Will County IL Archives Biographies.....Stephen, Ebenezer C 1838 - 
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Author: Portraits & Bio Sketches, 1890

EBENEZER C. STEPHEN. 

The man who has a brain to conceive and a hand to perform various kinds of 
handicraft, may well be gratefully proud of his ability to add to the means oy 
which others can increase their conveniences or opportunities. The gentleman 
with whose name we introduce this notice comes of a family in which the 
mechanical talent is conspicuous, several members having shown high degrees of 
skill in various lines of construction. His Grandfather Garden was a mill, 
cart and plow wright, and his Grandfather Stephen was also a first-class 
mechanic. So, too, was his father, Joseph Stephen, although the latter studied 
for the ministry and devoted himself to the cause of the Master during a great 
part of his life. A fuller account of the lives of Joseph Stephen and his 
wife, Jane (Garden) Stephen, will be found in the sketch of David S. Stephen 
on another page in this Album. The subject of this notice was born in 
Aberdeenshire, Scotland, July 25, 1838, and accompanied his parents to America 
in 1843. The voyage and journey to Northern Illinois are recorded in the 
sketch of his brother David, and it is unnecessary to repeat them here. The 
lad was reared upon the farm until 1863, having the advantages of the common 
schools, and when a very young man taught for one term in Green Garden 
Township. He inherited the mechanical skill of his ancestors, and without 
having to serve an apprenticeship was able to do almost anything in mechanics. 
In 1863 Mr. Stephen opened a machine and repair shop in partnership with his 
brother, David S., and has continued in the business for twenty seven years. 
The fraternal connection was finally dissolved in 1889 and our subject has now 
the bulk of the old business. He is proprietor of a saw, planing and feed mill 
in Frankfort and does all kinds of general woodwork, repairing and 
manufacturing. He also deals in farm implements and machinery and in hard-wood 
lumber and coal. He has a fine set of machinery and tools, and the reputation 
which he has earned as a first-class mechanic is well deserved. The buildings 
which he occupies were erected by himself and are situated upon a five-acre 
tract of land owned by him. He also owns a cozy residence. When a young man, 
Mr. Stephen learned the rudiments of farming and was actively engaged in it, 
acquiring in this way a practical knowledge of all that pertains to 
agricultural life. Such was his taste and natural ability that while teaching 
he spent Saturdays working in the shop and was able to wood two plows per day, 
thus making $7. Such industry and zeal merited the smiles of Dame Fortune, and 
it is a pleasure to his friends to know that he has gained a comfortable 
financial standing. Mr. Stephen has no political aspirations, preferring the 
quiet of his home to the tumult of public life, but is ever ready to use his 
influence and deposit his vote in favor of Republicanism. The marriage rites 
of Mr. Stephen and Miss Emma J. Houpt were celebrated in Frankfort, December 
31, 1867. The charming bride was born in Effingham County, Mich., and well 
educated by worthy parents. The latter were early settlers in Jackson, Mich., 
where they located in 1836. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Stephen has been blessed 
by the birth of five children: George G. is a mechanic and engaged with his 
father; Ida M. is a graduate of the Frankfort schools and now teaching at 
Hadley, Homer Township, having begun her professional labors when but sixteen 
years old; Joseph A. is deceased; Robert E. and John O. are still at home and 
unoccupied, except in useful studies and pursuits.

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 
 


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