USA > Illinois > Macon County > Decatur > Past and present of the City of Decatur and Macon County, Illinois > Part 36
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JOSEPH F. TRIMMER.
Joseph F. Trimmer, who resides on sec- tion 25, Hickory Point township, is a worthy representative of the farming and stock- raising interests of Macon county. The neat and thrifty appearance of his farm plainly indicates the supervision of a care- ful and painstaking owner who thoroughly understands the vocation he follows and a business man of more than ordinary ability and executive force.
Mr. Trimmer was born in Perry county,
Pennsylvania, March 2, 1845, but in June, 1853, came to Macon county, Illinois, with his parents, Joseph and Catharine (Fet- row) Trimmer, making the journey in a cov- ered wagon. llis early life was passed amid pioneer surroundings and his education was begun in an old log school house. Later he attended the district school which was established near his boyhood home and when not in school aided in the work of the farm, thus gaining a good practical knowledge of the occupation which he has made his life work. At the age of seventeen years he donned the blue uniform of the northern army and was in the service for one year, under the command of Captain William W. Mattox and Colonel Stephen- son, the founder of the Grand Army of the Republic. He participated in the engage- ment at Nashville, Tennessee, and at the close of the war was honorably discharged in August, 1865.
After his return home, Mr. Trimmer worked for his father one year, and then went to Monticello, Illinois, where the fol- lowing year was passed, after which he spent two years at home. In 1871 he went to Madison county, Iowa, where he pur- chased land and engaged in general farm- ing for some time. While residing there Mr. Trimmer was married on the 4th of February, 1874, to Miss Diantha Henry, a native of Missouri and a daughter of Sam- uel and Catharine (Walter) Henry, both of whom are now deceased, the former hav- ing died at the age of eighty-four and the latter at the age of eighty. The children born to our subject and his wife are as fol- lows: Minnic, now the wife of Peter Keister, of Hickory Point township; Will- iam, who died at the age of twenty-one; Roc, at home ; Clara, who is living with her aunt, Mary E. Henry ; and Ora, Florence and Pearl, all at home. All were born in Iowa with the exception of the two young- c.st.
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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
In 1888 Mr. Trimmer returned to this county and purchased his present farm on section 25, Hickory Point township, con- sisting of one hundred and twenty acres of choice land, partly tiled and under culti- vation. Since locating here he has remod- eled all the buildings, erected a new barn and made many other improvements which add greatly to the value and attractive ap- pearance of the place. In connection with the general farming he is engaged in stock- raising to some extent, making a specialty of shorthorn cattle.
At national elections Mr. Trimmer always supports the Republican party, but at local elections where no issue is involved he votes for the men whom he believes best qualified to fill the offices regardless of party ties. He has served as school director and takes a deep interest in educational affairs. Fra- ternally he is a member of Durham Post, No. 141, G. A. R., and he stands high in the esteem of his fellow citizens.
JOHN P. TRIMMER.
John P. Trimmer, another son of Joseph and Catharine (Fetrow) Trimmer, was born on Christmas day, 1853, in this county in an old log house that stood south of Joseph Rife's farm, his birth occurring the year of the arrival of the family in Macon county. He was reared and educated in much the usual manner of farmer boys of his day, and after reaching man's estate he engaged in farming here for many years, but i1 1902 he and his family removed to Louisiana, where he is now operating a rice plantation and is also engaged in gen- eral farming. He married Miss Clara Stephenson, by whom he had seven chil- dren, those still living being Ina, Joseph Ren, Orril, Ilarley, Katie and Jimmy.
FRANK W. LEIIN.
Among the young men of enterprise and perseverance who are devoting their atten- tion to agricultural pursuits and are meet- ing with success in their chosen calling is Frank W. Lehn, who owns and operates a good farm on section 12, Illini township. A native of Macon county, he was born in that township on the 17th of February, 1879, and is the third in order of birth in a family of six sons, five of whom are still living, their parents being John P. and Tabitha (Jones) Lehn, both natives of Car- lisle, Cumberland county, Pennsylvania. The father came to Illinois in 1856 and lo- cated in Illini township, Macon county, where he worked by the month for a time. He took the first forty dollars which he earned to Decatur but the banking con- cern there refused to accept so small a de- posit. Later he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land on section 12, Illini town- ship, from the Illinois Central Railroad Company, paying fifteen dollars per acre. As time passed he prospered in his farming operations and was able to add to his landed possessions until he owned five hundred and sixty acres of land in this county, now worth seventy-five thousand dollars. He made many excellent improvements upon the place, which is still owned and occupied by his widow, who is now fifty-six years of age. Mr. Lehn died January 14, 1899, hon- ored and respected by all who knew him.
