History of Green County, Wisconsin. Together with sketches of its towns and villages, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens, Part 127

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill., pub. [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company
Number of Pages: 1168

USA > Wisconsin > Green County > History of Green County, Wisconsin. Together with sketches of its towns and villages, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens > Part 127

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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.

all these years Mr. Cornelius was an unmarried man and continued in the county most of the time, and mined principally until about 1844. He then came to Monroe and built a store, which he rented to Mr. Lud- low to put in a stock of general merchandise. At length concluding it was not best to be alone, on the 16th day of June, 1849, he was married to Phillippi Tresidder. She was a native of Ohio, and of French descent. Her parents were both dead, the father died of cholera in 1832, and the mother died in 1845. They have two children-Alice and Erwin. After mar- riage they lived on the place they still occupy, in a log cabin, which in time gave way to a good brick house. He now owns 150 acres of land joining the corporate limits of Monroe, valued at $100 per acre, and some city property. Polit- ically, he adheres to the principles of the re- publican party, and is a temperate man, having never drank a glass of beer or liquor.

In 1836-7-8 there were quite a number of ar- rivals, among whom were the following: Rev. R. H. DeLap, Asa Brown, D. S. Sutherland, John Walling, Dickson and Hamilton Bailey, Isaac Chamness and T. Bragg.

Isaac Chamness, formerly of Indiana, was born April 5, 1820. He is a son of William and Margaret (Henshaw) Chamness, natives of North Carolina. His father, now ninety-one years old, is living in Randolph county, and his mother is dead and buried in that county. His early life was spent upon a farm in Indiana, where he continued to live until 1843. Oct. 5, 1837, he was married to Mary Willman, a native of Wayne county. They remained in Randolph county until 1843, then came to Green county, arriving on the 3d day of October. He bought eighty acres on section 32, of what is now the town of Monroe, where he lived for thirteen years, then moved to section 33, having bought from Charles Foster the DeLap farm, contain- ing 108 acres. They have had four children- Louise M., now married to Cyrus Dye and liv- ing in Monroe; Abigail M., married to Andrew

Hawthorn and living in Clarno; William M., now dead and buried in Hawthorn ceme- tery; and Mary E., married to Stephen Potter, and living in Chippewa Falls, Wis. Mr. and Mrs. Chamness are members of the M. E. Church. Upon their arrival in the county they had two children and $3. They made a start under many difficulties, but have been successful.

T. J. Bragg is a native of this county, born in Monroe June 13, 1846. His father. T. J. Bragg, Sr., is a Virginian, and his mother, Emily J. (Nobles) Bragg, is a native of Kentucky. Mr. Bragg, of this sketch, in 1875, took a prospect- ing tour through Missouri, Nebraska and Da- kota, and returned, convinced that Green coun- ty was not an undesirable dwelling place, and has since remained here. He owns a farm of 150 acres, located on section 12, of the town of Monroe, and makes stock raising a specialty. He was married Aug. 29, 1867, to Martha Linds- ley, a native of Tazewell Co., Ill., and daughter of Oliver and Priscilla (Coffin) Lindsley, both of whom are deceased and buried in Missouri. He was a resident of the village of Monroe for the last two years of his life in this State. He formerly lived in the town of Sylvester, where he was engaged in making wagons for over twenty years. From there he came to Monroe. Mr. and Mrs. Bragg have four children-Lora T., Allie V , Irvie M. and Chessa D. Mr. Bragg is politically a democrat.

Rev. DeLap was the first preacher in the county. He entered land on section 34, which is now occupied by Nicholas Cornelius. Mr. DeLap was a resident of this town for several years, when he removed to Richland county, where he has since died. His son, R. II. DeLap, is one of the prominent physicians of that county, and is located at Viola.

D. S. Sutherland was a native of New York State. He settled on the southeast quarter, of section 25, where he still resides.

