USA > Illinois > Whiteside County > The biographical record of Whiteside County, Illinois.. > Part 7
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in Sterling, where her death occurred in 1897. Eliza O. is the wife of James A. Meigham, and they have five children living -- Anna F., George E., Charles A., Ruth and Nellie. They reside in Fenton township, where Mr. Meigham is engaged in farming. George T. married Kittie Hough, and they have four children-William H., Jennie, Frank and Theresa. They make their home in Sterling, where he is engaged in running a meat market. Anna L. makes her home with her mother. John is the subject of this sketch.
John Dudley, who was born July 15, 1858, was reared on the old home farm, and has spent his entire life in Whiteside coun- ty, with the exception of four months, in 1883, when he was in California. In the common schools of his native township he received his education, but in the school of experience the greater part of his knowledge has been obtained. He continued with his father until he was twenty-one years of age, when he was given charge of the farm, since which time he has had the entire man- agement of it. Since the death of his father he has made many improvements of a sub- stantial nature on the old place, and has now one of the best farms in the town- ship.
On the 7th of January, 1888, Mr. Dudley was united in marriage with Miss Elsie A. Hazzard, who was born in Lyndon township, October 14, 1866, and daughter of Albert S. and Eudora (Bartholomew) Hazzard, the former a native of Lyndon township, Whiteside county, Illinois, and and the latter of Ohio. They now reside
in Low Moor, Iowa. They were the par- ents of six children, of whom one died in in- fancy, and one daughter, Jennie, when twenty-six years of age. Of the living, Elsie
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is the wife of our subject. Edward L. married Mary Brazell, and they have three children, Neal, Ruth and an infant. They now reside in Low Moor, Clinton county, . Iowa. Olivia is the wife of Fred Mont- gomery, and they reside in St. Louis. Celia M. died October 12, 1889. To Mr. and Mrs. Dudley three children have been born: Fred A., January 13, 1890; Charles E., July 13, 1892; and Florence E., May 17, 1896.
After his marriage Mr. Dudley brought his wife to the old homestead, which he has since controlled. In his farming operations, which are of general a nature, he has met with a fair degree of success. Politically he is a Republican, but he has never made politics the ruling spirit of his life, prefer- ring to give his entire time and attention to his farming interests. He has served as school trustee, because of his interest in the public schools. Fraternally he is a mem- ber of Myndon lodge, No. 41, Mystic Workers of the World.
JOHN P. BICKERT, deceased, was for J many years one of the important fac- tors in the business circles of Morrison, and his life was an exemplification of the term " the dignity of labor." The possibilities that America offers to her citizens he util- ized, and though he came to this country in limited circumstances he steadily and perseveringly worked his way upward, leav- ing the ranks of the many to stand among the successful few.
Mr. Bickert was born in Fulda, Ger- many, June 22, 1832, and was reared and educated in his native land. At the age of seventeen he emigrated to America, and in early life worked as a laborer in Virginia
and Pennsylvania. In the latter state he learned the shoemaker's trade which he followed for several years before coming west. It was in 1856 that he became a resident of Whiteside county, Illinois. He lived for a short time in Sterling, then removed to Fulton, and in the spring of 1858 took up his residence in Morrison. He worked at his trade for S. W. Johnston until April, 1860, when he bought out his employer and engaged in the boot and shoe business on his own account until 1874. During that year he purchased a farm in Union Grove township and turned his at- tention to agricultural pursuits, which he successfully carried on for some years, but finally sold the farm and returned to Mor- rison. In 1883, in partnership with his son- in-law, H. H. Peterson, he again embarked in the boot and shoe business, in which he continued until 1890, when he retired from business, having amassed a fortune in his trade.
