USA > Illinois > The biographical encyclopedia of Illinois of the nineteenth century > Part 57
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young lawyer from Connecticut. Mr. Dodd was drowned improvement of the efficiency of the schools. He con- tributed liberally of his means to the founding of the Wesleyan University, at Bloomington, and the erection of its buildings, and was a member of its first Board of Trustees. He executed the contract for the erection of the buildings of the State Reform School at Pontiac, and with his brother Jesse donated a part of the land now belonging to that institution. He has, during all of his long residence in Bloomington, been among her most public-spirited and enterprising citizens, and active in every movement to promote her improvement. Several of the earliest brick business houses which led the way to her present advanced state of architecture were of his building. Two of the additions to the city were laid out by him; and the public improvements in general have always had his cooperation and support. Having become first principal and then sole proprietor of a large machine shop in Bloomington, he converted it, in 1873, into a chair manufactory, now run by the Bloomington Chair Factory Company, of which he is one of the principal stockholders. It is a prosperous enterprise, employing about one hundred hands, and of great value to the city. The caning of the chairs is chicfly done, at present, by the boys of the State Reform School at Pontiac. It has always been a part of his disposition during life to encourage his own em- ployés and others of small means with whom he came in contact, to become owners of their own homes; and many can trace their first step towards independence to his advice and assistance. His suggestions often came to such persons at first with a sense of astonishment, the idea of their being able to become proprietors of anything not having occurred to them; but with a little judicious en- couragement the idea has become reality, and proved the beginning of respectable accumulations. Much good has been effected by this quiet and sensible policy, benefiting both its immediate objects and the community in general. In religious belief he is a Unitarian Quaker. Ile took an active part in the organization of the Frec Congrega- tional Society at Bloomington, and has been from the first and to the present time a zealous and efficient member, devoting much time, thought, and means to its support and advancement. ITis father was a member of the Society of Friends, or Quakers, and was known far and wide as " Honest Jesse Fell ; " and his mother was truly a " ministering angel" in her own society and in all her neighborhood and circle of acquaintance. She died, universally lamented, in 1846. His father, from 1841 to his death, in 1853, was afflicted with blindness; which infirmity was, however, alleviated by the affectionate care and attention of his numerous family. Through life he has been and still is an industrious and busy man, seldom spending an hour in an unprofitable way. He is noted for his hospitality and sociability, and his home is the constant resort of numerous visitors, who find unfailing
in 1844, in crossing the Mackinaw creek on his return from a convention at Joliet, which had nominated Hon. John Wentworth (for the first time) for Congress. After this unlooked-for dissolution of the partnership, Mr. Fell practised his profession alone until 1856, when from ill health he relinquished it. During his practice at the bar, it was his custom always to use his influence and efforts to obtain an equitable settlement of his cases without a suit, it being his conviction that a lawyer's duty was to make peace when possible instead of promoting litigation. He was probably the very first person to suggest and urge the nomination of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States. He has said that the first thought of it came to him with the force and completeness of conviction of an inspiration ; and he was the first to suggest Mr. Lincoln's nomination to several who afterwards became its prominent and influential advocates, and who were convinced of its propriety by Mr. Fell's arguments. A long and intimate acquaintance with Mr. Lincoln had thoroughly convinced him of his intellectual and moral fitness for the most exalted trusts; and at least as early as 1856 he was warmly in favor of his nomination. In that year, at the State Republican Convention held in Bloomington, Mr. Lincoln was selected as a delegate to the National Con- vention at Philadelphia; but being very doubtful of his ability to go (owing to imperative business engagements), he only accepted the appointment on Mr. Fell's agreement to go as his substitute, if circumstances made it impossible for him to go himself. Finding, at almost the last moment, that this would be the case, Mr. Lincoln telegraphed Mr. Fell, and the latter started for Philadelphia with less than an hour's notice, and sat in the convention as a substitute delegate. Mr. Lincoln received a strong support for the Vice-Presidency, in that convention, and was withdrawn by the Illinois delegation with express reference to re- serving him for the highest place at a subsequent time. Having removed to West Chester, Pennsylvania, during this Presidential campaign, for a temporary sojourn (which was protracted some twenty-four months), Mr. Fell took occasion at a mass meeting, to present Mr. Lincoln's name and character to the favorable consideration of the Penn- sylvanians as a Presidential candidate in the future, and thus in some measure to prepare the way for the nomina- tion which was actually made four years later. In 1260, with a view to restore his much impaired health, Mr. Fell travelled through Europe; but was careful to return in season to cast his vote for Mr. Lincoln, and to rejoice in his election to the Presidency. He has never been a seeker of offices, yet it has been his lot to hold several, usually such as involved mueh labor with little or no emolument. For twelve years he was a member of the Board of Education of Bloomington, and was distinguished for his zeal and fidelity in the execution of his duties, and for his lively interest in the cause of education and the attraction in his society and that of his excellent wife and
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agreeable children. He is a deep and earnest thinker,| and extensively read in science, theology, philosophy, and general literature. He holds broad and generous opinions in full sympathy with the progressive and rational ten- dencies of the age. He is much beloved and respected in the community for his pure life, agreeable manners, and useful public services. He was married, January Ist, 1845, in the city of Philadelphia, to Jane Price, of his native county of Chester. She is of English descent. They have eight children-five sons and three daughters.
