USA > Illinois > Bureau County > The Biographical record of Bureau, Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois > Part 21
USA > Illinois > Marshall County > The Biographical record of Bureau, Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois > Part 21
USA > Illinois > Putnam County > The Biographical record of Bureau, Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois > Part 21
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Mrs. Winser is the oldest in a family of six children, the others being Samantha, deceased wife of H. Wilhite; Commodore Perry, who died in infancy: Bestany, who resides in Independ- ence, Indiana: Elizabeth, who died in girlhood, and Joseph, who died in infancy. In 1843, ac- companied by the other children, Mrs. Winser came to Bureau county, Illinois, where she made her home with relatives and attended school.
It was on the 12th of August, 1848, that our subject married James Winser, who was born in
Hawkhurst, county Kent, England. August 18, 1824, and was the son of Edward Winser, a na- tive of the same town. At one time his father was a resident of Bureau county, Illinois, but spent his last days in Henry county. On the 9th of September, 1841, James Winser left England, and on his arrival in this country came directly to Burean county, but located a claim in Living- ston county, where he had a brother-in-law re- siding .. He followed agricultural pursuits in Hall township, Bureau county, where his death oc- curred August 23, 1884. In religious faith he was an Episcopalian, and in politics a democrat. Four children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Winser, Sino, who wedded Mary Deichtiner and is one of the progressive and industrious farmers of Hall township, operating the old homestead; William, who died at the age of twenty-one years; Jennie, wife of Harry Philips, a farmer of Dover township, by whom she has one child, Serena, and Isabel, who married Carmi Miller, residing near Spring Valley, and they have two children, Clauda and Fenton.
Mrs. Winser is a faithful member of the Con- gregational church, and for many years has been numbered among the worthy and well-to-do peo- ple of Bureau county. She is well acquainted with the hardships and privations incident to pioneer life in Indiana and Illinois, and justly deserved an honored place among the represen- tative citizens of this section.
M ILTON F. NEWBURN, the present su- pervisor of Hennepin township, and a rep- resentative farmer and stock raiser of Putnam county, is actively engaged in his profitable oc- cupation, making a specialty of the breeding of Chester White hogs. He was born in that town- ship September 28, 1843, and is a son of Mahlon and Mary (Ford) Newburn, both natives of Ohio. Previous to their emigration to Illinois they re- sided near Dayton, whence they made the trip to Putnam county by team. They located on government land east of Florid, where they re- mained for some years; four years later were spent in Granville township, after which they
9
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
lived on the farm now owned by our subject. The father's death occurred at Peoria, February 14, 1895, at the age of seventy-eight years, and the mother died eight years previously. On com- ing to the county the father was almost penniless, but through industry, economy and perseverance succeeded in securing a good property, his home- stead at one time consisting of three hundred and forty acres, which was later reduced to one hun- dred and sixty acres. His father, John. New- burn, also came to the county, locating upon a farm near Florid, where he died during the boy- hood of our subject, and his wife also passed away at that place.
The parental household included five children, namely: Alfred, who lived at home and died at the age of twenty years; Milton E., of this re- view; Stephen, a resident of Long Pine, Brown county, Nebraska; Sarah, the wife of George Baxendale, of Peoria, and Aaron, who received a part of the old homestead, where he died at the age of twenty-three years, after a short married life of two years.
Until reaching his majority, Milton E. New- burn remained upon the home farm and then began the cultivation of his own farm in the vicinity, while he still continued to live at home for some years. Later he disposed of that prop- erty and secured another farm near Hennepin. It was in 1885 that he purchased his present farm, lying two miles from the city, which he personally operated until 1892, in the meantime devoting considerable attention to the breeding of Chester White hogs. For twenty years he has engaged in that business and has exhibited his stock at the state fairs in Illinois, Iowa and Ne- braska; also at the St. Louis fairs and the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago, in 1893. There he carried off premiums amount- ing to $1,600 on a herd of nineteen animals, at which time he had the whole world to compete with. Eclipse, No. 6233, which stands at the head of his herd, secured four sweepstakes. He has always adhered to the Chester White breed, is a most successful breeder of those animals and has done considerable advertising, but he finds
that the fair exhibits have been the best methods of advertising. He raises about one hundred and fifty hogs annually, for which he finds a ready sale and they bring the highest prices in the market.