Frank W. Lehn passed his boyhood and youth upon the home farm and early ac- quired an excellent knowledge of those duties which fall to the lot of the agricult- urist. He pursued his studies at Rolling school, which acquired its name by being moved so often, the building having been formerly used as a store and church. Later our subject attended Brown's Business Col- lege at Decatur for six month's during the school year of 1895-96, and for three months in 1897. He commenced farming for him-
George Of Short
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self upon his mother's place, which he oper- ated for two years, and then removed to his present farm of eighty acres on section 12, Illini township. The improvements he has made upon the place have amounted to twenty-five hundred dollars, and he now has one of the most desirable farms of its size in the county. In politics Mr. Lehn is inde- pendent and he has never sought or cared for office.
On the 18th of December. 1901, he mar- ried Miss Ada Moore, a daughter of Francis M. and Emma R. (Metlen) Moore, in whose family were eight children, four sons and four daughters, all living. Her parents make their home near Newton, Jasper county. Illinois. During his boyhood her grandfather, Alexander F. Metlen, walked from Pennsylvania to Illinois and in due time acquired a farm at llickory Point, where he is still living at the age of seventy- two years. Mrs. Lehn is the oldest in her father's family and was educated in the Dingman and Stringtown schools near Ni- antic, Illinois.
GEORGE B. SHORT.
George B. Short, an old and honored resident of Maroa township and a veteran of the Mexican war, was born on the 12th of August, 1826, in St. Clair county, Illinois, his parents being William B. and Nancy (Hill) Short, who died and were buried south of Belleville, Illinois. During the boyhood of our subject this state was large- ly wild and unimproved and game of all kinds abounded, furnishing the pioneers with most of their meat. Ile has seen the prairies transformed into fine farms, while industrial and commercial interests have been introduced and thus towns have be- come thriving cities. In the work of prog- ress he has borne his part and has been particularly active as a representative of the agricultural community.
Mr. Short received his early education in the district schools near Belleville, but his school privileges were limited and the knowledge there acquired has been greatly supplemented by reading, observation and experience in later years. In 1848 he com- menced farming upon a tract of two hun- dred and six acres in St. Clair county, Illi- nois, given him by his father, turning the first furrow upon that land, which was a wild tract when it came into his possession. To the improvement and cultivation of that farm he devoted his energies until 1863. when he came to Macon county and pur- chased his present farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Maroa township. He has improved his place by the erection of good and substantial buildings and the planting of trees, and in connection with general farming he carries on stock-raising.
On the 19th of December, 1848, he was united in marriage to Miss Mary Emeline Stookey, who died leaving one child, Bar- bara, now the wife of Peter Bowler, who is living at Jerseyville, Jersey county, Illinois. Mr. Short was again married September 30, 1866, his second union being with Miss Sarah E. Thrift, by whom he has had six children, namely ; Isalina; James Monroe ; Lottie; Elizabeth, who died in infancy; Henrietta ; and Golda.
During the Mexican war Mr. Short put aside all personal interests and entered the United States army as a member of the Second Illinois Volunteers under Captain Lemon and Colonel Bissel. He was in the service five months and now receives a pen- sion of twelve dollars per month from the government. In religious faith he is a Bap- tist and in politics a Democrat. His life has been one of industry and usefulness and he has won the confidence and respect of all with whom he has been brought in con- tact.
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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
BENJAMIN F. SIBLEY, M. D.
There are few men who live longer in the remembrance and kindly regard of those with whom they have been associated than the physician. He holds a peculiarly close relation with his patrons because in time of illness all masks are cast aside and the true nature shines forth. It is certain that there has been no medical practitioner of Macon county who has more justly been numbered among her honored and leading citizens than was Dr. Sibley. He practiced here for thirty years and not only maintained a foremost place in the ranks of the medical fraternity because of his skill and ability, but also in the public regard because of his conscientious life, his career being such as to merit the confidence and good will of all with whom he came in contact.
