Biographies from "History of Alexander, Union & Pulaski Counties", Illinois, edited by Wm. H. Perrin, published by Baskin, Chicago, 1883. Page 141 J. P. REESE, farmer and fruit-grower, P. O. Cobden, was born in Wilson County, Tenn., April 7, 1834, to William and Martha (Taylor) Reese. They were both natives of Tennessee. He was born in 1796, and was one of the first white men born in the State of Tennessee. He died February 28, 1883. She was born in 1803 and died in 1845 in Williamson County, Ill. They came to Illinois in 1839 and settled in Williamson County. He resided in Williamson County till he was so old that he was almost helpless, then came to our subject's and died there. He was a cousin of President Polk, and, as his parents were wealthy, he was raised a typical Southern gentleman. He spoke little of his early life, but we know that before leaving Tennessee he was Clerk of the Court, and after settling in Marion he was justice of the peace and notary public till too old to attend to business. For four years, his office was in the same room as Col. Bob Ingersoll's. He was twice married. By his first wife there were two sons and one daughter, and by the second, the mother of our subject, four sons and four daughters, all of whom are living except one daughter. He was a man of strongly Southern principles, but was opposed to slavery. One of his oldest sons was in the Southern army, and was killed at Perryville. Four sons were in the Northern army and all came out but one. J. P. received four flesh wounds. He was captain of Company E, 81st Illinois Volunteer Infantry, after first three months. Enlisted August 11, 1862, mustered out August 5, 1865. Except for three and one-half months when he was a prisoner of war, he was with his company during the service. He was captured at Guntown, Miss., June 11, 1864, and was one of the number put under fire of the Union troops at Charleston. After his exchange September 25, 1864, he returned to his company. Our subject never attended school but about nine months, but since he has had a family of his own he has done a great deal of reading and studying. His occupation has been that of farming, since starting for himself. After his mother's death, he worked on farms from place to place. January 12, 1855, he was married in this county to Miss A. T. O'Daniell, daughter of John and Betsie (Penrod) O'Daniell. Mr. O'Daniell was born in Tennessee, his wife in this county in 1816. She is probably the oldest person now living who was born in this county. Mr. and Mrs. Reese have five children - Willis A., Zeb, Louisa, Lena and Ann. Willis A. is a lawyer by profession, but is now farming at home. Zeb is operator at Richview, Ill. When first married, he settled on his present farm, which contains 200 acres, one-half in cultivation. He is engaged in general farming, but fruit-raising receives most of his attention, and he is very successful. He hauled the first load of wheat to Cobden, having to cut and blaze out a road. He is a charter member of the Cobden Lodge, A.F.&A.M., and is Republican in politics. ======== Page 142 W. O. RICE, fruit-raiser, P. O. Cobden, was born in Portage City, Wis., August 8, 1851, to William and Miranda (Winchell) Rice. He was born in Mt. Morris, N. Y., September 20, 1813; she also in the same State, in Ticonderoga, February 16, 1814. He died April 27, 1882. When Mrs. Rice was a child, her parents moved from New York to Vermont, and there she remained till 28 years of age, removing thence to Wisconsin. He, however, had moved to Wisconsin from New York, and it was there they were married. They remained in Wisconsin till November, 1864, when they came to Union County and settled on their present farm. A son, W. O., and a daughter, Belle, blessed this union; both are now living at home. Mr. Rice was the youngest of a family of five brothers. By trade, he was a carpenter and joiner, and had made that his occupation till coming to this county. Then he engaged in the fruit culture. He was in the service for six months with Gen. Butler, but being too old for active duty, he was commissary clerk. At the time of his death he was on a prospecting tour in Kansas. He was taken suddenly sick, and died and was buried without his family knowing anything of it. Mrs. Rice is a relative of the Winchells of Michigan, where all her father's family now live, except one of her sisters, who resides in Wisconsin. Mrs. Rice's mother, with a number of other women, were in the battle of Plattsburg during the war of 1812. Her husband was taking part in the engagement, and as the men would fire and retire to load, the women would give them water, and watch to see if some dear one was missing. Both our subject and his sister were instructed in their studies at home, till they were well advanced in their studies. Miss Belle afterward attended the State Normal at Carbondale, and has made teaching her profession. Before coming to our State, our subject had attend the German school for one year, then the Cobden schools in this county, and one year at the State University at Champaign. He has always been engaged in fruit farming since working for himself. Their farm consists of 47 acres and is in a good state of cultivation. All the members of the family are Presbyterians in religion, belonging to the Presbyterian Church of Cobden. Our subject has made quite a study of archeology, and has exhumed the remains of several human beings and remains of an ancient civilization. These have been taken from the deposits under overhanging cliffs. He has here found complete skeletons, pieces of pottery, ashes, parched corn, bones of different smaller animals, and also pieces of fabrics showing hand-weaving. The skeletons are lying on the sides, knees to the breast, arms between the knees, etc., showing that such was the customary way for burial. He cannot yet determine the exact age in which they lived, but from the deposits in which they are found, knows they