This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.illinois.counties.sangamon/1239.1725/mb.ashx Message Board Post: I am a descendant of McKinnie and have this information that may be of interest to you. Descendants of Jonathan R. Saunders Generation No. 1 1. Jonathan R.2 Saunders (Gunnell1)1 was born February 17, 1802 in Fleming county, KY.1, and died Aft. 1883. He married Sarah McKinnie1 December 18, 1823 in Fleming county, KY.1, daughter of Lewis McKinnie and Nancy Saunders. She was born January 16, 1801 in Fleming county, KY.1, and died 1883 in Springfield, Sangamon County, IL. Notes for Jonathan R. Saunders: Resides with wife 2 miles north of Springfield, IL and have lived within 2 miles of their present residence of 52 years. 1881 HISTORY OF SANGAMON COUNTY, ILLINOIS Inter-State Publishing Company Chicago, Illinois, 1881 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Page 713 JONATHAN R. SAUNDERS, was born February 17, 1802, in Fleming county, Kentucky; and the son of Gunnell Saunders, who was born July 27, 1783, in Louden county, Virginia, of English ancestry. His parents emigrated to the vicinity of Lexington, Kentucky, and a year or two later moved to Fleming county, in the same State. Mary Mauzy, his wife, was born April 15, 1784, in Fauquier county, Virginia; her parents were of French descent; moved to Bourbon county, Kentucky; they were married in 1801, and had a family of seven children. He was a soldier from Fleming county in the war of 1812, and afterwards moved his family to Sangamon county, Illinois, arriving May 10, 1828, and settled four miles north of Springfield, where they resided for a number of years. Gunnell Saunders and his wife moved from Springfield, Illinois, to Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, in the summer of 1846. Hon. E. D. Baker, of Ball's Bluff fatal memory, with whom Mr. Saunders was on terms of most intimate friendship, visited! Mt. Pleasant, and made a speech in favor of the election of General Taylor. Mr. Saunders took Colonel Baker in his carriage to Ottumwa, and on the morning of October 26, 1848, bade him adieu and left for home. He was found about two miles from Ottumwa, in his carriage, dead, with the lines so adjusted as to bring the carriage on a cramp. Gunnell Saunders was about sixty miles from home, but his remains were taken to Mt. Pleasant for interment. His widow continued to live there until October 18, 1851, when she died from the effects of a dose of arsenic carelessly put up by a druggist in place of morphine. Jonathan R., who was the first son of the preceding, was married December 18, 1823, to Sarah McKinnie. They moved to Sangamon county, Illinois, arriving November 28, 1824, at Springfield. He entered the land on which the Sangamon county fair is held, two miles north of Springfield, and moved there in 1828. His family consisted of six children, of the number, two living and! four deceased. JONATHAN R., born Feb. 17, 1802, in Fleming county, Ky., was married there Dec. 18, 1823, to Sarah McKinnie. They moved to Sangamon county, Ill., arriving Nov. 28, 1824, at Springfield. He entered the land on which the Sangamon county fair is held, two miles north of Springfield, and moved there in 1828. They had six children in Sangamon county. GUNNELL A., born Jan. 13, 1825, died in his second year. LEWIS A., born Dec. 27, 1826, in Springfield, was trained to mercantile pursuits in Col. John Williams' store, in Springfield. When gold was discovered in California, he formed a partnership with Samuel Fisher, who for several years had lived with Mr. Saunders. Lewis A. Saunders and Samuel Fisher left Springfield early in 1849, as part of a company of sufficient magnitude for safety. They reached their destination and engaged in mining and selling provisions to the miners on South Feather river. Mr. Saunders wrote to his parents regularly once a month. In a letter written to th! em early in April, 1850, he reported himself well and in a prosperous condition. That was the last communication his friends ever received from him. His partner, Mr. Fisher, went to Sacramento on business for the firm, and Mr. Saunders was last seen by a Rev. Mr. Mayfield, and a blacksmith from St. Joseph, Mo., April 8, 1850. Neither of those men could say whether it was before or after his partner left for Sacramento. All that his parents ever received from his effects was about two hundred dollars in gold dust, much less than he took with him. Samuel Fisher returned a few months later, and is now--1874--a wealthy farmer and manufacturer at Brooklyn, Schuyler county, Ill. ASBERRY H., born Nov. 7, 1828, in Springfield, was married Oct. 20, 1856, at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, to Marcia E. Underwood, who was born Feb. 7, 1837, at Portage, Ohio. They had four children; three died young. HELEN, born June 2, 1863, lives with her father. Mrs. Marcia E. Saunders died Sept. 30, 1874. Mr. ! Saunders has farming done in Arkansas, and lives in Springfield, Ill. MARTHA A. and FRANCES died in infancy. MILTON, born Oct. 3, 1836, near Springfield, was married Jan. 3, 1861, to Anna E. Edwards, who was born April 29, 1840, in Salem, N. J. They had three children. CORA died in