ALLACE, HUGH, Lawyer and Farmer, was born in Pennsylvania, August 10th, 1802. His parents were James H. Wallace and Agnes Wallace. He studied law in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, under the instructions of George B. Porter, after- ward Governor of Michigan, a man of sterling attainments. At the completion of the usual probationary term, he passed an examination, and was admitted to the bar in 1828. He practised his profession subsequently for some time in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. In 1837 he re- moved to Sterling, where he was occupied not only profes- sionally, but also in conducting farming operations on an extensive scale. From 1852 to 1854 he was Registrar of the Land Office at Dixon, Illinois, and in 1854 was elected to the Senate. He had previously, from 1847 to 1849, offi- ciated also as a member of the Legislature, in which body he was recognized as an active spirit and influential coadju- tor. He was a man of elevated character, one influenced by commendable desires, and throughout a long life bore himself with notable rectitude and ability. His death, which occurred in 1864, occasioned widespread and sincere regret, and numerous testimonials, public and private, testified to the sorrow and respect of a wide circle of friends and ac- quaintances.
1861 he was married to Anna Schermerhorn, of Ottawa. For two years he served as one of the Aldermen of the city, and in 1868 he was elected Clerk of the Circuit Court, and ex-officio Recorder. He served four years and was then re-clected Clerk of the Circuit Court of La Salle county, which position he now retains. He has filled all these stations with the utmost fidelity, and with great intelligence, and is regarded as one of the foremost men in the city of his residence.
IFFANY, REV. OTIS HENRY, D. D., was born in Baltimore, Maryland, July 3d, 1825. After the usual primary education, he prepared for college at the academical department of the University of Maryland, and then entercd the junior class of Dickinson College. He was found to be of such efficiency that in 1851 he had sole charge of mathematics and engineering in Dickinson College; and during his travels in the West, he has found many men who studied engineering with him and who had been in the army. He was prominently associated with the political movements of Pennsylvania during his residence in that State, and was at one time put forward as candidate for Senator, but was too young then for so high an office, and before the next term came around he had retired from political life. In 1856 he supplied the pulpit of the Associate Reformed Church of Baltimore, in connection with his duties as Professor in the college, and in the fall of that year became its pastor, in which relation he was very successful, and many conver- sions occurred under these labors, an index to the success and usefulness that was to attend his ministry in later years, and on other fields. In 1860 he was called to the First Methodist Church of Chicago, where he labored until the following year. He received the degree of D. D. from Dickinson College after his departure from it. He then removed to Evanston, a suburb of Chicago, where he re- mained until 1864, when he was appointed Pastor of Grace Church, Chicago. During his residence at Evanston he was frequently in the city, actively identified with the various movements and questions of the day, delivering numerous lectures, and ever an ardent supporter of the Union and of emancipation. His eulogy on Mr. Lincoln was acknowledged a masterpiece of rhetoric, receiving the personal compliment of Speaker Colfax. He also conducted the religious services on the opening of the Chamber of Commerce, and pronounced the oration over the dead pered greatly under his ministry. But other fields of labor were to engage his attention. He was appointed by the bishops Corresponding Secretary of the Church Extension Society, with head quarters at Philadelphia. He declined the appointment, however, and became Pastor of the St. James Church, of New Brunswick, New Jersey. While there, two interesting circumstances occurred : one was the
OOK, CHARLES H., Clerk of the Circuit Court of La Salle county, Illinois, was born in Union- town, Pennsylvania, February 5th, 1834, being the son of Peter Uriah Hook, a member of the Penn- sylvania Legislature, and a merchant. His in- struction was obtained first in the common school. He was soon placed in a select school, and subsequently took a full course in Madison College, in Uniontown, from which he graduated in 1355. He then studied law for one | heroes of the Board of Trade Battery. His church pros- year under S. Duncan Oliphant, of Uniontown, Pennsyl- vania, and in the spring of 1857 came to Ottawa, Illinois, entering as Deputy Clerk the office of the Clerk of the Cir- cuit Court of the Ninth Illinois Judicial District. For nearly twelve years he filled this station with care and ability. In 1866 he became First Assistant Assessor of the Sixth District of Illinois, and continued in that capacity eight months. In
