USA > Illinois > Kane County > The past and present of Kane County, Illinois : containing a history of the county a directory war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion statistics history of the Northwest etc., etc > Part 91
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cEWEN, S. R., far. ; P. O. North M Plato.
McArthur, Norman, far. ; P. O. North Płato.
MeArthur, A., farmer ; P. O. North Plato. McArthur, Daniel, farmer ; P. O. North Plato.
McDonald, Thos., P. O. Udina.
Mc Bride, Henry, farmer ; P. O. North Plato.
McNamara, Mat., farmer ; P. O. North Plato.
McConnell, L., farmer ; P. O Burlington. McDearmit, Daniel, farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
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TAX-PAYERS AND VOTERS OF
Miller, G., farmer ; P. O. Udina. McDONALD, WILLIAM W.,
farmer, Sec. 25; P. O. Elgin ; born in Kane Co., Ill., Oct. 14, 1846 ; Rep .; Lib .; married in 1866 to Miss Elizabeth M. Youngs ; she was born in the State of New York ; her two children are Charles A. and John F.
Martin, John.
Muirhead, Geo., farmer; P. O. North Plato.
Mock, Wm., farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
Mock, Jas., farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Myers, Chester, far. ; P. O. Gray Willow. Miser, Fred.
Minka, Fred., farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
N ELSON, JOHN.
Nickel, Henry, farmer ; P. O. Udina. Norton, Betsey, far. ; P. O. North Plato. WEN, C. E., far .; P. O. N. Plato. O
PINGREE. A. C., far .; P. O. Pingree. Grove.
Peterson, Chas., far .; P. O. Pingree Grove. Potts, M. A.
PEASE, GEORGE L., far .; Sec. 21 ; P. O. Elgin ; born in Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., March 6, 1843; removed to Illinois in early childhood, with his parents, who located in Plato Tp., in 1844 ; Dem .; Liberal. Married in 1860, to Miss Harriet A. Armstrong ; she was born in the State of New York ; has served as Constable for three years ; his father, David Pease, still resides on the farm on which he first located, when he came to the county.
PINGREE, DANIEL, physician and surgeon ; P. O. Pingree Grove ; was born at Springfield, N. H., Jan. 26, . 1819; came to Kane Co., in 1838; in 1840 he purchased 335 acres of land and still retains the same; is a graduate of the Indiana Medical College, situated at La Porte ; graduated in 1849 ; prac- ticed medicine for eighteen years ; has had a large practice in Kane Co .; held the office of School Director. Married Miss Jane H. Avenhill, at Newark, Kendall Co., Ill., Nov. 10, 1859 ; she was born in Litchfield, Grayson Co., Ky., Nov. 5, 1825; three children- Walter, born July 22, 1863; Ellen Douglas, born Feb. 26, 1865 ; Jennie, born Jan. 3, 1868.
Pease, David, farmer; P. O. Elgin.
Pugsley, George, farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Pease, Wm. A., farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Pease, J. W., farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Pease, A. J., farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Phelan, John, far .; P. O. Elgin. Pickering, Sarah, far .; P. O. Udina.
R OSS. THOMAS, farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
Rue, Joseph, farmer ; P. O. Udina. Robinson, Samuel, farmer ; P. O. Udina. Reed, G. B., P. O. Gray Willow. Runge, A. H., farmer ; P. O. Udina.
RUSSELL, IRA N., farmer ; Sec. 13; P. O. Udina ; born in Wyoming Co., N. Y., Feb. 4, 1833; removed to Illinois with his parents, who settled in Batavia in the Summer of 1844; loca- ted on the farm where he now resides in 1865; own 387 acres of land, valued at $23,000; Rep .; Liberal ; member of Elgin Lodge, No. 117, A., F. & A. M .: married May 19, 1853, to Miss Charlotte B. Sherburne; she was born in Essex Co., N. Y., Oct. 2, 1827; four children -Emma A. (wife of Joseph Rue), El- len A., Freeman A., Laura A .; Mr. R. is Supervisor of Plato Township; has also held other minor offices.
