The biographical encyclopedia of Illinois of the nineteenth century, Part 38

Author: Robson, Charles, ed
Publication date: 1875
Publisher: Philadelphia, Galaxy
Number of Pages: 770

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OUDY, WILLIAM C., Lawyer, was born, 1824, in Indiana, and when eight years old accompanied his father's family to Illinois, in which State he has since resided. He was cducated at the Illinois College, from which seminary he graduated in 1845. He read law in the office of Judge Stephen T. Logan, at Springfield, and commenced his professional career, 1848, in Fulton county. In the courts of that and several adjacent counties of the " Military Tract," he prac- tised his profession, as well as in the Supreme Court, and the United States Courts at Springfield. He came into con- tact and conflict with such eminent lawyers as Abraham Lincoln, Norman HI. Porple, Julius Manning, O. H. Brown- ing, Archibald Williams, Charles B. Laurence and others, leaders of the bar of central Illinois, and so well did he sus- tain himself, that when, near the closc of 1859 he took up his residence in Chicago, he had achieved a reputation second to none in that portion of the State. From 1852 to 1855 he was State Attorney for the Tenth Judicial District, and from 1857 to 1861 inclusive a member of the State Senate from the counties of Fulton and McDonough. These are the only official positions he has ever held, partially. through the fact that the party to which he has always be- longed has been of late years substantially in the minority, but chiefly on account of his complete withdrawal from poli- tics and his close devotion to the practice of his chosen pro fession. He received many votes for United States Senator in IS63 in the Democratic caucus, and was a candidate for the Constitutional Convention of 1862, and also a Delegate to the National Convention of 1868. In the carlicr ycars of his life he was recognized as one of the most prominent and promising leaders of the Democracy of Illinois. As a politician he became widely known as possessed of eminent sagacity and wisdom. Profoundly attached to the funda- mental principles of the organization of which he was a member, his extended knowledge of men and affairs in Illinois, coupled with great mental astutcness, enabled him to skilfully map out the proper course to be pursued in party exigencies, and to indicate the best agencics to be availcd of for the achievement of desired ends. His withdrawal from the arena of politics, whether the term is used in its highest or a much lower sense, was and is still considered a loss to the community as well as to his party. While appar- ently an ardent partisan, he did not surrender to party what was meant for mankind, and was in all respects a wise and thoughtful counsellor where the public interests were in-

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volvea. As a legislator he has not probably been surpassed | times he is rather too cold in manner, but though the argu- in comprehensiveness of grasp of the ends to be desired, and ment may seem to be cut out of ice, the conclusion is inevit- able, though court or jury may shiver a little in passing over the road to it. He is of medium height and build. He has bluish gray eyes and regular features, whose expres- sion when in repose would rather seem to repel intimacy, but to those who know him best he is genial, communicative and humorous, and his friendships, once formed, are tena- ciously adhered to. In his private life he has developed the best domestic qualitics. Possessing an abundant fortune, the result of his professional labors, he commands and enjoys a luxurious home, surrounded by a charming and affectionatc family. He is a consistent member of the Presbyterian church, a constant attendant upon its ministrations, and a trusted adviser in its councils. Eminent as is his reputation, he may reasonably look forward to still higher achievement, for to industry, learning, and acquirements such as his, no height of professional honor is inaccessible. the best method for their successful attainment. He was distinguished, as a State Senator, for his watchful care of the interests of his constituents and of the State at large, as well as for the prudence and skill with which he framed all measures confided to his charge and conducted them to a final issue. It is as a lawyer, however, that up to this stage of his career he will be chiefly known and upon which his claim to future fame is most securely based. Having achieved high position at the bar where he entered upon legal practice, he removed to Chicago towards the close of 1859, and short'y after deservedly took rank with those whom he found foremost in the new place of his abode. Follow- ing the course he had marked out with steady perseverance, he finds himself to-day at the head of the Chicago bar. As a counsellor he is prudent almost to a fault, and rarely if ever is worsted in any litigation, entry upon which he has advised after mature deliberation. Of intense secretiveness, his reticence enables him in the conduct of negotiations to elicit the hand of his opponents without showing his own, but he possesses at the same time that kind of wisdom which concedes at the right moment, and does not obstinately per- sist in playing a losing game. Always advising compromise and settlement where they are attainable and better results doubtful, he contends with dogged pertinacity when litigation is entered upon, and is seldom driven from the field. As a real estate lawyer he is particularly distinguished, and it has been accurately remarked of him that " His opinions on real estate matters are the result of an extended knowledge of authorities, an intimate acquaintance with the routinc and practice involved in such business, and an observation sharp- ened by long experience. He unravels without seeming difficulty the most intricate questions, and patiently but surely reaches conclusions that are rarely other than sound and complete." His professional distinction is not confined to his real estate practice. He stands equally high in the do- main of constitutional law, and in the mastery of the intricate questions constantly arising in relation to corporations, and in fact for knowledge and skill in the application of the fundamental principles and settled rules of all branches in- volved in general practice. He is constantly engaged at Nisi Prius, in the State and Federal Courts, or in the argu- ment of important causes in the United States and State Supreme Courts. There is no practitioner in Illinois who has had a greater number of cases before the State Supreme Court than he, and the last fifty volumes of the " Reports " bear evidence to the magnitude and success of his labors in that tribunal. As a speaker he is singularly free from indulg- ence in the use of rhetorical art. He is noted for clearness of statement and facility of logical and concise expression. What he desires to state he says so that everybody can understand it, and he possesses the inestimable gift of discerning the weak points in his adversary's harness, and the power to direct his weapons full upon the vulnerable points. Some-