Dr. Sibley was a native of Ashford, Wind- ham county, Connecticut, born on the 8th of April, 1827. His parents were Samuel and Hannah (Harwood) Sibley, both of whom were of Scotch lineage. The father, however, was born in Massachusetts, while the mother's birth occurred in the Charter Oak state. Removing to Connecticut, Sam- uel Sibley carried on agricultural pursuits there for many years. His wife died when thirty-eight years of age, leaving a family of eight children, of whom six reached adult age.
It is a noticeable fact that many of the men who have become most prominent in political, military, professional and com- mercial life have spent their boyhood days upon farms. They seem there to gain the strength of mind and body necessary to cope with the arduous duties of a career in cities. Dr. Sibley passed his boyhood days in the usual manner of farmer lads, working in the fields when not engaged in the duties of the schoolroom. He began his education in the district schools and when a youth of sixteen he entered the Wilbraham Academy, where he spent two years, being
graduated in that institution at the age of eighteen. He did not care to make the occupation to which he had been reared a life work, but instead sought a profes- sional field of labor and began preparation for the practice of medicine, becoming a student in Long Island, New York, with Dr. Louis Sibley, his brother, as his pre- ceptor. For three years he continued his reading there and then in order to further perfect his knowledge he entered the Berk- shire Medical College, in which he com- pleted the prescribed course at the age of twenty-three.
Dr. Sibley was well equipped for the practice of his chosen profession and, more- over, he had not only a comprehensive knowledge of the science of medicine, but possessed also a broad humanitarian spirit and a deep human sympathy without which success in this line can never be achieved. Opening an office in New York, he there remained for five years, following which he established an office in Erie, Pennsylvania. On leaving the latter city in 1856 he came to Decatur. In the meantime, however, he had investigated the subject of Home- opathy and became convinced that its meth- ods were better calculated to check the ravages of disease and restore health than those in use by the Allopathic schools. He was one of the first Homeopathic physicians in Illinois. He spent the winter of 1858-9 in attending a course of lectures in the Homeopathic Medical College of St. Louis, He found new patients in Macon county as the years passed by and his skill in cop- ing with the intricate problems that contin- ually face the physician was demonstrated. His was a paticularly tender and sympa- thetic nature and also a cheery presence that made his visit like a ray of sunshine in the sickroom. He was always encourag- ing and hopeful and these elements in his professional career were strong ones in his success. At the time of the Civil war he-
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rendered important duty to his country as surgeon of the Twenty-first llinois In- fantry, which was General Grant's first command.
In Ithaca, New York, in 1850, Dr. Sibley led to the marriage altar Miss Fannie Cole, who was born in Genoa. New York, on the 11th of July, 1824. a daughter of Azor and Fannie (Locke) Cole, who were likewise natives of the Empire state. The father engaged in merchandising in Genoa and both he and his wife died in New York. The Doctor and his wife became the parents of four children : Minnie Ella, who was the wife of Charles Simmons, of St. Louis, Mis- souri, and died December 11, 1889; Gene- vieve, who died in infancy : William S., who was born in 1860, married Miss Anna Pur- sell. and is now employed in the Patterson shops of Peoria, Illinois; and Fannie E., who is the wife of William Slater. She is now employed as a clerk in the general store of Linn & Scruggs, of Decatur, and makes her home with her mother.
After establishing his residence in this city Dr. Sibley enjoyed a large practice of an important character and one that brought to him good financial return. He voted with the Democracy in his later years, although in early life he was a stanch Abo- litionist and, when the Republican party was formed to prevent the further exten- sion of slavery, he joined its ranks, casting his ballot for its presidential candidates from 1856 until 1872. In the latter year he supported Horace Greeley and afterward voted with the Democracy. He was for six years a member of the board of health of Decatur and was county physician for two years. Ile belonged to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, to the Grand Army of the Republic, but his attention was chiefly given to his practice and for some time he was a member of the firm of Sib- ley & Wood, of Decatur. Whatever per- tained to public progress and improvement
received his endorsement and many times his active and helpful co-operation. He passed away January 9, 1899. Who can measure the regret that was felt throughout the community in homes where his labors were so beneficial. He was known and honored far and wide. He always kept in touch with the best methods of medical practice and was conscientious in his work, following closely the strictest professional ethics. Many a poor family has reason to bless his memory and wherever known he was hekl in high estcem, because the quali- ties of his manhood were in keeping with the highest principles. He left to his family a nice residence at No. 424 Morgan street, in Decatur, where Mrs. Sibley and her daugh- ler now reside. His unswerving purpose, his unquestioned fidelity, his unfaltering honesty and his unchanging will commanded the highest respect of all. He was a be- liever of the cause of liberty, of freedom and of progress and his hearty co-operation was ever given to that which tends to ele- vate mankind.