Rourke, A. H., farmer ; P. O. North Plato. Roach, L.
Robinson, R. C., farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
Rippberger, Adam, farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Ross, Myron, farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Rue, E., farmer ; P. O Elgin.
Rue, P., farmer ; P. O. Udina. Ribel, L., farmer ; P. O. Udina.
Rowe, W. H., farmer ; P. O. Udina. Robinson, William, far .; P. O. Sycamore. Ripperger, George, farmer; P. O. Elgin.
SHEDDAN, MARGARET, farmer ; P. O. Udina.
SCHOONHOVEN, HENRY A.,
farmer ; Sec. 24; P. O. Elgin ; born in Steuben Co., N. Y., June 19, 1839 ; removed to Illinois in early childhood with his parents, who located in Cook Co .; came to his present home in the Fall of 1861 ; owns 386 acres of land, valued at $19,000; Rep .; Lib .; mar- ried Sept. 13, 1860, to Miss Martha A. Cass ; she was born in Washington Co., Vt., July 13, 1839 ; four children liv- ing-Frank J., Cora J., Eugene H. and Bessie I .; lost two-Georgie, died in April, 1869 ; one died in infancy.
737
KANE COUNTY : AURORA.
Switzer, J., farmer ; P. O. Udina. Shuman, Fred., far .; P. O., Udina.
Sherwood, Geo., far .; P. O. No. Plato. Shuman, Chris., far. ; P. O. Udina. Sheddam, Robt., far .; P. O. Udina. Sheddam, J. R., far. ; P. O. Udina. Shuman, Aug., far .; P. O. Udina. SEAPY, WM. R., farmer ; Sec. 20 ; P. O. Elgin ; born in Plato Tp., Kane Co., Ill., Feb. 27, 1847 ; Rep .; Lib .; owns 80 acres of land, valued at $4,000 ; married March 4, 1872, to Miss Lottie A. Swan ; two children- Charles A. and Bertha E.
Strickling, H.
Swanson, Peter, P. O. Gray Willow.
Schrader, J., farmer ; P. O. No. Plato.
Seapy, J. W., farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
Scott, A. D , farmer ; P. O. Udina. Sherwood, Seth, farmer; P. O. No. Plato. Seward, C. L., farmer ; P. O. No. Plato. Shrader, John, farmer ; P. O. No. Plato. Shrader, William, far .; P. O. No. Plato. Skinner, B. O., farmer ; P. O. Udina. Smith, G. E.
Schueller, L., farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Smith, Joseph, farmer ; P. O. Udina.
Seward, Levi, farmer; P. O. Udina. Seward, A., farmer ; P. O. Udina. Sherwood, L., farmer ; P. O. No. Plato. Stamback, C.
Schlierback, Conrad, farmer; P. O. Udina. Sherwood, A. P., far .; P. O. No. Plato. Sovereign, G. P., farmer; P. O. Elgin.
THIES, F., farmer; P. O. North Plato.
Tucker, J. R., P. O. Elgin. Taylor, J., P. O. Elgin.
Tucker, Chas., farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Tucker, Margaret, P. O. Elgin.
Tucker, R. C., farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
Tucker, J. W., farmer; P. O. Elgin. ESY, JAMES, farmer; P. O.
V Udina. Vanostrand, H. B., farmar ; P. O. Udina. Valtz, Lewis, farmer ; P. O. Udina.
W
ARNER, CHAS., farmer ; P. O. North Plato.
Walker, J. N., P. O. Gray Willow. Wilkie, Chris.
Wallace, Pat., far. ; P. O. North Plato.
Wallace, Edward, far. ; P. O. No. Plato.
Wilcox, A. R., far. ; P. O. No. Plato.
Wardlaw, John, far. ; P. O. Udina.
Wilcox, J. W., far. ; P. O. North Plato. Wilcox, O., far. ; P. O. North Plato.
Werbach, Chas., farmer ; P. O. Udina.
Werbach, Andrew, Sr., farmer; P. O. Udina.
