USA > Illinois > Piatt County > Past and present of Piatt County, Illinois : together with biographical sketches of many prominent and influential citizens > Part 44
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Mr. Stevenson was united in marriage to Miss Alice Talman, a native of Pickaway county, Ohio, whence she came to Illinois in her early girlhood. Her mother is now Mrs. Susan Farra, of Monticello. Since coming to Monticello Mr. · Stevenson has taken a prominent part in public affairs, and in 1903 he was nominated on the Democratic ticket for the office of mayor of the city, and was elected to that position, so that he is now the incumbent in the office. His administration is practical and progressive, for he takes into consideration the real condition of the city, its needs and its possibilities, and he labors along lines of permanent good and substan- tial development. He is a wideawake, ener- getic and reliable man and as a citizen he has
Elias P. James has placed his earnings in the safest of all investments, real estate, and is to-day the owner of valuable landed hold- ings in Piatt county. His home is in Blue Ridge township, where he has a splendidly improved property. He was born in the neighboring state of Indiana, his birth hav- ing occurred in Rush county, on the 27th of September, 1835. His parents were Elisha and Catherine (Poston) James, and the father was a farmer by occupation. He was born in Tennessee, and the mother's birth oc- curred in Kentucky. After living for some years in Indiana they removed to Missouri, and afterward came to Illinois, settling in Piatt county. They spent their last days on the farm of our subject, and when called to their final home their remains were interred in the Mansfield cemetery.
Elisha P. James obtained his education in Rush county, Indiana, pursuing his studies in the Bell school. The little "temple of learning" was an old log schoolhouse with slab benches. There was a large fireplace in one end of the room, and upon the wall an old-fashioned clock. The books were some-
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what primitive in character, and the teaching was also after the same style. Mr. James has led a very busy and useful life. He be- gan working for himself when twenty-one years of age, and rented a tract of land in or- der that he might carry on farming on his own account. The first land which he ever , owned was near Bear Swamp in Wabash county, Indiana. He paid twelve hundred dollars for a tract of one hundred and sixty acres. This was all covered with timber and Mr. James cleared away half of it and then sold his land for forty dollars per acre, disposing of the property on the Ist of October, 1870. He then purchased one hun- dred and sixty acres of land in Blue Ridge township, Piatt county, becoming owner of this farm on the 15th of October, of the same year. He has devoted his time and en- ergies largely to the raising of stock and grain, and he was at one time the owner of seven hundred and fifty acres of valuable land. This, however, he has divided among his children, giving to each forty acres, so that he now has himself a tract of two hundred and eighty acres, all in Blue Ridge township. He bought one hundred and fifty acres at twenty-four dollars per acre, forty acres for thirty-one and a half -dollars, one hundred and fifteen acres for thirty-six dol- lars per acre, one hundred and sixty for sev- enty dollars, one hundred and fifteen acres for ninety dollars, eighty acres for one hun- dred and six dollars, and forty acres for one hundred and one dollars per acre. Thus he has invested large amounts of money in land, but has found this a profitable way to use his capital, because of the rich yield which the fields give and, because of the excellent pas- turage which the land affords, this making it profitable to raise stock.
In Wabash county, Indiana, Mr. James was united in marriage on the 6th of Febru-
ary, 1862, to Miss Mary I. Shephard, who was born March 16, 1842, in McDonough county, Illinois. The lady is a daughter of Robert and Sallie Shephard, and by her mar- riage she has become the mother of seven children, four sons and three daughters : Stella B., who was born January 19, 1864; Cora B., born May 23, 1865; ,Charles E., born September 23, 1867; Emma Z., born December 1, 1869; Elmer B., January 9, 1872; Robert Quincy, born January 29, 1876; and Elias Ollan, born March 9, 1879. A number of the children were married and Mr. and Mrs. James and their sons and all of their children by marriage are members of the Christian church. Mr. and Mrs. James have been members of this section since 1862, and have led earnest, consistent lives in har- mony with their professions. Mr. James also belongs to the Masonic fraternity of Mans- field, and he votes with the Republican party. The honors and emoluments of of- fice, however, have had no attraction for him, as his time has been fully occupied by his business interests. He has displayed sound judgment in all of his work, untiring energy in the prosecution of his affairs, and unfal- tering honesty in all of his relations with his fellow men. His life record should serve as a source of help and inspiration to others, showing what may be accomplished through persistency of purpose and diligence. He is to-day one of the best known as well as one of the most successful agriculturists of Piatt county.
