Macon County Biographies H Hale, E. B.    Hammer, William L.    Hamilton, Andrew    Hanks, John    Hefton, Dolliston    Herrel, James    Hornback, Samuel    Hostetler, Joseph    Hostetter, Jacob    Howell, Daniel, Isaac, William and Joseph      Howell, James    Huston, Ulysses   ANDREW HAMILTON was born May 31, 1806; came to Macon County in 1830; married Margaret Hall in 1829. Of their children -- John W. was born December 9, 1830; married to Amelia Clements. Robert G. was born January 20, 1832; died February 21, 1832. Martha F. was born February 21, 1833; died January 21, 1837. Alfred C. was born June 5, 1835; died April 27, 1876. Margaret S. was born January 12, 1838; died December 18, 1860. Mary S. was born October 20, 1840; died November 20, 1840. Emily H. was born April 17, 1842; married N. Boles. A.L. was born January 4, 1844; died December 4, 1844. Mary J. was born May 9, 1849; died February 12, 1873. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 264. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. William L. Hammer, Sixth Circuit Clerk. -- William L. Hammer, the sixth circuit clerk of Macon County, was born Nov. 2, 1817, in Winchester, Clark County, Kentucky, and came from Kentucky to Sangamon County, Illinois, in 1827. From there he removed to that part of Shelby County, now Christian County, in 1837, and thence to Macon County in 1854. In 1860 he was elected circuit clerk of Macon County, and was re-elected in 1864, serving two full terms with entire satisfaction to his constituents. On retiring from office he became a director, and subsequently president, of the First National Bank of Decatur, and on the liquidation of that institution he became senior member of the banking house of Rucker, Hammer & Co. He was mayor of the city of Decatur in 1869, and a member of the board of education of Decatur school district from 1865 to 1874, and was largely instrumental in the erection of the elegant and commodious school buildings that are a pride to the citizens of Decatur. Mr. H., in his business and official relations, has been gentlemanly and upright. In his social and domestic relations he is kind and indulgent. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 51. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. JOHN HANKS, once the old friend and associate of Mr. Lincoln, was born in Kentucky about 1802, and come to Illinois in 1826 or '27, and settled on Stevens' Creek; he married in Kentucky, Susan Wilson, who was about the same age as Mr. H., and who died in 1861. Of their children -- WIlliam, who lives in Piatt County, and Lewis, who lives in Oregon, were both born in Kentucky. Jane was born January 15, I S3 1, in Illinois, and married to A. T. Metlin, who was born in 1830, in Pa. Emily, born in 1833, in Illinois, married to __________ Lomis, and resides at Minonk. Phelix, dead. Grason, resides in Missouri. Levi resides in Macon County. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 262. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. DOLLISTON HEFTON was among the very early settlers of the county. He was one of the old "forty gallon Baptist" preachers, and had a sing-song tone to his preaching that was truly wonderful. From the recollection of one of his hearers, we are enabled to give a small extract from a sermon delivered by Mr. H. over 40 years ago, which Illustrates the peculiar ah's and ideas of which his sermons abounded. "My respected brethren-ah, hell-ah is like takin' a pIllow-slip of corn-ah and wadin' the snow-ah and rain-ah, and goin' to Jim Wheeler's mIll-ah, and gettin' it ground-ah to make mush -ah! You grind and grind and grind-ah! Brethren-ah, that is hell-ah. But, my hearers-ah, there is another good place-ah, which we all expect to go to-ah, and when we get there-ah, will feast forever-ah on spare-ribs, biscuits and coffee-ah, and that's the place we call heaven-ah." Mr. Hefton kept store at Mt. GIllead for a while, and had his family, household goods and merchandise all in one room. His stock of goods consisted of a barrel of pale whisky, that would freeze up in winter, a small quantity of tin-ware, and a few dollar's worth of sugar and coffee. One day some one offered to buy his entire stock of tin-ware at a given price, but he refused to sell, because it would "break his stock." Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 263. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. JAMES HERREL was born in Grayson County, Kentucky, August 29, 1813, where he remained until 1834, when he removed to Macon County and remained two years; returned to Kentucky, thence to New Orleans; thence to Florida, as teamster in the war against the Seminole Indians; returned to Macon County in 1839, where he married Mary Miller, November 26, 1840. Of their children -- Albert G. was born January 6, 1843; married S. J. MIller. Tabitha was born July 6, 1844; died February, 1845. Elizabeth A. was born October 18, 1845; died June, 1846. George W. was born October 8, 1847. Francis M. was born June 14, 1850; dead. James C. was born January 27, 1852; dead. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 262. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. JAMES HERREL was born in Grayson County, Ky., in 1813; came to Illinois in 1833 or '4, and settled in Decatur; remained there until 1840, when he removed to the place where he now lives, about 4 miles west of town. He was married to Mary Miller in 1840, who was born April 22, 1811. Albert G., son of J. and M. Herrel, was born in 1843, and now resides in this county. