HARRY L. MANNING
Harry L. Manning, who is engaged in the insurance and real-estate business in Kane and is one of its native sons, was born on the 13th of May, 1860, his parents being Henry W. and Elizabeth J. (Williams) Manning, the former a native of London, England, and the latter of Kane township, Greene county, Illinois. The paternal grandfather, Peter Manning, was a native of Ireland, whence he removed to London and it was during his residence there that the birth of Henry W. Manning occurred. Subsequently he crossed the Atlantic, establishing his home in New Brunswick, and later he removed to the state of New York, where his death eventually occurred.
Henry W. Manning accompanied his parents on their various removals. He was for many years engaged in surveying and he visited a number of states in connection with the government survey, including Florida and Texas. He came to Carrollton, Greene county, Illinois, about 1855, and here he turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, while later he was identified with the educational interests as a teacher in the county. Prior to the period of the Civil war he became a minister of the Baptist church. He had been educated for the Episcopal ministry, but change in his religious views led to his identification with the other denomination. Aroused by a spirit of patriotism when the south made an attempt to overthrow the Union, he enlisted in 1862, responding to his country?s call by joining Company E of the Sixty-first Illinois Volunteer Infantry under Colonel Jacob Fry. He served throughout the war as a valiant defender of the cause which he espoused. Being capture din front of Richmond he was held as a prisoner for some time, but later was exchanged. He then started to return to his home in Illinois but died at Alton. His life was one of usefulness, devoted to the material, educational and moral development of the various localities in which he resided and ultimately was given as a sacrifice to his country.
Harry L. Manning, the second in his father's family of three children, acquired his early education in the public schools of Kane and was afterward a student in Shurtleff College in Upper Alton, Illinois. Later he engaged in teaching school for two terms and subsequently spent four years in the south, devoting his energies to similar professional duties. He next taught school in the vicinity of Kane for six years and has since remained a resident of his native county. In 1901 he was elected justice of the peace and about the same time he established an office for the conduct of a real estate, insurance and collection. business. In this he has been very successful, has written much insurance and has made many collections for business firms of this part of the state. He now owns a fine farm of over two hundred acres lying west of Kane, his property being the visible evidence of his life of enterprise and energy. On the 18th of October, 1891, Mr. Manning was united in marriage to Miss Lelia M. Varble, who was born in Kane and died in 1895. They had one child, Wilma E. Mr. Manning was elected and served as assessor of Kane township for ten years. He is an advocate of democratic principles and has always been most loyal to his party. Socially he is connected with the Modern Woodmen of America. The greater part of his life has been passed in Kane or its immediate vicinity and those who have known him have words of high commendation for him because of his straightforward honorable record. Without ostentation of self-laudation he has gained the uniform respect of his fellowmen and deserves mention among the representative citizens of his native county.Transcribed by: Carole Ann Heller