USA > Illinois > Greene County > Past and present of Greene County, Illinois > Part 54
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY
new store forty by one hundred and thirty- five feet, said to be one of the best of its kind in central Illinois. In November, 1881. Mr. Callaway was united in marriage to Miss Lillian Woolley, a native of Greene county. reared and educated here. her father. N. C. Woolley having been one of the early set- tlers of this portion of the state. They lost their only child in infancy and with this ex- ception theirs has been a happy married life. and Mr. and Mrs. Callaway have made their home a hospitable one, it being a favorite re- sort with their many friends.
Politically Mr. Callaway has been a life- long Republican and though he has never sought or desired office he keeps well in- formed on the issues of the day. manifest- ing a public-spirit citizenship in his interest in political questions. He and his wife hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal church and he served as a member of the building committee at the time of the erec- tion of the new house of worship and was a generous contributor to the fund that was raised for building purposes. Hle belongs to the Masonic fraternity. being affiliated with the blue lodge and chapter at Greenfield and the commandery at Carrollton, while he is also identified with the Mystic Shrine at St. Louis. He has passed through all of the chairs of the lodge and chapter and is now a past master and past high priest. Without extraordinary family or pecuniary advan- tages he seized the opportunity that lay be- fore him and to-day is recognized as a man of sterling ability and high character who has gained success and at the same time wohl the confidence and esteem of all. Greenfield classes him with its representative men und he enjoys in high degree the friendship of those with whom he has been associated as the years have gone by.
PHILLIP BAUER.
No element m our American citizenshdp has been of more value to the country than that furnished by Germany. It is a matter of history that the Teutome race has always been foremost in carrying civilization into the newer and unsettled sections of the world and the representatives of the fatherland have gone to other countries to become law - abiding citizens, active in business and re liable in all life's relations. Phillip Bauer. now well known as a business man of Green- field, where he has been actively engaged in merchandising for thirty-five years, was born in Germany and dates his residence in Illi- nois from 1867. His birth occurred in Hesse-Darmstadt. January 12. 1846. His father, Jacob Bauer, was also a native of Ilesse-Darmstadt and was there reared and married. Miss Elizabeth Hoffman, a native of the same country, becoming his wife. They emigrated to the United States in 1867, settling in Carlinville, Illinois, where they joined his brother. Louis Bauer. The father was a shoemaker and followed that trade in Carlinville until his death, which oc- curred in 1868. His wife survived him and. removing to Greenfield, spent her list days in that city, passing away November 1. 1871. at the home of her son. Phillip and his wife. who cared for her in her declining years. Phillip Bauer was their only son, but he had one sister Bettie, who was the wife of Charles Wang. a merchant of Greenfield, but her death occurred here some years ago.
Phillip Bauer acquired a good common school education in the German language. but is wholly self-educated in the English tongue He learned the shoemaker's trade m Fr- ( rumbach, Hesse-Darmstadt, and m 1807 crossed the Atlantic to the new world.
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locating in Macoupin county. He con- ducted a shoe shop for a time in Carlinville and afterward worked at his trade in Alton and then again went to Carlinville, where he bought and conducted a shoe shop. In 1869 he came to Greenfield, where he began busi- ness on the lot where he is now located. He afterward bought this property and car- ried on shoemaking until about 1887, when he opened a store with a line of boots and shoes. Two years later his store was de- stroyed by fire and in place of the frame building he erected two good brick business houses, one of which he occupies, carrying a large and well selected line of boots and shoes. His stock is thoroughly up-to-date and he has secured a very desirable patron- age, winning success through fair dealing and earnest desire to please his customers. He has also invested in other property here aside from his business block, having pur- chased a residence and built two others.
In 1867 in Carlinville Phillip Bauer was married to Elizabeth Born, a native of Ger- many, born in the same town as her husband and educated in the same school. They have six children : Bettie, the wife of Leon Haven, of Greenfield; George P., who is married and a member of the Metcalf Dry-Goods Company of Greenfield; Lizzie, the wife of R. L. Bowman. a resident farmer of Greene county : Catherine, at home; Fred L., who assists his father in the store; and Reta, a student in the home school. They also lost two children in infancy.
