The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
Compiled and Edited by Virginia Ross
Stronghurst Graphic: July 2, 1925
OBITUARIES: JOHN C. CHASE: John C. Chase, known to everyone in this vicinity as "Grandpa" passed away last Friday night, June 26th at the W. L. Spiker home in this village where he had come for a visit ten days previously. Shortly after his arrival at the Spiker home, he suffered a slight paralytic stroke which with the weight of years proved more than the once unusually robust frame could withstand and he gradually became weaker until the end came. Mrs. R. B. Chase of Galesburg, a daughter-in-law of Mr. and Mrs. Spiker and daughter-in-law of the deceased, was here during his final illness and assisted in the ministration in his behalf.
John C. Chase was born in the vicinity of Newburgh, N.Y. on November 26, 1835. There he grew in manhood and on Sept. 29, 1859 was untied in marriage to Sarah Elizabeth VanLeuven of Ulster County, N.Y. In 1862 they came to Illinois and engaged in farming in the vicinity of Monmouth, continuing in that occupation in Warren and Henderson Counties until Mr. Chase was forced to retire from active work along these lines.
In 1892 Mr. and Mrs. Chase and family came to Stronghurst and the deceased ever since claimed this as his home although he left here in 1912 at the death of his wife to live with his sons. He spent the summers at Hayesville, Ia. with his son John and the winters at Burlington, Ia., with his son Robert until the death of John three years ago. Since that time, he had lived permanently with Robert at Burlington and later at Galesburg where the family moved about two years ago. During these last years of his life, he made frequent visits to Stronghurst where he always met with a cordial welcome from all his friends, which practically included the entire population, both old and young, and to whom he was always "grandpa."
In this earlier days Mr. Chase was a giant in strength and it is not known that he was ever confined to a sick bed previous to the illness which caused his death, at least not since he came to Illinois 1862. He was a hard worker, always cheerful and inclined to look for the silver lining to every cloud on life's horizon. He was as honest as he was industrious and the memory of his cheeriness of disposition and character will linger long in the recollections of all those who knew him.
On the four children born to Mr. and Mrs. Chase, one died in childhood and one son John passed way at Haysville, Ia. about three years ago. Two sons survive namely, Dr. E. D. Chase of Galveston, Tex. and Robt. C. Chase for years wire chief of the Union Depot at Burlington, Ia. and now the Relay Telegraph Department of the same company at Galesburg. There are also five surviving grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
Funeral services were held from the M.E. Church in Stronghurst of which he had been a member for many years. The remains were taken to Monmouth, Ill. and interred in the cemetery there.
CHARLES A.BECKETT: From the Carrollton, Mo. Republican-Record of June 26th: "Charles A. Beckett passed away his home northeast of Carrollton Saturday night at 11:20. He had been confined to his bed for 10 weeks and had been seriously ill the past two weeks; hence, his death was no surprise to his family and friends.
Mr. Beckett was born near Stronghurst, Ill. on March 19, 1876. In 1904 he came to this county and settled on the Harvey Kelly farm northeast of Carrollton. On October 20, 1923 he was united in marriage with Miss Bessie Brock, which proved to be a very happy union. Mr. Beckett was one of leading citizens of the community where he lived. He was active, enterprising and public spirited. He was highly esteemed by all who knew him and his many friends share with his relatives in their great bereavement. The deceased is survived by his companion; two sisters, Miss Ollie Beckett and Miss Florence Beckett of Stronghurst Ill.; three brothers, Ellsworth Beckett of Yakima, Wash., Oscar and Joseph Beckett of Stronghurst. One sister died 12 yeas ago and his brother George passed away February 11, 1915. Funeral services were conducted at the First M.E. Church in this city and interment was in Oak Hill Cemetery.
The death of Mr. Beckett following so soon after that of his brother, George, recalls an instance of filial affection and cooperation in business affairs which was remarkable. For thirty years these two brothers carried on their farming operations in partnership and something over a year ago when the possibility of this partnership being terminated through the workings of the Divine Providence, manifested itself, each brother selected a referee to arrange a division of the estate which they had accumulated. This division was accomplished without the slightest friction or the loosening in any degree of the existing bond of filial devotion. United in their earthly labors, it might also be said of these two brothers that "in death they were not divided" for the dates of their passing were separated by only a few months and they sleep side by side in adjoining lots in the Carrollton Cemetery."