ENNINGTON, JAMES T., Sheriff of Macoupin county, was born in Somerset county, New Jersey, near the town of Somerville, in ISIS, his parents being Elijah and Martha (Todd) Pennington. He received a common school education, which hc enhanced by self-application in after years, and was taught the trade of a carpenter, which he followed after his removal to and location in Macoupin county, Illinois, in 1837. He pursued this calling for fourteen years, and then turned his attention to stock-raising and farming, which he carried on with profit until 1860. In that year he was elected on the Democratic ticket to the Illinois Legislature from Macoupin county, and served two terms in that body. He was one of the first Supervisors of that county, continu- ing in the board during the year 1871. In 1872 he was elected Sheriff of the same county, and now retains that office, fulfilling all its responsible duties with fidelity and with general acceptance. He is a man of much public spirit, and has at all times evinced a deep interest in all movements for the advancement of the welfare of his fellow- citizens. He was married in 1841 to Cynthia Bullman, of New Jersey.

ENCE, WILLIAM CARROLL, M. D., was born at Union county, Illinois, September 30th, 1844. His parents were natives of this State, and num- bered among its earlier pioneers and settlers. His father's name was John J. Lence. His earlier and preparatory education was acquired in the neighboring common schools of his native place, and also in a principal measure at the Notre Dame College, situated near South Bend, Indiana. On the completion of his allotted course of studies in the latter establishment, he decided to embrace the medical profession, and under the preceptorship

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of Dr. Schuhardt, began the study of medicine. Subse- quently, after reading diligently under the able guidance of that tutor, he graduated from the Louisville Medical Uni- versity, and then settled in Jonesboro', now his home. In 1862, as the rebellion was fast assuming serious proportions, he entered the service of the United States as a private in the 109th Regiment of Illinois Volunteers. He served throughout the war, and was an active participant at the battles of Vicksburg; Jackson, Tennessee; Yazoo City, Mis- sissippi; Liverpool IIeights, Mississippi; Black River and Fort Spanish, Mobile bay; and also in innumerable smaller expeditions and skirmishes. At the termination of the con- flict he returned from the field, took up his residence again in Jonesboro', and there, during the ensuing two years, was engaged in farming and agricultural pursuits, and also in prosecuting his professional studies. In 1867 he was elected to fill the City Treasuryship, and in 1873 elected Alderman, and re-elected in 1875. At the present time he is Examin- ing Surgeon of Union county for United States pensions. He possesses not only an extensive practice, covering a large area of the section in which he resides, but also the confidence and esteem of the entire community, who recog- nize in him a skilful and trustworthy physician. He was married in 1873 to Luella Mulkie, a resident of Jonesboro'.

ALL, GEORGE WILLARD, Lawyer, was born in Chillicothe, Ohio, April 22d, 1839. His parents, who were natives of New England, emigrated to the West in 1840. He first attended the McKen- drce College, at Lebanon, Ilinois; then entered the Michigan University, graduating from that institution in 1858. Immediately after leaving school he began to read law in the office of C. I. Simons, of Cairo ; subsequently attended the Cincinnati Law School, and graduated therefrom in 1859. He then returned to Illinois, and in June, 1859, was admitted to the bar, since which time he has practised his profession, meeting with much suc- cess and making Duquoin his home. His practice extends through the entire southern portion of the State, and is of a highly remunerative character. For the past ten years he has acted as Attorncy for the Illinois Central Railroad, and his duties cover a district over two hundred miles in extent. In this position he has had much laborious work, and his career, though marked by but few striking incidents, has been a very useful and successful one. Ilis reputation at the bar and among the people of the State is unexcelled, and he is widely known as a skilful and honorable practi- tioner. In 1351 he was elected a member of the Constitu- tional Convention, serving until its close, and taking an active and a prominent part in its proceedings. Also, while acting with that body-of which he was the youngest men- ber-he served on several important committees. In 1864 he was elected State's Attorney for the Third Judicial Dis- , on State street will long stand a monument to his enterprise

