USA > Illinois > Macon County > Decatur > Past and present of the City of Decatur and Macon County, Illinois > Part 43
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98
Since 1855 Mr. Merris has been a resident of Macon county, and in its development and prosperity he has taken an active in-
terest. He has been called upon to fill a number of local offices, having capably served as assessor of Milam township three years and tax collector of the same town- ship. During the greater part of his life he has filled the office of school director and for seven years was alderman of Macon. Further office he has refused to accept and he has never been a politician in the sense of office seeking. He is a supporter of the Prohibition party, and both he and his wife are members of the Baptist church, though they now attend the Presbyterian church, the former denomination having no house of worship in Macon. They are widely and favorably known and have a host of warm friends throughout the county.
GEORGE W. LEHN.
George W. Lehn is one of the younger representatives of the agricultural commun- ity of Illini township, his home being on section 24, where he owns and operates a good farm. He claims Macon county as his native place, for he was born in Illini township, on the ist of November, 1874, his parents being John P. and Tabitha (Jones) Lehn, whose sketch appears on another page of this volume. Our subject obtained his elementary education in the common schools of his native township, and later took a course at Brown's Busi- ness College in Decatur.
Since leaving school at the age of seven- teen years Mr. Lehn has devoted his entire time and attention to farm work and aided in the operation of the old home farm until twenty-six years of age. He is a thorough and systematic farmer and usually carries forward to successful completion whatever he undertakes. He received eighty acres of land from his father's estate and has built thereon a good barn and otherwise improved the place. The land is under a
365
PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
high state of cultivation and yields a good return for the care and labor bestowed upon it.
On the 20th of February, 1901, Mr. Lehn married Miss Lois L. Baum, a daughter of William and Nettie Baum, of Illini town- ship. She began her education in the dis- trict schools of Hickory Point township and for two years was a student in the high school of Decatur. She was also given instruction on the piano.
By his ballot Mr. Lehn supports the men and measures of the Republican party. Ile is a member of the Church of God of Boil- ing Springs in Hickory Point township, which he joined three years ago, and he is regarded as one of the leading young farm- ers of his community.
BENJAMIN PARKER.
Benjamin Parker, one of the most enter- prising and progressive agriculturists of Maroa township, residing on section 4, was born in that township in 1871, and is a son of John S. and Mary A. Parker. His father was a native of New Jersey and an early settler of Macon county, Illinois, where he successfully engaged in farming throughout life, owning one hundred and sixty acres of fine farming land at the time of his death.
Our subject is indebted to the public schools of his native township for the early educational privileges he enjoyed and later he attended college at Dixon, Illinois, for one year. At the age of twenty-one he be- gan farming on land left him by his father and has since devoted his energies to agri- cultural pursuits. Besides his own farm he generally operates a rented tract and in 1903 cultivated eighty acres in this way. He has spent over five thousand dollars in improving his place : has put in a splendid system of water works; and has built a house at a cost of three thousand dollars.
It is heated by a hot air furnace and is up- to-date in all its appointments. Mr. Parker carries on both farming and stock-raising and in both branches of his business he is meeting with good success.
In 1893 was celebrated his marriage to Miss Clara B. Longstreet, a daughter of John Longstreet, a wealthy, retired farmer now living in Maroa. Three children bless this union, namely: Hazel Naomi, John L. and Lloyd D. The parents both hold mem- bership in the Methodist church and Mr. Parker also belongs to the Independent Or- der of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias fraternity at Maroa. He filled the office of assessor in the spring of 1903 and by his ballot he supports the men and meas- ures of the Republican party. A wide- awake, energetic business man and a citizen of known reliability, he stands high in the community where he has always made his home and where he is so widely known.
JAMES G. UNDERWOOD, M. D.
In the practice of medicine in Illinois Dr. James G. Underwood became well known and many to-day have reason to bless his memory for the aid which he ren- dered in times of sickness and distress. He was born in Vermont on the 9th of June, 1819. The Underwood family is of Scotch- Irish extraction and was founded in Amer- ica by two brothers, one of whom settled in Vermont and the other in Maryland. Our subject's wife has a genealogical record of the family. The Doctor's father, Silas Un- derwood, was a farmer and a very promi- nent citizen in the Green Mountain state. He was frequently called to public office, serving in various official positions where he discharged his duties with promptness and fidelity. Both he and his wife died in Vermont.
alever A Montgomery
371
PAST AND PRESENT OF MAACON COUNTY.
