Portrait and bigraphical album of Livingston County, Ill. : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the county, together with portraits and biographies , Part 15

Author: Chapman Brothers (Chicago) publisher
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Chicago : Chapman brothers
Number of Pages: 1208

USA > Illinois > Livingston County > Portrait and bigraphical album of Livingston County, Ill. : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the county, together with portraits and biographies > Part 15

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HOMAS GLASS, of Dwight Township, is comfortably located and in possession of a good farm on seetion 34. Ilis course in life has been marked by the persistence and indus- try which he inherited from his substantial Ger- man ancestry, and which has distinguished the Glass family as far back as it can be traced. The later descendants have been familiarly known throughout Central Pennsylvania, where Thomas Glass, the father of our subject, was born, and was one of the first of that name to take up his residence in another State.

Thomas Glass, Sr., upon leaving his native county, located in Ohio, where he married Miss Re- becca Storrer, who was born in Maryland and went with her parents to the Buckeye State when but a child. At the time of their courtship the story goes that Mr. Glass, who lived on one side of the Ohio River while his sweetheart lived on the other, in the absence of a ferry, was obliged to swim the river to meet her. Love in this case, as in nearly all others, laughed as much at water as at locksmiths, and ever since the workl began there has been found a way out of these peculiar difficulties. The

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young people were happily married, as they de- served, and in due time the household circle in- eluded eight children. These were named respeet- ively : James, Robert, Elizabeth, Isaac, Jackson, Thomas, Seamons and George.

The parents of our subject continued in Ohio and became possessors of a good farm in Guernsey County, where all their children were born. In 1852 Thomas Glass, Sr., migrated to this State with his family and located near Gardner, Grundy County, during the early settlement of that region. He was at once recognized as a valuable addition to the community, and became the owner of a hand- some property. Politically, he was a Democrat, and with his estimable wife, a devout member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Ile was foremost in those enterprises calculated for the good of the growing township, and exerted himself particularly to encourage the immigration of an intelligent and thrifty class of people. lle provided generously for his children, assisting each of them in securing a quarter section of land. He was a man of ro- bust frame, six feet in height, and weighing 260 pounds, while he possessed a dignified and com- manding figure which attracted attention wher- ever he went. During the war troubles of 1812 he served as a soldier under Gen. Harrison, his du- ties lying in the country around Ft. Meigs. The mother of our subject departed this life at her home in Illinois at the age of sixty-one years. She pos- sessed all the womanly qualities so admirable in the wife, mother and friend, and was in all respects the suitable companion and helpmeet of her hus- band.

Our subject was born on the old homestead in Guernsey County, Ohio, July 10, 1832. He ae- quired a common-school education, and was of that temperament which naturally inclined to the free and independent life of a farmer. He therefore cheerfully assisted in the duties around the home- stead, and upon coming to Illinois when twenty years of age, soon began to lay his plans for the establish- ment of a home of his own. In 1854 he was united in marriage with Miss Mary, daughter of Francis and Mary (Pyatt) Evans, of Kendall County, Ill. The father of Mrs. Glass was a native of Pennsylvania, and descended from Welsh ancestry. The parents

spent their last years in Illinois, the mother passing away in 1883, and the father in 1877.

After marriage the young couple went to live on their own farm, which Mr. Glass had inherited from his father. A year later, however, they re- moved to Kendall County, where they resided fif- teen years, and where, with the exception of the youngest, all their children were born. These were named respectively : Nellie A., Mary .I., George (., Elizabeth A., Thomas W .. Edward B. and De- los İI.

In 1871 Mr. Glass came to this county and pur- chased his present farm, to which he soon after- ward removed his family, and where he has since remained. Ile is widely and favorably known for his straightforward methods of doing business, and his skill and industry as an enterprising agricult- urist. His children are receiving the advantages of a good education, the younger members of whom are still pursuing their studies and remain at home with their parents. The eldest daughter, Nellie, was married, in 1885, to Mr. L. B. Rale, of Sand Brook, N. J., but they now reside on a farm near the homestead of our subject.

P RANCIS M. DAVIS, although not an okl resident of Dwight Township, is numbered among its most substantial and reliable citi- zens, and has been doing business in Livingston County for probably thirty years or more. He is of Welsh ancestry, and bears the reputation of an industrious and upright man of unimpeachable moral character and correct business methods. le became familiar with farm life in his youth, but has had experience in other branches of business. fle has concluded, however, that there is nothing more satisfactory than the independence and quiet of the country, and proposes to spend his declining years amid its scenes and occupations.

