Past and present of the City of Decatur and Macon County, Illinois, Part 56

Author:
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Chicago : S.J. Clarke Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 988

USA > Illinois > Macon County > Decatur > Past and present of the City of Decatur and Macon County, Illinois > Part 56

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On resuming business in Warrensburg. Mr. Dewein formed a partnership with C. H. Faith in the grain trade under the firm name of Faith & Dewein, and they now own and operate elevators at this place and at Heman, Illinois. They handle many thiou- sands bushels of grain annually and are re-

THEODORE HILDEBRANDT

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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.

garded as one of the leading firms in their line in this section of the state.

On the 5th of June, 1902, Mr. Dewein was united in marriage to Miss Grace Faith, a daughter of C. H. Faith, and they now have a little daughter, Margaret Henrietta, born May 4, 1903. Mrs. Dewein is a grad- uate of the Warrensburg high school and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. She presides with gracious dignity over her elegant home, which is one of the nicest residences of the place, and she and her husband have a host of friends here. In religious faith Mr. Dewein is a Presby- terian and in politics is a Republican. He possesses that broad culture which only travel can bring and is very popular both in business and social circles.

THEODORE HILDEBRANDT.

There is in Decatur no druggist who has so long carried on business in this line as has the subject of this review and through- out the years of his connection with mer- cantile interests here he has maintained an enviable reputation and one which makes him worthy of mention as a leading citizen. He was born in Prussia on the 18th of De- cember, 1833, and is a son of Henry Xavier and Augusta (Wahrendorf) Hildebrandt, who were likewise natives of the Prussian kingdom. They reared a large family of children, of whom Theodore was the next to the youngest. Hle has one brother, F. L. Hildebrandt, who is a civil engineer of Chi- cago, and a sister, Mrs. A. Linde, also living in that city.

In a select school of his native country Mr. Hildebrandt of this review began his education and therein pursued his studies until he reached the age of twelve years, after which he spent five years in college. Coming to America he resided with his brother Harmon upon a farm in Missouri

for one year and then his brother died sud- denly. Our subject afterward went to St. Louis where he secured a clerkship in a drug store and since 1853 he has been con- nected with that line of business in Decatur. Upon his arrival here he accepted a posi- tion as salesman in the employ of Dr. W. . 1. Barnes, with whom he remained for two years, in fact, it was through the efforts of Dr. Barnes that he came to Decatur. In 1858 he opened a drug store on his own ac- count, forming a partnership under the firm style of MeCabe & Hildebrandt. At a later date, however, he sold his interest in the store to his partner that he might enter the army, for his patriotic spirit was aroused by the attack made upon the Union by the disloyalty in the south. He joined the Twenty-first Illinois Volunteers, with which he remained for a short time and upon his return he purchased a store of his old part- ner and began business on his own account. continuing at the old stand until 1878. In 1888 he opened his present store at No. 74- East Eldorado street and has since con- ducted it with growing success. There is no druggist of Decatur whose residence here antedates the arrival of Mr. Hilde- brandt, or who has been so continuously in the business. The city was a village of only about five hundred population at the time of his arrival and with its growth and de- velopment our subject has kept apace, re- modeling his store to keep in touch with the progressive spirit of the times. He now has a well appointed establishment and a large and carefully selected stock. He thor- oughly understands the business in every department and the use of the various reme- dial agencies and as a compounder of medi- cine there is no more capable merchant in the city. Ilis time and attention have been given to his store to the exclusion of all de- mands to win public office or gain public notoriety.

Mr. Hildebrandt was married in Decatur

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to Miss Julia M. Mason, a daughter of Levi Mason, of New York. They had four chil- dren, of whom two sons are living: Charles T. and Albert Mason. The former married Miss Henrietta Michaels, of Iowa, by whom he has a daughter, Elizabeth. He now re- sides in Chicago, where he is engaged in the manufacture of engines. The younger son wedded Miss Bess Lorena Lloyd and is living in Indianapolis. This marriage was celebrated June 30, 1903.

Mr. Hildebrandt's life has been a success, his entire career is illustrative of the fact that certain actions are followed by certain results. As a merchant he occupies an en- viable position in the public regard, as one whose actions have been neither reproached or criticised. He is a worthy adopted son of this land and no native son of America is more true or loyal to the stars and stripes than is Theodore Hildebrandt.

DANIEL C. SPENCE.

