HISTORY OF MORGAN COUNTY, ILLINOIS
Its Past and present
Chicago: Donnelley, Loyd & Co., Publishers, 1878.
(reprinted by the Jacksonville Area Genealogical and Historical Society, 1975)
EADOR, WILLIAM, farmer and stock raiser, Franklin, Illinois. Born in Cass County, Illinois, May, 1848, where his parents moved to that year; a year later they settled on the Mauvaisterre, in Morgan County; in 1868, Mr. Eador married Miss Lizzie Scott, daughter of F.M. Scott; one child, Edith M., born October 22, 1869; at this writing resides on his farm in the vicinity of Franklin.
EAGLE, THOMAS, merchant, Concord, was born at Yarmouth, England, July 18, 1812; married in Wisbech, Eng., June 1, 1834, to Miss Elizabeth Watson Stagles, born at March, Eng., Dec. 27, 1815; had twelve children (lost seven), living: Hannah, now Mrs. J.C. Sanders: Elizabeth, now Mrs. A.J. Bell; John Thomas, Charles William, and Mary Jane, now Mrs. Robert Diggins. He left England April 17, 1854, settling in Ohio; stayed there till July, ’55, then locating here, engaged in merchant tailoring till ’67, then moved to Abingdon, Knox Co., and in ’71, to Bushnell; he stayed there till ’75, when he came back to Concord, since which time he has been keeping a general store and merchant tailoring establishment. He enlisted in ’61, in the three months’ service, in the 68th Ill. Reg., Co. B, volunteering on the 4th of July; his regiment had to do a great deal of marching and counter_marching, but was in no battles. He was mustered out in October, same year.
EASTMAN, SAMUEL, engineer Deaf and Dumb Institute, Sec. 29, P.O. Jacksonville, born in State of Maine, Dec. 12, 1835, and removed to Morgan Co. 1857. Was married Dec. 12, 1862, to Margaret C. Whitman, of Indiana, born Sept. 8, 1833. This union has been blessed by three children, viz.: Charles H., July 20, 1863; Thaddeus, Sept. 20, 1865, and Hattie M., Feb. 26, 1872. Mr. Eastman enlisted June, 1863, in the U.S. Navy as machinist, and served in the South Atlantic squadron under Admiral Dahlgren for three years. Mr. E. has held his present position as engineer at the State Deaf and Dumb Institute nearly four years.
EDMONDSON, ROBERT (deceased) was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, in 1809; his father by occupation a farmer, who died in the early infancy of Robert; like most of the Irish people in the neighborhood, it is probable the land he worked was held by lease; to his family he left but little property; when old enough, the care of a widowed mother devolved upon Robert, jr.; the mother dying in his early youth, he now had no other ties to bind him to the beautiful Isle of the Sea, and accordingly, in the Spring of 1833, accompanied by his wife, having united his fortunes to Miss Margaret Allen, he emigrated to America; in New York City and New Jersey he lived about twenty years; in New Jersey all of his children were born; in 1853, he left the Eastern States, where he had passed many years of his life as a business man, and traveled westward, and settled in Morgan County, on farm property; in time came an estate of 150 acres in the vicinity of Jacksonville; in 1865, his wife, in whose society he passed many happy years, died; five years later the aged husband also passed away, leaving a family of eight children: William, who married Miss Ann Blake; Amanda, who married John McKean, who died in the army; John, who married Miss Padgett; Robert jr., who still lives in single blessedness; Matilda, who married Judge Henderson of Winchester, Scott County; Henry, who married Nancy Baltimore; Sandyman, who married Miss Nancy Wright, and Joseph, who married Miss Sarah Dalrymple.
EDSON, MILO L. and A.F., renters, Sec. 12, P.O. Jacksonville, sons of Ely Edson, of Stowe, Lemoyle County, Vermont, a native of Vermont, born Dec. 10, 1812, and has resided in that State all his life; was married in 1836, to Celestia Luce, of Vermont, six children being the fruits of this union, viz.: Susan, Weltha, Walter, Mark, who died in Morgan County, Ill., May 4, 1876, Caroline, died Aug. 1853, and Alvaro; Mrs. Edson died 1851; Mr. Edson married again, Aug. 12, 1853, to Mary Pain, of Lemoyle County, Vermont; his union has been blessed by three sons, viz.: Milo L., born Sept. 15, 1854; A.F. and A.D. (twins), born Nov. 20, 1856; Mr. Edson has devoted his industries solely to agricultural pursuits during his whole life; homestead consists of 175 acres: Milo L. and A.F. Edson are now residents of this county, where they in company rent a farm, on the Meredosia road.
EDSON, WALTER A., farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 13, P.O. Jacksonville; born in Vermont Feb. 13, 1843; son of Ely and Selectra Edson, of Vermont; came to Morgan County in 1871, and has resided here since that time; married Nov. 14, 1873, to Lizzie, daughter of William and Jane Needham, of this county, formerly of England; born in this county June 25, 1852; this union has been blessed by one child: Allie C., born Nov. 28, 1874; rents 120 acres of land, and makes a specialty of the breeding of fine hogs of the Poland_China variety, of which he raises a large number, and has been quite successful.
EDWARDS, RICHARD M. carriage and wagonmkr. And general blacksmith, Elm St., Waverly. Was born in Mt. Vernon, Jefferson Co., Ill., Feb. 11, 1844; moved from there to Alton, Ill., in 1848, and came to Morgan Co. in 1856. Settled in Waverly in October 1876 and engaged in the above business. Was married Dec. 31, 1867, to Miss Mary E. Brown. She was born in Macoupin Co., Ill., May 1, 1839. They have three children living, namely: Daisy Dean, born June 22, 1872; Mary Blanche, born April 23, 1874; the other child, a girl, born the morning this was written. Mr. E. professed religion Dec. 18, 1866; was baptized by the Rev. W. P. Hart; a life-long Democrat.
