History of Lee County, Illinois - Bushnell Historical Society

410 HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
county from Boston, Massachusetts, in 1874, and the father, who
was a merchant tailor, made that business his life work, passing
away in 1896. The mother still survives and yet makes her home
in Dixon.
Trank J. CahiU, the sixth in order of birth in a family of thirteen
children, pursued a public-school education, passing through
the consecutive grades until graduated from the Dixon high
school. He then joined his father and was connected with the
tailoring business for a short time. He also spent a brief period
in connection with the shoe trade but in 1898 entered the employ
of the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company, with which he con-
tinued to the time that the business was sold to the Borden inter-
ests in 1902. Gradually he has worked his way upward in this
connection, thoroughly mastering all of the duties that have de-
volved upon him until he is now office manager and is recognized
as a most efficient, capable and trustworthy man for the position.
On the 19th of June, 1912, Mr. Cahill was united in marriage
to Miss Elizabeth Clark, of Dixon. They are members of the
Catholic church and he belongs also to the Knights of Columbus
and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. In politics he takes
an advanced stand in opposition to monopoly rule and to party
management by machine bosses. He is allied with the progressive
party and he is ever fearless in espousing his honest convictions.
While a busy man he yet finds time for cooperation in plans and
projects for the public good.
ANDREW GEHANT.
Andrew Gehant owns a farm of one hundred and twenty-two
acres on section 5, Brooklyn township, and is numbered among the
substantial and progressive agriculturists of the community, hav-
ing by his sound business judgment and practical methods sur-
I'ounded himself with a gratifying degTee of prosperity. He was
born in Lee coimty on the farm which he now owns in 1869 and is
a son of Laurent and Julia (Tonllian) Gehant, the former of
whom came from France in 1854, settling at Lee Center, where
he wor'ked in a stone quarry. He afterward moved to Shelby
county, where he purchased land, engaging in agricultural pursuits
there for ten years. Tn 1866 he returned to Lee county and
bought a farm in West Brooklyn, whereon he made his home until