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preaching of Rev. Stephen II. Tyng in his church, for which him than that contained in an address presented at a fare- he was presented, tried and reprimanded by the authorities well sociable on his departure from Grace Church to his pastorate in New Jersey. After mention of " the dignity, ability and efficiency with which he had filled the pulpit positions assigned him," the address continues : " We also take pleasure in stating that on the broader plane of public activities, as patriot in the midst of national convulsion and trial, and as a scholar and .orator upon the platform, you have made a record of enduring honor to yourself, and re- flecting credit upon our denomination." This was signed by representatives of all the Methodist churches of Chicago. of the Protestant Episcopal Church ; the other circumstance was his instruction in religious matters of several young Japanese noblemen, sent there for educational purposes by their government, three of them being converted under his ministry, and one baptized by himself, who is now Minister of Japan to the United States. He subsequently became Pastor of St. Paul's Church, Newark, New Jersey, where he labored for two years and a half with great acceptance and success, endearing himself deeply to his charge. He was then, in October, IS72, transferred to the pastorate of the Metropolitan Church of Washington. There, from the very outset, he drew immense congregations. President Grant and family were regular attendants upon his minis- KINNER, HON. MARK, was born in Manches- ter, Vermont, September 13th, 1813. His family dates back to the early days of the history of New England. His mother, daughter of Robert, and cousin of John Pierpoint, the poet, was thus con- nected with one of the old, famous, historic fam- ilies of England; while his father, Richard Skinner, was a man of marked eminence and ability, having been State's Attorney, Judge of Probate, Member of Legislature, Gover- nor, Member of Congress, and Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court, and so high was the esteem in which he was held that he almost invariably continued in these vari- ous positions until he declined further service. The son fitted for college at Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and entered the University of Vermont in 1830, graduating in 1833, in advance of his class. Ile determined to become, like his father, a lawyer, and for two years studied law at Saratoga Springs, with Judge Ezek Cowen, an eminent jurist and author, and Nicholas Hill, an accomplished lawyer. He also spent one year in the New Haven Law School, a de- partment of Yale College. Chicago was just then beginning to attract attention as a promising place, and in 1836 he went thither, a cotemporary of a large circle of young men whose names have since added lustre to the annals of the city and the State; and it will be seen also that he is now one of the oldest citizens of Chicago. He was admitted to the bar of Illinois immediately, and in the fall of that year entered upon the active practice of law, with G. O. A. Beau- mont as partner. In IS39-40 he was elected City Attorney of the young city. His stable character, resolution and energy, although never enjoying very good health, made him prominent in his profession as well as in the Demo. cratic party, though he was never a professional politician. IIe was Master in Chancery for Cook county for years, and was afterward appointed by President Tyler, United States District Attorney, for a district embracing the entire Statc. At the second term his claim was contested by Hon. J. N. Arnold, and as a compromise the office was given to a third party. Just before receiving this appointment he assisted in the prosecution of Charles Chapman upon a charge of trations, as was also Chief Justice Chase, and at the death of the latter, who was a member of his church, he delivered the funeral discourse in the Senate chamber. It is to be mentioned as a remarkable and unprecedented occurrence, that on the Sabbath preceding President Grant's second inauguration, there were present in his church at service, President Grant and family, and every member of the Cabinet, and of the Supreme bench. It was his privilege as pastor of the President's family to perform the marriage ceremony on the occasion of the wedding of Nellie Grant and Algernon Sartoris. From this and many other intimate associations, the doctor is a familiar friend and visitor in the President's family, whether in the capital or by the seaside. On his first Sabbath in Washington he baptized a converted Indian chief, and on other occasions, delegations of chiefs from Indian tribes were present through the entire services. In March, 1875, he returned to Chicago, and became Pastor of the Trinity M. E. Church of that city, where he now