Biography of Bradford K. Durfee - Macon County, Illinois

BRADFORD K. DURFEE

A member of the real estate and insurance firm of Warren and Durfee, was born 
at Marshall, Michigan, on the twenty-fifth of March, 1838.  The history of 
the family from which he is descended in this country dates back to Thomas 
Durfee, who came from England and settled at Fall River, Massachusetts, in 
1660.  Nathan Durfee, of the sixth generation in descent from Thomas Durfee, 
was born at Fall River; accompanied his father to Ohio when a small boy; grew 
up to manhood in that state; and at Cleveland, Ohio, in 1837, married 
Margaret Kirk, and the same year removed to Marshall, Michigan.  The subject 
of this sketch was their oldest son.  His home was at Marshall and Battle 
Creek, Michigan, till 1857, in which year he came to Decatur.  For a time 
after coming to this state he taught school.  His father during the war of 
the rebellion enlisted in an Ohio regiment, of which Mr. Durfee's uncle, B.R. 
Durfee, was colonel; and while he was absent in the army Mr. Durfee had 
charge of the farm.  In 1863 he was employed by the firm of Durfee and Warren 
to prepare the set of abstracts of titles of Macon county.  In 1865 he became 
a member of the firm of Durfee, Warren and Co., and has since been associated 
with John K. Warren in the real estate and insurance business.  He was 
married in October, 1868, to Lucy W. Hamilton, of Toledo, Ohio.  He was 
brought up under strong anti-slavery influences.  His father was one of the 
early abolitionists of Ohio.  Mr. Durfee's sympathies were with the 
Republican party til 1872, when he believed its policy to be detrimental to 
the best interests of the country, and he has since acted with the Democratic 
party.  In 1878 he was elected as the regular Democratic candidate to the 
Thirty-first General Assembly.  He served on the committees on 
appropriations, insurance, banks and banking, and labor and manufactures; 
gave close and constant attention to the business before the legislature, and 
made an efficient member.  In 1880 he a! gain received the Democratic 
nomination for representative, the co 

History of Macon Co, IL, p. 147


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