trict, and served in that office for a term of four years. In 1868 he was a Delegate to the National Democratic Con- vention, which met in New York and nominated Seymour and Blair. In 1869. he was again elected to the Constitu- tional Convention, which met in 1870, and whose constitution was afterward adopted. He was a member of its Judiciary Committee, and also of various other committees of cqual importance. In 1872 he was the Democratic candidate for Congress from his district, but was defeated by the Repub- lican nominee, although in cvery county he ran far ahead of his ticket. He is at the present time connected importantly with the coal-inining interest, and is to a considerable extent part owner of a bank. He was married in 1862 to Celeste Nettleton, of Duquoin, Illinois.

ORSMAN, CHARLES I., late Merchant and Banker, of Rockford, Illinois, who was prominent among the early settlers and pioneers of that western country, and who located in that place in the fall of 1836, was born December 29th, 1813, in Boston, Massachusetts. He belonged to a well-known Boston family, being a son of Edward Hors- man, who was Secretary of the old Commonwealth Insur- ance Company, one of the first organized in Boston, and who died when his son was quite young. The latter re- mained under the care of his mother, Mary Horsman, a member of the Ridgway family, and attended the public schools of the city. At the early age of nineteen he em- barked in the mercantile business and carried it on success- fully in the same building in which the celebrated Daniel Webster had his office. He was married in 1834 to Frances A. Morgan, of Springfield, Massachusetts. His first expcri- cnces West were in farming and mercantilc pursuits. In connection with his father-in-law he made claim to a large tract of land on which a portion of Rockford now stands. The first nights of that period he passed under a tree on the spot where has since risen his elegant mansion, one of the finest in the State. By strict attention to business and un- deviating integrity he soon won the confidence of the com- munity ; was appointed Postmaster under President Polk, and was also the first Probate Judge of Winnebago county. Relinquishing mercantile pursuits he engaged in banking, and until his death was more or less connected with finan- cial affairs. He left a wife and a daughter, who is married to Edward J. Underwood of Washington, District of Colum- bia, a son of the late Judge John C. Underwood, of Vir- ginia. Than Charles I. Horsman there is no one to whom Rockford-one of the most beautiful cities of the West- owes more of her prosperity, or who was more universally respected and beloved. Closely identified with the public interests of the city, he felt an intense pride in its advance- ment and improvement, and the large and handsome blocks

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and success. He was a man of fine culture and elegant | has been prosecuted with vigor and success. As a business tastes, which he displaycd in his home and its surroundings, man he is noted for his energy and careful management, and also for his unswerving uprightness in all relations, public and private. He was married in 1848 to Eliza Howell, formerly a resident of Onondaga county, New York, who was killed in the " bridge disaster " at Dixon, May 5th, 1873, when the bridge connecting Dixon with North Dixon gave way and fell while crowded with people-an accident by which about fifty lives were lost. especially in his elegant grounds, which, covering two blocks in the heart of the city, were laid out on the most approved and beautiful models and regardless of cxpense, and consti- tute one of the most charming features of the city. Hospi- tality was one of the most marked characteristics of both Mr. and Mrs. Horsman; no house in Rockford gave to strangers a more delightful impression of the society of the place than their always open doors and sumptuous table. By this liberal and unselfish conduct he assisted largely in bringing into Rockford a very superior class of citizens; in- deed, the city owes many of her best residents to his courtesy. It is almost impossible to do justice to a life like Mr. Horsman's, or to the men who with him endured and encountered the early hardships and dangers of the first settlers, and in so many noble and unpretending ways were the means of developing a country now great in its resources. Their lives are not of less and should not be treated as of less importance than those of the statesman and soldier, for their work will continue increasingly productive of good by the advancement of civilization when nothing remains of other ambitions, not even a name. In the fall of 1874 Mr. Horsman left home, in company with his wife, for an ex- tended tour through the South. On his way home he met with an accident from falling under the cars at Cumberland, Maryland, which rendered amputation of his right foot necessary. From the effects of the shock to his nervous system he never recovered, surviving only during a few days of patient suffering. He was a member of the Masonic fraternity, who took charge of the funeral ceremonies, and from whom he received distinguished honors. Thus was cut off, a little past the prime, a very useful and honored life, sincerely mourned by the entire community. He was one of the body of men most prominent in the development of the great West.

