ANTHONY THORNTON
JUDGE ANTHONY THORNTON was born in Bourbon county, Kentucky, on the ninth of November, 1814. He is descended from an English family. His great-great-grandfather emigrated from England to Virginia. In Carolina county of the Old Dominion, members of
the family lived for two or three generations. His father, Anthony Thornton, was born in that county, was raised there, and married Mary Towles, a native of the same county, and also connected with an old Virginia family. In the year 1807, Judge Thornton'
s father and grandfather removed from Virginia to Kentucky. The colony, including the members of the family and the negro servants, numbered in all ninety-nine persons. On their arrival in Kentucky, they settled in Bourbon county, where his parents reside
d till their death.
The early years of Judge Thornton's life were spent in his native county. He first attended the common-schools. At the age of fourteen or fifteen he was sent to a high school at Gallatin, Tennessee, where he remained two years. He then entered Centre Coll
ege at Danville, Kentucky, and subsequently became a student in Miami University at Oxford, Ohio, from which he graduated in the fall of 1834. He studied law, at Paris, Kentucky, in the office of an uncle, John R. Thornton, and was licensed to practice by
the Kentucky Court of Appeals before he was twenty-two. In October, 1836, he passed through Illinois, on his way to Missouri; he intended to make his home in the latter state. Stopping at Shelbyville, to visit some relatives, he concluded to give up his
project of settling in Missouri and establish himself in the practice of law at Shelbyville. In November, 1836, he opened an office. He was favored with success from the very start, and during the first year had as much business as he cared to attend to i
n the courts of Shelby and Moultrie counties. In those days all the lawyers of any prominence traveled twice a year over the circuit. A company of ten or fifteen generally made the round together, and their social habits commonly made the journey far from
an unpleasant one. Law-books were scarce; only a few text-books were in existence, and the reports were meagre in comparison with the great numbers which now crowd the shelves of every legal library. The young lawyer was in consequence compelled to thoro
ughly understand the principles of law and adapt his facts to them, a training which produced able and ready lawyers. Judge Thornton's progress was rapid. He soon obtained a high standing at the bar, and was usually retained in all cases of importance. He
practiced by himself till 1838. He resided at Shelbyville till November, l871, when he became a resident of Decatur. He is now a member of the law-firm of Thornton, Eldridge & Hostetler, at Decatur.
He was a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1848, which formed the second constitution of the State of Illinois. In 1850 he was elected a member of the Sixteenth General Assembly. At that time the questions connected with the building of railroads
throught the state assumed great importance, and Judge Thornton, though a whig, was sent to the legislature from a democratic district, as a warm friend of the railroads, and in favor of the state granting the lands given by the general government to bui
ld the Illinois Central Railroad to private individuals who should undertake the construction of the road, instead of the state itself. In 1862 he was elected a member of the constitutional convention which held its sessions in the winter of 1862-3. Durin
g the rebellion he occupied the position of a war-democrat, and in various speeches sustained the government in its efforts to break down the
Page 161
rebellion and preserve the Union. In the autumn of 1864 he was elected to the Thirty-ninth Congress, and took his seat in March, 1865, just as the war was being brought to a close. He was appointed a member of the committee on claims, and performed much a
rduous labor, the committee being obliged to report on a vast number of claims presented immediately after the close of the war. He was renominated, but, though his election would have been beyond question, he declined becoming a candidate, preferring to
practice his profession. He served on the supreme bench of Illinois from July, 1870, to June, 1873. During that period the supreme court had before it an immense amount of business, which required uninterrupted and laborious attention. Litigation was then
at its height. The dockets were enormously large, and the position of supreme judge involved an immense amount of continuous labor. He resigned to resume his practice.
It is scarcely necessary to speak of Judge Thornton's characteristics as a lawyer, for his name has long been familiar to the bar of this state. His great industry has made him thoroughly acquainted with the learning of the law, and his natural abilities
long since gave him a commanding position in his profession. A strong liking for legal work, and especially for the trial of a case in court, has made the practice of the law, to him, a pleasant and congenial occupation. He has great strength as an advoca
te. While on the supreme bench, he was regarded as one of its ablest members. He was first married, in 1850, to Mildred Thornton, who died in 1856. His marriage to Kate Smith, of Shelby county, occurred in 1866. He has had four children, of whom three are
living.
COL. DUDLEY C. SMITH.
THE subject of the following sketch, is a native of Shelbyville, Shelby county, Illinois. He was born December 9th, 1833. His father, Addison Smith, was a native of Bethel, Vermont. He was born in 1784, and was a lawyer by profession, of liberal ed
ucation, and a graduate of Burlington University, Vermont. While yet a young man he went west, and stopped at Dayton, Ohio, where he published a newspaper during the last years of the war of 1812. He removed from there to Bloomington, Indiana, where he pr
acticed his profession and held a number of local offices. In 1832 he came to Illinois, and settled in Shelbyville, and engaged in teaching school and subsequently farming and teaching. Here he remained until his death, which occurred in January, 1846. He
married Miss Nancy F. Hicks, of Hopkinsville, Ky, in 1819, while a resident of Bloomington, Indiana. She died in Shelbyville in 1855. By this marriage there were ten children, six of whom are living. Dudley C. Smith remained at home beneath the parental
roof, attending the public schools, until his eighteenth year, when he entered Jubilee College in Peoria county, Illinois, where he remained one year. On the death of J. A. Dexter, his brother-in-law, he was called home from school, and went into the stor
e of Dexter & Roundy as clerk. One year later he entered into co-partnership in the firm of J. Roundy & Co. He remained in active business until the breaking out of the war, when he enlisted in the first call for three-months volunteers. On the 25th of Ma
y, 1861, before the expiration of his term of service, he re-enlisted for three years in Co. "B" of the 14th Regiment Ill., Vols. On the organization of the company he was elected First Lieutenant. Four months later, while the regiment was at Jefferson Ci
ty, Missouri, he was elected captain of Co. B., Captain Hall being promoted. Captain Smith participated with his command, in all the battles and skirmishes in which it was engaged, until the battle of Pittsburg Landing, when he was severely wounded in the
thigh. He was brought to St Louis, and soon after to Shelbyville, and remained at home for three months and then returned to his regiment; rejoining it near Holly Springs, remaining with the regiment until March, 1863, when his partner, Mr. Lufkin, died.
