USA > Illinois > Kane County > The Biographical record of Kane County, Illinois > Part 59
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ROBERT PIERPONT was for many years actively engaged in the grocery business at Aurora, but is now living a re- tired life. He. was born in Nottingham- shire, England, November 23, 1822. His parents, George and Mary (Bemont) Pier- pont, were also natives of England, where their entire lives were spent, their deaths occurring many years ago. The father was a boatman on the river and was a hard- working but trusty man. The mother was a member of the Wesleyan Methodist
In Chicago, April 27, 1848, Mr. Merrill married Miss Ellen Flin, by whom lie had seven children: Eugene, deceased; Helen, at home; Amelia, wife of Frank Schuller, of Elgin; Irene, who died when young; Martha, who died in infancy; Charles W., church, one who took an interezt in the a resident of Traverse City, Michigan; and Master's work. They were the parents
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of three children, our subject being the only of his partners he continued working for one to come to America. The others are William, who resides in England at the age of seventy-three years; and Ann, who died many years ago.
Robert Pierpont grew to manhood in his native country and in early life commenced work on a farm, in which occupation he was employed for some years. He was mar- ried June 27, 1850, to Miss Mary Ashling, daughter of Thomas and Sarah Ashling, also natives of England, the father being a large and prosperous farmer. Both parents died in the '40s. They were members of the established church. Of their twelve chil- dren, three are still living: Mary, now Mrs. Pierpont; Margaret, widow of George Payne, residing in Aurora; and Sarah, widow of Charles Curtin, residing in England. She has a family of four living children, all resi- dents of England. Mr. and Mrs. Pierpont have two living children: Sarah is the wife of Henry Mohle, chief train dispatcher at Stevens Point, Wisconsin, on the Wiscón- sin Central railroad, and the mother of three children: Charles Earnest, Mary and Robert Pierpont. Their second child was Charles Hay, a grocer in Aurora, who mar- ried Mary A. Clark, by whom he has four children, Mabel, Robert, Harry and Helen ..
In 1854 Mr. Pierpont, with his wife and two children, left their native land in a sailing vessel, and although they were five weeks on the ocean, encountered no storms, and each enjoyed the trip fairly well. They came almost directly to Aurora, by advice of a brother of Mrs. Pierpont, who was a farmer of Du Page county, and who came four years earlier. Our subject commenced work in the mill of Gill, Gifford & Com- pany. He worked for that firm ten years, and when Mr. Gill purchased the interests
him, ten years altogether, part of the time acting as. manager, buying the grain, pay- ing the bills, and attending to all other duties pertaining to the work. Leaving the mill he went into the grocery business in Aurora, in company with a Mr. Damon. Later Warner Wright purchased the inter- ests of Mr. Damon, and in turn sold to a Mr. Dickens. After continuing a while às the firm of Pierpont & Dickens, Mr. Pier- pont purchased his partner's interest and conducted the business alone for a time. He then admitted to the firm James W. Battle, and under the firm name of Pier- - pont & Battle the business was continued. Later Mr. Johnston bought out the interest of Mr. Battle, and his interest was in turn purchased by our subject. Although he re- tained an interest in the store, he has turned its entire management over to his son, and he is practically living a retired life. The store is located on the corner of Denton and La Salle streets, and is one of the best appointed establishments in the city. By strict attention to business, fair and square dealing, Mr. Pierpont made a success of the business, and has secured a competency which enables him to lay aside all business cares. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which his wife is also a member. In politics he is a Republican
PECK BROTHERS, residing on section 7, Geneva township, own and operate farms of two thousand one hundred acres, lying in Geneva and Blackberry townships. They are members of a pioneer family, which located here in the fall of 1843. Eli Peck, their father, was born in the town of Sandgate, Bennington county, Vermont,
ELI PECK.
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June 25, 1816. Thomas Peck, their grand- father, and George Peck, their great-grand- father, were both natives of Connecticut. The family are of English descent and early settlers of Connecticut, two brothers com- ing from England at a very early day. George Peck, the great-grandfather, moved from Connecticut to Vermont when Thomas Peck was a child of two years. He was a pioneer of Bennington county, and there spent the remainder of his life.