Werbach, Andrew, Jr., farmre; P. O. Udina.
Walters, far .; C. P. Elgin.
Wallace, W., far .; P. O. North Plato.
Wright, E. B., far. ; P. O. Blackberry.
Walker, Louisa, P. O. Gray Willow.
Walker, Eugene, P. O. Campton.
Walker, F. P., P. O. Gray Willow.
Y
OUNGS, S., farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
Youngs, Peter, farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Youngs, M. C., farmer ; P. O. Elgin. Yurz, Carl, farmer ; P. O. Elgin.
AURORA TOWNSHIP.
A YRES, CHARLES, carp .; P. O. Aurora.
Arnell, Lewis, P. O. Aurora. Asburgh, John, P. O. Aurora. Arkwright, Caroline, P. O. Aurora.
AURORA BEACON, is the oldest newspaper published in the Fox River Valley ; it was established in 1846, by Frank and Myron V. Hall ; a small weekly, printed on a sheet 22x32 inches, and has now grown to a semi-weekly of 26x42 inches, and a weekly of double that size ; it has suffered several changes
and some vicissitudes ; in 1854 it was sold by the Halls to James W. and Dudley Randall, who, with the aid of N. S. Greenwood, Brewster & Sons, and Augustus Harman, continued its publi- cation until July, 1857, issuing also a daily edition during the Fremont cam- paign ; at the last date the interests of the Beacon and Guardian were consoli- dated into the Republican Union, under the proprietorship of Simeon Whitely and James W. Randall; but the affairs of the old Beacon had became so badly
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TAX-PAYERS AND VOTERS OF
involved, that Mr. Randall was obliged to withdraw his interests and materials, and place them in the hands of his credit- ors ; in Sept., 1857, the owuers of the material put it in the possession of Augustus Harman, who had been editor of the daily Beacon, and O. B. Knick- .erbocker, job printer in that office, who revived the Beacon, and Mr. Knicker- bocker has remained with it since that time ; Mr. Harman, thoroughly impreg- nated with prohibition and woman's rights doctrines, soon withdrew from the paper and established sheets more to his fancy ; in 1859, Mr. Whitely, of the Republican- Union, failed, and the mate- rials of his office was bought by George S. Bangs, who had, years before, been in the employ of the Halls, and the two interests were combined, the paper, as the Beacon, enlarged and the busi- ness continued in Temperance Hall block, where it now remains; the Beacon was the first paper to mention the name of Abraham Lincoln in con- nection with the Presidency, and after his accession to power, he made Mr. Bangs Postmaster at Aurora; in 1866, the Beacon disagreed with Mr. John- son and his policy, and Mr. Bangs de- siring to retain the post office, sold his interests to Mr. J. H. Hodder, who had been connected with the mechanical department of the paper much of the time since 1854 ; the firm then formed, Knickerbocker & Hodder, still own and conduct the paper ; during the first years of its publication, the Beacon was somewhat anomalous of its political character-one page being devoted to Democratic principles, under control of B. Frank Hall, and the other to Whig teachings, according to the views of Myron V. Hall; it afterward passed under the direct control of Myron Hall, and was Whig in principle, until after the Bloomington Convention; it placed itself square upon Republican principles as enunciated by the platform put forth by that patriotic body ; since that time it has remained unswervingly and con- sistently Republican.
Messrs. K. & H. have, in connection with the paper, one of the largest and best appointed book and job printing establishments in the State (out of
Chicago), and a complete bindery and blank book manufactory, being the only one in the south end of the county. The History of the 36th Ill. Vols., History of Du Page County, and the History of Kendall County, are among the produc- . tions of the past year. The facilities of the Beacon establishment are perfect in every detail, and the proprietors expend their personal efforts to bring all their work up to the highest standard of ex- cellence.