infancy. Mrs. Anna E. Saunders died June 30, 1863, leaving two children, NELLIE E. and FRANCES S., who live with their father. Milton Saunders was married Aug. 28, 1872, to Martha E. Beeley, who was born of English parentage, Aug. 31, 1842, at Concord, Morgan county, Ill. They have two children, LILLIE and MARCIA. Milton Saunders and family live at his father's house, two miles north of Springfield--1874. Mr. Saunders is a deaf mute, caused by disease, and his present wife was so from her birth. They were both educated at the State Institution at Jacksonville. All his children can hear and converse. Jonathan R. Saunders was a licutenant in a light-horse company from Sangamon county in the Winnebago war of 1826 and '7, and captain of the same company in the Black Haw! k war of 1831. He was one of the board of officers who made the treaty with Black Hawk, which the latter violated and caused the war of 1832. J. R. Saunders and wife reside two miles north of Springfield, Ill., and have lived within two miles of their present residence 52 years. More About Jonathan R. Saunders: Fact 3: 1826, Was a Lt. in a light horse brigade co. from Sangamon Cty. in the Winnebago War.1 Fact 4: 1831, Was a Captain of the same co. in the Black Hawk War1 Fact 5: 1831, He was one of the board officers for the treaty.1 Military: November 28, 1824, Arrived in Springfield, IL.1 Residence: 1828, Moved to where the Sangamon Cty Fair was held, 2 miles N of Spfld. IL.1 More About Sarah McKinnie: Comment 1: November 18, 1824, Came to Springfield, IL Comment 2: November 28, 1824, Arrived in Sangamon County, Springfield, IL.1 Military: 1828, Moved to where the Sangamon County Fair was held. 2 miles N of Spfld, IL.1 Religion: Member of the Christioan Church. Residence: Lived on the corner of Sixth and Carpenter in Springfield, IL More About Jonathan Saunders and Sarah McKinnie: Marriage: December 18, 1823, Fleming county, KY.1 Children of Jonathan Saunders and Sarah McKinnie are: 2 i. Gunnell A.3 Saunders1, born January 13, 1825 in Sangamon County, IL1; died Abt. 1827 in Sangamon County, IL1. 3 ii. Lewis A. Saunders1, born December 27, 1826 in Springfield, Sangamon County, IL.1; died Unknown. Notes for Lewis A. Saunders: More information in the book of EARLY SETTLERS OF SANGAMON COUNTY. More About Lewis A. Saunders: Occupation: Trained in mercantile pursuits in Col. John Williams store, Spfld. IL Residence: 1849, Left for California in the gold rush.1 4 iii. Asberry H. Saunders, born November 07, 1828 in Springfield, Sangamon County, IL.; died Unknown. 5 iv. Martha A. Saunders1, born Unknown; died Bef. 18361. 6 v. Frances Saunders1, born Unknown; died Bef. 18361. 7 vi. Milton Saunders, born October 03, 1836 in Near Springfield, IL.; died Unknown. Generation No. 2 4. Asberry H.3 Saunders (Jonathan R.2, Gunnell1)1 was born November 07, 1828 in Springfield, Sangamon County, IL.1, and died Unknown. He married Marcia E. Underwood1 October 20, 1856 in Mount Pleasant, Ohio1. She was born February 07, 1837 in Portage, Ohio1, and died September 30, 18741. Notes for Asberry H. Saunders: PAST AND PRESENT OF THE CITY OF SPRINGFIELD AND SANGAMON COUNTY ILLINOIS By Joseph Wallace, M. A. of the Springfield Bar The S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., Chicago, IL 1904 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Page 446 ASBERRY H. SAUNDERS. - There is particular satisfaction in reverting to the life history of the honored and venerable gentleman whose name initiates this review, since his mind bears the impress of the historic annals of the state of Illinois from the early pioneer days, and from the fact that he has ever been a loyal son of the republic and has attained a position of distinctive prominence in the city where he was born and where he has retained his residence to the present time - one of the honored citizens of the community. Mr. Saunders is now living retired at No. 604 North Sixth street. He was born on this lot, in the old family home, November 27, 1828, and is descended in direct line from Henry Saunders, who was killed in the battle of Culloden. His son, James Saunders, fled from Scotland to America in 1746 and died in this country in 1778. Gunnell Saunders, the great-grandfather of our subject, was born in 1748, and the grandfather also bore the name of Gunnell. The latter was born in Virginia in 1783 and was a soldier of the war of 1812. After residing in Kentucky for a number of years he came to Sangamon county, Illinois, in 1828, retaining his residence here until 1846, when he took up his abode in Iowa, where he died October 26, 1848. He was married in Kentucky to Miss Mary Mauzy, a native of that state, and her death occurred in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, October 18, 1851. their children were as follows: George, who lived to be eighty-seven years of age; Presley, a merchant, who died in Iow! a at the age of eighty-two years; Alvin, who was also a merchant in Iowa and later territorial governor and state senator of Iowa and later United States senator from Nebraska, and died in Omaha at the age of eighty-five years; William, who died in Iowa at the age of fifty years; Nancy, who died in Indiana at the age of sixty