WILLIAM J. SISSON.
No history of the business interests of Mansfield would be complete without men- tion of William J. Sisson, who is proprietor
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of a department store that would be a credit to a city of much larger size. His is a splendidly equipped establishment, com- prising a varied line of goods and in his busi- ness methods Mr. Sisson has gained general confidence. He never loses the patronage of those whose business he once secures, because in all his dealings he is found reliable, while in his treatment of those whom he serves lie is ever courteous and obliging.
Mr. Sisson is one of Illinois' native sons, his birth having occurred in the city of Gales- burg, Knox county, on the 5th of Novem- ber, 1854. His parents were Frederick P. and Mary Ann (Field) Sisson. The father engaged in manufacturing pursuits in early life, and during the period of the Civil war · purchased horses for the government. In the schools of his native state William J. Sisson obtained his education and was thus well trained for the practical duties of life. After putting aside his text-books he secured a po- sition in a mercantile establishment in Gales- burg, being employed as cash boy when about thirteen years of age. Later the firm with which he was connected failed and he then accepted a clerkship in'a shoe store. In 1871 he went to Peoria, where he entered the employ of Charles Seaberry & Company, with whom he remained for twelve years, a fact which certainly indicates his fidelity to those whom he served, and the unqualified confidence reposed in him by his employers. During the last nine years of his connection with that house he served as traveling sales- man upon the road, and annually negotiated a large amount of business for the firm. In severing his connection with business inter- ests in Peoria in 1883, he removed to Indian- apolis, Indiana, where he entered the employ of D. P. Erwin, with whom he remained for sixteen years. Certainly no higher testi-
monial of his business capability and his trustworthiness could be given than the fact that he has been so long retained in the ser- vice of these two firms. On leaving Indian- apolis he came to Mansfield. He had pre- viously purchased his store here and was also the proprietor of a store in Princeville, Illi- nois, but on coming to Mansfield he disposed of the store in Princeville in order to give his entire attention to the supervision of his business interests in this place. He now car- ries a large and carefully selected stock worth thirty thousand dollars, and has one of the most modern and completely equipped general mercantile establishments in central Illinois. The store is heated by hot water and is supplied with all modern improve- ments, including the Luxfer prism lights, such as are seldom found in any store outside of the large cities. He also has handsome toilet-rooms and fine bath-rooms in the building. The basement is ce- mented and is also used as a salesroom, being so splendidly lighted that the ab- sence of sunlight is never noticed. Alto- gether the floor space of the store covers ten thousand square feet, and in addition to . this Mr. Sisson has an oil house, flour house and a warehouse. He conducts a general department business, carrying a large line of dry goods, notions, carpets and floor cover- ings, clothing, hats, mens' furnishing goods, . shoes, chinaware and groceries. His sales have reached a large annual figure, and are constantly increasing. He has studied closely the desires of the public and makes his pur- chases accordingly.
In 1886 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Sisson and Miss Mary E. Venemann. They now have three children all living. Frederick P. was educated in the schools of Indianapolis and Mansfield, and is now as-
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sisting his father in the conduct of the store. Ella Richey and Sarah are at home. The family attend the services of the Presbyterian church, of which the parents are members. In his political views Mr. Sisson is a Repub- lican, and while he keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day, as every American citizen should do, he has no time or inclination to seek public office. He owns a beautiful residence in Mansfield in addition to his store, and is classed among the most prominent and influential citizens here. He has been the architect of his own fortunes, .and has builded wisely and well, gradually working his way upward from the humble position of a cash boy until he is to-day a prosperous merchant, doing a large and prof- itable business. He is genial in manner, progressive in spirit, and as a citizen is very deeply interested in what pertains to the gen- eral welfare, co-operating largely in meas- ures for the public good.
ELDER JOHN ARNOLD.
