ICHAEL A. MURPHY, a prosperous farmer of Seven Hickory Township, is the
owner of a fine estate containing 200 acres,
located on section 36. He was born Aug.
10, 1844, in Morgan, now Wolfe County, Ky., and
is the son of Miles and Sibbie (O’Hair) Murphy.
His great-great-grandfather was a native of County
Down, Ireland, who emigrated to this country at
an early day and settled in Kentucky. His wife
was a native of Bourbon County, that State. His
grandfather, William Murphy, was born in 1792, in
Morgan County, Ky., and married Miss Matilda
Miles, who was born in 1801, in the same county.
Miles Murphy was born in 1818, in Morgan
County, Ky., and remained on the homestead with
his parents until his marriage with Miss Sibbie
O’Hair, which took place at Hazle Green, Ky. The
ceremony was performed by Elder Joseph Nichols,
pastor of the Christian Church at that place. After
his marriage he was engaged in farming a few years
in his native State, and in 1847 removed to Edgar
County, Ill. After remaining there one year he returned to Kentucky, but in 1856 came again to Illinois, and settled on section 36, Seven Hickory Township, where he carried on a successful farming business until the Civil War broke out. With his sons,
Michael A. and John W., he was taken prisoner
during the war and conveyed to Springfield, where
he died April 14, 18(!4, as it was then supposed,
from the effects of poison administered while in
prison.
The following is the record of the family of
Miles Murphy: William H., a resident of Parker
County, Tex., is married and has a family of four
daughters; John W. ; Calvin C., a resident of
Greenwood County, Kan., is married and has a
family of four children; Michael A., the subject of
this sketch; Eliza C., deceased, was the wife of
Martin McCallister; she died in February, 1881,
leaving a family of three children. Matilda E.
is the widow of John Elrwood, and resides in
Bartholomew County, Ind., with her family of
three children; Nancy J., the wife of William
Grimes, has a family of three children, and likewise
resides in Bartholomew County, Ind.; Miles T., a
resident of Greenwood County, Kan., has been
twice married, and is the father of one child by
each marriage; Benjamin F. died on the homestead
in the autumn of 1856, at the age of fourteen;
James E., a resident of Cherokee County, Kan., is
married and has one child ; Diana E. resides in Bartholomew County, Ind., with her sister; Leander
B. resides in Cherokee County, Kan., with his
brother; Hilton N. is married, and likewise resides
in Cherokee County, Kan.; he has one child. Miles
Murphy and his wife were highly esteemed members of the Christian Church; the latter survived
her husband many years, and died Feb. 2, 1882, in
Charleston, Ill.
Michael A. Murphy was twelve years of age
when his parents removed from Kentucky to Coles
County, Ill. He attended the common schools in
his native State, and after coining to Illinois studied
one year at Kansas Station in Edgar County. At
the age of twenty-one he began to work for himself
on the home farm, and in the spring of 1866 went
to Kentucky, and married Miss Sarah J. Powers.
Mrs. Murphy was born Nov. 14. 1849, in Morgan
County, Ky., and is the daughter of Louis and
Emily J. (Cox) Powers, also natives of Kentucky.
Their family consisted of four children Sarah J.,
James P., Martha E. and William H. James P.
served as Deputy Marshal in Kentucky eight years;
Martha E. is the wife of Wiley Perkins, and resides
in Wolfe County, Ky., and William H. resides in
Howard, Dak.
Mr. Murphy’s marriage took place March 3,
1866, and the ceremony was performed by Elder
Joseph Nichols, Pastor of the Christian Church at
Hazle Green, Ky. Mr. Nichols had the reputation
of having conferred the blessing of matrimony
upon a greater number of people than other minister in the State. He performed the marriage rite
for the parents of both Mr. and Mrs. Murphy, and
in 1860 married over 300 couples. On one occasion he is said to have united fifteen couples before
leaving the church. Mr. Nichols was a native of
Morgan County, Ky. He possessed a fine physique,
and his hair had never turned gray, although he
died at the advanced age of ninety-one years.
After his marriage Mr. Murphy returned to Coles
County, Ill., and engaged in farming on the homestead. In 1868 he added to his property by purchasing forty acres of land of the Illinois Central
Railroad, and in 1868 built his present residence.
He has on his farm six acres of walnut trees and
10,000 maples, besides a large growth of nearly
every variety of native trees. His farm is well
cultivated and improved, and is supplied with over
2,000 rods of tiling. Mr. and Mrs. Murphy have
an interesting family of three children: Herschel
S., born Jan. 22, 1868, is now a member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church; Emily J., born Dec.
12, 1869, and Harlan A., Sept. 2, 1883. Mr. Murphy, with his wife and daughter, is a member of
the Christian Church. In politics he is a Democrat, and was elected by that party to the local
office of Constable, and has held that position nine
years.
On Sept. 2, 1881, Mr. Murphy was struck by lightning while hauling a load of broom corn from the
field on his farm. He had reached the yard with
his team, and his wife, with Miss Lacy, a lady
friend from Kentucky, was assisting him in covering up the load to protect it from the rain which
was fast approaching, when the shock occurred. The
current struck his right shoulder and passed down
the right leg to the load of broom corn, tearing his
clothing in its course, and searing the flesh from
his shoulder to his feet, from which the boots were
torn and literally riddled. Parts of his pocket knife and the strap-iron on the wagon box were
melted. His wife was also stricken down, and remained in a state of paralysis for several hours. The
lightning set fire to the load, and but for the timely
aid of Miss Lacy, who was uninjured, he would
have been cremated on his wagon. Mr. Murphy
has preserved the boots and clothing as mementos
of his terrible experience, from the effects of which
he will suffer throughout the remainder of his life.
He oversees the work on his farm as usual, but is
not in sufficiently robust health to perform active
labor himself.
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