The Doctor acquired his education in his native state and remained a resident of Ver- mont until thirty years of age, when in 1849 he came to the Mississippi valley, settling first in Wayne county, Wisconsin. He had previously prepared for the practice of med- icine, and, opening an office in Wisconsin, he there carried on business for a few years, at the end of which time he came to Ilinois, living in Greene and Pike counties for one year. He then came to Macon county.
It was in this county that Dr. Underwood was united in marriage to Miss Sarah A. Humphrey, a native of Morgan county, Illi- nois, and a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Bower) Humphrey. Her parents were natives of Kentucky and in the year 1828 came to this state, settling in what was then Morgan, now Scott, county, Ilinois. They there lived for several years and then came to Macon county, where Mr. Hum- phrey built what is now the Catholic con- vent. He erected it for hotel purposes and continued in that line of business here for many years. He afterward removed to Union county, Ilinois, and established his home on a fruit farm, engaging in horticul- tural pursuits until his death, which oc- curred in 1865. He was one of the honored pioneers of the state and aided largely in promoting its early development and prog- ress. His widow survived him for some time and died in Chicago.
U'nto Dr. and Mrs. Underwood were born six children : Helen, who is now living in Nebraska; Lewis, who is a job printer in the Herald office in Decatur ; Marcus, who resides in Chicago, and is employed by the Chicago Telephone Company : Cornelia, who is bookkeeper for the T. T. Springer Grocery Company in Decatur and lives with her mother ; and Edna and Ernest. who have passed away.
After his marriage Dr. Underwood located in Logan county, Illinois, where he contined in the practice of his profession with ex-
cellent success for several years, and also superintended the cultivation of his farm. Hle then removed to Union county, Ilinois, where he remained in practice for ten years and on the expiration of that decade he took up his abode in Columbus, Cherokee coun- ty, Kansas, where he devoted his energies to the alleviation of human suffering until called to his final rest on the oth of No- vember, 1875. He had a large practice dur- ing his residence in this city and was a prominent physician, gaining success by reason of his ability that brought him a large patronage. His memory is cherished by many who knew him for he had endeared himself to all through the possession of qualities that everywhere command respect, confidence and regard. He bore an excel- lent reputation both as a man and citizen. After his death Mrs. Underwood returned to Illinois and has since made he home in Decatur, where she owns a nice residence at No. 239 Condit street, where she and her children are living.
ALEXIS R. MONTGOMERY.
There is ever a degree of satisfaction and profit in scanning the life history of one who has attained to an eminent degree of success as the direct result of his own efforts, who has had the mentality to direct his endeavors toward the desired ends and the singleness and steadfastness of purpose which have given dne value to each consecutive detail of effort. As a distinctive type of a self-made man we can refer with singular propriety to the honored subject whose name forms the caption of this review, who is the secretary and treasurer of the Union Iron Works of Decatur.
Mr. Montgomery is a native of North Caro- lina, his birth having occurred in the village of Statesville, on the 10th of October, 1851. His paternal grandfather, James Montgomery, was
372
PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
a native of Virginia and was descended from Scotch-Irish ancestry. He became a farmer and planter and was well known in the Old Dominion. It was there that John E. Mont- gomery, the father of our subject, was born and rcared. Ile afterward removed to North Carolina, and in the year 1867 became a resi- cent of Illinois, establishing his home in Hills- boro, Montgomery county, where he carried on agricultural pursuits. By trade he was a tinner and for a time was employed in the Union Works of Decatur. Subsequently, how- ever, he returned to his old home in North Carolina, where he became ill and there his life's labors were ended in death. The wife bore the maiden name of Catherine Ramseur, and was a native of North Carolina. Her father was David Ramseur, who was of Ger- man lineage.
