| JohnShank |
JOHN SHANK, a successful farmer, horticulturistand florist, and a prominent citizen of Mount Sterling, Illinois, was bornin Franklin, Johnson county, Indiana, July 11, 1843. His paternal grandparentswere John and Catherine (Dosing) Shank, the former a native of Pennsylvaniaand of German descent, while the latter was of French ancestry. The formerwas an early settler of Ohio, when that State was the frontier of civilization,his last days having been passed at his home in Preble county, near Eaton,that State. His son, William Shank, the father of the subject of this sketch,was born in Montgomery county, Virginia, in May, 1821, and was twelve yearsof age at the time of his father’s death. After this event his mother removedwith her family to Indiana, and located in Johnson county, near Morgansville.Here William Shank grew to manhood, and, in 1842, married Julia E. McCord,a native of Tennessee. Her parents were John and Mary (Brown) McCord, bothof Scotch-Irish descent, who emigrated in an early day from Virginia toTennessee, whence, about the year 1836, they removed to Indiana. They residedin that State nearly twenty years, when finally, in 1855, they removedto Illinois. Here the father purchased land in Moultrie county, near thevillage of Bethany, on which he and his wife settled, and where his deathoccurred in 1865, lamented by all who knew him. William Shank and his youngwife preceded her parents to Illinois by eleven years, having removed thencein 1844, two years after their marriage. They settled in Pea Ridge township,Brown county, where William bought a tract of land, a portion of whichwas heavily timbered. Here they resided for many years, the wife, motherof the subject of this sketch, dying in 1889, universally beloved and mourned.John Shank, whose name heads this biography,was thus about a year old when his parents removed to the Prairie Statewhich was then new and sparsely settled. Here, in the freedom of a wildexpanse, he grew to manhood,–physically strong and athletic, and mentallyacute and active,–receiving the educational advantages afforded by hissurroundings and circumstances.
On the breaking out of the great Civil war,with all the enthusiasm of youth and patriotism, he rallied to the defenseof his country’s flag, enlisting in Company B, Fiftieth Volunteer Infantry,on August 20, 1861, and serving until the close of the war. The most importantengagements in which he participated were the siege of Corinth, Shiloh,Corinth and Resaca. In January, 1864, he re-enlisted or veteranized, andwas given a furlough of thirty days. After the battle of Resaca, at Rome,Georgia, he was placed on detached duty in the Commissary Department ofGeneral Sherman’s army, where he continued until cessation of hostilities.He was honorably discharged with his regiment at Springfield, Illinois,on July 14, 1865.
He then, like thousands of others, resumedhis former peaceful occupations, engaging, during the first year of hisreturn, in farming. Later, he embarked in mercantile pursuits at Clayton,Illinois, remaining there for about three years, when he sold his businessand acted as traveling salesman for about eight years, making Clayton hishome. During the latter period, he bought a part of his father’s land inPea Ridge township, and, discontinuing traveling, he engaged in generalfarming, making a specialty of horticulture. In 1874 he engaged in thenursery business and raising of small fruits, in which he continued successfullyfor some time. Finally, in 1884, he removed to Mount Sterling, the countyseat, his present home, where he continued the nursery and fruit business,to which he later added that of floriculture. His natural adaptabilityand careful attention to business have resulted in well-merited success,while his liberal methods and uniform courtesy have secured for him a constantlyincreasing patronage, until he now realizes a comfortable income from thesevarious industries.
Mr. Shank was married in 1867, to Miss SueMead, an estimable lady and a native of Morgan county, Ohio. She was adaughter of Zaccheus and Margaret (Logue) Mead, the former a native ofNew York, where he was reared and married. He and his wife were prominentand esteemed pioneers of Morgan county, Ohio, where they resided many years,the father finally expiring there, regretted by his family and many friends.The mother still survives, and makes her home with her daughter, Mrs. Shank.
Mr. and Mrs. Shank have four children: JesseE., Samuel M., Nora A. and Joe H.
Politically, Mr. Shank affiliates with theRepublican party. Religiously, he is a member of the Presbyterian Church,while his wife belongs to the Methodist Episcopal denomination. Both areesteemed residents of Mount Sterling, to the social and financial statusof which they have given material aid by their energy, public spirit andsterling worth.
Biographical Review of Cass, Schuylerand Brown Counties, Illinois, Biographical Review Publishing Co., Chicago,1892, pages 147-149.
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