USA > Illinois > Marshall County > Past and present of Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois > Part 34
USA > Illinois > Putnam County > Past and present of Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois > Part 34
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CHARLES DAVIS, M. D.
Dr. Charles Davis, who for many years was engaged in the practice of medicine in Marshall county as a representative of the homeopathic school, and who died June 28, 1891, was born in Columbia, Herkimer county, New York, June 1, 1814. The common schools of the Empire state afforded him his early educational privileges. He came to Illinois in 1836, and though the Black Hawk war had occurred about four years before, there were still some Indians who lin -. gered in the state and many evidences of pioneer life were to be seen. He engaged first in farming in Fulton and in Peoria counties, and in the spring of 1850 he removed to Henry. He pur- sued both an eclectic and homeopathic course of medicine in Cincinnati, Ohio, graduating from the Eclectic Medical Institute, March 5, 1850. For many years he practiced successfully in Henry, and had a large business as a general practitioner, his skill and capability being widely recognized by the members of the profession and the general public. Prior to coming to Henry he had prac- ticed allopathy for five years.
On the 1st of November, 1845, Dr. Davis was united in marriage to Miss Aurelia Williams, a native of Ohio, born August 8, 1822. There were five children of this marriage, of whom two are now living: Maria L., of Henry; and O. C. Davis, of Racine, Wisconsin. The mother died in Henry, January 25, 1857, and her death was deeply regretted by many friends, for she dis- played sterling traits of character, and her good
DR. CHARLES DAVIS.
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qualities of heart and mind endeared her to all with whom she came in contaet. He was again married, November 18, 1857, his second union being with Polly Ayles, by whom he had two children, but both died before reaching the age of one year. The wife and mother died May 9, 1899, at the age of eighty years.
Dr. Davis passed away on the 28th of June, 1891, at the age of seventy-seven years. He had served as a school director and was otherwise actively and helpfully interested in public affairs whereby the county was benefited and its interests materially advanced. His religious faith was that of the Swedenborgian church. Although fifteen years have now come and gone since he departed this life, he is yet held in grateful remembrance in many a household where he was the beloved family physician. He was a man of strong in- tellectuality and marked individuality, and he left behind an honored nanie.
LUKE GREGORY.
The old home farm of the Gregory family is now owned and operated by Luke Gregory. It is an excellent property of eighty acres situated on section 10, Whitefield township, and is now under a high state of cultivation, responding readily to the care and labor that are bestowed upon it. It was upon this farm that Luke Gregory was born on the 3d of April, 1856. His father, Francis Gregory, was a native of Ohio and came to Illi- nois in the '40s, settling in Peoria county, where he secured a tract of land and began farming. He lived there but a few years, however, and in 1850 removed to Whitefield township, Marshall county, where he spent his remaining days. He always carried on general agricultural pursuits in order to support his family and he gained a good living through his unfaltering industry and perseverance. He wedded Sarah Barrett, a native of Virginia, and his death occurred on the 11th of August, 1874, when he was fifty-eight years of age. His widow still survives and now makes her home with her son Ross in Adams county, Iowa. In the fam- ily were five children, as follows: George, who carries on general agricultural pursuits in Iowa ; Helen, also living in that state; Mary, who died at the age of ten years ; Luke, of this review ; and Ross, who is a stock farmer of Iowa.
Throughout his entire life Luke Gregory has remained upon the old homestead farm and at an
early age began assisting in the work of field and meadow. He also attended the schools through the winter seasons and after eompleting his edu- cation he concentrated his undivided attention up- on the farm work, which he has since mnade his life occupation. The place comprises eighty acres of rich and arable land and the fields are now highly cultivated, so that good crops are annually harvested. The improvements, too, upon the place are of a substantial and attractive character, and the careful supervision of the owner is indicated by the air of neatness and thrift which pervades every department of the farm.