On the Ist of May, 1894, Mr. Newburn was united in marriage with Miss May Turner, of Hennepin, daughter of Oakes and Rebecca (But- ler) Turner, who came to Illinois in the 30's and settled at Wyoming, Stark county. They spent their remaining days at Hennepin, the mother dying in 1884 and, the father in 1888. In Henne- pin the daughter was born May 16, 1850, and lived after the death of her parents in the home and was housekeeper for her brother until her imarriage.
On the democratic ticket our subject was elect- ed assessor and recently supervisor of his town- ship, although the township usually goes repub- lican, which fact plainly indicates his popularity. He takes an active interest in political affairs, at- tending the conventions of his party, and is well informed on the leading questions .of the day. Formerly he took great delight in hunting, being an excellent marksman, but now gives his atten- tion solely to his business interests. In addition to his farm he owns twenty acres of land adjoin- ing Hennepin, having a neat and substantial home lying within the village limits, where he has resided since his marriage.
C YRUS ROOT, residing on section 24, La Prairie township, Marshall county, is a veteran of the late war and is one of the most highly honored of the good citizens of the coun- ty. He was born just across the line in Peoria county, September 4, 1838, and is the son of Erastus C. and Barbara A. (Reed) Root, both of whom were natives of Delaware county, New York, and who were numbered among the pio- neers of 1830. Both died on the old farm in Peoria county, the latter October 6, 1881, and the former January 22, 1896. (See sketch of Erastus C. Root.)
Cyrus Root was the first of the family born on the old homestead, which was the home of the
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
father a period of sixty-two years. On that farm he grew to manhood, and in the country schools of the vicinity received his education. The pio- neer life of a farmer boy is one unending round of toil, and that of our subject was no exception to the rule. From the time he was old enough to do the small chores necessary in farm life he had to do his share of the work. This experi- ence formed in him habits of industry that have clung to him through life.
While engaged in the peaceful avocations of farm life, the call to arms was made by the gen- eral government in defense of the union. Young men all around him were offering their services, and he, too, responded to the call, and August 27, 1862, he became a private in Company C, Eighty-sixth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. This company was raised on the prairies, and six of the number were from La Prairie township, and among those were John Jump, Webster Green and Edson Turner, all of whom passed in safety through the conflict.
The Eighty-sixth Illinois Infantry became a part of the Third Brigade, Second Division of the Fourteenth Army Corps under Thomas, and served in Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia. At the battle of Kenesaw Mountain, Mr. Root was severely wounded, and to this day carries three shot in his body, two in his left arm and one on the left side of his face above the eye. While in the hospital at Nashville his regi- ment went on to Atlanta and took part in that campaign. Just as he was convalescing, Hood's army appeared before Nashville, and all those who had been confined in the hospital, but who were then able, were formed into a battalion and took part in the battle following. Mr. Root among the number. Soon after this he rejoined his regiment at Goldsboro, North Carolina, and was with it in the grand review at Washington at the close of the war. He was "only a cor- poral" in his company, but in all his three years' service did his duty faithfully and well. In the battalion formed at Nashville he served as ser- geant.
On receiving his discharge at the close of the
war, Mr. Root returned to his father's house and made that his home until December 29, 1869, when he was united in marriage with Miss Mary C. Stowell, a daughter of Ebenezer and Laura (Bridgman) Stowell. Her father was born in Chenango county, New York, October 19, 1807. He first came to Illinois in 1836, in company with Roswell Nurss and his son, Isaiah Nurss, walking much of the way. After looking over the ground, he walked to Quincy, Illinois, and entered land on the north line of Peoria county, one-half mile from the county line, and also in La Prairie township, Marshall county. Return- ing to New York, he remained there until 1843, when he made his permanent settlement on his Peoria county farm. His first wife dying, he married Laura Bridgman, and upon the farm adjoining that of E. C. Root they passed the re- mainder of their lives. He died May 7, 1880, she surviving him some years, dying April 26, 1889, in her eighty-first year. They were among the original members of the Lawn Ridge Con- gregational church, and he was the first of the six comprising the organization to pass away. He was a successful farmer, owning at the time of his death a fine farm of six hundred acres and much other valuable property. Of their nine children, Mrs. Cyrus Root and Charles E. Sto- well reside in La Prairie township. Mrs. Root was born on the farm April 4, 1845.
