Livingston County, Illinois - Chapter with an unread heading (no. 25 of those read), 1909 (part 12 of 17)

Jephthah O. Morris was reared to farm life, receiving his common-school education during the winter months in the old log schoolhouse in the vicinity of his home. When he reached the age of sixteen years, he commenced working on a farm, and after his marriage engaged in farming for himself on rented ground. In 1887, he bought eighty acres of land in Indian Grove Township, purchasing this property while working on the N. O. Darnell farm, on which he was employed sixteen years. Later he sold out, purchasing a farm in McLean County, and after passing nine years there, disposed of it, buying his present property, comprising eighty acres, in September, 1903. In 1908 he added eighty acres more, and the whole property is now nicely improved. Its owner has always bought and fed cattle and hogs, and in this undertaking has realized satisfactory results. The early experiences of Mr. Morris in this region were those common in a very wild country. In his youthful days, he was familiar with the spectacle of all sorts of wild game and prowling beasts, deer and wild turkeys being plentiful, and wolves venturing up to the doors at night in quest of prey.

On June 29, 1871, Mr. Morris was united in marriage with Orilla Hogue, who was born in Washington County, Pa., in 1850, a daughter of David and Margaret (Mishioner) Hogue. The parents of Mrs. Morris came west to Illinois in 1855, locating first in Tazewell County, and moving to Livingston County in 1862, where her father followed farming a number of years. Then he settled on a farm in the vicinity of Bloomington, McLean County, and the remainder of his life was passed there. After his death his widow went to California, and in that state her death occurred. Their family consisted of eight children. Mr. and Mrs. Morris became the parents of three children, namely: Lura Z., Dallas, O., and Don W.; Lura Z. married Noble B. Teal, a real-estate broker of Forrest, in 1899, and they occupy their own residence located in the same yard with her parents on the home farm one mile west, and one-quarter mile south of Forrest. Mr. and Mrs. Teal are the parents of two boys: Morris E. and Francis N. Dallas O. married Ella F. Corkhill, the eldest daughter of F. S. Corkhill, in 1908. He and his wife reside on his father's farm adjoining the village of Forrest. Don W. married Bertha L. Rudd. the only daughter of William H. Rudd, Sr., in 1908, and he and his wife live on a farm owned by Mr. Rudd in Forrest Township. In politics Mr. Morris has been identified with the Democratic party for many years, and has been prominent in local political affairs, having held the office of Township Assessor in 1906 and 1908.

MORRIS, Sylvester P., a very worthy, highly esteemed and prosperous farmer, living in Section 2, Forrest Township, Livingston County, Ill., was born August 7, 1850, in Champaign County, Ill., on farming land now constituting a portion of the city of Urbana. He is a son of John O. and Elizabeth (Trueman) Morris, the father a native of Columbia County, Pa., and the mother of Shelby County, Ky. Their marriage took place in Champaign County, Ill., March 12, 1846. The former was born July 7, 1824, and died in Indian Grove Township, Livingston County, October 14, 1889; and the latter. whose birth occurred June 24, 1824, passed away April 21, 1895, John O. Morris settled near the then smail village of Urbana, IN., in the year 1844, and on November 27, 1847, changed his location to Livingston County, acquiring from the Government forty acres of land. On this he made the requisite improvements. and followed farming there during the rest of his life. Four children were born to him and his wife, as follows: Jephtha O., of whom an extended sketch is presented elsewhere

Sylvester P. Morris was two years of age when his parents settled in Indian Grove Township. His childhood and early youth were passed on his father's farm, and he obtained what education was possible, making the most of the opportunities for mental training afforded in the little, log-school house not far from his home. When he was eighteen year old he went out to work as a farm hand, and in early manhood, applied himself to farming on his own responsibility. Moving across the line into McLean County, Ill., he rented land for a year, and at the end of this period, bought eighty acres, on which he farmed eleven years. Selling this place, he located in Round Grove Township, purchasing 160 acres there, which he cultivated during the next nine years. Then, disposing of the property he bought his present farm containing 197 acres, taking possession in 1901. Since occupying it he has remodeled the buildings, and now has a finely improved farm. He has carved out his own fortune, making his way in the world through sheer determination to succeed, and his good qualities of head and heart have attracted to him many friends in Livingston County. He well remembers when parts of the County abounded in wild game of all kinds, and has seen many droves of deer. His recollection goes back to the time when wolves made night hideous with their howling, often stealing up to the very doors of the dwellings, to sniff the odor of the interior.

Mr. Morris was married in Indian Grove Township, December 29, 1875, to Rebecca E. Pate, who was born in Lexington, McLean County, Ill., November 21, 1856. Mrs. Morris is a daughter of John and Mary Ann (Hiltbrunner) Pate, early settlers of the above named township. Her father was born in Cambridgeshire, England. November 5, 1805, and her mother in Pennsylvania, September 21, 1824. They were married in Pennsylvania, October 23, 1837. Mr. Pate came to the United States at the age of 21 years, remaining in the East until 1846. In that year he journeyed with his wife to Lexington. McLean County, Ill., and after living there until 1867, moved to Indian Grove Township, where he bought land and followed farming up to the time of his death, March 10, 1892. His widow is still a resident of the same township. Fourteen children were born to their union, nine of whom are living, namely: Isaiah, of McCook, Neb.; John, whose home is Wauneta, Chautauqua County, Kan.; Jacob, who lives near Dorchester, Neb.; Charlie, of Sunshine, Col. ; Rebecca E. ; Lewis, of Shelbyville, 111.; Clara, Mrs. Frank S. Corkhill. of Indian Grove Township; William, of Pontiac, Ill.; and Harvey of Mabton, Wash. Mr. and Mrs. Morris are the parents of three children, namely: W. Everette; Clarence R.; and Floyd M., all of whom are at home.

In politics, Mr. Morris was formerly identified with the Democratic party, and has creditably filled the office of School Director of his Township. His religious connection is with the Evan-

MORTIMORE, John Thurston, an extensive farmer in Owego Township, Livingston County, Ill., and one of the most prominent and useful citizens of his locality, was born in Putnam County, Ill., April 8, 1858, a son of Henry T. and Hannah J. (McMahon) Mortimore, the father a native of Devonshire, England, and the mother born in Rochester, New York. In 1844 the former came to the United States with his parents, John and Elizabeth (Taylor) Mortimore, who located in New Jersey. There the paternal grandparents spent their last days and were buried at Trenton. On the maternal side, the grandparents were Owen and Margaret (Smith) McMahon, the former a native of Ireland, and the latter born in Philadelphia. About the year 1836 they journeyed to Putnam County, Ill., settling in the vicinity of Hennepin, where they passed the remainder of their lives. The maternal great-grandmother was Hannah Jackson, a relative of Andrew Jackson. Her first husband was James Smith, who died in Philadelphia, and her second husband was Samuel Holmes. About the year 1835 they located in Putnam County, Ill., where both died. Mr. Holmes was one of the California gold-seekers of 1849. Henry T. Mortimore, father of John T., received his education in the public schools of England and on reaching maturity became a farmer by occupation, In 1857 he came to Illinois, and married Hannah J. Mc- Mahon, settling on a farm in Putnam County. In 1867 he moved to Livingston County and bought eighty acres of land at $21 per acre. He is now living in retirement, at No. 304 East Howard Street. Pontiac, Ill, and has landed possessions in Livingston County, which comprise 480 acres, well improved and in a high state of cultivation. Politically, he is a Prohibitionist, and has served as Township Trustee. He and his wife are members of the Methodist- Episcopal Church. They reared four children, namely: John T., Frank M., a farmer living on the old homestead; Harry O., a commission merchant of Oklahoma City, Okla.; and Mary L. Snyder, of Chicago.

John T. Mortimore was brought up to farm life, and educated in the common schools and Lincoln University. He has always followed farming and stock raising, and owns 480 acres of land. He is known throughout the country as a breeder of Shorthorn cattle and Percheron horses, and is recognized as one of its most prosperous and prominent farmers.

On February 3, 1886, Mr. Mortimore was married to Ida A. Hiltabrand, born in Putnam County, Ill., a daughter of John and Hannah J. (Worthington) Hiltabrand, both natives of that county, where the father was born in 1835 and her mother in 1841. The latter was a daughter of John and Mary Worthington, natives of England, who on arriving in the United States first located in New Jersey. Thence, about the year 1838, they journeyed to Illinois, settling in Putnam County, where their closing years were spent. Jobn C. Hiltabrand was a son of Isaac and Elizabeth (Hayley) Hiltabrand, who settled in Putnam County in 1832, and passed the remainder of their lives there. The parents of Mrs. Mortimore had three daughters: Emma, (Mrs. John Hughes) ; Mary (Mrs. George Bashore); and Ida A. Mr. and Mrs Mortimore have four children as follows: Myrta Jane, born May 20, 1887; Charles Ovid, born November 30, 1889; Wanda Elizabeth, born December 9, 1891, and Alice Isabel, born September 16, 1897. Myrta is a graduate of Pontiac Township High School with the class of 1906, and she and Charles O., are students at Mount Morris College. Wanda is now preparing for admission to the same institution.

In politics, Mr. Mortimore, is a Republican and has served as School Treasurer of his Township for eight years. He has held other township offices and was Supervisor for five years.

MOWRY, Francis M., has been a successful farmer in Avoca Township, Livingston County, Ill., for more than twenty years, and is a very enterprising and public-spirited member of the community. He is a native of Adams County, Ohio, where he was born April 13, 1842, a son of Jacob and Rachael (Setterfield) Mowry, natives of Pennsylvania and Ohio, respectively. Both had been taken to Adams County, Ohio, by their parents and there they grew up and were married. Jacob Mowry, who was a farmer by occupation, moved to Livingston County, Ill, in 1866, and in 1869 went to Pettis County, Mo., where he and his wife passed the closing years of their lives.

