USA > Illinois > Henry County > The biographical record of Henry County, Illinois > Part 25
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he removed to Geneseo township, where he iam Kemmis, a retired farmer of Geneseo. purchased a farm of eighty acres, but after (3) Hiram was a member of Company 1, Forty-fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry in the Civil war, and was wounded at the bat- tle of Shiloh. He was then brought home and died from the effects of his injuries two weeks later at the age of twenty years. (4) Albert W., our subject, is next in order of birth. (5) Sinclair married Emma E. Mun- ger and follows farming in Loraine town- ship. (6) John, also a farmer of Loraine township, married Ada Haskins and has two tion and improved with good buildings. He children, Malcolm and June. (7) Anna died in 1896 at the age of forty-five years. (8) Abigail died in infancy. residing there for a time, he was taken ill and moved about three miles northeast of that place, where he took up government land in Phenix township, making it his home for fifteen years. In the meantime he had pur- chased a farm in Loraine township where his last days were spent, dying there January 15. 1873. These several farms were all wild land when they came into his possession, and by his labors were placed under cultiva- was actively identified with the early develop- ment and improvement of the county, and in its transformation from a wild uncultivated tract into one of the best farming districts of the state he ever bore his part. In his polit- ical views he was a Republican, but never took an active part in politics, though as a public-spirited man he advocated all measures tended to advance or improve the community in which he lived. For some years he served as school director in Loraine township. Re- ligiously he was a member of the United Brethren Church.
On the 24th of September, 1835, in Wayne county, Ohio, Asa Blair married Miss Abigail Sinnott, who was born in St. John's, New Brunswick, September 18, 1812. and whose parents continued to make their l:ome in St. John's throughout life. She died at the home of her daughter in Loraine township, this county, March 17, 1888. By this union were born eight children, namely : ( 1) Marilla first married Daniel Beers, by whom she has three children, Frank, Byron and Dora, but she is now the widow of Lor- enzo Norton, a farmer of Loraine township. and resides in Geneseo. By hier second mar- riage she has two children, Hugh and Mrs. Flma Carson. (2) Nancy is the wife of Will-
During his boyhood Albert W. Blair pursued his studies in the common schools of Phenix township, and assisted his father on the home farm. After the latter's re- moval to Loraine township, he continued to operate the farm in Phenix township until he took up his residence in Geneseo in 1892. He added to the place until he had one hun- dred and seventy-one acres of valuable land on section 25. and made a number of im- provements thereon, while he succesfully en- gaged in general farming and stock raising throughout his active business life.
On the 7th of October, 1861, at Geneseo. Mr. Blair enlisted in Company I, Forty- fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, with which lie served two years and two months, being engaged in the battles of Fort Henry, Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Meeding Station, Tennes- see, and Raymond, Port Gibson, and Cham- pion Hills, Mississippi. During the engage- ment at the last named place, May 16, 1863. he was wounded in the left leg, which has left him a cripple for life, after undergoing a very painful operation. The bullet taken from the wound he still has in his possession. He was on the extreme right of the line, be-
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ing one of twelve from his company detailed to watch that the army was not flanked. The sergeant in command ordered a charge on the enemy entrenched in a ditch, and they captured a cannon, but in this encounter Mr. Blair was wounded after having his gunstock knocked from his hand by a ball. He was wounded while in the act of capturing a rebel who had hidden behind a tree. He was first taken to the plantation belonging to Jef- ferson and Joseph Davis, where he was cap- tured about a week later by a squad of Con- federate soldiers, but was paroled after tak- ing the oath not to take up arms until his exchange. He was sent to the barracks at St. Louis, and honorably discharged in No- vember, 1863. He now draws a pension of thirty dollars per month as a sort of compen- sation for his injuries.
Mr. Blair was married, March 5, 1872. to Miss Mary E. Mcclellan, who was born in Geneseo township, this county, December 10, 1850, a daughter of John Wesley and Julina (Murray) Mcclellan, natives of In- diana. When he was about twenty-five years of age her father came to Illinois, and for many years engaged in farming in Geneseo township, where he died in 1896 at the age of seventy-two years. His widow is still liv- ing at the age of seventy and now makes her home with our subject. They had a family of four children, namely : Mary E., now Mrs. Blair; Mrs. Evaline Roberts, of Oklahoma territory, who has one child, Nora, wife of Wilbur Green; Thomas, clerk in a hardware store in Latham, Kansas, who married Laura Fisk, and has two children, Hugh and Elsie ; and Sarah Jane, who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Blair have one child, Cora E., born January 12, 1873. She is now the wife of Edgar McHenry, who occupies the old Blair homestead in Phenix township.