Asa Brown was from Indiana. He settled on section 21, where he lived two years, then re- moved up near D. S. Sutherland's place. He

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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.

lived on that place several years, when he went to Missouri, where he has since died. He served several terms on the county board during his residence here.

John Walling came from Missouri and located on the southeast quarter of section 23. He was a carpenter by trade, and erected a large frame house, which was opened as a hotel or tavern, and was the first of the kind in the limits of the town. Hc rented the building to Joseph Paine, and later sold it to Joseph Kelly. He returned to Missouri in 1844 or 1845.

The Bailey brothers were from Illinois. They located on sections 20 and 29. They lived there about two years, then removed to the town of Adams. They have since died.

J. Austin came in 1838 and settled on seetion 34, and erected a log house. In 1840 he erected the first brick house in the town, in which he made his home until the time of his death.

Ben Buzick arrived here in 1839, and located on section 28, where he lived some years. He died while living on the old farm.

Samuel Truax, who had been a resident of the county for some time previous, settled in this town in 1842. He has been successful in business ventures, and now lives a retired life in Brodhead.

Asa Richardson came from New York in 1841, and settled in this town. He was a specu- lator, and was for a time president of the Bank of Monroe, and of the Monroe First National Bank. He now resides in Lawrence, Kansas.

The town was organized at a meeting held in the court house April 3, 1849. The following officers were elected: D. S. Sutherland, chair- man, Hiram Rust and Andrew B. Cunningham, side board; Horace Poyer, town clerk; George Kuykendall, assessor; Jesse Chandler, treasurer; Jobn W. Stewart, James Moss, J. B. Stevens and A. B. Cunningham, justices of the peace; J. C. Richardson, superintendent of schools; C. Martin, W. HI. Foster and Caleb Morse, consta- bles.

The present officers are as follows: R. D Gorham, chairman, John Faiser and D. S. Young, side board; J. D. Eley, town clerk; John Gib- bons, assessor; Henry Keller, treasurer; Samuel Johns, justice of the peace; and Emery Wins- low, constable.

The first marriage in the town took place at "Skinner's Diggings," in 1840, between a man named Kendrick and a lady named Armstrong.

The first deaths occurring in the town were those of two men named Carr and Barto. Carr was a miner, and was eating eggs on a wager, when he ate so many they killed him. Barto was an Italian jewelry peddler.

CHEESE FACTORIES.

The one on section 11 is owned by Jacob Kun- dert. It was built in the summer of 1877. He also owns one on section 18. These are large factories, making as high as 500 pounds of cheese per day for six months during the sum- mer, in both. Mr. Kundert buys the milk and hires a practical cheese maker. The kinds of cheese made are Swiss and Limburger. The patrons get the whey, which they carry back to their farms for fattening hogs.

Rudolph Benkert owns a cheese factory on section 4, which he erected in 1883. The first year he made 18,000 pounds of cheese. It is kept neat, is very convenient, and is well patronized.

CEMETERIES.

Union Cemetery, on section 17, is used as a general burying ground. The cemetery was laid out prior to 1849, that being the date of the first burial. Mrs. Halloway was the first per- son buried there. The site was given by Henry Eley and Mr. Halloway.

Snyder Cemetery is situated on the southeast quarter of the southeast quarter of section 4, and consists of one acre. The land was donated by John Snyder, in 1861. The first burial was a Mr. Forsyth.

There were two school houses erected in this town in 1843, known as the Bethel and Iliff

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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.

school houses. The former was situated on section 33, and the later on section 21. They were both built of logs, and were in use several years.

RELIGIOUS.

In 1842 a United Brethren Church was organ- ized at the house of Isaac Chamness, on section 32, with the following members: Isaac Cham- ness and wife, Edward Church and wife, and William Millman and wife. This class was organized by Rev. James Davis. In 1843 Rev. Riley Corray, a local preacher, made a discourse occasionally. Rev. Davis was succeeded by John Mast, and he in turn by Elder Graves, Dal- lerhide, Cretsinger, Conager, Scott, Knox and Terrell. The class met in private houses until a school house was built in the neighborhood when they met in that. After a few years the class was discontinued, many of the members moving away.