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Eli Peck grew to manhood in Benning- ton county, Vermont, and there married Jerusha Sherman, a daughter of Evi Sher- man, of that county. At an early day her father came west to Illinois and located near Belvidere, and later moved to Wiscon- sin, where his death occurred. Soon after his marriage Eli Peck came to Kane coun- . ty, Illinois, settling there, as already stated, in the fall of 1843. He started to come west with the team, but losing one horse on . the way, he sold the other and came by boat to Chicago. From there he came direct to Kane county and purchased eighty acres of land for a farm and also a small tract of timber land. Erecting a small frame house upon the place, he there re- sided until 1869, when he built the present large and commodious house, which is now occupied by his sons. From time to time he added to his original · purchase until he was the owner of thirteen hundred acres, all of which were well improved. In 1866 he commenced the sheep industry, purchas- ing a small flock of merino sheep, and in- creasing the number year by year until his flock numbered two thousand head. He was a very active and enterprising man, and, coming to this county with but little means, by his industrious habits and wise executive ability and forethought, he secured 28
a large estate and was numbered among the wealthiest farmers of the county. After a long and useful life he died on the old homestead February 9, 1892. His wife survives him, and is in the enjoyment of fairly good health at the age of eighty-one years.
George E. Peck is the oldest of the four sons, which, with four daughters, comprised the family of Eli and Jerusha Peck. He was born in Bennington county, Vermont, January 18, 1842, and came to Kane county with his parents in infancy. The other sons of the family are Albert Sherman, born in Kane county, April- 21, . 1848; Frank B., born December 6, 1849; Seth E., born Sep- tember 27, 1853. All were born upon the farm in Kane county and here grew to man- hood, being educated in the common schools. The daughters are Sarah C., Julia E., Mary E. and Ettie L. The first named was born in Vermont but reared in Kane county. She married Thomas Fitz- patrick, who passed away in Littleton, Col- orado. They had one daughter, Mary. The second and third daughters, Julia and Mary, yet reside on the old farm, while Ettie L. is housekeeper for her brother Al- bert at Fargo, Kane county. He is the in- ventor and patentee of the first successful corn harvester, which he sold to the Mc- Cormick Harvesting Company.
The Peck Brothers have carried on the farm since 1875, and have since added sev- eral hundred acres to the tract left by the father. One tract of two hundred and fifty acres, adjoining the city of Geneva, is one of the best improved places in the township. The brothers have been extensively engaged in the breeding of merino sheep, and have built up a large trade, shipping through the states, and to Australia, South Africa and
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Mexico. In the spring of 1898 they had on hand a flock of two thousand, three hun- dred sheep. In all their farming operations they have been quite successful, and are noted for their enterprise and business sa- gacity. They were chiefly instrumental in ·securing the location here of the Appleton Manufacturing Company, which gives em- ployment to several hundred men. No en- terprise calculated for the public good, but finds in them friends. All are stanch Re- publicans in their political views. In 1894, George E. Peck was elected supervisor of his township, and served one term of two years, being chairman of the almshouse com- mittee. He was re-elected in 1896, and in 1898, and during the past year was chair- man of the courthouse committee. That he is a valued member of the board is attested by his term of service and by the various committees on which he has served. In po- litical affairs he has taken an active interest and usually serves as a delegate to the va- rious conventions of his party. Few men are better known in Kane county than the Peck brothers, and their reputation is not confined to county or even state lines.
G I EORGE M. CREGO, now residing in the city of Aurora, has been a resident of Kane county since 1851, since which time he has been one of its truly representative citizens, one who has done much to make the county occupy its present proud position. From the very beginning he has been very active and enterprising and the result is shown in his extensive business interests, he now being the owner of much valuable property in the city, including the Hotel Bishop Block. He is a native of New York, born in Oneida county, July 1, 1831. His
ancestors in this country he traces back to his great-grandfather, who emigrated from Holland and located in Dutchess county, New York. Adam Crego, the grandfather, was born in Dutchess county, and was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. His son, Daniel S. Crego, was born in Herkimer county, New York, April 4, 1801. He re- mained in his native county until after at- taining his majority, and then moved to Oneida county, where he married Ann Kel- ley, a native of Oneida county and a daugh- ter of Michael Kelley, who was a profes- sional educator, and who for fourteen years was engaged in one school. Daniel S. Crego was a substantial farmer in Oneida county, but in 1836 moved to Chenango county, New York, where he engaged in farming until 1852, when he came to Kane county, Illinois, and located in Sugar Grove township. Four years later he moved to De Kalb county, where his death occurred in the fall of 1893 at the age of ninety-two years and six months. His wife died about three years previous, when about eighty- four years of age.