Mr. Davis when but a lad was deprived of the protecting care of his parents, and of the disinter- ested counsels which a father and mother naturally give to their offspring. He was fortunate, how- ever, in having preserved a good part of the family i history, from which we find that his paternal grand-

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father, a native of Wales, located in West Virginia sometime in the latter part of the last century. He married a lady of excellent birth, and they reared a family of children, among the sons being James. who became the father of our subject.

James Davis was born in West Virginia about IsOs. where he developed into manhood, and mar- ried a lady of his own county, Miss Jane Taylor. He followed farming extensively, and secured pos- -e-sion of quite a large traet of land. The house- hold circle was completed by the birth of eleven children. and the father departed this life amid the comforts of the home which he had built up in Greene County, Pa., at the age of sixty-five years; the mother had died some time before. Most of the children attained to mature years, and are named as follows: William Il., Samuel. Jackson, James. Franej -. Harriet, Betsey. Clarinsy. Annie and Jane.

Our subject was born in Marshall County, W. Va .. in May. 1842. and after the death of his mother was taken into the home of Mrs. Bradford, of Greene County, where he remained until twelve years of age, when he came to this county with Eli Bradford. Although this section was rapidly com- ing into notice as a desirable place of residence and for carrying on agriculture, no regular chool sys- tem was yet established, and consequently young Davi- received but a limited education. He learned the art of farming, however, most thoroughly, and kept himself well posted upon matters of general in- terest by the perusal of instructive books and all the papers which he could obtain. He had watched with interest the aspect of political affairs, and es- pecially the career of the newly elected President, Abraham Lincoln, and when the call came for 300,000 troops, to put down the Rebellion, young Davis, although but nineteen years old. was one of those who promptly responded. and enlisted as a private in Company C. 14th Ilinois Infantry. He was mustered in in July, 1861, and for three years following suffered all the hardships and privations of a life in the army. Ile served under Siegel, Buell and Rosecrans, and participated in the battles of Pen Ridge. Shiloh. Perryville. Ky .. and Stone River. and although experiencing many hairbreadth escape. fortunately was neither wounded nor cap- tured. After two years of service, however, he had

a severe attack of rheumatism which confined him to the field hospital for three months. As soon as sufficiently recovered, he was transferred to the 15th Veteran Reserves, and went with his regiment to Buffalo, N. Y., to enforce the draft. in the fall of 1863. From Buffalo the 15th Regiment was de- tailed to Rock Island to guard the prisoners at that point, and there his services as a soldier terminated.

Mr. Davis received his honorable discharge on the 12th of September, 1864, and returning to this county, prepared to enter upon the further business of life. His constitution had been considerably shattered. and purchasing a stock of goods, he em- barked in trade at Coalville, Livingston County, where he continued with fair success until the spring of 1869, when he sold out, and removed to a farm in Newtown Township. The results of this venture, however, not proving so satisfactory as he desired, he transferred his interests to the town of Newtown, and assumed charge of a hotel, where he otliciated as "mine host" afterward for a period of fourteen years. Ile conducted this with excellent tact and good management, and the house was known for miles around as one of the most desir- able places for the transient traveler in that sec- tion. Mr. Davis thus became widely and favor- ably known, and retains the friendship and esteem of a large circle of acquaintances. In 1885 he abandoned his hotel interests, and invested a part of his capital in a snug farm near the town limits of Dwight. where he now resides. taking life in an easy and sensible manner.

One of the most interesting and important events in the life of our subject was his marriage with the amiable and excellent lady who has presided over his domestic affairs for more than twenty years. She was in her girlhood Miss Anna Horford, and their wedding took place at the home of the bride near Manville, Jan. 24, 1866. Mrs. Davis was born Sept. 28, 1844, and is the daughter of Thomas and Jemima (Leonard) Horford, natives of Pennsyl- vania, who came to this county about 1861. and are now living in the village of Dwight.

To Mr. and Mrs. Davis there were born three children-Lyda C., William T. and Jessie M. Lyda C., an intelligent and accomplished young lady, was married, Sept. 28, 1887, to Finley J. Hohenshell, of

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this county, and they are now living in LaSalle County, where Mr. H. is carrying on farming; Will- iam T. and Jessie M. continue at home with their parents. The entire family are held in the highest respect, and their home is the frequent resort of the best residents of the county, where, in the social in- terchange of sentiment and the comparison of the past with the present, there is often recalled the un- written history of other days.

