CUMMINGS, PETER (deceased), who for many years carried on a farm in Sangamon County, Ill., passed away in the prime of life, leaving a widow and five children to mourn his loss. He was born in Quebec, Canada, and received his education there. His father, Edward Cummings, a butcher by trade, was born in Ireland, and his mother, Alice (Butler) Cummings, was a native of France. The parents were married in Canada and there spent the remainder of their lives.
Mr. Cummings joined the navy in boyhood and served several years. He came to Sangamon County after the close of the Civil War and there became a successful farmer. He was married in Sangamon County, November 11, 1870, to Adaline Slaven, born in Pike County, Ill., daughter of W. H. Slaven, a native of Virginia, while his wife was born in Tennessee. W. H. Slaven was an early settler of Pike County, where he carried on farming for a time, then removed to Iowa and spent the remainder of his life there, passing away January 31, 1865. His widow survived him until June, 1876, and died in Williamsville. Mr. Slaven enlisted in a Missouri regiment for service in the Civil War. Five children were born to Mr. Cummings and his wife, of whom four survive: William, a painter living in Springfield; Nellie, wife of Jerry McGrew, of Williamsville, has two children, Bessie and Henrietta; Thomas, in the employ of the Wabash Railroad Company, lives at Taylorville; George, a chef, living at Williamsville.
In religious views Mr. Cummings was a Methodist, and his widow is a member of the Baptist Church. He was a Republican in politics, but took no active part in public affairs, being much devoted to his home and family. He died January 21, 1887, in his fortieth year, and was buried in Walnut Hill Cemetery. He was respected and esteemed by the entire community where he had lived many years, and his loss was genuinely mourned by many friends. For the past twenty-three years his widow has lived in her present home in Williamsville, which she owns. Mr. Cummings was an enterprising and industrious farmer and upright and honest in all his dealings, enjoying an excellent reputation among his associates.