Williamsburg, Illinois

O. P. NORRIS, physician and surgeon, Williamsburg, was born in Bracken County, Ky., August 29, 1843, a son of Joseph and Rebecca R. West (Morris), the father a native of Kentucky, and the mother of Penn.syl vania. The father followed boating in early life, but later he engaged in farming. The parents were blessed with nine children, of whom there are five living - 0. P., William H., IMillard F, Joseph D. and Edward J. Our subject obtained a little schooling in his native'State, and after coming to this countj* with his parents, about 1851, he continued his studies here, attending in after years the school at Normal. 111. In September, 18G4, he was drafted into the war, and joined the Thirty-second Illinois Volunteer Infantry, which belonged to the Seventeenth Army Corps, under Blair. The regiment joined Sherman at Atlanta, and fought under him at Savannah. Columbia, Bentonville, etc. Our subject returned at the close of the war, and attended the high school at Mount Vernon, 111. He had a desire for studying medicine, and he read under the instruction of Dr. J. C. Gray, of Mount Vernon. He afterward attended the Ohio Medical College, Cincinnati, and received a full course of lectures, and later the Cincinnati College of .Medicine and Surgery, from which institution he graduated, and returned to this county, where he has since enjoyed a liiieral patronage ; he has given a good deal of attention to diseases of the eye, but of late has given his time to the study of obstetrics, in which branches of the profession he is especially .successful. The Doctor has dealt largely in real estate, having at present several hundred acres of land in the county, and also a fine residence in Williamsburg, which he erected in 1873. He has been Postmaster for seven or eight years at this point ; has administered several estates, and was engaged in the drug and dry gootls Inisiness until his practice assumed such proportions as to demand all of his attention. He was united in marriage to Sarah M. Smith, and the union has given four children, three of whom are living - Myrtie E., Lena F. and Verner S. The Doctor is a member of the A. F. & A. M., and has also been an I. O. O. F. for many years. Me has filled many of the offices of the township, including that of Supervisor. Politically, he is a Democrat.

Passage source: History of Jefferson County, Illinois, published 1883.

lars, labored on the wharves, and worked at anything his eager hands could find to do. He returned to this county, and with his hardearned savings built a little house, opened a little farm, and last, though not least, married a good little wife, and thus he commenced the journey of life, with fair winds and a clear head. His liappy affianced was Naomi Booth, born March 4, 1809. She is still living, and the venerable couple have long since celebrated the golden anniversary of their wedded life. Having no children of their own, they have raised several during their life, most of whom have grown up and started out for themselves. Mr. Dees has farm property to the extent of 1,400 acres of selected land, all in this county, four or five hundred of which constitute the home place, on which he had moved in the spring of 1 837. In 1871, he erected a handsome and commodious residence, the finest, perhaps, in the surrounding country. During his life, he has engaged in farming in its various. branches, and has given particular attention to stock, having at times large herds of cattle and mules, and at present has a herd of sixty of the latter. Mr. Dees is a member of the A. F. & A. M., Clay Lodge, No. 152, being also a Royal Arch Mason. He has tilled most of the offices of his township, and for many years has served as President of the County Agricultural Society, and is a present stockholder therein. Politically, he is a Democrat of the Jacksonian school, but his votes have repeatedlj' shown that he strives to secure the services of an honest man, be his political faith what it may. We have now given the record dates in the life of Mr. Dees, and as these mark the different periods therein, they but feebly portray the many vicissitudes t hrough which he has passed. Being born to a poor mother, whose humble circumstances permitted her to do but little for her child, he was thus thrown upon his own resources, and the ingenuity and energy which he displayed in his endeavors to secure means to pay for an early schooling . and to obtain a start in life, developed traits in his character upon which a solid foundation could rest. He was virtually his own educator, his own genius was his teacher, and he was likewise the architect of his own fortune, for he never inherited a dollar. His life was at first varied. He was a great lover of the cha.se, and many bear, and hundreds of deer have succumbed to his unerring aim. Still hale and hearty, Mr. Dees and his noble wife have, apparently, j'ears yet to live, and as they go down in the evening of life, the blessings and well-wishes accompany them of the community in whose midst they have lived and toiled for so many years.

Passage source: History of Jefferson County, Illinois, published 1883.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Blissville Township - it names this place 2 more 2 times.