He returned home on a twenty days furlough and made arrangements, as he supposed, to have his business continued in his absence. He returned to his command, but his arrangements at home miscarrying, he resigned in July following and returned, took charge
of his business and remained here, until the spring of l864, when he was solicited to take the command of a regiment of men, recruited for the one hundred days service, then rendezvousing at Mattoon, Illinois. He accepted the position, and his regiment w
as ordered to Memphis, where they did duty for some time, and from there ordered to Helena, Arkansas. From here, at the expiration of the term of service, the regiment returned to Mattoon, and was mustered out in October, 1864. He returned to Shelbyville,
re-engaged in business, and continued until 1867, when he took a trip to Califorina and spent six months on the Pacific coast. In the spring of 1869, he went to Europe and spent some time. In 1871 he removed to Bloomington, Illinois, and from there to No
rmal, Illinois, where he still continues to reside. Politically, Colonel Smith is a Republican. His first Presidential vote was cast for the Whig candidate, in 1856, but in all subsequent elections he has voted the Republican ticket.
B. P. DEARING.
AMONG the young and active business men of Shelbyville, who have made for themselves an honorable name, may be mentioned Mr. Dearing. He is a native of Maine, and was born February 21, 1848. His ancestors were among the first settlers of that state
. On the paternal side, the family is of Scotch descent. They were engaged in agricultural pursuits. The subject of this sketch was raised on a farm; he received a fair English education in the public-schools of his native state. When he was in his sixtee
nth year he commenced the tailor's trade, in the town of Brunswick. In September, 1865, he came to Shelbyville, Illinois, and stopped with his brother, who had preceded him here a few months before. The latter was engaged in the merchant tailoring busines
s, and B. P. entered his shop and continued his trade. He remained with his brother for four years, then went to Vandalia, in Fayette county, Illinois, where he was engaged for one year and a half, as cutter. After the expiration of that time, he returne
d to Shelbyille, and purchased the stock of goods of his brother, and commenced business for himself. He added largely to the stock, from time to time, and has continued his additions until he has now a large assortment of well-selected goods in every dep
artment of merchant tailoring and gents' furnishing lines. On the 25th of July, 1877, he was united in marriage, to Miss Ada, daughter of Samuel French, an old settler and prominent citizen of Shelby county. Mrs. Dearing was born in this county. By this
marriage there have been two children born to them, a son and a daughter. Both he and his wife are members of the Presbyterian Church. He is a member of the Knights of Honor, a beneficiary and insurance order. Politically, he is a member of the Republican
party. Mr. Dearing started his business unaided; his only capital was his knowledge of the trade, business integrity and a determination to succeed and earn for himself a comfortable competency. That he has succeeded is due to his close attention and per
sonal supervision of his business. He is progressive, and keeps fully posted in the different and many changes in the trade, and is always prepared to give the public the latest designs in the world of fashion. In his character as a man and citizen he is
above reproach.
Page 162
W. A. COCHRAN
THE Cochran family may be regarded as among the pioneer families of Shelby county. On both the paternal and maternal sides they are of Irish ancestry. Several generations back they belonged to a sea-faring family; the great-grandfather was born on
board a vessel of which his father was commander. They came to America and settled in the colonies prior to the Revolutionary war. John Cochran, the grandfather of the subject of the present sketch, was born in North Carolina, and was a soldier of the Rev
olution. He was in the irregular service, and for the greater portion of the time under Gen. Francis Marion, and with that gallant, dashing and patriotic leader, participated in the many engagements and skirmishes he had with the British forces. He was fo
r a short time in the regular service, and was present and took part in the battle of the Cowpens, Kings Mountain, Eutaw Springs and Hanging Rock; at the latter battle he was severely wounded in the leg. After Independence was declared he removed to Kentu
cky and remained there until 1824, when he emigrated with his family to Illinois, and settled in Shelby county, at a point then and for many years after known as "Cochran's Grove," now Ash Grove township. There the old veteran and pioneer remained until h
is death, which occurred in January, 1853, in the ninety-fourth year of his age. He married Martha McCaslin, who was of Irish parentage, but a native of North Carolina. By this union there were five children that reached the age of maturity and had famihe
s, viz.: John, Rachel, Jane, Martha and James Cochran. The daughters married three brothers, named William, John and Daniel Price. The latter was a prominent man in the early history of Shelby county. He was one of the first commissioners after the county
was organized; he also was captain of a company in the Black Hawk War. The Price family removed from Kentucky to Shelby county, Illinois, in 1825. They are also among the pioneers of the county.
James Cochran, the father of William A., is the youngest of the family and the only surviving child of John and Martha Cochran. He was born in Caldwell county, Kentucky, April 8, 1813. When the family came to Illinois he was but eleven years of age. When
he grew to manhood he married Miss Nancy Templeton. She was born in Iredell county, North Carolina, her parents removed to Rutherford county, Tennessee, and settled on the place where was fought in after years the battle of Stone River. They remained ther
e until 1825, when they came to Shelby county, Illinois. The marriage took place July 29, 1829. By this union there were four sons who reached the age of maturity. Their names are: William A., John T., who died in 1859, James H., and George R. Cochran. Th
e subject of this sketch is the eldest son. He was born in Cochran's Grove, June 23d, 1831, on the farm where his father, mother and brothers still live, and where John Cochran, his grandfather, settled in 1824, more than a half-century ago. He was brough
t up on a farm, and attended the subscription school, where he received the rudiments of a common-school education. In the rude pioneer school-houses, built from rough unhewn logs, with dirt floors, wooden benches for seats, and greased paper for windows,
he poured over Dilworth's Speller and tried to master the complex and vulgar fractions of Pike's and Smiley's arithmatic. When he had mastered their contents, and feeling the necessity of a more extensive and varied education, he went to Charleston, in C
oles county, and there entered the high school; he continued a pupil for eighteen months, then returned home, and in 1852, in
Page 163
connection with Mr. Cantrill, started the "Shelbyville Banner."
In the winter of 1852-53 he taught school. On the 15th of March, 1835, he started for California by the overland route in company with a family by the name of Davis. They reached Santa Clare, California, Sept. 10, of the same year. Mr. Cochran's first wor
k in Califorinia was hauling rails from the mountains; but the business and manner in which he conducted it not proving satisfactory to his employers, he was put to digging potatoes. He afterwards undertook to raise a crop of his own, but that proving a f
ailure, he went to Santa Clare county, and engaged to work on a new mill that James Lick, the California millionaire, was then building; he remained there during the summer, and in the winter taught school, which was among the first ever taught in that va
lley. In the spring of 1855 he went to the mines in Coloma, and worked at Gold Hill a short time for his consins, sons of Daniel Price. From there he went to Placerville, and from thence to Ranaka Bar, on the American river, and started a mining enterpris
e, and soon got his ankle dislocated, and spent some time in trying to effect a cure, but failing, he then went home by way of the Isthmus of Panama and New York, landing here in April, 1856. The following winter he engaged as a clerk in Kellar's store, i
n Windsor. A few months later he formed a partnership with John P. Templeton in the dry goods business, and continued thus until 1864, when he was elected circuit clerk of Shelby county, and he removed to Shelbyville. On the 13th of October, 1858, he was
united in marriage to Miss Josephine M., daughter of John Garis, of Valparaiso, Indiana. One child, a son, was born to them; he died in his second year. Both Mr. Cochran and his estimable wife are members of the Unitarian church; he is also a respected me
mber of the ancient and honorable order of Free Masons, and a member also of the chapter and council of Royal and Select Masters, and a member of the I. O. O. F. and Encampment.