Of the three sons and four daughters born to Daniel S. and Ann Crego, our sub- ject is second in order of birth. The others are: Sallie Ann, who married Alva Bolster, and located in Sugar Grove township, where her death occurred; Polly J. now makes her home with our subject; O. C. is married and resides in Kane county; Lewis H. re- sides in De Kalb county, Illinois; Nancy married Eli Barnes, and they now reside in Grand Island, Nebraska; Ellen married Her- man Skells, moved to Nebraska and has since died.
On the farm of his father in Chenango county, New York, George M. Crego re- mained until nineteen years of age. Like
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the great majority of American youths, his education was obtained in the common schools. In 1851 he came to Aurora, Illi- nois, where he spent the winter of 1851-2, then returned to New York, and later in the spring came back, accompanied by his par- ents, and located in Blackberry township, Kane county, where he purchased a farm of two hundred acres and at once began its improvement. He later added one hundred acres, making a fine farm of three hundred acres, all of which was placed under culti- vation. In 1882 he purchased another farm, a well-improved place of three hundred and sixty acres, in Sugar Grove township, and carried on both farms for some years. In the spring of 1892 he moved into Aurora, where he bought a residence, which he re- modeled, and where the family yet reside. He also bought or traded for husiness prop- erty, including the Bishop Hotel Block, which yet remains in his possession. Since coming to Aurora, he has been quite active in the improvement of his property.
Mr. Crego was married in Kane county, February 21, 1855, to Miss Jane Reynolds, . a native of Ulster county, New York, born near Poughkeepsie, and a daughter of Silas Reynolds, who became a resident of Kane county, in 1836, locating in Sugar Grove township. By this union there were nine children, seven of whom are living, as fol- lows: Porter, who is a veterinary surgeon in Aurora; Millie grew to womanhood, married Albert Seavey, of Sugar Grove town- ship, and is now deceased; Celia, now re- siding in Omaha; Silas married and resides on a farm in Blackberry township; Belle married Clarence Humestom, and resides in the town of Kaneville; Joseph, living in Au- rora; Gideon and Irvin, living at home, the latter now attending the State University at
Madison, Wisconsin, taking a course in the law department.
Mr. Crego is a lifelong Democrat and cast his first presidential ballot for Franklin Pierce. For twenty years he served as a member of the school board. He is a mem- ber of the Masonic fraternity, of the blue lodge at Kaneville and of the chapter at Aurora. He has ever been a friend of the temperance cause, and while not support- ing the Prohibition party, has been a pro- hibitionist in principle. Mrs. Crego died at their home in Aurora, November 14, 1897. She was a faithful wife and mother, and for forty-two long years with her husband she trod life's journey. Her remains were laid to rest in the beautiful Spring Lake ceme- tery. In the growth and development of the southern part of Kane county, few men have done more than the subject of this sketch. While in limited circumstances on his arrival here, he has by his industry and temperate habits placed himself in comfort- able circumstances for the remainder of his days.
M RS. RUTH ANN THIERS, now re- siding at No. 306 West Chicago street, Elgin, is a representative of one of the first families to locate in that city. She was born in Plymouth, New Hampshire, September 28, 1821, and is the daughter of Joseph and Nancy (Currier) Kimball, also natives of the Granite state.
Joseph Kimball was born in Hopkinton, New Hampshire, September 1, 1783, and at Plymouth, that state, he married Nancy Currier, who was born September 26, 1787, the marriage ceremony being per- formed November 28, 1804. To them were born nine children: William Currier,
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who married Caroline Willard and moved to Elgin in 1837, where his death occurred; Mary Carter, who married Bartlett Adams; Samuel Jewett, who married Clarinda Jane Hill, and in 1835 came to Elgin, where he served as mayor in 1856 and 1857; Susanna Clement, who married Hiram George; Nancy Currier, who married Alden V. Hills; Laura Ann, who married Asa Smith; Eliz- abeth Howe, who married George R. Dyer; Ruth Ann, of this sketch, and Har- riet Tamsen, who died in infancy.
