USA > Illinois > Marshall County > Past and present of Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois > Part 47
USA > Illinois > Putnam County > Past and present of Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois > Part 47
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many years he successfully conducted a dairy business, milking cows and making butter, and he found it a profitable source of income.
On the 19th of March, 1863, Mr. Fisher wedded Miss Mary E. Skeel, a daughter of Linus B. Skeel, who was one of the early set- tlers of Putnam county. Further mention is made of the Skeel family in connection with the history of Lewis E. Skeel of Hennepin on another page of this work. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Fisher have been born five children, four of whom are yet living, but they lost their first born in infancy. The others are: Arthur L., Theresa V., at home; Elmer A., who is in Britt, Iowa; and Estella M., the wife of Dr. E. L. Fulton, a resident of Wich- ita, Kansas.
Mr. Fisher and his family are members of the Congregational church and take an active and helpful interest in its work, while to its support they are generous contributors. In 1904 Mr. and Mrs. Fisher attended the fourth world's Sunday school convention held at Jerusalem and while abroad visited the Madeira Islands, Egypt, Rome, Athens, Gibraltar and many other places of in- terest. While on the trip Mr. Fisher wrote letters to the Granville Echo, which were probably read by more people than anything ever published in that paper. He is a man of more than ordinary intelligence and education, has always been a broad reader and has kept in touch with the trend of modern thought.
In his political views he is a stalwart repub- lican and, keeping well informed on the issues of the day, is always ready to support his position by intelligent argument. He has served as road com- missioner and assessor and three times has been a delegate to the state convention of his party. In the summer of 1906 he was a delegate to the senatorial and representative convention and is recognized as one of the strong political workers of his district, desiring rather to secure political honors for others than to obtain office himself. His interest is that of a public-spirited citizen, who recognizes that it is the duty as well as the privilege of every American to thus uphold the principles in which he believes. He cast his first presidential ballot for John C. Fremont and has voted for each republican nominee at the head of the ticket since that time. Viewed in a per- sonal light Mr. Fisher has made an excellent rec- ord as a man and citizen. In all of his business
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dealings he has been found thoroughly honorable and reliable, his probity standing as an unques- tioned faet in his eareer. He has never know- ingly wronged any man nor taken advantage of the necessities of another in a business transae- tion. His support has been given to many pro- gressive publie movements and the community recognizes in him a man of worth and value, whose influenee is ever found on the side of right, truth, justiee and improvement. Mr. Fisher is also a great temperanee worker and is in hopes of the work eoming to a completion some day soon.
GEORGE E. SPARLING.
George E. Sparling, who follows farming on section 21, Senachwine township, and who is proprietor of the Undereliff hotel, was born within a half mile of his present residence, November 1, 1843, and with the exception of three years and seven months spent in the army his home has al- ways been in this locality. He attended the eoun- try schools and also had the benefit of a short . course of instruction in the seminary at Henry,. Illinois. When quite young he began work upon his father's farm and made a hand at plowing or driving a horse when eight years old. Since that time he has been more or less closely eonneeted with agricultural interests and at the age of eighteen years he enlisted as a member of Com- pany C, One Hundred and Thirteenth Illinois Infantry, known as the Board of Trade regiment. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant and after serving his term with that eommand he re-enlisted for one hundred days' service as a member of Company B, One Hundred and Thirty-ninth Illi- nois Infantry. He was mustered into the United States scrviee with the latter regiment, October 1, 1862, and his enlistment papers bore the sig- nature of Abraham Lincoln, and are therefore highly prized. He proved a faithful soldier, al- ways loyal to the cause which he espoused and displayed valor upon many a southern battle- field.
After his return from the army Mr. Sparling worked upon the home farm until twenty-three years of age, when, desiring that his labors should more directly benefit himself, he rented land and engaged in farming on his own account for seven or eight years. He then purchased two hundred aeres of land, where he still lives, known as the Silas Loek farm. It had been settled in a very
early day, and the old house, which was built by Mr. Lock, still stood on the place at that time, and in fact remained the residence of Mr. Spar- ling for ten years. He then ereeted a beautiful frame house, one of the finest in the township, and in this home is now pleasantly located. In 1882 he crected a hotel on the bank of Senaeh- wine lake, and for eleven years was proprietor of and condueted the Undereliff hotel. People came from long distances to enjoy an outing here and to engage in hunting and fishing in the district. At the present time Mr. Sparling leases the hotel and oceupies his beautiful country home. That he has prospered in his undertakings is indicated by the fact that he is now the owner of eight hundred and twenty aeres of land, all in one body. There is no rieher or more productive soil for agricultural purposes than is to be found in this part of Illinois, and the farm of Mr. Sparling is therefore a very desirable one, re- sponding readily to the care and labor which is bestowed upon it.