Oscar B. Knickerbocker was born in Rhinebeck, Dutchess Co., N. Y., in 1837. Passed his younger school days in the public schools of Albany, N. Y. In 1849 removed with his father's family to Lansingburg, N. Y., where in 1851, he commenced to learn the trade of printing in the Democrat office, under Old Hunker Democratic influences. He gained further knowledge of printing in the office of the Albany Evening Journal, while Thurlow Weed was its editor, and George Dawson and Fred. Seward assist- ants. In 1855, he came West, worked a little time upon his father's farm near Earlville in this State. In the Summer and Winter of 1856, he taught the vil- lage school in Earlville. In the Spring of 1857 he came to Aurora, secured a situation with the Messrs. Randall. and on the day of the first municipal election became a resident of the city. His history since that time has been simply close attention to the interests of the Beacon. He was, in 1870-1, one of the Secretaries of the Illinois State Senate.
John H. Hodder was born in Brid- port, Dorsetshire, England, where he learned the printing and book binding business ; serving a regular five years' apprenticeship. He landed in New York in 1853, at the age of eighteen, having no intention of remaining in this coun- try but a short time ; worked at his trade in New York City for several months, when, taking the Western fever, he came to Chicago in 1854, and from thence to Aurora, where he engaged to work for the Randalls at the time of their pur- chase of the Beacon from the Halls. Shortly after, he established in Aurora the first book bindery in the Fox River Valley, which subsequently became con. nected with the Beacon. He was for
739
KANE COUNTY : AURORA.
many years foreman and job printer of the Beacon office, and accomplished more toward the advancement in Aurora, of "the Art Preservative of all Arts," than any other member of the craft.
Artis, Clinton, upholsterer ; P. O. Aurora. Ashford, Pat., boiler mkr. ; P. O. Aurora. Ashford, John, Sr., lab. ; P. O. Aurora. Ashford, John, Jr., lab. ; P. O. Aurora. Annis, F. M., attorney; P. O. Aurora. Adams, C. C., carp .; P. O. Aurora.
Adams, Hiram, far. ; P. O. Aurora. Anthony, W., traveler ; P. O. Aurora. Anderson, A., tailor; P. O. Aurora. AURORA GAS LIGHT CO .;
located on S. River st., near the West Depot of the C., B. & Q. R. R .; this Co. manufactures all the gas used for lighting purposes in the city ; charter first granted to I. W. Buck, Wm. H. Hawkins and others, in 1861, and they held it until 1868, and transferred it to the present Co. ; they manufacture from coal, and the gas is of a superior quality ; Mr. Copley has been a resident of Au- rora since 1868; born in Delaware Co .. N. Y., in 1825; Major Whiting is a partner and brother-in-law, and was a Paymaster during the war; after the war had his headquarters at Detroit, Mich. ; was made a Colonel ; Mr. W. is a liberal, enterprising man ; his brother was also a soldier, enlisting in Co. G, 89th R. R. Reg. ; he was a fine officer, and in every important battle of the war; taken prisoner at Chattanooga, and sent to Libby Prison ; after his re- lease, he was made a Captain ; he fell at the battle of Chickamauga ; it is said of him that no braver man ever entered the field.
Alden, Thomas, farmer ; P. O. Aurora. ATWOOD, C. B., Sec. 32; P. O. Montgomery ; born in N. Y., Nov. 12, 1839. He married Miss Cynthia M. Bennett ; she was born in New York; had four children ; she died May 6, 1873; second wife, Miss Moriah C. Smith ; she was born in N. Y. ; no children ; lived in N. Y. 16 years, then came to Geneva, then to Kendall Co., lived there 12 years, then to Kaneville, then back to Kendall Co., then to Montgomery, in 1875, and has lived here since ; has been School Director.
Andrus, J. M., marble works ; P. O. Au- rora.
Allaire, P. A., physician ; P. O. Aurora, Anning, C., merchant ; P. O. Aurora.
Angel, David, farmer; P. O. Aurora. Angel, Charles, P. O. Aurora.
Ayers, J. C., far. ; P. O. Montgomery.
Adams, Elisha, lab. ; P. O. Montgomery.