Among Piatt county's honored and re- · spected citizens should be numbered the gen- tleman whose name introduces this sketch, the present pastor of the German Baptist Brethren church of Okaw. He was born on the 16th of June, 1846, in Mineral county, West Virginia, and is a son of Solomon and Susan (Wine) Arnold, also natives of Vir- ginia, and of German extraction. The father who was a farmer by occupation, died in that part of the old Dominion which, during the Civil war, became the state of West Vir- ginia. Later the mother and her family came to Piatt county, Illinois, in the spring of 1868, and she died at the home of her daugh-
ter, Mrs. Samuel Henricks, near Cérro Gordo, in 1901, at the age of eighty-eight years. She had seven children, three of whom died in West Virginia. The others are as follows: Samuel married Lucina Rose, now deceased, and has three daughters, Laura, Mame and Flossie. Daniel is mar- ried and with his family resides in Missouri. John, of this review, is the next in order of birth. Lizzie is the wife of Samuel Hen- ricks, and a resident of Cerro Gordo, Illi- nois.
John Arnold was educated in a primitive log schoolhouse with its slab benches and huge fireplace, continuing his studies there until, about sixteen years of age. He made the most of his advantages in that line as it was his desire toobtain a good education, and by reading and observation he has added greatly to the knowledge acquired in the schoolroom. During his boyhood.and youth he assisted in the work of the home farm, and has since been identified with agri- cultural pursuits. In the spring of 1868 he came with his family to Piatt county, Illi- nois, and settled in Cerro Gordo township, where he has since made his home. He and his brother, Samuel, engaged in farming to- gether for several years, but on the marriage of thé latter the partnership was dissolved. Our subject began life here in limited circum- stances, but prospered in his farming opera- tions, and in 1881 purchased his present farm of eighty acres on section 29, Cerro Gordo. township, which was then under cultivation, but in tiling and other improvements he has laid out more money than the eighty acres cost him. Since then he has added to it an adjoining eighty, making one hundred and sixty acres. In 1887 he built a good barn and also corn-cribs, and in 1895 erected a nice modern residence, which is a very at-
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tractive home on the main road. The place is divided into fields of convenient size by well-kept fences, and everything is in first- class condition.
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On the 3Ist of May, 1875, Mr. Arnold was united in marriage to Miss Mary Hen- ricks, who was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, in February, 1840, and died on the 23d of August, 1890. Her parents were Elder Joseph and Lizzie (Seitz) Henricks, also na- tives of Fairfield county, Ohio. Mr. Arnold was again married in June, 1892, his second union being with Lydia Heeter, a daughter of John and Elizabeth Heeter, of Wabash county, Indiana. The children by the first marriage are Nora S., Etta May and Stella Ethel. The oldest daughter is a graduate of the German Baptist school at Mt. Morris, Il- linois, and will leave this year as a mission- ary to India, having made preparations to devote her life to that noble work.
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In 1876 Mr. Arnold was ordained as a minister of the German Baptist Brethren church, and has since served as assistant pas- tor most of the time, though he has been in full charge of the congregation at Okaw (formerly La Place) since 1897, succeeding Jacob Olery at that place. During his minis- try the membership has grown and now num- bers over two hundred, and the church has been otherwise strengthened and built up. Mr. Arnold has preached throughout Piatt, Macon and Moultrie counties, and has la- bored untiringly in the interests of his, church. In 1898 he retired from active farm work, and now rents his land, living in hon- orable retirement from business. However, he still attends to his ministerial duties, and on the 30th of May, 1903, went to Bellefon- taine, Ohio, to attend the general annual con- ference of his church. He has often been a delegate to such conventions, and for four
years served as president of the mission board in southern Illinois. He is widely and favorably known throughout this section of the state, and those who know him best are numbered among his warmest friends.
WILLIAM F. LODGE.
One of the most progressive and ener- getic young business men of Monticello is the gentleman whose name introduces this re- view. He was born in that city on the 12th of November, 1868, and is a son of William E. and Frances A. (Piatt) Lodge, the latter a daughter of William H. Piatt, in whose honor the county was named. In the public schools of Monticello our subject began his early literary education and later became a student in the State University at Cham- paign, where he pursued his studies for some time. Leaving that institution he entered the law department of Northwestern Uni- versity, at Evanston, Illinois, in which he was graduated on the completion of the reg- ular course, with the class of 1892. He was then admitted to practice before the supreme court at Springfield the same year.