years; and Frances, who died in Iowa in 1876. Another member of this family was Jonathan R. Saunders, the father of our subject, who was born in Fleming county, Kentucky, February 17, 1802. He was reared and educated there, and in that state he married Miss Sarah McKinnie, who was born in Fleming county, January 16, 1801, a daughter of Lewis McKinnie, who was born in 1767, while his wife, Nancy, was born in 1771. Coming to Sangamon county, he took up his abode with the McKinnie settlement and died here in 1841, while his wife's death occurred in 1843. Their children were all educated in the common subscription schools and reached advances ages. They were: Elizabeth, who was born in 1793, became the wife of J. Lanterman and died in this county; Andrew, born in 1795, died in McLean county, Illinois, in 1853; gunnell S., born in 1797, married Elizabeth Little and died in Christian county; Eleanor, born in 1799, became the wife of Uriah Callerman and died in this county; Mrs. Saunders was the next of the family; Nancy, born! in 1803, became the wife of H. Duncan and went to California, where her death occurred; Mary, born in February, 1806, became the wife of John Branson and died in Gardner township; Thomas L., born in 1808, died on his father's farm in 1886; and William P., born in 1810, died in this county. One of his sons, Thomas McKinnie, is now living on West Grand avenue in Springfield. In 1824 Jonathan R. Saunders removed with his wife to Sangamon county, settling on a tract of land which is now included within the corporation limits of Springfield. He never afterward lived more than two miles from that place. In 1829 he removed to what is now the State Fair grounds, where he had eighty acres, and later he purchased eighty acres just across from his home on the east side of the road. There he built the old family home, which, when being moved away in 1901, was run into by a train. Mr. Saunders sold the first eight acres to the county and took up his abode on the other eighty, residing thereon from 1848 until 1876. To that he afterward added another eighty-acre tract and engaged in general farming and in raising stock for the market. In 1876 he built the present residence. He was one of the valued pioneer settlers, who brought to his work that practical judgment and enterprising spirit which enabled him to gain prosperity and at the same time direct his eff! orts into channels that also advanced the general improvement and upbuilding of the county. He died in 1886 and his wife passed away in 1882. They were familiar with almost the entire growth of the county, witnessing the early stages of development and taking part in many of the early events which contributed to the history of this section. They had six children, of whom three died in infancy. The eldest living is Asberry H. Milton, born October 3, 1836, was a farmer and resided in Springfield until his death, October 23, 1902. He left five children: Nellie E.; Frances; Lillian, the wife of A. Myers; Marcia; and Milton. Lewis A. Saunders, born December 27, 1826, died in 1851. They were educated in the "paid schools" of Springfield and Milton also studied in Jacksonville, Illinois. Asberry H. Saunders spent his youth as did the other members of the family, and after his marriage he took up his abode in Springfield. He owns a part of the old home farm improved by his father and still lives on a portion of this. In 1856 he wedded Miss Marcia E. Underwood, who was born in Portage county, Ohio, in 1837, their marriage taking place in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. They came to Springfield to live, and unto them were born four children, but three died in infancy. The surviving daughter is Helen, who was born in 1863 and is the wife of Ralph W. Haynes, an attorney of Washington, D.C., where they make their home. They have three children: Saunders, Warren R. and Helen Marcia. Mrs. Saunders passed away in 1874, after which Mr. Saunders remained at the home place until his parents' death. In 1854 he had embarked in general merchandising with Thomas Hughes, and in 1859 he sold his interest in that store and became a grocer of the city, conducting his business from 1866 at No. 124 North Fifth street, next door to where he and Mr. Hughes had carried on general merchandising, and the latter building is now owned by Mr. Saunders. He continued in the grocery trade until 1884, and he now gives his attention to agricultural interests on a small scale, but is practically living retired, and his long connection with commercial interests here should certainly entitle him to the rest which he is now enjoying. He has never been an aspirant for political office, but has always been a stalwart Republican from the organization of the party. He was one of the first members of the Christian Church, in fact there is not another member now belonging who was connected with the church at the time he became one of its members. For thirty years he has been a member of the official b! oard, has labored earnestly for the upbuilding of the church and the extension of its influence, and has contributed generously to its support. He belongs to Central Lodge, No. 71, A.F. & A.M.; Springfield