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HARLES W. SHELDON, residing on sec- tion 33, is one of the prominent farmers of Round Grove Township, and the founder of the village of Campus, Ill. Ile was born in Otsego County, N. Y .. July 31, 1839, and was reared to manhood upon the farm. His parents moved to Ohio and settled in the Western Reserve when he was eighteen months old, and at the age of twelve he returned to New York where he attended school four years, and thence to Butler County, Ohio. At the age of twenty years he worked for himself and with the money he thus obtained he was enabled to enter Miami University, in Butler County, Ohio, where he attended for two years. and was then obliged to abandon his course of study, on account of his eyes. He then turned his attention to farm- ing, and in 1862 he came with his father's family to Iroquois County, Il1.

In the spring of 1863 our subject enlisted in Battery B, Ist Illinois Artillery, in which he served until the close of the war. In the battle of Chicka- manga, on the 19th of September, 1863, he was wounded in the left hip and injured in the spine so severely that he had to be left on the field and was taken prisoner, and paroled eleven days later. He lay on the battle-field of Chickamauga for eleven days without any attention given him whatever, and received no care until he was taken from the field to Chattanooga, the eleventh day after the bat- tle. He suffered untold pain from his wound, which was caused by the explosion of a shell that struck the wheel of his gun carriage. Every man except two on the piece was either killed or wounded. Tt Was fortunate for Mr. Sheldon that he was so

wounded that he could not be transported farther south, for had he been he would have been consigned to Andersonville prison pen. During the winter of 1863 he spent four months in the parol camp at Camp Chase, Ohio. In the spring of 1864 he was exchanged and returned to his battery, and took an active part in all the engagements. with one excep- tion, in the Atlanta campaign. After the fall of Atlanta he was in Gen. Thomas' corps, with which he went back to Nashville, and was in the battles of Spring Hill, Franklin and Nashville. He was mustered out of the service at Chicago in Sep- tember, 1865, and then returned to Iroquois County, Ill., where he remained until he came to Living- ston County. For two years he, in company with two brothers, was engaged in merchandising at Clifton, Iroquois County. In the spring of 1869 he came to Livingston County, and bought 610 acres of land on section 33, Round Grove Township, where he settled and has since lived. Upon this farm he erected good buildings and made other lirst. class improvements.

In April, 1880, Mr. Sheldon laid out and platted the village of Campus, which is on the line of the Wabash Railway. It has a population of about 150 inhabitants, and is rapidly assuming the proportions of a prosperous town. Mr. Sheldon is actively engaged in farming, and has laid on his place over thirty-two miles of tile drain, the larger portion of which was made at his own factory on his farm. lle was the first man who began laying tile in this part of the country, and is the senior partner of the firm of Sheldon & Straight, tile manufacturers, at Campus. In company with his brother, C. 11. Shel- don, he owns and operates a cattle ranch in Western Nebraska, and owns 200 head of cattle. In Bos- ton, Mass., on the 25th of May, 1869, Mr. Sheldon was married to Miss Mary Fisher, who was born in Butler County, Ohio, on the 15th of Decem- ber. 1842. Her parents were James and Eliza (Tucker) Fisher, who were natives of New England. In 1871 they came to Livingston County, and resided with their daughter. Mrs. Sheldon, for three years, and then returned to Boston, Mass. Jabez Fisher, a brother of Mrs. Sheldon's father, is the oldest living pork packer in this country. He is now living in Washington, N. H., in his ninety-

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seventh year. James Fisher had a family of eight children, of whom Mrs. Sheldon was the second. There have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon four children, who bear the following names: Eliza S .. Sarah G .. James M. and Mary Ellen.

Mr. Sheldon's parents were John B. and Sarah A. (>veley ) Sheldon. The father was a native of Rhode Island and the mother was a Vermonter by birth. They were the parents of eleven children, of whom our subject was the seventh: they both died in Iroquois County. Ill. Mr. and Mr-, Sheldon are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Sheldon is a Republican in politics and has held the office of Supervisor for Round Grove Townshiptwo year-, and was a member of the board during the erection of the new court-house at Pontiac. Dur- ing his residence in Livingston County he has taken an active part in public affair-, and being a large tax-payer has done what he could to inculcate a spirit of economy and judicious expenditure of the public fund -.