Mrs. HATTIE SMITH: Mrs. Hattie Smith, who has been a resident of Stronghurst for the past 18 years passed away last Sunday evening, June 28th at about 9 o'clock at the home of her niece, Mrs. Ella Griffiths where she had been taken a few days previously in order that she might receive proper care. Mrs. Smith, whose maiden name was Hattie Griffiths, was born at Newburgh, N.Y. June 16, 1845, being in her 81st year at the time of her death. She was united in marriage at Newburgh, N.Y. in 1860 to John C. Clark. Following the Civil War, in which Mr. Clark was engaged as a private in the 19th N.Y. Vol. Reg., the couple moved to Illinois locating at Raritan where Mr. Clark followed the trade of carpenter and watchmaker. They moved to Stronghurst in 1907 and here Mr. Clark died on Oct. 17, 1908. On Nov. 2, 1912 the deceased was married to Isaac Smith of Raritan, who passed away at Stronghurst on Sept. 29, 1914. Following the death of her second husband, the deceased has lived alone on her property in the east part of Stronghurst. Mrs. Smith was a member of the Reformed Church at Raritan and funeral services were conducted in that church with burial in the Raritan Cemetery.
"TRADED HIS FATHER'S CAR: One day last week Ray Vaughn, a young man living in the Media neighborhood, drove to the West Side Garage and traded His Ford car to R. L. Davis for a Dodge. He took the Dodge and drove away. In a short time came a notice to Mr. Davis that the young man's father owned the Ford car and it was taken without his consent and that he had replevined it. Mr. Davis returned the Ford, Mr. Vaughn gave bond, and a hearing was held in Stronghurst Saturday when the father established his title to the car. As the young man testified that he was of age, that the car belonged to him and gave Mr. Davis a bill of sale for it, a warrant has been or will be issued for his arrest. Mr. Davis is out considerable money on the deal."—Blandinsivlle Star
WILL CLOSE ON THE 4TH: The merchants and business establishments of Stronghurst whose names appear below have decided upon the following arrangements for the observation of Independence Day: Business places will remain open Friday evening, July 3rd. On Saturday, the 4th, they will close at 9 o'clock A.M. and remain closed for the balance of the day. (This is a list of businesses operating in 1925: Benteco Store, a grocery; F. O. Tweed; Beardsley Bros., a department store; W. C. Regan, undertaker; Wax Mercantile Co.; A. E. Jones, grocery; H. D. Lovitt; Wax Mercantile Co.; Ed Logan, a garage; Clore Battery Station; Mudd's Garage; Simpson Bros.; Farmers Co-Op Store; Beaver Barber Shop; Curry & Lukens, Barber Shop; K.E. Yoakam, jeweler; E. R. Grandey; Foster Lazear, drugstore?; and Knutstrom Garage.
DOWN HE WENT: Nat Bruen, who lives at present on his farm southwest of town, suffered a bad accident last Friday afternoon at about 6 o'clock when he fell in the barn lot and twisted his leg is such a manner as to fracture the large bone between the knee and ankle. He was carried to the house and medical aid summoned. He is now reported to be resting easily. Although past 80 years of age, Mr Bruen's wonderful vitality which has carried him through experiences of a similar nature in times past, is expected to prove efficacious in his restoration from his last misfortune.
WEDDING BELLS***VOORHEES & MESECHER: Miss Ida Mesecher and Mr. Gilbert H. Voorhees, both well-known young people of Raritan, were united in marriage at the parsonage of the Presbyterian Church in Galesburg Tuesday morning with Rev. R. F. Jenney officiating. The couple were attended by the mother and sister of the bride and Mr. and Mrs. Lyle Thrush. The bridal pair left on a wedding trip to Denver and Colorado Springs and on their return will reside on the groom's farm near Raritan.
PAGEANT AT BIGGSVILLE: A pageant entitled "The Stars and Stripes," consisting of music, tableaus, speeches and flags will be given in the United Presbyterian Church at Biggsville Saturday evening at 7:45 o'clock. Following the pageant Dr. W. P. White of the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago will give an address. The affair will be under the auspices of Dr. Rena Rezner's Bible Class. Admission is free.
