Illinois, Crawford County historical and biographical, Part 170

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913. cn
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1058

USA > Illinois > Crawford County > Illinois, Crawford County historical and biographical > Part 170

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Mrs. Walker was educated in the primitive log school in Crawford County. After their mar- riage, Mr. and Mrs. Walker lived at Hardinville for four years, where he was engaged in black- smithing, and then they removed to the Walker homestead. Mr. Walker made the greater part of the present improvements, and followed farm- ing until his death. In politics he was a Re- publican, and died firm in the faith of the Metho- dist Church. Although the land was valuable, the discovery of oil upon it in 1906 added to its worth. and there are now twelve wells on his land in active operation. Mr. and Mrs. Walker had children as follows: John Wesley, Calvin Q. (deceased), Charles Edward (deceased), Mal- vina, Elizabeth (deceased) Simon, Dora, George and William, all born in Martin Township. George has been prominent in educational mat- ters. Mr. Walker was a man who enjoyed uni- versal esteem, and his untimely demise was re- gretted by a large circle of acquaintances and friends.

WALKER, John W .- Many are liable to forget in these days of restless progress how much is due the pioneers who made possible the present advancement. They came into a wild country, overcame many difficulties, and prepared the way for others and for their own children. John W. Walker, a blacksmith and real estate dealer of Stoy, Ill., is a son of one of these pioneers, be- ing born in Hardinville, Ill., January 28, 1855. His father, George B. Walker, now deceased, was a farmer of Martin Township and a native of Indiana, coming from that State to Craw- ford County when a young man. He settled in Hardinville and worked at his trade of black- smithing until he purchased a farm north of Hardinville, which was a portion of his father's farm. George B. Walker was a son of Aquilla Walker, whose name is closely connected with the early pioneer history of Crawford County, an account of which is given elsewhere in this work.

John W. Walker was educated in the schools of Hardinville. and reared on the farm. Being the eldest of nine children he had to work hard,

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but early learned how to take care of himself. He married, in Oblong Township, Margaret Prier, who was born in Martin Township, the daughter of James and Lucy Prier, pioneers of the county, who cleared up a large tract of land in Martin Township, where Mrs. Walker was reared and educated. Mr. and Mrs. Walker have had the following children : James, deceased ; William E., Carrie D., Angeline, married Roy McKin- ney ; Harry, Effie, George, and two others who died in infancy, all being born and reared in Crawford County, except one born in Arkansas.

For three years after their marriage Mr. Walker rented land in Martin Township, and then bought a farm in Oblong Township, but soon thereafter moved to Arkansas, where he re- mained for three years. Then returning to Craw- ford County, he traded his farm for five acres at Stoy, Ill., and owns the principal part of that place. He also owns ten acres in Martin Town- ship upon which are two oil wells in active op- eration. Mr. Walker is a Republican politically and a member of the F. M. B. A. and other fraternal organizations. The United Brethren Church is his religious home. Mrs. Walker died in Martin Township, aged thirty-five years.

WALKER, Orlando .- Accustomed to farm life from earliest childhood, the farmer boys of Illi- nois are familiar with every detail of farm man- agement, and perhaps that is why they are among the very best agriculturists of the world. Ilt Crawford County are to be found many such farmers, and among them is to be numbered Or- lando Walker, born at Palestine, Ill., May 1, 1851, a son of Charles S. Walker, and a grand- son of 'Thomas and Mary ( Shork) Walker. Thomas Walker came with his family to La Motte Township, Crawford County, Ill., about 180, and purchased some of his land from the Government and some from those who had pre- ceded him to the county, and at one time owned about 1,500 acres, a great deal of which he in- proved with the assistance of his sons. He and his wife were the parents of the following named children : Alice, who married Roswell Hale ; Eliza, who married (first) David Johnson and (second) Robert Martin ; Margaret, who married Joseph Pifer; James; Jane S., who married (first) Elijah Pifer and (second) Andrew Mul- vane; Charles S .; George L .; and Caroline C., who married ( first) Lorenzo D. Legg and (sec- ond) George B. Higgins. All the foregoing are now deceased. Charles S. Walker was born July 20, 1825, in Ohio, and died March 9, 1869, having been an early farmer and stock-raiser and shipper of Crawford County. He married Sarah Vermil- ion and they had these children: Orlando, who is the only survivor ; Mary L., who married James B. Seeders : Elsie F. and Eva C.