Aucut, Gustavus, farmer ; P. O. Aurora. Armstrong, Mrs. Ann, P. O. Aurora.
Andrews, John, mail agt. ; P. O. Aurora. Allen, Wm., lab. ; P. O. Aurora. Anderson, J. M., P. O. Aurora.
Allen, Mrs. E. J., P. O. Aurora.
Allen, E. C., mfr. sash, doors, etc .; P. O. Aurora.
Allen, R. C., salesman ; P. O. Aurora. Allen, L. J., carpenter ; P. O. Aurora.
ALLEN & CORSAIR, proprietors of the sash, door and blind manufactory, Aurora. This is the leading manufac- tory of the kind in Aurora. This fac- tory first commenced business in 1870, under the firm name of Allen & Dyke; the present proprietors, Edward C. Al- len (son of the Hon. E. R. Allen), was born in Aurora, in 1849, and is pos- sessed of rare business qualifications ; and David Corsair, a native of Scotland, and one of the most practical of manufac- turers. They make a specialty of ordered work, give estimates on all kinds of work usually done in sash factories, and guarantee all work as represented ; their conveniences for shipping are unsur- passed, as they have a side track ad- joining the works; they employ from eighteen to twenty men, and find sales for their goods in the States of Illinois, and Iowa. This firm is composed of two of the rising manufacturers who hold a high place in the estimation of the citizens of Kane Co., for their gen- iality, sociability and business qualities. Allen, Mrs. S. T., P. O. Aurora. Ames, E., contractor ; P. O). Aurora. Alexander, Geo., train master C., B. & Q. and C. & I. R. R .; P. O. Aurora.
Alexander, E. M., clerk ; Aurora. Assell, B., mer .; P. O. Aurora.
Adams, C. H., Justice Peace ; P. O. . Aurora.
Arcouet, C., phot .; P. O. Aurora.
Abens, Nicholas, mer .; P. O. Aurora. Abens, Stephen, saloon; P. O. Aurora. Arnes, Fred, mer .; P. O. Aurora.
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TAX-PAYERS AND VOTERS OF
ALLEN, E. R., P. O. Aurora ; was born in Courtland Co., N.Y., in 1819; he left his native home when fifteen years old for Lockport, N. Y., where he remained about fourteen years ; thence emigrated and went to Illinois in 1839, via canal and lake on the steamer Illi- nois ; first settled in Chicago and was in the drug business for two years. In 1841, with the inducement of Geo. E. Peck, he came to Aurora, and com- menced partnership with that gentleman, firm Peck & Allen. Then he entered the grocery business and continued until 1849; he built a warehouse and commenced the grain and coal business in 1851; he was appointed Postmaster of Aurora, by President Jas. K. Polk, being the second Postmaster of Aurora; was city Alderman in 1859, '60, '6), '71, '72, '73; was Mayor in 1860; Senator from the 2d District in 1861 and '62 at the breaking out of the late war; was President of the Board of Education for several years ; all of these were offices of trust, in each of which he has acquitted himself in a very creditable and efficient manner. He has always taken an active part in promoting the vari- ous interests of the city, and to this end has spent much money and time. His father. Edward Allen, is a native of Mass. Avery Isaac, lumber inspector; P. O. Aurora.
Albert, Peter, carpenter ; P. O. Aurora. Andrews, Jno., barber ; P. O. Aurora. Austin. A. T. D., P. O. Aurora.
Alschuler, Jacob, Sr., salesman ; P. O. Aurora.
ALLEN, WM. B., U. S. Internal Revenue Collector ; born in New York in 1821, remaining there until 1849; then emigrating West to Kane Co .; commenced in the drug and book store business 1849, which business he con- tinued in until 1851, thence in the ware- house business with his brother until 1867 ; was appointed U. S. Collector in 1867 under President Johnson ; in Jan., 1876, the Second and Sixth Districts consolidated ; then re-appointed by President Grant. He has creditably filled many offices of public trust; in 1858 was elected Mayor of the city of Aurora-the second Mayor of Aurora. Alschuler, Jacob, Jr., P. O. Aurora.
