Illinois: History of Cass County, Illinois, ed. William Henry Perrin. O. L. Baskin & Co. Historical Publishers, Chicago, 1882. Cass County. HENDERSON E. MASSEY, of Virginia Precinct, was born July 27, 1810, at Horseshoe Bend, Culpepper Co., Old Virginia. Samuel Massey, his father, was a native of Halifax, Md., of German descent, and was a soldier in the war of 1812; served as a Captain at the battle of New Orleans, 1813, and died soon after his return home, in 1815, of fever, contracted in the service. He was married to Miss Olive, daughter of Mordecai Choplain, who was of French descent. The had a family of eight children, all of whom lived to maturity, but our subject is the only one now living, and was the sixth child. Henderson E. was raised a farmer, although his father was a school teacher, and a man of excellent education. Mr. Massey first came to Morgan County, in 1829, but remained only a short time, when he made a trip to Wisconsin, and from that State entered the Black Hawk war, in 1832, in which he served about six months, having been attached to the Mining Battalion, and served as keeper of the peace, after the hottest of the conflict was over. He permanently settled in Illinois in 1833, near Mount Sterling, Brown Co., where he remained about four years. He then came to North Prairie, his present home, in the southern part of the Virginia Precinct, near Little Indian. His first purchase of land here, was 250 acres, to which he has added, until he now owns about 800 acres. He married Miss Martha, daughter of James Marshall, an early pioneer of North Prairie, and a native of Glasgow, Scotland. He was a merchant in Scotland and emigrated to Kentucky, where he lived until he came to Cass County. He had a family of eight children, and Mrs. Massey was the fifth. Mrs. Massey died March 29, 1874, leaving the following children: James F., Elizabeth A., Mary J., Henry C., Samuel, Henderson R., John H., Esther M., Harriet M., Bell H., George, and Emma L. Four sons are married, two are located in Cass County, one in California, and one at Litchfield, Montgomery Co. Mary is now Mrs. George Laurie, of Morgan County; Elizabeth married Mr. William Nisbet, of Cass County, and the other daughters are still at home. Mr. Massey is not a partisan in politics, but votes for the best candidate. Massey Choplain Marshall Laurie Nisbet = Culpepper-VA MD Morgan-IL WI Brown-IL KY Scotland Montgomery-IL