Jerome Bonaparte Calvert, Marion lawyer and city attorney, was born on October 12, 1846 in Williamson County, Illinois, the son of Napolean “Bone” Bonaparte (1822-1882) and Sarah Reynolds (1823-xxxx ) Calvert.
His father, Napoleon B. Calvert, was the son of John N. Calvert who traveled from Alabama to Massac and later to Pope and Williamson County. In 1845 he was one of the first elders when a Presbyterian Church was organized in Marion. Continue reading
John Allen Hay was born in Marion on March 17, 1902, at 513 S. Market Street in the home of his grandparents, Romulus and Adelle Holland who built the home in 1875. John was the second child born to the marriage of Charles W. Hay (1873-1967) and Elizabeth “Bess” Holland.
John’s mother, Bess Holland, died in 1908 when he was only six years old and the situation was reflected in the 1910 census. His grandfather, Romulus Holland, owner of the home on S. Market, was 64 and a salesman for a coal oil distributor. John’s father, Charles W. Hay, owned a shoe store at 304 Public Square, next to the First National Bank and was a widower, 37 years of age. Continue reading
Richmond Roe Fowler, a.k.a. Rich, was born about five miles northeast of Marion on November 28, 1860. He was the son of Joseph W. Fowler and Elizabeth Davis.
After taking advantage of the schooling offered by the district schools, Judge Fowler attended Ewing College for two years, and then for two years engaged in teaching. Continue reading
Edward M. Spiller was born at Carbondale, September 28, 1865. Spiller lived most of his life in Williamson County where he became a leading citizen early in a brilliant career. He was the son of Elijah Spiller and Parazetta Edwards.
After attending school in Marion he studied at the Northern Indiana University and was graduated from Valparaiso University in 1888 with the degree of Bachelor of Science. After teaching one term of school at Carterville, he began the study of law in Marion under W.W. Duncan, later justice of the State Supreme Court. Continue reading
Walter W. Skaggs was born May 23, 1879, of humble parentage, on a farm three and a half miles southwest of Marion, in a log house in the midst of the virgin forest. Walter assisted in the clearing and breaking of the new ground and the development of the farm until he was seventeen years of age. His parents were William T. Skaggs and Amanda Oglesby of Williamson County who were farmers. Continue reading