he developed a farm, on which he still makes his
home. The mother of our subject died when he
w.as fifteen years of age, leaving eight children,
five of whom are now living: .John F., a resident
uf Will County, 111.; Frederick of this sketch;
Mrs. Elizabeth AVagner, who is living in Engle-
wood, 111.; August F., a farmer of Ash Grove
Township; and Anna, wife of W. H. Scheiwe, of
Will County. After the death of his first wife,
Mr. Meyer married Anna Salmon, and unto them
were born nine children. He and his famil^^ are
members of the Lutheran Church. He formerly
supported the Republican part}', but is now a
Democrat. His father resides with him and is
now ninety-two years of age, but his mental fac-
ulties are still unimpaired.
AVe now take up the personal history of our
subject, who was reared in Will Count}' amid the
wild scenes of frontier life. At the age of thir-
teen, he left home to attend school in Ft. Wayne,
Ind., and for five years was a student in Concordia
College, but was forced to abandon his studies on
.•iccount of typhoid fever, which affected his eye-
sight. Reading in subsequent years, combined
with his school privileges, has made him a well-
informed man, and he always keeps posted on the
current topics of the day.
On the 19th of December, 187.'), Mr. Meyer was
married to Miss Mary Lucke, daughter of August
I.ucke, one of the early settlers of this county.
F.ight children have been born unto them, as fol-
lows: Mar}', born April 11. 1877; Fred, December
17, 1878; Anna, November 17, 1880; William,
.January 1.3, 1883; Freda, May 12, 1885; Clara,
November 21, 1887; Helena, April 14, 1890; and
the baby, October 1, 1892. The children were
liorn in their present home and are being educated
in the public and German parochial schools.
Mr. Meyer entered upon his business career at
the age of twenty, being employed as clerk in a
store in Crete. He afterward served in the same
1 upficity in Chicago, and at the age of twenty-two
began business for himself in Woodworth. He is
a man of good business ability, enterprising and
progressive, and his career has been a successful
one. Himself and family are members of the
Lutheran Church, and he is Secretar}' of the con-
gregation. He took a prominent part in the build-
ing of the house of worship, of which he has ever
been a liberal supporter. He cast his first Presi-
dential vote for Samuel .1. Tilden, but has since
been identified with the Republican ])arty. He
held the office of Township Clerk for two years,
and since 1876 has been the efficient Postmaster
of Woodworth.- Mr. Meyer well deserves the high
regard in which he is held, for he is a man of
sterling worth and integrity.
Jt— ^ENRY W. NORTON. Among the wide-
jl/)|; awake and enterprising business men of
*i^ AVellington should be mentioned the gen-
(^) tleman whose name heads this sketch, who
for many j'ears h.as been connected with the lead-
ing interests of this place. He is the junior member
of the well-known firm of Pate A' Norton, grain
dealers.
Mr. Norton w.-ui born on the 1st of March, 1852,
in this State, and is a son of Charles and L^rsula
(Smith) Norton. On the maternal side he traces
his ancestry back to Rev. Henry Dunster, who was
the first President of Harvard College. From a
memoir of that gentleman the following is quoted:
"The name Dunster signifies a dweller upon a dun
or down, and is of Saxon origin. There is a mar-
ket town in Somersetshire, England, and a castle
there by that name, hence the origin of the family
crest: 'Diinster, out of the top of a tower, ar, an
arm emboss, vested gri, cuffed of the first, holding
a tilling spear, sa.' Rev. Henry Dunster was born
about 1610, and arrived in Boston toward the lat-
ter part of the summer of 1640. For a time he
resided on his own estate, at what is now the north-
east corner of Court and Washington Streets,
His reputation as an eminent scholar had evidently
preceded him, for immediately upon bis arrival Ue
222
PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
was waited on by the Governor, Magistrates, Eld-
ers and ministers and was asl<ed to remove to Cam-
bridge and assume tlie presidency of tlie college, a
position which he filled through much of his life.