Our subject and his wife have a pleasant home on West Cemetery street, Geneseo, where they delight to entertain their many friends. Both are active members of the Methodist Church, and are held in high re- gard by all who know them. The Repub- lican party finds in Mr. Blair a stanch sup- porter of its principles, and he efficiently served as school director in Phoenix town- ship for many years. Fraternally he is an honored member of the Grand Army of the Republic, the Modern Woodmen of America, and the Home Forum, while his wife holds membership in the Circle of the G. A. R., the Home Forum, and the Woman's Chris- tian Temperance Union of Geneseo, of which she is at present secretary.
ANDREW WEIDLEIN.
This gentleman, who is a prominent and successful farmer of Geneseo, Illinois, is a native of Pennsylvania, his birth having oc- curred in Bedford county, that state, on the 16th of April, 1840. His father, John Weidlein, was born in Germany, January 17, 1812, and emigrated to America with his parents during the '20s. The grandfather died many years ago. In early life John Weidlein married Miss Elnora Emmert, also a native of Germany, who died Febru- ary 20, 1894. at the age of seventy-five years, having celebrated her birthday on the 2nd of that month. He is still living, however, at the ripe old age of eighty-nine years. In 1851 he came west from Pennsylvania, and first located in Osco township, this county, but subsequently removed to Edford town- ship, and died at the home of our subject in
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Geneseo on the 30th of December, 1900, J. H., a resident of Dodge City, Kansas; He was widely and favorably known and Margaret, wife of George Enderton, of Mer- cer county, Illinois; and Sarah E., wife of our subject. Her maternal grandparents were John and Mary ( Rice) Pierce, farm- ing people of Butler county, Pennsylvania, and active members of the Presbyterian Church. Both lived to an advanced age, Mr. Pierce being over ninety-six years at the time of his death, and his wife over ninety- three. was a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, to which his wife also belonged. Andrew was the oldest of their twelve chil- dren, the others being as follows : Philip, a grain inspector of Kansas City; Lavina, who died unmarried at the age of twenty-five years ; Lewis, a resident of Kansas; Jake, a resident of Missouri; George, a farmer of Iowa: Edward, a resident of Augusta, Kan- sas; Carrie, wife of George Drehmer, of this county; Wallie, a resident of Muscatine, Iowa; and three others deceased.
Andrew Weidlein accompanied his par- ents on their removal to Henry county, Illi- nois, and his early life was spent in plowing, planting and reaping on the home farm. At the age of twenty-four he started out in life for himself, and has always followed farm- ing, in which he has met with marked suc- cess. He is the owner of a valuable and well improved farm of four hundred and sixty- five acres in Osco township, which he him- self operates, and also has a couple of other farms now occupied by his sons.
Mr. Weidlein was married April 3, 1864, to Miss Sarah E. Conrad, also a native of the Keystone state, and a daughter of Almon and Elizabeth (Pierce) Conrad, who came to Illinois in 1856, and after spending a short time in Rock Island county, located in Henry county, where both died. The father was fifty-five years of age at the time of his death and was long survived by his wife, who died August 2, 1898, when lacking only a month and five days of being ninety years of age. Both were earnest members of the Lutheran Church. Of their children, Fre- derick, John, Mary J., James, Thomas and Elvira are all deceased. Those living are
Eight children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Weidlein, namely: (1) W. Elmer, a resident of Galesburg, Illinois, married Kittie Marlatt, and they have three chil- dren, Grace, Cleone and Lysle. (2) Joseph C., a farmer of Edford township, this coun- ty, married Anna Glenn and they have two children, Boyd and Mildred. (3) Vina is the wife of Harry King, of Champaign, Illi- nois, and they have five children, Jessie MI., Nellie H., Laura I., Florence M. and Henry W: (4) Nora E. is the wife of John Schroe- der, and they have one child, Lucile. (5) L. Arthur, of Edford township, married Gertie Rogers and they have one child, Marie. (6) Carrie .\. is the wife of Lewis Schroeder, of Osco. (7) Laura Edith is at- tending the Geneseo high school, where she will graduate in 1903. (8) Margaret J. died September 28, 1885, at the age of eleven years.