Ashling, Thos., salesman ; P. O. Aurora. Ayres, C. G., carp .; P. O. Aurora.
Ansley, Ira, P. O. Aurora. Arnson, Thos., P. O. Aurora. Abel, Chris .. mer .; P. O. Aurora. Abel, Chas., laborer ; P. O. Aurora.
A bell, Jas., expressman ; P. O. Aurora.
Aldringer, Jno., laborer ; P. O. Aurora. Aldringer, Jacob, laborer ; P. O. Aurora. Aldringer, Theo., laborer ; P. O. Aurora. Anson, Leona.Id.
ANGELL, LORENZO, born in New Hampshire Sept. 9, 1817 ; son of David and Deborah Angell ; his father was a farmer, and also kept a hotel at Sunapee, Sullivan Co .; here young A. grew to manhood ; received a good edu- cation for those days; at 11 years of . age his father died; on becoming of age, he carried on the hotel heretofore mentioned ; in 1835 he married Char- lotte Twiss at Sunapee; they lived to- gether twelve years, when his wife passed peacefully away; in 1849 he was married to Mary Jane Twiss, sister of his first wife ; in 1853 he came to Chi- cago, Ill., and, not liking the looks of the place, went East; but he again came to the West the following year, and located at Aurora and bought 252 acres of land ; he had very little capital, but plenty of clear Yankee grit, and in time had as fine a farm as could be found, for the size, in the county; in June, 1877, he died, and was laid to rest in the beautiful West Side Ceme- tery ; thus passed away a man of ster- ling worth and industry ; the children by the first marriage were David,, Charles and Amanda; by the second, Myron ; after the death of Mr. A., his estate became divided up, Charles hav- ing 80, David 90 and his wife the re- mainder.
ANNING, CHAS., dry goods ; it is now nearly nine years since Mr. Anning began business in Aurora ; on a strictly cash basis his trade is not restricted to one manufacturer or importer, but has the range of the whole market; commenc- ing small, relying on twenty years' ex- perience in the leading houses of London and America, establishing as a motto never to be undersold, coupled with one price and a study to please, he has built up a trade on a solid foundation.
741
KANE COUNTY : AURORA.
B EVIER, W. E., tinner ; P. O. Aurora.
Bevicr, W. B., express inessenger ; P. O. Aurora.
Brown, Mrs. A. R., P. O. Aurora.
Brown, Roger, mnfr. wagons, etc .; P. O. Aurora.
Brown, Mrs. E. L., millinery ; P. O. Au- rola.
Brown, S. W., attorney ; P. O. Aurora. Brown, Frank.
Breed, James, car repairer ; P. O. Aurora. Breed, Abel, prop. stone works; P. O. Aurora.
Breese, G. S., farmer; P. O. Aurora
Breese, H. V., farmer ; P. O. Aurora.
Baker, George, merchant ; P. O. Aurora. Brown, E. L., carpenter ; P. O. Aurora. BALDWIN, L., merchant (firm of W. Lawrence & Co.) ; was born in Sus- quehanna Co., Pa., April 4, 1824 ; son of Samuel and Betsey Baldwin, who were natives of Conn., and who moved from the Mohawk Valley to the State of Pa. more than a half century ago; young Baldwin received an academical education at Montrose; his father was a farmer, and he remained with him until he came West, in the Spring of 1848; passing through Chicago, he lo- cated at Aurora, and entered the em- ploy of Geo. McCollum, piano, carriage and wagon manufacturer, of Aurora ; worked for him five years, and then bought out R. C. Anderson without a dollar of capital, and at the time was receiving $1 a day ; in six months he cleared $2,000 ; at this date, was elected Justice of the Peace and served 12 years ; also officiated as Town Clerk, In- surance Agent and Dep. P. M .; in 1864, became partner of D. Volentine and Wm. Lawrence, for the sale of dry goods, &c.