Educated in the district school, Mr. Walker always worked in La Motte Township and finally began buying land, to which he has added until he now owns 550 acres of as good land as can be found in the county. He is an extensive stock- breeder, and makes a specialty of registered Duroc hogs, which he raises and ships to breeders

all over the United States. His fine farm Is known as Fairview Farm. His acres are brought up to the highest state of cultivation. and lils barns and other buildings are of the latest pat- tern and supplied with every modern device. In politics, Mr. Walker is a Republican, and served as tax collector of Crawford County for four years. Fraternally he is a Knight of Pythias, and a member of the Modern Woodmen.

On November 16, 1871, Mr. Walker married Matilda Wright of La Motte Prairle. She was the daughter of Andrew J. and Lucinda ( Spain) Wright and died on the home farm, April 20, 1906. The children born of this marriage were: Virgil, born June 17, 1875, married Sarah Belle Wesner, daughter of Lon Wesner, and they have one child, Paul W .; Jesse. born December 14, 1877, married Minnie Kaywood, and they have two children, Ruth and Geneva ; Horace W., born February 29, 1SSO, is not married and lives at home; and Annie June, born June 1, 1884, is also single and living at home.

WALKER, William Dun .- Nature bas done much to make Crawford County a desirable abid- ing place, especially for the farmer, for the cli- matic conditions are such as to insure good crops, the soil is fertile and hidden in the ground are vast supplies of natural gas and oil. Transpor- tation facilities are almost unsurpassed, so that the marketing of produce Is an easy matter and the farmers of this locality are prospering great- ly. Prominent among them is William Dun Walker, who was born in Crawford County, near Hardinville, March 13, 1869, a son of George B. and Mary M. (Lamb) Walker.

George B. Walker came to Crawford County at an early day from Greene County, Ind .. north of Worthington. The mother's family was from North Carolina. The following children were born to George B. Walker and wife: John Wesley, who married Margaret Prier. daughter of James and Lucy Prier, they have five boys and three girls; Calvin L. and Charles Edward, both unmarried ; Charlotte M., who married John Shire, son of Christopher Shire, and they have two daughters and live on a farm in Crawford County ; George B., Jr., who marrled Jane Har- ter, of Crawford County, and they have one son and three daughters and live in Robinson ; and Dora, who married Willlam Ducummul and they have three daughters-Eflie, Frances and Mary. The deceased children of George B., Sr., and his wife, Mary (Lamb) Walker, were Simon and Lizzie, both dying when quite young. The children of George B., Jr., are Guy, Ruth, Ruby and Opal.

William Dun Walker attended district school, at the Union Star School, until he was nineteen, when he began farming. On January S, 1891, he was married to Effie Myrtle Mann, by the Rev. Salathiel Lamb, and one child was born of this union, a son, who died in infancy, March 4, 1894. Mrs. Walker is a daughter of Abel H. and Susan (Harter) Mann, both father and mother being from Stark County, Ohio, near Dayton. Mrs. Walker is one in a famlly of seven cliil-

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dren as follows: William K., Ota, Ora P., Ida, Everett L., Mrs. Walker and Ivy. By a former marriage her father had three children.

Mr. Walker owns 66 acres of fine farming land, and has a comfortable residence upon it. He also owns 160 acres south of Gordon Station. In politics he is a Republican. Both he and his wife belong to the Methodist Church of which he has been a member for about twenty-one years and his wife for twenty-three years, both being active in Sunday School work. Mr Walker for a time was Superintendent of the Sunday School. They are very substantial people and widely and favorably known in the community where they have spent their lives.