In Morrison, April 22, 1862, Mr. Bick- ert was united in marriage with Miss Mary Ann Blose, who died February 11, 1864, leaving one daughter, Carrie, now the wife H. H. Peterson, of Morrison. They have four children, namely: John B., Mary J., Charles F. and Emerson B. Mr. Bickert was again married, October 10, 1879, his second union being with Mrs. Jennie Du- four, who was born in Tompkins county, New York, October 8, 1843, a daughter of George and Ruth Hopkins. Her father was born in Connecticut and was able to trace his ancestry back to one by the name of Hopkins who came to this country on the Mayflower. His father, George Hopkins, served through the war of 1812. Steven A." Hopkins, one of the signers of the Declara- tion of Independence, was a great-great-
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uncle of Mrs. Bickert. In 1855 she came who were not related prior to their mar- west with her aunt, Sarah Chandler, who died four days after their arrival in Lee county, Illinois, and she then lived with her uncle, Thomas Hopkins, for a number of years. riage. In Scotland the father followed the stone cutter's trade and served as tax col- lector of Inverness for the greater portion of his life. When our subject was sixteen years of age the family emigrated to Ameri- ca and settled in Nova Scotia, where the mother died August 18, 1839; the father January 2, 1844. They had five children, of whom William, our subject, is the eldest; Donald married Margaret Stewart, now de- ceased, and resides in Nova Scotia; Thomas died at an early age; Catherine, deceased, was the wife of Henry Dunbar, of Nova Scotia, and Thomas married Margaret Mc- Quarrie and lives in Nova Scotia.
Besides, his town property, Mr. Bickert owned about five hundred acres of land at the time of his death. On the 25th of Sep- tember, 1891, while superintending the tear- ing down of a building upon his farm, he met with a serious accident, breaking the thigh of his right leg, and the ankle of the left foot, from the effects of which he never recovered. He died October 26, 1891, hon- ored and respected by all who knew him. Socially, he was a member of the Masonic order; and politically was an ardent Dem- ocrat. He was a man of the highest re- spectability, and those who were most in- timately associated with him speak in un- qualified terms of his sterling integrity, his honor in business and his fidelity to all the duties of public and private life.
W ILLIAM FRASER has for almost half a century been identified with the interests of this section of the state, and is now living retired from active labor in Morrison at the age of eighty- four years. There is an old age that is a benediction to all that comes in contact with it, that gives out of its rich stores of learning and experi- ence, and grows stronger intellectually and spiritually as the years pass. Such is the wife of Mr. Fraser, an encouragement to his associates and an example well worthy of emulation.
He was born in Kirk Hill, Inverness- shire, Scotland, January 12, 1816, a son of Alexander and Elizabeth (Fraser) Fraser,
Our subject received his education in the common schools of his native land, and after coming to America he engaged in teaching school in Picto, Nova Scotia, for three years, after which he followed farm- ing in that country for sixteen years. In the meantime he was married to Miss Christina McLeod, of Picto, who was born October 18, 1816, a daughter of Alexander and Christina McLeod. She is also of Scotch descent. To Mr. and Mrs. Fraser were born eight children, all of whom are still living, namely: A. M., who is now Queen's magistrate in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia; Don R., an attorney-at-law and deputy county clerk at Mount Carroll, Illi- nois; Eliza, wife of P. R. Boyd, of Morri- son; Christina, wife of R. T. Waller, of Rockford, Illinois; Thomas II., who is en- gaged in literary work at his home in Mor- rison; A. W. H., ex-member of the Idaho legislature, who is engaged in mining in that state and in British Columbia; Kate, au artist of San Francisco, California; and Ella Belle, wife of Dr. Weller, of San Francisco.
In 1851 Mr. and Mrs. Fraser came to
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Illinois and located in Carroll county, where he engaged in teaching school during the winters of 1851, 1852, 1853 and 1854, while through the summer months his time was occupied by farm work. He purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land on sec- tion 28, Salem township, that county, and there he made his home, engaged in agricult- ural pursuits for twenty years. In the spring of 1871 he came to Whiteside county and bought a farm of ninety acres on section 20, Mt. Pleasant township, to the cultivation and improvement of which he devoted his energies for eight years, but since 1879 has lived retired in Morrison, enjoying the rest which should always follow an honora- ble and well-spent life.
Mr. and Mrs. Fraser are both active and prominent members of the Presbyterian church of Morrison, and he has been an elder in the churches with which he has been connected for fifty-one years. He is a stanch advocate of temperance principles, and his wife is an active worker in the Wo- man's Christian Temperance Union. In the past he had affiliated with the Republican party, but of late years has taken no part in political affairs. While a resident of Car- roll county, he most creditably filled the of- fices of school trustee, highway commission- er and supervisor of Salem township for two terms, and has been honored with local offices since coming to this county. He has always been found true to every trust re- posed in him, whether public or private, and has the confidence and respect of his fellow citizens and of all who know him.