In the summer of 1834 Joseph Kimball came to Illinois and spent two months, stopping for a time in Du Page county. Returning east, he made the second trip west, starting in February, 1835, and arriv- ing at Elgin in April, soon after the Giffords, who located on the east side of the Fox river. Mr. Kimball chose the west side. On the Fourth of July, 1835, he wrote to .his son, William C. Kimball, the letter be- ing still preserved. In it he says of his new location: "We have plowed and planted nearly thirty acres with corn and other things. We are well suited with our prairie land, although not so much timber as we would like. Our land is so situated that we will have a first rate chance for a grain farm and the keeping of cattle and sheep, being beautifully situated on the west bank of the Fox river, so that we can drive a team about over it equal to any old cultivated farm in an old country. We have made and reserved a location for you, ence." He writes about the need of a " store on a small scale," and then adds: " James T. Gifford, from New York, near Utica, has a location on the east side of the river. We have agreed to build a damn together, he having the privilege of improving equal
share of the water. Mr. Gifford is to build a flour mill, and we are to build a sawmill and improve equal to one-half of the water in other machinery, such as timber works, shingle machines and clapboard, etc. We think that Chicago will be one of the most important places in all the western country; also Galena, on the Mississippi river, where the great mining country is situated, is fast increasing and will soon be a great place. We have taken considerable pains to ascer- tain what chance there is for making a road in direct line from Chicago to Galena, and find that we are on the direct line between these two important places. I presume that Samuel has written to you that I expect to return and move out our family the Ist of September, and it would be pleasing to me to have you come with us."
The letter also gives a description of his journey from New Hampshire to Illinois. At Washington, where, he stopped he viewed the capitol, "the most magnificent build- ing I ever saw. The Hon. Mr. Hill and Hubbard gave me an invitation to ride in a coach with them and call on the president and vice-president of the United States. I accepted the invitation and was much pleased with those good men." The Galena road seemed to be the most important thing to occupy his mind, and its building was the concern of many. "But the thing must be postponed on account of Mr. J. Gifford be- ing gone to New York after his family. I think if you mean to come to this country,
and very much need your help and influ- . the sooner the better."
Soon after writing this letter from which the extracts given were taken, Mr. Kimball started east for his family, accompanied as far as Chicago by his son Samuel. He traveled by water to Cleveland, Ohio, and thence by canal to Perry, Ohio, where he
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died from cholera morbus, after an illness of five days, July 25, 1835. He was a good man, a member of the Baptist church, and had a very good idea of the future of this middle west. In his native state Mr. Kim- ball served as captain in the state. militia, took some interest in politics, and was an ardent admirer of General Jackson. He served as collector of taxes in 1823, and filled other local offices from time to time, serving as a member of the New Hampshire legislature. He was the son of Samuel and Susanna Kimball, whose children were as follows: James, born October 23, 1767; Samuel, January 30, 1771; Rebecca, 1773; Jonathan, 1775; Phineas, 1777; Mehitable, 1779; Ruth, 1781; Joseph, 1783; Benjamin and Moses, twins, 1785; and Susanna, 1789. The mother of these children died, and Samuel Kimball married again, and by his second union had one son, Amos Clement, born in 1798.
Soon after the death of her husband, Mrs. Nancy Kimball came with her family to Elgin, where the remainder of her life was passed. One of the most noted cvcnts in Elgin was the celebration of her one hundredth birthday, September 26, 1887. On that occasion she was in splendid health and entertained a large number of friends who called to pay their respects. The Baptist church of Elgin, of which she was a charter member, was represented by a large delegation. They brought and pre- sented to her a very handsome bouquet, containing exactly one hundred flowers and the figure " 100" worked in immortelles. Flowers were also sent her from friends in New York and Chicago. Within three days of one year after this. event, Mrs. Nancy Kimball was called to her heavenly · home, her death taking place September 23,
1888. She was the eldest, the best known, and one of the most highly respected woincn that ever lived in Elgin.
Ruth Ann Kimball spent the first four- teen years of her life in New Hampshire, where she received her education. In 1837, in company with her mother and brother William, she came to Elgin, where she has since made her home, a period of sixty-one long years. On the 4th of July, 1840, she was united in marriage with Edward E. Harvey, an attorney at Elgin who was post- tnaster in the early '40s and who was com- missioned captain in the Second Illinois Volunteer Infantry, in the Mexican war, and who died at Pueblo, in 1847, while return- ing from the city of Mexico, being stricken with fever. To Mr. and Mrs. Harvey two children were born. (1) Isabel J. married Sherwood Raymond, of Elgin, but they now reside in Chicago. They are the parents of six children -- Edward H., George B., Anna B., Ruth A., Benjamin W. and Frank. (2) Florence Annette died at the age of nine- teen months.