The M. E. Church is located on the northeast quarter of section 21. The land (one acre) was donated by H. P. Williams. He also gave $200 towards building the church, and S. J. Truax gave $600. The rest of the money was sub- scribed by the citizens.

EDUCATIONAL.

This town, like the remainder of the county, is well provided with schools. In some districts the buildings are above the average. There are six whole districts, three joint and one union.

District No. 1 is joint with Washington. It has a good frame building, on section 6, and in 1884 had fifty-three pupils enrolled.

District No. 2 has a good frame building on the northwest quarter of section 11. Forty- nine scholars were in attendance in 1884.

District No. 3 is joint with Washington, the building being situated in that town. There are nineteen scholars in attendance.

District No. 4 has a log school house on sec- tion 17, that is greatly in contrast with the other school buildings of the town. Thirty-

three scholars are taught in this school at the present time-1884.

The school building in district No. 5 is lo- cated on section 21, and is the finest school house in the county, outside of the villages. It seats sixty pupils, and is provided with outline maps, penmanship charts, etc. In 1884 there were thirty-six scholars in attendance.

District No. 6 reported fifty scholars in at- tendance in 1884. It has a good frame building on section 13.

District No. 7 is joint with the town of Syl- vester, the building being located in that town. It is a frame house, and has nine scholars from this town.

District No. 9 has a good frame building on the northwest quarter of section 31. There are forty-five schalars in attendance.

The school house in district No. 10 is located on section 33. The building is a frame struc- ture, with twenty-four pupils in attendance.

District No. 12 is joint with the town of Jor- dan. Four pupils being in attendance from this town.

Twenty-two scholars are sent from this town to the city of Monroe, it being a union school.

James Keen is a native of Buckinghamshire, England, forty-five miles distant from London. He was born in January, 1811. His parents, James and Elizabeth (Bull) Keen, are deceased, and buried in England. Mr. Keen, Sr., was a boot and shoemaker. The subject of this sketch came to America in 1843, stopping in July of that year, in Ogle Co., Ill. In October of the same year, he came to Green county and located in the town of Adams, where he lived twenty-three years. He owned a farm of 400 acres in that town, which he sold and re- moved to the place he now occupies, on section 36, of the town of Monroe. Here he first pur- chased 1233 acres, but has sold a part of this, and now owns sixty-five acres. Ile was mar- ried Aug. 28, 1845, to Hannah Sperry, a native of Ohio, and daughter of Wallace and Sarah (Watkins) Sperry, both of whom are dead, and

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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.

buried in Vermilion Co., Ill. Mr. and Mrs. Keen have seven children living-James and John, who reside in Lincoln Co., Dak .; Elon S., in Hutchison Co., Dak .; Robert, at home with his parents; Foster and Daniel living in Hutchison Co., Dak., and Mary A. at home. Sarah is dead, and buried at Monroe. Mr. and Mrs. Keen are members of the M. E. Church. Politically he is a republican.

Peter Chandler came to the connty in 1844, and first stopped in the town of York, where he remained four months, then went to Monroe and worked at wagon making, which occupa- tion he followed until 1856, when he removed on section 26, where he owned eighty acres of land. He was married Sept. 7, 1843, to Eliza Westcott, a native of Saratoga Co., N. Y., and daughter of John and Eunice Westcott, both of whom are dead, and buried in Monroe. Peter Chandler was born in Oxford Co., Maine, in 1805, and is a son of Joseph Chand- ler. His parents are deceased, and buried in Maine. Mr. Chandler removed from Maine, to Genesee Co., N. Y., and came from thence to Green county. Mr. and Mrs. Chandler had- three children born to them, all of whom are deceased, and buried in Monroe cemetery. Peter Chandler died May 8, 1884, and is buried in Monroe cemetery.