CLEMENT C. WALTERS.
In the legal profession which embraces many of the most brilliant minds of the nation it is difficult to win a name and a place of prominence. Many aspire but few attain. In commercial life one may start Ottt on a more elevated plane than others; he might enter into a business already es- tablished and carry it still further forward, but this is not true in the case of the law- ver. Ile must commence at the initial point, must plead and win his first case and work his way upward by ability, gaining his reputation and success by merit. It is in this way that Mr. Walters has become well known as an able lawyer of the Macon county bar, practicing in Decatur, where he maintains his residence.
A native of Indiana, Mr. Walters was born
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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
near Lafayette, in Tippecanoe county, Sep- tember 22, 1867, his parents being Samuel and Barbara (Rutter) Walters, both of whom were natives of Ohio. Both the Wal- ters and Rutter families came originally from Pennsylvania, however. Soon after their marriage the parents of our subject removed from the Buckeye state to Indiana and the father died when the son Clement was only about a year old, leaving to the widow the care of their eight children. She bravely took up the difficult task that awaited her and supported her growing children by her own hands, washing or doing other work that would yield a living for the little ones. She made every personal sacrifice possible in order to provide well for them, and gave them good advantages, and to-day Clement C. Walters speaks with pride of her struggles and takes great satisfaction in providing for her comforts, surrounding her in his own home with all that can go to make life pleasant for her. She is now living, at the age of seventy-two years-a most highly esteemed lady. The children of the family are Simon; Florence, who is the wife of John F. Boyles ; Angeline, the wife of Orace F. Cole; Frank; Lewis; Mark; Clement C .; and Orsamus, who died at the age of nine years. After the death of her first husband Mrs. Walters married Jacob Tidrow, and in 1875 they started with their household goods and three children of the mother's first marriage for Kansas, intending to pro- ceed across the country to that state. On reaching Macon county, however, they were so well pleased with the locality that they decided to go 10 farther and Mrs. Tidrow purchased a tract of land near Rea's Bridge, seven miles northeast of Decatur. There she founded the new home of the family and began the cultivation and improvement of her land. The first home of the family was a log structure, but afterward she built a more commodious and modern residence.
Clement C. Walters was a lad of about eight years when he accompanied his mother and step-father to Illinois. Soon after arriving here he began to work out, carning at first ten dollars per month by chopping wood through the winter seasons. Ile was thus deprived, however, of educa- tional privileges. He continued to work in this manner until twenty-one years of age, by which time he had managed to save from his earnings some three hundred dol- lars. He then determined to use this amount in the acquirement of a needed edu- cation. He devoted long hours to diligent study and after seven and a half months he had qualified himself in such a way that he was granted a teacher's certificate. He then engaged in teaching for four terms in the Peck district and with the money thus earned he was able to further pursue his own studies, taking a scientific course in Bushnell College. Before the completion of the entire course, however, he was stricken with malarial fever. After his re- covery he studied evenings in order to make up for the time during his illness and thus was able to complete his course at the regu- lar season and secure a first grade teacher's certificate. Mr. Walters soon became recog- nized as a capable and successful educator. He taught for four terms in the Walnut Grove district and one terin in the Enter- prise district. It was with the greatest re- luctancy that the directors of the school ac- cepted his resignation when he determined to devote his energies to the study of law, preparatory to making its practice his life work. Before he had completed his last two terms of school he had begun the study of law in the periods of vacation and on re- signing his position as teacher he entered the office of M. C. Outten and Henry P. Page of Decatur, as a law student. Not long afterward Mr. Page died and Mr. Outten considered Mr. Walter's services so valu- able that he secured him as an assistant
n & Bushos
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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
on a salary before he had been admitted to the bar. Later Mr. Outten formed a part- nership with Frank C. Roby, and Mr. Wal- ters continued with the new firm during the years 1896, 1897 and 1898. In 1896, however, he was admitted to the bar. In 1899 he was elected city attorney and dis- charged the duties of the position so accept- ably that in 1901 he was re-elected on the Republican ticket. On the 15th of October, 1900, he formed a partnership with Jacob H. Latham, under the firm style of Wal- ters & Latham, which association has since been continued. Mr. Walters has made a specialty of abstract law and is particu- larly proficient along this line. He has had a large clientage and has been so suc- cessful at the bar in recent years that he has had funds sufficient to invest in other business lines. lle built a large grain ele- vator at Rosemond, Illinois, in 1901, at a cost of three thousand dollars, and supplied with all modern and improved machinery for grinding. This elevator has a capacity of twelve thousand bushels of grain and the business is now managed by Mr. Walter's brother, Lewis.