WALL, John .- In early life accustomed to the hard work that develops the mind and body, filled with the struggle in which the white man con- tested with the wild beasts and almost as savage red man for the possession of what were then wild lands, but now are the site of large cities, fertile farms and valuable oil property, John Wall has lived many lives in his seventy-five years and his experiences might well fill volumes instead of a single page. Mr. Wall was born on a farm two miles east of Robinson, September 24, 1833, a son of Thomas P. and Mary ( Everman) Wall, from Tennessee and Kentucky, respectively. The father of Thomas P. Wall was Peter Wall, who was reared in South Carolina but moved to Tennessee and thence to Jasper County, Ill., where he died. The mother of John Wall was a daughter of William Everman, who first located in Crawford County but later moved to Jasper County, Ill. Thomas Wall located two miles east of Robinson on 120 acres of government land, some time between 1820 and 1830, being still unmarried. William Everman was also a very early settler, coming to Palestine, Ill., while the fort at that place was still occupied by the soldiers, later the family being compelled to oc- cupy the fort, on account of a raid by Indians. Thomas P. Wall bought a farm about three miles northwest of Robinson, but later sold this and purchased 120 acres of government land on Big Creek, in Oblong Township, where he continued to reside until his death.

During his early youth deer, wolves, wild turkeys and game of all kinds were to be found in abundance around the home of John Wall. His school advantages were limited, but he made the most of them, and worked hard in the inter- vals on his father's farm. The public school sys- tem was not yet inaugurated and the only schools then held were those known as subscription schools, for which the parents paid so much for each child. In time, John Wall came into pos- session of the homestead, where he remained un- til 1904, when he bought his present pleasant home and is now conveniently located in Oblong, where he can rest from his labors in the enjoy- ments his toil has earned. Mr. Wall is a very extensive oil producer, having thirty-three good wells on his land, nineteen being on one farm and the others on Big Creek, this last named farm belng only one and three-quarter miles from town.

On January 16, 1855, Mr. Wall was married in Oblong Township to Minerva Elizabeth Me- Crillis, born in Fairfield County, Ohio, Novem- ber 17, 1836, a daughter of John and Eliza Ann McCrillis. Mr. McCrillis was born in Perry County, Ohio, but his wife was born in Pennsyl- vania and taken to Ohio when about seven years old. Mr. and Mrs. Wall have had children as follows: George W., born October 27, 1856, mar- ried, has four children and lives in Oklahoma, where he is a farmer; Eliza Ann, born December 14, 1859, married, has five children, and lives in Oklahoma, where her husband is a farmer; Susan Cordelia, born March 20, 1862, died at the age of two years; David Arthur, born May 23, 1861, died when eighteen months old ; Mary Eliza- beth, born September 5, 1864, married George W. Murdock, a farmer at Oblong, where she died at thirty-six. In politics, Mr. Wall is a Republi- can but has never sought office. A man of meaus, he has earned his success through enterprise, hard work and economy and the result has been well merited.

WALL, William T .-- Living in the township where he was born, December 30, 1857, and has grown up to useful manhood, now owning a fine farm on Section 9, Oblong Township, Crawford County, William T. Wall is one of its most rep- resentative men. Mr. Wall is a son of John Wall, was educated in the district schools of Oblong Township and, at the same time, was engaged in farming. On December 31, 1878, he was married on the old McCrillis place, to Minerva Snider, who was born in Jasper County, Ill., a daughter of Henry Snider, now deceased. She visited in Kentucky, but returned to Jasper County.