Mr. Weidlein takes little interest in pol- itics but generally supports the Democratic ticket. He has served his fellow citizens in a most creditable manner as road master, supervisor of his township two years, and a member of the school board many years. Religiously he and his wife are earnest mem- bers of the Lutheran Church, and enjoy the hospitality of many of the best homes of
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Geneseo. They receive and merit the high regard of the entire community, and those who know them best are numbered among their warmest friends.
GEORGE W. WEST.
This well-known and highly esteemed citizen of Geneseo is a worthy representa- tive of the agricultural interests of Henry county. He was born near Ithaca, New York, March 25, 1835, and on the paternal side belongs to an old Colonial family, his ancestors having come to this country on the Mayflower or soon afterward. They took quite an active part in public affairs and are supposed to have fought in the Con- tinental army during the Revolutionary war. They were of English descent and had much to do in organizing both the Maryland and Virginia colonies.
Garder West, our subject's father, was a native of Rhode Island, and a son of Johnnie West, who at an early day removed with his family to New York. There Gar- der engaged in farming and dairying quite extensively, and as one of the leading men of his community he served in several local offices. He and his wife visited here but never came west to live. She bore the maiden name of Lavina Pease and was a native of New York, where she died at the age of seventy-four years. The father was eighty-six at the time of his death. Both were devout members and zealous work- ers in the Methodist Episcopal Church. with which he was officially connected, and their home was always the stopping place of the itinerant ministers. Mrs. West's paternal grandfather was a native of Eng-
land, and she was also of Scotch extraction, her ancestors being sturdy and reliable peo- ple. Her father, Thaddeus Pease, was a life-long resident of New York, where he died at the advanced age of ninety-nine years. Owing to an accident his days were shortened. He was a man of powerful build and was very active for one of his years. In early life he was an athlete, and had the name of being the most powerful man in Tomp- kins county.
George W. West, of this review, is the sixth in order of birth in a family of ten children, the others being as follows: Mary A. wedded R. Marsh and died at about the age of fifty years; Lydia J. is the wife of Thomas Space, of Tompkins county, New York; John T., a successful farmer of Osco township, this county, died at the age of forty years, and his widow subsequently married Robert Fleming, of Cambridge; Harriet, deceased, was the wife of Frank Tuttle, of Beloit, Wisconsin; Caroline died unmarried at the age of twenty-eight years; Nancy J. died unmarried at the age of twen- ty-four; Delphine married Henry Lormore, and died at the age of forty-one; Adaline married George Lormore, a brother of Henry, and died in Cleveland, Ohio, at the age of thirty-seven ; and Emily, died at the age of eighteen years.
Mr. West was reared on a farm at Dry- den, New York, and after completing huis education in the public schools of that local- ity, he followed farming until he attained his majority. At Cortland, New York, le boarded a train-the first on which he ever rode-and went to Beloit, Wisconsin, and from that city came to Henry county, Illi- nois, riding across the country on an un- broken colt and arriving here in the spring of 1855, at which time there was only one
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house between Geneseo and Cambridge, a quite profitable, and is to-day one of the distance of twelve miles, it being the prop- most substantial men of his community. erty of Job Price. With his colt and ox In politics Mr. West is an ardent Repub- lican, and takes a commendable interest in public matters, especially educational affairs, which he has done much to promote. He was chairman of the committee that had in charge the erection of the second brick public school building in Henry county (?). Fraternally he is identified with the Ma- sonic order, and religiously both he and his estimable wife are active and consistent members of the Congregational Church, in which she has been a member of the choir for over forty-two years. teams, Mr. West assisted his brother, John T., in breaking prairie and improving the latter's farm, being thus employed for a year. He then went to Iowa, where he spent the cold winter of 1856, when the ther- mometer for forty degrees below zero much of the time, and the crust on the snow was so thick that he could ride over fences indis- criminately. He was engaged in buying furs and deer skin, which he sold for a good profit in Galesburg the following spring. Mr. West was next employed as collector for G. W. Brown, and later engaged in the It was on the 6th of June, 1865, in Henry county, that Mr. West led to the marriage altar Miss Mary Amelia Allan, and by this union were born three children, namely : (I) James Allan, a resident of Rock Island and postal clerk