Will County IL Archives Biographies.....Murphy, Hon Everett J 
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Deb Haines ddhaines@gmail.com September 7, 2007, 8:17 pm

Author: Genealogical & Biographical Record

HON. EVERETT J. MURPHY. The services which in the past Mr. Murphy has rendered 
the people of the twenty-first district of Illinois as their representative in 
the United States congress, and which he is now rendering the people of the 
state in the office of warden of the Illinois penitentiary, entitle him to 
rank among the eminent men of the state.  In the councils of the nation he has 
won for himself an enviable reputation for statesmanship.  As a member of 
congress he proved himself well able to occupy a high rank among the many 
gifted men of that body.  By his keen judgment and large mental endowments he 
has aided not a little the progress of the Republican party in the nation.  
Reared in that faith and early familiar with its principles, he saw no reason, 
on arriving at mature years, for changing his political belief; in fact, the 
history of the nation during the past decade has made him a stronger advocate 
than before of Republican doctrines.  Yet, though he has lived in a  time of 
partisan strife, his attachment for his party has been broad and deep—the 
attachment of a patriot, not that of a mere politician, and he has in his 
career exemplified the old maxim that "He serves his party best who serves his 
country best."  In the office of warden, to which he was chosen at a 
comparatively recent date, as the successor of Major McClaughrey, he has 
already proved himself to be the right man in the place.  His attention is 
very closely given to the duties of his office, which leave him little leisure 
for recreation or for society; yet, in the midst of many pressing 
responsibilities, he keeps in touch with the progress of events in the country 
and in his party, and formulates clear, definite opinions upon the topics of 
the day.  The enlargement of his sphere of activity by his appointment as 
warden was a just recognition of his service in public life.  To the position 
he has carried the same degree of energy and the same  progressive spirit that 
characterized him in the halls of congress, and it may with safety be 
predicted that his record as warden will equal or surpass his record as a 
congressman and legislator.

His devotion to the Republican party is a trait which he inherits from his 
father, Hon. William P. Murphy, who came from Tennessee to Illinois in 1830, 
and settled at Sparta, opening an office for the practice of law and 
continuing in the profession for years.  Both at the bar and on the bench he 
won an honorable name.  He filled the offices of county judge and judge of the 
court of common pleas, in both of which he showed impartiality, broad 
knowledge of jurisprudence and logical reasoning faculties.  He gave to 
religious work considerable time and effort, being active in the Methodist 
Church, and for a quarter of a century he was Sunday-school superintendent. He 
remained active in professional and public affairs until his death in 1884.  
Of the nine children born to his marriage with Miss Mary J. Fresh, Everett J. 
was third in order of birth. He was born July 24, 1852.  His education was 
received in the grammar and high schools of Sparta.  From the age of twelve to 
twenty-three he was employed in mercantile pursuits, meantime studying at 
night with the intention of entering upon the practice of law.  His first 
public office was that of deputy circuit clerk of Randolph County and the 
first elective position he held was that of sheriff of the same county, to 
which he was chosen in 1882.  Four years later he was elected to the Illinois 
legislature, where his service was creditable to himself and satisfactory to 
his constituents.  In 1889 he was made warden of the southern penitentiary at 
Chester, and during the four years he remained there he gained a thorough 
knowledge of every detail connected with the work, thus becoming thoroughly 
qualified for the more responsible position he now holds.  The twenty-first 
district elected him to congress in 1894, and there he was instrumental in the 
passing of various important bills. His appointment as a member of the board 
of pardons came to him from Governor Tanner in 1897, and the same governor, in 
July, 1899, appointed him  warden at Joliet.

March 30, 1875, Mr. Murphy married Miss E. C. Wilson, by whom he has two 
children, Mary A. and William A.  Mrs. Murphy is a daughter of Capt. Andrew 
Wilson, of Sparta, who was with A. D. Straight in the escape by tunnel from 
Libby prison during the Civil war, but was subsequently recaptured.

Additional Comments:
Genealogical and Biographical Record of Will County Illinois Containing 
Biographies of Well Known Citizens of the Past and Present, Biographical 
Publishing Company, Chicago, 1900

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