After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Root took up their home on the farm of his father, where they remained two years, and then removed to their present place of residence. The farm com- prises eighty acres in La Prairie and forty acres in Steuben township. He also owns one hun- dred and twenty acres of his father's old home- stead, a part of the original tract entered in 1836. The latter he leases to other parties, giving his personal attention only to his home farm. He is a practical farmer in every respect and con- fines himself to no special line, usually keeping, however, a good variety of stock.
To Mr. and Mrs. Root three children have been born: Wilber S., who was married on Christmas day, 1895, to Miss Minnie J. Smith,
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a daughter of William Smith, of La Prairie town- ship; Emily J., at home, and Laura Barbara, who died at the age of eight months.
Politically Mr. Root is a republican. and, while not a bitter partisan, has yet an abiding faith in the principles of his party. He cares nothing for the honors of official position, but has served his friends and neighbors as school director and trustee, and also road commissioner. In army matters he yet feels a deep interest, and is a member of Chillicothe post, G. A. R. Mrs. Root is a member of Lawn Ridge Congregational church, but both attend the Methodist Episcopal church in La Prairie township.
L EANDER S. NEWPORT is one of the rep- resentative agriculturists of Princeton town- ship, Bureau county, his home being upon sec- tion 4. Ilis father, Joseph Newport, was a native of Pennsylvania and a son of Aaron Newport, a member of the Society of Friends. The father, however, was reared in Ohio, and later went to Kentucky, his marriage with Miss Maria Scales being celebrated in Covington, of the latter state. She was born in New Haven, Connecticut, where her father, John Scales, had located on emigrat- ing from England to the new world, but he later became a resident of Kentucky, where his death occurred.
In 1834 the parents of our subject came to Illinois, settling on Grand Prairie, Putnam coun- ty, upon a tract of wild land, which the father at once began to improve, and erected the first house at Mt. Palatine, for by trade he was a carpenter. Upon the farm the parents made their permanent home, the father passing away there in 1852, and the mother in 1871. She was a member of the Methodist church. In their fam- ily were six children, namely: Mrs. Amelia Cal- vin, now of Normal, Illinois; Noble, deceased, who was a resident of Streator, Illinois; Leander S .; William, deceased, who lived near Mt. Pala- tine in Putnam county; John, now of Missouri, and Louisa, deceased.
In Kentucky our subject was born June 18, 1823, and with his parents came to Putnam coun-
ty, Illinois, where he grew to manhood, being reared upon the farm and educated in the sub- scription schools. On the coth of March, 1845, he wedded Mary Ann Larghlin, a daughter of John N. and Mary (Stewart) Laughlin, natives of South Carolina and Brown county, Ohio, re- spectively. The Stewarts were all inclined to the ministry. Park Stewart, the son of William Stew- art. was a distinguished Swedenborgian minister, and could speak fluently eight languages. The following is a correct copy of pass issued to Mrs. Newport's great-grandfather and family, which is inserted in this sketch as an interesting bit of history :
County of Antrim, Ireland. By George Rog- ers, Clerk, one of his majesty's justices of the peace for said county :
These are to certify that the bearers hereof, Wil- liam Stewart, linen weaver, and Ann Stewart, otherwise Park, his wife, have lived several years in this town of Clogh and said county with very fair characters and good reputations, having be- haved themselves very honestly and inoffensively and as they have got encouragement to remove to Pennsylvania, in America, permit them, there- fore, the said William Stewart and Ann Stewart, his wife, with their family of children to pass and repass from hence to Newcastle or any other part of his majesty's dominions in America or Europe without hinderance or molestation, they behaving themselves as becometh good sub- jects.
Given under my hand and seal at Clogh and said county this 7th day of July, 1762.
To all officers civil and military.
When five years of age his father was taken by his parents to Ohio, and in Brown county was married. As early as 1820, however, he emi- grated to Bond county, Illinois, where he made his home until 1833, when his wife died and he removed to Putnam county, locating upon a new farm near Union Grove. There his death oc- curred in 1853. For his second wife he married Melinda Paxton, now deceased, and to them were born two children, Thompson, of Peoria county, ·Illinois, and Samuel, of Nebraska. Five chil-
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dren graced the first union: Robert S., who died in 1893: Mary Ann, the wife of our subject : John Calvin, deceased; William, of Sargent, Nebraska, and Margaret, widow of Noble Newport, a broth- er of our subject. Two of the sons, William and Samuel, served in the civil war. The father was an anti-slavery man, became a republican in poli- tics and was an elder in the Presbyterian church.
