Daniel W. Wagner, who is engaged in market gardening in Virden
township, was born in Carroll county, Indiana, on the 3d of July, 1850.
His parents, Daniel D. and Esther (Wagner) Wagner, were natives of
Pennsylvania, whence they moved to Ohio, later locating in Indiana,
where the father engaged in agricultural pursuits until his demise in
1868. The mother survives at the age of ninety-one years and now makes
her home with her daughter near Oakley in Macon county. The family of
Mr. and Mrs. Wagner numbered six: Daniel W., our subject; David, who is
a resident of Fayette county, Illinois; Susan, who married David
Buckingham, of Macon county, Illinois; Eli, who is a resident of
Laplace, Illinois; Jacob, who is living at Oakley, Illinois; and
Catharine, who is deceased.
The common schools of his native
state enabled Daniel W. Wagner to acquire an education, but being the
eldest of the family and the son of a widow much responsibility devolved
upon him. He remained at home with his mother until he was twenty-four
years old when he married and began to work for himself. He rented
eighty acres of land which he cultivated until 1897, when he came to
Virden and bought a five-acre tract, upon which he raises vegetables,
berries and plants. This enterprise has proven to be very profitable and
he now owns a handsome residence and has a very attractive place which
is netting him a good income.
On the 11th of January, 1875, Mr.
Wagner was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Riffey. Her parents,
Minor and Mary (Wrightsman) Riffey, were both natives of Virginia, where
the father engaged in farming until the removal of the family to
Macoupin county, Illinois, in 1869. Here he purchased land and continued
to follow agricultural pursuits. His death occurred in 1893 and his wife
died in 1879. Both were earnest members of the United Brethren church
and he was a republican in politics. In their family were five children
who reached years of maturity and four are now living, namely: Mary, the
wife of Henry Riffey; Samuel, who married Sarah Garst and lives in
Kansas; Elizabeth, now Mrs. Wagner; and Susan, the wife of Dayton
Ohnart, living near Girard, Illinois.
To Mr. and Mrs. Wagner
were born seven children, five of whom are living: Lilly, the wife of
Walter Duncan, a resident of Virden; Esther, the wife of Ernest Palmer,
of Jerseyville, Illinois; Charles, also a resident of Virden; Harveys
surveyor of Granite City, Illinois; Lora, who is engaged in teaching in
the public schools and resides at home; and two who died in infancy. The
family attend the United Brethren church, in which the parents hold
membership, and Mr. Wagner is a republican in politics.
Extracted 17 Nov 2018 by Norma Hass from History of Macoupin County, Illinois: Biographical and Pictorial, by Charles A. Walker, published in 1911, Volume 2, pages 549-550.
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