The second union of our subject was con- summated June 15, 1851, when she married Chauncy C. Thiers, who was born in Tomp- kins county, New York, April 26, 1821. By this union there were two children: (1) Henry K. died May 29, 1878, at the age of nearly twenty-four years, [ from injuries re- ceived in a railroad accident. (2) William C., a resident of Elgin, married Nellie A. Powers, and has three children-Raphael H., Ruth M. and Orrel M.
Chauncy C. Thiers was a man of marked ability, and for some years was a notary public. He did not, however, believe in litigation, and often advised the settlement of claims and disputes out of court. In the arbitrament of cases he tried to have
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men act in accordance with the golden rule. He was a man in whom the people confided. His death occurred October 31, 1861, while attending a political convention at Geneva, he being a candidate for county clerk, and his loss was mourned not alone by the fam- ily but by a large circle of friends. A con- sistent Christian man, he served his master faithfully as a member of the Baptist church.
Mrs. Thiers, who resides with her son at No. 306 West Chicago street, is now one of the oldest members of the Baptist church in Elgin. She is a woman universally es- teemed, and her friends are legion. A citi- zen of the county for sixty-one years, she has witnessed many important changes. From a vast wilderness she has lived to see the county one of the first in all the one hun- dred and two counties of the state. In all this time she has ever retained the love and respect of all with whom she has been brought in contract.
W ILLIAM ROCHE, who is engaged in dairy farming on section 29, Hamp- shire township, is a native of Ireland, born in the village of Claughhannon, near New- ton Barry, County Wexford, March, 1834, and is the son of Martin and Margaret (Rice) Roche. The father, who was a lease holder in Ireland, died at the age of about fifty years. After the death of the father, the. mother and children left the farm and lived in the village of Claughhannon and remained there for five years before coming to the United States. She died in Chicago, Illinois, in 1881. They were the parents. of four boys and four girls.
In 1853, when but nineteen years old, our subject came to the United States, tak- ing a boat at Wexford for Liverpool, and
there a sailing vessel, the Robert Kelly, for the new world. After thirty-two days on the water, he landed at New York and went directly to Augusta, Maine, where he worked one year in a cotton factory, having learned that trade in Ireland. From Au- gusta, Maine, he came to Kane county, Illi- nois, and found employment in a distillery at South Elgin, where he worked for a time. He then engaged at farm work and various other employments for other par- ties until 1878, when he rented a farm in Rutland township, on which, together with another farm, he spent four years. In 1882 he came to his present farm, which com- prises one hundred and sixty acres of rich land, which he has placed under a high state of cultivation and on which he has about thirty head of cows.
Mr. Roche was married in Elgin July 10, 1864, to Julia Kelly, fourth in a family of six children born to John and Bridget (Doghoney) Kelly, the latter being a daugh- ter of Dennis and Mary Doghoney. A brother of Mrs. Roche, John Kelly, lives in Aurora, and has served as sheriff of Kane county. John Kelly, Sr., was born in Tip- perary, Ireland, about 1820, and came to Ainerica about 1840. Like his brother, Timothy Kelly, who also settled in Hamp- shire township, he was a thrifty, energetic, and industrious farmer, and acquired a fine tract of land, which is now occupied by our subject. He was always a stanch Demo- crat, and was a member of the Catholic church.
William Roche and wife have been blessed by fourteen children as follows: Annie L., who married Patrick Sullivan, by whom she has six children, William, Ar- thur, John, Anabel, Safford and Stanley, the family now residing in Chicago; Mary
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T., an experienced attendant at the home for incurable insane in Chicago; Michael F .; Catherine; Martha L .; Agnes R .; Julia A .; John; Elizabeth C .; Margaret A .; Will- iam A .; Charles; James; and Ralph De Witt. Of these, Martha L., Agnes R. and Elizabeth C., are teachers in the public schools, while John is deceased. In nation- al and state politics Mr. Roche is a Demo- crat, but in local affairs lie is independent. For six years he served as school director. Religiously he and his family are members of the Catoholic church.
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