LEXANDER, PHILIP M., Merchant, was born in Onondaga county, New York, October Ist, 1819. ITis parents were Solomon Alexander and Elizabeth (Maxwell) Alexander. He was educated at the common school in the neighbor- hood of his residence, and also in the private academy located at Pompey Hill, in his native State and county. In 1833 he secured a position as clerk in a hard- ware store in Franklin, New York. In IS38 he moved to Dixon, Illinois, and during the ensuing year and a half was engaged in farming. In 1840 he became clerk in a general store, and continued thus occupied in the same establish- ment for a period of fourteen years. In 1854 he entered into the hardware business on his own account, in partner- ship with George L. Howell, under the firm-style of Alex- ander & Howell. The business then established has since been continued by the partners on the same premises, and

ARRIS, CAPTAIN DANIEL SMITH, Mining Operator, one of the earliest settlers of Galena, Joe Daviess county, Illinois, was born in Delaware county, New York, July 24th, 1808. In 1816 he emigrated with his parents to Cincinnati, crossing the Allegheny mountains in a two-horse wagon, and consuming thirty days in the transit. April 20th, 1823, he started in a keel-boat for Galena, arriving therc at the expiration of two months' time. In the Winnebago war of 1827 he served efficiently as a private soldier; and during the Black Hawk war of 1832 acted in the capacity of lieuten- ant. Soon after the close of the latter war he, in conjunc- tion with his brother, Robert Scribe, built the steamboat "Joe Daviess," at the portage immediately bclow Galena, which was the first steamboat ever built on the upper Mis- sissippi. The brothers owncd and operated this boat for a period of three or four years, running up the Wisconsin river to Fort Snelling and various other points, and engaged finally in the Illinois river trade, where they sold the boat which had been the means of enriching them. They subse- quently engaged in building steamboats at other points, ulti- mately completing in all about twenty-two boats, some of them the finest crafts that floated on the Illinois waters at that early date. Captain Harris afterward became a heavy stockholder in the Galena & Minnesota Packet Company, whose boats made regular daily trips between Galena and St. Paul, having their southern terminus at Galena. In this line he commanded a boat for many years, enjoying the reputation of being the most efficient as well as the most popular captain in the company. Since quitting the river, which he decided to do some twelve or thirteen years ago, he has devoted his attention chiefly to operations in mining. He arrived originally in Galena, June 20th, 1823, and has resided there ever since, being the oldest resident of Joe Daviess county now living, with the single exception of Hiram Hunt of Sand Prairie, who came on the same boat. The latter, however, was but an infant when he arrived, and too young to understand what was occurring in those early days of Galena's history. His colleague, on the other hand, was fifteen years of age when he arrived, and during a period extending over half a century has been an acute and intelligent observer of passing events and circumstances connected with the local history of his adopted State, county

