THOMAS FRY was born in Kentucky, June 14, 1844. When an infant, he came with his parents to Sangamon county, Illinois, and lived on a farm near Springfield, with his father, until 1860, when he went to Minnesota, and farmed two years there, then returned to Sangamon county and farmed until 1867, when he began to work at the Leland Hotel, where he still remains. His father, Richard Fry, was born in Kentucky, and came to Springfield in 1844. He died in 1866. His wife, Mary Fry, was born in Kentucky. The was the mother of ten children six living, viz., Thomas, Sarah Oglesby, Amanda nelson, Mary, John and Robert. Thomas Fry, the subject of this sketch, has a common school education. He cast his first vote for U. S. Grant for President.