Whiteside, at which place he resided until 1853, when he came to Portland, and opened a fine farm on section 26. Since that time he has been engaged in farming and rais- ing cattle and hogs. Mr. Tabor married Miss Hester Hurd, their children be- ing: Rothilda M., wife of Reuben Kelly, living in Nebraska; Ocelia E., wife of Barney McGrady, living in Tampico; Jennie F., wife of John Hill, living in Prophetstown; and Herman L., who married Miss Ella Lanphere, and lives in Portland.
CALEB P. LANPHERE was born in Greene county, New York, in 1799, and canie to Portland in 1841. In 1841, he married Miss Lucinda Martin. Their children have been : Almira, wife of John Fuller, living in Portland; James M., living in Portland; Clark C., who married Miss Lucinda Fuller, and lives in Portland; George, living in Warren county, Illinois; Albert, living in McDonough county, Illinois; Mary, wife of B. F. Brooks, living in Portland; Harriet, wife of O. P. Welding, living in Portland; and Jay C., living in Port- land. Mr. Lanphere died in 1875. He was a devoted christian, and one of the pillars of the Methodist church. He was a Justice of the Peace, and Town Clerk of the township for a number of years.
LEWIS C. UNDERWOOD was born in Erie county, Pennsylvania, and came to Illinois in 1832, settling at first in Rock Island county, and in 1846 located in Portland. He married Miss Eliza Gillett. Their children were : Elias, who married Miss Delilah Teats, and lives in Portland; Lewis C., living in Indiana; A. Bruce, living in Portland; Eliza Rose, who married William P. Teats, and is now dead; Elizabeth, who married Moses Harmon, and is also now dead; Mila B., wife of Millard Paddock, living in California, and Electa, wife of L. A. Sim- mons, living in Portland.
WILLIAM GRAHAM was born in Ireland, in 1792. He married Miss Rosa Murphy, the following being the children of this marriage : Mary Ann, wife of Anthony Arnett, living in Colorado; Hercules, now dead, and Jane, wife of Fer- nando Jones, living in Chicago. Mrs. Jones is an active worker in behalf of all public charities, and a prominent leader in the Woman's Rights movement.
LEVI FULLER, JR., a native of Oneida county, New York, was born in 1820, and came to Portland in 1836. For twenty years he was in the mercantile business at Spring Hill, but now resides in Erie. He was married to Miss Melissa Ful- ler. Their children have been : Lucius, who married Miss Eliza Briggs, and lives in Kansas; Lucina, wife of Wesley Graham, living in Portland; Erastus, who married Miss Louisa Besse, and lives in Portland; Wilmot P., who married Miss Maria Ocobock, and lives in Portland; Cecil, who married Miss Mary Dor- athy, and lives in Portland; and Douglass, now dead.
[46-Q.]
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HISTORY OF WHITESIDE COUNTY.
NATHANIEL NORTON was born in the State of Maine, in 1805, and came to Portland in 1837. He purchased the claim of William H. Cushman, and hav- ing considerable means infused a great deal of life into the new settlement. He opened a store shortly after his arrival, and sold goods for a number of years. During this time his store was broken into, the thieves cutting through the outer wall, and robbed of quite an amount of stock, thus making him the victim of the first burglary committed in Portland. In 1837 he started the first nursery in Whiteside county, and some of the finest orchards in the county to-day are from trees procured of him. Two of the trees from his nursery, on the farm of Frank Cushing, in Portland, bore fifty bushels of apples each the present season, 1877. Mr. Norton added largely in the erection of Sharon church, and as long as the edifice stands his memory will be held dear by those who worship within its walls. Struggling as were the pioneers even at the time when the building was erected, it is doubtful if such a structure could have been built without Mr. Norton's aid. He went to Chicago in 1843, and engaged in business, and is ac- counted one of the largest capitalists in that city. He was married in 1838 to Miss Sally Ann Getty. Their children were : Augusta, who married Lemuel R. Hall, and is now a resident of Chicago, and a child which died in infancy.
