In the books' own words, not ours, with obvious scanning errors fixed. The later printing (1896) is folded below the first. Families often supplied these stories to the publisher, so check key dates.
Born 1828, Windham County
From History of Bureau County, Illinois (1885), The Biographical record of Bureau, Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois .. (1896)
WATSON F. LAWTON, Sheffield, was born in Windham County, Vt., December 29, 1828. He is the son of Israel and Malissa (Freeman) Lawton. Israel Lawton was born January 9, 1798, and died January 11, 1860. His wife was born August 27, 1801, and yet resides on the old homestead in Vermont. She is the mother of seven children, viz.: Mrs. Eveline Sargent, of Wilmington, Vt.; Mrs. Sarah B. Adams, of Brooklyn, N. Y.; Watson F., of Sheffield, Ill.; Augusta L. Lawton, of Brooklyn, N.Y.; Orsamus B, on the old homestead; Oscar M., in New York City; and Cyren B., who was a Lieutenant in the Civil war in the Sixteenth Vermont Regiment, and was killed July 3, 1863, at the battle of Gettysburg. Our subject was reared on a farm, and had but little opportunity for attending school, only a few weeks in the winter time, but in his contact with the world he has imbibed the practical part of all education. In May, 1852, Mr. Lawton landed in Bureau County, Ill., and till 1854 he remained at Perkins Grove, in Clarion Township, but in 1854 located at the then new village of Sheffield, and the following year, after erecting a store-room, he in partnership with E. F. Pulsifer opened a general stock of merchandise, but after continuing in this business for nine years Mr. Lawton sold his interests, but soon after embarked in the same business in partnership with William Wilson, but in 1873 he retired from the mercantile life entirely in order to give his attention more to the stock business. In 1857 Mr. Lawton began buying and shipping stock, when it was carried by attaching the stock cars to the night passenger train. He has dealt quite extensively in stock until later years, during which time he has given most of his attention to his farms. Mr. Lawton came to this county with comparatively nothing, and borrowed money to start in business, but his has been an industrious life, and success has rewarded his industry. He now owns about 1,600 acres of land in Bureau County. In politics he is an active Republican. From 1865 to 1875, with the exception of two years, he was the member of the Board of Supervisors from this township, and during that time he was a member of the Drainage Committee, and except the first year was its Chairman, and to him this county owes much for its present drainage system. During his terms of office he paid for work for drainage about $140,000. He is a member of the Ames Lodge, No. 142, A. F. & A. M., of Sheffield. January 30, 1856, he returned to his native county in Vermont, and was united in marriage to Miss Carrie T. Estabrook, who was born June 27, 1830. She is the mother of two children, viz.: Alice C, born December 25, 1856, and now the wife of Henry Howard, of Sheffield, and Edwin W., born August 30, 1864. Mrs. Lawton is the daughter of Henry and Hannah S. (Clapp) Estabrook. The mother was born in 1800, and died April 10, 1883. They were the parentsof six children, viz.: Mrs. Harriet Haynes, of Council Bluffs, Iowa; Mrs. Minerva Harris, of Mineral, Ill.; Wells Estabrook, deceased; Mrs. Maryett Ward, who died in Putney, Vt.; Mrs. Carrie T. Lawton, of Sheffield; and William Estabrook, deceased.
As printed in History of Bureau County, Illinois (1885). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.
WATSON FREEMAN LAWTON. To a student of biography there is nothing more interesting than to examine the life history of a self-made man and to detect the elements of character which have enabled him to pass on the highway of life many who at the outset of their careers were more advantageously equipped or endowed. The subject of this review has through his own exertions attained an honorable position and marked prestige among the representative men of Bureau county, and with signal consistency it may be said that he is the architect of his own fortunes. He is prominently identified with the agricultural interests of the county, and is a leading resident of Sheffield.
Mr. Lawton was born December 29, 1828, at Wilmington, Windham county, Vermont, and is the son of Israel and Melissa (Freeman) Lawton, also natives of the Green Mountain state, where their parents, who were born in Massachusetts, had located before the Revolutionary war, in which Israel Lawton and his father participated. Our subject is one of a family of seven children, three of whom are still living.