On the 1st of November, 1866,, was celebrated the marriage of George E. Sparling and Miss Carrie I. Bagley, who was born in Fulton county, Illinois, September 3, 1848. Her father, Nelson Bagley, was born at Crown Point, New York, in 1807, and died at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Sparling, when eighty-seven years of age. His wife bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Moran, and was born in Baltimore, in 1817, while her death oceurred in Springfield, South Dakota, in 1889. They were married in Fulton county, Illi- nois, in 1837, and there resided until 1864, when they removed to Putnam county, Illinois, where they made their home until 1872. In that year they removed to Springfield, South Dakota, where the mother passed away, after which the father came to make his home with Mrs. Sparling. There are also four other ehildren living: Eveline, who likewise resides with Mrs. Sparling; Mrs. J. C. Hontton, of Illinois; J. M. Bagley, of South Dakota; and Mrs. M. G. Cotney, of Oklahoma, whose husband was an old settler of Marshall county. When a boy of seven years Mrs. Spar- ling's father witnessed the sinking of the ships on Lake Champlain that were captured by the British in the war of 1812.
Mrs. Sparling has in her possession many in- teresting old relics, ineluding a fine collection of Indian relies, of geological speeimens and rare
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coins. These have not only been secured from this district, but have been sought in various parts of the United States. Both she and her husband are well versed in geology, and have in their possession many valuable and rare stones which many people would pass by without notice. Mrs. Sparling is a member of the Methodist Epis- copal church.
For twenty years Mr. Sparling has been iden- tified with the Masonic fraternity, and he also belongs to the Grand Army post at Henry. In politics he is a republican, and for twenty-four years has filled the office of constable, while for eighteen years he has been road commissioner and is now township treasurer. He never misses at- tending a term of court, yet he has never had a lawsuit. In manner he is genial and jovial, and has gained many friends during the long years of his residence in this county and among those whom he has entertained as guests at the Under- cliff Hotel.
CLIFFORD HAWS.
Clifford Haws, a capitalist who has figured prominently in the business circles of Henry and of Marshall county, was born in Magnolia, Putnam county, Illinois, August 8, 1874. He is a son of Captain William Haws, who was born in Orange county, Virginia, September 23, 1800, and who in 1805 was taken by his parents to Ohio, where he remained until he attained his majority. On the 27th of August, 1821, he became a pioneer of Sangamon county, Illinois, where he conducted a tannery for a time, and in 1826 he went to Putnam county, settling on section 26, Magnolia township, which was at that time, however, a part of Tazewell county. He built the first log cabin between Ottawa and Washington in 1826 and was one of the first residents in this part of the country. His life was devoted to farming and he became the owner of a number of farms, embracing several thousand acres of land. He also contributed in substantial measure to the reclamation of his part of the state from the dominion of the red race, and aided materially in converting it into uses of civiliza- tion. He was a man of benevolent and charitable spirit, and built a church in Magnolia and paid its pastor out of his own funds. His political allegiance was given to the democracy. He won his title as commander of a volunteer company
in the Black Hawk war, and thus he aided in the subjugation of the Indians who resented the encroachments of the white man upon their hunt- ing grounds. At his house, in 1831, Putnam county was organized, and he served on the first grand jury that here convened, the first term of court being held at the old traveling house near Hennepin. Governor Ford was then prosecuting attorney of the district.