Politically, Mr. Cochran has been a life-long Democrat. His first presidential vote was cast for Franklin Pierce in 1852, and from that time to the present he has been a true and faithful adherent of that political organization. Few men in Shelby county h
ave been more faithful or done more to insure the success of the party than Mr. Cochran. He is in full communion and fellowship with his party, and has from his boyhood and his maturer years steadily followed its varied fortunes through all the stirring c
ampaigns it has passed. He has seen its glorious banner borne proudly aloft at the head of its conquering legions and receive the joyous huzzas of a free and happy people. With strong heart and undismayed, he has seen it trailed and laid low in defeat; bu
t there remains with him that imperishable truth and conviction, that in its every crease and fold is written in letters of living light, Constitutional and civil Liberty; and it must be unfurled and float in the bright sunshine of freedom if these
great principles are to be preserved and maintained and the Republic perpetuated. His activity and labor in behalf of his party were not confined to the county, but were co-extensive with the state. He was for six years a member of the state central comm
ittee, and for two years chairman of the executive committee. For a long number of years he was chairman of the county central committee. In 1864, as above stated, he was elected circuit clerk, and re-elected three successive times. He retired from the of
fice December 1, 1880, sixteen years in office, and in all these years no stain, blemish or unofficial act rests upon his private or public life. That he has served his constituents honestly and faithfully is attested by his frequent elections and long oc
cupancy of the office. As a public servant, he was kind, affable and accomodating, of pleasant manner and most genial disposition. In 1875 he commenced the compilation of a set of Abstract Records, and after their completion formed a partnership with J. W
illiam Lloyd, and together they do a general abstracting business.
At the October term of the circuit court in 1878, he was appointed master in chancery, a position he still holds.
KLEEMAN & GOLDSTIEN.
AMONG the prominent foreign-born citizens of Shelbyville may be mentioned Messrs. Kleeman & Goldstien. The senior partner, Max Kleeman, is a native of Werneck, Bavaria; he was born August 10, 1837. In his youth he received a good education in the e
xcellent schools of Germany; he served an apprenticeship, three and a half years, to the trade of weaving fringes, ribbons and making tassels; at the expiration of that time he emigrated to America, landing in New York in 1853. He went direct to Columbus
Ohio, and remained there three years, and from there to Des Moines, Iowa, where he continued two and a half years, and from there to Cincinnati. On the 15th of July, 1859, he came to Shelbyville and opened up a stock of clothing; he remained alone in the
business until 1862, when he formed a partnership with William Goldstien; they added dry-goods, boots and shoes to their stock, and together they have continued the business to the present. On the 24th of February, 1861, Mr. Kleeman was united in marriage
to Miss Rosa Reiter, a resident of Cincinnati; four children are the fruits of this marriage -- three sons and one daughter. He is a member of the A. F. and A. M., and of the chapter of R. A. M. and council of R. and S M. Politically, he is a democrat.
William Goldstien is a native of Obbach, Germany; he was born April 1, 1840 ; he is the fourth of a family of nine children. He was liberally educated in the best schools of his native country, In his sixteenth year he left Germany and came to America, ar
riving here in 1856; he located in Columbus, Ohio, and remained there three years, then went to Des Moines, Iowa; one year later returned to Columbus, and in 1860 came to Shelbyville; six months later he went to Cincinnati, and remained there until 1862,
when he returned to Shelbyville and formed a partnership with Max Kleeman, in the dry-goods, clothing, boot and shoe business, and together they have continued merchandizing to the present. On the 3d of September, 1865, he married Miss M. Reiter, of Cinci
nnati; by the union there are two children named Ebbie and Edith Goldstien. He is a member of the I. O. O. F. Politically, he votes the Republican ticket.
The business firm of Kleeman & Goldstien has existed longer without change than any other business house in Shelbyville. Both were, comparatively, young men when they came to the town, and here both made their first business venture in life. They laid the
foundation of their success by learning early to cater to the good taste and best judgment of their friends and patrons, by selecting and keeping in stock the best class of goods, selling them at a reasonable profit, rather than carry an inferior stock a
nd striving to sell at low figures. By adopting this rule they have retained their patrons from year to year, who have learned to know and regard them as reliable and honorable merchants; honorable and fair-dealing brings its own reward, and in the case o
f Messrs. Kleeman & Goldstien it has reacted in constantly increasing patronage and sales, which, during the year just passed, reached the large figure of one hundred thousand dollars. They are both active and enterprising citizens, and contribute liberal
ly to all worthy objects.
Page 164
WILLIAM W. HESS
THE ancestors of the Hess family were originally German. They settled in America prior to the revolutionary war. John Moses Hess, the great-grandfather of W. W., was a soldier under Washington, and acted the part of a soldier in that memorable stru
ggle. When a young man, sometime after the family emigrated and settled in America, he settled in Bedford county, Pennsylvania. In the year 1800, Moses Hess, grandfather of William W., removed to the territory of Ohio and settled near Franklinton, then th
e capital of the State, now the city of Columbus. He married Mary Eve Hensel. By this marriage there was a large family, but one of whom survives. Daniel Hess, father of Judge Hess, was born in Bedford county, Penn., in 1782. He accompanied his father to
Ohio, and remained a resident of Franklin county until his death, which occurred in 1862. He was a farmer, and followed that occupation through life. He married Sarah Gordon. She was born in Maryland in 1801, and was of English parentage. Her parents remo
ved to Franklinton, Ohio, while she was yet in her infancy. Both the Hess and Gordon families were among the first permanent settlers of Ohio. Daniel Hess, the father, was a soldier of the war of 1812, and in proof of his services received a land warrant
for assisting in defence of his country. He belonged to the army operating between the boundaries of the United States and Canadas. There was born to Daniel and Sarah Hess ten children, seven of whom are yet living -- four sons and three daughters. The su
bject of this sketch is the sixth in the family. He was born in Franklin county, Ohio, January 10, 1837. His youth was passed at work upon the farm and in the district schools of his neighborhood until his seventeenth year, when he entered Dennison Univer
sity at Granville, in Licking county, where he remained one year. He then returned home and engaged as a clerk in John Stone's store, in Columbus for one year, after which he returned to the University and entered upon and completed the scientific course.
