THORNTON, WILLIAM, was born Jan. 17, 1789, in Caroline county, Virginia. He was married Sept. 6, 1808, to Judith P. Thornton, who was born in the same county, June 28, 1788. Soon after they were married they moved, in company with her father, to Bourbon county, Kentucky, where they had seven children and moved to Harrison county, where two children were born. They moved to Montgomery county in the same State, and from there to Sangamon county, Illinois, arriving in the fall of 1834, stopping one year in what is now Woodside township, and in 1835 moved on land Mr. Thornton had previously entered, in what is now the town of Chatham. Of their children--

MILDRED R., married in Kentucky to Rev. Dewey Whitney. They came to Sangamon county with her parents, and had two children. Mr. Whitney was pastor of the Second Presbyterian Church in Springfield a few years, when he abandoned the ministry in consequence of failing health, studied medicine, and after practicing at different places in New York, moved to Yazoo county, Mississippi, where he was killed by a fall from a horse in 1856. Their daughter, JULIA O., married George O. Allen and lives in St. Louis, Missouri. WILLIAM D., married in Brandon, Mississippi, to Mrs. Rebecca Carroll, whose maiden name was Calhoun. They both died leaving one child. Mrs. Mildred R. Whitney died June 17, 1871, at the house of her daughter, Mrs. Allen, in St. Louis, Missouri.

MARY E., married Samuel N. Fullinwider. See his name.

EMMA D., married John R. Duryee, and had two children. JOHN W., married Lucy M. Whitney and lives at Marshalltown, Iowa. MARY L., lives with her mother. Mr. Duryee died Jan. 31, 1860, and his widow and daughter reside in Chatham, Sangamon county, Illinois--1874.

MARTHA W., married Rev. Josiah Porter. See his name.

WILLIAM S., married Jan. 1, 1838, to Roxana Lyman, and he died June 11, 1838, less than six months after he was married. His widow married Aaron Palmer, moved to Chicago, and died there in 1871.

ELIZABETH W., is unmarried, and lives at Chatham, on the homestead settled by her parents in 1835.

LUCY D., married Francis Conway Thornton, had two children. He died June 26, 1844, and his widow married William K. Hardin. They have three children and live in Virden, Illinois.

JUDITH P. is unmarried, and lives at the homestead in Chatham, Illinois.

LYMAN T. died in Kentucky at three years of age.

Mrs. Judith P. Thornton died Dec. 29, 1851, and Colonel William Thornton died May 7, 1871, both at Chatham, Sangamon county, Illinois, Mr. Thornton was a Lieutenant in the war of 1812 from Kentucky.

The Misses Thornton remember that on the day of the "sudden change," Dec. 20, 1836, a man by the name of Lucas, who lived about a mile and a half northeast of Chatham, rode to their house. It was raining when he started, and when he had got half the distance the cold wave struck him. His overcoat was frozen to his saddle, his feet frozen in the stirrups, and he so chilled as to be helpless. Their father (Mr. Thornton) had to knock the ice from the stirrups before he could be taken from the horse.