Captain Haws was twice married. He first wedded Lucinda Southwick, a native of New York, who was a typical frontier woman, brave and fearless, and shared with her husband in all the trials and privations of pioneer life at a time when Indians were more numerous than the white settlers and many wild animals were to be seen in the forest or on the prairies. Her death occurred July 4, 1867, and Captain Haws afterward wedded Mrs. Louisa Moffitt (nee Defen- baugh), a native of Illinois. There were five children by this marriage, of whom two are liv- ing: Clifford, of this review; and Joel, who is now living retired. He is quite active in local political circles and is serving as supervisor. The father died in December, 1884, and the mother's death occurred in 1882.
Clifford Haws, whose name introduces this rec- ord, acquired his carly education in the public schools of Magnolia, Illinois, and afterward went to the east, continuing his education in Boston and in Tufts College at Medford, Massachusetts. He afterward spent two years and a half in the employ of the Smith-Premier Typewriter Com- pany of Boston, Massachusetts, and then came to Illinois to supervise his property interests, hav- ing inherited a goodly estate from his father. For five years he resided upon a stock farm near Mag- nolia, where he was engaged in the breeding and raising of pure bred cattle, and he is still the owner of that property and business. He is now engaged in the sale of automobiles in Henry and has a fine garage here. Personally he owns a machine, the Rambler, of forty-five horse power, and touring over the country is to him a chief source of delight and recreation. In the man- agement of his business affairs he has ever dis- played keen discernment and ready sagacity, and his investments, being judiciously placed, have brought to him a very gratifying annual return, while his holdings number him with the cap- italists of Henry.
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Mr. Haws was married in 1895 to Miss Roberta Chapin, of Boston, Massachusetts, and they have four children, Una Louise, Barbara Vicher, Ger- trude and Roberta. In politics Mr. Haws is an independent democrat. He belongs to the Peoria Auto Club and is prominent socially. He has had time and opportunity to cultivate the social and intellectual graces of life which, owing to the stress of circumstances, were denied the pio- necr settlers on the frontier, and is one in whom learning and culture have vied to make an in- teresting and entertaining gentleman.
HENRY HARRISON EDWARDS.
Henry Harrison Edwards, successfully engaged in general agricultural pursuits in Hennepin township, is one of the native sons of Putnam county, having been born in Magnolia township on the 12th of March, 1842. He is a son of Wil- liam and Mary (Wiley) Edwards, both of whom were natives of Ohio. The father, who was born in 1800, died in Putnam county, Illinois, at the age of seventy-four years, while his wife passed away July 20, 1870, at the age of fifty-seven years. Their marriage was celebrated in the Buck- eye state. William Edwards was a carpenter by trade in the days when the representatives of the occupation went into the woods and hewed out the timbers which they used for building pur- poses. Many structures in Ohio are still standing which were erected by him long years ago-a fact which indicates his excellent workmanship and the splendid quality of the timber which he used. In 1841, thinking to better his financial condition in the middle west, he brought his family to Putnam county, Illinois, and purchased three hundred and fifty acres of land in Magnolia township. This land was unimproved, and he erected thereon the first dwelling. He then began to clear and cultivate the fields, and continued to reside upon the farm until his death, while his wife also passed away there. In early days he walked five miles to Palatine and worked at his trade, and after his return home at night he built a barn upon his own place. He often went with- out his dinner, but said that he never suffered any inconvenience on this account. He was a most industrious, energetic man, and allowed no obstacle to brook his path as he advanced toward the goal of prosperity. His political support was given to the republican party, but he was without
aspiration for office. His wife was identified with the Society of Friends or Quakers in early life. In the family of this worthy couple were six chil- dren: George, who for many years was county clerk of Tama county, Iowa, where he followed farming, but is now deceased; Henry Harrison; Joseph, who was born September 1, 1845, and was a prominent attorney of Iowa City; Anna, who was born April 20, 1848, and is the wife of William Castle, a resident of Magnolia town- ship; Luella, who was born October 4, 1850, and is the deceased wife of William Eisenhour; and Mary J., the wife of O. W. Allen, a resident of Henry, Illinois.