resides. Very soon after his arrival, at the request of many leading citizens, he delivered an cration upon the character of Washington in aid of the erection of a suitable monument to the father of his country, which, though the weather was exceedingly unpropitious, was largely attended and gave great satisfaction, as it had similarly done at the East. He was married December 26th, 1848, to Eliza B. Hamilton, daughter of Rev. W. Hamilton, of Washington. They have a family of five children, three sons and two daughters. Dr. Tiffany has been a man of great success and acceptance in every pulpit that he has occupied. IIe is generally conceded to be one of the first pulpit orators in the land, a finished speaker, of fine presence, able, logical, eloquent and powerful. Hc has proved himself again and again, in the lecture field, and upon great public occasions, as on decoration day, independence day, and in the distress after the great fire of '71, an accomplished orator. His sermons and other public addresses have been reported fre- quently in the press of the various cities in which he has officiated, from Montreal to Washington, and favorably commented upon, and many pages of such matter could be printed ; but perhaps no juster tribute has been rendered to ; perjury, in an application for bankruptcy. The case was a
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notable one, as being the only conviction in the United | growth and prosperity, and naturally became concerned in States under the old bankrupt law. In 1846 he was elected its railroad interests, as Director of the old Galena, and of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroads. Ile was married May 21st, IS41, to Elizabeth Magill Williams, and has had six children. He has long been identified with the Presbyterian church as a member and an officer. In private life he is of simple, quiet tastes, and of unswerving integrity. He is now Agent for making loans and investments for the Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company, and still lives in Chicago, an honored and useful citizen of the city he has so long been identified with. Member of the Legislature, and became chairman of the most important committee in the House, that upon finance. He drew up and procured the passage of a bill which brought order out of the chaos of State indebtedness, and set the matter upon a healthier basis. It also became a point of jealousy and warm discussion, whether, in the ap- portionment of delegates to the new State Constitutional Convention, the census of 1840 or of 1845 should be the guide, as the one would give the ascendency to the southern counties, and the other to the northern. Mr. Skinner be- came the leader of the latter, and by his skilful manage- ment and leadership they carried the day. This question involved another still more important one-the payment of ARNES, ALLEN T., M. D., Superintendent of the Illinois Southern Hospital for the Insane, was born at Bedford, Kentucky, June 21st, 1832. Ilis parents, Craven Barnes and Mary Barnes, wcre natives of Kentucky. His earlier and pre- paratory education was acquired in the South Hanover College, located in Indiana. After leaving school he engaged in teaching, and continued in that occupation during the ensuing fifteen months. At the expiration of that time he decided to embrace the medical profession, and accordingly commenced the study of medicine under the supervision and able guidance of Dr. McClure, a favor- ably known physician and a skilful practitioner. With this instructor he remained for about three years, then graduated at the Kentucky School of Medicine at Louisville. He subsequently entered upon the active practice of his profes- sion in Austin, Indiana, where he was successfully occupied during the following three years. He then returned to Louisville, Illinois, and was there professionally occupied until 1862, meeting with great success and securing a very extensive practice. Shortly after the outbreak of the Re- bellion, early in 1862, he entered the service of the United States in the capacity of Surgeon of the 98th Illinois Mounted Infantry, served efficiently and actively throughout the war, and was discharged August 5th, 1865. While engaged in the army he did staff duty for a considerable period, and was placed in charge of the hospitals at Bowling Green, Nash- ville, and Chattanooga. He was an active participant in many battles and engagements : among them were those of Chickamauga, Farmington, Hoover's Gap, Buzzard Roost, Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanta, Lovejoy Station, Selma, Colum- bus, and Macon, besides innumerable skirmishes, all of a character more or less perilous and important. At the close of the conflict he located himself at Centralia, Illinois, where he resumed the practice of his profession, remaining there until 1873. For seven years he was Surgeon of the Illinois Central Railroad, and during 1871 and IS72 was Mayor of