Daniel C. Spence was a farmer of Friends Creek township, Macon county, where he established his home in 1869. It continued to be his place of residence until he was called to his final rest and he became known as one of the progressive and enterprising agriculturists of the community and as a man who was worthy of the highest regard because his life was ever upright and hon- orable. He was a native of North Carolina. his birth having occurred in that state on the 14th of October, 1841. The public schools afforded him his educational privi- leges and with his father's family he came to Illinois, spending his youth upon the home farm in Adams county. There he was early trained to habits of industry and economy and his knowledge of practical farming methods gained upon the old homestead proved of immense benefit to him when he engaged in farming on his own account.

Like most young men he desired a com- panion and helpmate for the journey of life after attaining his majority and was united in marriage to Miss Sarah A. Carter, a native of Adams county, Illinois, born on Christmas day of 1839. The lady is a daughter of the Rev. Joseph W. and Lydia ( Fuller) Carter, both of whom were natives of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, whence they emigrated westward, settling in Adams county, Illinois, at a very early period in its development. The father, a minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, devoted the greater part of his life to the work of spreading the gospel and influencing men to follow an upright life as taught by Christ. His principles and examples were both strong elements for good in the communities in which he lived. His memory is still en- shrined in the hearts of many who knew him. Both he and his wife have now passed away, but are yet lovingly remem- bered by a large circles of friends.

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Spence were born six children : John W., now deceased; Will- iam Henry, a painter by trade, who is now engaged in contracting in that line in De- catur ; George L., who married Nellie Revis and is an engineer on the Wabash Rail- road, making his home in Decatur ; Mary B., the wife of J. O. Johnson, an insurance man of this city ; James O., who married Lula Deck and resides in Decatur; and Arthur C., who is living with his mother.

After his marriage Mr. Spence purchased a farm in Friends Creek township, Macon county, Illinois, where he located in 1869. and there engaged in general agricultural pursuits. With characteristic energy he be- gan its development and improvement and continued its cultivation until his death. Ile was a very industrious man who never was afraid of hard work, but applied him- self with diligence and energy to the task which awaited him and gained thereby a comfortable competence.

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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.

Hle died September 24, 1874, in the faith of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he was a loyal member. In politics he was a stanch Republican and was always truc to his duties of citizenship. In fact he faithfully met every duty which devolved upon him whether in public or in private life and he so lived as to win the respect and confidence of his fellow men and to leave to his family the priceless heritage of an untarnished name. After his death Mrs. Spence sold the home farm and removed to Decatur, purchasing her present residence at No. 1204 North Main street, where she has since resided. ller many womanly qualities and kindly spirit have endeared her to those with whom she has come in contact and she is favorably known among a large circle of friends in this city.

REV. JAMES HOBBS.

Rev. James Hobbs has devoted the greater part of his life to the work of the ministry as a preacher of the Methodist Episcopal church and his in- fluence has been of no restricted order. He has labored consecutively along lines which have appealed to general intelligence and his work has been an important factor in the moral development of Decatur. lle was born in Madison, Indiana, on the 26th of May, 1837, his father being Thomas Hobbs, who in early life devoted his at- tention to agricultural pursuits and after- ward engaged in merchandising. Ile mar- ried Miss Eleanor Snodgrass, who was born in Cabell county, West Virginia, in 1808, being one year her husband's senior, for his birth occurred in Henry county, Kentucky, in 1800. During the pioneer epoch of the Blue Grass state the Hobbs family was founded there by the great-grandfather of our subject. The maternal grandfather was Samuel Snodgrass, who belonged to a fam-

ily numbering three sons. It was in the year 1840 that Thomas Hobbs removed with his family from Indiana to Illinois, settling in Randolph county, where he remained continuously for more than a quarter of a century or until 1867, when he removed to Bunker Hill, Illinois, Ile afterward became a resident of Litchfield, this state, where his remaining days were passed. llis wife departed this life in 1885 and he was called to his final home in Decatur, 1896, having reached an advanced age. The family of this worthy couple numbered eight chil- dren, three sons and five daughters, all but two of whom reached mature years, while two of the number are now living in Litch- field, Illinois, and another sister makes her home near Springfield, Missouri.

