Pgs 412-686 - Illinois Ancestors

OF VAL I. G s TOWNSI L IP. 611
in inercantile life until his cleath, in 1578. His midolv resides at Champaign,
Ill., since 1880. Mrs. Willuot shared the travels ancl fortur e3
of the fi~inily until 1863, w\.]len she m:trried Asahel Wilmot, of Steuben
county, N. ky. lIe u7as the son of Stephen I3. and Eetsy (Clawson)
Wilmot. At the age of tllirteen years Ile came to IUarshall county, Ill.,
wit11 his parents. In IS52 his brother, brother-in-law ;and hiinself
clbossed the plains to Californi:~, inet ~vitli disal~pointments, and turned
his steps to~varcl the sil\~~r iilines of Mexico, but 11-ou1d not be allowed
entrance with firearms. Returning on foot to Chlifonlin. raisecl.a crop
of wheat whicll was rnstetl so badly that lle tnrnetl in a drove of hogs
to fatten, but bears cnlne ancl carried the llogs off. He then engaged
in sl~litting rails, ailti in IS57 left bl~e " gplden land," coming.ho~ne via
the istlullus, the Mississippi antl Illinois rivers. Ile rellltl~necl on a
farm in La Prairie until 1861, when lle enlisted in Co. G, Forty-seventh
Illinois In fantry, and serretl at 611 iloh ant1 in all subseqneut actions
for fourteen inontlls, receiving llonorable clischar~e October 15, 1S62.
In the fall of 1NiB he purcllxsecl eighty acres in 1 alley, and after his
inariainge nri tll Miss Iliclrer, in Kovember, 1SIi3, set tletl here. After
nine years he relnoved to iiis Chillicothe farin, but in IS78 returi~ed to
~a.ll;~, ant1 died Ja.nuary 19, 1SS1, at his home, where the faillily still
reside. Of eight children born t,o the~n, Asahel C., Lillie B., Anlbrosia
I)., Fred L., Royal W., Cla~vson BI., Ethan A., are at home ; Willie R.
is nnmbe~ecl with the clead. This large faillily has held an important
cllace in the history of Stark for allnost a quarter of a century, and
since its youtll the Wihnots ancl nickers were known here.
Srcm~cel TfTG~iyley, son of Edalund ancl Alice (IIo\\rarth) Wrigley, was
born at Hooleybriclge, England, in 1830. There he first ~vorlted in the
cotton factories: antl aftarwarcl learned the blaclismith ant1 nlachinjst's
t~acle. In 1853 he came to the Ui~itecl States, ancl settling at Wyoming,
followecl for five years his trade. In 1$5S he moved to his farm
on section 6, Valley to~~nsh ip, TI-\-here his home has since been made.
Before leaving Englal~tl he was marriecl to Miss Eetsy, clnughter of
JOS. Gamed. Two years later she joined her hnsbancl in America ; to
hcr five children were born here and here s11e died, in 1868, as related
in other pages. Mr. Wrigley,~~~\-as lunrrietl to Miss Joanna E.
Amstrong. They are the palaents of six children. Politically, he is a
Re~uls1ic:~n. In tovvnsnil) matters lle has for about thirty years been
prom inen t, having held the posi ti ous of assessola an tl treasurer of tlhe
township, and scllool treasurer, filling all mi t 11 credit to hinlself a.nd
the townsllil.. He is a member of the M;tsonic fraternity. For fifteen
years he has been ellgagetl in stoclc-g~aowing, ant1 has converted his farm
of 320 acres from the milcl prairie which it was w\-hen 11e nlovetl upon
it, into one of the finest antl lllost protluctive tracts of which his
township can boast. . IIis llo~ne is modern in style and conveniences.