He then determined to adopt the law as the profession of his life, and with this object in view he commenced the study in the office of Swayne & Baber, of Columbus, Ohio. After making suitable progress through the usual course, he entered the Law School
at Cincinnati, and completed his studies, and graduated therefrom, in 1858, upon which he was admitted to the practice in the courts of Ohio. he returned to Columbus and formed a law partnership with Hon. B. F. Martin, which continued until the breaking o
ut of the war of the rebellion, when Mr. Martin received a Federal appointment. Mr. Hess continued in the practice, in Columbus, until 1866, when he came to Shelbyville, Illinois. Here he resumed the practice, in connection with L. B. Stephenson. They pra
cticed together in the circuit and State courts until 1872, when Mr. Hess formed a law partnership with Hon. William Chew, which continued until 1876, or until the former was elected County Judge. In 1874 he was appointed Master in Chancery by Hon. H. M.
Vandeveer, Judge of the 17th Judicial District. Judge Hess is a good lawyer, and discharges his duties well. He is painstaking, studious, and methodical, a good pleader, and zealous in the cause of his clients. He says, "that any lawyer is first class who
does what he has to do in a first-class way, be it much or little;" his ability as a lawyer, and his worth as a man and citizen, received honorable recognition in 1876, by being nominated and elected for the full term. In the discharge of the duties of h
is office he has given unqualified
Page 165
satisfaction, and has justified the wisdom of those who honored him with their suffrages. Politically, he has been a lifelong democrat; he cast his first presidential vote for Stephen A. Douglas, and has voted the democratic ticket ever since; he is zealo
us and active, and one of the recognized leaders of his party. During the last political campaign he was chairman of the county central committee of the stalwart democratic county of Shelby, and much of the success achieved in that campaign, in the county
of his residence, was due to his labor and untiring industry in the thorough organization of his party. On the 3d of December, 1873, he was united in marriage to Miss I. W. Harnett, daughter of Dr. J. M. Harnett, an old settler and prominent citizen of S
helby county, Ills. By this marriage there is one daughter, named Mary Alice Hess. Both he and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church. Judge Hess is also a respected member of the I. O. O. F. He is a man of fine social qualities, and of generous
impulses. In his manner he is a plain, unobtrusive gentleman.
HORACE L. MARTIN.
THE ancestors of the Martin family, on the paternal side, were originally from Wales, and on the maternal, Hollanders. The Martins upon coming to America settled in New Jersey, where Lewis, the paternal grandfather, was born. He removed to Ohio in
June, 1816, and settled in Licking county, where he resided the remainder of his life. He married Catharine Osborne, who was born and raised in New Jersey, and there married. Mark D., the father of Horace L., is the off spring of that marriage; he was bor
n in New Jersey, and accompanied him to Ohio in the above named year, and remained a resident of that state until the spring of 1858, when he came to Shelbyville, Illinois, where he at present resides. Both Lewis Martin and his son, Mark D., were blacksmi
ths, and worked at that trade; but both subsequently abandoned it and engaged in milling. Lewis Martin was a soldier of the war of 1812-14, and was connected with the army of the Frontier on the boundary line between the United States and Canadas.
Mark D. married Julia Ann Ward, a native of New Jersey; she died in 1842. After her death he married Martha L. Gaston, by whom he has a large family. By the first marriage there were five children, all boys. Horace L. is the eldest son. He was born in Lic
king county, Ohio, July llth, 1836. In his youth he received a fair English education in the district schools of his native county. The family afterwards removed to Franklin county, in the same state, and there young Martin improved his education in the C
entral College, located in the county. He remained a pupil of that school for five years. In 1855 he came west to Shelbyville, Illinois, and accepted a position as clerk in his uncle's drug-store, and remained with him two years. His uncle, Dr. Lewis D. M
artin, was a practicing physician; he persuaded Horace to study medicine, which he did, and read the standard authors, and pursued the usual course of study until 1857, when he returned to Ohio, and entered the Starling Medical College at Columbus, and pa
ssed through one regular course. In July, 1858, he returned to Shelbyville, and for a short time practiced his profession in connection with his uncle. The practice of medicine, however, was not congenial to his tastes, and he soon abandoned it to accept
a clerkship in the store of Webster & Jagger, general merchants, and remained in that capacity until January, 1861. In the spring of the same year the firm of S. H. Webster & Co. was formed, of which he became a member. The firm continued general merchand
izing and handling of grain until 1872, when Martin withdrew. In August of the same year he purchased one-third interest in the Union printing office, and in connection with his two brothers, under the firm of Martin Bros., continued the publicatio
n of the Union, the republican organ then as now of the county. They at the same time established the Effingham Republican, and conducted it for one year, when they sold out the office. In May, 1875, Mr. Martin became sole proprietor and edi
tor of the Union, and from that time to the present has been actively engaged and prominently identified with the journalism of Shelby county. While he is not a practical printer, yet he possesses much business tact and ability, and he has succeeded in ma
king his paper a necessity to the people of the county. In the heated and spirited campaigns of the past, the Union has taken a conspicuous part in ably presenting the principles of the republican party, and moulding public sentiment in their favor
. He is a bold, aggressive writer, and his readers are never left in doubt as to his position upon any question. On the 4th of July, 1859, Mr. Martin was united in wedlock with Miss Mary A. Jagger, a native of Summit county, Ohio. By this marriage there a
re two children living, both daughters. He and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church. He is a member of the order of Free Masons, and of the beneficiary order of Knights of Honor. He cast his first presidential vote for Abraham Lincoln, and in a
ll subsequent elections has voted the republican ticket. His political principles have grown with his growth and strengthened with his years, and he may now be classed with the stalwarts of that political organization. He is a firm advocate of the cause o
f temperance.
J. W. HAMER
WAS born in Springfield, Clark county, Ohio, July 3d, 1846. His father, Solomon Hamer, was born in Maryland, and his mother, Ann (Click) Hamer, in Virginia; both are yet living, and are residents of Spring Hill, Champaign county, Ohio. J. W., the s
ubject of this biography, is the eldest of five children. When in his eighteenth year he enlisted as a private in Co. "C." of the 3d regiment, Ohio volunteers, under the first call of President Lincoln for troops. He served out his time, returned home, an
d on the 27th of January, 1864, enlisted for three years or during the war in the 66th Ohio volunteer Infantry, and was mustered out and honorably discharged July 15th, 1865. He participated with his regiment in numerous battles and skirmishes, and at Res
aca was wounded, receiving a charge of buckshot in the fleshy part of the leg, below the knee. He carried the lead in his leg for a number of years, and the shot was extracted in September, 1880. After he was discharged from the hospital, he was on detach
ed service until the close of the war. In 1865 he came west and stopped in Decatur, Ills., where for five years he was employed as a clerk; from thence to Taylorville, and in 1873, came to Shelbyville, and here and also in Taylorville was agent for Singer
's Sewing Machine. In 1876 he opened up a China, Glass and Notion Store, and has been in that business until the present time. On the 24th of June, 1873, he married Ella K. Kittle, of Taylorville. By this marriage there is one daughter, named Minnie B. Ha
mer. Politically he is a republican. He is a member of the order of A. F. & A. M., and of the R. A. M. and R. S. M. of Masons. He is also an Odd Fellow and member of the Encampment. In his line he carries a large stock, and is prepared to deal liberally w
ith his patrons.