He was a finished scholar in the Hebrew, Greek
and Latin languages. Thus fitted by education
and by several ^years' experience as a teacher, he
entered upon the work of organizing and conduct-
ing the college affairs. Harvard had been estab-
lished several yeai's before hut was little else than
an advanced school. Quincy, Pierce and Elliott,
the modern historians of Harvard College, have
recoided their testimonials as to the puritj' and
nobility of his character and his great success in
both the executive and the teaching departments
of the college. Rev. Shepherd, the pastor at Cam-
bridge, calls him, 'a man, pious, faithful and fit to
teach and very fit to lay the foundations of the
domestical affairs of the college.' "
The grandmother of our subject, Eliza Beniis,
was of the sixth generation in direct descent from
Rev. Henry Dunster. She was born August 3,
1804, and on the 19th of December, 1822, became
the wife of Lorin Smith, of Monkton, Vt. They
removed to Illinois in 1848. They had six chil-
dren, two sons and four daughters. Both sons
died when young. Of the daughters, Ursula, the
mother of our subject, was the third in order of
birth. She married Charles Norton, a Vermont
farmer. He was a native of the Green Mountain
State and followed agricultural pursuits for some
years, but has for many jears been engaged in the
grain business in AVataga, Knox County, 111. Both
parents are still living. They had three children,
the eldest of whom is our subject. Jennie is now
the wife of H. S. Magraw, a book-keeper of Helena,
Mont. Herrick is a telegraph operator on the
Santa Fe Railroad at Galesburg, 111.
We now take up the personal history of H. W.
Norton, whose boyhood days were spent in Knox
Count}', 111., he there residing until nineteen years
of age. • His educational advantages were those
afforded by the common schools, and bj' subsequent
reading, observation and experience he has become
a well-informed man, and keeps posted on all the
current events of the day. After starting out in
life for himself, lie worked for tlie Chicago. Bur-
lington & Quincj' Railroad for about two years.
In 1871, he left Knox County and removed to
Stark County, where he was again in the employ
of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, re-
maining with that company for a period of six
years. His long continuance with that corpora-
tion shows that he was faithful to the duties re-
posed in him, and had the full confidence of his
employers. It was the autumn of 1878 that wit-
nessed Mr. Norton's arrival in Wellington.- Here
he entered into partnership with S. C. Jack & Co.,
in the grain business, remaining a member of that
firm until he formed the present partnership with
Alexander Pate, their association covering a period
of ten consecutive j-ears.
In political sentiment, Mr. Norton is a Demo-
crat, and his first Presidential vote was cast for
Gen. W. S. Hancock. During President Cleve-
land's administration he served as Postmaster of
Wellington. Spcially, he is a member of the Ma-
sonic fraternitj', belonging to Star Lodge No. 709
A. F. (feA. M.; Chapter No. 139, R. A. M.; and
Mt. Olivet Commandery No. 38, K. T.,of Paxton.
During his long residence in Wellington he has
become widely and favorably known, and his many
excellencies of character have won for him the
warm regard of a large circle of friends and ac-
quaintances. By strict business principles and fair
dealing he has gained the confidence and good-
will of his many patrons, and has achieved a well-
merited success. He is numbered among the sub-
stantial citizens of the community.
TL=^ E^^KY KORITZ, one of the self-made men
of Irocjuois County, is a well-known fanner
'â– ^ and stock-raiser of Ridgeland Township.
He claims German}' as the land of his birth,
having been born near Hesse-Cassel June 16, 1838,
and is a son of Christopher and Mary Koritz.
The family of tills worthy couple numbered five
children, as follows: Conrad, who died in 1850;
Christopher, who is still living in German}';
Catherine, the wife of Christopher Pinkenburg,
also a resident v( the Fatherland; Sophia, who
PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
223
liecame the wife of Henry Pinkenbiu'g. and died in
1882; and our subject.
The subject of this siiotch is the youngest in the
family. He was reared to manhood in his native
land and his education was acquired in tlie public
schools, which he attended until fourteen 3-ears of
age. At the age of sixteen, he began earning his
(iwn livelihood. He learned the weaver's trade,
which he followed for a number of j'ears, or until
his emigration to America, in 1858. AVishing to
try his fortune in the New World, of whose ad-
vantages he had heard so much, he crossed the
Atlantic in a sailing-vessel, and after a voyage of
five weeks landed in New York City on the 4th of
Jul}', 1858. He did not remain long in the eastern
metropolis, but at once journeyed Westward to
Chicago, and thence went to Crete. Will County,
111. He had borrowed mone^- to bring him to
America and had again to borrow in Chicago
to bring him to Crete. He began work on a farm
at $8 per month, and was thus employed for a
period of five years, after which he rented land
for two years and engaged in farming on his own
account.
In the meantime, Mr. Koritz was married, June
18, 18G2, to Miss Anna (irod, daughter of John
Henry and Elizabeth (Jrod. liy their union has
been boi'n eight children, as follows: Henr}', who
is now engaged in Kidgeland Township; Elizabeth,
wife of Russell Chaffev, a resident farmer of Ford
County; John and Otto, both at home; Mary,
wife of .James Zee; Carl, Alfred and Amos, who
complete the family.