IIARLES A. FINEFIELD, senior member of the hardware firm of Finefield & Larson. at Odell, has been a resident of this county since 1860. Ile i- regarded as a man upright in his business transactions, public-spirited and liberal. and is in all respects one of the important factors of an enterprising and progressive city. He has done much in building up its interests, and nothing pleases him better than to note the progress of the people both morally and intellectually. lle takes some interest in politics. enough to cast hi- decided vote with the Republican party, and is a member in high standing of the Masonic fraternity. He has been connected with the Village Board for a period of fourteen years, and is naturally looked to for aid in those enterprises which are calculated to advance the general interests of the town.

Our subject was born in St. James, forty miles from Montreal, Canada, Sept. 23, 1830, and is the youngest chill of Charles and Magdalena ( Pellerin) Finefield. also natives of the Dominion, where the father followed carpentering and was a quiet, in- offensive citizen, neither identified with politics nor ,

war. In his younger years he had engaged in lum- bering in Upper Canada and with his wife spent his entire life in his native Province. Charles Finefield was placed in school at a suitable age and became familiar with both the French and English languages. Much of his time until he was fourteen years of age was spent in the carpenter-shop with his father. and then the death of that parent neces- itated a decided change in his life. Not long after- ward he came to the States, locating first at Bur- lington, Vt., where he engaged at carpentering one year and then took up the trade of a blacksmith, which he followed two years in New England, and in 1847 migrated westward to Chicago. Not being fortunate in finding work there he went to Peoria and from there to Oswego, of which he was after- ward a resident eight years and engaged in black- smithing.

From Oswego Mr. Finefield came to Odell and continued in the blacksmith-shop six years. Then deciding upon a change of occupation he purchased 160 acres of wild land in Union Township, and with his family established himself in a small frame dwelling which had been erected upon it. Two years later, however, he returned to town, took up his trade, and afterward became associated in part- nership with ex-Sheriff J. A. Hunter. They oper- ated together five years, the firm being dissolved by mutual consent. Mr. Finefield carried on the business three years by himself, and then erossing the Mississippi purchased 300 acres of Kansas land with a view of improving a farm. lle, however, met with a good opportunity to sell and conse- quently returned to Odell. Ilis sons in the mean- time who had learned blacksmithing of their father were carrying on that business, and Mr. Finefield invested a part of his capital in a stock of hardware He operated alone from 1882 until 1885, and then his present partner was admitted to the business. They carry a well-assorted stock of the articles mainly required in the country household and the lighter implements of the farm. Both men are en- terprising and honest in their transactions, and the limm is ranked among the strongest of this section.

Mr. Finefield chose for his life companion a lady of his own country, namely, Miss Julia St. Dennis. who became his wife on the 20th of July, 1850.

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Mrs. Finefield was born at St. John, Canada, June 5, 1826, and is the daughter of Louis and Aggate St. Dennis, natives of the Dominion, whence they removed at an early day to Oswego, Kendall County, during its first settlement. They after- ward, however, returned to Canada, where the father died about 1856, the mother having pre- ceded him to the better land in about 1837.

Of the seven children born to Mr. and Mrs. Fine- field two are now deceased: Mary Jane who died in 1853, at the age of eleven months, and Ephraim at the age of eleven years, in 1866. The record of the others is as follows: Ellen is the wife of Leroy MeAllen, a carpenter; Frank married Miss Helen Woodbury ; Charles remains with his father; Fred married Miss Carrie Erschens; these are all living at Odell. Willie, the youngest, is unmarried and engaged in buying grain in Dakota. Mrs. Finefield departed this life at her home in Odell, March 11, 1887. She was reared in the faith of the Catholic Church to which she adhered to the end of life. As a wife and mother she was faithful in all respects and fulfilled nobly the responsibilities committed to her. She presented in her daily life all those amia- ble and estimable qualities which made her home, to her husband and children, the most attractive spot on earth, while in the community which had known her so long and well she was held in univer- sal esteem.