William H. Kinnison came to Green county in 1846, and settled then in the town of Cadiz, on a farm, where he remained two years, then removed to Clarno and lived two years upon the farm of William Bowens. He then removed to Monroe and lived upon Peter Wells' place two years. In 1851 he bought 120 acres on section 16. He sold forty acres of this land and afterwards bought ten acres. Mr. Kinnison is a son of Lawrence and Mary Kinnison, born April 18, 1817, in Pike Co., Ohio. At the age of eighteen years he left Ohio and went to Warren Co., Ind., where he remained ten years, then came to Green county. He was married Feb. 27, 1844, to Margaret J. Keller, a native of Tennessee. She died Nov. 19, 1864. Their

children are-John W., deceased; Jacob, de- ceased; Nancy J., Daniel W., William, Joshna, Mary E. and Elijah, deceased. Mr. Kinnison was again married Jan. 22, 1865, to Mrs. Mary E. Smith, formerly Mary E. Ellis. By this marriage there are four children-Emma F., Jesse R, Marsena and Edward L. Mrs. Kinni- son is a member of the M. E. Church.

William H. Morris was born in Augusta Co., Va., July 30, 1797. When six years old he went with his parents to Springfield, Clark Co., Ohio. In 1829 he went to Tippecanoe Co., Ind., where he remained until 1844. He kept a store at Dayton, Ind., and was by trade a wheel- wright, shoemaker and carpenter. He left In- diana in 1844, and came to Jefferson, Green county, then went to Spring Grove, and in 1846 removed to section 17, of the town of Monroe, where he died. He was married Ang. 24, 1820, to Mary Killgore, who is still living at the ad- vanced age of eighty-one years. She retains her faculties to a remarkable degree, being able to read and sew without glasses. She resides in Monroe with her son and daughter, and is the owner of a farm of 130 acres. Mr. Morris was a Universalist, and Mrs. Morris is a Presby- terian. They were the parents of eight chil- dren, six of whom are living-Harvey P., M. K., Terressa J., Elizabeth A., John S. and Minerva M. M. K. and Minerva M. reside at the home- stead, where the former owns 100 acres.

John S. Morris resides upon section 20, in Monroe, where he owns forty acres. He was married Dec. 25, 1860, to Sarah L. Orr, a native of Cedar Co., Iowa. They have three children -Mary A., married to Mather Carter, of Jeffer- son; John W. and Zoe A.

H. P. Morris, son of William H. Morris, was born July 6, 1822, in Clark Co., Ohio. He lived with his parents until Dec. 24, 1848, when he was married to Maria S. Kennedy, a native of Jeffer- son Co., Ky. She was born in 1823, and died June 20, 1867, and is buried in Union Cemetery. They had seven children, six of whom are liv- ing-Lenora, John E., Ellen, James W., Theo-

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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.

derick and George M. John E. is married to Lucy Sparrow, and living in Darlington, Lafay- ette county, where he is engaged in farming. He has 100 acres of land five miles east of Dar- lington. James W. is living in Fayette, Lafay- ette county, engaged in the drug business. Mr. Morris entered eighty acres of the farm where he now lives, in 1848. He now owns 120 acres on sections 17 and 18.

John Eley removed from Ohio to Green county, in 1849. He was born in Washington Co., Penn., March 16, 1809. His parents, John and Ellen (Mosher) Eley, are deceased. The former is buried in Monroe, the latter in Ohio. The subject of this sketch remained in Pennsyl- vania till 1828, when the family removed to Ohio, where he lived until the date of his com- ing to this county. He settled on sections 21 and 22, and lived there until the time of his death, March 5, 1882. Mr. Eley was a man who took a great interest in agricultural societies and improved methods of farming. He was an en- terprising and useful citizen, and highly es- teemed in the neighborhood. He was married in March, 1830, to Elizabeth Parks, a native of Beaver Co., Penn. Nine children were born to them-James, who died in Ohio; William, An- geline, Leamon, who also died in Ohio; Joseph, Sarah, Harriet, Melissa and John D. The last named was born in Green county, May 2, 1851, at the place where he now lives. He obtained his education in the . schools of Monroe, for a time, attending a select school taught by a Mr. Green. He was married May 21, 1882, to Ad- die Whipple, daughter of Henry Whipple, who lives near the city of Monroe. The old home- stead contains 110 acres. He is a member of the republican party, and now holds the office of town clerk of Monroe. He has not been able to walk without the use of crutches since he was a year and a half old, having lost the use of his limbs from an attack of scarlet fever. Nevertheless, he chose farming as a means of gaining a livelihood, endeavoring to fight life's battles manfully