Francis M. Mowry first went to school in Adams County, Ohio, and continued his school studies in Pike County. in that State, where the family afterwards located. There he helped to operate the paternal farm until he started out in life for himslf. He was married in that county, September 10, 1863, to Rebecca Parker, of Moses and Sarah (Davis) Parker. Mrs. Mowry's father was born on the farm where he spent his whole life. Eight children composed his. family, six of whom are still living. Mr. Mowry remained in Pike County until 1864, when he moved to the vicinity of Lafayette, Ind., but on account of the fever and ague prevailing there, returned to Pike County in the following year. Mrs. Mowry's mother died in 1870, and in 1872 the family moved to Livingston County, Ill., locating on a farm, where they remained three years. In 1887, Mr. Mowry took charge of a stone quarry on shares owned by Samuel McCord. In 1888 he went to work for Frank Corkhill in McLean County, Ill., and in the fall of 1889, bought his present farm, which was wild land. Clearing the brush away, he built a house and barns, and generally improved the place. On this land he has raised all kinds of fruits, flowers and garden produce, and now has a comfortable and attractive home. He keeps a good grade of cattle and has some fine milch cows. In 1902 Mr. Mowry and his son, James A., went into the threshing business, starting on a small scale At present, they have the most up-to-date machinery for this work, and are very successful, covering as much area as any competitors in this part of the county.

Mr. and Mrs. Mowry became the parents of twelve children, two of whom died in infancy. The others are as follows: Clement L., a mail carrier in the rural free delivery service, traveling out of Fairbury; Cary, who married Tillie Sikes, and was killed in a coal shaft in 1889, leaving one child; Moses, who married Nora Dixon, a farmer in Pleasant Ridge Township; Victor, who died when nine months old; Sarah Ann, deceased, wife of Jacob Canan; Eli, an electrician, and manager of the electric light plant at Chatsworth, Ill.; Maggie, wife of Henry Brest, a farmer, near Odell, Ill.; Elwood, of Fairbury; James A. G., who is at home and has charge of the threshing outfit; Jennie, wife of Adam Barth, a resident of Fairbury; Hattie, wife of William R. Hertline, a partner in the ` threshing enterprise; and Benjamin, who died in 1890.

In politica, Mr. Mowry is an earnest supporter of the Prohibition Party, and for years has been on the County Central Committee of that organization, for Avoca Township. He is a zealous worker in the cause of total abstinence, and has always taken a deep interest in the Lincoln Chautauquas. His first convictions on this subject were formed in the days of his early experience in Ohio, when, as a boy, he took a place as clerk in a grocery store, The religious connection of Mr. and Mrs. Mowry is with the Free Methodist church, of Fairbury.

MOWRY, William Moses, for twenty-eight years prominently identified with the best interests of Livingston County, belongs to one of its well known families. His birth occurred in Pike County, Ohio, August 19, 1867, and he is a son of Francis M. Mowry, who moved with his family from Pike County, Ohio, in 1872, to Livingston County, Ill.

During his boyhood days William Moses Mowry, called Moses by his intimate friends, attended the public schools and assisted his father in farm work. For two years he had the advantages of attending school at Fairbury, but in 1888, when twenty-three years old, he began working by the month and cheerfully turned his wages over to his parents to provide for their necessities, until his marriage. This important event took place on October 3, 1891, when he was married to Miss Norna E. Dickson. The year following he removed to McLean County, but a year later, returning to Livingston County, worked on a farm in Avoca Township owned by John W. McDowell. In 1894 he rented a farm of 145 acres of G. Y. McDowell in the same Township, and he continued to rent this property until 1902. The next year he rented 160 acres of G. Y. McDowell in Pleasant Ridge Township, Section 6, where he still resides. This farm is well stocked with a good grade of cattle, horses and hogs, and the entire property is kept in excellent condition. Mr. Mowry is very successful in his farming operations, and is regarded as an authority on agricultural matters.

Mrs. Mowry was born in Marshall County, UL, and she is a daughter of Elias and Mary (Thompson) Dickson. When a small girl she was brought to Livingston County by her parents, and here in Avoca Township her mother died, her remains being buried in the cemetery at Fairbury. Her father is now a resident of Des Moines, Iowa. Mrs. Mowry had two sisters and five brothers: John of Chicago; Joe a farmer of Avoca Township; Amos of Peoria, Ill.; Roy residing with Mrs. Mowry and Hattie, wife of Frank McCormick of Milwaukee, Wis.; Myrtle wife of Ross Day of Chicago.

Mr, and Mrs. Mowry have two children: John C., born in Indian Grove Township, and Frederick L., born April 2, 1897, Fraternally Mr. Mowry belongs to Fairbury Camp No. 6, M. W. A. Politically he is a stanch Republican, and takes an active interest in local affairs.

Still a young man he has already proven what can be accomplished through hard work, persistent effort and conscientious action, and his future appears assured.

MURPHY, James, an extensive and prosperous farmer in Eastern Illinois, and since 1892 a prominent and influential citizen of Livingston County, was born in Tazewell County, 11.. September 26, 1858, a son of Michael and Bridget (O'Brien) Murphy, natives of Ireland, where the former was born in County Waterford, in June, 1824, and the latter, in County Tipperary, April 30, 1828. The paternal grandfather, Michael Murphy, spent his whole life in Ireland, dying at the age of ninety-two years. His wife also died in the old country, when eightyseven years old. The grandparents on the maternal side, James and Margaret O'Brien, lived and died in County Tipperary. Michael Murphy, the farmer, was a farmer in Ireland, and his marriage took place there. Shortly after that event, at the age of twenty-eight years, he came to the United States, locating near Pekin, Ill., where he lived four years, moving thence to the vicinity of Tremont, in the same county. The region was then little more than a wilderness. and only a stage-coach connected Tremont with the rest of the country.

Michael Murphy and Peter Menard, together, raised Arabian and Santa Anna horses, which they herded up and down the land bordering the Mackinaw River. For twenty years, this locality was Michael Murphy's home, and at the end. of that period he moved to Hopedale, Ill., where he now occupies a farm of 160 acres. Bridget (O'Brien) Murphy, his wife, died in March, 1895. They were the parents of four sons and one daughter, one son dying in infancy. The other children were: Thomas, now a contractor and builder in Peoria, 111.; James; John, who carries on mixed farming near Hopedale. Il.; and Catherine, who keeps house for her father. Michael Murphy served as a soldier in an Illinois regiment throughout the Civil War. In religious faith he is a Catholic, as was his issues, and in local elections bas pursued an independent course, never seeking to hold public wife. Politically he is a Democrat on national office. K

James Murphy was educated in the distriet schools of 'Tremont and Hopedale, and worked at home until he was twenty-five years of age, when, for two years, he farmed near Green Valley, Il., on rented land. Then he rented another farm in the neighborhood of Boyington, Tazewell County, Ill., on which he remained three years. At the end of this period he bought 160 acres near Delavan, Ill., paying $62.50 per acre, and selling it eight years later, for $90.00 per acre, In 1892 he moved to Livingston County, and, together with John Ryan, his brother-inlaw, who controls 1400 acres of land near Delavan, Ill, he purchased 596 acres in the central part of Odell Township, buying out Mr. Ryan's interest in 1898. All of this land is thoroughly tiled, the drainage being perfect, and the farm is well improved. In 1900, Mr. Murphy built a handsome residence containing modern improvements, including steam heat, hot and cold water, etc. He raised Percheron horses and formerly fed Poland-China hogs, but now keeps Duroc- Jerseys and Polled-Angus cattle.

Mr. Murphy was married in Delavan, Ill., December 13, 1882, to Catherine Ryan, born near that place March 18, 1856. Mrs. Murphy is a daughter of James and Margaret (Haynes) Ryan, natives of Ireland, where the birth of the father occurred in County Limerick near Limerick City, and that of the mother, in the same county. James Ryan was one of the earliest settlers of Tazewell County, Il. Mr. and Mrs. Murphy have had the following children: Michael L., born October 8, 1883, married Loretta Sandwich, he resides in Odell Township and is a farmer - they have two boys (James and John) and he is a Democrat and a member of the Knights of Columbus and the Modern Woodmen of America ; Daniel L., born October 6, 1884, was graduated with high honors from the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Ind., in the commercial course, in 1901, and in 1905 was graduated from the law department of that same university, being admitted to the Bar in 1905, and for the past two years has been practicing law at Chatsworth, where he was City Attorney for a year, is a Democrat in politics and fraternally a member of the Knights of Columbus and M. W. of A.; James F., born April 20, 1886, attended school at Brown's Business College, Peoria, and also Notre Dame University, and is now assisting his father on the farm, is a Democrat, a Knight of Columbus and a member of the M. W. of A.; _ John Delbert, born September 26, 1888, attended school at Notre Dame University, and is now taking a special course in agriculture at the University of Illinois, and, like the other members of the family is a member of the Knights of Columbus and of the Democratic party; William Emmet, born April 10, 1890, is attending the Illinois State University in the agricul- tural department; Thomas Edward, born August 2, 1891; Patrick Joseph, born June 5, 1893; Catherine Loretta, born December 5, 1894; Margaret Theodosia, born July 13, 1896, and Loius Ernest, born April 28, 1901.