Rev. James Hobbs spent his boyhood days in Randolph county, Illinois, and there pursued his education in the public schools. At the age of seventeen he began teaching, being first employed in the district schools and after in village schools. To the work of promoting the intellectual development of the state he gave his energies for thir- een years, during which time he spent near- ly three years as a student in Mc Kendree College in St. Clair county, Illinois. While engaged in teaching he was also licensed to preach in Salem, Illinois, by Hiram Sears, presiding elder, his first charge being at Galatia, Saline county, Illinois, where he remained for a year. In 1888 he came to Decatur, where he has since done evangelis- tic and missionary work. He admits to his church all who wish to hear the message of the gospel, although advocating in strong- est terms the doctrine of the Methodist church. He has induced many to follow in the straight and narrow path which leads to life everlasting. He is an earnest speaker, a deep thinker and a logical reasoner, and his utterances have left a lasting impression upon many of his hearers.

On the gth of February, 1859, Rev. Hobbs

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was joined in the holy bonds of wedlock to Miss Mary A. Webb, of Randolph county, Illinois. She was born in St. Louis, Mis- souri, in 1844, and dicd leaving four chil- dren: Lille, now the wife of Charles S. Todd, of Macon county, living near Deca- tur; and three who are now deccased.

On the 8th of May, 1867, Rev. Hobbs was again married, his second union being with Miss Lizzie Morrow, of Randolph county, Illinois, a daughter of Arthur Morrow, a prominent old citizen of that locality. The second wife died February 12, 1885. The two children born of this union are both deceased. Mr. Hobbs was later united in marriage to Miss Lizzie C. Rentchler, of Rentchler Station, Illinois, a little town lo- cated near Belleville. She is the daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Baker) Rentchler. who were natives of Pennsylvania and among the early settlers of St. Clair coun- ty. Illinois, locating there in 1836. Her father was born in Lancaster county, Penn- sylvania, in 1800, and her mother's birth occurred in the same place in 1804. Mrs. Hobbs was born in St. Clair county, Illinois, June 1, 1844. By this union was born one child, Taylor K., whose birth occurred July 25, 1889.

Mr. Hobbs has a neat home on Dunham street, where he has two acres of land, con- stituting a valuable property. Almost his entire life has been devoted to the holy call- ing which yet claims his attention and he is a man of force in the church, his labors proving of marked value in bringing to man a knowledge of the gospel and in turning his fellow citizens from paths of sin into walks of life leading to righteousness.

HENRY BERKLER.

No better illustration of the characteristic energy and enterprise of the typical Ger- man-American citizen can be found than

that afforded by the career of this well known farmer of Friends Creek township. Starting out in life for himself without capital he has made his way to success through wisely directed effort and can now look back with satisfaction upon past strug- gles.

Mr. Berkler was born in Germany in 1837 and there spent the first fifteen years of his life in school most of the time. He then came to the new world with his parents, and was thirty-five days upon the water as the voyage was made in a sailing vessel. The family settled in Peoria, Illinois, where the father died many years ago. The mother died in 1899 near Maroa, Illinois.

Our subject began earning his own liveli- hood by working on a farm by the month and later he was in his father's employ for a time. Ile next rented a farm, which he operated for six years, and at the end of that time he purchased eighty acres of land on section 13, Friends Creek township, Ma- con county, where he now resides. He subsequently purchased another eighty-acre tract, making one hundred and sixty acres where he now resides, and he also has six hundred acres in Iowa. For his home place he paid eighteen dollars per acre and he has laid out a large amount of money on improvements since it came into his pos- session, erecting all of the buildings there- on. His attention is mostly devoted to the raising of grain but he is interested in stock to some extent, and he has met with good success in his farming operations.

In 1859 Mr. Berkler married Miss Paulina Ehman, by whom he had three children : Lizzie, William and Kate. For his second wife he wedded Matilda Shultz and to them were born twelve children, ten of whom are still at home with their parents, namely: Lottie, Amelia, Gertrude, John, Frank, Net- tie, Samuel, Fred, Lelia and Esther. Ada is now the wife of Theodore Denise and lives in Macon county, and Edward is mar-

ROBERT WOODS

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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY

ried and resides in lowa. The daughter Amelia taught school in that state for a time but is now at home. Mrs. Berkler is a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and a daughter of John Shultz, a farmer by occu- pation, who brought his family to Macon county, Ilinois, in 1859 and located in Friends Creek township, where Mrs. Berk- ler attended school. Our subject and his wife are consistent members of the Meth- odist Episcopal church and have the respect and confidence of all who know them. For three years he has served as school direc- tor and he votes with the Democratic party.

ROBERT WOODS.