It was in 1865 that Mr. Koritz removed to this
county. He located in Ridgcland Township, and
purchased eighty acres of railroad land at $12 per
acre. There were no improvements whatever
upon the place, not a field having been planted or
even a furrow turned. He at once began the de-
velopment of this land, which he continued to
operate until 1880, when he removed to the beau-
tiful farm on which he now resides. Mr. Koi-itz is
one of the extensive land-owners of the commu-
nitj-, and in addition to the five hundred and
sixty acres of land on which he makes his home,
all situated in Kidgeland Town.-hip. he owns one
hundred and sixty acres in Eord County. A
glance at his farm indicates the thrift and enter-
prise of the owner. His fields are well tilled, and
yield to him abundant harvests; there are good
buildings and the place seems complete in all its
appointments. In connection with the cultivation
of his land. Mi'. Koritz carries on stock-raising,
making a specialty of the breeding of Polled-
Angus cattle.
Mr. Koritz and his family are all members of
the German Lutheran Church, and they are well-
known people of this community, who rank high
in social circles. In his political affiliations, our
subject is a Democrat, but has never been an office-
seeker, preferring t© devote his time and attention
to his business interests, in which he has met with
excellent success, owing to his perseverance and
well-directed energies. He is one of the leading
.and substantial farmers of the community, and
well deserves representation in the history of his
adopted county.
«#â–
â– â– ^>
yklLLIAM MI.SCH, who is engaged in gen-
/ eral merchandising in Milford and is a
prominent business m.an of that place,
was born in Russo, Germany, September 20, 1852.
His grandfather. Christian IMisch, was ninety
years of age at the time of his death. The parents
of our subject, August and Fredericka (Schultz)
Misch, were both natives of German}'. Emigrat-
ing to America, they became residents of Iroquois
County, where the father died in Februarj-, 1886.
The mother is still living, and makes her home in
Milford. Their farail}' numbered seven children,
as follows: August, born in Germany, in October,
1850, married Mrs. Aldret Gray, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Northrop, and lost his life while mining
in Rico, Colo., May 21, 1892. William, of this
sketch, is the next younger. Minnie, born in
1851, is the wife of Isaac N. Strickler, a resident
of Anselmo, near Broken Bow, Custer County,
Neb. They have five children: Cora, AVillie, Min-
nie, Henry and a baby. Rachael, who was born in
1856, is the wife of Joseph Vessels, also a resident
of Anselmo, Neb. Four childioii have been born
224
PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
of their uuion. Augusta, born in 1858, is the
wife of John C. Miller, by whom she lias a daugh-
ter. Eva. Louis, who was born in 1863, married
Disa McMillan, a sister of his brother William's
wife, and they have a little son about eighteen
mouths old. Dora, the youngest child, resides in
Milford with her mother.
We now take up the personal history of our
subject, who with his mother, brothers and sisters
came to America in childhood. The father had
previously crossed the Atlantic, in 1859, and after
a short residence in the Empire State, removed to
Illinois in 1862, making a permanent settlement
in Iroquois County. Here the children were all
reared to years of maturity. William acquired his
education in the common schools, and received
his business training in the store of Joseph Flech-
man, where he was engaged in clerking for four
years. He was afterward employed as a salesman
in the store of Daniel Fay, of Watseka, for a
period of six years. On the expiration of that
time lie returned to Milford and purchased the
grocery store owned by John A. Holmes. With
the assistance of his brother Louis, he carried on
that store for a year, and then admitted to part-
nership F. AV. Durvee, and put in a stock of
general merchandise. After a year he bought out
his partner's interest, and since that time has con-
ducted the business alone.
An important event in the life of Mr. Misch
occurred on the 28th of December, 1881, when he
led to the marriage altar Miss Ruby McJMillin,
daughter of Reason IT. and Martha McMillin, resi-
dents of Danville, 111. One child graces their
union, a daughter, Maud McJMilliu, who was born
March 1, 1886.
Mr. Misch is numbered among the prominent
and influential citizens of this communit}', as well
as one of its leading business men. He was
honored with the Office of Alderman for two
terras, was also Treasurer of Milford, and in 1890
was President of the School Board. The cause of
education has ever found in him a warm friend,
and diiring his connection with the School Board
he did much for its advancement. Himself and
wife are members of the Christian Church, in
which he fills the office of Deacon and Trustee,
They both take an active interest in church work,
and are earnest laborers in the Master's vineyard.