Politically, Mr. James Murphy was formerly a Democrat, but in the second McKinley campaign, allied himself with the Republican party. He has served as School Director and acted in the capacity of Town Clerk for twelve years, but does not court official honors. The office of Superyisor has been repeatedly tendered to him, and in each instance he has declined to accept the offer. In religion, he and his family are members of the Catholic church. He is a member of the Catholic order of Foresters, Catholic Knights of Columbus, Modern Woodmen of America, Yeomen of America, and Royal Neighbors,

MURTAUGH, Frank, a thoroughly enterprising and prosperous farmer in the vicinity of Chatsworth, Livingston County, Ill., was born in that locality, October 31, 1861, a son of Owen and Bridget (Lawless) Murtaugh, whose birth occurred in the vicinity of Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland, that of the former taking place June 8, 1826. Owen Murtaugh died at Chatsworth, Ill., May 11, 1904, his wife having passed away some years previous, leaving two children, - William M. and Frank.

The parents came to the United States, unmarried, in 1852, later being married in Marshall County, Ill. On arriving in this country the father spent a short time in Binghamton, N. Y., then removing west to Chicago, traveling partly by water and partly by stage-coach. For three years he worked on a farm near Amboy, Lee County, Ill., and then took passage for California, via New Orleans and the Isthmus of Panama. He went up the San Juan River and Lake Nicaragua, to within twelve miles of the Pacific Coast, covering this distance on horseback and going by steamer to San Francisco. After spending two years in California, working most of the time in the gold mines of Placer County, with fair success, he returned to Ilinois by way of the Isthmus and New York, and bought a farm of eighty acres in Lee County, which he sold soon afterwards, later purchasing quarter-section in Marshall County. This he also sold, investing in 160 acres in Section 1, Pella Township, Ford County. In 1869 he moved to a farm of 320 acres, which he had bought a mile further east in Ford County, to which, in course of time, he added 120 acres by another purchase. After withdrawing from active business pursuits in 1890, he disposed of the 120-acre tract, retaining ownership of the halfsection originally purchased. He was the first School Trustee in Pella Township. and in Ford County served several terms as Highway Commissioner. In June, 1873, he made a visit of three months to his aged parents in Ireland, with whom he had kept in constant touch by correspondence. AS soon as possible after loeating in Illinois. Owen Murtaugh had been

The second marriage of Owen Murtaugh took place in 1865, when he was wedded to Alice Cleary of Wilmington, Ill., their union resulting in three children: Mary, Eugene and Alice. Mary died March 21, 1869. Eugene was fatally injured by a kick from a horse, dying June 8, 1891, when on the threshold of vigorous manhood. Alice continues to live with her mother, comforting her declining years. The Rev. William M. Murtaugh, the elder son by the former marriage, was educated in Montreal, Canada, and Baltimore, Md., and was ordained in Peoria to the Catholic priesthood in 1886. He was priest in charge of Keithsburg, Ill., for ten years and is now in the tenth year of his pastorate at Sheffield, Bureau County, Ill.

Owen Murtaugh was a man of cheerful disposition and kindly manners, and was charitable to every deserving cause. He was a devout Catholic and solemn requiem high mass was celebrated at his funeral, fourteen priests attending, the Knights of Columbus taking part and a throng of mourners from a distance being present to render heart-felt tribute to his memory.

Frank Murtaugh was reared on the homestead place, and received his education in the district schools of the neighborhood. He has devoted his entire life to farming and stock-raising. and is regarded as one of the most successful and substantial farmers of his Township. He has always taken a good citizen's interest in public affairs, and bears the reputation of being a dutiful and useful member of the community. He continued on the home farm for about two years after leaving school, and then went to Kansas, where he proved up a quartersection of government land. He was there engaged in buying and selling stock and breeding fine horses, and also conducted a stage-line from Sycamore, Kan., to Richfield and Frisco, Kan.. which he continued more than a year, when he went to San Diego, Cal., then sold his interests, and returned to Illinois, where he bought 160 acres in Charlotte Township and improved it. He made several trades, finally locating where he now lives. This property he has greatly improved, and has an elegant country residence, large barns, and in all is owner of one of the best farms in Livingston County. Besides his 160 acres in Livingston County, he owns 160 acres of well improved land in Iowa, and a halfsection in Kansas.

On November 27, 1890, at Fairbury, Ill., Mr. Murtaugh married Miss Sarah Agnes Harrington, a daughter of James and Bridget (McGreat) Harrington, both natives of Westport, County Mayo, Ireland. Mrs. Murtaugh was born in Indian Grove Township. Livingston County. Her parents came to America, unmarried, the father in Anril. 1842, and his wife three years later. Mr. Harrington located in Mobile, Ala., upon coming to America, and from there went to Cincinnati, Ohio, fifty years ago coming to Livingston County, where he bought forty acres of land in Indian Grove Township. While in Cincinnati he worked for $6 per month, regularly sending part of his earnings to his mother in Ireland. and at the same time attending a night school to educate himself. He sold his first land purchase, later made several other purchases, and selling his lands at an increased price, finally removed to Yates Township, Me- Lean County, where he bought land and lived there until 1888, when he located in Fairbury, Il. Mr. Harrington owns over 800 acres in McLean County, and 200 acres in Livingston County. His wife died in 1900, but Mr. Harrington survives and now makes his home in Fairbury. He is a Democrat, but never cared for public office. He is a devout Catholic.

Mrs. Murtaugh was the third of a family of six children. Mr. and Mrs. Murtaugh have had the following children: one son Owen, who died at the age of eight years; Agnes, Marcella, Hazel Gertrude and James Francis. Mr. Murtaugh is a Democrat, but has never cared for political preferment. He and his family are members of the St. Peter's and Paul's Catholic church at Chatsworth, Il. Mr. and Mrs. Murtaugh are giving their children a splendid education. Agnes and Hazel are attending the Villa de Chantal at Rock Island, Ill.

MYERS, David S. - Among the peers of industry in Livingston County there are few more interesting studies in human evolution than that presented in the career of David S. Myers. Mr. Myers, arriving in this part of the state in 1892, with assets consisting chiefly of a healthy appetite, vigorous constitution and surplus wardrobe confined by string and paper, needs no introduction to the master of monetary science who, from the presidential chair of the Pontiac State Bank, directs the various functions of deposit, discount. exchange and circulation to the satisfaction of hundreds of depositors. In the driving, dynamic force of hand and will indicated in this transformation, what encouragement for the lad about to start upon his independent career minus the impediments of clogging wealth, social standing or towering ancestral precedent. Developing in many walks of life the creative and positive qualities which so distinguish his career, a distinct rebuke is found to the destructive and negative qualities of the speculator, the man who wins by the suppression of remunerative industry in others. The line this former farmer, school master, salesman, who at present is a realestate broker, banker, industrial promoter and politician, is so full of cheery, wholesome energy, so absolutely useful and expanding in all its phases, that one seizes with avidity upon the details which bring out and vitalize his story, and which express the compelling power of high ideals, and the worth of homely sterling virtues.

The youth of Mr. Myers comprehended the almost invariable conditions from which the youth of the towns are yearly recruited. Born on a farm near Russelville, southern Ohio, he is the second youngest of the seven children of William and Margaret Ann (Moore) Myers, natives also of southern Ohio, and the former of whom was a farmer and school teacher by occupation. As ene of the cabin builders along the Kentucky line in Ohio, Francis Myers, father of William, and grandfather of the Pontiac banker, helped to push the frontier a little further towards the Pacific. He came to Brown county as a child with his parents, married an English woman who lived to a 'good old age, and died a fairly prosperous farmer at the age of forty-five years. He was a stanch Jeffersonian Democrat, and a member of the Presbyterian church. His son. William, as well as three other sons and one daughter, were reared among strictly pioneer conditions, and inherited the purpose and determination of their German paternal and English maternal forefathers. William Myers was in no sense an office seeker, but he was brought into prominence as cne of two Republicans who were the sole representatives of their party in his Township. During the Civil War he helped to operate the underground railroad, his house being a station therefor, and the humanitarianism thus indicated, was conspicuously manifest throughout his entire life. A profoundly religious man, he held firm to the tenets of the Presbyterian church, as had his father before him, and in it he held, among others, the office of trustee. and superintendent of the Sunday-school. His oldest son died as a Union soldier at Nashville, Tennessee, but he is survived by four or his children, of whom Amos F. is a resident of Madison, Kansas; John M. lives in Boise City, Idaho: and Louise J. is the wife of William Collins, of Pontiac. Mr. Myers came to Livingston County about 1890, thereafter occupying a home built for himself and wife by his son, and where his life sank to its conclusion in 1896, his devoted wife surviving him but a year.

In early life David S. Myers evidenced qualities and inclinations destined to outgrow the monotonous grind of farming and find their most potent setting in one opportunity laden atmosphere of the towns. The craving for a higher education was only partially satisfied in the district schools of Brown county, and he subsequently graduated from the nigh school of Russelville at the age of twenty years. To meet the expenses attached to tuition he taught school for a year and a half in Kentucky, and for one term in Ohio, and embarked upon his business life as a commercial salesman for a carriage and buggy concern, with whom he remained three years. At the expiration of that time in 1885, his energies gravitated towards the real-estate business, in Pontiac, with which he since has been almost continuously identified, for the first two years as the partner of N. Q. Tanquaray, to whose interest he then succeeded. An early conceived faith and appreciation of Livingston county realty, and the necessarily wide knowledge which converts such faith into practical results. has projected him into the front ranks of men conspicuously connected with the disposal and purchase of land and the housing of people and industries in this part of the country for the past twenty years. In this connection he is president of the McWilliams Land Company, and treasurer of the LaCrosse Land Company. His investigations have afforded unrivalled opportunity for the personal acquisition of valuable holdings, and his investments invariably have attested his level headed business judgment and clear foresight, and have placed him among the influential landed proprietors and improvers of his home town and its environment.

