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OTHER BIOGRAPHICAL INDEXES:
Source:
PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL
RECORD ALBUM
of
VERMILION COUNTY, ILLINOIS
containing
Full Page Portraits and Biographical Sketches of
Prominent
and Representative Citizens of the County.
together with
Portraits and Biographies of all the Governors of the
State, and
of the Presidents of the United States
Publ: Chicago
Chapman Brothers.
1889
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JOSIAH SANDUSKY,
one of the prominent farmers in this section of Illinois, and
one whose operations as a stockman are among the first in this
great State, owns and occupies 1,000 acres of land in Carroll
Township, where he handles all kinds of stock and fine road and
trotting horses. His stock dealings embrace the best
strains of blood that can be procured, and in his selections he
is aided by great experience and a natural aptitude for the
business.
His father and mother, Abraham and Jane (McDowell)
Sandusky, were natives of Bourbon County, Ky., the former's
birth occurring on Mar. 29, 1793, while the mother was born on
Dec. 16, 1792. The grandparents were among the brave
pioneers whose fortitude aided in the settlement of Kentucky,
and who were constantly in peril by reason of the desperate red
men of that region being particularly troublesome. The
Sandusky family contains what is commonly known as "blue blood,"
as it descended from the nobility of Poland. The original
Sodowsky, as he spelled and pronounced his name, was a
distinguished nobleman of that country, and by reason of his
desire to aid the downtrodden, he was forever banished from his
native land. He came to America in 1756, and soon was a
great favorite with the American colonists. He married the
sister of Gov. Inslip, of Virginia, and later on, while
in the vicinity of Lake Erie, was brutally murdered by the
Indians, who had been imposed upon by the whites, and in the
fury of their revenge attacked the first white man they met.
This happened to be Sodowsky, their best friend.
They regretted their deed very much, and, in order to partly
alone for the crime, sought to show their respect to their
murdered friend by naming a bay in Lake Erie "Sandusky,"
from which was named the Ohio city. The mother's people
were early settlers and patriots of this country, and the
McDowell's were a leading family of Kentucky.
The parents of Josiah had five children when
they emigrated to Illinois in 1837, where they settled on the
land now owned by the subject of this sketch. The old
cabin still stands close to its original site, which was where
the magnificent mansion, erected by Josiah in 1872, now
stands. The parents continued to prosper for a long time,
and were indeed model farmers. Their memory will be
cherished by all their acquaintances as noble people. The
father died in1865, while the mother passed away a year
previous. Eight children were left to mourn their loss,
whose names are herewith given: Harvey, Elizabeth,
Polly, Agnes (who died young), William, Abraham, Euphemia
Jane, and Josiah. Harvey was the
only one of the children who spelled his name in the Polish
manner, the rest changing it to Sandusky.
Josiah Sandusky was born in this county on Sept.
11, 1837, and in the township where he now resides he grew to
manhood. His father was a most industrious man, and he
expected his boys to follow his footsteps in this regard.
At the age of six years Josiah was afflicted with the
white swelling which crippled him in his left leg. He
attended the schools of the township and his education was
gained from this source. He succeeded to the management of
the farm of 500 acres given him by his father.
Josiah Sandusky was married Dec. 18, 1873, to
Miss Susan Moreland, who is a daughter of Thomas and
Catherine (Hedges) Moreland, of English ancestry. The
latter came to Illinois in 1857, settling in Carroll Township,
and were the parents of eight children, who lived to be men and
women. Their names follow: Mary E., Margaret
Susan, Fannie, William, Peter H., John, Carrie, and
Katie. Mrs. Sandusky was a native of Bourbon County,
Ky., and removed to Illinois with her parents when she was a
little girl of six. She attended the Sister's School at
St. Mary's, near Terre Haute, where she acquired a fine
education, and is an accomplished lady. Before his
marriage Mr. Sandusky erected a brick mansion, upon which
he spent $20,000 in building and in beautifying the grounds, and
since that time he has added 500 acres to his farm, making it
the most valuable place in this part of the county. His
father was a great stockman, and his inclinations all tended to
the breeding of fine stock. So it will be seen that the
subject of this sketch inherited his love for the business in
which he is now engaged. He keeps constantly on hand a
large herd of thoroughbred cattle and horses, which he exhibits
at the fairs, generally securing prizes and honors. He has
sold cattle for breeding purposes in nearly every State in the
Union, and his mind does not run to cattle alone. He is a
good judge of horses, and owns many fine animals that are prize
winners, his specialty being road animals and trotters. He
has several horses whose record reaches below 2:20. Sheep,
swine, and poultry are also seen on this magnificent estate.