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W ALTER S. HUNT, a prominent and well-to- do farmer of Broughton Township, owns 240 acres of good land on section 28, and a quarter seetion in Iowa, which he has acquired by his own unaided industry, except eighty acres which came from the estate of the father of Mrs. Hunt. IIe commenced in life for himself on a cash capital of $3, and it is hardly necessary to say that his career has been marked by tireless perseverance and re- markably good judgment. The term self-made will apply most properly to this gentleman, who is widely and favorably known throughout this com- munity as one of its representative men. For many years he engaged in general farming, and later made a specialty of stock-raising, in which he has

met with unquestioned success. Politically be aflit- iates with the Republican party, and although steadily declinmg to become an office-holder has exerted much influence in township affairs.

Our subject, a native of Chenango County, N. Y., was born Aug. 13, 1839. His parents, Edwin and Emeline ( Ladd) Hunt, were also natives of the Empire State, where they owned a modest property, and whence they migrated in the spring of 1843 to Kendall County, IH., during its early settlement. The father of our subject, with his patient and courageous wife, endured all the hardships and pri- vations incident to pioneer life, and were numbered among the most highly respected residents of that section of country. They spent the remainder of their days in Kendall County, the father passing away Jan. 19, 1864, and the mother on the 9th of March, 1879. The elder Hunt had transformed a portion of the uncultivated prairie into a good homestead, which later passed into the hands of his son J. B.

The subject of this history was the eldest child of his parents, and spent his childhood and youth on the farm in Kendall County. His first lessons were conducted in the subscription schools, which were carried on only a few weeks in winter. The re- mainder of the time his services were utilized on the farm, and he early in life acquired those habits of industry and economy which later paved his way to success. He continued with his parents until the outbreak of the Civil War, and in May, 1861, soon after the call for troops, enlisted in Company H, 13th Illinois Infantry, and was with the commands of Gens. Grant and Sherman during his entire service. As may be supposed he par- ticipated in the most important battles of that period, including the fight of Arkansas Post, the siege and capture of Vicksburg, the second battle of Jackson, the engagements at Lookout Mountain and Mission Ridge, besides meeting the enemy at various other points, and engaging in numberless skirmishes. At Chickasaw Bayon young Hunt was wounded three times, once in each arm, and once in the left leg. lle was in the volunteer service until receiving his honorable discharge on the 18th of June, 1864; in the meantime he was promoted to Second Sergeant, and received many evidences

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of the approval of his superior officers. Ili- life as a soldier was similar to that of thousands of others, and like most of the brave boys he seldom refer- to that dark period in the nation's history which in- volved so much atfiction, bereavement and distress.

Upon his retirement from the army Mr. Hunt re- turned to Kendall County. where he continued the pursuit of farming, and on the 6th of February. 1568, was married to Miss Sallie A. E. Wagner, then a resident of that county. Mrs. Hunt was born in Highland County, Ohio. Jan. 31, 1842, and is the daughter of William and Delilah A. (Golladay) Wagner, natives of Virginia. Upon leaving the Old Dominion they lived in Ohio until the fall of 1852, and thence removed to Kendall County, where they were among the earliest settlers. Mr. Wagner car- ried on farming successfully, and departed this life on the 28th of March. 1884; the mother had de- parted this life Aug. 31. 1873. Their family in- cluded eight children, of whom five are living, namely : Silas F .. a resident of Nebraska; Mary J .. the wife of HI. A. McKinzie, of Kansas; Pauline R .. Mrs. David Hall. of Kendall County : Sallie A. E., and Samuel S .. who is farming in Pottawattamie County. lowa.

The children of Edwin and Emeline Hunt besides Walter are as follows: John B. is living in Oswego, Ill .: Sarah A. i> the wife of Zopher Ketchum, of Kane County; Mary A. is living in Aurora, Ill. ; Ellen L., Mrs. Edson Wheeler. is in Dakota; Charles E. i- engaged in the carshops at Aurora, IM. Our subject and his wife have three children : Edwin W., who was born June 4. 1870; Walter S., Sept. 11, 1×76. and Celia. Dec. 17, 1877 : one child, Lula A .. died April 19, 1871. aged four years. They have been resident- of Broughton Township nearly four- teen years, having located on their present farm in the -pring of 1874.

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Portrait and bigraphical album of Livingston County, Ill. : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the county, together with portraits and biographies , Part 15

Author: Chapman Brothers (Chicago) publisher Publication date: 1888 Publisher: Chicago : Chapman brothers Number of Pages: 1208

Author: Chapman Brothers (Chicago) publisher
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: Chicago : Chapman brothers
Number of Pages: 1208