On the 6th of August, 1898, occurred the marriage of Mr. Walters and Miss Emma Ilebel, a daughter of John and Phillippena Hebel. They have an interesting little daughter, Ruth Lucile. Fraternally Mr. Walters is connected with Macon Lodge, No. 8, .A. F. & A. M. He also belongs to Decatur Lodge, No. 65. I. O. O. F .; Cheva- lier Bayard Lodge, No. 189, K. P .; Decatur Camp. No. 144. M. W. A .; the Fraternal Army of America; the Court of Honor; and Rathbone Sisters. He also takes a deep interest in the moral development of the communuity as one of the trustees of the Christian church and is a director in the Young Men's Christian Association. He is a man of broad ideas and humane tendencies and he enjoys the high esteem of the com- munity in which he is now an honored citi-
zen. He is a scholar of cultivated tastes and thus has become a favorite companion with the brighest minds of the city.
WILLIAM F. BUSHER.
Those who were residents of Decatur when William F. Busher arrived in this city almost a half century ago can remember him as a humble shoemaker, working at the bench, mending shoes and doing other such tasks as fell to his lot. To-day he is a cap- italist, living retired from labor, for his life of industry and strict and unswerving in- tegrity, combined with perseverance and unremitting diligence, brought to him a handsome competence. He is a native son of the fatherland. Much of the civilization of the world has come from the Teutonic race. Continually moving westward, they have taken with them the enterprise and advancement of their eastern homes and have become valued and useful citizens of various localities. In this country espe- cially have they demonstrated their power to adapt themselves to new circumstances, retaining at the same time their progress- iveness and energy, and have become loyal and devoted citizens, true to the institutions of the "land of the free" and untiring in promotion of all that will prove of benefit to their adopted country. The German ele- ment in America forms an important part of American citizenship, and while they cannot attain to the highest civil office in the gift of the people they have given ample evidence of their power to sustain and up- holl the government of the republic and to become the factors in various communities to whom the locality owes its progress and prosperity.
When William F. Busher was born in the kingdom of Hanover, Germany, in De- cember, 1831, his parents might have dreamed of a brilliant future for their little
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son, but it is safe to say that they never thought that he would one day become one of the foremost citizens of an enterprising metropolitan center of Illinois. He has, however, been associated with Decatur for almost a half century and his name occupies a conspicuous place on the pages of its commercial history. His parents, Freder- ick and Dorothy (Reimer) Busher, were both natives of Germany and the father was a farmer by occupation, to which pursuit he devoted the best years of his life. Both he and his wife passed away in the father- land. In the usual manner of farm lads of that district and period William F. Busher was reared. He attended the common schools, acquiring a good knowledge of the German language and the branches therein taught and also a fair knowledge of the English tongue. Attracted by the business possibilities of the new world he came to the United States and in 1849 landed at Bal- timore, Maryland, whence he proceeded by rail and canal to Pittsburg and thence by steamboat to Cincinnati, Ohio. He was then in his eighteenth year and for a time he attended school in Cincinnati. Prepared for a business career by learning the shoe- maker's trade in Germany, during his first few months in Cincinnati he received one dollar per week and his board. For three years he remained in Cincinnati and then went to Indianapolis, Indiana, where he fol- lowed his trade for twelve months. On the expiration of that period he took up his abode in St. Louis, Missouri, where he worked at shoemaking until 1853, which year witnessed his arrival in Springfield, Illinois. In that city he attended the Luth- eran College for a time and thus added to his knowledge and at the same time gained a greater proficiency in the use of the Eng- lish tongue. The development of his char- acter was based upon firm Christian faith and the principles with which he became imbued through attendance at Sunday
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