In 1878 Mr. Gregory was united in marriage to Miss Jennie Smith, of Whitefield, and they have one son, Clyde Gregory, twenty-six years of age, who is living in Whitefield township, where he owns one hundred and sixty acres of land. He married Edith Quinn and they have one son, Law- rence. Mr. Gregory has served as school director for three years and is interested in the cause of education and its advancement. His political sup- port is given to the republican party and he is re- miss in no duty of citizenship, but is alert and enterprising and endorses every movement that promises to beenfit the community at large. A so- cial, kindly nature has gained him many friends and he has become widely known in the county during a residence here of a half century, in which time he has witnessed much of the growth and development of this part of the state. He has seen many changes made in the methods of farming as the improved machinery of today has supplanted the crude implements of earlier years. He has also seen the pioneer homes replaced by fine farm residences, while the work of cultivation has gained for this district the reputation which is borne in other sections of the state, making Il- linois one of the greatest agricultural districts of the Union.
FRANCIS FREDERICK THIERRY.
Francis Frederick Thierry, who owns and oper- ates a farm of one hundred and sixty acres on section 19, Evans township, was born in Gallia county, Ohio, in 1845. There are comparatively few men of his years who are numbered among the veterans of the Civil war, but Mr. Thierry was a soldier at the time when the Union was imperiled. His father, Joseph N. Thierry, was also a native of Gallia county, born in 1816, while
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the grandfather of our subject was a Frenchman, a native of Paris. Joseph N. Thierry followed the occupation of farming as a life work and died in Ohio at the venerable age of eighty-seven years. He was a member of the United Brethren church, as was his wife, who bore the maiden name of Sarah Elizabeth Dillman. She was born in Brack- en county, Kentucky, and died a year prior to the death of her husband. Her father, Frederick Dill- man, became a farmer of La Salle county, Illi- nois, and passed away when eighty-four years of age. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Thierry were born ten children : Mary Frances, the wife of Silas Dickey, of Gallia county, Ohio; Narragansett Caroline, the wife of Alvie Dickey, a resident of Illinois; Fran- cis, of this review; Alvarado Lavega, now deceas- ed; Lorena Georgiana, the deceased wife of Ansel Kerns; Daniel Webster, who married Ellen Gools- by, a resident of Ohio; Joseph Noble; Zulika Zimro, the wife of Charles Clark, a resident of Mountain View, Oklahoma; Ansel Blake, who is a brakeman on the Illinois Central Railroad and resides in Wenona ; and Harriett Content, the wife of Jacob Kerns, a resident of Thayer county, Ne- braska.
Francis F. Thierry acquired his education in the schools of Ohio and when a youth of but seven- teen years became a soldier of the Union army. He first joined the One Hundred and Seventeenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry at Camp Portsmouth, Ohio, on the 15th of September, 1862, being mus- tered in by S. Beall, U. S. A. He afterward be- longed to Company G of the First Ohio Heavy Artillery, serving under Lieutenant Francis Wal- ter and Captain Jones. He was mustered ont at Knoxville, Tennessee, June 17, 1865, by Thomas McDermott, captain of the United States Volun- teers, First Cavalry Division of the District of Columbia. He was thus only about twenty years of age at the time he received his discharge and in the meantime he had for about three years served his country as a faithful defender of the Union cause, his loyalty and bravery being equal to that of many a veteran of twice his years.
Mr. Thierry has been a resident of Illinois since 1868, in which year he located in Evans town- ship. He was married May 25, 1871, to .Miss Mary Loretta Wilson, who was born in Belmont county, Ohio, in 1851, a daughter of Joshua and Rosanna Wilson, who were Quaker people and be- came residents of Marshall county in her girl-
hood days, settling in Evans township. Mrs. Thierry was therefore educated in the district schools of Evans township. By her marriage she has become the mother of three children: Flor- ence Lorena, who was born June 2, 1878, and died September 3, 1881; Wollard Cadet, who married Wilma Luetta Griffin and is a farmer of Roberts township; and Homer H., who is living with his parents.
At the time of their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Thierry began their domestic life upon a farm in Evans township and although he was without cap- ital at the time he has made steady progress in his business career and is now the owner of one hun- dred and sixty acres of rich and valuable land, from which he annually harvests good crops. His political support is given to the republican party and his wife in religious faith is a Presbyterian. Mr. Thierry manifests the same spirit of loyalty in matters relating to local advancement and national welfare as he did when he followed the old flag upon the battlefields of the south. Moreover, he has made an excellent record in business, for his advancement is the natural sequence of earnest, persistent labor guided by practical comr 1 sense.