Conrad Elmer, a native of Switzerland, was born in the canton of Glarus, March 1, 1842. His father, Jehu Elmer, now lives in Sylvester. His mother, Fanny (Marty) Elmer, is deceased. In 1850, Conrad came to Green county with his parents, who settled in the town of Washington, where they lived six years, then moved to Mount Pleasant. They afterwards removed to Sylves- ter. He was married in Sylvester, Nov. 23, 1866, to Lisetta Wenger, a native of Switzerland. After marriage they lived eight months with his parents. He purchased a farm of 120 acres, which he soon after sold, and with two brothers, bought 300 acres of land in Sylvester, where they engaged in farming in partnership, two years. They then dissolved partnership, and Conrad Elmer lived upon the place three years, after which he sold out and bought a farm on section 11, of the town of Monroe, where he now owns 200 acres of fine land, one of the finest places in the town of Monroe. Mr. and Mrs. Elmer have two children-John A. and Fanny E. They are connected with the German Evan- gelical Church. Mr. Elmer was a member of the 31st Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, com- pany B, and served his country three years. He took part in Sherman's noted campaign, and marched from Atlanta to the sea, and to Wash- ington. He is a republican, politically.

William J. West, son of William and Ann (Phillips) West, is a native of Warwickshire, England, born Jan. 8, 1839. He came to Amer- ica in 1851, with his mother, (his father having died in England) and settled at Wilmington, Del., where they lived until the spring of 1853, then went to Warren Co., Ohio. The following fall they came to Green county and located at Monroe, where they purchased 160 acres of land of William Cheney. He sold this land, and en- listed Sept. 10, 1862, in company H, of the 3d Wisconsin Cavalry, and was in the service three years. He was mustered in at Madison, and out at St. Louis, June 19, 1865. He returned home and resumed farming in Monroe. He bought the farm where he now lives, in 1874. It con-

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tains forty acres, located in the southwest quar- ter of section 20. Mr. West was married Feb. 22, 1864, to Annie E. Morris, daughter of W. H. Morris. They have one child -- Irena E., born Oct. 9, 1878. Mr. West belongs to the Democratic party.

Henry Whipple came to Green county in 1853, and settled in Brooklyn, on sections 31 and 32, where he bought eighty acres, to which he after- wards added ten acres, and resided there four- teen years. He then went to Mount Pleasant and purchased 100 acres and remained two years, then removed to Monroe, where he is now liv- ing. He owns eighty-five acres, and is engaged in farming. He was married in Brooklyn, Jan. 8, 1854, to Mary N. Hazen, a native of Ohio, and daughter of Reuben and Dorcas (Warrener) Hazen. They are the parents of three children -Ira, Eva L. and Lilly A. Ira is married and living in Kansas. Lilly A. is married to John Eley, of Monroe. Eva L is living at home, with her parents.

Rice D. Gorham is a native of this county, born in the town of York April 11, 1854, and is a son of William C. and Elvira Mason (Chaffee) Gorham, both of whom are now living in the town of Sylvester. He received his education in the schools of Monroe and the select school of William C. Green (also of Monroe). When eighteen years old he began teaching school. He taught in the towns of Jordan, Brooklyn and Sylvester. He was married Dec. 31, 1874, to Emma C. Bragg, a daughter of T. J. Bragg, one of the earliest residents of the county. In 1876 he commenced farming upon the west half of section 25, town of Monroe. Five years later, in 1881, he purchased the east half and moved on to it. He now owns all of the north- east quarter of section 25 ; also twelve acres of timber in the town of Sylvester. He is engaged in raising stock, furnishing milk for factory use, and also making a specialty of raising fine blooded horses. In 1874, he was with Suther- land & Sherman, when they were drowned,

being in the water with them when they went down. Mr. Gorham is at present (1884) chair- man of the board of supervisors of the town of Monroe, a member of the I. O. O. F., a mem- ber of the Royal Arcanian, and one of the first members of the Monroe City Guards.