BURTON, PIERCE, of the firm of Pierce Burton & Co., publishers of the Aurora Herald; he was born in Norwich, Vt., Dec. 24, 1834, to William Smith and Nancy Russel Burton ; his father died when he was 8 years of age, and at the age of 10 he removed with his mother to Republic, Seneca Co., Ohio ; when 16 years old he taught school in Logan Co., Ohio, during the Winter, working on a farm Summers ; at 18, he was employed in the railroad
freight and ticket office and grain ware- house at Republic, where he learned tel- egraphing ; at 20 years of age, he visited friends in Massachusetts, where he was employed as assistant electrician to Henry M. Paine, of Worcester, who was then engaged in electrical experiments in pro- ducing gas from water and in construct- ing an electro magnetic motor; after that failed, he served as telegraph oper- ator for a year ; then he went to Ander- son, Ind., then the northern terminus of the Cincinnati & Chicago Air Line Rail- road, as station agent for that company, where he remained six years. In 1860, he was married to Miss Nellie G. Lap- hamn, of South Adams, Mass., who died three years afterward ; their only child, Charles Pierce, was born in Anderson, Ind., March 7, 1862. Mr. B. then re- turned to Massachusetts for a short time, then went to Demopolis, Alabama, in- tending to run a cotton plantation, but was made agent for the Freedmen's Bu- reau. While in that capacity he wrote a letter to the Springfield (Mass.) Re- publican, giving an account of the work- ing of the tax on cotton upon the for- tunes of the freedmen, which was widely copied and caused his discharge from the Bureau, and, getting into Congress, has- tencd the repeal of the tax; he was afterward employed as Registrar over two counties, under the Reconstruction Acts, and while away from home attending to this duty, was elected, in his own county, Marengo, as Delegate to the State Con- stitutional Convention; while serving in that capacity, was nominated as Repre- sentative in the Legislature, to which position he was elected, and served as Chairman of the Committee on Finance, and afterward on that of Ways and Means ; while in that body, he became noted for his vigorous opposition to the railroad bond steals, which were being pushed through the Legislature, and saved the State several millions of dol- lars. In 1868, he commenced the pub- lication of the Southern Republican in Demopolis. In 1870, he was nominated as the Republican candidate for Lieuten- ant Governor ; the ticket was defeated by less than 2,000 votes through a pe- culiar system of "counting" known only in the South. Finding publishing
742
TAX-PAYERS AND VOTERS OF
a Republican newspaper in Alabama ex- tremely unpleasant, as well as unprofita- ble. he sold out in 1871, and settled in Aurora in December of that year, pur- chasing the Aurora Herald, with which paper he is at present connected. In December, 1873, he was married to Miss Maria A. Sibley, of Athol, Mass., by whom he has had two children.
BUNNELL, A. D., firm of Phillips Bros. & Co .; was born in Litchfield Co., Conn., Nov. 16, 1817 ; became associ- ated in business with Phillips Bros. in 1864 ; this house is well and favorably known as one of the leading grocery houses of Aurora; Mr. B. has held numerous offices in the East; was member 2d Vol. Inf., and member Leg- islature from Conn .; married Miss Phillips at Litchfield ; one child-Ly- man P.
Baker, James, tinuer ; P. O. Aurora. Baker, G. W., mechanic ; P. O. Aurora. BROWN, PETER, retired farmer ; was born in Rensselaer Co., N. Y., Feb. 4, 1789 ; he acquired his educa- tion as best he could; at the age of twenty-one, he began life as a farmer at Nassau ; in 1836, he moved to Chat- ham, Columbia Co., and from thence to Salem, Washington Co .; while in Nassau, he had been in the mercantile business ; in 1865, he came West, to Illinois, and settled in Aurora as a farmer ; he accu- mulated a nice property ; he is now nearly ninety years of age and still vigorous for a man of his age ; his first wife was Miss T. Green ; they were mar- ried at Nassau, N. Y., in 1811; she died in 1815 ; his second wife was Mrs. Polly Slyter, who died in 1852; in 1853, he was again united in wedlock to Mrs. Groot of Salem, who is still living.
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