JONATHAN LONG.
Few men have more vivid recollection of the early days in Putnam county than has Jonathan Long, an honored pioneer settler whose memory forms a connecting link between the primitive past and the progressive present. He came to Illinois when it was upon the frontier and when wolves and catamounts were numerous in the forest and upon the prairie, while herds of deer could be seen almost daily. Little change had been made in the surface of the country, which largely re- mained just as it came from the hand of nature. The few homes of the settlers were scattered over the prairie and there were no railroad facilities to connect the district with the outside world. The country was crossed and recrossed with sloughs and in many places was swampy, it being necessary to drain before much could be done in the way of cultivation. Into such a district came Mr. Long, casting in his lot with the early settlers and sharing with them in the hardships and pri- vations incident to pioneer life. At the same time he bore his full share in the work of improvement and progress, and thus deserves classification with the founders and upbuilders of the county. He
JONATHAN LONE
MRS JJONATHAN LOS
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PAST AND PRESENT OF MARSHALL AND PUTNAM COUNTIES.
now resides on a farm on section 15, Senachwine township, Putnam county, and has passed the eighty-first milestone on life's journey, having been born in West Virginia, February 26, 1825. His father, Levi Long, was also a native of that state, born August 9, 1779, while his death oc- curred in Putnam county, May 12, 1851. His wife, who in her maidenhood was Lydia Stiles, was born in West Virginia, February 16, 1783, and died October 6, 1833, in the Old Dominion. For his second wife Mr. Long ehose Sua Dunn, who was born in Virginia, February 10, 1806, and died in Putnam county.
Jonathan Long was the youngest of a family of nine children, and as far as he knows is the only one living. Lyle, born December 12, 1803, passed away in Iowa. Elizabeth, born June 19, 1805, also died in the Hawkeye state. Mary, born July 21, 1808, died in this county. Levi departed this life in Ohio. Stephen died in infancy. Sarah passed away in Indiana. Lucretia died in infancy, and Lyda has not been heard from in some years, so that it is not known whether or not she is living.
It was in 1844 that Levi Long brought his fam- ily to Illinois, settling on a tract of land of eighty acres that is now the home of his son Jonathan. All was timber, and in the midst of the forest they built a little log cabin, in which they lived for several years, when a more modern and commodi- ous house was crected. The land was purchased from the government, and, in consequence, was in a raw condition, not a furrow having been turned nor an improvemet been made. Mr. Long continued to reside with his parents until they passed away, after which he carried on the home farm on his own account and has since resided here. He was early trained to the arduous work of developing a new farm at a time when much of the labor was done by hand. The scythe and sickle figured as important farm implements, and all of the corn husking now done bv machinery was done by hand.
On the 4th of August, 1850, Mr. Long was united in marriage to Miss Helen Frazie, who was born in New York, May 17, 1831, and has now for more than a half century been to him a faith- ful companion and helpmate on life's journey. Their marriage was blessed with the following children : Almedia, who was born August 2, 1852, and is now deceased; Mary, who was born Novem- ber 26, 1855, and is the wife of Henry Linkier, a
resident of Baldwin, Montana; William, who was born June 9, 1858, and is carrying on the work of the home farm; Rachel, who was born June 21, 1861, and is the wife of Elijah Montgomery, who resides at Bureau Junction, Illinois; Viola, who was born May 7, 1864, and is the wife of Perry Kane, living in Bureau county; and Beldon, who was born December 28, 1870, and wedded Mary Williams. He, too, is living on the old home- stead.
For many years Mr. Long continued actively in the farm work and is now the owner of one hun- dred and eighty acres of land in Bureau county. He likewise has two hundred aeres where he lives on section 15, Senachwine township, and another tract of one hundred and sixty acres a mile east in the same township. His possessions are there- fore extensive, and from his farm property he derives an excellent income. His realty is the vis- ible evidence of his life of industry, thrift and capable management, for all that he possesses has been acquired through his own labors. In the early days he aided in cutting down the timber and in breaking the prairie. He did not care to indulge much in hunting, but it would have been possible for him to obtain a deer any day. The first log house built upon the farm was con- structed of hewed timbers cut from his place, and it was necessary to clear away the trees and brush before the plowing could be done. Mr. Long has witnessed remarkable changes in the methods of farm life as modern machinery .has been introduced and scientific investigation have brought a broader knowledge of the needs of the fields and the best methods of earrying on farm work. He has also kept abreast with the work of improvement and has long been accounted one of the substantial and prominent agriculturists of his community. In politics he has ever given his support to the democracy, yet has always been without desire for office.