In his social relations, Mr. Misch is an Odd Fel-
low, holding membership with Farmers' Lodge No.
253, I. O. O. F.
Our subject is an enterprising and sagacious
man, and his business has grown from a small be-
ginning until he now has one of the largest stores
in the county. He carries a full and complete
stock, and by his industrious efforts, courteous
treatment of his customers, and fair and honest
dealing, he has secured a good trade. His mercan-
tile caieer he has conducted upon honest business
principles, depending on his own energies, judg-
ment and straightforward dealing for success, and
the liberal patronage which he now receives is cer-
tainly well deserved.
^ RANK L. HOOPER, the junior member of
â– {si' the well-known law firm of Morris &
/I}, Hooper, of Watseka, and a rising young
lawyer of that city, is a native of Iroquois County.
He was born in Belmont Township on the 21st of
April, 1864. His parents, John B. and Sarah M.
(Marter) Hooper, were early settlers of Iroquois
County, and a sketch of their lives is given else-
where in this work.
In 1871, Frank L. removed with his parents
to Danville, III., where he attended the Dan-
ville High School, and later read law with Tracj'
B. Harris, of Watseka. He subsequently took a
full law course in the University of Michigan, at
Ann Arbor, from which he was graduated. He
was admitted to the Bar when twentj'-one years of
age, and in that same year he formed a law part-
nership with T. B. Harris, and entered upon the
practice of his profession at Watseka. That con-
nection continued until broken b^- the death of
Mr. Harris. In January, 1891, our subject formed
the existing law partnership with the Hon. Free P.
Morris, under the firm name of Morris it Hooper.
On the 29th of September, 1891, Mr. Hooper
was united in marriage in AV^tseka with Miss
UWVERSnX Of WW
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S£^- Ji 4-^
Su
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LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
URBANA
rORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
229
Grace Willoiighby. Tlie lady was born in Wat-
seka, and is a daughter of Aaron and Nancy Wil-
loiigliby, who were among the early settleis of
this place.
In politics, Mr. Hooper is a Democrat. He has
never held a political office. For four years he
was attorney' for the city of Watseka, but accepted
the position only for the reason that it was in the
line of his chosen iirofession. He was a candidate
for .State's Attorney in 1888, and, although de-
feated, ran about four hundred votes ahead of his
ticket. The firm of ^lorris ct Hooper are proprie-
tors of the Watseka Electric Light plant, and are
interested in farm lands situated in Iro<iuois
CcHinty. Mr. Hooper is a Master Afason, holding
membership with Watseka Lodge No. 446, A. F.
iV: A. M. He has made his home in Watseka since
1881 , and has been in the active and successful prac-
tice of his profession for the past seven years. He
is a thorough student, possesses superior natural
legal talent, and is rapidly gaining prominence as
a successful lawyer. The firm of which he is a
member has an extensive practice and is classed
among the more important law firms of Eastern
Illinois.
REDERICK S. FRAZEE, is a representa-
tive farmer of Ridgeland Township, resid-
ing on section 15, where he has made his
home for the long ))eriod of twenty consecutive
years. He there owns and operates two hundred
and forty acres of arable land, wliich is under a
high state of cultivation and well-improved. He
carries on general farming and stock-raising and
is recognized as a successful business man. He is
methodical and systematic, practical and progress-
ive and success has attended his well-directed
efforts.
The life record of our subject is .is follows: A
native of New Jersey, he was born in Newark on
the 4tli of February, 1830. His parent* were
Turner and Martha (Meeker) Frazee. His father
was also a natjve of New Jersey, and was of French
descent. By trade he was a shoemaker. In 18;38.
19
he removed to Warren Count}', Ohio, where he re-
sided for nineteen years, when, in 1857, he came to
Illinois. He took up his residence in Ridgeland
Township, Iroquois County, upon a forty-acre
tract of land on section 7, which he purchased
from his son William, who pre-empted it from the
Government. To the occupation of farming he
devoted his energies throughout the remainder of
his life. His death occurred in 1881, and his wife
passed awa}' the year previous. Both were mem-
bers of the Bai)tist Church. The family of this
worth}- couple numbered ten children, as follows:
I\Iary, who died in 18.36; William, a valiant sol-
dier of Company D, One Hundred and Thirteenth
Illinois Infantry, died in 1864 at Camp Butler,
.Springfield, from disease contracted in the Yazoo
Bottoms near Vicksburg, Miss., having served over
two years; Aaron, a farmer and bl.acksmith resid-
ing near Franklin, AVarren County, Ohio; Fred-
erick, who was a twin brother of Aaron and died
in infancy; James, who enlisted for the late war in
August, 1862, served over a year as a private of
Company D, One Hundred and Thirteenth Illinois
Infantry, and is now engaged in farming in Mich-
igan; Sarah E., who died in 1850; Julia, wife of
John McMillan, a farmer residing near Chats-
worth, Livingston County, 111.; Lewis D., who is
engaged in agricultural pursuits in Ridgeland
Township; and John T., also a farmer residing in
Ridgeland Township.