William R. Nally it a son of Bennett M. and America (La Force) Nally, born June 21, 1844, in Pike Co., Mo. When about four years of age, his parents removed to New Diggings, La- fayette Co., Wis., where his father followed mining. . They remained there about six years, then removed to Warren, Ill., where they lived on a farm about three years, thence to Cadiz Center, Green Co , Wis., where they purchased a farm, thence to Cherokee Co., Kansas. His father died in that county in 1881, and is buried there. His mother is also buried in Cherokee county, she dying in 1876. From Kansas, the subject of our sketch removed to this county, locating east of Monroe, and fol- lowed farming one year in the town of Clarno. He purchased his present place on section 21, of E. T. Deal, in 1879. He has 280 acres of good land. In 1863, he enlisted in company K, 16th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, serving eighteen months. He participated in the battle of Atlanta, Ga., and others of minor impor- tance, and was with Sherman on his march to the sea. He was mustered ont at Prairie du Chien. On the 28th of December, 1870, he was united in marriage with Maria Way, daughter of Jacob and Lydia (Perigo) Way. The result of this union was four children-Willie, George, Harry and Freddie. Mr. Nally is a member of the I. O. O. F.

Thomas Cotherman was born in Union Co., Penn., July 4, 1833. He is a son of Daniel and Catharine (Frederick) Cotherman, who had seventeen children of their own and two adopt- ed children, eleven boys and six girls. The subject of the sketch was the twelfth child. The parents are now deceased and buried in Union Co., Penn. Thomas Cotherman came to

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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.

Green county in 1855, and at first worked at the carpenter trade, which he had learned previous- ly. He helped to build many buildings in the county. He now owns eighty acres on sections 1 and 2, of the town of Monroe. He was mar- ried Dec. 11, 1859, to Susan Ball, a native of Ohio. Seven children have been born to them- Frank T., Lillie B., Susie, Lulu, Mary, Ernest and Myrtle. Frank T., is an engineer.

A. M. Dye removed to this county in 1855, and settled upon section 32, of the town of Monroe, where he purchased eighty acres, and has since resided, with the exception of two years that he spent in the village of Monroe, during which time he was engaged in clerking. He was born in Troy, Miami Co., Ohio, April 2, 1824, and was brought up on a farm. His parents, Archibald and Margaret (Meredith) Dye, are dead and buried in Tippecanoe Co., Ind., where they removed in 1829. A. M. Dye, of this sketch, lived in Tippecanoe county until 1855. He was there engaged upon a farm, ex- cept four years in a dry goods store. Ile pur- chased his farm in Green county of Isaac Cham- ness. It consisted of timber land, which he has cleared, and brought to a good state- of cultiva- tion. During his residence in the village of Monroe, he purchased a house and lot, which he sold when he returned to the farm. He was married April, 20, 1848, to Elizabeth Taylor, daughter of Richard Taylor, of Tippecanoe Co., Ind. Ten children were born to them, of whom three are now living-Archibald T., who is mar- ried to Mary Martin, and living in Monroe; Emma Retta, wife of James F. Morton, living in Clarno; and Frank, who lives with his par- ents. Two children are buried in Lafayette cemetery, and five in Hawthorn cemetery in Clarno.

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History of Green County, Wisconsin. Together with sketches of its towns and villages, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens, Part 127

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill., pub. [from old catalog] Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company Number of Pages: 1168

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill., pub. [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company
Number of Pages: 1168