Will County IL Archives Biographies.....Ashley, James R 1825 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/il/ilfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Deb Haines ddhaines@gmail.com May 4, 2007, 10:57 pm Author: Portrait & Biographical Album, 1890 JAMES R. ASHLEY. The subject of this notice is familiarly called "the father of all the wire mills of this county." He is one of the oldest residents of the county, having come to Plainfield as early as 1837, when a boy of twelve years. He was born February 3, 1825, in Martinsburg, Lewis County, N. Y., and is the son of Riley B. and Sally (Searles) Ashley, the latter of whom died when her son James R. was only two years old, also leaving an infant daughter who died in early childhood. The subject of this notice remained with his father in his native place until 1837, and then the latter decided to emigrate to Illinois, set out with his little family and in company with three other families journeyed overland with teams from New York to this county. After a tedious journey of one month they arrived in the embryo town of Joliet, June 9, following. The father being a Baptist minister purchased a home in the village of Plainfield and also bought a farm in that vicinity, the latter of which he leased while he confined his attention to his pastoral duties. He organized the first Baptist Church in the place and remained in charge of it for several years. Through his efforts various other churches were organized throughout the surrounding country, and among these he labored faithfully, sometimes going as far as Chicago to preach. He maintained his home continuously in Plainfield and died there in August, 1880, at the advanced age of eighty-one years. He had in the meantime contracted a second marriage and there were born to him three more children, only one of whom is now living. After the death of his wife he was married a third time, and his widow is at present residing in Leyden, N. Y. James R., of this notice, was reared by his father and step- mother in Plainfield, and was given a good education, completing his studies at Warrenville, this State. He first engaged in business in Plainfield as a merchant in a small way and by the exercise of a wise economy, succeeded in accumulating sufficient means to erect a large store building in which he placed a first-class stock of merchandise. He conducted the business until July, 1870, and then sold out. In the meantime, when the township organization was effected he was elected Township Clerk, which position he held for a period of fifteen years. During that time he also held the office of Justice of the Peace two terms and in addition to this, from the fall of 1862 until the spring of 1870, was the United States Ganger for what was then the Eighth Congressional District, comprising six counties. He had the supervision of all the distilleries, wholesale liquor and rectifying establishments within his bailiwick, and was required to inspect all liquors made and collect the tax thereon. It will thus be seen that during those years he was a very busy man. After disposing of his mercantile interests Mr. Ashley rested for a time, then, in 1874, removed to Joliet and became connected with the firm of A. B. Sharpe & Co., with whom he remained until January, 1876. He then sold his interest in the concern and that same day he and his brother formed a partnership with H. B. Scuttand William Watkins, for the purpose of manufacturing wire fence— Mr. Ashley furnishing, with the exception of $500, all the capital. The partners operated together until the summer of 1876, and resolved themselves into the Joliet Wire Fence Company, taking in several new men and Mr. Watkins dropping out. They located their plant at Adam's Dam until the 1st of August when it was destroyed by fire. Not finding a suitable location elsewhere, they took their machinery to the penitentiary and the company continued to do business until January 1, 1879. Then Mr. Scutt, D. Robertson and Mr. Ashley purchased the interest of the other partners and formed the new firm of H. B. Scutt & Co., and they operated until September, 1881, when Mr. Ashley disposed of his interest in the business to his partners. In the meantime Mr. Ashley organized another firm called the Joliet Wire Company, with a capital of $50,000, and in connection with it established a wire drawing company, which, however, was separate in its operations. At this time there had been no enterprise of this kind west of the city of Cleveland, Ohio, and it was made a grand success. In July 1882, Mr. Ashley purchased the machinery of the Joliet Wire Company and took the contract for employing one hundred and twenty-five convicts for eight years. At the expiration of this time he organized the present Ashley Wire Company,of which he was made President and Treasurer. On account of his failing health, W. S. Brooks was appointed Acting President and Treasurer, while Mr. Ashley retained the chief supervision of the concern. At the last election of stockholders he was re-elected President and Treasurer. The company are removing their plant to the southwest part of the city on the banks of the canal, where they are erecting extensive brick buildings and will thus double their present capacity. In 1876, H. B. Scutt & Co., constituted the third firm in the United States engaged in the manufacture of barb wire and solved the problem of the feasibility of such fencing on the western plains. Mr. Ashley has large real- estate interests in Joliet, and at one time owned forty thousand acres of land in Florida, three-fourths of which he subsequently disposed of to parties in this city. The marriage of James R. Ashley and Miss Julia F. Tyler was celebrated in Plainfield, October 27, 1850. Mrs. Ashley was born in April, 1825, in Bridgewater, Mass., and was the daughter of Daniel Tyler, who spent his last years in Troy, N. Y. The Tyler family left the Bay State in an early day, settling in Troy, N. Y., where Mrs. Ashley spent her younger years. She came with her sister to Plainfield about 1841. Of this union there were born four daughters, only one of whom is now living, Ella M., the wife of George W. Bush, of Joliet. Religiously, Mr. Ashley is a member of the Baptist Church in Plainfield, while in political affairs he is a stanch Republican, and in the councils of his party occupies a prominent place. He has made for himself a fine record in business circles while as a member of the community he occupies no secondary position among his fellow-citizens. Elsewhere in this volume will be found a lithographic portrait of Mr. Ashley. Additional Comments: Portrait and Biographical Album of Will County, Illinois, Containing Full Page Portraits and Biographical Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens of the County; Chicago: Chapman Bros., 1890 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/il/will/bios/ashley1308nbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/ilfiles/ File size: 7.2 Kb