Robert Woods, whose home is on section 10, South Wheatland township, is the old- est resident of Macon county who was born in Illinois, his birth having occurred in St. Clair county, this state, on the 15th of J mary, 1817, before her admission to the U'non. Ile is a worthy representative of that hardy class of pioneers who came here in territorial days and were not only forced to end. e all of the hardships and priva- 'ons incident to pioneer life, but were often n great danger from attacks by the In- a tals.

ur subjects paternal grandfather was John' Walker and the changing of his name to Woods was occasioned by the following curious . cident. At the time of the break- ing out of the Revolutionary war he was living nea Halifax, Nova Scotia, and was pressed into the British army, but two days before the battle of Long Island he deserted to join the American forces. While on his way he was stopped by a man who claimed to have authority to arrest him and when the man began to fumble in his pockets for his papers the grandfather of our subject knocked him down and took his papers, which were made out in the name of John

Woods. As a matter of precaution Mr. Walker took that name as his own lest he should be captured and put to death. He served throughout the struggle for inde- pendence under the name of John Woods and when success at length crowned the efforts of the colonists he sent for his family to join him in the United States, locating in Jefferson county, Ohio. At the age of ten years his son John, the father of our subject, dropped the name of Walker and also took that of Woods.

John Woods, Jr., grew to manhood in Jefferson county, Ohio. The passing of a flatboat changed the whole current of his life, for upon that boat was the lady who became his wife. He boarded the boat, went with her down the Ohio river and settled in the same neighborhood in St. Clair county, Illinois, where they were married about the beginning of the nineteenth century. They experienced much trouble with the Indians, being among the pioneers of the state. The father died in February, 1855, when over eighty years of age, and his wife, whose maiden name was Delilah IHill, passed away .August 19, 1826, when our subject was a lad of nine years. They were the parents of nine children, namely: William, who served in the Black Hawk war at Rock Island : Mary, who died in Wisconsin ; John, who was also in the Black Hawk war and died in St. Clair county, Illinois, May 19, 1875: Peter, deceased; Robert, of this sketch: George, who was drowned in the Kaskaskia river in 1839: Thomas, who died in Central City in 1866; Nancy, who died in Missouri ; and one who died in early child- hood. For his second wife the father mar- ried Mrs. Susan MeGuire, a sister of his first wife, and she had two children, James Marion, now deceased ; and Mrs. Delilah Holcomb, a resident of St. Clair county.

Our subject's brother John deserves fur- ther mention on account of his coolness and bravery under grave surroundings. During

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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.

the Black Hawk war the Indians massa- cred the entire Hall family, near Chillock's Grove, except two daughters who were cap- tured and a boy who escaped and informed the soldiers of what had occurred. The daughters were afterward restored by treaty. A Mr. Macumsum, who had been nearly killed by the Indians, was being carried by John Woods and three other men to a place of safety, but desiring a drink of water they stopped at a spring and as one of the party, Mr. McDaniels, was in the act of dipping up the water, he was killed by a volley from the red men who lay in ambush. Mr. Macumsum was left and the others fled. All escaped with ex- ception of Mr. Woods, who was detained by trying to catch his horse that had been in charge of another man who on hearing the firing dropped the bridle and ran. Luckily, however, the horse became entangled in the bridle and this enabled Mr. Woods to catch him more easily. Although the last off the ground he managed to get beyond the bul- lets of the Indians and escape. At that time Benjamin Scott, a brother of Judge John M. Scott, who was afterward judge of the supreme court of the state, was helping carry Mr. Macumsum. He was killed and decapitated, his head being carried off by the red men as a trophy. Mr. Woods had the gratification of knowing that one Indian scalp had been taken by him. He brought it home and it was kept in the family for a long time as a relic.

Robert Woods spent his boyhood in the log cabin home but on the death of his mother the family became scattered and the children were never all together again. For six years he lived with a Mr. Ward. His early advantages were very meager and at the age of seventeen he began working as a farm hand, receiving seven dollars per month for his services. For ten years he was employed in that capacity, working early and late at the most arduous duties.

At length he was able to purchase eighty acres of school land at one dollar and a quarter per acre and subsequently bought eighty acres more. In 1866 he sold his farm of two hundred and eighty acres in St. Clair county and came to Macon county, purchas- ing one hundred and forty acres of his pres- ent farm, to which he has since added until he now has two hundred and forty acres in South Wheatland township. Besides his home place he has other property, in all over three hundred acres in this county. Laying aside active labor he has lived a retired life for several years, enjoying a comfortable competence which was acquired by former toil. His farm interests are now being car- ried on by William R. McGuire, who was born in Moultrie county, Illinois, Septem- ber 25, 1877, a son of James and Elizabeth (Scott) McGuire, and was married January 24, 1900, to Miss Grace Woods, a grand- daughter of our subject and a daughter of John and Margaret (Gooker) Woods. She was born January 9, 1881. They are now living on the old home place and have one child, Ada Marie, born August 5, 1902.