on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad between that city and Chicago, married Fay Cinnamon, in Janu- ary, 1891, and they have two children, Allan C. and Harold T. (2) George G. is a grad- uate of the Northwestern Normal School, and is now engaged in farming near Gene- seo. (3) John Edward is a graduate of the same institution and also of the dental de- partment of the Northwestern University, and is now engaged in the practice of dental surgery at Geneseo. He married Minerva E. Benedict, in January, 1897, and they have one child, Stewart Benedict. fruit tree business until the Civil war broke out, when he turned his attention to buying horses and delivering them to the United States authorities at Galesburg. In the meantime he purchased and improved eighty acres of land in Munson township, this coun- ty, though he made his home in Galesburg during the war, and for nearly two years was engaged in the crockery and stoneware busi- ness in Chicago, under the firm name of West & Tomlinson, being burned out at the end of that time. Since then he has carried on farming and stock raising in this coun- ty, and has owned some fine blooded cattle and also a good grade of horses and hogs. Success has attended his well-directed efforts and he and his wife now have a well im- proved and valuable farm of over four hun- dred acres. The Hennepin canal crosses James M. Allan, Mrs. West's father, was born in Summer county, Tennessee, No- vember 23, 1814, a son of John and Nancy (Hodge) Allan, and grandson of Joseph and Euphemia (Agnew) Hodge. During the Revolutionary war Joseph Hodge, a na- tive of North Carolina, captured a Tory, who had wounded him most severely with this property and cuts off about eighteen acres. Mr. West still operates his farm with the aid of a tenant. In 1890 he pur- chased and brought to this county six thou- sand sheep from Montana, and in 1897 three hundred head of cattle from Colorado. He has found stock raising and feeding
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a ramrod. In 1836 James M. Allan came to Henry county, Illinois, and became prom- inently identified with public affairs here. He spent the winter of 1836-7 at Vandalia, where the legislature was then in session, and succeeded in getting Henry county set apart from Knox. He served as the first county and circuit clerk,, and also filled the office of county judge. In 1850 he was elected to the state legislature and succeeded in getting a charter for what is now the Chi- cago, Rock Island and Pacific railroad. Strange as it may seem it was a difficult mat- ter to obtain the support of the governor and many of the leading men of the state, wno were much afraid that a railroad constructed in the vicinity of the canal would prove :let- rimental to the best interests of the state. Mr. Allan also hield the office of provost marshal during a part of the Civil war. In his journal he wrote : "One of the hardest jobs I have undertaken with others is the construction of the Hennepin canal. I have now been twenty years actively working to secure this important improvement. ] think the Hennepin canal will come soon. I have spent much time and money in its behalf. I spent winters in Springfield en- deavoring to get the legislature to pass laws for its construction. The result of such effort was the beginning of the improvement of the Illinois river and the passage of the law to cede to the general government the Illinois & Michigan canal. Its enlarge- ment and the improvement of the Illinois river, with the Hennepin canal completed. would give the northwest excellent facilities for cheap transportation, both for the Mis- sissippi river and the Great Lakes." Mr. Allan was in early life a member of and was ever in deep sympathy with the church and its work, and was highly respected and es-
teemed by all who knew him. After a long and useful life he passed away December 20, 1885. His father, John Allan, was a native of Hereford, England, was a Presbyterian minister, who for the long period of thirty years had charge of one church in Hunts- ville, Alabama. He sent his sons, James M. and William T., to college in the north, where they imbibed the northern spirit of enterprise, and soon began to see the wrong of slavery. This was more than their rev- erend father had bargained for in sending them to school. William T. Allan was licensed to preach, and for many years lec- tured on the wrongs of slavery, being a con- temporary worker and in sympathy with the anti-slavery views as promulgated by Owen Lovejoy.
On the 6th of March, 1839, James M. Allan married Miss Susannah D. Stewart, who was born in New York, January 28, 1820. Their wedding. was the first per- formed in Henry county, and she had the honor of teaching the first school within its borders. She was a life-long member of the Congregational Church and one of its most zealous workers. Her death occurred June 8, 1889. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Allan, as follows: Sarah A. resides in Geneseo. She taught under the A. M. A. in the south for several years. Mary Amelia, wife of our subject ; Clara F., wife of William Harrington; Emily I., who died at the age of two years ; and Anna L., wife of Frank Williams, of Geneseo.