Henry Harrison Edwards spent his boyhood days on his father's farm, amid the wild scenes and environments of pioneer life, and pursued his education in a district school, where the pupils sat upon slab seats and wrote their copies upon a desk made by placing a board upon pins driven into the wall. He afterward had the advantage of attending Wheaton College for a short time. His training at farm labor was not meager, and through practical experience he early became fa- miliar with the work incident to the cultivation of the crops. He remained at home until twenty- seven years of age, when he came into possession of a part of his father's farm and began business on his own account. He lived upon that place until about eleven years ago, when he purchased the farm upon which he now resides. It was at that time an improved tract of land, and he has since added to it many more modern improve- ments. His buildings are all nicely painted and the farm presents a well kept appearance in every department. The dwelling is a large frame resi- dence, richly and tastefully furnished, and the fields cover one hundred and ninety acres of rich land under a high state of cultivation. Here Mr. Edwards carries on general agricultural pursuits, raising both stock and grain, and each branclı of his business is proving profitable to him.
In 1869, when twenty-seven years of age, Mr. Edwards was married to Miss Elizabeth Studyvin, who was born in Putnam county and died about fifteen years after her marriage. They had one child, a daughter, Alice, who is now the wife of William Kays, a resident of Tonica, La Salle county. On the 15th of August, 1883, Mr. Ed- wards wedded Alice Kays, a daughter of William A. Kays, who is mentioned elsewhere in this work.
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PAST AND PRESENT OF MARSHALL AND PUTNAM COUNTIES.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Edwards have been born three children. Jennie V., born May 7, 1884, is a. graduate of the Granville high school of the class of 1902 and has taught in the district schools for four years. She is now devoting her attention to music. Helen, born November 1, 1888, was grad- uated from the Granville high school with the class of 1906. Joseph, born March 11, 1894, is at home.
Mr. Edwards and his family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and take a helpful interest in its various activities. In politics he is a republican, without aspiration for office, and fraternally he is connected with the Modern Wood- men of America. He and his family are most pleasant and genial people and the family is one of prominence in the community, while the hos- pitality of their home is greatly enjoyed by their many friends. The name of Edwards has figured upon the pages of history in Putnam county through almost two-thirds of a century, and for sixty-four years Henry Harrison Edwards has resided within its borders, so that his memory compasses the period of pioneer development as well as of later progress and improvement. He can remember the days when many of the homes were log cabins, when much of the land was still uncultivated and when the work of the farm was done with very crude machinery as compared with the agricultural implements of the present day. He has kept in touch with the trend of modern progress and is now a prominent representative of agricultural life in Putnam county.
ROBERT F. DOWNEY.
Robert F. Downey, a retired farmer and an hon- ored veteran of the Civil war, now residing in the village of Magnolia, is a native of Illinois, his birth having occurred in the northwestern corner of Livingston county, near the present site of Streator, on the 14th of February, 1840. His father, Elzy Downey, was born in Greenbrier county, West Virginia, while his mother, who bore the maiden name of Mary Bethuren, was a native of Ohio and died in Livingston county, Illinois, when our subject was only two years old. The father subsequently wedded Nancy Johnson, who passed away in Magnolia two years after her hus- band's death. On leaving his native state Elzy Downey removed to Ohio and located in Logan county, but in 1832 he came farther west and
settled in Livingston county, Illinois, on the banks of the Vermilion river, where he took up a tract of government land and erected thereon a log house. At that time the Indians were still very numerous in the locality and there were only six or seven families living along the river. He con- tinued to make his home there until 1842, when he removed to Magnolia, where he resided until his death, which occurred about 1895, when he was eighty-four years of age. By his first mar- riage he had one child, a daughter. By his second marriage he had three children: Sarah Jane, who died in 1864; Robert F., whose name introduces this sketch; and William J., who died at the age of one year.
Robert F. Downey passed the days of his boy -. hood and youth in Magnolia, and attended the common schools, pursuing his studies in an old schoolhouse where the seats were made of slabs. At the early age of ten years he began earning his own livelihood and for a time covered 'corn with a hoe at twenty-five cents per day. At that time nearly all the farm work was done by hand, hay was mowed with a scythe and then raked. In a barn which stood just south of town and was recently burned our subject helped thresh wheat, driving horses over the grain laid on the floor. It was tramped in this way for a while and then turned and tramped again. Later the grain was gathered and on a windy day it was winnowed in the wind.