RUSSELL WARREN was born in New England, in 1778. He early moved to Livingston county, New York, where his children were all born, and subse- quently settled in Steuben county, in the same State, and in 1838 came to Portland, his sons having preceded him. His children were : Lyman, who married Miss Sarah Palmer, and is now dead; he came to Portland in 1838, and had six children, all of whom are in Iowa, if living; George, who married Miss Julia Eaton; he came to Portland in 1836, and settled near Spring Hill, and in 1846 returned to Steuben county; Elizabeth, who married John S. Logan, and is now dead; Daniel, who married Miss Mary Baker, and is now dead; Fan- ny, who married John Laird, and is now dead, and Martha, who married Joseph Arnett, and is also dead.
CHAUNCEY ROWE came to Portland in 1836, and soon afterwards moved to Oregon where he now resides. He married Miss Flavie Cushman.
BENJAMIN and THADDEUS SMITH came to Portland from Bennington, Ver- mont, in 1837. Benjamin lived in Portland for five years, and then moved to Iowa.
CHAPTER XXII.
HISTORY OF PROPHETSTOWN TOWNSHIP-HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF PROPHETS- TOWN-NEWSPAPERS-CHURCHES AND SOCIETIES-BIOGRAPHICAL.
HISTORY OF PROPHETSTOWN TOWNSHIP.
Prophetstown township originally formed a part of Crow Creek Precinct, and in March, 1837, when Whiteside county was attached to Ogle county, was by the County Commissioners of that county included, together with all the territory in the county south of Rock river, in a precinct called Prophetstown. Upon a petition being presented, the Commissioners in March, 1838, changed the name of the precinct to that of Portland, to embrace the same territory. This remained the name until 1840, when the precinct was divided into three precincts, called Rapids, Prophetstown, and Portland. Prophetstown precinct then embraced the present township and the western half of Hume and Tampi- co, and so continued until 1850, when the county having adopted the township organization law, Commissioners were appointed to give names and boundaries to townships. The Commissioners at this time gave the name of Prophetstown to so much of the present township as lies in town 20, range 5, and the name of Washington to so much of the township as now lies in town 19, range 5. This election proving void, the county held another election in 1851, and a second time voted favorably upon the question of township organization, and Commis- sioners appointed for the purpose of again giving names and boundaries to town- ships, gave the name of Prophetstown to so much of the present township as lies in town 20, range 5, and the name of Volney to that part in town 19, range 5. In a short time, however, the name of Volney was dropped, and the name of Proph- etstown applied to the township as it now exists. The present township com- prises all of Congressional township 19 north, range 5 east, and all that part of Congressional township 20 north, range 5 east, as lies south of Rock river. The township contains 30,191 acres of land, being considerably in excess of any other township in the county. The general surface of the land is level, and the soil exceedingly rich and fertile. It has less timber land than Portland, its groves being one on the river bottom opposite Lyndon, one above Prophetstown, one at Woodward's bluff on section 29, Hill's grove, on Washington street, and some small ones on the school section. There is a deposit of mineral paint on seetion 17, but it has not yet been worked.
The township was early known as being the home of the Prophet, a noted Indian chief of the Winnebago tribe, his habitation being near where the vil- lage of Prophetstown now stands. His village was called Prophet's Town. A. portrait of this celebrated Indian, from the original painting by Geo. Catlin, was presented to the people of Whiteside county, at the city of Morrison, Wednes- day, October 24, 1877, by Hon. Elihu B. Wasburne, late United States Minister to France. The Indians had several villages along the banks of Rock river in the vicinity of the Prophet's Town, as the stream afforded an abundance of fish, their favorite food. One of these villages was situated at the mouth of Walk- er's slough, one at the mouth of Coon creek, and another on the bottom near the present railroad bridge. Their corn was raised on the river bottoms, and
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cultivated with rude hoes. At each successive year they pulled up the old stalks, and dropped in the seed, so that by continued hilling their corn fields be- came very rough, and can be easily seen to this day thickly set with blue grass, where they have been undisturbed. The location was a beautiful one, and it is no wonder the Indians were averse to leaving it. Rock river, with its clear, sparkling water, stretching away to the north and northwest, nearly encircling the ox-bow, the beautiful groves along Coon creek, the rolling prairie to the south, which afforded admirable hunting ground for deer, and the rich, warm soil that yielded plentifully to their rude culture, all combined to make it in- deed an Indian paradise. The Prophet's Town became particularly noted dur- ing the Black Hawk war, and at its close it was one of the first places settled by the white man.