C pon a farm in his native state, Mr. Lawton spent the days of his boyhood and youth, and in 1852, emigrated to Illinois, where he had old friends living at Perkins Grove, Clarion township, in Bureau county. He had no definite thought of remaining and his father supposed that he would be back in a few weeks, but in that township he purchased one hundred sixty acres of land, at six dollars and a quarter per acre, which claim had been partly fenced. At that time his capital consisted of two hundred and fifty dollars which he had earned and this he invested, going in debt for the remainder. Here he has since made his home, but the winter of 1 852-53 he spent in the east.
Again returning to Vermont, Mr. Lawton was there married January 30, 1856, at Wilmington, to Miss Carrie Estabrook, who was born in the same house where his birth occurred, and whom he had always known. They now have two children — Alice, the wife of Henry Howard, a farmer of Sheffield, and Edwin Watson, who is associated in business with his father.
The first year of his residence in Bureau county was a hard one for Mr. Lawton as he was ill much of the time. The next year he raised good crops, which he stored for two years as prices were so low, wheat bringing only thirty cents, corn ten cents and oats eight cents per bushel, but by keeping his products until 1854, the demand caused by the Crimean war raised prices and he received a dollar and thirty cents for wheat, sixty cents for shelled corn and thirty-five cents for oats, realizing about three thousand dollars in cash. In this way he got his start in life, and in 1854, removed to Sheffield, but retained his original farm until during the civil war, when he sold the one hundred and sixty acres for which he had paid one thousand dollars for eight thousand.
On coming to Sheffield, Mr. Lawton opened a store, in connection with E. F. Pulsifer, now of Chicago. This was the same fall that the railroad was completed to the place and three stores had been started the previous spring, belonging to Nash & Andrews, J. C. Niles and Carrell & Johnson. Our subject continued in the mercantile business until 1864, but during the hard times from 1857 until 1860, lost considerable through bad debts. This was when the wild cat currency was in circulation and he received all kinds of money which he took to New York, when buying goods, and made about fifteen per cent on all he handled. He was very careful in receiving money, always using a bank detector which was published daily.
In 1864, Mr. Lawton formed a partnership with William Wilson under the firm name of Lawton & Wilson, and for eight years they conducted a general store, dealt in agricultural implements and engaged in shipping stock, the last being quite profitable and in all lines being very successful. In 1872 our subject began the operation of a farm of eight hundred acres in Mineral township, two miles west of the village, but continued to reside in the latter place, his farm being cultivated by hired help. He also began breeding stock and feeding cattle for the market, to which he has since devoted his attention, his son being his partner for the last seven years.
In connection with J. M. Curtis, of Sheffield, he purchased a tract of fifteen hundred acres in Gold township, Bureau county, on which are three sets of farm buildings, and about one section is used for pasturage. For this land he paid from three to fifteen dollars per acre, it being swamp land along the Winnebago slough, but since being drained it has become quite valuable and is worth forty dollars per acre. He also owns a half section of land in Woodson county, Kansas, and is a stockholder in the Citizens’ National bank of Princeton. For his land he has paid as high as fifty-five dollars per acre.
Mr. Lawton takes a deep interest in political affairs, always voting with the republican party, and has served as delegate to the local and state conventions. He was elected supervisor when the county first began the drainage system, and held that position for eight years, taking an active part in that work, which resulted in re claiming all the swamp land in the county, now being worth several times their original value. Mr. Lawton was reared a Universalist, but is now a member of the Unitarian church, being one of its original members, and contributed largely to the erection of the house of worship in 1870. For the past thirty years he has been a member of the village board for the greater part of the time, being its president for four years, and took an active part in establishing the present system of water works, which cost twelve thousand dollars. He stands for high license and has assisted in putting in force that law in Sheffield since 1885. As will be seen, he is pub lie spirited and enterprising, having the best interests of his town and county at heart and well deserves to be numbered among the influential and popular citizens.
As printed in The Biographical record of Bureau, Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois .. (1896). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.
Named in this biography: J. M. Curtis (b. 1822) William Wilson (b. 1831)
Their biographies name Watson F. Lawton: Henry Sargent Howard
The printed record stops around 1885. We trace your line from there down to you, with every source cited.