L EVERETT S. BURRITT, deceased, was one of the honored and highly re- spected citizens of Whiteside county, where
he made his home for over forty years. He was born in Hinesburg, Chittenden county, Vermont, July 29, 1833, a son of Nelson A. and Chloe (Gray) Burritt, also natives of that state. The father was a farmer and dairyman, engaged in the manufacture of butter and cheese. In 1856 he came to Il- linois and purchased a farm of three hundred and twenty acres in Union Grove township, Whiteside county, after which he returned to Vermont. Shortly afterward he met with an accident, which resulted in his death in 1857. In his family were five children, Mar- quis D., Oscar C., Matilda, Leverett and Henry, all living with the exception of Lev- erett.
In the Green Mountain state our subject grew to manhood, and his early education, acquired in the district schools, was supple- mented by a course at St. Albans, Vermont. He remained on the home farm with his father until he attained his majority, and then accompanied his sister and her hus- band, S. Needham, on their removal to La Salle county, Illinois, where they rented land and engaged in farming for a short time. They next came to Whiteside county and took up their residence on the half sec- tion of land which their father had pur- chased for them.
At Union Grove Mr. Burritt became ac- quainted with Miss Elizabeth A. Simonson, who was then teaching school in Prairie Center, Union Grove township, and on the 28th of February, 1859, they were united in marriage at Altay, Schuyler county, New York. She is a native of that state, born in Starkey, Yates county, May 25, 1833, and a daughter of Walter and Ann Maria (Clark) Simonson. The father was born in Owego, Tioga county, New York, May 2, 1801, and was a son of Christopher Simon-
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son, a shoemaker by trade, who died when his son was only five years old. The mother died two years later, and Walter Simonson was then reared by his maternal relatives. In early life he learned the trade of cloth dressing, and was employed in the woolen mills for a number of years. Ile finally lost his sight through the dust of the mills. At Great Bend, Pennsylvania, he was mar- ried, March 7, 1830, to Miss Ann Maria Clark, who was born at that place, Septem- ber 28, 1803, and they became the parents of seven children, of whom Mrs. Burritt is second in order of birth. Mrs. Simonson was one of a family of nine children, five sons and four daughters, whose parents were James and Mehitable (Booth) Clark. Her father was a native of Connecticut, an early settler of Susquehanna county, Penn- sylvania, and a hatter by trade. Mr. Simon- son died November 13, 1876, and his wife passed away March 15, 1881. To Mr. and Mrs. Burritt were born three children, namely: Maria E. married S. J. Emery, of Shelby county, lowa, who died shortly after their marriage, and she died June 27, 1894. Emma Belle and Walter E. live with their mother in Morrison.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Bur- ritt located on a farm in Fenton township, Whiteside county, where they made their home for twenty-two years, and then spent one year in Morrison, at the end of which time they removed to Lyndon township, where our subject purchased a farm of two hundred five acres of land, having sold his farm in Fenton township, which consisted of two hundred two and a half acres. For two years he lived retired from active labor in the village of Lyndon and then located on his farm, where he made his home for five years, during which time he devoted his
attention to stock raising, leaving his farm to be operated by others. In 1890 he re- turned to Morrison, where he lived retired until called from this life August 7, 1890, his remains being interred in Grove Hill cemetery, Morrison. In his political affilia- tions he was a Republican, and at different times filled the offices of school director, pathmaster and postmaster of Fenton. Fraternally he was connected with the Mod- ern Woodmen of America, and religiously was a member of the Presbyterian church, to which his wife and family also belongs. He was a man of the highest respectability, and those who were most intimately asso- ciated with him speak in unqualified terms of his sterling integrity, his honor in business and his fidelity to all the duties of public and private life.
N OAH E. PAPE, a well-known enter- prising farmer of section 1, Ustick township, Whiteside county, is a native of Illinois, his birth occurring in Carroll coun- ty. December 26, 1866. Ilis parents, John and Melvina (Green) Pape, were natives of England and Ohio, respectively, and were married in Illinois. The father came to America when a young man, and later pur- chased a farm of eighty acres in Ustick township, upon which he was engaged in general farming at the time of his death, which occurred in 1876.