On the 4th of June, 1834, Asa Crook and his family, consisting of his wife, four sons and five daughters, and Norman and Alexander Seely, arrived at the mouth of Coon creek, and made a claim where Wm. A. Taylor's farm now is. About the same time Samuel A. McClure located at the mouth of Walker's slough. McClure sold out that fall to John W. Stakes, and moved to Dixon where he kept tavern for a time, but at present nothing can be ascertained con- cerning him. Mr. Crook lived in his wagon for three weeks, and then made a lodge, covering it with hickory bark, in which he lived all summer. In the fall he erected a log house, calling in his neighbors, the Indians, to assist at the rais- ing. Mr. Crook had come early in May on an exploring tour, and then went back. On his return he passed through Knox county where he hired one Ben- jamin Brown to come up and do some breaking. This was done and a piece planted to sod corn. The Indians were quite numerous, but friendly. Their chief was called "The Crane." John W. Stakes and wife arrived on the 14th of September. It is claimed that McClure, whose claim he had bought, had built a small ferry boat which could take a wagon or a span of horses across the river. It is certain that Stakes did some ferrying the next year at his place, and that a sort of ferry was kept there for sometime. John Bowman, a brother of Mrs. Stakes, came with them. Alfred Wood, and John Champine, a half breed Can- adian, were also here that fall. Reuben Ammidon and Edwin Wright also came, and made claims, but did not stay.
Early in 1835 a man by the name of Amos Gordon made a claim near Joseph W. Ilill's present farm on Washington street, and put up a cabin of cherry logs, but upon the arrival of William Hill in the fall, with his large family, sold out for $100, went to Green river, and after living there for a time, moved to Moline, Illinois, where he yet resides. N. G. Reynolds came in November of this year, with his family, having made his claim in June previous. J. Sperry Johnson, Alonzo Davis, Marvin Frary, Charles Atkinson, and Harry Smith, also came this year. These were all the parties who settled in the present limits of Prophets- town, in 1835, but the histories of Prophetstown and Portland are so interwoven, that it is difficult to always give proper credit. The Hills, N. G. Reynolds, Alonzo Davis, Marvin Frary, and J. Sperry Johnson, have, however, always been identified with Prophetstown. Charles Atkinson only wintered here, and then went to what is now Cleveland, Henry county, where he opened a store, and lived for several years, and then settled in Moline, Rock Island county. He is now one of the principal men of that city, being President of the Water Power Com- pany, and otherwise identified with its interests. N. G. Reynolds settled west of the village on Geo. B. Quigley's present farm; the Hills on Washington street, and Marvin Frary on the present Ellithorpe place near the Portland line. An election was held in August, 1835, the first at which the settlers participa- ted. The polls were held at the house Asa Crook, with Norman B. Seely, Asa
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Crook, and a Dr. Baker, who lived in Henry county, on the Rock Island road, Judges of Election, and P. B. Besse and Alfred Wood, Clerks. Fifteen votes were cast, and Asa Crook and Dr. Baker elected Justices of the Peace, Alfred Wood, Constable, and Geo. Charles, who lived near Knoxville, in Knox county, Surveyor. The returns were sent to Knox county, as Prophetstown and Port- land were then a part of Henry county which was attached to Knox for judicial purposes. Reuben Ammidon and Edwin Wright came back during the summer of 1835, and settled on their claim adjoining the present village of Prophets- town, but afterwards sold to the Warners. Harry Smith made the first settle- ment on Benton Street, on what is now known as the Edwin Cox farm.
In January, 1836, Isaac Colin Southard came and made his home with Mr. William Hill, whom he rewarded soon after by marrying his only daughter. Lewis Brown, Edwin Sage and Johnson E. Walker also came the same year, the former making a claim on Washington street, and the two latter on Jackson street. The people of Prophetstown at a very early day called their roads " streets." The road to Sterling was called Jackson street; the Geneseo road Washington street; and the one which was afterwards opened directly south of the village, Benton street-names which they still retain. In the spring of 1836 James Knox, Sr., started the Prophetstown ferry, at about its present location, making it the oldest ferry in the county. The boat was pulled across the river for some time. Daniel Crocker came from Galena, during the year, with a small stock of goods, and opened a store in a log cabin on the bank of the river, to which he afterwards added a sort of frame building, made of hewn timber, and covered it with split clapboards. This was probably the first store in the county. The 4th of July was duly celebrated in 1836, at Asa Crook's, about fifty persons being present, and was the first celebration of the kind in the county.
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