For about six years after his marriage Mr. Wall rented land, and then about 1884 located on his present farm, which his father had purchased years before. The farm consists of 80 acres, all well improved and supplied with good buildings, Mr. and Mrs. Wall have children as follows, all born in the township: Joseph K, marrled and has two children; William R .; Malcom E .; Fen- nel P .; John H., married and has one child; Harry T .; M. Elizabeth ; Frank, and Cora M.

In February, 1907, oil was discovered on Mr. Wall's property, and nineteen wells are now in active operation, which has greatly enhanced the value of the land. Mr. Wall has long been a Re- publican, and in the spring of 1908 he was elected Commissioner of the Township. He is a member of the United Brethren Church, and a worthy, in- dustrious and thrifty man whose success is well merited.

WALTER, George Lowry, Superintendent and Commissioner of Streets, and a man who has given his work long and careful attention, is one of the substantial residents of Robinson, who was born in Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio, March 13, 1851, a son of William Wiggin and Abigail (Lowry) Walter. The father was born in Phila- delphia, October 25, 1812, while the mother was born in the same city, April 12, 1818. the parents coming to Logan County, Ohio, after marriage in

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Philadelphia, March 1, 1843. William W. Walter died in Robinson, Ill., November 22, 1900, but his widow survived him until June 16, 1907.

George Lowry Walter attended the common and high school, and then went to the college at Bunker Hill, Macoupin County, Ill., after which he learned the trade of brick-making, and learned it well, embarking thereafter as a con- tractor, and being engaged in work on many of the most important buildings in Robinson. Later he commenced farming on 360 acres of fine farm- ing land three miles west of Robinson, where later oil was discovered, and he now has twenty- three good wells on his farm property. His home is one of the most delightful in Robinson, the residence being shaded by old forest trees and beautified by flowers and shrubbery. It stands far back from the noise and dust of the highway, and is very attractive both inside and out.

Mr. Walter has always been a stanch Repub- lican, and in 1894 was elected Sheriff of Craw- ford County as the successor of Captain Sheriff Hand. After serving his term of office, Mr. Wal- ter remained deputy sheriff under Sheriff A. B. Houston. For twelve years Mr. Walter has been a member of the Board of Education; was Supervisor for eight terms, and three years col- lector of county taxes. He also served five years as First Lieutenant of Illinois National Guard. For fifteen years he has been active in the work of the Methodist Church, and is now serving as trustee of that body.

On February 25, 1877, Mr. Walter married in Robinson Township, Miss Mary A. Henderson, daughter of Hickman and Rebecca Henderson, pioneers of Crawford County. The following children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Walter : A. Estella, born October 21, 1879, married May 24, 1905, Talbot C. Parker, and they live at Enid, Okia .; William H., born September 19, 1SS1, died July 7, 1902; Roscoe C., born August 26, 1883 ; Helen May, born November 7, 1885, mar- ried February 18, 1905, to Earl Eaton and they live in Corpus Christi, Texas, and have one child, Elizabeth, born August 5, 1906 ; Gladys, born Feb- ruary 3, 1888; W. Virgil, born November 23, 1890, and Floyd, born July 10, 1893, died December 2, 1893. The same scrupulous care that has charac- terized his private business career has been mani- fested in his devotion to the interests of the public, and his record is one of which he may well be proud.

WALTERS, Jacob Lincoln .- Existence in the frontier region of Illinois seventy years ago was not what it is to-day, for then it was full of the tragedy of Indian warfare, that has been grad- ually softened by peace and religion. In that struggle in which man pitted himself against primeval forest and aboriginal inhabitants, the strongest types of manhood and womanhood were evolved. The pioneer men and women of this great commonwealth, were brave indeed, and those who come after them have something of which they may justly be proud.

Jacob Lincoin Walters comes of old pioneer stock and in early life was accustomed to the

hard work incident to life under such conditions. He was born in La Motte Townshlp, Crawford County, Ill., a son of Jacob and Stacy (McCol- pin) Walters. Jacob Walters was a native of Kentucky, and seventy years ago came to Craw- ford County, and bought 700 acres of wild land, which, assisted by his children, he cleared off and placed under cultivation. Jacob Waiters was a soldier in the Black Hawk War, and helped to protect himself and his neighbors from the depredations of the Indians. His death occurred in La Motte Township in 1866, when he was about fifty years of age.

