The Portrait and Biographical Album of Rock County, 1889
Edward Gilley, residing on section 5 of the town of Porter, is numbered among the pioneer settlers of the county, dating his residence from the month of May, 1843. He was born in Belsay, in the parish of Bolam, Northumberland Co, England, and is of Scotch descent. He was born Feb 13, 1811, and was named for his grandfather, who removed from Scotland to England. His parents were John and Mary (Shillito) Gilley, and the father was also born in the parish of Bolam, and passed his entire life in the house where he was born, and under its roof his death occurred in 1823, when in the fifty-third year of his age. They were the parents of seven children, only two of whom are yet living - Edward, of this sketch and William, who resides in Sheffield, England. For twenty-two years William served as Superintendent of the police force of that city, when he retired to private life, living upon a pension given him by the city government. His son, John Gilley, has for the past ten years filled the position vacated by his father. Samuel, his second son, is Superintendent of the National School Board, and resides in Sheffield; William, the youngest son is cashier of a bank, and to him Northumberland County has given the power to pay its bills.
Our subject was educated in his native land, and his early life was spent upon a farm. When thirty-two years of age, he bade good-bye to home and friends, and boarded a vessel bound for America. On the 4th day of May, 1843, they dropped anchor in the harbor of New York, and landing in the city, Mr Gilley found himself in a strange land, unknown and unknowing. He brought with him a letter which proved to be of service in establishing him in a new world, and it is still in his possession. We give a copy of it:
Denton Hall, March 31, 1843
Messrs George MYERS & Son, New York
Dear Sirs: - The bearer of this, Edward GILLEY, was a servant many years to my late father, and being possessed of a few hundred pounds, has come out to your place with the intention of purchasing a piece of land. I know both him and his brother, who accompanies him, to be honest, sober, industrious men, and if you will by your valuable advice aid them in their undertakings, I shall esteem it a favor.
I am, dear sirs, yours truly
Richard Hoyle.
Mr Myers advised Mr Gilley to go to Wisconsin, and accordingly he set out, arriving in Janesville, on the 20th day of May, 1843. Being satisfied with the country, he spent three days in viewing the land, and length came to what is now Porter Township, where he entered eighty acres on section 4, receiving his patent from the Government, signed by John Tyler, then President of the United States. It was a wild and unimproved tract of prairie, on which not a furrow had been turned, but he at once built a log cabin, and continued the work of development until the raw land became a rich and fertile farm.
On the 4th day of January, 1845, Mr Gilley further completed his arrangement for a home by his marriage with Miss Hannah Theakston, who was duly installed as mistress of the pioneer cabin. The lady was also a native of England, and emigrated to America about the year 1843. Time passed merrily for a while, but ere two years had come and gone, the home was bereft of the good wife, who died in 1845. Mr Gilley was again married in April, 1853, when Miss Mary Scarcliff became his wife. She was born in Lincolnshire, England, and in 1851 came to America with her parents, both of whom died in Janesville a number of years ago. She has four brothers still living. One child was born of the union of our subject and his wife, but died in infancy, and Mrs Gilley died in May, 1875.
To his original farm of eighty acres Mr Gilley added from time to time until it was 187 acres in extent. On his arrival in America, his capital consisted of one hundred sovereigns, which formed the nucleus of his present competence. In 1877, after thirty-four years spent in his adopted country, Mr Gilley returned on a visit to his native land, but the pleasure of again viewing the scenes of his childhood was not unmixed with pain. All was changed, many dear ones had passed to their last rest, and boys and girls, his early friends, were now gray-haired men and women. After four months spent in England, he returned to his home, and in 1880 purchased 101 acres of land on section 5, Porter Township, where he has now a beautiful home, surrounded by all the comforts which go to make life pleasant. His days of hardship and toil during his early years in the county make the present all the brighter, and he can feel the satisfaction of knowing that his possessions have been acquired by his own efforts. Mr Gilley has filled various township offices of trust, and since the organization of the Republican party, has been an ardent supporter of its principles, and a faithful worker for its interest. He and his wife were members of the Congregational Church, in which he has for many years been an officer. From the earliest days of his settlement in the county he has been identified with its leading interests, and has been especially prominent in the promotion of all social, religious and moral enterprises. None stand higher in the esteem of all than does Mr Gilley, whose history we are pleased to record in this volume.
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