Economy, and the capacity for accumulation having conyerted Mr. Myers into a strongly entrenched capitalist, in 1899, recognizing the need of its facilities, he organized the Pontiac State Bank, of which he since has been president, and over the destiny of which he has kept tenacious watch. Besides the president, the other original officers of the bank were C. W. Sterry, vice-president, and W. F. Van Buskirk, cashier, with ©. W. Sterry, Harriet Humiston, C. E. and A. M. Legg, John S. Murphy, S. F. Slyder and Mr. Myers directors. Retaining the same president and directors, the present officers of the bank are A. M. Legg, vice-president, and William J. Butler, cashier. The bank has advanced to one of the strong and dependable financial institutions of the state, and is recognized as an extremely cautious and conservative factor in financial circles. Pronouncedly felt and expressed is the austere obligation resting upon the shoulders of those who hold in trust and manipulate the deposits of their fellow men, and confidence is rooted in the knowledge that the man at the head of the bank has been under observation in the community for years, and through right living has gained unquestioned esteem.

It would be difficult to enumerate the local undertakings which directly or indirectly have profited by the support of Mr. Myers. He is a director in the Pontiac Shoe Manufacturing Co., and the Allen Candy Company, and his various interests make him one of the largest employers of labor within the confines of Livingston county. To his pronounced business qualifications he joins a predilection for public service, and as a Republican of non-partisan type he has been prominent in municipal affairs for years, serving as a member of the school board, as member of the board of aldermen, and later as mayor of the town. During the administration of Governor Yates he was appointed treasurer of the Illinois State Reformatory, and his work therein amply justified the confidence thus reposed. He is not unmindful of the benefits of social diversions, and is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America, Knights of Pythias and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. For years he has been a member of the Union League Club, of Chicago. His family occupy a prominent place in the social life of the town, and are noted for the genuineness of their hospitality and the quietness and elegance of their atmosphere. Mr. Myers established a home of his own February 9, 1887, marrying Louise Catherine Slyder, a native of Livingston County, this state, and daughter of Simon and Mary (Beam) Slyder, deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Myers are the parents

One of the pronounced characteristics of Mr. Myers is a profound sympathy for those less fortunate than himself, and a disposition to share his estate with the needy and helpless. He is a generous donator to many worthy causes, and his generosity is tempered by that unavoidable discretion which becomes a part of the man who has swung his bark to profitable moorings through an infinity of shoals' and after many grindings hardships. If the span of life is measured by ideas, by new sensations, by the ceaseless development of latent capacities, the line of this banker is longer than that of the patriarchs who drew out centuries amid the monotony of the deserts in the ceaseless round of pastoral pursuits. Measured by years, his moderation, maintenance of reserve force, constant exercise of gifts and serenity of mind have brought into the company of the most prolific of middle age workers, a man of delightful personality, innumerable friendships, absolute dependability in all the relations of life. A firm believer in the gospel of work and the honesty of man, he has proved poor material for encroachment of other than the highest ideals of citizenship. The straightforward simplicity and directness of the farm hand is not lost in the captain of manifold industry, and it is safe to say that no man whose name stands for the best financiering in Livingston County has in greater extent the unostentation, approachableness, sympathy and courtesy which are the hall-marks of true dignity and worth.

NIMMO, George. - Thrift, industry and enterprise are three traits of character which work towards success in every line of industrial activity. Livingston County is fortunate in numbering among its citizens many men who possess all three, and one who has attained to considerable success because he has known how to work, save and invest, is George Nimmo, a progressive young farmer on Section 4, Indian Grove Township. Mr. Nimmo was born near Edinburgh, Scotland, December 31, 1869, a son of William and Catherine (Arbuckle) Nimmo, both natives of Scotland. They were married in their antive land and became the parents of eleven children, five of whom grew to maturity: Catherine. residing with her mother in Fairbury; William, a farmer of Indian Grove Township; George; Jeannie B., wife of James A. Carter, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this volume; and Lizzie M., wife of Frederick Gilman, a farmer residing near Pontiac - all in prosperous circumstances.

William Nimmo came with his family from Scotland to Quebec, Canada, and thence to Fairbury, Ill., reaching that place June 12, 1872. Here a brother-in-law had located, and Mr. Nimmo, being a cotton-spinner by trade and there being no cotton mills in Fairbury began working in and around the coal mines. As soon as he could purchase a team he did so, and continued in the teaming business until 1878, when he rented land. Later he bought forty acres of land lying west of the Fair Grounds, still later purchasing 240 acres just west of the city of Fairbury, which is the farm owned by George Nimmo and which is very valuable, William Nimmo met his death by an accident in a coal shait, December 31, when George Nimmo married and the estate was divided, the 240 acres mentioned being his share. William Nimmo also owns a large property adjoining the city, the brothers together owning 548 acres, which they have possessed because of the three qualities spoken of, - thrift, industry, and enterprise, Until 1903, they operated the farms in partnership, but in that year divided the property. When Mr. George Nimmo came to his present property there was not a building upon it. In the spring of 1903 he put up his present handsome residence.

On April 30, 1908, George Nimmo was married to Cora E. Fetzer, a daughter of Josiah Fetzer, a leading farmer of Avoca Township, a sketch of whom will be found elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Nimmo took possession of their new home, and since then have made many excellent improvements, now having substantial barns and well-ordered premises, which testify to their prosperity. For many years Mr. Nimmo has made a specialty of the breeding of Poland-China and Duroc-Jersey hogs, keeping about 100 head. All his hogs are of registered stock, and he has been very successful along these lines, his product generally commanding the highest prices everywhere. He also keeps a high grade of horses, mules and cattle. He has one of the finest Spanish Jacks in the county, "Monster," Record No. 50107, sixteen hands high, standard weight 1150 pounds. Mr. Nimmo is a leader in stock-raising and breeding, and his animals have taken many prizes at fairs. He has been much interested in the general advancement and development of his community. In 1906 he suffered a loss by fire in consequence of lightning striking his barn. but the burned building was replaced by one of the most modern and improved barns in the county. Most of his buildings are equipped with cement floors.

In politics, Mr. Nimmo is a Republican, and is interested in local affairs. In talking over his career, Mr. Nimmo gives to his noble mother the credit due for his success, for he feels that it was her teaching, devotion and love that encouraged the children and made them put forth their best efforts. This excellent lady is living in Fairbury, aged seventy-three years, surrounded by the deserved comforts of life, and happy in the deyotion of her children.

NORMAN, Mrs. Asenith, now living with her daughter, Mrs. Henry B. DeMoss, in Avoca Township, is one of the venerable ladies of this locality, and she has witnessed many of the wonderful changes which have taken place in the development of Illinois to its present proud p sition among the leading States of the Union. Mrs. Norman was born in Vermilion County, 1ll.. January 30, 1834, a daughter of John and Mary (Blunt) Snider, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Ohio. After their marriage Mr, and Mrs. Snider located in Vermilion County, 1l., being among the very early settlers of that part of the State.

Mrs. Norman remained in Vermilion County until her first marriage, which took place December 3, 1850, when she became the wife of Alfred Lane, born in Illinois, May 5, 1826. Mr. and Mrs. Lane had these children: Mary E., who married James W. Graves; Nancy, who died at the age of twenty-four; John C., who is a resident of Avoca Township; and Sarah, who died when about seven years old. Alfred Lane was one of the successful farmers of Avoca Township, where he and his wife settled in 1851 on an uncultivated farm. They were without means at that time, but when Mr. Lane died, January 10, 1859, he left an estate of 300 acres of land well improved and supplied with all necessary buildings, including a comfortable home. He was an honorable, upright Christian man, and a deyout member of the Methodist church of Avoca Township, to which he was a liberal contributor.

After the death of her first husband, Mrs. Norman continued to reside in Ayoca Township, attending to her farm and bringing up her children. On February 14, 1861, she married Isaac Norman, who was born in Licking County, Ohio, February 14, 1840. He came to Livingston County in 1851 and resided in Avoca Township until his death, which occurred February 4, 1884. Mr. and Mrs. Norman were the parents of the following children: Amy, who married John Brick of McDowell, Ill.; Rosa, who married Henry Boyd DeMoss; Wesley, who married Myrtle Zook; Dolly, who married Edgar Snethin, of Pontiac, IJ. Mr. Norman was a man widely respected and honored, and his memory is tenderly cherished by his widow and children. As a citizen he was closely identified with the best interests of the Township, and as a man he was a tender, loving husband and wise and affectionate father. Like Mrs. Norman he was a member of the Methodist church and bore his part in its work.

For the past year Mrs. Norman has been making her home with Mrs. DeMoss, her own house having become too lonely. bereft as she was of husband and children. She wanted to be with her loved ones once more and surrounded by children. She is a lady of great intelligence, and talks most entertainingly of the days she so well remembers when occurred so many stirring events in the life of our Nation.

NORTON, Alphonso Cain. - The course of a long professional career has brought to Mr. Norton considerable prominence as an attorney and a high reputation for thorough knowledge of the principles governing jurisprudence. All of his life, with the exception of the period of his preparation for his life work, has been passed within the limits of Livingston County, where he was born on a farm in Newtown Township, April 18, 1859, and where he was primarily educated in country schools. The family of which he is an honored member came from the East, his parents, Eben and Phoebe Jane (Cain) Norton, having been natives of Farmington, Franklin County, Maine. The grandfathers were Samuel B. Norton and John Cain, the former of whom married a Miss Day, and the latter a Miss Boardman. As early as 1833 the maternal grandparents became pioneers of Ohio, settling in Warren County, that State, whence, after the death of his mother, Eben Norton went to Ohio in 1844 to make his home with an uncle, Philip Eastman. There he remained until May of 1854, at which time he came to Illinois and settled in Newtown Township, Livingston County, taking up the practice of medicine, to which he devoted his time during the following years. During 1872 he removed to Cornell. Livingston County, where he not only practiced medicine, but also carried on a drug store. The failure of his health in 1885 caused him to sell his store and retire from practice, after which he removed to Pontiac, whither his son had preceded him about six years, and in that city he died April 30, 1895, and there his widow still continues to make her home.