In politics he was a Republican, and he creditably filled the offices of township assessor and collector. His wife is still liv- ing and makes her home in Ustick. She is a daughter of Hazel and Susanna Green, and is the mother of six children, all living, namely: Mary, wife of Samuel J. Hawk, a laborer of Fulton, by whom she has five
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children; Jane, wife of W. S. Mitchell, a merchant of Thomson, by whom she had four children, two now living; Noah E., our subject: George, who married Lizzie Peter- kin and is engaged in farming in Ustick; Minnie, wife of Frank Milne, a farmer of Clyde township, by whom she has three children; and John, who is with his mother.
Noah E. Pape was educated in the dis- trict schools of Ustick township and re- mained at home with his parents until he at- tained his majority. On the fifth of Janu- ary, 1888, he led to the marriage altar Miss Ann Dyson, who was born in Carroll coun- ty, February 14, 1868, a daughter of Charles and Catharine (Carter) Dyson, also natives of this state. She is one of a family of five children, three still living, namely: Frank, a farmer of Carroll coun- ty; Ann, wife of our subject; and Emma, wife of William Peterkin, also of Car- roll county. Mr. and Mrs. Pape have five children: Floyd, Clay, Blanch, Lee and Lepha, the three eldest of whom are are now attending school.
After his marriage Mr. Pape located on a farm in York township, Carroll county, which he rented for two years. and then in connection with his two brothers, he rented the two-hundred-acre farm on which he now resides. He is interested to some extent in stock raising but gives the greater part of his attention to general farming and is a most skillful and thorough agriculturist. He is quite a prominent member of a number of civic societies, be- longing Ustick Camp, No. 3995, M. W. A., in which he has held several offices; Ustick lodge, No.9, Mystic Workers of the World, of which he is now banker; and the Knights of Pythias lodge, No. 120, of Morrison. As a Republican, he takes quite an active inter-
est in political affairs, and has held the offices of road commissioner and school di- rector for three years each. His wife holds membership in the Baptist church.
R DICHARD I. HARDY, a progressive and enterprising agriculturist of section 13, Ustick township, is a native of Whiteside county, his birth having occurred in Mount Pleasant township, February 22, 1856. His father, William Hardy, was born in Lin- colnshire, England, in 1833, and came to America in 1850. After one year spent in New York he came to this county, where he at first worked as a farm hand. At length he was able to purchase eighty acres of land in Mount Pleasant township, and as time advanced he added to the original tract, at one time eighty acres, and in all one hun- dred and sixty acres, all in Mount Pleasant township. Throughout his active business life he gave his attention to general farm- ing and stock raising and met with good success, owning at the time of his death one hundred and sixty acres in Mount Pleasant township, and one hundred and twenty acres in Ustick township, and a quarter section in La Moure county, North Dakota. He married Mrs. Keziah Richard- son, also a native of Lincolnshire, England, who came to this country when young as the wife of his brother, Thomas Hardy. By her first husband she had one child, Susanna, now the wife of Joseph Jordon, of Gordon Plains, by whom she had three children. Seven children were born of the second marriage, but one died in infancy. They were Amos, who lives on a part of the old home farin in Mount Pleasant town- ship and has four children; Richard, our subject; Winfield, who also lives on a part
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of the home farm and has two children; Horace, who died when a young man; Olive, who died in infancy; Alice, who died young, and Ruby, who married David Stewart, of North Dakota, and died in 1893, leaving one child, Lee. The mother of these children died in 1870, and subse- quently the father married her sister, Mrs. Elicia Kennen, widow of William Kennen, who died in Illinois, leaving one child, Elizabeth. During the last two years of his life the father lived in North Dakota, but died in 1890 while on a visit to his son in Union Grove township, this county.
Reared upon the home farm, Richard I. Hardy was educated in the district schools of Mount Pleasant township, and after leav- ing school he worked as a farm hand for two years. Subsequently he successfully operated rented land until he was able to purchase eighty acres of land on section 13, Ustick township, where he now lives. Be- sides this property he also operates another eighty-acre tract belonging to his sister.