Jacob Lincoln Waiters was born July 3, 1860, and like the majority of boys of his day, was educated in the district school and worked on the farm, where he learned the business of farming In all its details, and which has since con- tlnued to be his vocation. He owns 80 acres of land on which he broke the first ten acres of prairie sod with his own hands. This property he bought in 1881, and has lived on ever since. The substantial home and barns were built by him, and the property is kept up in a way that shows that he appreciates the value of his pos- sessions. Mr. Walters is a School Trustee and has been Highway Commissioner.

On September 12, 1882, Mr. Walters was mar- ried on the farm in La Motte Township, the Rev. William R. Emmons officiating, to Maggie Wright, daughter of Richard and Elizabeth Wright, natives of Kentucky and pioneers of Crawford County. One child has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Walters, Georgie, born September 16, 18S3. Mr. and Mrs. Walters are members of the Metho- dist Church of Palestine, with which Mr. Wai- ters has been connected for the past thirty years.

WATT, George .- To be born on the land he now owns is a distinction that does not come to every man. The land bought by a father, and developed by him, Is more valuable to the son of the average kind, than any he might buy. George Watt of Honey Creek Township, Craw- ford County, Ill., a prosperous farmer and stock- raiser residing on Section 2S, is no exception to this rule, and he takes pride in the fact that he was born there September 21, 1862, a son of Na- thaniel Watt, now deceased, who was born In Kentucky, in 1829. Nathaniel Watt was reared and educated in his native State, but when a young man he came to Illinois and settled in Honey Creek Township, Crawford County, on 160 acres of timber land. After clearing this property and placing it under cuitivation, he sold it and bought the home now occupied by Mr. George Watt. This consisted originally of 100 acres, but during the remainder of his life he added to his holdings until at the time of his death he had 100 acres, which he had partiy cleared and improved.

Nathaniel Watt was married in Honey Creek Township, in 1859, to Sarah E. Ross, a native of Tennessee, who was reared in that State, but came to Crawford County with her father, James S. Ross, a farmer of Montgomery Township, who cleared off about 60 acres in that Township. Mr.

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and Mrs. Nathaniel Watt were the parents of eight children, three sons and five daughters, and George Watt is the second child. All the children were born in Honey Creek Township. Nathaniel Watt was a Democrat politically, and was a consistent member of the Methodist Church.

George Watt was brought up on the farm which he now occupies, and received his educa- tion in the district schools of his neighborhood, meanwhile helping his father clear the land. On April 9, 1885, he married Lizzie Crum, a native of Honey Creek Township, and a daughter of J. C. Crum, a farmer and early settler of the Township, who was born in Kentucky, but came to Crawford County in young manhood, and lo- cated in Honey Creek Township, where he cleared off about 80 acres. Mr. and Mrs. George Watt have had six children, all born in Honey Creek. Mr. Watt has made many improvements upon his farın, which is in a good state of cul- tivation. He devotes his attention to general farming and stock-raising. Politically he has always been a Democrat, although not an office- seeker.

WATTLEWORTH, John J .- The life of a farmer is one to be envied, in spite of the hard work and constant struggle, for it is so inde- pendent. The man who owns a farm has the means of obtaining a living always at hand, and is not subject to the exactions of a labor market. John J. Wattleworth of Section 9, Oblong Town- ship, is an example of what can be accomplished through industry, enterprise and thrift. He was born on the Isle of Man, December 28, 1836. a son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Cowin) Wattle- worth, both born and reared in the Isle of Man, where they were also married. They were the parents of these children : Cæsar (deceased), Leonora (deceased), John J., and Emily, who still resides in the Isle of Man. The mother died in her native land, and the father of this family and his sons John and Cæsar came to America, in 1856, settling in Ohio, but in March, 1857, they came to Crawford County, Ill., and the three, the father, John and Cæsar, rented the William Hill place in Oblong Township. Later they rented the King farm for about five years. Finally, Sam- uel Wattleworth and son Cæsar bought the James Wilson farm, to which they moved and made it their home for the remainder of their lives, Samuel dying in 1882, and Cæsar in 1900.