PROTECTING THE BANKS: The Bankers of Henderson County met here last Thursday evening at the State Bank to further advance their plans for protection against bank hold-ups and robberies. (This is the time of Bonnie & Clyde.) All of the banks of the county except Biggsville were represented by officials or directors. Sheriff Davenport was also present and each bank presented for his inspection a list of names of men chosen to act as guards and deputy sheriffs in the village or city where their institution is located. The names of five men were submitted for places where there is but one bank and eight for places where there are two. Arrangement for the purchase of shot guns, revolvers and other equipment necessary for carrying out the protective scheme as adopted by the Illinois State Bankers Federation were also made. Methods for quickly spreading an alarm in the cases of hold-ups or robberies were also discussed. Another meeting will be held within about a month at which time the guards who have been selected will be sworn in as deputy sheriffs and arrangements for distributing the fire arms and other equipment made.
IDENTIFIED BY FINGER PRINTS: Through the aid of U.S. government authorities, the identity of the young man who was killed at Gladstone, Ill. on June 4th by a fast mail train has finally been established. Finger prints of the man were sent to the government finger print bureau at Fort Leavenworth, Kans. Together with the name of James Ennis, which was found in a prayer book in the man's pocket. It was found that the finger prints tallied with those of a James Ennis who had enlisted in the Engineer' Corps at Albany, N.Y. during the World War. The records shows that Ennis was 36 years old and had no relatives living in this country. The remains of Ennis were interred in St. John's cemetery in Burlington, Iowa with full military honors.
ALL SET FOR THE BIG PICNIC: Representatives of both the Henderson County and Des Moines County Farm Bureaus are busy putting the final touches on the big picnic to be held July 4th at the Burlington Fair Grounds. A fine lot of prizes has been arranged for the drawing contest. Numbers covering the drawing were mailed to all members in both counties…A big picnic dinner at noon will be one of the most enjoyable features of the day while the Oakville Ladies' Band will fill in the musical part of the program. The address by W. F. Schilling, Pres. Twin City Milk Producers Association of St. Paul, Minn. promises to be a real worthwhile occasion…Following this, the balance of the afternoon will be devoted to sports and baseball. A feature will be the fast mule race, the mules being ridden by Chas. Bond, Secretary of the Greater Burlington Association; Rex Wickham, County Agent in Des Moines County; and Ernest Walker, Farm Advisor of Henderson County…
HIT HIM ON THE HEAD: "Sam Carothers had a bit of bad luck Friday morning while looking after the wiring on the new grade school building. He was walking around on the second floor when a tile was accidental dropped from above where the bricklayers were working and landed squarely on Mr. Carothers' head. He was dazed for a few minutes and a bad gash was cut in his scalp. He was taken to a doctor where it was necessary to take several stitches. While it will not lay him up completely, the accident will inconvenience him for several days."-Dallas City Review
LOCAL AND AREA NEWS: H. R. Freed, formerly an operator for the C.B.&Q. Railroad at Gladstone, has been promoted to the position of assistant general freight agent by the company. The new "high line" of the Illinois Power and Light Company that passes through here is said to be completed between Keokuk and Monmouth and the power can be turned on whenever the company sees fit. The Rotarians of Monmouth are said to have discussed the union of Warren and Henderson Counties at their regular meeting last Monday evening; a delegation of Henderson County men favoring the proposition took part in the discussion. W. R.Gregory began work on the improvement of some vacant lots on Cooper St. between Main and Nichols, which he recently purchased from Mrs. A. A.Worthington. He is now erecting a garage on the premises and we understand, will later build a modern residence bungalow there on. Lyman Fort and wife and three sons arrived here by auto from Mitchell, S.D. where Lyman is employed as Supt. of Schools. They expect to spend a week visiting relatives and will then go to Galesburg for a short visit. From there they expect to go to Boulder, Colo. where Lyman will take a summer course for the purpose of obtaining his Master's degrees. He will be in charge of the Mitchell schools again next year.
A law which passed both houses of the General Assembly and received the signature of Gov. Small becomes effective July 1st: It requires all vehicles, motor or horse drawn, that travel the hard roads to carry lights at night. Another law operative July 1st forbids all pedestrians, under penalty, to travel on other than the left side of hard roads; the theory being that they will thus face approaching vehicles and are on the opposite side of the roadway to that which is traveled by vehicles coming from the pedestrian's rear.
Mrs. Aaron Erickson of Media was taken to a Macomb hospital for examination and treatment for a physical ailment. (Without the notice in the paper, her neighbors might not have known of her condition.) Mr. and Mrs. Marshall S. McKeown of the Gladstone neighborhood are the parents of a young daughter born to them on June 26th. Mrs. Carl Lindgren of Media neighborhood was taken to the Burlington Hospital for treatment for an illness with which she has been afflicted for several weeks. Joe Huff returned to his duties as rural mail carrier after a 9-day vacation spent with his family in Schuyler County and other points. Mrs. Earl Gray of the country southeast of Stronghurst underwent an operation at the Burlington Hospital the latter part of last week. She was able to return home this week and is recovering nicely.