For some years Alphonso Cain Norton attended Grand Prairie Seminary at Onarga, Iroquois County, and during vacations he helped his father in the drug store. In 1877 he entered the law department of Michigan State University at Ann Arbor, where he pursued his studies for two years, leaving in 1879. On coming to Pontiac he entered the law office of Hon. L. E. Payson, who, in November, 1880, was elected to the Congress, serving with distinction for five terms, and now resides in Washington, D. C. During the fall of 1880, Mr. Norton was admitted to practice at the bar of Illinois, and immediately entered upon his professional work in Mr. Payson's office, where he continues at the present time, having become proprietor instead of student. Besides his professional work, he is a stockholder in the bank at' Cornell, Ill, and a director of the Livingston County National and the Illinois State Savings Banks at Pontiac. The Democratic party has received his stanch support and its principles have been given his earnest allegiance.

Fraternally, Mr. Norton is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks at Pontiac and the Masons Fraternity, in the latter holding membership in the Blue Lodge and Chapter at Pontiac, the K. T. Commandery at Fairbury, and Mohammed Shrine, N. M. S., at Peoria. His marriage took place March 17, 1887, uniting him with Annie Sims. who was born in Joliet, a granddaughter of Samuel S. Strong, and a daughter of Captain William S. and Salina A. (Strong) Sims, natives of Lebanon, Ind. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Norton are as follows: William E., born January 13, 1888; Harry Sims, born September 4, 1892; Glenn Day, born August 20, 1894; and Helen J osephine, born December 2, 1897, all

OLSON, Thomas A. (deceased). - Norway has contributed many of our most prosperous and reliable citizens who, upon coming to this country, have adopted our customs and striven to support our laws. By nature frugal and industrious, they have become wealthy and their children are among our representative men and women. When Soren Olson was seven years old, and Sophia Danielson was six, they were brought from Norway by their parents to LaSalle County, Ill. The former, now seventy-two years old, and his wife sixty-nine, are still living, and reside in Kempton, Ford County, where they are much respected. Their son, Thomas A. Olson. was one of a family of eight children, five boys and three girls, five of wlom survive. He was born November 20, 1860, and died August 28, 1903, when only forty-three years old.

Mr. Olson was educated in the public schools of Livingston County having come to it when only fqur years of age, and he spent his life in farming. In 1881 he bought his first farm, paying $35 per acre for it, and developed it, until it is now in a high state of cultivation. He then purchased the present home of the family in Broughton Township, to which they moved in 1900, and which is one of the best farms in the Township of 160 acres. In political faith he was a Republican, and served as Collector for three terms, Assessor four years, School Director for twelve years and Supervisor for two terms, and always took an active interest in local politics. Religiously he and his family were identified with the Latter Day Saints.

On December 1, 1882, Mr. Olson married Maggie Anderson of LaSalle County, daughter of Andrew B. and Martha Anderson, natives of Norway. They came to America at the ages of eighteen and twenty, respectively; were married at Ottawa, LaSalle County, Ill., and engaged in farming. He died in 1876, aged fifty-seven, and she died in 1869. Mrs. Olson was third in a family of six children. The father was a Republican, and in religious matters he was a Latter Day Saint and she a Lutheran. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Olson were: Lena G., aged twenty-five years, now Mrs. Robert Lithgow, and they are farmers of Livingston County, Union Township; William E., died at the age of three years; Earnest E., age twenty-two; Clarence R., aged twenty; Roy J., aged eighteen ; Stella Waive, aged sixteen; Ethel May, aged fourteen; and Edith Viola, aged ten. Mr. Olson was a man widely known and much respected and his untimely demise was severely felt throughout the community.

ORENDORFF, Daniel, who has been for nearly thirty-five years a respected farmer in Livingston County, Ill., and is now. spending his days in leisure on the farm which he owns in the vicinity of the village of Flanagan, was born in Woodford County, Ill., on November 8, 1848, a son of Daniel and Katharina (Albrecht) Orendorff, natives of Germany, the father born in Hessen in 1800, and the mother's birth occurring in 1815, They emigrated to the United States in 1837, and settled in Illinois, where Daniel Orendorff bought a farm of 160 acres in Woodford County, on which both parents spent the remainder of their lives. Their family consisted of six children, of whom three are still living. Daniel Orendorff was brought up on the Woodford County farm, in boyhood attending the district schools of Spring Bay Township. At the age of twenty-five years, he Jocated in Livingston County, and, in 1875, bought eighty acres of land in Nebraska Township, where he was engaged in general farming for a number of years. He now owns 120 acres near Flanagan, but has relinquished agricultural labors, and is passing his time in quiet comfort, without being burdened by the cares and responsibilities of the farm.

Mr. Orendorff was joined in matrimony with Mary Yordy, in Woodford County, Il. on February 15, 1872, and to their union seven children have been born, four of whom are living.

In 1890 Mr. Orendorff was ordained to the ministry of the gospel and (besides farming) has been pastor of the Mennonite congregation in Waldo Township, Livingston County, up to the present time. He takes no active part in politics.

OUGHTON, James H., M. D - The men connected with The Leslie Keeley Company of Dwight, Ill., are possessed of more: than ordinary business ability, and many of them have grown up in its employ and are thoroughly devoted to its service, appreciating the wonderful good effected by it in the reclamation of those who have been slaves to some destroying habit.

Dr. James H. Oughton not only has spent his life in the employ of The Leslie E. Keeley Company, but fitted himself for the medical profession in order to be able to take an active part in every branch of the business. Dr. Oughton was born at Dwight, Ill.. January 28, 1882, a son of John Richard Oughton, chemist for The Leslie E. Keeley Company. Dr. Oughton was educated in the Dwight Public Schools and St. John's Military Academy, Readfield, Wis., then entering the Chicago College of Physicians and Surgeons, from which he was graduated. He belongs to the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity of his college; is a member of the Livingston County Medical Society, the Illinois State Medical Association, and the American Medical Association ; is also a member of the Blue Lodge Consistory and Mystic Shrine, and is very prominent as a Mason.

Leaving Dwight for the military academy at the age of twelve, Dr. Oughton was very carefully trained. and upon returning from Chicago with his degree of M. D., he was installed as resident physician of The Leslie E. Keeley Company, which important office he still holds. He has taken an active part in the work of the Congregational Church of which he is a member, and is on its Board of Control as Trustee. In

On January 11, 1908, occurred the marriage of Dr. Oughton and Miss Barbara I. Corbett, who was born in Elk Rapids, Mich., December 11, 1884, Dr. and Mrs. Oughton are very prominent socially, and the former is recognized as one of the most progressive and liberal-minded of the young physicians of Livingston County, while his sympathy and thorough understanding of his great work make him invaluable to those who come under his skillful hands for treatment.

OUGHTON, J. R - John Richard Oughton, President of The Leslie E. Keeley Company, of Dwight, UL, and one of the organizers of that company, was born in Clonmel, Ireland, September 24, 1858, being the eldest son of John Richard Oughton, born in 1828, and Wilhelmina (Latham) Oughton, who was born in 1838. Both of Mr. Oughton's parents were natives of Ireland and lived there all their lives.

The subject of this sketch was educated in his native country and came to Dwight, H1., as a prescription clerk in 1879. Here he made the acquaintance of the late Dr. Leslie E. Keeley, and when the latter established the first Keeley Institute, and abandoned general practice to go into the special work of curing drunkards and drug users, John Richard Oughton was one of the first persons associated with him. From the inception of the business, Mr. Oughton was the chemist and the compounder of all the remedies used, and has continued to supervise this work to the present day. The original partnership was merged into a corporation in 1886, at which time Dr. Keeley was. elected President and Mr. Oughton. Vice-President of the company, which still continues the business. In 1900, when Doctor Keeley died, Mr. Oughton was' chosen President of the corporation, an office which he still fills.

In politics, Mr. Oughton is a Republican, and for five terms served as President of the Board of Trustees of Dwight, Ill. While interested in local affairs, he has never found the time to take any active part in either State or national politics. Fraternally, he is very prominent as a Mason. having passed the York rite, the Scottish rite, and andreceived the Thirty-Third Degree in September, 1907. is a Mystic Shriner and a member of the Order of Elks. His religious affiliations are with the Episcopal Church. Myr. Oughton has two children: James H., born in 1882, and John R., Jr., born in 1884,

Mr. Oughton is one of the most public spirited citizens in Livingston County, and few enterprises looking to the welfare of the people at large fail to receive his enthusiastic support. While as stated, he is an active Republican, he has never been an office-seeker, and his devotion to the cause of his adopted country has always been unselfish. Not only as far as the affairs of The Leslie E. Keeley Company are concerned, at whose helm he stands, but also in the management of his private interests, which are ex- tensive and wherein large numbers of men are employed, he is recognized as the soul of honor, as a liberal and upright citizen, a firm and faithful friend.

PAGELS, Edward C. - Although a native of Germany, born in Prussia, October 19, 1859, Mr. Pagels was to all intents and purposes a nativeborn citizen of the United States, whither he came at the age of six years with his parents, John and Caroline Pagels. Coming direct to Chicago, the father found little difficulty in securing employment at his trade as a carpenter and contractor, and throughout the remainder of his life followed this vocation in that city. He died March 20, 1887, in Chicago, where his widow still makes her home. Upon the completion of his school training Edward C. Pagels was employed for a number of years in various stores of that city, finally becoming proprietor of an establishment of his own at Nos. 1038-1040 Milwaukee Avenue, where up to the time of his death on December 8, 1897, he conducted a very prosperous merchant tailoring business.

