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EARLY SETTLERS OF SANGAMON COUNTY - 1876
By John Carroll Power

These biographies were submitted by a researcher and evidently abstracted from the 1876 History of Sangamon County, IL. Errors could occur, so one should always verify the correctness by obtaining copies of vitals and performing all necessary research to document what is contained herein.




BAKER, ISAAC, was born near Fredericktown, Md. He served as a fifer in the Revolution, the last two years of the war. Phoebe Waddell was born near Baltimore, Md. They were married there in 1787, and moved to what became Bourbon county, Ky., where twelve children were born, eight of whom married there. The parents and four youngest children came to Sangamon county in the fall of 1829, in what is now Rochester township. Of their children--

JAMES, born July, 1788, in Bourbon county, Ky. It is believed he was the first white child born in the county. He was married Sept. 17, 1813, in Nicholas county, Ky., to Nancy Squires, who was born Oct. 22, 1794, in Fauquier county, Va. They had eight children in Nicholas county, and moved to Sangamon county, Ill., arriving Nov., 1828, at Springfield, and a week later left for what is now Logan county. In Jan., 1831, he moved to Rochester, Sangamon county. They were five days moving twenty miles, through what is known as the "deep snow." Mr. B. was a soldier in the Black Hawk war. Two of his children were born in Illinois. Of his ten children, S. WILLIS, born Oct. 10, 1814, in Kentucky, died unmarried, in Illinois, June 25, 1850. THOMAS J., born March 1, 1816, in Kentucky, died in Sangamon county, Oct. 17, 1832. MARGARET J., born Dec. 20, 1817, in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county, Nov. 15, 1838, to Daniel S. Stafford. She died in less than a year. MARTIN E., born Jan. 27, 1820, in Nicholas county, Ky., married March 4, 1852, in Springfield, to Mary C. S. Williams, who was born Feb. 3, 1826, in Montgomery county, Md., and came to Springfield in 1839. They have eight children, JAMES W., CORNELIA A., MARGARET E., MARTIN E., jun., NANCY E., HORACE W., MARY F. and CHARLES O., and reside four miles southwest of Illiopolis. ELIZA E., born Nov. 7, 1822, in Kentucky, died July 3, 1835, in Sangamon county. KITTY A., born Jan. 22, 1824, in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county, in 1848, to Oliver Stafford; have seven children, and reside in Mt. Pulaski. JOHN S., born Nov. 7, 1826, in Kentucky, taught school in Sangamon county many years; went to California in 1854, and died July 30, 1873, in San Francisco. WILLIAM F., born June 29, 1828, in Kentucky, brought up in Sangamon county, married, Feb. 7, 1860, in Christian county, to Elizabeth Green; have four children, and reside near Grove City. MARY E., born Oct. 22, 1830, in Logan county, married, Nov. 4, 1852, to Leander Green. (See his name.) MARTHA A., born August 11, 1833, in Sangamon county, married Dec. 29, 1859, to William Crenshaw; have two children, and reside in Georgetown, Ky. James Baker died Feb. 14, 1869, and Mrs. Nancy Baker died Oct. 3, 1872, both in Christian county.

JACOB, born August 9, 1790, in Bourbon county, Ky., was a soldier from that county in the war of 1812. He was married in Nicholas county, Ky., to Jane Branch, sister of Edward Branch. See his name. Four of their children were born in Kentucky, and he came to Sangamon county with his father, arriving in 1829, near Rochester, where five children were born. Of his seven children, JULIAN, married first to Alfred Waddell, who died, and she married Willis Runnels, and both died. Her sons, ALFRED Waddell, resides in Greenfield, Mo., JESSE and WILLIS reside near Nashville, Mo. SUSAN, born in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county to James Virden, who died, and his widow resides seven miles east of Springfield. They had five children. PLEASANT, born April 25, 1819, in Nicholas county, Ky., married in Sangamon county, June 24, 1846, to Lavina Waddell, who was born in Kentucky. They had five children; two died in infancy. JULIAN and WILLIAM H. reside in Clear Lake township. ALVIN resides with his father. Mrs. Lavina Baker died April 20, 1857, and Mr. B. married Mary E. Cook, a native of Scioto county, Ohio. They have five children, MARY, SUSAN J., ELIZA A., PLEASANT and LAURA E., and reside in Clear Lake township. ISAAC, born Oct. 6, 1821, in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county to Almyra Pike. He died, leaving one child, ISAAC, who resides south of Rochester. POLLY A., born in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county to Daniel Barr. JANE, born July 15, 1827, in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county to John M. McCune. See his name. ALVIN, born in Sangamon county, married Hester Hornbaker. He died in 1856, leaving two children, EDWARD and ALONZO. Mrs. Jane Baker died, and Jacob Baker afterward married twice, and died May 18, 1872.

THOMAS, born about 1792, in Kentucky, married there to Sarah Delay. They had four children, and came to Sangamon county in 1828, with his brother, James, and settled near Rochester, where one child was born. Of his children, ISAAC resides near Medoc, Mo., ELIZABETH, born in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county to Jabez Capps. See his name. JOHN resides near Medoc, Mo. WILLIAM resides in Virginia City, Montana. JEMIMA married and died in Mt. Pulaski. Thomas Baker died March, 1874, and his widow resides near Medoc, Mo.

JOSEPH, born in 1796, in Kentucky, came to Sangamon county in 1828, and died in Medoc, Mo.

SUSAN, born March 15, 1799, in Bourbon county, Ky., married Robert Bell. See his name.

ISAAC, born in Kentucky, never came to Sangamon county. He resides near Medoc, Mo.

SQUIRE, born Jan. 8, 1803, in Kentucky, came to Sangamon county in 1829, and resides near Mapleton, Kansas.

WILLIAM, born in 1805, in Kentucky, and resides near Mapleton, Kan.

GREENBURY, born in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county to Anna Payne, who died, and he married Mrs. Mary Johnson, formerly Mrs. Barker, and whose maiden name was Williams. They had four children. MOSES was a Union soldier in the 11th Mo. Inf., and was killed while aiding in the arrest of a deserter. THOMAS J. was a men??er of the 16th Ill. Cavalry, and died in Andersonville prison. S. WILLIS served three years in the 11th Mo. Inf.; was honorably discharged, and married in Sangamon county to Matilda Mear. He died early in 1874, leaving a widow and two children, near Medoc, Mo. EFFIE was married in Sangamon county, to Joseph Brunk, and resides near Medoc, Mo. Mrs. Mary Baker died May 22, 1842, in Sangamon county. Greenbury Baker died March 4, 1873, in Sangamon county.

HARRISON, born in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county, to Nellie Bowles. They had eight children, born in Sangamon county, and moved to the vicinity of Medoc, Mo. Mr. and Mrs. Baker died there in 1872, and were buried in one grave.

POLLY, born in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county to Elias Williams. See his name.

PHOEBE, born April 5, 1816, in Kentucky, married in Sangamon county to Josiah B. Williams. See his name.

Mrs. Phoebe Baker died July 3, 1845, and Isaac Baker died in Sept. 1848, both in Sangamon county, south of Rochester. He was about 100 years of age.




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