are of an ancient race. ============ Page 142-143 HON. WILLIAM C. RICH, SR., capitalist, Cobden. Among the few who have been preeminently successful in this county, we find Mr. Rich. He was born on the Tennessee line in Alabama November 18, 1819, to Thomas and Catherine (Noah) Rich. The ancestors of the Rich family were Germans, but had been in America for generations. The grandfather of our subject moved from North Carolina to Franklin County, Tennessee, when his son Thomas was but a young man, and resided there until the time of his death. Thomas Rich was married in Tennessee to the mother of our subject, and lived in that State until after several children were born to them; then he moved to Alabama among the canebrakes and Indians. Here he remained till 1834, when he moved with his family to Illinois, but had started with the intention of going to Arkansas. After coming to this county, he remained for a part of a year in what is now Rich Precinct, then bought the farm now owned by John M. Rich, his youngest son. He resided then on the old homestead till his death in 1866. His wife, however, died in 1845. They were the parents of three sons and six daughters; two sons and four daughters are now living. Our subject was educated in the proverbial schools of the pioneer - round logs built up and a rude cover over it, but no floors. Their seats were made by splitting logs and putting legs in the pieces. There was one door, but no window except an opening left between two logs. Then the fireplace occupied one end of the building, and at noons the boys would have to cut down the trees and get in the wood which they burned. Notwithstanding such rude schoolhouses, our subject obtained sufficient schooling to engage in teaching school for some time in winters, farming in the summer. He frequently indulged in the sport of hunting. When about 25 years of age, he was married to Millie C. Guthrie, daughter of Anslem* Guthrie, who had come to this county from Kentucky about four years after our subject. Mr. and Mrs. Rich have 11 children living - Samantha (Tripp), Catherine, Matilda (Moreland), Eliza (Condon), LaFayette, Amalphus, William, Maria, Lou, Lizzie and George. Mr. Rich has never given up farming, although his other business has frequently taken nearly his whole attention. When a young man, he was elected constable, and from that time on has been in some public office most of the time. Served as deputy sheriff for a number of years; afterward served for 12 years as justice of the peace. In 1861 and 1862 he was school commissioner. Then in 1863 he was elected to fill out a vacancy in the Sheriff's office. When the term was up, he was elected for the ensuing two years, 1865 and 1866. He then retired for two years, but was again elected for the term of 1869 and 1870. In 1871 and 1872 he was in the State Legislature, and from 1879 to 1882 he was one of the county commissioners. In politics he has ever been Democratic. About 1861 he joined the Jonesboro Lodge, A.F.&A.M. Is also a member of the Royal Arch Chapter at Anna. Although Mr. Rich has spent a great deal of his time in public life, he has not neglected his own business, and has made a large property by hard work and saving. His father being a man in very moderate circumstances, could not help his children to make a start, and so he early formed the practice of relying upon himself and of taking but few risks. A short time before the panic of 1872, he had engaged in the mercantile business in Jonesboro in partnership with Willis Willard. The panic soon following, they found that they were not making anything, so they divided the goods and boxed them up. But Mr. Rich did not like the idea of having about $6,000 worth of goods on his hands and yielding him no profit, so traded one-half and got a half-interest in a sawmill in Jackson County. So they ran store and mill for two years, running the lumber down Big Muddy and up to St. Louis. They then closed out business at the end of two years. ----- *Spelling of name amended from original text, which has "Ansalen" Guthrie. ============ Page 143-144 JOHN M. RICH, farmer and fruit-grower, P. O. Cobden, was born just across the line from Tennessee in Alabama October 4, 1828, to Thomas and Catherine (Noah) Rich. The grandfather of our subject moved to Tennessee when Thomas was a young man, and he lived the remainder of his days near a small town called Salem, in Franklin County. He was of German descent, and at the time of his death left a large family who scattered to the different States in the Union, Thomas coming to this State in 1834. He settled first in what is Rich Precinct, but either in the last of the same year or the first days of 1835, he bought the present homestead of our subject, and resided there until the time of his death in 1866. His wife had died in 1845. They were the parents of three sons and six daughters; two sons and four daughters are now living. Our subject is the youngest child. He has always resided on the old homestead, and has been engaged in farming and fruit-raising. He received his education in the subscription schools of the county, and had to go several miles to attend them. February, 1847, he was married in this county to Ann Uffendill. She was born in England in 1826 to Michael and Mary (Robinson) Uffendill. They came to America about 1835. For a time they remained in New York; then made several moves before coming to this State, going to Cleveland, Ohio, from New York; then to Troy, where they remained for about one year, and then to Evansville, Ind.; from Evansville to Cairo, Ill., at the time the State first projected the Illinois Central Railroad. They afterward moved to this county, and she died at Jonesboro soon after coming to the county; he in Anna in May, 1882. He had been engaged in different occupations, keeping hotel, butchering, etc., and for some years before his death had followed the family grocery business in Anna. Of their family of eight children that they brought to the United States, only three daughters are now living. Mr. and Mrs. Rich have eight children - Thomas J., William C. Jr.