Politically Mr. Bauer is an advocate of the Democracy, supporting the party since casting his first ballot for Samuel J. Tilden. He was elected and served for five years as alderman, acting in that capacity for one year under the old law and for four years under the present city organization. He and
his wife are members of the Evangelical Protestant Lutheran church. They returned to Germany in 1902 after he had been ab- sent from the fatherland for thirty-five years. There they visited the scenes of their child- hood and the friends of their youth, spending three months in a pleasant stay in the fath- erland, during which time they also saw many points of interest in the important cit- ies of Germany. Mr. Bauer, however, is very sincere in his love for the stars and stripes and is thoroughly American in spirit and interests. He is closely identified with the prosperity and the upbuilding of Green- field, having resided here for thirty-five years. He started out in life in the new world a poor man among strangers, but his labor and frugality gained him a start and upon the substantial foundation of enterprise and diligence he has builded his success, ac- cumulating a nice competency, securing a good home and winning an honorable name.
GILBERT S. VOSSELLER.
Gilbert S. Vosseller, who as merchant and banker has a wide acquaintance in Greene county, is honored and respected by all who know him not only because of the success he has achieved, but also by reason of the straightforward business methods he has ever followed. He was born November 30. 1831, in New Jersey, a son of George and Eliza ( Stryker) Vosseller, who were like- wise natives of New Jersey. The family is of Holland lineage and was established in New Jersey at an early epoch in the history of the colonization of the new world. The paternal grandfather, George Vosseller, died in 1845. His son George Vosseller, Jr., was
G. S. VOSSELLER
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born in New Jersey in 1803 and after arriv- ing at years of maturity he wedded Eliza Stryker, who was born in 1805 and was a daughter of Gilbert and Eliza Stryker. The father of Gilbert S. Vosseller passed away during the early boyhood of his son, dying on the ist of August, 1843, but his widow long survived and departed this life in 1875.
In early youth Gilbert S. Vosseller be- came a resident of White Hall and to some extent attended the public schools here, but his educational privileges were somewhat meager, for at an early age he began to earn his own living. He was a youth of fourteen when he secured employment as a farm hand. to which pursuit he devoted his energies for several years. Believing that he would find commercial life more congenial, in 1851 he entered a store in White Hall and for eleven years served as a salesman here, during which time he gained practical experience and comprehensive knowledge of the busi- ness that have well qualified him to carry on merchandising on his own account. On the expiration of his service as a clerk he entered into partnership with .A. Davis, under the firm style of A. Davis & Company in 1862. I. D. Vedder, the venerable justice of the peace of White Hall, was also a member of the firm for two years. In 1878, after a busi- ness experience of sixteen years in which their efforts were crowned with prosperity. Mr. Vosseller purchased the interest of Mr. Davis and soon afterward James Cochrane and Aaron O. Vosseller were admitted to the firm. In 1802 Mr. Cochrane retired and was succeeded by Albert E. Vosseller, son of our subject. Thus since 1851, covering a period of more than half a century, Mr. Vosseller has been continuously identified with mercantile pursuits in White Hall. Farn- est
effort, close application and the
exercise of his native talent- have wan him success and no history of the can- mercial development of this place would be complete without the record of his career. lle became active m the orgamiza tion of the WInte Hall National Bank, which opened its doors for business on the 1st of January, 1904. and was chosen its president
On the 19th of April, 1855. Mr. Vossel- ler was married to Miss Rachel Davis, a native of Greene county. They traveled life's journey happily together for about twenty years and then Mrs. Vosseller was called to her final rest October 8. 1874. They were the parents of nine children, of whom Albert. James and Frank are now living. Mbert is associated with his father in the mercantile business. He is married and has three children : Edna, Clarence and Gilbert. James resides in Jacksonville. where for twelve years he has occupied a position in the Jacksonville National Bank. Ile is married and has one child. Aurelius. Eliza became the wife of Harry Bradbury and died in Minneapolis, Minnesota. July 17. 1804. George G. died at the age of seven years. Frank resides upon the farm near White Hall and has one son, Harold.