Page 166
THOMAS J. GRAYBILL
THE present efficient Circuit Clerk of Shelby county, is a native of Fairfield county, Ohio. He was born December 26, 1846. The Graybill family were originally from Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. On the maternal side the family is of Scotch-Irish
ancestry. The maternal grandmother was a native of Ireland.. She came with her parents to America when she was ten years of age. Thomas Carlisle, the maternal grandfather, was a native of Scotland. He settled in Virginia and from there removed to Ohio. Sa
muel Graybill, the great-grandfather of the subject of this biography, was one of the first settlers of Fairfield county, Ohio. The date of his removal from Pennsylvania to that state was about the year 1800. He entered one thousand acres of land in the H
ocking valley, and became a large landed proprietor. He built a tavern on the road between Columbus and Lancaster, and was personally known to a great number of people, particularly the old settlers of that part of the state. He was also known as a great
hunter, and very fond of the chase. He always kept a pack of hounds, of which he was careful and kind, and would allow no one to abuse or maltreat them. He was known far and wide as the "Old Fox-hunter Graybill." He lived to the ripe age of ninety years,
and preserved his vigor and strength until a short time before his death. His son, Jacob Graybill, married a Diller. By this marriage there was born Samuel R. Graybill, the father of Thomas J. He was born in Ohio, and married Sarah A. Carlisle, who was al
so a native of the same state. By this union there were twelve children, seven of whom are still living. In 1858 Mr. Graybill removed from Ohio to Illinois, and settled on section sixteen in Holland township, Shelby county. He is yet a resident of the cou
nty, and a farmer and stock-raiser by occupation. His wife, and mother of Thomas J., died in 1872. The subject of this sketch is the eldest in the family of children. He was yet in his youth when his parents removed to Illinois. His education was obtained
in the public schools of Fairfield and Shelby counties. He taught school for several terms in the latter county, and farmed for six or seven years; and during this time gradually worked into the stock business, feeding and shipping stock. During the past
eight years the latter has been his principal occupation and business. On the 24th of October, 1872, he married Miss Theresa Travis, a native of Pennsylvania. She died in August, 1873. On the 18th of October, 1876, he was united in marriage to Miss Laura
E. Newkirk, of Fairfield county, Ohio. Three children have been born to them. In politics Mr. Graybill is a sound democrat, voting that ticket from the time he cast his first ballot to the present. In the summer of 1880 he received the nomination of circ
uit clerk in the primary elections at the hands of the democratic party. In a vote of 2,506, he received a majority of 1,036 over both of his opponents; and in the ensuing election in November following was elected by over 1,500 majority. This of itself i
s the best evidence of his popularity and standing as a man and a citizen. In the years of 1875 and 1876 he represented his township in the board of supervisors of the county. He is an honored member of the Lodge of A. F. and A. M. and of the I. O. O. F.,
and belongs to the benificiary order of the Knights of Honor. He is an advocate of the cause of temperance, but not radical or a total abstainer, but believes that the question of temperance can and ought to be governed by the laws of the country.
Mr. Graybill is a good practical business man, possessed of much common-sense, which he applies to his business, and makes it his
Page 167
guiding rule. He was appointed assignee in several cases in the Bankruptcy Courts, and in all settled up the business in a very satisfactory and creditable manner. He has been largely identified with the live stock business, and has spent large sums of mo
ney for the introduction of fine breeds and the improvement of stock in Shelby county. In the occupancy and management of the office of circuit clerk the public have a painstaking, prudent and economical officer -- one who will reflect honor and credit up
on his many friends who helped him to the position.
GEORGE W. KEELER
WAS born in New Carlisle, Clark county, Ohio, February 14th, 1832. His grandfather, Seth Keeler, was a native of New York. He emigrated to Ohio in 1803, and settled in Highland county; in 1816 here moved to Calhoun county, Ills., where he died in 1
818. He married Jane Miller, who was born in Virginia, in Greenbrier county, December 25th, 1789. After the death of Seth Keeler his family returned to Cincinnati, Ohio. James W. Keeler, the father of George W., was born in Ohio; in 1834 he removed to Nil
es, Michigan, where he remained one year, then went to Elkhart, Ind., and made that his home until 1853, when he came to Shelby county, Ills., and settled on Robinson Creek; in 1867 he moved to Christian county, Ills., where he died May 18th, 1874 ; he wa
s thrice married; his first wife, and mother of the subject of the present sketch, was Catharine Taylor, daughter of Mathew Taylor; she was born in Dauphin county, Pa., near Harrisburg, in September, 1809. Her parents removed to Ohio in 1822, and settled
in Clark county, where she was married; she died on August, 1836. By that marriage there were three children; two of them have survived the parents, viz., Ebenezer and George W. In 1837 he married Rebecca Tallerday, by whom he had two children; she died i
n 1845; he afterwards married Hester Ann Musser; she still survives her husband, and is a resident of Assumption, in Christian County.
George W. is the eldest son and child of the first marriage; when he was in his fifteenth year he went to the tailor trade in Elkhart, Ind., and worked for three years for Silas Hogueland; in 1850 he started in business for himself in Elkhart, and continu
ed for one year, then went to Pine Bluff, Ark., and remained there one year, and then went to Grandview, in Edgar county, Ills., and on the 1st of April, 1855, came to Shelbyville, and formed a partnership in the tailoring business with B. B. Wheeler, whi
ch continued one year, when Mr. Keeler was appointed postmaster, a position and office he held until 1861. In November, 1861, he was elected county treasurer, and re-elected for five successive terms, and held office until 1873. In 1874, in connection wit
h J. T. Herrick, he built a business block on the south-east corner of Main street; he then embarked in the dry-goods business in connection with W. M. Wright under the firm name of Wright & Keeler; the partnership closed one year later, and Mr. Keeler co
ntinued the business for another year, and then sold out to James & Yantis. Since that time he has been engaged in farming and dealing in real estate. On the 1st of March, 1852, he was united in marriage to Elizabeth Hogue, a native of Terre Haute, Ind. B
y this union there have been six children living, two sons and four daughters; their names are Alice, wife of J. T. Herrick; Cora, wife of Charles Waldron; Lola, Clinton, Eben, and Kitty. Politically, Mr. Keeler, since attaining his majority, had always b
een a democrat, and in all general elections votes the ticket without scratch or blemish.