*, M. M., George D., Adelia, Mary A., Robert L. and Carry B. All of the sons except the youngest are in business for themselves - farming, fruit-raising, etc. William C. Jr. is practicing law at Jonesboro. Except the youngest, the daughters are all married. Mr. R.'s farm consists of 188 acres, and on this he is engaged in general farming and fruit-raising, especially of the smaller varieties. He is also member of the mercantile firm of Rendleman & Rich of Alto Pass, but does not stay in the store any himself. In 1862 he entered the service of his country and was chosen captain of Company C, 109th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, but served only for about seven months. When at Memphis, he and seven other officers of the regiment were discharged. Accusations had been made against them, and a form of trial had been gone through with, but the accused were not allowed to appear for themselves, nor had they counsel. Although stung by this reproach, they had clear consciences, knowing that the accusations were false and the trial unfair. In after years they were reinstated, however, and received pay for the time served. Mr. Rich is a member of the Cobden Lodge, A.F.&A.M., and in politics is Democratic. Mr. R. and his oldest son have met with quite heavy losses, as within six years they have paid about $8,000 security debt, but by perseverance they have come out of it all right. ----- [Transcriber's Note: *This William C. Rich Jr. was the son of John Rich. The term Jr. is used here in its original meaning of "younger" in order to distinguish him from his well known uncle of the same name.] ============ Page 144-145 M. F. ROLENS, physician and surgeon, Cobden. Prominently classed among the physicians of this county is Dr. Rolens, born October 15, 1855, in Guernsey County, Ohio, son of W. F. and Elizabeth (McGowen) Rolens, natives, the former of Maryland and the latter of Pennsylvania, and the parents of eight children, all of whom are living, viz.: Sarah E. (wife of Robert Wilson, a farmer and coal miner of Jackson County), Hugh H., James M., Louisa M. (wife of W. B. McClure, station agent at Gillsburg, Ill.), William R., M. F., George S. and Mary E. Our subject attended the county and select schools and for some time at the Normal at Carbondale. He taught four terms. He began reading medicine in 1876 with E. H. Wheeling of Galesburg, continuing there some time, and then with M. G. Parsons of Murphysboro, Jackson County. He attended the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Keokuk, Iowa, and subsequently completed his course at the Hospital College of Medicine at Louisville, Ky. He at once began practicing at Murphysboro, and in 1882 located at Brazeau, Perry Co., Mo. In December, 1882, he came to Cobden, where he has already grown into the good graces of the people and is doing a large practice. He was married February 14, 1881, to Ida E. Stephens of Union County, the result being one child, Louis E. While in Missouri, the doctor was chosen trustee of a high school. ======== Page 145 DR. B. F. ROSS, P. O. Cobden, whose portrait appears in this book, was born August 10, 1832, in Franklin County, Penn. His father, Samuel M. Ross, was of Scotch descent and probably a native of Pennsylvania. His mother, Rebecca (Chilerstone) Ross, was of English parentage and was also born in Pennsylvania. The father died in the county of his birth, and the mother died in Clinton County, Ill. The fruit of their union was several children. Our subject attended the county schools of Clinton County, Ill., as much as was convenient, owing to the amount of farm labor devolving upon him. Being thus reared on a farm, he was early imbued with habits of industry and self-reliance, which have been among the leading characteristics of his life. Having a decided literary taste, he, at the age of 21 years, concluded to abandon farm labor and chose the profession of medicine, and accordingly began the study of the same under the tutorship of Drs. Phillips and Henry of Nashville, Ill., with whom he remained for three years, actively engaged in his studies and attending to the drugstore of his preceptors. He then attended Rush Medical College of Chicago, where he graduated with high honors in 1858. He at once began the practice of his profession, for which he had thus so elaborately prepared himself at Cobden, where he has since remained, building up a lucrative practice. He was married in 1861 to Elizabeth Hearns, a native of New York, the fruit of which union is two children, viz.: Minnie and Frank. He has endeavored to devote his entire time to his profession, but has been forced to find time to attend to some minor offices, where it is really all labor and no pay, such as township and village trustee, and was for ten years township treasurer. By economy and frugality, he has secured some good property in the village of his adoption, yet with a childlike confidence, he has trusted many, during his long practice, only to be the loser. In the upbuilding of the beautiful little village of Cobden, it is not too much to say that he has done his full share, and in its written history his name occupies an honorable and conspicuous place upon its pages. He is a member of the A.F.&A.M. and K. of H. fraternities of Cobden. He is an active Democrat, and really the leader of that organization where he resides. His estimable lady is a member of the Presbyterian Church. Dr. Ross has successfully borne all the hardships and privations incident to the life of the early settlers and they have developed in him, as a natural result, both physical vigor and the sturdy moral and mental health which are secured by the constant practice of industry and thrift. ============================================================================ ===============