Will County IL Archives Biographies.....Davidson, William 1827 - ************************************************ 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 5, 2007, 3:21 pm Author: Portraits & Bio Sketches, 1890 WILLIAM DAVIDSON. It is frequently said that the pedestrian learns much more of the country than he who travels by public conveyance, as he is brought much closer to the people and has a better opportunity to observe their habits and to learn their characteristics, and also sees, as rapid transit will not permit, the natural beauties or blemishes of the landscape. Did time and space allow of a detailed account of the experiences of the subject of this sketch, much of interest might be learned regarding the appearance of various sections some years since and the manner of life of the citizens. Although his experiences were not always agreeable, yet his labors in life were beguiled by many scenes both entertaining and instructive. The stubborn determination which is so characteristic of the race from which he sprung and the feeling which has been so thoroughly embodied in the well-known expression of one of England's most noted men,that "England expects every man to do his duty," has characterized his life labors and led to his success and present assured financial standing. The remote ancestors of our subject were Danes, but for many generations they have been numbered among the English race. He of whom we write was born in Tallantire, Cumberland County, England, October 28, 1827, and is one of six sons and two daughters born to Robert and Esther (Howe) Davidson, who were natives of the same county. The father was a farm laborer. Three sons and a daughter came to America, Joseph and William making the voyage in 1850. An old Englishman had been sent from Connecticut to the Mother Country to secure one hundred and fifty quarry men, and under an engagement with him the two Davidsons came to the United States, Joseph paying his own fare but William being brought by the company. The latter from early boyhood had longed to cross the ocean and rejoiced in the opportunity presented to him. They landed in New York April 24, 1850, and began their labors in the Connecticut quarry the following day. Previous to leaving his native land young Davidson had been railroading for six years and prior to that time had been a farm hand. Mr. Davidson worked ninety-nine days in the quarry, paying his passage money and quitting the employ of the company when they owed him $40, which they have never paid. Borrowing $7 from his brother, he went to Philadelphia and thence to Baltimore, from which point he started on a tramp with his kit on his back. He went to Little York, Pa., and had worked six weeks when the quarry stopped and he tramped three hundred miles, returning to within a mile of his starting point. There he worked on a canal six weeks, after which he walked to Dalton, Obio, where he engaged to lay track for the Ft. Wayne Railroad. Nine months were spent in the employ of that company, during which Mr. Davidson put in the switches and side tracks from Pittsburg, Pa., to Massillon, Ohio. His next change was to Michigan City, Ind., where he took a job of spotting ties on the New Albany & Salem Railroad. The little money which he should have made was lost, as his contract was but a verbal one, and his employers thought he was making too much for an old country man. After this hard treatment Mr. Davidson left the company and coming to Chicago in 1852 was ill for two weeks, after which he went on the Illinois Central Railroad at Kankakee, before there was a house at that point. He got out all the stone used on the road from there to Cairo, working at it about four years, after which he took up his abode in Joliet, where he has resided for thirty-four years. He came here with Robert Cunningham and the first work he did in this place was to get out stone for the Universalist Church. He began work in the quarry of which he now owns a share, his employers being Wilson Bros, of Chicago, whom he served eleven years as a foreman. He and W. A Strong then bought the Swalm quarry, and afterward the Wilson, carrying on the two about four years, when our subject bought his partner's interest, besides other property. In 1869 he sold a fourth interest to his brother and, in 1885, taking in Henry Kerber, organized as a joint stock company. The output has been from $100 to $150,000 per year. Mr. Davidson has been four times married. His first wife, Jane Sterling, was a native of Canada and was of Scotch descent; she died about three years after their marriage. Mr. Davidson contracted a second marriage with Ann Finney, a lady of English birth; she was a widow with six children, the youngest of whom was two years old at the time of her second marriage. She bore Mr. Davidson two children, one deceased, while the other a daughter, Etta J., is the wife of John Pierce and resides in Colorado Springs, Colo. After the death of Mrs. Ann (Finney) Davidson our subject took unto himself as a wife and helpmate Mrs. Melissa Dewey, who lived twenty-one years after their union. No children were born of this marriage. Mr. Davidson married his present wife, a most estimable lady, in the fall of 1885. Her maiden name was Amelia Hegbom, and she is of Norwegian birth. In connection with this sketch we present a lithographic portrait of Mr. Davidson. Politically, he is a strong Republican. His character as well as his business energy entitle him to respect, and he is numbered among the most reliable citizens of the city in which he has resided so many years. 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/davidson509gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/ilfiles/ File size: 6.2 Kb