Donald Dowell, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Dowell of the Lomax neighborhood, and Miss Helen Bradshaw, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Bradshaw of Carthage, were united in marriage at Rock Island on June 25th. F. B. Young and wife and two children from Beaver City, Nebr. were over Sunday visitors at the Earl Taylor home in the west part of town. Mr. Young is pastor of the Christian Church at Beaver City. Mrs. Young and Mrs. Taylor are sisters. On account of errors in the returns of the election recently held at LaHarpe for the purpose of voting bonds for building an addition to the high school there, a new election has been called for July 21. This will delay work on the new building for about a month. Miss Ruth Wasson delightfully entertained a crowd of young people of the community last Saturday evening at her country home. The evening was spent in playing Rook and various other games. At a late hour a delicious lunch was served and guests departed declaring Ruth a delightful hostess. Mrs. George H. Sieben and daughter, Mary Louise of Houston, Texas are visitors at the home of Mr. and Mrs. B. E. Sippel. Mrs. Sieben is a sister-in-law of Mrs. Sippel. Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Urick and Mrs. Sarah Sand of Geneseo, Ill. were also guests for two days this past week, the ladies being sisters of Mrs. Sippel.
G. W. Worley has installed a new "Frigidaire" ice cream cooler in his place of business which will eliminate the use of office for keeping the popular confection which he serves at the proper consistency. The electric cooling system is being rapidly installed in cafes, restaurants and drug stores throughout the country and is proving both labor-saving and economical. (Stronghurst was really uptown with this innovation just as we are today with the opening of a new coffee shop on Broadway.)
MEDIA MEANDERINGS: A good crowd was at the Children's Day service at the United Church. Mrs. George Voorhees has invited the Home Missionary Society of the M.E. Church to hold their regular meeting at her house. The regular meeting of the U.P. Ladies Missionary Society will be held at the church with home missions the topic of study. (How amazing to think that there were enough ladies for two different societies in Media at this time!) J. P. Mink who lives on a farm near Stronghurst recently purchased the house and lot and a small tract of land lying east of the house known as the John Wever property from E. G. Lewis. Mr. Mink will do a lot of improving before he moves his family here, which will be about August so the children, Miss Lillian and Beryl, can attend high school. Mrs. J. Ben Horrell and her mother, Mrs. Wolfe of Burlington, were here looking after their property and calling on old friends.
MEDIA MEANDERINGS: C. R. Pendarvis accompanied a large shipment of hogs to Chicago. Mrs. Jacob Ford of Des Moines visited Mrs. Phonso Beall and baby John Pogue Beall in the afternoon; she will return for a short visit. Mr. and Mrs. George Wax are enjoying their outing on the banks of the Mississippi near Hamilton immensely. A card from them tells of a wonderful view of the river and dam from their cottage and that they have been rowing, swimming, fishing and hiking. While Mr. Wax is not improving as fast as they had hoped, the vacation is doing him a lot of good. (Vacation opportunities nearby offered a chance to view the marvelous power plant and dam at Keokuk.) "Wanders of the Wasteland" was headlining at the Raritan Opera House. Mrs. Martha VanAlstine is quite worried about her brother, W. Newton Charter and her niece, Mrs. Elizabeth Kane who are in the earthquake district in Santa Barbara, Calif. A moving picture show, "Uncle Sam's Kindergarten" will be given Sunday evening at the U. P. Church under the auspices of the Home Missionary Society of the M.E. Church. Crop news: harvest began and a lot of wheat is now in the shock and if the weather continues favorable almost all of it will be cut this week. The corn is being laid by and the oats will be ready to cut sometime next week. Potatoes are going to be scarce as the late freeze has injured them badly. The second crop of alfalfa is being cared for and the hum of the thresher will be heard in about two weeks.
CARMAN CONCERNS: Chester Babcook has returned home after being at Des Moines for a year where he has been in the Navy. Mrs. Lizzie Marsden and granddaughter Mildred of Leolo South Dakota, are visit her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Wisbey. Mrs. Clara Coffman is improving from her fall which she received 3 weeks ago.