Our subject spent the first eight years of his life
in the city of Newark, N. J., and in Essex County,
and then accompanied the family on their removal
to Ohio, after whicii he was reared to manhood
ui)on a farm. The common schools afforded him
his educational privileges and he remained at home
with ills parents until he had attained his major-
ity, when he started out to earn his own liveli-
hood. This he did by workin,' for a year as a
farm hand at !j>6 per month. He then, operated a
farm on shares until 1855, when he left the
Buckeye .State and came to L'oquois Count}-, III.
Here he purch.ased eighty acres of railroad land on
section 18, Ridgeland Township, making his home
thereon, until 1872, when he leased one hundred
and sixty acres of land on section 15, for eleven
years. ( »n the px|)irMtioii of the lease iie ))urchased
230
i^RTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
the same, and since that time he has extended the
boundaries of his farm until now two hundred and
forty acres of rich land yield to him a golden
tribute in return for his care and cultivation.
On the 19th of November, 1868, Mr. Frazee mar-
ried Miss Ellen, daughter of John and Mary
(Bowron) Furb}'. Mrs. P'razee was born July 15,
1843, in Darlington. County of Durham, England.
Her father was born at Reading, Berkshire, Eng-
land, and her mother in Durham. In 1857, they
sailed with their familj" of children to America.
The first ten years were spent in Raysville, Henry
County, Ind. In 1867, they came to RidgeLand
Township, where the wife died in February, 1870,
being flftj'-seven years old. Since 1880, her hus-
band has made his home in Atlanta, Ga. Should
he live till Febiuary 3, 1893, he will be eighty years
old. All his children, six girls and two boys, are
living. In England Mr. Furby was a merchant,
in Indiana he followed the nurserj' business, and
after coming to Illinois he farmed. B_v this union
have been born six children, three sons and three
daughters: Arthur, Louise, Edith, Clara, John and
Frederick. Edith is now engaged in teaching
school. The familv is well known in this com-
munity, and its members rank high in the social
circles in which they move.
Mr. Frazee manifested his loyalty to the Gov-
ernment during the late war bj' responding to the
call for troops. He enlisted on the 6th of August,
1862, as a private of Company D, One Hundred
and Thirteenth Illinois Infantry, and was mus-
tered into service at Chicago. He went from there
to Cairo and thence down the Mississippi River to
Memphis, Tenu., and on to Vicksburg, where he
served as guard on a Government boat. He after-
ward was engaged in guarding prisoners which
were sent to Springfield, HI., and was camp guard
in that city until 1864, when he went Soutii to
Memphis, Tenn., with the troops. He participated
in the battle of Guntown, Miss., on the 10th of
June, 1864, and was shot in the lower jaw on the
right side by a minic-ball, whicli carried away two
inches of the bone, then passed through his neck.
He was taken to Overton Hospital, where he re-
mained until 1865. Ere his discharge he was pro-
moted to the rank of Corporal, When the war
was over and the country no longer needed his'
services, he was mustered out as one of the valiant
soldiers who had faithfully defended the Union in
its hour of peril. He is now a member of W. A.
Babcock Post No. 416, G. A. R., of Onarga, and
in politics is a stanch Republican, warmly advo-
cating the principles of that party. He has held
the offices of Road Commissioner and School
Trustee. In religious belief he, his wife and three
oldest children are Baptists, holding membership
with the church in Oilman. He is alike true to
every public and private trust and the county
numbers him among its valued citizens.
•~i-
=m>^<^^
tON. FREE P. MOKRIS, senior member of
I the firm of Morris A Hooper, of Watseka.a
leading law firm of Iroquois Count}', wiis
^^ born in the town of Bloom, Cook County-,
111,, on the 19th of March, 1854, and is a son of
Charles and Sarah (Thomas) Morris. His father
was born in Philadelphia, Pa., in 1820, In his
native State he married Miss Sarah Tliomas, who