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 263. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. SAMUEL HORNBACK was born May 8, 1808, in Bath County, Ky. [ed., Bathe County, Kentucky], and was married September 2, 1830, to Margaret Johnson, who was born February 24, 1811, in the same county and State. They removed to Macon County in September, 1830. Of their nine children -- Abraham was born February 5, 1835. Letha Ann was born December 16, 1835; and married December 17, 1856, to Geo. W. Schroll. Isaac was born July 26, 1838; married to Martha Hide, December 20, 1858. Nancy J. was born October 23, 1841; married to Wm. Gepford, August 22, 1865. Samuel C. was born January 1, 1844; married to Margaret Vice, May 6, 1866. Margaret was born December 12, 1846; married to George Houser, November 23, 1865. Eliza A. and Lou Ann, twins, were born February 5, 1850. Jno. W. was born August 15, 1853. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 265. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. JOSEPH HOSTETLER was born in Shelby County, Ky., February 27, 1797. His father and grandfather were natives of Pennsylvania. His great-grandfather was born in Germany, near the river Rhine. Joseph's mother, Agnes, was the daughter of Anthony Hardman, of whose ancestry nothing is known. Mr. Hostetler commenced preaching according to the "Yunker Doctrine," about the year 1815. In 1816 he was married, and the same year authorized to preach by the Yunker church [ed., probably the Dunkard Church]. In 1817 he moved to Washington County, Ind., and remained there two years. He then moved to Orange County, in the same State, remaining there until 1832, when he moved to Illinois, settling in this county, not far from Decatur. In 1828, he, with others, renounced all " creeds," "confessions of faith," and took his stand with the Church of Christ, or Christian church. After he came to Illinois he performed much hard labor as a pioneer minister, as well as a pioneer farmer. In October, 1832, he organized a church in his neighborhood, of fourteen members. The same church is stIll in existence, having at present over one hundred members. In 1833 he organized in Decatur the Church of Christ, which exists to-day. In the following year he moved to Decatur, and commenced the practice of medicine, in connection with his preaching. In 1836 he returned to Indiana, and settled on an unimproved farm near Bedford, Lawrence County. In 1843 he moved to Sheboyagan County, Wisconsin, where he opened a farm in heavy timber land, and here, too, he continued to preach and practice medicine. In 1855 he removed to Salem, Washington County, Ind. Here he was engaged principally in the practice of medicine. In 1861 he moved to Lovington, Moultrie County, Illinois. During all this time he was incessantly engaged in preaching or practicing medicine. On the 27th day of August, 1870, he died, at his residence, near Lovington. His disease was a functional derangement of the heart. He was a heavy built man, weighing about two hundred pounds; was five feet eight inches high, and seemed to bear the weight of years with remarkable firmness and strength. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 263. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. JACOB HOSTETTER was born in Shelby County, Kentucky, July 6, 1810; married Tabitha Crum in March, 1835, and came to Macon County in 1835, where he died in 1873 of smallpox. Mrs. H. was born in Oldham County, Kentucky, November 4, 1816. Of their children -- Francis M. was born in Clark County, Indiana, February 3, 1835; married Elizabeth Wykel, 1857. Mary J. was born October 15, 1836 and married Jane C. Campbell, March 8, 1865. Malinda E. was born August 31, 1838; married Charles E. Hunsley, October 25, 1865. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 258. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. WILLIAM HOWELL, DANIEL, JOSEPH and ISAAC, were brothers of James, and came to Macon County early. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 262. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. JAMES HOWELL was born in 1802, in Galleo County [ed., Gallia County], Ohio, and removed to Macon County in 1831, having been in the state five years. His wife was born in Virginia in 1803. Their children were Mary, WIlliam T., Emily, Nancy, Charles D., Brice A., John, Elizabeth. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 262 ULYSSES HUSTON was born August 25, 1824, in Pickaway County, Ohio; came to Macon County in the month of November, 1836; married to Matilda McCoy, Feb, 25, 1847, who was born May 19, 1825, in Montgomery County, Indiana, and came to Macon County in 1840. Of their children -- Phebe was born January 5, 1848; was married to Robert M. McCoy, November 5, 1866. John was born October 13, 1849; died April 14, 1856. Robert was born August 22, 1852. Orus B. was born January 3, 1856. Martha M. was born February 18, 1859. Emily J. was born January 7, 1862. WIlliam N. was born March 2, 1865. Mary E. was born December 12, 1868. All of which now reside in Macon County. Smith, J. W. (1876). History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876. Springfield, Ill: Rokker's Printing House. P. 264. Transcribed and annotated by Judy Rosella Edwards. HOME ©2008 Genealogy Trails