Mrs. Newport was born August 18, 1826, in Bond county, Illinois, and obtained a good edu- cation in a select school of Putnam county. Judge Blanchard, the present judge of the circuit court, was one of the early teachers of the district of Sprinklebury, of which our subject was one of the directors, and he used to study, read, shave, etc., in the school house evenings and Saturdays. Some of the people complained because he used the wood belonging to the district, so Mr. New- port had a load of his own wood taken to the school, and the teacher was asked where his wood would be put. This soon put a stop to all fault finding as regarded the wood question.
After his marriage, Mr. Newport purchased an eighty-acre farm in the Sprinklebury school district, where he remained for twenty-five years, and in 1870 came to Bureau county, settling upon the farm where he yet lives and where he owns three hundred and five acres of valuable farming land under a high state of cultivation and well improved.
To Mr. and Mrs. Newport have been born six children, as follows: M. Laurena, deceased, was the wife of Gustavus Everts, attorney at Fresno, California, by whom she had one child, Olan E .; Burton is married and has three chil- dren, Fred, Christopher and Mary; Alice is the wife of W. L. Henderson, an attorney of Cray- ton, Nebraska, and has two children, Gale and Vilas; Beecher Ward is married and has five children, Mrs. May Roberts, who has an infant son; Lee C., Hazel, Birney and Glen Beecher; Hale P., now of Ponca, Oklahoma, is married and has three children, Roy, Lee and Darline; Marshall, the youngest born of the children, is deceased.
Mr. Newport casts his ballot in support of the
men and measures of the republican party, and has served as school director of his district. His estimable wife is a member of the Congrega- tional church. He started out in life a poor boy, and that he has succeeded is due solely to ability, steadfast purpose and indefatigable industry. He is surrounded by a circle of friends who appre- ciate his true worth, and he is a man who has acted well his part-living a worthy and honor- able life.
D AVID MOORE. No country affords great- er opportunity to the poor man than our own; it is, indeed, the poor man's country. Here an industrious, frugal man has a chance to ac- cumulate wealth. Many fail to do so, but the best of our population lay by some of their earn- ings and soon find themselves in possession of a handsome property. Among them is the gen- tleman whose name heads this article, and who is now living a retired life in Wenona.
His parents, David and Mary (Brown) Moore, were born, reared and married in New Jersey, and about 1815 removed to Ohio, settling in Waynesville, where the father worked at his trade of a tailor for four years. He then located on a farm in Preble county, that state, in the midst of the forest, which he at once began to clear and improve, and there made his home until 1855. In that year he came to Illinois to live with his son, and there made his home until his death, at the age of ninety-eight years. His wife passed away in Ohio at the age of fifty-seven years. In their family were five children : Samuel, deceased; David, of this review; Nathaniel, of Chicago; Mrs. May Lintner, deceased, and Sarah Bell, also deceased.
Our subject was born November 15, 1813, in Gloucester county, New Jersey, but was reared upon a farm in Ohio until seventeen years of age, when he began learning the trade of a shoe- maker, which he followed for about fifteen years. In Ohio, on the 17th of March, 1836, he married Miss Ann Boradail, also a native of New Jer- sey, and they became the parents of five chil- dren: Rebecca, the oldest, is deceased; Arthur,
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who became sergeant in the Light Artillery un- der Captain Vaughn, died near Bolivar, Tennes- see, March 7, 1863; Mary Elizabeth, deceased, was the wife of George G. McAdam, by whom she had three children, Ulysses, Arthur and Wil- liam; Martha Sarah and Anna are also deceased.
After his marriage, Mr. Moore continued to engage in shoemaking, and in connection with his brother also conducted a store in Israel town- ship, Preble county, Ohio, for four years, after which he removed to Kokomo, Indiana, and started a grocery and bakery. He also had a slaughter house and steam sawmill at that place, but most of his property was later destroyed by fire, leaving him in limited circumstances. He next removed to a farm near Fairfield, in How- ard county, Indiana, which he operated three years, and in 1857 came to Illinois, locating upon a partially improved farm in Evans township, Marshall county, where he made his home until 1865. He then purchased a farm on Sandy creek, which he continued to improve and cultivate un- til 1891, when his wife died, and he removed to a farm adjoining that place, which he bought of his brother. In 1894, however, he came to Wen- ona, where he now finds a pleasant home.