Chapter, No. 1, R.A.M.; and to Elwood Commandery, No. 6, K.T. He is a member of the Old Settlers' Association and was one of the "snow birds". Such was the title given to a picture taken of old settlers in 1883, and Jonathan and Asberry Saunders were the only father and son in the entire group. While never seeking fame along political lines or attempting to pose in any way as a public factor, Asberry H. Saunders has been a resident of Springfield for seventy-five years and throughout the period of his manhood has been active in upholding the political and moral status of the community, and has contributed to the stable prosperity and well-being of this section of the state, and no man is held in higher esteem than this venerable pioneer. More About Asberry H. Saunders: Residence: Lives in Springfield, IL. but has farming done in Arkansas.1 More About Asberry Saunders and Marcia Underwood: Marriage: October 20, 1856, Mount Pleasant, Ohio1 Child of Asberry Saunders and Marcia Underwood is: 8 i. Helen4 Saunders1, born June 02, 18631. 7. Milton3 Saunders (Jonathan R.2, Gunnell1)1 was born October 03, 1836 in Near Springfield, IL.1, and died Unknown. He married (1) Martha E. Beeley1. She was born August 31, 1842 in Concord, Morgan County, IL.1. He married (2) Anna E. Edwards1 January 03, 1861. She was born April 29, 1840 in Salem, N.J.1, and died June 30, 18631. Notes for Milton Saunders: In 1874 lived 2 miles north of Springfield, IL at his fathers house with his family. HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS AND HISTORY OF SANGAMON COUNTY Volume II - Biographical Chicago: Munsell Publishing Company, Publishers 1912 This biography was submitted by a researcher and are abstracted from the above named publication.. Errors could occur, so one should always verify the correctness by obtaining copies of vitals and performing all necessary research to document what is contained herein. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SAUNDERS, MILTON (deceased). - The number of farmers who have succeeded in winning wealth from the soil increases each year as farming methods improve, yet there were many in the earlier days who found no difficulty in earning plenty from the land they wrested from the wilderness. One of the reliable farmers and one who thoroughly understood his work was the late Milton Saunders, whose memory is tenderly cherished by his family and friends. Mrs. Saunders was born in Springfield, October 3, 1836, being one of the first white children born there. His father was Jonathan R. Saunders, born near Frankfort, Ky., who married Sarah McKinney, born in Virginia. They came to Sangamon County in an early day, about 1826, and farmed for years in Sangamon County, where they eventually died. Milton Saunders grew up in Sangamon county, receiving a common school education, supplemented by a course at the Jacksonville Institute. Having learned how to farm with his father, when he began for himself he knew just how to go about it and developed his fine farm of 160 acres, twelve miles north of Springfield on the Peoria Road, into one of the best pieces of farming property in his part of the State. In pioneer days there was a public inn on this farm, and it is yet known as the "Twelve-mile Place." Mr. Saunders also owned some valuable real estate in Springfield. In 1892 he retired from his farm and came to Springfield. There he enjoyed a brief period of rest, passing away October 18, 1902, and his remains were interred in Oak Ridge Cemetery. He was a consistent member of the Christian Church, dying firm in its faith. The Republican party claimed his vote and influence, but he was never willing to accept office. On August 28, 1872, he was united in marriage with Martha Beeley, born in Illinois August 31, 1842, who survives him. They had three children: Lillian, Marcia and Milton, married Helen Sullivan, who died in 1904, leaving a daughter, Helen Elizabeth. By a former marriage with Annie Edwards, which occurred in 1860, Mr. Saunders and two children, Nellie and Frances S. Mrs. Saunders is a most estimable woman and is beloved by her family and neighbors. She is interested in others and is charitable, giving where she believes help is needed. The children of Mr. Saunders are well liked in the community, and his memory is cherished for what he accomplished as a sturdy, reliable, upright man, who always tried to do his duty and governed his life according to the religious faith he professed. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- More About Milton Saunders: Medical Information: Deaf Mute from disease. More About Martha E. Beeley: Medical Information: Deaf Mute from birth. Residence: Born of English parentage.1 More About Milton Saunders and Anna Edwards: Marriage: January 03, 1861 Children of Milton Saunders and Martha Beeley are: 9 i. Lilie4 Saunders1, born Unknown. 10 ii. Marcia Saunders1, born Unknown. Children of Milton Saunders and Anna Edwards are: 11 i. Cora4 Saunders1, born Unknown; died Unknown. More About Cora Saunders: Cause of Death: in infancy 12 ii. Nellie E. Saunders1, born Unknown; died Aft. 1863. 13 iii. Frances S. Saunders1, born Unknown; died Aft. 1863. Endnotes 1. early Settlers of Sangamon County.