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and town. The eensus of 1820, which reports every locality Bates and A. P. Van Meater, the smelters; John Ray; Nathaniel Bates and his wife; William Adney and his wife, and Mr. Hardy. In 1824 arrived, among others, P. Hogan, Michael Byrne, P. Dignan, T. Drum, M. Faweett, Captain Orren Smith, James L. Smith, and Lucius H. and Edward Langworthy. In 1825 arrived Major Henry Gratiot, J. P. B. Gratiot, and Captain James Craig. The first-named held for many years the responsible position of Indian Agent, and his name is prominently connected with the Black Hawk war. He was the father of M.s. E. B. Washburne. In this year also eame John Foley, the first sheriff of Joe Daviess county. Among those who arrived in 1826 were Major T. B. Farns- worth, William Hempstead, Allen Tomlin, M. C. Comstock, Captain Allenwrath, Mrs. D. G. Bates, Captain Abram Hathaway, and Captain H. Gear, with his family. In 1827 eame Dr. H. Newhall, James G. Soulard, Solomon Oliver, Governor Thomas Ford, Colonel James Strode, C. C. P. Hunt, Captain John Atchison, Paul M. Gratiot and others. In 1828, among others, eame George Ferguson, William Townsend, Jesse Morrisson, and B. C. St. Cyr. In 1829 arrived D. Wann, F. Stahl, Mrs. J. Atchison, and Emily C. Billon. Among others who came at varying dates were Dr. Addison Philleo, editor of the Miner's Journal; James Jones, who established that paper; Samuel Seales, R. Graham, the Gray brothers, B. Mills, Abner Field, the Argent family, and Moses Hallett and family. John S. Miller, who kept the Old Mansion House, near the Bank of Galena, arrived in 1823. Captain Harris is at the present time the President of the Early Settlers' Association. He was married in 1833 to Sarah Maria Langworthy, a sister of the Langworthy brothers, who settled in Galena at an early day, and who now reside in Dubuque. Being bereft of his wife in the year 1850, he, in 1851, married Sarah Coats, who still survives. He has ten children living-five of them the issue of his first wife and five the offspring of the present one. where there was a white settler, is silent relative to Galena, and it is known that at the time this eensus was taken there was not a single white man in the place now known as Galena. At various times previous to that date, however, different fur traders had operated temporarily at the portage. Toward the close of 1820 a trading-post was established in Galena by Messrs. Davenport, Farnum and Farrar, and until 1822 these constituted the entire number of white settlers. Then arrived a party of thirty or forty white men, with sev- eral negroes, and during this year two smelting furnaces were ereeted. Thus it will be perceived that the settlement of the placc by white men commenced really in 1822, and that he arrived early in the ensuing summer. The eraft which brought to Galena the earliest settlers now living in the county was the keel-boat " Colonel Bumford," fitted out at Cineinnati by Moses Meeker, and which arrived there June 20th, 1823, loaded with thirty persons and seventy-five tons of freight, consisting of tools, merchandise, and suffi- cient provisions to subsist the party for one year. Among the passengers and crew were Mr. Meeker, James Harris and h's son ; Benson Hunt, wife and infant child-the latter, Hiram, now living at Sand Prairie-James Doyle, wife and child ; Miss Worthington and Miss Buntz, these two last- named being the first white women married in Galena. Upon arriving at their point of disembarkation they found there less than one hundred white settlers -- eight of whom were women -- and about fifty negroes. They found five or six frame shanties near the present site of the woollen mill, a double log cabin, and a log and ash furnace where Mr. MeCloskey's store is now situated. These latter were the property of James Johnson, who was eondueting the smelt- ing business, and who, in conjunction with one Ward, had brought there nearly all the negroes mentioned above. David G. Bates and A. P. Van Meater also had a double log cabin and a smelting furnace on the east side of the river. There was also the trading-post of Davenport, Far- num and Farrar, on the present site of Martin's lumber yard, and the store and warehouse of Thomas H. January, ACKSON, ALBERT JUDSON, Lawyer and Banker, Mayor of Morrison, Illinois, was born in Knox county, Ohio, May 12th, 1837. His parents were Nathaniel M. Jackson and Harriet (Nightser) Jackson. He was the recipient of a common school education, perfeeted subsequently by his own unaided efforts. Upon leaving school he was engaged for some time in teaching, and from 1858 to 1861 was em- ployed in the office of Edward B. Warner, Treasurer of Whiteside county, Illinois. In 1858, also, he commenced the study of law in the office of the late Joseph Ware, and was admitted to the bar in 1860. He subsequently prac- tised his profession in partnership with his former preceptor, until the death of the latter in 1862. In 1861, at the break- ing out of the civil war, he entered the service of the United States in the 2d Regiment Illinois Cavalry, and was com- at " January's Point," near where Westwick's foundry now stands. These few buildings constituted the dwellings and places of business of the entire white population, but the hill-sides and ravines were dotted thiekly with the wigwams of the Indians-Saes and Foxes-of whom there were not less than two thousand within the territory now constituting the city limits. In the summer of 1823, soon after the arri- val of the keel-boat immigrants, Moses Meeker tried the experiment of smelting with a cupola furnace, but failed to attain sueeess. He then ereeted a log and ash furnace, of the old pattern, about where the St. James Hotel now stands; this was the third furnace ereeted in Galena, and it continued in suceessful operation for many years. Among those resident in Galena prior to 1830 were Drs. Connolly and Samuel C. Muer; Jesse W. Shull, who founded the village of Shullsburg in 1827; James Johnson, David G. missioned as Lieutenant of Company A. In the following

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The biographical encyclopedia of Illinois of the nineteenth century, Part 38

Author: Robson, Charles, ed Publication date: 1875 Publisher: Philadelphia, Galaxy Number of Pages: 770

Author: Robson, Charles, ed
Publication date: 1875
Publisher: Philadelphia, Galaxy
Number of Pages: 770