HENRY MERDIAN.
Henry Merdian, who resides on section 9, White- field township, owns and operates two good farms in Marshall county, one comprising one hundred and sixty acres and the other eighty acres. His life has been given to general agricultural pur- suits and his places are both under a high state of cultivation, giving indieation of the careful super- vision of the owner. Mr. Merdian was born in Henry township on the 2d of February, 1867, and
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is a son of Johann Joseph and Mary Ursula (Bur- gen) Merdian. The father was born on the Rhine in Bavaria, Germany, November 18, 1811, and in that locality spent the days of his boyhood and youth. At the age of sixteen he entered upon a regular apprenticeship to the wagon maker's trade and thoroughly mastered the business in principle and detail. He was a young man of twenty-five years when in 1836 he emigrated to the new world, working at the wagon maker's trade in New York until his removal to the middle west. While yet residing in New York city he wedded Miss Bur- gen on the 24th of January, 1838. She was born in Lothringen, France, February 9, 1822, and five years after their marriage they came to Marshall county, Illinois, stopping at the old landing about one mile below the present city of Henry. Two children had been born to them in the east and Mr. Merdian thought that in this new and rapidly growing country he could better provide for his family. However, he was greatly discouraged on his arrival from the fact that he could find noth- ing to do and had no capital with which to set himself up in business. He therefore determined to return to New York and work again at his trade, but not having money sufficient to pay the expenses of the family on a return trip, he left his wife and children in Marshall county. A short time after his arrival in New York he met his wife's brother who after hearing his story, kindly loaned him five hundred dollars. He then hastened back to join his family and he invested a part of the five hundred dollars in forty acres of land, which became the nucleus of his large landed pos- sessions which he owned at the time of his death. He at once began the improvement of his place and while carrying on the farm work he also con- tinued to work at his trade, conducting a shop on his farm. He was very diligent and his industry and frugality enabled him in the course of years to add to his possessions from time to time until he had valuable farm property in several localities in central Illinois. He raised both stock and grain and his consecutive labor was the secret of his success.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Merdian were born eleven children of whom two died in early youth. The parents lived to celebrate their golden wedding an- niversary in 1888 and it was a most enjoyable oc- casion to all present. They had spent forty-five of the fifty years in Marshall county and were there-
fore widely known to the early settlers, who joined with them on that happy occasion, where many a tale was told of the early days and the ex- periences which came in pioneer times. Political- ly Mr. Merdian was a democrat and he and his wife were devoted members of the Catholic church, He contributed generously toward the building of the German Catholic church at Henry and in that faith he died March 8, 1893. He was respected and honored by all who knew him and were fa- miliar with his life history, and. he left to his family not only a generous competence, but also an untarnished name and an example that is in- deed well worthy of emulation.
Henry Merdian, whose name introduces this record, has been a life-long resident of Marshall county. He was reared to the occupation of farm- ing, which he has made his life work. He in- herited from his father a goodly property, and in its management and care he has displayed excellent executive ability and business acumen. He now owns two farms, one of one hundred and sixty acres and the other of eighty acres, his home be- ing on section 9, Whitefield township. He also owns about thirty acres of timber land in this township. Here are found substantial buildings standing in the midst of well tilled fields. Am- ple shelter is afforded for grain and stock and the place is conveniently divided by well kept fences.
Mr. Merdian has been married twice. On the 21st of January, 1893, he wedded Miss Christina Bogner, of Whitefield township, a daughter of Louis Bogner. Unto them was born a daughter, Mary Christina Columbia, now twelve years of age. In 1902 Mr. Merdian was again married, his second union being with Gertrude Bogner, by whom he has two children, Dorothy and Leonard L.