In his political views Mr. Vosseller is a Democrat, but has never time nor melination for public office, preferring to concentrate his energies an I attention upon his business interests. Ile is independent in his religions views, his preference being for the Presby ter an church, in which he was reared Me Visseller 15 a notable example of the self nrwdle man and though he started out in life empty handed when Int a young Fid. he lia- amassed quite a fortune through his business. which has been conducted along hi mutable line- He this enjoy- the esteem. respect and confidence of all and is especially hon-
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ored in the business community. He is a small man, plain and unassuming in man- ner, yet his genuine worth has won for him the good will and high regard of those with whom he has been associated. He has built for himself an enviable reputation second to none in the county and through perseverance has gained a foremost position in mercantile and financial circles through a course that never seeks nor requires disguise.
RICHARD C. FISHER.
Richard C. Fisher, who is now living a retired life in Greenfield, was long identified with agricultural pursuits in Illinois, farm- ing at different times in Sangamon and Jer- sey counties. His residence in the state dates from 1845 and in Greene county since 1874. The development of Illinois has been so rapid as to seem almost marvelous, for it is within the memory of Mr. Fisher and other early pioneers that all this section of the country was largely unimproved, the work of civilization and progress being scarcely begun.
He was born in Boundbrook, New Jer- sey July 10, 1827, and his father, William B. Fisher, was also a native of New Jersey, and in that state the grandfather, Isaac Fisher, was born. The great-grandfather, Hon. Jeremiah Fisher, was one of the prom- inent men of New Jersey, serving in the leg- islature prior to the Revolutionary war and taking an active part in mokdling the affairs of the colony. Ile was a minister of the Presbyterian church and through his labors contributed to the moral development of that part of the country. It was in New Jersey that' he reared his family and there his de-
scendants remained for some time. Our sub- ject's great-great-grandfather, Henderich Fisher, came to America prior to 1700 and landed in New York. In 1703 he purchased what became of the old Fisher homestead of the original proprietor, William Cockwood, who in the year 1682 had bought nine hun- dred acres on the south side of Raritan river at Boundbrook, New Jersey, of the English government. This was the old home of the Fisher family for over a century.
WV. B. Fisher spent the days of his boy- hood and youth in New Jersey and was mar- ried there to Catherine S. Coriell, also de- scended from an old Revolutionary family. Mr. Fisher began farming in his native state and in 1845 he came to Illinois, settling in Jersey county in the city of Jerseyville. There he purchased a claim and later he en- tered land in Sangamon county from the government, developing therefrom a good farm, on which he reared his family. He died prior to the Civil war and his wife sur- vived him for a number of years. Richard C. Fisher is the eldest in a family of nine children : William and Mary, both deceased; Mrs. Sarah Christopher, who resides in Kan- sas ; Isaac Fisher, a resident of Waverly, Ill- inois ; Mrs. Emeline Hatfield, who died in Kansas: Mrs. Eliza Jane Burch, a resident of Virden, Illinois; Mrs. Ella Dupy, of Waverly, Illinois ; and Charles A. Fisher, of Litchfield, Illinois.
Richard C. Fisher was reared to man- hood in Jersey county and is largely self-ed- ucated, for his advantages in youth were very meager. He was a student in an old log schoolhouse seated with board benches and supplied with other primitive furnish- ings. The work of the home farm became familiar to him in his youth and he gained practical knowledge of the vocation which
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he made his life work. He was married ner Jerseyville in 1852 to Miss Catherme Chris- topher, who died in the year 1881.
Following his marriage Mr. Fisher lo- cated in Greenfield. He bought and owned a farm in Sangamon county and also had a tract of land in Jersey county, together with eight hundred acres in Nebraska. At one time his landed possessions comprised over twenty-three hundred acres. lle entered one thousand and forty acres in Nebraska and the remainder of his farm property was secured through purchase. He has been a very active and successful business man, en- ergetic in his agricultural pursuits and as the result of his capable direction of his bus iness affairs he has won a large measure of success.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Fisher have been born three children : Clara MeClintock, de- ceased : Mary C., now the wife of Jacob Dohn, of Greenfield: and Hattie Dell Rohrer, of Burk, Idaho. Mr. Fisher was again married in Greenfield, his second union being with Eliza Jane Edwards, a native of Illinois, who was reared in this county. She first became the wife of David Harvey Ed- wards and following his demise gave her hand in marriage to Mr. Fisher.
