WilliamB. Manlove

 
WILLIAM B. MANLOVE was bornin Schuyler county, December 28, 1830, near the town of Rushville. He isthe son of Jonathan and Charity (Bodenhamer) Manlove. The former was afarmer of North Carolina, and came to this county in the fall of 1830,traveling over land all the way, and settled near Rushville, where he stayedthe first winter. The next spring he went south and settled near SugarGrove; and in 1834, he sold and moved to Birmingham township, and boughta farm where our subject still lives, of eighty acres. He put up a loghouse, in which the family lived. During the building of this house thefather died, at the age of twenty-eight, leaving a wife and three children,of whom William was the eldest. The mother wove cloth for a living, andkept the old farm, and later married a second time, dying at the home ofher son, William. William Manlove, Sr., was of English descent. The familywere all farmers as well as can be ascertained. They left North Carolinaon account of slavery.

William stayed at home untilhe was nineteen years old, assisting his mother and attending school inwinter. After he became nineteen, he engaged to work for a neighbor at50 cents a day, but worked for him only two months, and then went to hisfirst free school, the other being a subscription school. He worked outby the month for a year, and then returned home, and buying out the heirssettled there. He had one yoke of oxen at that time.

He was married in 1853, toMiss Abigail Swisegood, who was born in North Carolina, and came with herparents to Illinois in 1846, being the daughter of John and Elizabeth Swisegood.She was one of six children, five yet living.

At his marriage he had onlya small farm, but by dint of hard labor he has increased it to 900 acresof as fine land as there is in the county. He commenced work, plowing cornat 25 cents a day, taking his pay in bread and meat, which he carried tohis mother who hired him out. He never went into debt for anything, butby great economy and much self-denial he succeeded in buying some land,and afterward stock. He feeds two or three cars of cattle and hogs, andhas always been a man devoted to his home.

He voted the first time forFillmore and the Republican ticket ever since, as his father was an old-lineWhig. The whole family are considered good, honest people, and highly respectedby everybody, making no pretensions. He built his present home in 1865,and was visited by the soldiers returning from the war.
All of his land is in thistownship, and 600 acres of it is highly cultivated. He had six children,five living, namely: Eli, the eldest, is deceased; Laura A., John J., IsabellV., Tad J. and Emberry J.  A grandson, William, a son of his oldestson, lives with them.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Williamsare very estimable people, and are very influential among their large circleof friends.

Biographical Review ofCass, Schuyler and Brown Counties, Illinois, Biographical Review PublishingCo., Chicago, 1892, pages 248-249.

Copyright1999-2000 Judi Gilker; all rights reserved. For personal useonly. Commercial use of the information contained in these pages is strictlyprohibited without prior permission. If copied, this copyright must appearwith the information.

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