The allurements clustering around official position
have never had any charms for Mr. Sandusky, and while he
is a thoroughgoing, aggressive Republican, he never permits
politics to interfere with his business in any manner.
Mr. and Mrs. Sandusky are the parents of five
children, three living, named: Pearl, born Jan. 22, 1878;
Abraham J., Oct. 2, 1883; and William H., May 27,
1880. Two died unnamed.
Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois
- Publ.: Chicago:
Chapman Brothers
- 1889 - Page 747PER
ANOTHER SOURCE:
JOSIAH SANDUSKY. Josiah was the eighth child of
Abraham and Jane Sandusky. He was born Sept. 11, 1837,
in Vermilion County. Like his brothers, he was a very
successful businessman, probably the most successful member of
the family. When Josiah was six years old, he had
the misfortune to come down with a sickness known as the "white
sweling." The result was a lame left leg for the rest of
his life. Being a cripple must be slowed him down a bit,
but he made up for it by cultivating a great memory.
Josiah went to the same schools as his brothers and while
there developed a great love of reading and became knowledgeable
in many subjects. He amassed an extensive library over his
lifetime where he spent all his free time.
Josiah was also interested in farming and
raising livestock and spent his entire working career in
agriculture. He lived at home working on his father's farm
until his father died in1865. Josiah was
twenty-five years old at the time and inherited five hundred
acres from his father. After his father died, Josiah
and his brother Abraham became partners for a number of
years. Josiah raised duchess cattle. I
have never heard of this breed before. Josiah's
herd of duchess cattle was one of the biggest and best in the
country. So good, in fact, that he sold cattle to buyers
from all over the country and Canada. Josiah also
raised racehorses. He was a familiar sight at local fairs
where he showed cattle and horses, usually winning. Over
time, Josiah expanded the size of his farm and owned one
thousand acres when he died in 1901. It was one of the
most valuable farms in the area.
Josiah married Margaret Moreland on Dec.
18, 1873. She happened to be born in Bourbon County,
Kentucky, the old stomping grounds of the Sandusky clan.
Her family settled in Vermilion County in 1857. Before
they were married, Josiah built her a mansion at the cost
of twenty thousand dollars. Josiah and Margaret
were the parents of five children. Two died in early
childhood. The other three were Pear William, and
Abraham. Josiah considered himself a family man,
and spending time with his family always brought him much joy.
Josiah helped build the village of Catlin when
he platted out the western part of town in 1858. Like the
rest of the family, he was a member of the Republican party.
He died on February 13, 1901. The Past and Present of
Vermilion County, Illinois writes that Josiah was an
"upright, honorable man who always lived at peace with his
neighbors and was trustworthy in all life's relations." It
also goes on to say that his "name was untarnished by any
unworthy act."