On the 31st of July, 1878, Mr. Hardy was united in marriage with Miss Ella Mc- Millen, who was born in Ohio October 20, 1854, and when young came to Illinois with her parents, William and Nancy (Butler) McMillen, who settled in Round Grove. The father was born in Ohio June 27, 1803, and died in 1880, while the mother was born in West Virginia February 25, 1807, and died in 1874. They had fourteen children, of whom three died in infancy, the others be- ing as follows: Eliza J. is the wife of James Ewing, of Wilsonville, Alabama, and they have two children; L. Margaret married James Rhodes, of Berlin, Ohio, and died in 1866, leaving a family of children; William M. was a soldier of Company H, Second West Virginia Cavalry, during the Civil war,
and died soon after the close of that strug- gle, leaving five children; James H. was a member of the same company as his brother. and died about 1870; Sarah M., the twin sister of James H., married L. J. Thomp- son, and died in 1889, leaving five children; Amanda M. married R. M. Thompson, and died in Lyndon township, Whiteside county, in 1893; Andrew L., a soldier of the same company as his two brothers, is now living in Jackson, Ohio, and has a family of five children; A. Murray and Emerson, also members of Company H, Second West Vir- ginia Cavalry; the former is now a resident of Marietta, Ohio, and has seven children, while the latter lives in New York City, and has five children; S. Marion was killed in battle while serving in the same company and regiment as his brothers; and Ella N. is the wife of our subject. Mr. and Mrs. Hardy have four children, namely: Myrtle L., Mabel A., Murray W. and Maude M., all at home with the exception of the oldest, who is now the wife of James McKee, of Ustick township, and has one child, Harold.
After his marriage Mr. Hardy engaged in farming in Mount Pleasant township for three years, and then worked for his father in Ustick township for four years, after which he returned to Mount Pleasant town- ship for two years. At the end of that time he located upon his present farm on section 13, Ustick township, and for a number of years he operated a corn sheller and thresher in connection with his work as a general farmer and stock raiser, but sold out that business in 1899. He has made many im- provements upon his place since it came into his possession, and has met with good success in his undertakings. He casts his ballot with the Republican party, and has been elected to minor offices, having served
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as school director and road commissioner. While in the latter office he did much toward improving the roads and bridges in his town- ship. Fraternally he is a member of Hen- derson camp, No. 13, M. W. A., of Morri- son.
M ERIL MEAD, deceased, was for many years prominently identified with the business interests of Morrison and also bore an important part in public affairs. He was born in Clark county, Ohio, December 18, 1820, a son of Allen and Sally (Scarlett) Mead, natives of New York and Vermont, respectively. The father served as a soldier of the war of 1812, under General Winfield Scott, and during the last twenty-eight years of his life was a minister of the Free Will Baptist church. He also followed farming. In his family were ten children, of whom Merril was the second in order of birth.
The early education of our subject was acquired in the public schools of his native county, after which he attended college at Springfield, Ohio. On the completion of his education he engaged in teaching school for some time in Harmony, Clark county. There he was married, September 30, 1847, to Miss Harriet Newlove, who was born in Harmony township, Clark county, Ohio, April 3, 1830, about two and a half miles from the Mead homestead in Springfield township, Clark county, Ohio. Her parents, Labourn and Elizabeth (Inınan) Newlove, were both natives of England, the mother being from Yorkshire, and the latter was a daughter of Matthew and Ellen (Chapman) Inman, farming people of that country, in whose family were six children, five sons and one daughter. Mrs. Mead's paternal grand-
parents were Joseph and Ann (Brown) New- love, natives of the north of England. There the grandfather was quite exten- sively and successfully engaged in farm- ing until 1820, when he came to the United States, accompanied by his wife and family, and settled in Clark county, Ohio, where he purchased a large farm and where he continued to make his home throughout the remainder of his life. Matthew Inman, Mrs. Mead's maternal grandfather, also came to America and bought a farm in Clark county, Ohio, on which he made his home until death. Laybourn Newlove was the third in order of birth in a family of sev- en children. In early life he learned the blacksmith's trade, and upon his farm con- ducted a shop, while he also extensively engaged in agricultural pursuits. The town of Harmony was laid out upon his farm. There he died October 21, 1865, and his wife passed away May 10, 1859. They were consistent members of the Methodist Pro- testant church, and were held in high regard by all who knew them. In their family were four children, namely: John, who died at the age of two years; Harriet, now Mrs. Mead; Joseph, who married Sa- rah Lindell, has four children living, and makes his home near Columbus, Ohio, and Ellen widow of John Kier, by whom she had four children now living and makes her home in Unionville, Whiteside county, 11li- lois.
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