EMMERSON, RICHARD W. farmer, Sec. 32, T. 16, R. 9, P.O. Jacksonville; was born in this county in 1844; went to Iowa in 1847, where he lived until 1870, when he returned to this county, and settled on the farm where he was born, and now lives; married Addie Swain, in 1872; she was born in this county, in 1849; have one child: Irvin T.
ENNIS, IRA D., farmer and stock raiser, P.O. Woodson; the subject of this sketch was born in Morgan County, about the year 1852; his parents were among the early settlers of Morgan; for many years young Ennis resided in Jacksonville, and there received his education; married Miss Ely; his father having purchased farm property, he turned his attention to farming, in which he bids fair to succeed.
EVANS, DAVID, farmer, Sec. 16, P.O. Lynnville; born in North Wales, Great Britain, Dec. 11, 1852; settled in Morgan County in 1856; was married to Anna Francis Murgatrioyd, Sept. 19, 1875; she was born in Troy, N.Y., Sept. 30, 1859; one son: John W., born May 4, 1876; one daughter, Mary Elizabeth, April 29, 1877; John Evans, his father, was born in North Wales, Great Britain, Feb. 14, 1826; he came to Morgan County in 1856; he married Elizabeth Reece; she was born in North Wales, May 29, 1826.
EVANS, GABRIEL, farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 7, P.O. Franklin; Mr. Evans was the oldest of four children; the father, Wm. H. Evans, married Miss Elizabeth Thomas; on the homestead of his father, Gabriel was born, April 30, 1817; in early youth he attended a subscription school, where the lessons were taught in a log cabin; the furniture, as described by Mr. Evans, consisted of rude wooden benches that required considerable agility on the part of the scholars to sit upright on them; logs were taken out the entire length of the building, admitting plenty of light, and making ventilation abundant; at the early age of fifteen, his mother moved to an adjoining county; he remembers many scenes of his early youth; for seven years he was employed on a farm, his sole pay being his board and six dollars in money; at twenty-two married Miss Elizabeth Kirby; for two years he rented property in Kentucky, and then moved to Ohio; worked his first month for thirteen dollars a month, then for several years he rented property, and then set out for Illinois in a covered wagon; after a month’s travel, he settled four miles south of Franklin, Morgan County, and wintered in a log cabin belonging to Sam Warner; the following spring he rented a farm of 80 acres, of Mrs. Governor Duncan, remaining two years; he then rented property of William Stevenson; two years he rented of Wisdom Wilburn; in the Autumn of 1850, he moved on to the property he purchased shortly after his arrival, from Dr. Moore; he bought an old log house and moved it from Mauvaisterre on to his farm; for five years he lived in this cabin, and then came frame houses. Mr. Evans being a very energetic man, became the owner of an estate comprising 480 acres, brought to a high state of cultivation. There are ten children, five living _ James William, Sarah M., Virginia M., George W., and Mary.
EVERETT, R. F. farmer and stock_raiser, Sec. 27, P.O. Waverly. Mr. Everett was the second son of Gamaliel and Nancy Everett. His father was a native of Sharon, Litchfield Co., Conn. Born in 1795, he married in Connecticut Miss Nancy Wood. Going back to the years that have passed, we find that his father was among the first to find a home in Connecticut; and what is somewhat remarkable, the property in possession of the grandfather for over a century, is still retained by a later generation. The mother of Mr. E. is still living, upward of eighty years of age. His father departed this life many years ago. The subject of this notice remained in Connecticut until he had attained his thirty_eighth year. He married, in 1851, Miss Ellen H. Curtis, a daughter of Erastus and Harriet, whose maiden name was Tanner. During the Spring of 1860, Mr. E. moved to Illinois, settling on the farm property now owned by R.C. Curtis. Renting two years, he then purchased the property he now owns consisting of 200 acres, farmerly 220. This fine property was originally purchased in small tracts. Mr. E. is one of our live, energetic men, who keeps pace with the public improvements of the day. The marriage of Mr. Everett to Miss Curtis was blessed with two children, Erastus C., born May 5, 1853; Adeline, born 1855.
EWING, WILLIAM H., blacksmith, P.O. Concord, born in Wheeling, Va., May 13, 1831; married Oct. 23, 1855, to Margaret Filey, who was born in Pennsylvania, Nov. 20, 1831. Have six children: Charles, Alexander H., William, Hattie, Susan Ann, and Robert C. Came to Logan Co. in 1837.
EYRE, JOHN, farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 19, P.O. Lynnville; the subject of this sketch was born in Yorkshire, England, March 14, 1803, and came to this country in 1843, landing in New York, and settled in this county the same year; thus may be considered an old settler of the county, and one whose interests are closely identified with its growth and improvements; married in Sheffield, Yorks, England, Feb. 15, 1835, to Ann Elliott, of Sheffield, who shared with her husband the perils and discomforts of a sea voyage, and the hardships incident to making a home in this new country, and died Aug. 23, 1875, aged 68 years; this union was blessed by four children, two of whom only survive: Alfred, born Dec. 13, 1836, died Sept. 30, 1839; Mary Ann, Nov. 4, 1840, now Mrs. C.S. Campbell, of Morgan County; Elizabeth, May 3, 1843, died July 8 of the same year, one day after arrival at New York; Benjamin E., July 3, 1844, now living in Morgan County; the homestead consists of 340 acres beautifully located and highly improved, wrought by the able management and industry of its owner, from the wild timber and brush land; owns considerable other land in this and Scott counties.