The marriage of Edward C. Pagels occurred September 20, 1884, uniting him with Sophia Marie Ficke, who was born at Lake Zurich, Lake County, Ill., into the home of Lewis and Otealia A. (Petrie) Ficke, who were born respectively in Hanover and West Prussia, Germany, although they met and were married after coming to the United States. Mrs. Ficke now makes her home in Dwight, Ill., at the age of sixty-four years, her husband having passed away June 14, 1887. In her girlhood Mrs. Pagels was educated in the public and high schools of her home town and also attended a parochial school. She came to Dwight in January, 1900, and during the same year, started upon a new enterprise, purchasiug a hotel of forty rooms which has since been known as the Grand Central Hotel. Mrs. Pagels' brother, Albert R. Ficke, is also financially interested in the enterprise, owning a half interest.

Three children were born of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Pagels, and of them we make the following brief mention: The eldest, Grace Lillian, was born July 10, 1885; gifted with superior musical talent she was placed as a pupil under competent teachers in the Chicago Musical College, and after graduation from that well-known institution, it was her privilege to extend her studies in Paris under Professor Moritz Mosfkooski. Upon her return to Chicago she became an instructor in the Chicago Musical College, being thus employed for two years, when she removed to Dwight and has since made her home with her mother. The next child in order of birth was Viola Estella, who was born September 14. 1887, and passed away in childhood, December 14, 1890. The youngest child, Irving Edward, was born April 30, 1889, and is preparing himself to become a civil engineer at the University of Illinois.

interest in political affairs in Chicago, where the greater part of his life was passed, and was a stanch defender of Republican principles. He was also well known in fraternal circles, especially in the Odd Fellow and Masonic fraternities.

PALMER, Charles Elmer, a diligent and painstaking farmer in Round Grove Township, Livingston County, Ill., was born in the same township, October 29, 1869, a son of Henry and Mary Ann Palmer, natives of England and United States. respectively. Details of his father's life, together with particulars in regard to the family history, may be found in a separate biographical narrative in this connection. The education of Charles E, Palmer was obtained in the district schools of his neighborhood, and his youth was spent in assisting his father in farming operations on the home place. At the age of twenty-one years he practically took charge of the paternal farm, and has since rented it. On March 1, 1902, he bought a farm of eighty acres in Round Grove Township, a part of which he cultivates, still occupying the homestead, however, which consists of 120 acres. He has never married. On January 15, 1907, he bought another farm of 200 acres in Faulk County, Myron Township, near Cresford, South Dakota.

Politically, Mr. Palmer is a supporter of the Republican party. In fraternal circles, he is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of The Globe. Mr. Palmer is a man of quiet and unobstrusive manners, but of energetic habits and unremitting industry, giving his faithful attention to his own work. As a neighbor, he enjoys the respect and good will of all the residents of his vicinity, and faithfully discharges his duties to the community in which he has spent all of his life.

PALMER, Henry, a retired farmer, who formerly operated 200 acres of land in Round Grove Township, Livingston County, Ill., but is now a resident of Dwight, Ill., is an honored veteran of the Civil War, and bears, in his waning years, the scars of wounds received in defence of the Union. Mr. Palmer was born in Norfolk County, England, November 23, 1835, a son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Bean) Palmer. Thomas Palmer was the foreman upon a large farm, or estate in England, where he and his wife spent their entire lives, the father dying in 1846. Their family consisted of three sons and six daughters, but two of whom are living besides the subject of this sketch, namely: Ann (Mrs. Walling), and Sophia, who lives with her sister in England. Henry Palmer, who was the seventh child in order of birth, received a very fair education in the free schools of England. He was eleven years old when his father died, and five years later came to the United States in company with Patrick Sutterby, who lived in Michigan, but had returned to England for his wife, who had remained on the other side of the water when her husband came to this country. In 1852 Mr. Palmer came to Illinois, and worked in the woods of Cook and DuPage Counties two years, cutting timber. From 1857 to 1861, he farmed on rented land in the latter country. In 1861, Mr. Palmer enlisted in Company F, Fifty-third Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, (The "Ottawa Regiment"), and was first under heavy fire at the battle of Shiloh. After participating in the siege of Vicksburg, he went with his regiment to Jackson, Miss., in pursuit of Gen. Johnston's forces, At the Battle of Corinth, while he was in charge on the Confederate Batteries, seeing the smoke following a shot, he started to fall on his face, but a half-pound ball struck him in the cheek, entering his shoulder and lodging in his back. On being borne to the camp hospital, the surgeon, after a hurried examination, pronounced the wound only an abrasion, and the bullet, which is still in his possession, was not removed for eleven days. A minnie ball also passed through the fleshy part of his arm. After recovering from the wound, he carried the regimental colors for a year. Later, in the Georgia campaign, he was assigned to the Commissary Department, and afterwards accompanied Gen. Thomas' command to Nashville. At the close of the war he took part in the Grand Review at Washington, D. C., and at Louisville Ky., was mustered out of service. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic. Returning home he bought, in August, 1865, 40 acres of land in Round Grove Township, which he gradually improved, adding to his original holding until he acquired 200 acres, of which he still owns 120 acres. In 1901 he withdrew from active pursuits, and established his home in Dwight.

On August 23, 1865, Mr. Palmer was married at Naperville, Ill., to Mary Ann Lyons, born in Terre Haute, Ind., March 17, 1842. Mrs, Palmer is a daughter of Hector and Mary (Creamer) Lyons, and her father began farming in DuPage County, Ill., in 1845, having been a coach painter in early life. This union resulted in eight children as follows: Frank, an engineer in Aurora, Ill.; Ellen, who married George Saunders, a farmer in Kansas; Charles, who is engaged in farming in that State; Clara, wife of Charles Spencer, a farmer in Indiana; John, who carries on farming in Nevada Township; Louis and Blizabeth, deceased; and Anna, who lives in Grundy County, Ill., and is the wife of Alexander Bolen.

Mr. Palmer was formerly identified with the Democratic party, but when the "free silver" issue sprang up he became a Republican. He has served three terms as Road Commissioner, and has acted in the capacity of School Director. He enjoys the profound respect and cordial good will of all classes in the community.

PARTRIDGE, William, a retired and honored citizen of Amity Township, Livingston County, in the enjoyment of the fruits of a lifetime of honest endeavor. His whole career illustrates the advantages, both personal and general, of a wellspent life. He has the distinction, also, of descent from some of the oldest and most honorable American families. Born at Barnett, Vt., May 1, 1828, a son of John M. and Charlotte

C. (Emerson) Partridge, he was educated at the Norwich, Vt., Military Academy, which was founded in 1820 by Captain Alden Partridge, and he has been a resident of Illinois since immediately after the close of the Civil War.

John M. Partridge, the father of William Partridge, was born at Norwich, Vt., July 4, 1799. There, too, was born on September 13, 1803, Charlotte C. Emerson, whom he married. He was a son of Samuel and Blanche (Newton) Partridge, and his wife a daughter of Elihu and Thankful (Grant) Emerson - the former born May 12, 1786, and died July 20, 1871; the latter dying October 31. 1878. Elihu Emerson was a son of Elihu and Mary (Clapp) Emerson, his wife, Thankful Grant, being a daughter of Alexander and Marian (Sexton) Bliss Grant. Alexander Grant was a son of Samuel and Theophyle (Bartlett) Grant. Samuel Grant was a son of Samuel and Ann (Filley) Grant, and was born October 27, 1601, and died December 16, 1681. Samuel Grant, his father, was a son of Matthew and Priscilla Grant. Of this same family of Grants came Jesse R. Grant, father of the last President U. S. Grant and grandfather of General Frederick D. Grant, U. S. A. The Emersons mentioned here were descended from the Rey. Peter Bulkeley, who was born January 31, 1583, was driven from England by religious persecution in 1633, came to Cambridge, Mass., in 1634, and in 1635, established at Concord the eighth church in the colonies. Of the same family of Emersons came Ralph Waldo Emerson, Edwin Emerson and others of the name who have been heard of in America. William Grant's great-grandfather Partridge was an officer in Colonial Wars, and Samuel, his grandfather, served the cause of the Colonies in the Revolutionary War.

