A history of Macoupin county would hardly be complete without some
reference being made to the Talley family, who located here in the very
early pioneer days and have been numbered among the representative
citizens for four generations. Originally they were natives of France,
having emigrated from there to England, whence three brothers came to
America, settling in Delaware in 1680. The paternal grandfather, Joseph
Talley, migrated from Delaware to Indiana in the early days and there
engaged in farming. Later he came to Macoupin county, where he continued
to follow agricultural pursuits, having always been identified with this
occupation. His demise occurred at Piasa, Illinois, when he had reached
a ripe old age. Unto him and his wife there were born seven sons and one
daughter, the latter having died when very young. Their sons in the
order of birth were as follows: John, William, Joseph, Adam, Wilbur,
Henry and Harmon. The mother and the eldest son, John, were victims of
the cholera epidemic of 1854, both deaths occurring the same day.
Joseph, Adam, Wilbur and Henry were all soldiers in the Civil war, the
three eldest in the infantry, members of the same company, while Henry
Talley was in the cavalry forces. Adam Talley was a native of
Noblesville, Indiana, but in his early manhood located in Shipman,
Illinois, where he followed his trade, which was that of decorating,
until the breaking out of the war. He responded to the call for
volunteers and enlisted as a private in Company F, Twenty-seventh
Illinois -Volunteer Infantry, serving all through the war, participating
in many of the most notable and closely contested battles. After
receiving his discharge he returned to Shipman, where he continued to
reside until 1874. He then removed with his family to Carlinville where
he has made his home for thirty-six years. Mr. Talley married AI iss
Josephine Frank, a daughter of Abraham and Mary (Witt) Frank, and a
native of Carlinville; her father early settled in Carlinville, where
for many years he conducted a hotel on West Main street. He was very
popular, of a genial disposition and a great sportsman, spending much of
his time in the forests which at that period abounded with game. The
family of Mr. and Mrs. Frank numbered nine, namely: Francis, George,
Josephine, Abraham, Jacob, Isaac, Isadore, Isabel and Effie. Their
eldest daughter, Mrs. Adam Talley, passed away on the 25th of January,
1883, at the age of twenty-eight years; she was a member of the
Methodist Episcopal church. To Mr. and Mrs. Adam Talley was born one
son, Howard OtisTalley, the subject of this sketch.
The first
four years in the life of Howard Otis Talley were spent in Shipman,
Illinois, where his birth occurred on the 22d of September, 1870. His
parents removed to Carlinville in 1874, and here he grew to manhood,
being a pupil in the public schools. After laying aside his text-books
he engaged in clerking here for several years and then went to St.
Louis. There lie obtained' a position in the express office and later
pursued a business course in one of the commercial colleges. After the
completion of this course he took a position as stenographer at Poplar
Bluff, Missouri, where he remained for two years. Shortly after his
marriage he again took up his residence in St. Louis and engaged in the
hotel business. From there he migrated to Denver, where for three years
he conducted a mining directory, returning to Carlinville in 1900.
During the succeeding six years he worked as a decorator, then took over
the Central Hotel and City Opera House with which he has ever since been
successfully identified.
On the 29th of January, 1896, was
solemnized the marriage of Mr. Talley and Miss Florence Graham, a
daughter of Dr. William D. and Mary A. (Rice) Graham. Mrs. Talley was
born in Carlinville on the 13th of July, 1870, her parents also being
natives of this town. Her preliminary education was acquired in the
public schools after the completion of which she entered Blackburn
University. Her father, Dr. Graham, was a son of Milo Graham, a native
of Pennsylvania of Scotch extraction, who was one of the pioneer
settlers of Carlinville. Mrs. Milo Graham, prior to her marriage was
Hannah Dugger, a granddaughter of Pierre Dugger, who fought in the
Revolution under General Lafayette and was killed in a duel in Virginia.
By the union of Mr. and Mrs. Milo Graham there were born but three
children who attained maturity: Susan, who married George Hunter; Mary,
the wife of Samuel Berry, who afterwards married Simon Peters; and
William D. Mrs. Graham passed away while yet quite young but he was
sixty-eight years of age at the time of his demise. Mrs. Talley’s
maternal grandparents were Hiram Jackson and Sarah (Andrews) Rice. He
was a native of Kentucky of Scotch descent, while she was born in
Macoupin county, her people, however, were natives of Virginia. Four
children were born to them: Mary Agnes, Florence Missouri, Frank Alonzo
and Clarence Robert. Dr. Graham was engaged in the practice of medicine
in connection with which he conducted a drug store in Carlinville for
about forty-two years. Although very young at the time of the Civil war
he enlisted and went to the front, where he remained for a brief period.
He was a very intellectual man, public-spirited and progressive, having
high ideals of the duties and responsibilities of citizenship. He was
always more or less prominently identified with municipal affairs,
having served for sixteen years as alderman and one term as mayor. All
educational matters found in him a strong cooperator and he gave most
efficient service as a member of the board of education. His demise
occurred in this city in 1906 at the age of fifty-eight years. His wife
still survives and continues to make her home in Carlinville. Three
children were born unto' them, one daughter, now Mrs. Talley who is the
eldest, and two sons, Frank and William Rice. Mr. and Mrs. Talley are
the parents of one daughter, Mary Josephine. This young lady upon
attaining her maturity will be entitled to membership in the Daughters
of The American Revolution on both the paternal and maternal lines of
ancestors. The Talleys were one of the prominent colonial families of
Delaware, having furnished the country with several eminent jurists and
soldiers, while Mrs. Talleys people were equally prominent in the
colonial history of Virginia and Kentucky.
Both Mr. and Mrs.
Talley are members of the Episcopal church, while fraternally he belongs
to Orient Lodge, No. 95, K. of P. In matters politic Mr. Talley always
votes the straight republican ticket at national and state elections,
but for county and city offices casts an independent ballot, giving his
support to those candidates he deems most likely to subserve the
interests of the majority.
Extracted 15 Nov 2018 by Norma Hass from History of Macoupin County, Illinois: Biographical and Pictorial, by Charles A. Walker, published in 1911, Volume 2, pages 469-471.
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