Mr. Fisher's study of the political ques tions of the day led him to give his support to the Republican party for a number of years, but he is now identified with the Pro- hibition party, feeling that the temperance question is one of the dominant issues be- fore the people of the country to-day. Both Mr. and Mrs. Fisher hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal church of Green field. Through fifty-nine years of residence in the state he has seen central Illinois de- velop from a wilderness and swamp to one of the richest agricultural districts of the en-
the country, also famous is usted xong renter. In this butthen he was deeply interested and his labors proved vers prati iving as dominant elements in wallmas the success which is the god of every man's en- deavor.
LUTHER LYNN.
Luther Lynn, who came to Carrollton al 1864 and entered upon his business career as a clerk in the store of Robert Clark, has steadily worked his way upward until he stands at the head of one of the leading de- partment stores of Carrollton, and his en- terprise has been a valued factor in the com mercial development and consecutive busi- ness progress of the city.
A native of Kingsport. Tennessee, he was born on the 15th of July, 1847, and is a son of William Lynn, a native of Ireland. His grandfather. John Lynn, also born on the Emerald Isle, came to America about 1796, only a short time after the establish- ment of the republic. He resided for a year at Fredericksburg. Virginia, and then re- moved to Tennessee, where he spent his re- maining days as a merchant and plinter. William Lynn came to the United States in carly boyhood and throughout his busi- ness career was a merchant, conducting a dry-goods business for a long period in Kingsport. Tennessee. There he met and married Miss Mary Everett, a native of that city, and they become the parents of seven children.
Luther Lynn, the youngest of the family. spent the days of his early youth under the parental roof and in 1804. when seventeen years of age, he started out in lie on his owi account. miking his way northward to
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
Carrollton, where he had relatives living and where he attended school for a time. In that city he secured a position as clerk in a dry- goods store and was employed in the ca- pacity of salesman by various houses until the spring of 1876, when he entered the store of McFarland & Robinson. The following year Mr. Robinson retired and in January, 1878, Charles H. Weagley entered into part- nership with Mr. McFarland under the firm name of McFarland & Weagley. Four years later the firm was changed to McFarland, Weagley & Company, Mr. Lynn becoming one of the partners. In January, 1886, Mr. Weagley retired and business was carried on under the firm style of McFarland & Lynn for six years or until 1892, when the name was changed to the McFarland & Lynn Dry Goods Company. In 1897 it was changed to Lynn, Davis & Fain, and in 1903 the business was incorporated under the style of Lynn, Fain & Davis Dry Goods Company, with Luther Lynn as president ; Richard G. Fain, vice-president ; and Ed- ward L. Davis, secretary and treasurer. It is now conducted under this management and the business has become so extensive that their establishment ranks with the lead- ing commercial enterprises of the county. They carry a large line of dry goods, boots and shoes and men and women's wearing ap- parel, and their trade has constantly grown, fostered by progressive and modern busi- ness methods and the enterprising spirit of the members of the firm. They occupy three adjoining stores with a frontage of sixty feet on West Main street, extending from the northeast corner of the square, and their stock occupies two floors of the corner store. They have done a most satisfactory business and their sales annually return to them a good income.
In November, 1872, Mr. Lynn was united in marriage to Miss Annie E. Carter, of Greenfield, Illinois, who died in August, 1901. For his second wife he chose Addie Hubbard, a native of this county and a daughter of William Hubbard and a sister of William A. Hubbard, editor of the Gazette.
Fraternally Mr. Lynn is an Odd Fellow, and politically a Republican. He has served as alderman but prefers to promote the city's interests in other ways than as a public of- ficial. His co-operation, however, can al- ways be counted upon to further any move- ment for the general good and he has been the champion of many measures which have had a far-reaching and beneficial influence. As he has prospered in his business he has made judicious investments in real estate and he now owns valuable property adjoining the corporation limits of Carrollton, as well as his attractive home in the city. He stands to-day as a splendid type of a self-made man, watchful of opportunity and steadily ad- vancing in his business career, his history proving what can be accomplished through determined and honorable purpose, guided by sound judgment.
CHARLES BRADSHAW.
Charles Bradshaw. the editor of the Car- rollton Patriot, and the president of the Illinois Press Association for the year 1904. was born in Sheffield, Illinois, December 30. 1856. His father, James F. Bradshaw, was a native of Kentucky, learned the cabinet- maker's trade in early life and in connec- tion with following that pursuit became a furniture dealer. He married Mary M.
