William Harry Coffman, justice of the peace, is one of the old timers of Champaign County, went from this locality into the War of the Rebellion, from which he returned a captain, and for more than half a century has been a farmer, business man and public official. Though his years now number fourscore, he […]
James J. Freeman, of Homer, represents the second generation of a family that has played a worthy part in the affairs of Champaign County for over sixty years, and he is managing with thrift and a high degree of prosperity a fine farm in the locality where he was born. Mr. Freeman was born in
John Francis McCabe. A man of broad usefulness and influence in the community was taken away in the death of John Francis McCabe. He stood high among all classes of people, was industrious, quiet in his manner, seldom attracting much attention beyond the borders of his own neighborhood, but wherever known was recognized for his
Boyd S. Blaine. A position of public trust is necessarily indicative of the man who fills it. When the duties of an office demanding a keen intellect, a never failing integrity and a capacity for hard and continuous labor are, for years, discharged so satisfactorily that popular vote confers them successively upon the same person,
Mrs. Mary A. Taylor has for many years had her home in Champaign County, and is now living on the old homestead farm at Penfield in section 30 of Kerr Township, where with the aid of her son she is carrying on the farm management left in her hands after the death of her husband.
Charles D. Babb. Established in 1900, the private banking house of Raynor & Babb, at Homer, Illinois, has enjoyed a prosperous existence of seventeen years, and through the financial ability, personal integrity and good management of its owners has grown to be a recognized institution among the concerns of Champaign County which are engaged in
Edward V. More. Of the families of Champaign County whose industry and activities of life have contributed materially to the prosperity and upbuilding of the community one of the most highly respected is that which bears the name of More, and which has a worthy representative in Edward V. More of Rantoul. Mr. More, who
Rollo Stewart Bassett is a lumberman of wide and thorough experience in both the manufacturing and business ends of the industry, and for the past ten years has been district manager of the Alexander Lumber Company, with headquarters at Champaign. Mr. Bassett was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, March 9, 1872, a son of Charles F.
Charles Christopher Liestman. There was a time when farm life in Illinois was one of continuous hard work and more or less social exclusion, but no better proof is needed to mark the change than is afforded in Newcomb Township, Champaign County, by such careful and progressive agriculturists as Charles Christopher Liestman. With a finely
Martin Orlando Stover. Farmers are the uncrowned kings of America today, and if they do not hold the political destiny of the country in their hands they are at least the custodians of the resources which are the most vital and necessary to the welfare and existence of the millions who live in the great
Among the younger generation of Rock Island’s prominent business men whose names are deserving of special mention for what they have achieved in their chosen vocations in life, stands that of Otto Huber, who is the present secretary and treasurer of the Rock Island Brewing Company, a Rock Island industry whose formation, growth and present
J. W. McCullough has long been a resident of Champaign County. His life’s activities have been expressed along different lines, as a successful agriculturist, a merchant, and in his later years, with greater opportunity for leisure, he is applying himself to the management, with his son, of a large business at Rantoul for the handling
George Cephus Williams. There is no citizen of Condit Township who more thoroughly enjoys the esteem and respect of his fellow citizens than George Cephus Williams. He is a native of Champaign County and has spent nearly all his active years here. He now occupies one of the best homesteads in the township, and his
Herman H. Buhs. Urbana Township, Champaign County, offers many examples of successful farming and no one could overlook, in this connection, the many richly cultivated acres that belong to the old Buhs homestead, 160 of which are under the direct care of Herman H. Buhs, one of the township’s most highly respected citizens. Herman H.
James B. Russell. During his long and active career in Champaign James B. Russell made his impress on the financial life of the city and was a business man implicitly trusted, and the success he won in material affairs was only a part of the splendid record of his entire life as a man and
Patrick Henry Cain. For many years one of the highly respected and substantial citizens of Philo Township, Mr. Cain has been chiefly identified with farming, and has not only provided well for his family but is regarded as one of the men of influence of his community. Though a resident of Champaign County since childhood,
Carl Henry Gehrke has been a resident of Champaign, for thirty-three years and many years ago he established a bakery which has grown and prospered, every year seeing additional equipment and increased trade, until the Gehrke Illinois Bakery now does an immense wholesale and retail business extending all over this section of Illinois. His business
Alba J. Flatt. In a business way Mr. Flatt has been most prominently known in the community of Leverett in Champaign County, when he has the finest grain elevator in this section of the state and where for many years he has been the active medium through which an important bulk of the local grain
John A. Clark. Among the numerous families of Champaign County whose activities have contributed materially to its upbuilding and the promotion of its best interests that of Clark stands prominent. Now living retired at Rantoul, Mr. John A. Clark spent the best years of his active career as a successful farmer, and he reared and
John Carl Wegeng has the good fortune to call Champaign County his home from birth to the present time, and his life’s activities have been chiefly expressed through the business of farming, in which he has made a notable success. Mr. Wegeng’s home is in Raymond Township, near the village of Bongard. Mr. Wegeng was