In a private school in the south Alexis R. Montgomery began his education, which was continued in the district schools of Montgom- ery county, Illinois. He afterward became a student in the public schools of Taylorville, Illinois, wherein he completed his education. On putting aside his text books he was ap- pointed to the position of deputy postmaster in Taylorville, which position he filled for two years. He then came to Decatur in 1873 and through the two succeeding years was em- ployed as a salesman in the mercantile house of J. N. Randall. In 1875 he became book- keeper for the Union Iron Works, filling that position until 1882. His identification with this business covers twenty-eight years and in 1884 he was made secretary and treasurer of the company, while James Millikin was elected its president. Mr. Montgomery has since acted in that capacity and not a little of the success of the undertaking is attributable to his supervision and his active co-operation and his sound business judgment. The com- pany manufactures corn shellers and elevator machinery and has always been noted for its excellent workmanship. The corn sheller has
been manufactured on a very extensive scale, being sold throughout the corn belt of the civilized world. The house has ever main- tained a high reputation for the excellence of its work, which is secured through the em- ployment of skilled operatives and through the use of the latest improved machinery. A large force of men is annually employed and the yearly output reaches a large amount.
In 1874 Mr. Montgomery was united in marriage to Miss Cecil Oglesby, of Decatur, a daughter of Willis Oglesby, and they have two children: Jessie A. and Noy Oglesby. They all hold membership in the First Presby- terian church, in which they have taken a very active part, contributing generously to its support. Mr. Montgomery has filled various offices in the church. He is likewise a director of the James Millikin University. In seeking for the causes which have contributed to his success we find them not so much in their rarity as in their harmonious union and they may be summed up by saying that he has the manners of a gentleman and the habits of a man of business-a combination of qualities that are bound to produce the highest results. It is no very rare thing for a poor boy in our country to become a prosperous man and oc- cupy a commanding position in the business world, but many who have fought their way from poverty to wealth, from obscurity to prominence, retain some scars and marks of the conflict. They are apt to be narrow and grasping, even if not sordid and unscrupulous. Mr. Montgomery, however, is an instance of a man who has achieved success without pay- ing the price at which it is often bought, for his prosperity has not removed him farther from his fellow men, but has brought him into closer and more intimate relations with them. The more means he has had the more he has done for those around him and for the welfare of the city, and now he is numbered among the most prominent as well as prosperous citi- zens of Decatur.
373
PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
CHARLES H1. FAITHI.
Charles 11. Faith is one of the important factors in the business circles of Warrens- burg. Illinois, where as a grain dealer he is now doing a good business. In his special field of endeavor he has met with excellent success and by the energy and zeal he has manifested he has won the confidence and esteem of the public.
Mr. Faith was born in Deer Park, Mary- land. May 21. 1857, and is a son of Joseph Faith, a retired farmer now living in De- catur, Illinois, whose birth occurred in Loraine, Germany, April 25, 1823. Our subject's paternal grandfather, Paul Faith, was a native of Alsace, France, and spent his entire life in that country. Soon after his death his widow crossed the Atlantic and became a resident of Baltimore. Here Joseph Faith acquired a limited education in the common schools of that city. Ile served a six years' apprenticeship to the machinist's trade and when his term expired worked in Cumberland, Maryland, removing to the latter place in the '40s. For twenty-three years he continued to fol- low his chosen occupation and being an expert workman he secured a good compe- tence. On the 12th of November, 1844, he married Miss Catherine Hesson, a native of Maryland and a daughter of Lewis Hesson. For a number of years he made his home in Cumberland. Maryland, and in 1865 re- moved to Fulton county, Pennsylvania, where he established a shop and continued to work at his trade. In 1871 he came to Macon county, Illinois, and purchased a farm of one hundred and sixty acres one mile west of Warrensburg, although there was no town there at that time. Thirty- five acres of this land had previously been broken and to its further development and cultivation he devoted his energies for some years. He aided materially in the growth and upbuilding of that section of the county.
Renting his farm in 1887, he removed to Warrensburg, and on the 28th of Septem- ber, 1896, took up his residence in Decatur, where he now lives retired in the enjoy- ment of a well earned rest and the fruits of his former toil. Hle cast his first presiden- tial vote for James K. Polk in 1844, and at state and national elections always sup- ports the Democratic party but at local elections votes independent of party lines, endeavoring to support the candidate best qualified for the office. Both he and his wife are members of the Roman Catholic church of Decatur and are highly respected and esteemed by all who know them.
Unto this worthy couple were born four- teen children, of whom eight sons and three daughters are living, namely: William, a resident of Hancock, Washington county, Maryland; Lewis, who holds a responsible position in the same county ; Ella, widow of Stephen Witcher, of Decatur ; John ; Charles 11., whose name introduces the sketch ; Eli, a resident of Chicago; Harry, who makes his home in Illiopolis; George, a farmer of Illini township, Macon county; Sadie, wife of John D. Childs ; Mollie, wife of Dr. Fisher, of Chicago ; and Thomas, who is interested in the Chicago Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat College at the corner of Washington and Franklin streets, Chicago.