Mr. Downey continued under the parental roof until after the outbreak of the Civil war, when in 1861 he enlisted at Bloomington in the First Illinois cavalry. At the battle of Lexington, Missouri, he was captured with Mulligan's men. At that time the Confederate states had not been recognized as a belligerent power and no one knew or thought that the war would last long and no prisons were ready for the captives, so that they took the oath of allegiance and were sent home. Later our subject tried to re-enlist, but was not allowed to enter the service. After the war he worked on a farm by the month for a year or two and then purchased a tract of one hundred and fifty-six acres of land on section 3, Roberts township, Marshall county, a part of which was covered with timber, but the remainder was improved. To the cultivation of that place he devoted his energies for many years and is still its owner, the farm now comprising one hun-
MR. AND MRS. ROBERT F. DOWNEY.
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PAST AND PRESENT OF MARSHALL AND PUTNAM COUNTIES.
dred and sixty-four acres, and besides this prop- erty he has a nice home in the village of Mag- nolia, where he now resides. For several years past he has rented the farm and has practically lived retired, enjoying a well earned rest.
Mr. Downey was married in 1867 to Miss Luella Parker, who was born in Hancock county, Illi- nois, on the 15th of February, 1852, and is a daughter of William L. and Rhoda Parker, both of whom are now deceased. Her parents came originally from Virginia, but located in Illinois at quite an early day. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Downey were born eleven children, but the second died at the age of one year. The others are as follows : William E., a merchant of West Point, Adams county, Illinois; Minnie L., the wife of Charles Danielson, living near Granville, Illinois; Lilly M., wife of Allen Coe, who now lives on our sub- ject's farm in Marshall county; Mary S., wife of Jacob Piper, living in Magnolia; Elzy, who is a graduate of the state normal and now principal of the schools at Clyde; Laura, wife of J. B. Thornton, living at Long Beach, California; Luella F., wife of George Ramsey, whose home is in Clyde, Illinois; Joseph M., who is a graduate of the Northwestern Dental College of Chicago and is now engaged in practice of his profession at Magnolia; and Alva Isabelle, wife of Frank Peterson, of Seneca, Illinois. This is a family of which the parents have every reason to be proud, as they stand high in the various com- munities in which they reside. Five of the chil- dren are college graduates and every one was valedictorian of his or her class.
By his ballot Mr. Downey supports the men and measures of the republican party, but has never been a politician in the sense of office seek- ing, though he takes a commendable interest in public affairs. He is a member of Magnolia post, G. A. R., which is still in existence, although the organization holds no meetings, as only six or seven of the members are now left, the others hav- ing gone to join the silent majority. Mr. Downey has quite a number of interesting souvenirs that he has picked up at various places, including a shell that was fired at the battle of Yorktown in 1862 and never exploded. It was dug up in the field by a negro, the load taken out and brought to Magnolia by B. F. Baker, an old soldier, and given to the Grand Army post. When the society dissolved the property was divided and it fell
into the hands of Mr. Downey, who was for some time commander of the post. He also has a piece of granite from the monument erected to the soldiers who fought at Yorktown during the Revolutionary war. During his long residence in Putnam county he has become widely and favor- ably known, and as an old soldier and honored pioneer he well deserves mention in this volume.
WILLIAM BICKEL.
The neighboring state of Indiana has furnished to Marshall county this worthy citizen, for Wil- liam Bickel was born in Tippecanoe county of the Hoosier state in 1847. His parents were Samuel and Elizabeth (Smith) Bickel, whose family numbered ten children. 'The father was born in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, April 10, 1811, and died in the year 1880. His son William remembers often hearing his father speak of making trips across the mountains on foot, for that was prior to the era of railroad travel, when all this section of the country was a wild frontier region. He came to Marshall county on the 1st of October, 1856, locating first about five miles east of Lacon, where he lived for twelve years. He then removed to McLean county, Illinois, where he resided continuously from 1868 until his de- mise. While his political views were in harmony with the principles of democracy he did not con- sider himself bound by party ties and frequently cast an independent ballot. Both he and his wife were consistent and faithful members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mrs. Bickel was born in Ohio in 1817 and died in Belle Plain township, Marshall county, on the 8th of May, 1887. Their children were Rebecca Ann, Barbara Ann, Susie Ann, Elizabeth, Henry, Samuel, Wil- liam, Mary, David and George. Of these Rebecca Ann and Elizabeth are now deceased.
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