John M. Partridge and Charlotte C. Emerson were married at Norwich, Vt., February 13, 1822. During his early manhood Mr. Partridge was a teacher of mathematics and military science, but eventually he engaged in the lumber business at Barnett, Vt. Thence he moved to Tarrytown. N. Y., whre he was killed in a stone quarry June 26, 1831. His wife survived him until October 2, 1893. They had four children - Ann Eliza, Edward A., William and John M. The latter died at the age of four years and six months. William completed his scientific education at twenty-one years of age and began active life as a civil engineer in railroad work in Vermont. A year later he went to Pennsylvania, where he was employed in surveying coal lands and in railroad engineering. After two years of such work he went to the Sunbury & Erie Railroad, where he was employed three years. Thence he went to Philadelphia, where, in connection with the office of S. W. Hall, he had valuable experience in bridge building. From Philadelphia he went to Wisconsin, where he had charge of bridges and bridge work until during the Civil War he enlisted in the Forty-third Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. In 1864, in Tennessee, he was detailed to the topographical engineering

Upon his return to civil life, Mr. Partridge took charge of a coal mine at Peru, II., where he lived until 1869. On February 25th, of that year, he married Lucy (Canfield) Abbott, widow of Albert D. Abbott, and a daughter of Lee and Ruth (Butler) Canfield, who were natives of Connecticut. Soon after his marriage he removed to Bloomington and later to Normal, Ill. He owned considerable land in Livingston County where he engaged at farming and stockraising, giving particular attention to horses. In 1894 he bought a farm of 252 acres in Amity Township, Livingston County, and in 1899 purchased 202 acres more adjoining this and eighty acres in Newtown Township. He rebuilt the house on the homestead, supplying it with a water system and with other modern improvements, and lived at Normal until 1905, when he became a member of the family of his son. William and Lucy (Canfield) Partridge had two sons. Edward A. Partridge was born December 7, 1870, was educated in the public schools near his home, and was a member of his parents' household until his marriage August 22, 1893, to Lizzie Smith, a native of Danvers Township, McLean County, Ill., who was born February 6, 1868, a daughter of Adolphus and Julia (Haybarger) Smith, natives of Virginia. Mr. and Mrs. Edward A. Partridge have children named as follows: William M., born March 2, 1899; Edward F., born February 6, 1902; Lucy, born July 22, 1904, and Lewis Albin, born August 3, 1907. William F. Partridge, the younger son of the immediate subject of this sketch, was farming at Cornell. He was married August 1, 1905, to Ada B. Corbin, who was born July 30, 1887, a daughter of William P. and Flora (Rhodes) Corbin, natives, respectively, of Virginia and of Wisconsin. They have two daughters - Charlotte E., born July 8, 1906, and Harriet C., born October 27, 1907.

Mr. Partridge has been a lifelong Republican, and always actively interested in the policies of his party. In his church relation he is a Baptist and he long held the offices of trustee and deacon. His life has been one of useful and productive endeavor, and he has reason to look back upon it with considerable satisfaction.

PATCHETT, Radford T., whose landed possessions in Livingston County, Ill., comprise 400 acres, is one of the most prosperous and substantial farmers of Round Grove Township, which has been his home for nearly twenty-five years. He was born in Will County, Ill., October 18, 1859, a son of Paddison and Martha (Dudels) Patchett, natives of England, where the birth of his father occurred in 1828, and that of his mother in 1827. Paddison Patchett followed farming for a livelihood. Sometime after his marriage, which took place in England, he and his wife came to the United States. arriving during the '50s, and locating in Will County, Ill., whence he subsequently moved to Kankakee

County. In the course of his agricultural experience there he developed into an extensive farm owner, acquiring between 1300 and 1400 acres of land. Death terminated his busy and successful career on June 25, 1896. His wife survived him but a brief period, passing away June 15, 1898. Both were active members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Their family consisted of eight children, of whom six are still living. Besides being a very energetic and progressive farmer, Paddison Patchett was a well disposed and useful member of the community. Politically, he was always a supporter of the Republican party.

Radford Patchett was reared on the paternal property, his education being obtained in the common schools of Kankakee County. He lived and worked at home until he was twenty-two years of age, and in 1884, moved to Round Grove Township, Livingston County, renting the farm where he now lives, containing 160 acres. This he bought after occupying it a while, and has since become the owner of several other pieces of land in the same vicinity, aggregating 400 acres, on which he has made many improvements.

On January 1, 1884, Mr. Patchett was united in marriage with Nancy Ethel Ralph, who was born in Will County, Ill., a daughter of James and Elizabeth (Hibner) Ralph. James Ralph was born in England, and his wife in Crawford County, Ohio. Their ancestors came to the United States early in the last century, and the father bought land and applied himself to farming, an occupation in which he is still engaged, near Joliet, Will County, Ill. The mother of Mrs. Patchett died at the home in Will County, January 18, 1905. This union was the source of six children, as follows: Elvis R., who married Amelia Wenzelman, and they reside in Round Grove Township; Della May, wife of Wesley Gruenewald, and they reside in Chicago ; Bessie, a graduate of the Louis Chaplain Seminary, Chicago, in the class of 1907; Phoebe Almeda; Herbert Dewey and Howard Ellsworth, twins. The last four are at home.

In politics, Mr. Patchett is identified with the Republican party, and is faithful in the fulfillment of the obligations devolving upon him as a member of the community. He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

PATERNOSTER, Joseph, head of the firm of Paternoster & Son, plasterers and stone-masons, workers in cement and manufacturers of cement blocks, Fairbury, Livingston County, Ill. The subject of this sketch, after learning the uses and possibilities of cement in Europe, came to America at a time when the demand for that material in the construction of buildings was just beginning to be recognized. How well he apprehended and took advantage of his opportunities his later business success demonstrates. Nor has he been slow to keep abreast of all improvements in the manufacture and uses of cement, or to avail himself of obvious oppor-

Joseph Paternoster was borh in Trejoal, Austria, December 16, 1852, a son of Joseph Paternoster, Sr., a shoemaker and farmer who worked his earthly destiny out to its end in bis native land. His boyhood was spent on his father's farm and in gaining a primary education. When he was fifteen years of age he went to his brother, Manuel Paternoster, to learn the trade of plasterer, brick-mason and cement worker, and under the able instructions of the latter, during the succeeding six years, acquired a practical knowledge of these trades in all their details. He was the youngest of six children, two of whom - a son and a daughter - are now deceased. Manuel and Henry Paternoster are living in their native land. The former has given up masonry and cement work and, like his brother Henry, is a farmer.

In 1875, when he was between twenty-three and twenty-four years old, Joseph Paternoster went to Switzerland where, until October, 1882, he was a contractor of masonry and cement work. On October 6, bringing with him a strong recommendation from T. Hauser, mayor of the city in which he had been operating, he started for America. He stopped at Ontario, Canada, where he secured work for the city in the construction of cement walks. In 1889 he came to Illinois and located in Fairbury, where he has since lived and labored. He has finished many of the finest buildings in the city and surrounding country so far as the foundation and plaster work is concerned. His last noteworthy achievement, completed in April, 1908, was the new forty-room hotel at Chatsworth. He gives a positive guarantee as to quality and durability for all work that he undertakes, and is able to point to evidences of his mechanical skill in every direction. For more than thirty years he has devoted himself to this line of construction, in which he has had exceptional experience for variety and thoroughness, having erected the first two-story building of cement blocks in Fairbury. He has recently added to his establishment a cement-block machine with a capacity of 200 blocks a day, with which he is able to make cement blocks of any shape or size.

Mr. Paternoster married in 1877, Miss Madelina Schulter, a native of Switzerland, and the following facts concerning the six children she bore her husband will not be out of place in this connection. Joseph is a farmer in Livingston County. John is a conductor in the employ of the company controlling the street railway system of Peoria. Emil, of Forrest, Ill., is in the employ of the Toledo, Peoria & Western Railroad Company, in the capacity of a railway conductor. Henry is a member of the firm of Paternoster & Son, Fairbury. Manuel is a plasterer and brick mason at Rosenberg, Fort Bend County, Texas. Rosa is a member of her parents' household.

taken an active part in public enterprise and there is no measure which, in his opinion, tends to benefit the community which he does not advocate and support to the extent of his ability. He is a member of the Amish church of Fairbury, and politically supports the principles of the Republican party in which his sons, as they have attained their majority, have enrolled themselves as members.

PATTON, Caleb L. (deceased.) - If any man who ever lived in Livingston County deserved to rank with the pioneers of the State, Caleb L. Patton, a former well-known farmer in the vicinity of Fairbury, certainly did. One of the earliest comers to the County, he found it wild and uncultivated, scarcely free from savage claimants and inhabited principally by wild animals. He saw what is now a flourishing town take root, as it were, and watched it grow and prosper until it was a goodly municipality. He saw the surrounding country subdued, surveyed into farms, put under cultivation and improved, until it became one of the garden spots of the Middle West. Not only did he see this phenomenal development, but he participated in it, and, beyond that, he was in no small sense one of the important factors in it. It is to Mr. Patton, and men like him, that citizens of Livingston County owe honor and long remembrance, for their perils and hardships were the foundation stones upon which was built the beginning of the prosperity of to-day.

Caleb L. Patton was born in Greene County, Pa., June 6, 1816, a son of the Rev. James Patton, also a native of Pennsylvania. He was reared on a farm and educated in subscription schools. March 22, 1835, he married Mrs. Orpha Kirby, daughter of John Myers, and a member of an old Pennsylvania family, born January 16,1811. She had been previously married to James Kirby who died in 1834, after she had borne him five children, three of whom are yet living. Of those living: Phoebe Freeman, of Bloomington, Il., (formerly Mrs. William Buckingham), has two children. Mr. Buckingham died in 1858. Their daughter Sadie married Julius Freeman, a graduate of the United States Naval School, at Annapolis, Md., a midshipman now retired on full pay and living at Bloomington, and another daughter Ellen, married William H. Grary of Chicago. Plesency (Kirby) Cumpston lives at Fairbury, and James Kirby, a retired farmer, is a citizen of Fairbury. John and Joseph Kirby are the deceased.