SAMUEL H. WEBSTER.
THE subject of the following sketch has been for a long number of years one of the prominent and active business men of Shelbyville.
The Webster family, on the paternal side, are of English descent. Russell B. Webster, the father of Samuel H., is a native of Massachusetts. He emigrated to Ohio in 1821. In 1823 he removed his family to Cleveland, which was then a small straggling villag
e of a few houses.
He still lives where he settled in 1823, a hale, hearty, active man of over four-score years. He married Orpha Hunter. She is also a native of Massachusetts. She is still living, and of about the same age as her husband. They are residents of Lorraine co.
, Ohio, and have been since they first settled in that state, except a few years of residence in Shelbyville, while their sons were absent as soldiers in the war.
There were eight children in the family, -- seven sons and one daughter; the latter died in childhood. There are five sons yet living. The subject of this sketch is the eldest son. He was born in Lorraine county, Ohio, September 15th, 1825. His youth was
passed in the common schools of his neighborhood and in the high school of Wellington, Ohio. Early in life he engaged in business for himself. His first business was buying and shipping produce to the west, particularly to Chicago, when that city was yet
in its infancy. From the age of nineteen until twenty-five, he was engaged in selling notions through the country, traveling with two horse team. In 1856 he concluded to come west and try his fortunes in Illinois. He came to Shelbyville and engaged in gen
eral merchandizing in connection with E. H. Jagger. This co-partnership continued until 1862, when the firm of S. H. Webster & Co. was formed, which continued until 1872, when Martin Webster, brother of S. H., withdrew. The first name continued, and is in
existence yet, and recognized as one of the substantial business firms of Shelbyville. The firm is largely engaged in pork-packing, handling and shipping grain and produce, and dealing in agricultural implements. This has been their bussiness for twenty-
five years.
Politically, Mr. Webster was originally an old line whig. On the formation of the republican party, he joined that political organization, and from that time to the present has been an active and leading member of the republican party in Shelby county. In
September, 1878, he was appointed postmaster of Shelbyville, and now conducts the official business therewith connected in a manner entirely satisfactory to the citizens of Shelbyville and vicinity. In 1848 he was appointed postmaster of Wellington, Ohio
, by General Taylor, President of the United States. On the 21st of January, 1856, he was united in marriage to Miss Lucy A. Jagger. Four children have been born to them, all of whom are living. Their names are: Mary L., wife of Dr. Westervelt of Shelbyvi
lle; Charles M., assistant postmaster; Leveret S., and Ada Webster. His family are members of the Presbyterian Church. He is not a member of any church organization. He is an earnest advocate of the cause of temperance.
Mr. Webster is one of the oldest business men in Shelbyville. He came here in May, 1856 -- twenty-four years ago -- and commenced active business, and has continued uninterruptedly to the present; and in all those years he has borne the reputation of an h
onest, upright and honorable man, conducting his business in such a manner as to gain the confidence and esteem of the community in which he has so long resided. It is with pleasure that we here present him in this brief biographical sketch.
Page 168
ARCH. SHELTON
MR. SHELTON is all old resident of Shelby county. His ancestors on the paternal side, three generations back, emigrated from England to America, and settled in Virginia. His grandfather's mother was a native of Ireland. On the maternal side, the fa
ther of his grand-mother was a Frenchman, and his great-grandmother on the same side a native of Wales. Claiborne Shelton, the paternal grand-father, was born and raised in Virginia. He moved to Ohio, and settled in Gallia county, about the year 1812, whe
re he remained until November 19, 1827, when he removed to Madison county, Indiana, and remained there until his death, in the year 1838.
Jesse Shelton, the son of Claiborne and father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Pittsylvania county, Va., April 9th, 1797. He emigrated with his father's family to Ohio, and, in 1827, to Indiana, where he remained until February, 1857, when he c
ame to Illinois, and settled in Prairie township, this county, where he at present resides. He is still a vigorous man, although in the eighty-fourth year of his age. In June, 1817, while yet a resident of Gallia county, Ohio, he married Margaret Blake. S
he was born in Greenbriar county, Virginia, Oct. 25, 1800. Her parents removed to Ohio about the same time as did Claiborne Shelton. She died in Prairie township, Nov. 18, 1878.
By this marriage there were ten children, seven boys and three girls -- six of the former and one of the latter are living. The subject of this biography is the eighth in the family. He was born in Madison county, Indiana, Oct. 6th, 1833. Like all farmer
boys, his youth was employed at work on the farm, assisting his father, and in attending the district schools and learning the rudimentary principles of an education during the winter months. In this manner he passed his youth until his seventeenth year,
when he hired to a carpenter, and worked at the carpenter trade for four years.
In this time he married, and soon after went to farming in Madison county, Ind., and continued in that business until a few years ago. In 1857, he removed to Shelby county, Illinois, and purchased land in Sec. 12, T. 9 (Prairie township), which was partia
lly improved. He remained on that tract for one year, when he sold it and purchased in sec. 14 in same township, and there made his home until 1877, or until elected treasurer of Shelby county, when he removed to Shelbyville. The date of his marriage was
September 19, 1853. He married Miss Lucinda Seward. She is a native of Hamilton county, Ohio, but was a resident of Coles county, Ills., at the time of her marriage. This union has been blessed by eight children, six daughters and two sons. Mrs. Shelton i
s a member of the Christian Church. In politics, Mr. Shelton adheres to the democratic party since 1856, when he cast his first presidential vote for James Buchanan for president. He is among the active and safe counsellors of that political organization
in the county. During his residence in Prairie township he held several local offices. He was collector for three years, and represented his township in the board of supervisors for three terms. In 1877 he was nominated by the democratic party for the res
ponsible office of county treasurer, and in November following was elected. In 1879 he was re-nominated and elected by an increased majority, and now holds the office and attends to the duties thereof in a manner that reflects credit upon hinself and hono
r upon his friends, who urged his claims and supported him in the last two elections. In the collection and disbursement of the county's funds, he is a faithful public servant, exact and methodical, and careful in the discharge of every duty imposed upon
him. He is a plain, unpretentious man, striving to do unto others as he would have others do unto him. He has many warm friends.
