Crawford County IL Archives Biographies.....Ruddell, Zalmon And J. D. 
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Author: William Henry Perrin (1883)

  RUDDELL BROTHERS, druggists, etc., Robinson. Had Dickens written his Nicholas
Nickleby in Robinson, it would have been evident that he took his characters of
Cheeryble Brothers from the subjects of this sketch, barring the facts that the
Cheerybles were old men and twins. In other respects the characters are very
similar. Zalmon and J. D. Ruddell (the subjects) are descended from that old
pioneer stock of Ruddells, of Bourbon County, Ky., for whom Ruddell Station in
that county was named, an early settlement several times attacked by Indians in
the early days of the "Dark and Bloody Ground." The subjects are sons of George
and Martha (Neal) Ruddell, natives of Kentucky, who emigrated to Crawford County
in 1853, locating in Lamotte Township. Mr. Ruddell purchased an excellent farm
there of some 800 acres of land. He was a soldier of the war of 1812, an
honorable man and a good citizen, and died September 25, 1855. Zalmon Ruddell
was born February 9, 1847, and J. D. Ruddell was born March 11, 1849, both in
Kentucky, emigrating with their parents to Illinois in 1853, as above. They were
brought up on the farm, attending the common schools of the neighborhood. In
1868, both entered college, attending the same number of terms, and after
leaving school engaging in the drug business together, May 17, 1872, at Merom,
Ind., and remaining there till 1877, when they removed to Robinson, Ill.,
continuing in the drug business there till 1878, when they also engaged in the
furniture and undertaking business, and have since conducted the three branches
of business with success, their annual receipts amounting to $15,000 or $20,000.
They have indeed proved veritable Cheeryble Brothers. The only thing in which
they have materially diverged from each other was, Zalmon, in 1864, enlisted in
Company C, of the One Hundred and Fifty-fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, for
one year, J. D. being too young at the time to enter the army. Zalmon served
until the close of the war, when he was discharged. He was married April 1,
1873, in Sullivan County, Ind., to Miss Camrie French, granddaughter of Gen.
French of Revolutionary fame. They have three children, viz.: Ruth Pearl, Frank
and Burel. J. D. was married November 24, 1881, to Miss Ettie Updyke, a daughter
of Hon. William Updyke. The Ruddell brothers are enterprising merchants of
Robinson, and do a large and profitable business, amounting to some $15,000
annually. In November, 1881, Zalmon was unanimously elected Captain of Company
E, Eighth Regiment Illinois National Guards, a position his experience in the
late war eminently qualifies him to fill. Martha (Neal) Ruddell, mother of the
Ruddell brothers, subjects of the sketch, and whose portrait appears in this
volume, was born in Boone County, Ky., December 25, 1805. She was married to
George Ruddell in August, 1825. George, with his young wife, moved to Grant
County, Ky., and settled in the unbroken wilderness, where they toiled amid
hardships and danger, converting their wilderness home into a comfortable and
profitable farm. In 1853, with her husband, she removed to Illinois, settling in
Lamotte Township, in Crawford County. In 1855, the grim messenger of death
deprived her of her husband and protector, leaving her with a large family of
small children to educate and train for the duties of life, which duty she has
performed nobly, the subjects of the sketch being the youngest of her charge.
She is a faithful and devoted Christian. She joined the Methodist Episcopal
Church in childhood.

Additional Comments:
Extracted From:

HISTORY OF CRAWFORD AND CLARK COUNTIES, ILLINOIS.
EDITED BY WILLIAM HENRY PERRIN.

ILLUSTRATED

CHICAGO: O. L. BASKIN & CO., HISTORICAL PUBLISHERS,
LAKESIDE BUILDING.
1883.


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