 |
 ILLIAM H. ROBERTS, a successful stock- grower of East Oakland Township, is
located on section 9. He was born Oct.
17, 1840, in Muskingum County, Ohio, and removed to Illinois with his parents, Thomas and
Alice (Mock) Roberts, both natives of Virginia, the father born Oct. 12, 1802, and the mother Nov.
8, 1808, in Londonn County, where their marriage
took place, and from which State they removed to
Ohio in 1830, and remained there until they migrated to Illinois in 1860. They purchased a farm of
265 acres of improved land in East Oakland Township, and passed the remainder of their lives here.
The parents of Thomas Roberts possessed but little wealth, save their intelligence and integrity of
character. His father was a weaver by trade, and
Thomas, when a boy of thirteen, bravely bore his
share of the burdens, hiring out by the mouth to
do farm work in order to assist his parents. He
also attended the common school and applied himself diligently in the short intervals that could be
spared from toil, and thus acquired a good practical education. He cut his way through the snowdrifts in the winter to the old school-house, and in
the summer worked on the farm a happy “bare-foot boy,” though deprived of many of the pleasures incident to childhood and youth, and grew up
to manhood strong and self-reliant, prepared to
battle with the world. February 7, 1828, Thomas Roberts was united in marriage to Miss Alice Mock, daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth Mock. Her family were of German extraction. The life of Jacob Mock, her father, was brought to a sudden close by a sad tragedy. One night in August, 1837, he failed to return home at the usual time. As the night wore on, the family grew alarmed and listened anxiously to every sound in the hope of hearing his accustomed step. As soon as the first ray of morning dawned, inquiries were made and a search instituted, which resulted in a ghastly discovery. His hat was found in a tree, pierced by some instrument, and his body in the creek, which ran through his own farm, his head also bearing evidences of having been cut by something sharp. It is supposed that he was murdered and robbed, as he sometimes carried large sums of money with him, but no clew was ever found to the perpetrators of the terrible deed, and it has remained one of the unsolvable mysteries of life. He left a family of nine children, as follows: John 1)., George, Joseph, James T., Isaac F., Phœbe, Susan, Mary E. and Alice. Thomas and Alice Roberts had a family of twelve children born to them, named as follows: Jacob A., born Nov. 3, 1828, died at the age of five years; Mary E., born Jan. 19, 1833, married George Geyer; Matilda A., born June 26, 1834, married Peter Gobert; Stephen, born Nov. 22,1838, died in November, 1840; William H., born Oct. 17, 1840; Caroline, born April 27, 1842, married J. W. Titus; Isaac N., born Jan. 6, 1846, married Miss Almeda Davis; Castara, born March 6, 1844, married B. F. Taylor; John D., born March 5, 1850, married Miss Mary Prather; Sarah J., born March 11,1848, married Francis Parker; Sherman W., born Jan. 1 1, 1852, married Miss Sarah Dollar, and James B., born Oct. 9, 1854, died Aug. 22, 1872. The death of the father occurred Aug. 6, 1879. He was for many years a Trustee and Class-Leader in the Methodist Episcopal Church. His religious faith, which was practical and earnest, was illustrated by his daily life, and in politics he was a warm supporter of the Republican party. William H. Roberts was united in marriage with Miss Mary E. Reed, April 24, 1866. She was born Feb. 20, 1844, in Edgar County, Ill., and is the daughter of John W. and Elizabeth (Lamb) Reed. John W. Reed is a retired farmer and was born in Kentucky, Sept. 30, 1817. He has been for many years a member of the Baptist Church, and although not actively engaged in business, he is interested in all the current affairs of the day. He was thrice married, his first wife dying when Mrs. Roberts was a child, and there has been no record of her family preserved. She was the mother of three children: Francis M., who married Miss Anna Lumbrick; John, who died in infancy, and Mary E., the wife of our subject. Mr. Reed was married the second time to Miss Mary J. Ashmore, who died within a year, leaving no children. His third wife was Eliza C. Moffett. To our subject and wife there have been born three children, recorded as follows: Arminta A., born Dec. 28, 1867; James B., July 6, 1875, and an infant unnamed, who died Jan. 15, 1872. When the Civil War broke out, William H. Rob- erts enlisted in the defense of his country Aug. 8, 1862, as a private in Co. H., 79th Ill. Vol. Inf., and served three years. He belonged to the Army of the Cumberland, and on Dec. 31, 1862, was severely wounded at the battle of Stone River by a minie ball, which passed through the calf of the left leg. While he lay wounded in the hospital, inflammatory erysipelas set in, and one night the attending nurse gave him by mistake a tablespoonful of nitric acid, which proved a more dangerous dose than the cold lead of the enemy, and would have cost him his life but for the prompt and efficient remedies that were administered. He was compelled to swallow three army-tinfuls of sweet oil to neutralize the acid, followed by copious draughts of warm water, which acted as an emetic and saved his life. He remained in the hospital until the following May, when his strength was restored, and he was permitted to rejoin his regiment. He was engaged in the stubborn fight at Resaca and in the brilliantly fought battle of Dallas, where Gen. Logan so signally distinguished himself. He took part in the battle of Rocky Face, and was also in many skirmishes during the progress of the war, and at its close was mustered out of service and discharged at Springfield, Ill., June 23, 1865. Mr. Roberts owns 160 acres of valuable land, which is highly cultivated, and improved with pleasant and substantial farm buildings. He owns fifty head of Hereford and two head of full-blooded cattle. His family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and he has been one of its Trustees for the last two years. |
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