Charles H. Faith attended school in Han- cock, Maryland, until fifteen years of age, and then accompanied his parents on their removal to Macon county, Illinois, locating near the present village of Warrensburg. Ile began farming for himself upon eighty acres of land in Illini township, and contin- ned to follow that occupation until 1883. when he removed to Warrensburg and em- barked in the grain business with Z. Baughn, under the firm name of Baughn & Company, this connection being continued for three years. He next formed a partner- ship with C. J. Off under the name of C. II.
374
PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
Faith & Company, and in 1902 the firm was changed to Faith & Dewein, which it still remains. Besides their elevator at War- rensburg they also own and operate another at lleman, Macon county, which together have a capacity of one hundred thousand bushels, so that they are numbered among the leading grain dealers of this section of the state. They are progressive, wide- awake business men and are meeting with good success.
On the 25th of September, 1879, Mr. Faith was united in marriage with Miss Henrietta Banghn, a daughter of Benjamin and Han- nah (Mowry) Baughn. Ten children blessed this union: Pearl, now the wife of William Ayers, by whom she has one child, Ruth; Grace, who is quite a musician and is the wife of Victor Dewein, by whom she has one child, Margaret ; Georgia, who has just graduated from the Decatur high school ; Mabel, Ruth, William, Julia, Charles H., Jr., and Harold, all at home ; and James, who died in infancy. The two older daugh- ters were married in the same room where the ceremony was performed that made their father and mother man and wife.
In his social relations Mr. Faith is a member of the Modern Woodmen of Amer- ica and the Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows, and he also belongs to the encamp- ment and patriarch militant in the latter or- der. He is now serving as treasurer of the subordinate lodge. The Republican party has always found in him a stanch supporter of its principles and he has served on the township central committee, has been town clerk and constable, school director for many years, and president of the village board. Pre-eminently public spirited and progressive, he is recognized as one of the valued and useful citizens of the com- munity, and no trust reposed in him has ever been misplaced.
OLIVER T. CROW.
With the agricultural interests of Pleas- ant View township Oliver T. Crow has long been identified and is to-day operating a fine farm of one hundred and twenty-seven acres. A native of Ohio, he was born in Licking county, that state, on the 4th of February, 1853, and is a son of John and Elizabeth (Jenny) Crow. The father was also a native of the Buckeye state and was of German descent, but the mother was born in Wheeling, West Virginia. Her father was captain of a boat on the Ohio river. In 1856 John Crow brought his family to Macon county, Illinois, and after residing for a short time in the village of Macon he removed to section 36, Pleasant View town- ship, where he had purchased a tract of land from the Illinois Central Railroad and erected a house thereon. Later he removed to section 34 in the same township and con- tinued follow agricultural pursuits throughout his active business life.
Oliver T. Crow is the seventh in order of birth in a family of ten children, the oth- ers being Sarah, who is now Mrs. Hardy Markwell; Charles, who died at the age of seventeen years; Matilda, wife of William Markwell, a dairyman of Bement; Caroline, wife of J. P. Nutter, postmaster, merchant and stock-buyer of Talmo, Kansas; E. W., who married Nannie Deatley, and is en- gaged in the grain business in Blue Mound, Illinois ; Corinda, who died in infancy ; John, who died at the age of nineteen years; Le- nora, who died in young womanhood; and Libbie, who died in early life.
The subject of this sketch was only three years old when he accompanied his parents on their removal to Macon county, Illinois, and he was reared and educated in Pleas- ant View township, but was forced to leave school at an early age and begin work. During his boyhood he hauled wood from Flat Branch, a distance of six miles, and also engaged in farming. In 1874 he com-
Fred Nutzen
PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
menced farming on his own account, oper- ating a rented farm in Christian county for two years, and then removed to section 34, Pleasant View township, where the fol- lowing two years were passed. For eight years he lived on the Baldwin farm, and then removed to his present place, where he rents one hundred and twenty-seven acres of land under a high state of cultiva- tion and well improved. . A good practical agriculturist, he has met with success in his chosen occupation.