John J. Wattleworth was reared in the Isle of Man and was twenty-one years old when the loca- tion of the family was made in Crawford County. In 1864 he married Mary Mikeworth, adopted daughter of David Mikeworth of Robinson, Ill. Mr. and Mrs. Wattleworth became the parents of children as follows: Lenore, Arthur Edward, Agatha M., James Russell and J. Fred, all born in Oblong Township. Shortly after his marriage, Mr. Wattleworth took up his residence on his present farm, which then contained 182 acres, and he made nearly all the improvements on his property which has become under his good man- agement very valuable. Mr. Wattleworth is a

Republican, and has served as School Director. He is a member of the Methodist Church and is a man widely known and respected. He has a farm of 120 acres, upon which there are fifteen producing oil wells.

WEGER, John P., for many years a prominent farmer and stockman of Honey Creek Township, Crawford County, was born in Lawrence County, Ill., April 7, 1839, son of William Weger, who was born in Eastern Tennessee, about 1808. William Weger came to Crawford County with his parents in 1828, and in 1832 he married Elizabeth Highsmith by whom he had ten chil- dren : John W., Melissa, Matilda, Mary E., Mar- garet, Joseph, George R., Eliza A., James Will- iam, and one who died in infancy. After the death of his first wife in 1853, William Weger married Nancy Lackey, and they had four chil- dren : William Jasper, Jesse N., Sarah Ann and Charles S. John P. Weger was reared to farm

life and endured the hardships incident to pio- neer environments, but by working hard he finally secured an excellent farm and made him- self felt in the community. Mr. Weger married in Crawford County, April 2, 1868, Lavina Jones, daughter of Lewis and Polly Jones, born August 6, 1801, and 1807, respectively. Mr. and Mrs. Weger have had five children: Mary Elizabeth, Josephine, John O., Carl Carson and Louisa. He and his wife are both members of the Methodist Church. Fraternally he is a Mason, and was Worthy Master for many years.

WEIRICH, Simon .- To farm successfully and to raise stock economically requires experience and a natural inclination for the work. A farmer is as much a business man as a merchant or a real- estate dealer. Some of the best business men are to be found on the farms in Crawford County, and not in its cities, and Simon Weirich of Mar- tin Township, Section 26, is one of them. He was born in De Kalb County, Ind., February 5, 1852, a son of Isaac Weirich, the latter born in Lebanon County, Pa., February 4, 1826. Isaac Weirich received his early education in Penn- sylvania, but when about eleven years old, his father moved with his family to Ohio, where he bought a farm and the lad continued his educa- tion, in the meantime also learning the shoemak- er's trade, which later he followed in connection with farming. At nineteen years of age he was married to Eliza Reinoehl, who was born Novem- ber 20, 1829, and reared in Pennsylvania. The following children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Weirich : Lucinda, Simon, John Henry, who died in infancy ; Alice, Laura and Emma E. After his marriage, Isaac Weirich moved to De Kalb County, Ind., and bought a farm where his first three children were born. Four years later he came to Illinois with wagons, and settled near New Hebron for a short time and then moved onto Section 26, Martin Township, where he bought 80 acres of land, on which there was a log house. With the exception of ten acres which were cleared, the land was covered with brush and timber, but he cleared it, brought the land

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Illinois, Crawford County historical and biographical, Part 170

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913. cn Publication date: 1909 Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1058

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913. cn
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1058