It was on the 16th of March, 1843; in St. Clair county, that Mr. Woods led to the marriage altar Miss Elizabeth H. Short, a daughter of William B. and Nancy (Hill) Short. Her father was born in Monroe county, Illinois, in 1804. Mr. and Mrs. Woods became the parents of six children, as follows: George S., who served in the Union army under General Sherman and died in Macon county, Illinois, in 1890, leav- ing one son, Robert S .; Joseph, who died June 18, 1891, leaving three children ; John, who first married Caroline Cox and second Margaret Gooker and died August 4, 1892; William, who died in St. Clair county at the age of twelve years; Benjamin, also de- ceased ; and Alfred W., who wedded Haidee Finney, of Lincoln, Nebraska. He was edu- cated in Musselman's Business College and was a teacher of architecture and mechan-

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PAST AND PRESENT OF MACON COUNTY.

ical drawing in the Wesleyan University. He is now engaged in practice of his pro- fession in Lincoln, Nebraska. The mother of this family died on the 4th of December, 1864.

Mr. Woods was again married January 7. 1808, to Ellen Elizabeth Pope, who was born in Wake county, North Carolina, De- cember 30, 1817, and was ten years of age when she came to Illinois with her parents, Dempsey and Sarah (Edwards) Pope. She first married John Eller, and to them were born four children who reached years of ma- turity, namely: Sarah Jane; Lavinia : Mary E., wife of William Wilson, of Arkansas; and William F., who was a member of the One Hundred and Thirteenth Illinois In- fantry in the Civil war and was wounded in the battle of Chickamauga, causing the amputation of his arm. Mrs. Woods had two brothers who belonged to the One Hun- dred and Sixteenth Illinois Infantry and both died from disease contracted in the service. She had seen President Lincoln in the wheat field, harvesting his grain with a reap hook on what is now known as the Leiby farm near Walnut Grove. She died on the 17th of August, 1900, at the age of eighty-two years.

Mr. Woods cast his first presidential vote for William Henry Harrison, supported Millard Fillmore in 1856 and Lincoln in 1860, and has since affiliated with the Re- publican party. During the long years of his residence in this state wonderful changes have taken place here. The dusky savages who still roamed through the forests during his boyhood days have long since disap- peared, seeking homes in the reservations beyond the Mississippi, and the wild game, once so numerous, has all been destroyed. Prairie and forest have been transformed into fine farms, villages and cities have sprung up, and all of the interests and evi- dences of an advanced civilization have been introduced, making this one of the best

states of the Union. In the work of prog- ress and advancement Mr. Woods has al- ways borne his part and he deserves a prom- inent place on the roll of honored pioneers of Illinois.

P. D. SPOONER.

P. D. Spooner was born May 31, 1864, a son of Cyrus M. and Maria (Devol) Spooner, who were natives of Ohio. His father was descended from an English ancestor who worked his passage to Amer- ica in the seventeenth century, thus estab- lishing his home in the new world in an carly period in its colonization. The pa- ternal grandfather, Cyrus Spooner, was likewise a native of Ohio and many of the representatives of the family have been in the professions and some have won dis- tinction therein. The subject of this review is a distant relative of Senator Spooner, of Wisconsin. Cyrus M. Spooner, the father of our subject, was born in Ohio, March 17, 1832, and became a merchant of that state. Ile followed his chosen calling for many years and in 1880 removed to Illinois, set- tling in Blue Mound, where he opened a meat market, which he conducted for three or four years. Since that time he has been doing general repair and cabinet work. At the time of the Civil war he responded to his country's call for aid, enlisting in Com- pany F. Second Regiment of West Virginia Volunteer Cavalry. He served in the Shenandoah valley under Generals Sheri- clan and Custer and was in the battles of Winchester, Sinking Creek, Dublin Depot, Lynchburg, Waynesburg and Fisher Hill.

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Past and present of the City of Decatur and Macon County, Illinois, Part 56

Author: Publication date: 1903 Publisher: Chicago : S.J. Clarke Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 988

Author:
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Chicago : S.J. Clarke Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 988