Returning to Monticello, Mr. Lodge joined his father as a member of the firm of Lodge, Hicks & Lodge, and became inter- ested in the manufacture of building brick and tile, the plant being situated just outside the city limits on the north. This enterprise was established in 1891, and the machinery is of the latest improved patterns. The out- put of the industry is now large, and employ- ment is furnished to a number of men and boys. Mr. Lodge also became secretary and incorporation promoter of the electric light company, and was instrumental in erecting
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the plant. He succeeded in selling ten thou- sand dollars' worth of stock, and for nine years efficiently served as manager of the company, and also as electrician. He still owns a part of the stock. Mr. Lodge was also one of the organizers of the Mon- ticello Mutual Telephone Company, which was afterward merged into the Piatt Telephone Company with exchanges at Be- ment, Monticello and DeLand, and about five hundred phones in use. This company was organized and incorporated in 1896, with a capital stock of ten thousand dollars. Our subject and his brother, James P., now own about seven hundred telephones in oper- ation throughout Piatt county, and he gives his personal supervision to that business.
The Lodge family occupy the old Piatt homestead where the first location was made in this county, and two rooms of the resi- dence were built by Mr. Barnett, becoming. the property of our subject's father about forty years ago. The house is surrounded by a spacious lawn, the grounds comprising about twenty acres. Mr. Lodge is a young man of marked business ability and execu- tive force, of keen sagacity and unfaltering energy, and along many lines he has con- tributed to the substantial improvement and . permanent development of his native county.
JESSE W. WARNER.
Jesse W. Warner is one of the extensive land owners of Piatt county, his possessions aggregating five hundred and sixty acres. He is likewise well known as a large cattle- dealer, and both branches of his business have been so capably conducted that they have brought to him very deserved and grat-
ifying prosperity. His home is on section 35, Goose Creek township, and for a half cen- tury he has resided in Piatt county, being one of its respected citizens and honored pio- neers.
A native of Ohio, Mr. Warner was born in Ross county on the 16th of December, 1829, and is a son of George and Delilah Warner, both of whom were natives of Penn- sylvania. They were farming people and for many years the father was connected with agricultural pursuits in the Buckeye state. There he died at the age of fifty-nine years, and the mother afterward came to the west, spending her last days in Piatt county, Illi- nois. In the family were eleven children, seven sons and four daughters, of whom Jesse W. Warner was the sixth in order of birth.
In the public schools of Ohio Mr. Warn- er, of this review, obtained his education, but his advantages were somewhat limited as his services were needed on the home farm. His father died when the son was seventeen years of age, and for two years thereafter Mr. Warner remained with his mother, as- sisting in the operation of the home farm. He then began farming on his own account in Pickaway county, Ohio, but thinking that he might have better business opportunities further west, he left his native state in the fall of 1852 and came to Monticello, where he arrived with a cash capital of eighteen dol- lars and fifty cents. He also had a horse, saddle and bridle, having made the journey westward on horseback. On reaching Piatt county he secured work by the month as a farm hand, and was thus employed until 1856, when at the age of twenty-six years he lost his right arm in an accident on a railroad. This would utterly have discouraged many a man of less resolute spirit, but Mr. Warner
J. W. WARNER
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PIATT COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
showed marked strength of character in Greek township, and they have two children : facing the situation. He attended school and Harold and Ruth. learned to write with his left hand. For two years after the accident he worked with an- other man in operating a mole ditcher, and in 1860 he engaged in the cattle business with Absalom Fisher and James Piatt, the relation between these gentlemen continuing until 1864, and their efforts were crowned with a high degree of success. With the money which he thus realized, Mr. Warner purchased two hundred and ninety-seven and a half acres of land, for which he paid five thousand dollars. This was largely unim- proved, and with characteristic energy he be- gan its development, transforming the tract into rich fields, which are now very product- ive. As his financial resources have in- creased he has added to his property until he now owns five hundred and sixty acres of the rich land of Piatt county, which is equal in productiveness to any to be found in this great agricultural state.