Page 169
W. A TROWER.
THE TROWER family on the paternal side are of English and Scotch descent. The ancestors came to America in an early day and settled in Virginnia. The family have been cultivators of the soil and professional men, of the latter principally physician
s. Solomon Trower was born in Virginia and removed with his family to Mercer county, Kentucky, about the year 1808. His father accompanied him; both died in that county; the great-grandfather at the great age of one hundred and nine years; he was a soldie
r of the revolutionary war. John W. Trower married Nancy Robertson of Albemarle, county, Virginia. John W. Trower, jr., the father of William A., was the offspring of that marriage. He was born in Mercer county, Kentucky. He went back to Virginia and ther
e married Jane W. Breedlove, a native of Albemarle county. She died in Shelbyville, Ills., in the year 1874. About the year 1837, John W. Trower came west and settled in Coles county, where he remained nine years, then removed to Wisconsin, and the next y
ear came to Shelbyville, Ills., and remained here until his death which occurred Aug. 31st, 1855. He fell a victim to the cholera, which was raging here, at that time. He was a physician and practiced his profession until his death. By the union of John W
. and Jane W. Trower there were five children -- four sons and one daughter. Three of the children have survived the parents. The subject of this biography is the second in the family. He was born in Albemarle county, Virginia, October 1lth, 1833. He rece
ived a limited education in the district schools of Illinois. While yet young he went to McLean county, Illinois, and worked on a farm for four years. He then returned to Shelbyville and clerked for a number of years. He then received the appointment of p
ostmaster, in which he continued until 1855, when he resigned to accept a situation as clerk. In the spring of 1859, he went to farming and continued there engaged until 1861, when he was elected Sheriff of the county to fill the vacancy caused by the dea
th of Sheriff Shaw. Under the then existing law relating to the office of Sheriff he could not be re-elected; he therefore served out the unexpired time, and at the close he purchased the Leader printing office. He conducted that journal for a numb
er of years, and then sold out. He was appointed postmaster in 1866 under Andrew Johnson, and held the office for one year, when the senate for political reasons refused to confirm the appointment. One year later he was re-appointed, the senate reconcurri
ng, and he held the office until 1869. The same year he was elected Mayor of the city of Shelbyville, and remained in that office until 1871, when he resigned his Mayoralty and purchased the Leader office and again took up journalism, in which prof
ession and business he has remained to the present. Mr. Trower has made a success of the newspaper business. He is admirably fitted for it, particularly in the business management. He is a sharp, terse, vigorous writer. While his articles may not show sch
olarly attainments, yet they are directly to the point, and the reader is not left in doubt as to the writer's position upon any subject. Politically Mr. Trower has been a life-long Democrat. He is a respected number of the order of A. F. & A. M. and of
the beneficiary order of A. O. U. W. He is temperate in his habits, and an advocate of the cause of temperance. On the 30th of October, 1856, he, was united in marriage to Miss Cordelia, daughter of Letton Smith. She was born and raised in Shelby county,
Ills. By this marriage there were six children, five of them living. Their names in order of their birth are Mary F., Edith, Jennie, Maud and Tom B. Trower. Both Mr. and Mrs. Trower are members of the M. E. Church. Mr. Trower is an old resident of Shelby
county, and has been identified with its progress, and has contributed much to its material wealth, by the publication of his journal, which has always under his management spoken for the county, and advocated all enterprises that have contributed to its
increase and benefit. In the community where he has resided and is known by all, none are more respected for their worth as a man and citizen than Mr. Trower.
JAMES E. FRAZER.
THE FRAZER family, of Shelby county, to which the subject of this sketch belongs, is of Scotch-Irish descent, the forefathers of whom came to America about the close of the Revolutionary war, and settled in Virginia. John Frazer, the grandfather, w
as born in that state. He removed from there to Kentucky, where he remained until 1828, when he came to Illinois, and settled at a point then known as Cochran's Grove, in Shelby county; he remained there until his death, which took place in 1855. He marri
ed a Miss Jones; she was a native of Virginia. By this marriage there were eight children, five sons and three daughters. Albert G., the father of James E., was the second son; he was born in Caldwell county, Kentucky, April 1, 1809. When his father came
to Shelby county, he did not accompany him here, but stopped at the Salt Licks, near Shawneetown, Illinois. He remained there until 1830, when he came to Cochran's Grove, and there remained until his death, which occurred October 10, 1869. He was engaged
in agricultural pursuits during his life; he was also very fond of the chase and hunting, and for the first twenty years of his married life his family were not without a saddle of venison in the house, the trophy of his unerring rifle and prowess as a hu
nter. He only relinquished the sport, of which he was passionately fond, when age compelled him to respect nature's commands, and game became scarce from the rapid settling up of the country. He was a soldier of the Black Hawk war, and was a comrade and m
essmate of the immortal and martyred Lincoln. He married Rhoda E. Curry, daughter of John Curry, of Tennessee; he came with his family to Illinois about the same time as the Frazers. Mrs. Frazer was born in Tennessee; she died at the residence of her daug
hter in Sullivan, Illinois, October 25, 1880. There were born to Albert G. and Rhoda Frazer seven children, four sons and three daughters. The names of the living are: Thomas P.; Nancy, wife of W. G. Patton, of Sullivan, Illinois, and the subject of this
sketch. The latter is the youngest member of the family, He was born in Cochran's Grove, (Ash Grove township) Shelby county, Illinois, December 29, 1846. Like all farmers' boys, his youth was passed at work on the farm in the summer and fall months, and i
n attending the district schools during the winter, where he received the rudiments of a fair English education. He also spent a short time in the schools of Shelbyville, after which he returned to the farm and continued at work there until called by the
people of Shelby county to fill the responsible and honorable office of county clerk, when he removed to Shelbyville. On the 31st of May, 1866, he married Melinda, daughter of Samuel and Rebecca Richmond, residents of Richland township, Shelby county, Ill
inois. Mrs. Frazer was born in Ohio, but was a resident of this county at the time of her marriage. By this union there have been six children, four of whom are living, viz: Rosalind, Ida May, Albert F. and William G. Frazer, -- all yet beneath the parent
al roof. Both Mr. Frazer and his amiable wife are members of the Unitarian Church. He is a member of the ancient and honorable order of Fremasonry, and also a member of the benevolent and benificiary order of United Workman. Politically, Mr. Frazer comes
from a Democratic family, and he has since attaining his majority been a firm
Page 170
believer in the principles and tenets of the Democratic party, and upon all state and national occasions, when called upon to exercise the right of suffrage, has uniformly voted the Democratic ticket. In 1878, as intimated above, his worth as a man and hi
s fidelity to his party received recognition by being nominated and elected as county clerk of Shelby county, an office he now fills with honor to himself and credit to his numerous friends who urged his nomination and supported him at the polls. In the e
xercise of his duty as clerk he is a careful, prudent and entirely competent official, and looks carefully after the county's interests. At the same time he treats all those with whom he comes in contact with a gentlemanly politeness that is born in the m
an, and as a matter of course, comes natural and unrestrained to him. Born and bred in the county of Shelby, he is well-known, and wherever known, is respected for his worth as a man and a citizen.