In his political views Mr. Merdian is a demo- crat and has served as school trustee for eight years, but has never sought or desired office. He is a communicant of the Catholic church, in the faith of which he was reared, and he has been a champion of all movements and measures for the material, intellectual and moral progress of the
JOHN J. HARTLEY.
John J. Hartley, proprietor of a meat market in Henry, which business he has conducted suc- cessfully since 1896, was born in this city in 1868, his parents being James and Ellen (Fitzgibbons)
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Hartley, both of whom were natives of Ireland. The father came to the United States when a boy with his parents, Philip and Mary Hartley, and after arriving at years of maturity he was mar- ried to Ellen Fitzgibbons, who left her native country with her parents in her girlhood days and became a resident of Chicago. Both were mem- bers of the Catholic church. Mr. Hartley died in 1880, but the mother is still living at the age of sixty-six years. In their family were seven chil- dren.
John J. Hartley, the second in order of birth, attended the public schools, was reared under the parental roof and in early life learned and fol- lowed the butchering business, establishing a mar- ket of his own in 1896 and conducting it with continuous and gratifying success since that time. He now has a well equipped shop and enjoys a liberal patronage, which is accorded him by reason of his moderate prices, his straightforward deal- ing and his earnest desire to please his customers.
Mr. Hartley was married in 1899 to Miss Julia A. Kline, a daughter of Nicholas and Lizzie Kline. She was born in Putnam county in 1874 and has become the mother of two children: Helen Imelda and Lillian Meryl. The parents hold membership in St. Joseph's Catholic church and Mr. Hartley is connected with the Modern Woodmen of Amer- ica, while his political allegiance is given to the democracy. His entire life has been passed in Henry and that he has been worthy the respect and esteem of his fellowmen is indicated by the fact that many of his stanchest friends are those wlio have known him from his boyhood days to the present time.
LEWIS J. HODGE.
Lewis J. Hodge finds an appropriate place in the history of those men of business and enter- prise in the state of Illinois whose force of char- acter, whose sterling integrity, whose fortitude amid discouragements, whose good sense in the management of complicated affairs and marked success in establishing and bringing to comple- tion schemes of trade and profit have contributed in an eminent degree to the development of the vast resources of this noble commonwealth. His career has not been helped by accident or for- tunate circumstances, by wealth or family or powerful friends. He is, in the broadest sense of the term, a self-made man who has been both
the architect and builder of his own fortunes, and now, having retired from active life, is en- joying the fruits of his former toil.
A native of Monroe county, Ohio, Mr. Hodge was born January 1, 1841, and is a son of James and Margaret A. (Wilson) Hodge. The father was born near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the mother's birth occurred on the ocean while her parents were on the voyage from Nova Scotia to this country. The grandfather, Samuel Hodge, was a soldier of the war of 1812, and removed from Pennsylvania to Ohio at an early day, where he resided until called from this life. James Hodge became a builder and contractor, and in 1853 removed to Illinois, settling in Magnolia. Two years later, in 1855, he came to Wenona and erected a planing mill here, carrying on the business until his death, February 7, 1887. His widow died November 30, 1900. They were the parents of eight children, of whom three are now living: Lewis J., of this review; George L., a resident of La Salle, Illinois; and Mrs. Eva Mc- Clanahan, of Chicago.
Lewis J. Hodge is indebted to the public school system of Wenona for the educational privileges he enjoyed, and after putting aside his text-books he worked with his father in the planing mill until after the Civil war broke out. He had watched with interest the progress of events in the south and noted the threatening attitude of certain southern states, and on the 25th of July, 1861, unable to content himself longer at home while the Union was imperiled, he enlisted in the Forty-second Regimental Band and served with the Department of the Missouri until honorably discharged at St. Louis on the 24th of February, 1862. He went with Hunter to relieve Fremont at Wilson's creek and was on active duty in the southwest.
Following his discharge Mr. Hodge returned home and was appointed assistant postmaster at Wenona, serving under S. J. Taylor during the years 1863 and 1864. He then formed a partner- ship with his father in the planing mill and lumber business, which connection was continued until the fall of 1878, when he sold out. After the failure of John A. McCall & Company, bank- ers in 1878, he turned his attention to the bank- ing business, establishing the Howe, Hodge & Ralston bank. He was thus identified with the financial interests of the county until 1881, when
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