History of Lee County, Illinois - Bushnell Historical Society

HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY 179
of the Union, he entered his father's law office and subsequently
practiced in association with him for a period of twenty years, the
firm being known as W. E. Ives & Son. Since 1908 he has prac-
ticed his profession independently and has been accorded a liberal
and lucrative clientage. His birth occurred in Pavilion, Kendall
county, llliuois, on the 14th of October, 1842, his parents being
William E. and Susan (Ryan) Ives. The father remained an able
and successful representative of the legal profession in Amboy
from 1854 until his death more than a half century later. During
that period he was honored by election to the position of state's
attorney and also served as mayor of Amboy. His demise oc-
curred in 1908, when he had attained the venerable age of eighty-
seven and a half years, while his wife was called to her final rest
in 1883, at the age of sixty-two years. The remains of both were
intei'red in Amboy. Representatives of the Ives family, which is
of English origin, came to the United States at an early period in
the histor}^ of this country. A Mr. Bingham, brother of the greatgrandmother
of our subject, served under Colonel Ethan Allen in
the Revolutionary struggle.
In the acquirement of an education Charles E. Ives attended
school at Mount Morris, Illinois, and later pursued liis studies in
the Chicago Univei'sity, leaving that institution in ]862, however,
in order to join the linys in lihie in their defense of the Union. In
June of that year he became a member of the Sixty-ninth Illinois
Volunteer Regiment and in 1864 reenlisted in the One Hundred
and Forty-sixth Illinois Infantry, serving with the latter command
until the cessation of hostilities. He proved a brave and valorous
soldier and returned home with a creditable military record.
Having determined upon the legal profession as a life work, he en-
tered the law office of his father and eventually became his part-
ner, practicing in association with him under the firm style of
W. E. Ives & Son for a period of twenty years. Since 1908 he
has practiced independently at Amboy. His success in a pro-
fessional way affords the best evidence of his capabilities in this
line. He is a strong advocate with the jury and concise in his
appeals before the court. Much of the success which has at-
tended him in his professional career is undoubtedly due to the
fact that in no instance will he permit himself to go into court
with a case unless he has absolute confidence in the justice of
his client's cause. Basing his efforts on this principle, from which
there are far too many lapses in professional ranks, it naturally
follows that he seldom loses a case in whose support he is enlisted.