Mrs. Allan was a daughter of Roderick R. Stewart, who, in 1836, was one of the first three to locate in what is now Geneseo, the others being Messrs. Bartlett and Cone. His grandfather, Elisha Stewart, aided the colonies in their struggle for independence, which makes Mrs. West and her descendants
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sons and daughters of the Revolution. In 1812, Roderick R. Stewart married Clar- issa Dresser, a native of Massachusetts, who served her country during the war of 1812 by devoting her spare time to molding bul- lets for the army. She furnished a full choir for the church from her own family, and was called the mother of "the Geneseo colony." She died in 1867, at a ripe old age, honored and respected by all who knew her. Roderick R. Stewart organized the Masonic lodge at Geneseo, which bears his nanie.
JAMES RAMSEY.
James Ramsey, deceased, was for many years prominently identified with the busi- ness interests of Geneseo, and was one of its most highly esteemed citizens. A native of New Hampshire, he was born in Marlow on the 29th of June, 1812, and remained at the place of his birth until seventeen years of age. His parents, James and Nancy (Tin- ney) Ramsey, were life-long residents of Marlow, where both died at an advanced age.
On leaving home Mr. Ramsey went to Boston, Massachusetts, where he was em- ployed for some years, and first embarked in business on his own account at Newton, Mas- sachusetts, where he conducted a grocery store for several years. On disposing of his business there he returned to New Hamp- shire and engaged in the general mercantile business at Alstead, where he remained until 1866. He then went to Nashua, where he was engaged in the grocery business until coming west in 1870. Locating in Geneseo, Illinois, he purchased a grocery store, which he and his eldest son, Allen, conducted until a few years before his death, when he re-
tired from active business and spent his re- maining days in ease and quiet at his pleas- ant home on Oakwood avenue, which he built shortly after his arrival in Geneseo. Here he was surrounded by all the comforts which usually attend a well spent life of in- dustry. His son continued the business until 1896. when he sold out.
Mr. Ramsey was twice married, his first wife being Miss Sarah Jane Hopkins, of Nashua, New Hampshire, who died in Al- stead, that state, leaving three children, namely: (1) Allen, who was his father's partner in the grocery business, married Ellen Brady, who died leaving one child, Frank. Allen died in Chestervillle, Texas, October 24. 1900. During the Civil war he enlisted in the Eighteenth New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry, and after serving some time was taken ill and sent home. In the spring of the following year, however, he re-enlisted, and remained in the service until the close of the war. (2) Emily J. is the wife of Nathan Smith, now probate judge at Sabetha, Kansas, and they have three chil- dren, Daisy, Edith and Blanche. (3) John E., who died in Erie, Pennsylvania, about twelve years ago, served for some years in the United States navy, and was quarter- master on the U. S. S. Brooklyn for a time.
On the 8th of September. 1863. at Heb- ron, New York, Mr. Ramsey was again mar- ried, his second union being with Miss Laura J. Wilson, a daughter of Isaac and Phoebe (Temple) Wilson. Isaac Wilson was a son of James Wilson, of Hebron, New York. who served as a major in the Revolutionary war. The father was a native of that place, and about 1868 came to Henry county, Illi- nois, purchasing a farm in Edford town- ship, where he continued to make his home until a short time before his death, which
JAMES RAMSEY.
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occurred at the residence of his daughter. Mrs. Ramsey, March 10, 1875, when he was eighty-one years of age. His wife passed away a week previous, at the age of eighty years. By his second marriage Mr. Ramsey had two children : (1) Eugene W., born in Alstead, New Hampshire, April 16, 1865- the day President Lincoln was assassinated -and was educated in the public schools of Geneseo and Wood Business College at Davenport, Iowa. He is a painter by trade. On the 13th of September, 1899, at Indian- apolis, Indiana, he married Annie Kile, a daughter of John W. Kile, a farmer of La- pel, Indiana, and they have one child, Har- old, born in Geneseo June 5, 1900. (2) Gertrude P. is the wife of Dr. Harry Brown- ing, of Oskaloosa, Iowa, and they have one child, Floy L.
While a resident of Alstead, New Hamp- shire, before his removal to Nashua, Mr. Ramsey served as representative to the state legislature on two different occasions, and held the office of justice of the peace for many years at that place. Religiously he was an earnest and consistent member of the Methodist Church, and a regular attendant upon its services. He was held in high re- gard by his fellow citizens on account of his upright dealings and Christian charity, and in his death, which occurred AApril 17, 1894, the city lost a prominent and valued citizen ; his family a devoted husband and father. His remains were interred in Oakwood cem- etery.
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