Mr. Patton and his wife and family remained in Pennsylvania until October, 1851, when they came to Illinois and settled in Woodford County. There they remained until March, 1856, when they came to Livingston County. Mr. Patton bought 303 acres of land where Fairbury has since grown up. Twenty acres of this tract had been broken and there was a frame building being erected covering a ground space of sixteen by twenty-four feet. As late as the fall of 1855 no road had been made south of Chenoa. Caleb L. Patton and his son Francis M., coming by way of Chenoa, made the first wagon tracks from Chenoa to the site of Fairbury, being guided by the stakes driven to mark the line of the Toledo, Peoria and Western Railroad, then awaiting construction. After the family located in Livingston County, they had for some time to get their mail from Avoca and their hardware, dry goods and some other necessary materials, at Pontiac. John D. Vail had established a small grocery store, the first in this part of the county, hauling his goods from Joliet. By the spring of 1857 the railroad grade had been finished as far as Chenoa. In that year Mr. Patton gave an undivided half of the original site of Fairbury as an inducement to locate the town where it was platted. Not long afterward he sold his interest in it to A. J. Cropsey, and in 1864 he laid out Patton's Addition to Fairbury. comprising about forty acres. Having disposed of his original purchase at Fairbury, he bought the John Darnell farm of 240 acres. Darnell was a brother of Mason Darnell, the first settler in Livingston County. The family moved on that farm in 1865 and remained there until 1870, when they located at Fairbury. In 1873 they went to Tecumseh, Neb., and in 1877 they returned to Illinois, locating in Woodford County, where Mr. Patton died in 1881, aged sixty-five years.

During his residence in Livingston County, Mr. Patton demonstrated his public spirit many times in many different ways. It has often been said that no appeal to him for assistance on any measure tending to the general good was ever refused. In a purely personal way he was characteristically sympathetic and generous. As oceasion offered he helped many of his struggling neighbors in ways so timely and practical that they had reason to remember him as long as they lived, and it is said that he invariably extended to any needy applicant such practical aid and encouragement as he was able to afford. Though he had decided ideas concerning all questions of public moment, he was not in the ordinary sense of the term a politician, nor was he an office seeker, but he was one of the members of the first school board elected at Fairbury. Heand his wife with four others organized the First Baptist Church there and he was its deacon. He was also a member of the A. F. A. M. order,

Mrs. Patton, who survived her husband until 1897, was a worthy representative of the class of pioneer women to whom Illinois owes much. Of decided character and of cool and deliberate judgment, she was always found on the right side of any question, and like her husband she was ever glad to aid any worthy cause or person. The following items concerning the children of Caleb L. and Orpha (Myers) Kirby Patton will be of interest in this connection. Mary Patton (deceased) was the wife of John E. Dodds, who is now a resident of Chicago, and bore him twelve children. David Patton served in the Civil War as a member of Company E, One Hundred and Twenty-ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and was wounded at Peach Tree Creek, July 20. 1868. He was twice married.

First to Nellie Brocaugh, who bore him one child named Lulu. He is now a resident of Peoria. Cephas Patton died at the age of nine years. Dr. R. L. Patton was graduated from the Medical College of San Francisco, Cal., and from the Hahnemann Medical College, Chicago. He located at Riverside, Cal., where he died in 1887. He married Miss Anna Brown who bore him one child. William Patten lives at Los Angeles, Cal., and is the owner of a walnut grove of fifteen acres. Emma Patton became the wife of W. H. Strevell, who is dead. Albert Patton, served in the Civil War in the Forty-fourth Regiment, Illinois Volunteers, and fought again in the Spanish American War. He is now a resident of Milwaukee, Wis. He married Avia Spence, who died after having borne him children named Zella, Boyd and Madge. Francis M. Patton is represented by a separate sketch in this work. Louise (deceased) was the wife of David Drennan, to whom she' bore three children named Boyd, Jennie and Goldie. Orpha Patton is the wife of the Rey. Martin Sharpless, of the Christian Church. They have five children, one of whom is dead. Eunice Patton is the widow of Robert Miller. She has children named Harry and Bessie. The children of Caleb Patton were well educated and, by moral training, fitted to become useful members of good society.

PATTON, Francis M., commercial traveler, Fairbury, Livingston County, Ill. Happily, the time has arrived when forceful men of experience and ability are willing to give their attention to some extent to public affairs. This seems to have been the only way in which good local government could be secured and maintained. That such men are potent factors in public affairs there has latterly been plenty of evidence in Illinois and in other States. The class of men to whom reference is made do not pose as politicians and, in a purely personal way, have no political aspirations, and they are really too busy for the work which they take in hand and consent to bear the burden only because there is much to be done and some one must do it. Such an unselfish and public spirited citizen is the popular resident of Fairbury whose name appears above.

Francis M. Patton was born in Greene County, Pa., May 12, 1848, a son of Caleb L. and Orpha (Myers-Kirby) Patton. A biographical sketch of his father has place in this volume. Francis M. Patton came with his parents to Woodford County, Ill., and thence in 1856 to Livingston County. When they arrived, Fairbury had not yet been platted. He passed the days of his boyhood assisting in the work of the farm and when he could conveniently do so attending the common schools. Even as a boy he was always busy. He found early employment in carrying the chain for surveyors. In fact he saw, if he did not help to make, about all the original surveys made about Fairbury. He remembers that, when he and his father came to the place, no road had been made to the site of Fairbury from the direction of Chenoa; that their wagon made the first track across the prairies from Chenoa to Fairbury and that they were guided by the stakes driven by the railroad surveyors who had marked out the line of the then future Toledo, Peoria & Western Railroad. He quitted school to accept a clerkship in the store of Pogue and McDowell, but eventually returned to his studies. Later he became a salesman in the store of Elliotts & Co., general merchants, at Fairbury. where he was employed a number of years until he accepted a salary of ninety dollars a month in the general store of Taylor Brothers. Next, at Chicago, he found employment with Parotte, Beals & Co., wholesale jobbers hats and caps, at the corner of Market and Adams Sts. and successors of the old firm of King Brothers. Mr. Patton took stock in this Company and went on the road for the company as traveling salesman in 1882. At that time its business amounted to about $250,000 a year. During the next twenty-five years he not only saw it grow, but assisted in securing its growth to more than one million dollars a year. When he united his fortunes with the concern it employed about fifteen commercial travelers. In time it came to employ double that number, who covered most of the United States, while the house sent many goods to British Columbia and to other outside markets. In 1900 Mr. Patton withdrew his capital from this business and began to buy land. His first purchase was 150 acres in Indiana, which he sold, buying 175 acres in Vermilion County, Ill., and 400 acres in Audrain County, Mo., the latter under a high state of cultivation. He now owns 575 acres and has leased one thousand acres in Woodford County, Ill., from his sister, Mrs. Freeman, having under his management 1575 acres devoted principally to corn, oats and grass. When it is remembered that, besides supervising this important interest he makes his regular trips as a commercial traveler and gives some attention to other affairs, it will be apparent that he must live a strenuous life.

Mr. Patton married Miss Ida Sullivan, March 22, 1870. Miss Sullivan, was born at Harper's Ferry, Va., in 1849, a daughter of the Rev. T, J. W. Sullivan. a minister of the Methodist Church and came with her parents to Fairbury in 1868. Her father died at Logansport, Ind., and her mother in Chicago. The latter's father was Armor Master at the United States Navy Yard at Harper's Ferry, and it is worthy of note that her mother was born in the Government Building at that place. Mrs. Patton is a woman of many accomplishments, and is prominent in the Methodist Church of Fairbury, of the official board of which her husband is a member. Mr. and Mrs. Patton had four children: Harry was born July 23, 1871, and is an artistic painter and designer, well established in St. Louis. He married Miss Dora Tillman, of Shelbina, Mo., who died December 29, 1907. Winifred. who is Mrs. John Hoker, of Fairbury, has had three children, Beatrice and Lorene and another who died in infancy. Mr. Hoker is connected with the agricultural Department of Walton Brothers.

Bertha, born in Augusta, Ark., Jan. 11, 1878, married Marshall Gordon, who is a member of the firm of Walton Brothers, and has a son, Francis B. Josephine was graduated from the high school with the class of 1905, and is at Mount Carroll University, as an instructor in vocal culture, having been trained for such a position by leading musical instructors of Chicago.

It will be seen that Mr. Patton has given his children good educational advantages. He is himself a devoted student and spends most of his leisure time in his library, which is practically one of the most comprehensive in the county. It has been intimated that Mr. Patton takes a lively interest in public affairs. While he has never had any political aspirations he has not hesitated to go into action when there was a good fight pending in which he believed he could strike a blow for the right. In his absence from home his fellow Democrats nominated him for the office of County Treasurer. There was such a preponderance of Republican votes that his election was impossible, but he reduced his opponent's majority by more than six hundred. He was a delegate at large from his district to select delegates to the National Democratic Convention of 1884, which nominated Cleveland and Stevenson to the Presidency and Vice-Presidency, respectively. A delegate to the State Democratic Convention which nominated Judge Altgeld for Governor, he "went down" fighting valiantly for General Black. He has always taken an active interest in all moral movements, and is an uncompromising, unflinching supporter of the temperance cause. He is a member of Tarbolton Lodge No. 351, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons; of Masonic Chapter No. 99; and of Camp 6, of the Modern Woodmen of America, of Fairbury.

PATTON, Hon, George W. - An ancestry for years living and laboring in Scotland, but forced to fiee thence during the era of religious persecution and seeking refuge in Ireland, from there transplanted to the free soil of America during the colonial period of our national history, forms the foundation on which is builded the resolute, indomitable and upright character of Judge George W. Patton, of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Illinois. The course of the family westward from the more settled regions of Pennsy:- vania took placeduring 1851, when Samuel R. and Jane Patton, accompanied by their six children (one of whom was George W.,) traveled by steamboat to Illinois and settled on the prairies of Woodford County. They brought a capital of $600, which was-soon invested in land, and from that time forward they labored indefatigably in the building up of an improved farm. The parents, though not highly educated. were possessed of unusual talents. The father was a man of logical mind, determined will and fine reasoning faculties that gave him ingenuity in debate. The mother spun the wool and wove the cloth from which the winter garments worn by the family were made until after the Civil

War; nor was her ability confined to domestic aifairs, for in addition she was celebrated for her wit, memory, mathematical talent, and splendid command of language.