Centralia, having on each occasion been elected against his expressed wishes. Prior to this time he had also been Alderman for a term of two years. In 1873 he was appointed Superintendent of the Illinois Southern Hospital for the In- the State debt at some time, principal and interest, or its utter repudiation, and a man of his character could not long doubt on which side to be. In IS51 he was elected Judge of the Cook County Court of Common Pleas, and declincd a re-election in 1853 on account of feeble health. This was at an early day when the business that is now apportioned among two or three courts was all transacted by him, and at a far less salary than is now paid to either of these. IIis health also prevented his resuming a general law practice, and he was led to turn his attention to large financial opera- tions, in which he has since been engaged for many years. In consequence of his accurate knowledge of law and thor- ough reliability of character, he became agent for many now resident capitalists, investing and loaning for them largc sums of money, which went toward the construction of many elegant blocks and residences in the city. In 1861 he was chosen President of the Chicago Sanitary Commis- sion, which from a local afterward grew to be a general organization, the well-known Northwestern Sanitary Com- mission. He held this responsible position until 1864, per- forming its duties without any pay, until prostrated by an attack of typhoid fever. In 1852 he was also elected a member of the United States Sanitary Commission. But hc not only gave to the country his own services : he lost his son, Richard Skinner, in its defencc, a young man just grad- uated from Yale College with promise, and possesscd of a spotless Christian character, who fell mortally wounded on the field of duty, June 22d, 1864. Judge Skinner has also been an active and efficient member of the school board, and friend of education, and one of the schools of the city has been named after him. In 1848 he delivered before the New England Society, of which he was one of the founders, an address in vindication of the character of the Pilgrim Fathers, which was afterward published. IIe was also one of the founders of the Chicago Reform School, and was chosen first President of its Board of Directors. To make this perfect he inspected all the prominent reform- atory institutions in the older States, and engrafted the re- sults of his observation upon his school with decided success. He has always been interested in the city's
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sane, which position he still retains. This is the largest hospital in the State, and will have a holding capacity when completed for four hundred patients; the north and centre wings are now completed, and the south wing is under contraet and will shortly be finished. He was married while in Louisville, Illinois, in 1856, to Elizabeth H. Green, a resident of that place.
TORRS, EMORY A., Lawyer, was born in the year 1834, in Cattaraugus county, New York. He studied law with his father and Marshall R. Champlain, ex-Attorney-Gencral of the State of New York. In 1855 he was admitted to the bar in Buffalo. Until 1859 he practised law in New York city, and then removed to Chicago, where he has since resided and practised his profession. In many re- speets he is one of the most noted men at the Chicago bar, and in some of his qualities he has few equals and no supe- riors in the legal ranks, not only of Chicago, but of the country. As a jury lawyer he is in some respects unequalled. His command of language is tremendous, and his powers of ridieule and sareasm, and his ability to seize and use the humorous phase of any ease or any circumstance, are unap- proachable. He ean appreciate and employ the ludicrous elements of affairs as very few other men can do. In all. his efforts he is exceedingly brilliant, and his addresses sparkle from beginning to end, and not unfrequently seorch while they shine. But he has no just appreciation of the pathetie, and so misses an element of great power. Sponta- neity is one strong fcaturc of his excellence; his best "hits" have their origin in the immediate circumstances of the time and place, and so arc doubly cffective. He is a hard student, has the ability to comprehend a case, and the in- dustry to work it up with care and effcet. IIe is zealous in the cause of his client, and works hard, effectively, and very often successfully in his behalf. He has, withal, gained some prominenee as a political speaker, and his utterances in this direction have considerable weight. In person he is of less than the medium height, is slender, and has light hair and complexion, and blue eyes. ITis movements are quick and his manner nervous. Altogether he is a success- ful man, and as is inevitable with a man of his organization and temperament, has many ardent admirers, and has exeited many antipathies.
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