On the 18th of February, 1875, was cele- brated the marriage of Mr. Crow and Miss Alice J. Scott, who was born in Macon county and was educated in the schools of Niantic and Blue Mound. Her parents, Joseph and Sarah ( Whiteside) Scott, were also natives of Illinois, their births hav- ing occurred near Edwardsville, in Madi- son county. Her maternal great-grand- father, Colonel Whiteside, was a prom- inent early settler of this state and a noted Indian fighter. His son, William Whiteside, the grandfather of Mrs. Crow. was a pioneer of Macon county. Mrs. Crow is the oldest in a family of eight children, the others being Mary, who died in in- fancy ; Ida, deceased wife of Charles Clark, of Decatur ; Minnie, wife of William David- son, of Rochester, Nebraska ; Hattie, widow of E. W. Whaley; May, wife of Amos Da- vidson, of Christian county, Illinois; and William, who married Lilly Marshall and lives in Christian county.
Eight children blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Crow: Johnny, born November 19. 1876, died April 23, 1877 ; Willie E., born April 22, 1878, married Myrtle Hays and lives in Moweaqua, Illinois. Of the two children born to them, one is living, Glenn. Edith, born March 28, 1880, is the wife of Charles Ferry, a farmer, and to them were born three children, but only Mabel is now living. Eva, born January 9. 1883, is the wife of Charles Nichols, a farmer of South
Macon township. Ezra W., born March 23, 1886, and Ray, born July 14, 1890, are both at home. Walter, born October 3. 1893, died October 11, 1893. Don, born July &, 1804, is at home.
Mr. Crow is liberal in his religious views but his wife is a member of the Christian church. Fraternally he is connected with the Modern Woodmen of America, and po- litically is identified with the Democracy, taking an active part in the work of his party. Hle has filled the offices of highway commissioner, constable and tax collector, serving in the last capacity for three terms. His life has been one of industry and use- fulness, and he has always been found true to any trust reposed in him whether public or private.
FREDERICK BUTZIEN.
Frederick Butzien is the oldest represen- tative of the furniture business in Decatur, although at the present time he is living a retired life. He came to this city in 1853 and began the manufacture of furniture and with this department of the work and also with the retail trade he was connected for many years. He has now passed the sex- enty-eighth mile-stone on life's journey and lives quietly at his pleasant home, his for- mer toil making it possible for him to enjoy all of the comforts and many of the luxuries of life. He is connected with our German- American citizenship, his birth having oc- curred in Prussia on the 18th of October. 1825. His parents, Frederick and Caroline (Cook) Butzien, spent their entire lives in Germany. In early life the father followed the tailor's trade, but afterward engaged in farming up to the time of his death.
In accordance with the laws of his native country Frederick Butzien pursued his edu- cation in the public schools. He was a young man of about twenty-five years when
37%
PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.
he determined to seek a home in the new world and sailed for America in company with his brother, Charlie, who afterward died in Peru, Indiana. They landed in New York and our subject went direct to Mil- waukee, Wisconsin, where he was employed in a box factory for a short time. He then removed to LaSalle, Illinois, where he en- gaged in carpentering and assisted in build- ing the bridge across the river. Subsequent- ly he made his way to New Orleans, where he worked in a furniture manufacturing es- tablishment for one winter, but on account of the yellow fever in the south he returned north and settled in Springfield, Illinois, which was then the termination of the rail- road.
Soon afterward he walked from Spring- field to Decatur, arriving here in the spring of 1853. The now thriving city with its splendid business enterprises, fine buildings and excellent improvements was then a mere town and had little importance as a trade center. Mr. Butzien began working for E. D. Carter in the furniture manufac- turing business, continuing with that gen- tleman for two years, after which he fol- lowed carpentering for a few years. He then began manufacturing furniture on his own account, his place of business being on South Water street. He made all kinds of furniture and coffins, selling to both the wholesale and retail trade and he made all of the furniture used in the old Macon county courthouse. For ten years he con- tinued in that business and then sold out the undertaking business to Mr. Aungst, after which he built a brick building on East Main street and opened a retail furni- ture store, which he conducted for twenty- eight years. Almost continually from the time of his arrival in Illinois up to the time of his retirement from business life he was connected with the furniture trade either as a manufacturer or as a retail dealer. In this way he became widely known through-
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.