CHARLES BRADSHAW
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
Smith, who was born in Fulton county, Illinois, and his death occurred in 1895. Mrs. Bradshaw resides with her son.
In the common schools Charles Brad- shaw acquired his education, attending at Kirkwood, where the parental home was established in his early boyhood. A natural predilection for journalistic work was mani- fest in his early life. He was local corre- spondent for country papers and afterward became local reporter for a town paper be- tween the years 1876 and 1881, and on the Ist of January, 1882. he purchased a half interest in the Kirkwood Leader at Kirk- wood, Illinois, of which he subsequently became sole owner. He continued the publi- cation of that paper until the spring of 1888 and on the oth of April of the same year he purchased from Clement L. Clapp The Pa- triot of Carrollton. Careful management enabled him in a few years to pay off all in- debtedness and his ownership of The Patriot has proved a profitable investment. With a fair local advertising patronage and a con- stantly growing circulation he has made his business a success, at the same time giving to the public a journal which is creditable alike to the city and the district.
In April, 1892, he was elected to fill a vacancy in the Carrollton board of education and in April, 1893, was re-elected for the full term of three years. He joined the Illi- nois Press Association in 1883, the earliest date at which he was eligible to membership. and he has attended every annual meeting of the association with one exception in twenty- one years. He was elected its president at Cairo in May, 1903, and presided at the Galesburg meeting in February, 1904. 11is political affiliation he has given to the Repub- fican party and his religions faith is indie ited by his membership in the Baptist church
THOMAS C. HUSSEY
Thomas C Hussey, the oldest gram shipper along the hne of the Chicago & Al- ton Railroad, having continued in the bust ness for thirty-seven consecutive years, bas gained the success which always crowns earnest, persistent effort, when supple- mented by keen discrimination and sagacity. Without any family or pecumary advantages to aid him at the outset of his career he worked his way steadily upward and is to day one of the most respected and valued cit- izens of Carrollton.
A native of Highland county, Ohio, The mas C. Hussey was born February 16. 1841, his parents being William and Ann ( Clauser) Hussey, the former a native of Ilighland county, Ohio, and the latter of Ross county, that state. The ancestry of the family in America com be traced back to the time of the arrival of the Mayflower off the coast of Massachusetts, one of its passengers being the progenitor of the Hussey family in the new world. The grandfather. Joshua Hussey, was born in New England and at an early day in the settlement of Ohio went to that state, settling in what is now High- land county. He cast in his lot among its pioneer settlers, his nearest neighbor being five miles away. The county wis heavily timbered and in the forest were wolves and other wild animals, while wild game could be had in abundance There were many hardships and trials to be endured And the family lived in true pioneer style, the grand- Either following the occupation of forming. He was very successful for his time and he ided materially in opening up Highland county for the purposes of civilization. His wife bore the maiden name of Sangh Cox and was a native of South Carolina
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
William Hussey was reared amid fron- tier scenes and environments and inherited a part of the old family homestead in Ohio. He also received from his brother the latter's share of the original homestead and later he purchased land until he had three hundred acres, constituting a fine farm, which he placed under a high state of cultivation. He was quite successful in his agricultural pur- suits and was accounted one of the public- spirited men of his community, ever look- ing to the best interests of the county. He married Miss Ann Clauser and as the years passed they became the parents of nine children.
Thomas C. Hussey, the fourth member of the family, acquired his education in the public schools, which he attended through the winter months, and in the summer sea- sons he aided in the labors of the farm. He remained in Ohio until 1861, when he came to Greene county, Illinois, with his brother Simon, who had located in the county four years previously and was engaged in farm- ing. At the time of Thomas Hussey's ar- rival they purchased a steam thresher, the first in the county, and continued its opera- tion for five years, making money in this undertaking. They then bought a portable sawmill and sawed a large amount of walnut timber on the Eldred property. In 1867 they built an elevator on the railroad in the east- ern part of the town, near the Chicago & Alton depot, and Thomas C. Hussey has since engaged in the grain trade, covering a period of thirty-seven years, making him the oldest shipper in years of continuous busi- ness on this road. His brother died in 1872, the partnership between them continuing to that time with mutual pleasure and profit. The brother left Three children, one of whom i. Horace, now a resident of Quincy, Illinois.
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