While carrying on the work of cultivat- ing the fields, Mr. Warner is also giving con- siderable attention to raising and dealing in stock, making a specialty of beef cattle and hogs, and annually he sends to the city mar- kets large numbers of these animals. He is a man of resourceful business ability, quick to note opportunity and to utilize the advan- tages which come to him. In 1900 he was in- terested in founding the State Bank of De- Land, of which he has since been a director. For about fifteen years he has served as pres- ident of the Monticello Fair Association, an enterprise which has been of marked value to this section of the state, cultivating ambi- tion for progress among the farmers with the result that better farm products and stock have been produced. Whatever tends to prove of value to the agricultural community is of interest to him, and he has always been a leader in matters of advancement in this di- rection.
On the 24th of June, 1873, was cele- brated the marriage of Mr. Warner and Miss Mr. Warner is also prominent and active Katie Schultz, of Piatt county. She died in 'in fraternal circles and now belongs to Selah 1876 and their only child died in infancy. Lodge, No. 403, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which he has passed all the chairs. He is also a member of the encamp- ment of Monticello and has been representa- ative to the grand lodge, while both he and his wife and their daughter, Luella, are con- nected with the Rebekah degree and their son is a member of the Knights of Pythias fra- ternity. In his political views Mr. Warner is an ardent Democrat, and has served as road commissioner for three years, while for one term he was overseer, but he has always preferred to give his time to his business in- terests rather than to political work, and along the line of his chosen field of labor he has won every gratifying and honorable pros- On the 6th of January, 1878, Mr Warner was again married, his second union being with Miss Lulu Connor, a native of Bloom -. field, Ohio, and a daughter of Abner and Rachel Connor, who came to Piatt county in the year 1851. The father was a farmer and stock-buyer, and was thus closely asso- ciated with the leading business enterprises of the county for a number of years. He died at the advanced age of seventy-five years, his widow is now living with Mr. and Mrs. Warner. Unto our subject and his wife have been born four children : Ollie, Edward, Lu- ella and Lena. The eldest daughter is now the wife of James Miner, a resident of Goose
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perity. His life has been a useful, active and upright one, and now in the evening of his days he has the respect, confidence and good will of all with whom he has been asso- ciated. He has witnessed many changes and improvements in the county during the half century of his residence here, and well de- serves credit for what he has accomplished, and mention among the honored pioneers.
JOHN W. CYPHERS.
John W. Cyphers, who was one of the de- fenders of the Union cause during the dark days of the Civil war, and is to-day an hon- ored citizen of Piatt county, Illinois, was born on the 2 Ist of August, 1843, in Morgan county, West Virginia. His parents, Joseph S. and Elizabeth (Zeger) Cyphers, were both natives of Pennsylvania, the former born in 1806, the latter in 1812, and in Mer- cersburg, that state, they were married in 1834. After following farming in Pennsyl- vania for some years, the father removed to Morgan county, West Virginia, in 1839, making his home there until coming to Illi- nois in 1858, when he located in Fairview, 'Fulton county, which was his home until · called to his final rest. Throughout life he followed agricultural pursuits, and also owned a large herd of sheep, being quite ex- tensively engaged in buying and selling those animals. He died on the 4th of July, 1868, and his wife passed away in 1885. This worthy couple were the parents of nine chil- dren, five of whom are still living, namely : Eliza, the wife of John Cosa, a shoemaker, of Fairview: Urias, a harnessmaker of that place: Jacob, a policeman of Chicago; Charles, a painter of Fairview ; and John W., of this review.
. Having spent the first fifteen years of his life in the state of his nativity, John W. Cy- phers began his education in its public school, the first temple of learning being an old-fashioned log structure with puncheon floor and slab seats, and after coming to Illi- nois in 1858, he attended school for two win- ters, while working on his father's farm through the summer. He early acquired an excellent knowledge of every department of farm work, and later worked at six dollars per month as a farm hand.
Mr. Cyphers was thus employed when the Civil war broke out, and not being content to remain quietly at home while the country was in danger, he entered the army in August, 1862, enlisting in Company D, One Hun- dred and Third Illinois Volunteer Infantry, which was assigned to the Second Brigade, First Division, Fifteenth Army Corps. He participated in the battles of Mission Ridge and Kenesaw Mountain, the siege of At- lanta, Georgia, and was with Sherman on his celebrated march to the sea, being all through that campaign. The war having ended he took part in the grand review at Washing- ton, D. C., and was there discharged from the service, being mustered out at Chicago in July, 1865, with a war record of which he may be justly proud.
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