Source: Polish Pioneers in Illinois
1818-1850 - Pg. 43 |
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DAVID R. SMITH
Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois -
Published: Chicago: Chapman Brothers - 1889 - Page 741 |
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F. P. SMITH
Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois -
Published: Chicago: Chapman Brothers - 1889 - Page 620 |
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Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois -
Published: Chicago: Chapman Brothers - 1889 - Page 620 |
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GEO. W. SMITH
Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois -
Published: Chicago: Chapman Brothers - 1889 - Page 328 |
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GEORGE W. SMITH
Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois -
Published: Chicago: Chapman Brothers - 1889 - Page 728 |
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JOHN E. SMITH is
classed among the able and highly intelligent young farmers of
Vermilion County, who are active in sustaining and extending its
great agricultural interests. His well appointed farm on
section 26, Pilot Township, is in all respects finely improved,
and compares well with cattle, horses and hogs of fine grades
and he is cultivating it, with good results so as to make money.
he is a native born citizen of this county, Dec. 3, 1854, being
the date of his birth. His father, George G. Smith, was
born in Muskingum County, Ohio, Aug. 31, 1828, and he came to
this county in company with his parents, who were of German
antecedents and birth, in 1836. They thus became the
pioneers of Vermilion County, and were respected residents here
till death closed their earthly career, the grandfather of our
subject dying in 1861, and the grandmother in 1842. The
following is recorded of the nine children born to the parents
of our subject: Elizabeth married George Wilson,
of Ohio, now a farmer of Blount Township, and they have two
children: Elias D., a farmer of Blount Township,
married Clara Smith and they have three children;
Sarah lives with her parents; Eva married Andrew
Lanham, of Blount Township, now of Ross Township, and they
have one child; Wesley, a farmer married Emma Sperry,
of Blount Township, and they have one child; Marshall,
Woodard and Josephine are the others.
John Smith received the preliminaries of a sound
education in the public schools, which he attended till he was
twenty-one years old, and then being ambitious to advance still
farther in his studies, he attended the State Normal School,
where he pursued an excellent literary course that thoroughly
fitted him for the profession of teaching that he afterward
adopted. He was successfully engaged at that vocation
eight years, but after marriage he abandoned it to give his
attention to agriculture, and bought eighty acres of finely
improved farming land. He subsequently sold that and
purchased his present farm of 160 acres of land equally good,
and well adapted to general farming. It is under high
cultivation, and is provided with a comfortable, conveniently
arranged set of farm buildings.
Mr. Smith has much financial capacity, is
endowed with good mental qualities that have been stimulated by
a liberal education, and he carries on his farming operations
with intelligent skill that will one day place him among the
wealthy and substantial citizens of this township, if he
prospers as he has heretofore done. In his politics he is
an ardent champion of the Democrat party, and has been since the
days when he cast his first vote for Samuel J. Tilden,
the great New York statesman, his last vote for president being
in favor of Grover Cleveland.
The marriage of Mr. Smith
with Miss Mary E. Firebaugh, of Blount Township, occurred
Mar. 25, 1876. She was born Dec. 11, 1853, in the
aforementioned township, her parents being William R. and
Melvia (Flora) Firebaugh, the father being of German
descent. They emigrated from Ohio to Indiana, and thence
to Illinois. The mother departed this life in 1872.
The father still resides in this county. They were the
parents of five children: Curtis married Christina
Porter, of this county, and they have two children:
Elizabeth married George Snyder, of this county, now
living in Oakwood Township, and they have two children:
Robert, a farmer, married Leo Fairchilds, of Blount
Township, and they have two children. Emma married
Milton Fairchilds, of Blount Township. The
following is the record of the five children born to the
pleasant wedded life of Mr. and Mrs. Smith:
Irvin W., was born June 3, 1877; Edwin R., Jan. 23,
1879; Alfred G., Jan. 9, 1881; Everett J., Sept. 5
1884; Alga, Nov. 6, 1886.
Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois -
Published: Chicago: Chapman Brothers - 1889 - Page 218 |
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R. B. SMITH
Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois -
Published: Chicago: Chapman Brothers - 1889 - Page 670 |
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PHOTO |
WILLIAM SMITH
Source: Portrait and
Biographical Album of Vermilion County, Illinois -
Published: Chicago: Chapman Brothers - 1889 - Page 461 |
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