HON. WILLIAM CHEW.
THE ANCESTRY of the Chew family are of Welsh and Scotch extraction on the paternal side, and Scotch on the maternal. There were two brothers, Welshmen, who came to America and settled in Virginia, soon after the first settlement at Jamestown. From
these brothers have sprung the Chew family in America. A portion of the family at a later date removed to Pennsylvania and settled near Philadelphia, where they resided during the revolutionary war. It is related by the historians of that period that in o
ne of the numerous engagements between the Patriot and British forces in 1777, the latter were driven from the ground, but on their retreat they took possession of Chews house and from it successfuly resisted the attacks of the Patriot forces. Colly Chew,
the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was a native of Virginia, and a soldier of the revolutionary war, and was also under Gen. Anthony Wayne in the Indian wars. In the war of 1812 he was a captain in Gen. Hull's command, but fought his way out
of the Fort, before the surrender, and saved his company from a disgraceful defeat. He was in his day a great Indian fighter, and a comrade and friend of Adam Poe, whose exploits as an Indian fighter are well known to every student of American history. Co
lly Chew came west to Ohio about the year 1830, with his son, Morris R. Chew, and in 1844 came to Illinois and settled in Shelby county, and remained here until his death in 1847. He was in the eighty-fifth year of his age. He married a Reese who was of a
prominent and wealthy family of Virginia. Morris R. Chew, father of William, was the only son of this marriage. He was born in Virginia and removed to Ohio as above stated, and came to Shelbyville in 1844. He settled in Ohio in Clinton county, and there
followed the trade of Saddler and Harnessmaker. A short time after his arrival there he was elected Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, a position he held for a long number of years. While yet a resident of Ohio he came to Shelby county and purchased land
. After his arrival here in 1844, he re-engaged in the harness trade and carried it on extensively for a number of years, then sold out and moved into the country on a farm, and there continued until his death, which occurred in 1877. He married Matilda C
rumley, a native of Virginia. She died in 1850. By this marriage there were ten children, six of whom have survived the parents. The subject of this sketch is the fifth in the family. He was born in Clinton county, Ohio, September 3d, 1836. His youth was
spent at home in going to school and assisting his father until his seventeenth year, when he practically started in life for himself. He went to work on a farm until he had earned and saved sufficient money to purchase a team of oxen and twenty-two inch
plow and commenced breaking prairie. After a few years of hard work he had accumulated sufficient money to enable him to go to school to get an education, in which he was sadly deficient, and felt great need of. He commenced under the tuition of Prof. Jer
ome of Shelbyville Seminary, and remained there for three years, and then attended the State University at Springfield for one year, and commenced reading law in the office of Moulton & Chaffee, and in 1869, at the spring term of the circuit Court at Vand
alia, he was admitted to the bar. He commenced the practice in Shelbyville in connection with Frank Penwell, which partnership continued two years. He then formed a law partnership with W. W. Hess, which continued until 1877, or until the latter was elect
ed County Judge. From that time to the present he has been alone in the practice. Politically Mr. Chew is a sound and thorough Republican, and is classed among the stalwarts. His first presidential vote was cast for Abraham Lincoln in 1860, and in all sub
sequent elections he has voted the ticket of his first choice. He has been for a number of years chairman of the Republican County Central Committee. In 1874 his services to his parts and worth as a man received suitable and honorable recognition in being
nominated and elected a member of the 29th Gen. Assembly of Illinois. While a member of that body he was on the Committee on Education, and drafted the bill on Compulsory Education, which was defeated by a small vote. He also drew the bill to compel all
clerks of courts of record to account for all fees received by then and to make publication thereof, giving the names of the parties who were entitled to the same, and if not called for within six months from such notice and publication, the same to rever
t to the general school fund, thereby lightning the burden of taxation. The bill was defeated by two votes in the house. On the 28th of December, 1870, he was united in marriage to Miss Annie Headen, a native of Shelbyville and daughter of Dr. William Hea
den, one of the pioneers of Shelby county. One child, a son, has been born to hallow and bless this union. His name is William Headen Chew.
DR. ENOS PENWELL
JOHN PENWELL, the ancestor of the present family in America, was a native of Ireland. Removed to England, and from there emigrated to America in 1732 and settled in Philadelphia. From there members of the family removed -- some to Delaware and othe
rs to New Jersey. A. C. Penwell, the father of Enos, was born in the latter state. In 1804 he came west and settled at Rising Sun in Switzerland county, Indiana. He lived in different parts of the state and died in Galien, Michigan. He married Elizabeth W
hitinger, who was of German descent. The marriage was solemnized in Wayne county, Indiana. Enos Penwell is the fourth in a family of five children. He was born in Wayne county, Indiana, March 22d. 1821. In his youth he received a very limited education in
the common schools. When he arrived at the age of eighteen he taught school, and at the end of the term became a pupil himself. In this way he continued teaching and attending school until his twenty-fourth year, and at the end of that time had so improv
ed that he was in possession of a good English education. He then concluded to mark out some course for the future. After due consideration, he determined to adopt the profession of medicine as the business of life. He then read the standard works, of the
best authors, and placed himself under the tuition of Dr. Daniel Meeker, a prominent and widely known physician of LaPorte, Indiana, and graduated from that institution with the degree of M. D., in 1848.
Page 171
After his graduation he went to Edwardsburg in Cass county, Michigan, and began the practice, and continued there five years. On the 18th of September, 1853, he came to Shelbyville, Illinois, and he reresumed the practice and continued to the present. The
life of a physician and the practice of medicine, in the early days of Illinois, was by no means a sinecure. Dr. Penwell was frequently called to visit patients who lived a distance of twenty miles. No matter what the season of the year or the condition
of the weather, he was always ready to go. He is possessed of a strong and vigorous constitution and a generous love of his profession, and neither time, nor the fatigues incident to extended practice, (scattering over a large area of country,) have been
able to make much of an impression upon his healthy and robust frame. On the 9th of June, 1842, he married Martha Holloway, of South Bend, Indiana. She died August 8, 1857. By this union there are three sons and two daughters. Frank Penwell, the eldest so
n, is a practicing attorney, and a resident of Danville, Illinois. He enlisted for three years in the late war, and was sergeant in the 12th Indiana Battery. He was but eighteen years of age when he entered the service. George V. is one of the prominent a
nd substantial business men of Pana, Illinois. Orville J. is employed as a clerk in Shelbyville. Helen was the wife of Wm. M. Rich, now deceased, and Mary E., is the wife of A. R. Launey, Photographer, Shelbyville, Illinois. On the 9th of December, 1858,
he married Mrs. Mary DePugh, nee Coleman. He had two daughters by this marriage, named Pauline and Hilda. Mr. Penwell is a member of the M. E Church; practically he 