On the 14th of August of that year, Mr. Moore was united in marriage with Mrs. Carrie Lezcar, who was born January 27, 1828, in Tyler county, West Virginia, and is a daughter of James C. and Sarah L. (Musser) Williamson, the former a native of Wellsburg, Pennsylvania, and the lat- ter of Lancaster, the same state. Her parents both belonged to old Pennsylvania families, were married in that state and later removed to West Virginia, where they made their permanent home and there died. The father, who was edu- cated at Wellsburg, Pennsylvania, became a phy- sician, but later devoted most of his time to agri- cultural pursuits. His father had served as a soldier in the Revolutionary war.
Mrs. Moore is one of a family of twelve chil- dren, who, in order of birth, are as follows: John M., Alex and James, all deceased; William and Elbert, twins, the latter of whom is deceased; Theodore A., who lives in Sardis, Ohio; Eliza
Jane, deceased; Adeline, who is the widow of Samuel Cox and lives in Sistersville, West Vir- ginia; Theodosia, deceased; Mrs. Moore, Philip Dodridge, deceased, and Henry R., who also lives in Sistersville. One son, John M., was a soldier in the civil war, Mrs. Moore was educated in West Virginia, and on reaching womanhood married Frank Lazear, by whom she had four children, James, Elbert, Leroy and Eliza Jane. The father of these children is now deceased.
Mr. Moore still owns three hundred and thir- ty-one acres in Evans township, eighty acres in Bolivar county, Missouri, two houses and lots in Wenona and one-third interest in forty-five lots in Streator, Illinois, all of which property has been gained through his own individual efforts, although he received some assistance from his father, but he has given away more than he ever received. In politics he is a stanch republican, ' and religiously is a member of the Society of Friends, while his wife has for forty-five years been an active member of the Methodist church.
R ICHARD HERRICK, M. D., a successful physician and surgeon of Florid, was born near Granville, in Putnam county, February 28, 1865, and is a son of James and Ada (Smith) Herrick, both natives of Leicestershire, England. As young people they came from their native land to Putnam county, where they were mar- ried. By trade the father is a shoemaker, but since locating in Illinois has turned his attention to farming. The parents are both still living and make their home at Wyanet, Bureau county, where they removed after a ten years' residence in Putnam county, when our subject was but one year old.
The doctor remained at home until eighteen years of age, during which time he attended the Sheffield high school, and then took a three years' elective course at Wheaton college. Subsequent- ly for the same length of time he taught school in Bureau county, the last year being employed in the Wyanet schools. While there engaged in teaching he began reading medicine in the office of Dr. Shoemaker, and later entered the Eclectic
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Medical college of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he graduated in the class of 1891.
Dr. Herrick immediately began the practice of his chosen profession at. Murrayville, near Jacksonville, Illinois, becoming the successor of Dr. A. M. Cline, the former preceptor of Dr. Shoemaker. In the spring of 1893, however, he located at Florid, succeeding Dr. J. A. Swem, now of Henry, and is now at the head of a large general practice, many of his patrons being old friends of his parents. He gives his entire at- tention to his practice, and is on the most friend- ly relations with the physicians of the other schools of medicine.
On the 3d of September, 1891, at Wyanet, Illi- nois, was consummated the marriage of Dr. Her- rick and Miss Jessica J. Mosher, a native of Wyanet township, Bureau county, and a daugh- ter of Elijah Mosher, a prominent man and poli- tician of Wyanet. She was educated in special work at Jennings seminary at Aurora, graduat- ing in 1887, and is quite an artist, making a specialty of pencil and crayon work. Two chil- dren grace this union-Lucile G. and Ada Ruth Etadarppa.
The doctor and his wife are earnest members of the Presbyterian church, in which he serves as elder, and also takes a prominent part in the work of the Sunday school. Although he usual- ly supports the candidates of the republican party, he is not now bound by party ties, voting for the man whom he thinks best qualified for the office. He finds his chief source of recreation in hunting, being a great lover of that sport.
W ILLIAM KNOX, an honored pioneer and valued citizen of Princeton town- ship, Bureau county, is a worthy representative of a patriotic family, whose members have borne an important part in the wars of this country. He was born in Highland county, Ohio, March 31, 1814, a son of Joseph Knox, a native of North Carolina, but who was reared in Southampton county, Virginia. His paternal grandfather, Judge John Knox, was judge of the courts in the Old Dominion for many years, and was a
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