As we continue to celebrate the 250th year of our country, I thought I’d take another look at the early settlers of Effingham County. I wanted to see how their children fared in the new county that had to be built from scratch. One thing is for sure, the children would have learned how to work hard and their early schooling would be little to non-existent.
I chose the children of several of the early settlers to focus on. First, I researched two children of Henry and Abiel Malinda (Parkhurst) Tucker: James Portlock Tucker and Nancy Jane Tucker from Jackson Township. The next child I researched was Elizabeth Broom, daughter of John and Mary E. (Robertson) Broom from Mason Township. The last child I researched was George Washington Loy the son of John Henry and Mary “Polly” (Hodges) Loy.
Descendants of Henry Tucker
Let’s start with James Portlock and Nancy Jane Tucker. James was born March 25, 1831 in Jackson Township and Nancy Jane was born March 25, 1834. Both attended a subscription school taught by their uncle, Elisha Parkhurst, and later other schools in Jackson Township. Education was important to their parents. Much of the rest of their time was spent helping on the family farm or with household chores. They had an older brother, Jonathon, and three younger brothers, Joseph, Benjamin and Jesse. Their mother died sometime after Jesse’s birth in 1844.
Times were tough with a new baby and other young children to be cared for. It was a hectic time for this family. Their father, Henry, married Sarah Ward in 1845 and had two more children, Mary and Martha. His second wife died shortly after the birth of the second daughter.
In 1862, Henry married a third time to Mary Carpenter, a widow. In 1863, their youngest brother Jesse died while serving as a Private with Company A, 26th Regiment, Illinois during the Civil War and is buried at Vicksburg National Cemetery, Vicksburg, Mississippi. The patriarch of this family, Henry Tucker, died in 1870 and is buried by his first wife at Porter Cemetery in Jackson Township.
In 1847, during the War with Mexico, James Portlock Tucker enlisted in Company C, 2nd Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Most of the men from this area walked to Alton, Illinois to be mustered in. From Alton, he went by steamboat to New Orleans. They then headed to Tampico, Mexico and then took a ship to Vera Cruz, Mexico. The regiment then proceeded on foot to Mexico City. By now, the war had ended so they remained there a few days and then headed back to Alton, Illinois. James was mustered out and discharged in late August of 1848.
James married Martha Robertson June 26, 1849. They had a farm in Jackson Township. For his service during Mexican War, he would receive Military Warrants for 160 acres in Effingham County. They had 13 children but 10 of them died in infancy. James, or Uncle Jimmy, as he was often called, worked hard and developed a prosperous farm. He was a very determined man but he respected other people’s opinions. If they wanted to change his mind about something, they had better have facts to back it up. His wife and he retired from farming and moved to Effingham in 1900. While living in Effingham, he was an alderman. James and Martha shared 59 years of marriage before she died in 1908. He later moved back to Jackson Township and lived with his daughter and her family until his death. James Portlock Tucker died Nov. 6, 1919 and is buried at Freemanton Cemetery by his wife. He is remembered as a good and honest man.
James Portlock and Martha (Robertson) Tucker’s son, Henry Estus Tucker, married Elizabeth Pratt Ramsey. Henry and Elizabeth’s son, James Otis, married Hattie Mae (last name unknown) and their daughter, Eva Tucker, married Delbert C. Evans. Eva and Delbert’s only daughter was Mickie Evans.
Nancy Jane Tucker became a school teacher in those early years of Effingham County. She was well known for being a good teacher and role model. On Feb. 7, 1856, Nancy Jane Tucker married James Buckingham Loy in Effingham County. She was his second wife. J.B. Loy’s first wife was Eliza Parkhurst. J.B. and Eliza had lost two little boys already but had a third little boy named Joseph C., who was named after his dad’s father, Joseph C. Loy, who was also a member of a pioneer family in Effingham County. J.B. had also served during the Mexican War and received a Military Warrant for 160 acres in Watson Township. J.B. and Nancy had James Henry in 1857, Milton in 1857, Frank William in 1858, and Elmer Ellsworth in 1861. Milton and Elmer Ellsworth died at young ages. J.B. served during the Civil War with Company L, 54th Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He suffered many health issues because of his time in service. After his discharge, he returned home and in 1868 they had a son named John, who died in 1869.
James Buckingham Loy belonged to the Methodist Church that had been organized by his older family members. Nancy Jane converted to his faith in 1859 and remained a member of Loy Chapel Methodist Church until her death. Nancy Jane was known as a kind and selfless woman. She had known both joys and losses and always tried to do for others. She did her best to raise Joseph C., Frank and James Henry to be good men. Frank became a Methodist minister and all three boys made her proud. James Buckingham Loy died July 8, 1897 and was laid to rest at Loy Cemetery in Watson Township.
In later years, Nancy Jane (Tucker) Loy lived with her grandson Wood Loy and his family south of Effingham. At her 93rd birthday in 1927, her sons, Frank and James Henry, told how her years of teaching helped them when they were first learning. They recalled how she would teach them reading, writing and arithmetic using the wood floor and a charcoal pencil to write on the elm planks in front of the fireplace. They also told of how she went about singing hymns when she was getting firewood, bringing buckets of water, spinning yarn, and making clothes for all of them to wear. Those were days of hard work for her but she made them joyous days.
Nancy Jane’s health was slowly failing in 1929 when her son, James Henry, died on Aug. 5, 1929. She suffered several strokes and died on Oct. 20, 1929. Nancy Jane (Tucker) Loy had outlived her husband by 32 years and was buried by him at Loy Chapel Cemetery in Watson Township.
Descendants of Judge John Broom
Elizabeth Jane Broom was born March 8, 1833 the daughter of the early settlers John and Mary Allen (Bennett) Broom of Mason Township. Schooling was limited when she was growing up, but her father John made sure that his children received an education. Elizabeth and her siblings walked 2 to 2 ½ miles to go to a subscription school. It took her father all year to work and pay off the fees for the subscription school but he did it for his children. Elizabeth learned household tasks from her mother such as cooking over a fireplace, using a spinning wheel, and the art of sewing and mending. Daily chores as a child included carrying water, gathering firewood, helping take care of the younger children, churning butter, gathering eggs, and sweeping the dirt floor.
Elizabeth married James Osman on Sept. 25, 1856 in Clay County, Illinois. They lived in Mason Township near Wabash Cemetery. In the 1860 census, James is listed as a wagon maker. James also worked as a blacksmith. In the 1880 census, he is listed as a farmer. There must have been a terrible sickness going through that area during the 1880 census. Of the 43 people listed on that census page, 15 of them are listed as being “sick” including James Osman, and their sons, Daniel Franklin and Elmer Ellsworth. James Osman died in 1880 at only 47 or 48 years old. He is buried at Wabash Cemetery in rural Mason. Elizabeth still had two young children at home. When their father died, Elmer was 10 and Annie was 2. Elizabeth’s brother, Benjamin, was living in Cedar Point, Kansas and she must have gone to visit him. She died there Aug. 28, 1882 and is buried at Cedar Point Cemetery in Cedar Point, Kansas. Elmer and Annie were 12 and 4 when their mother died. I don’t know who took them in but by 1900 I find both of them in Polk County, Missouri and they are married.
Elizabeth’s oldest son, William Phineas Osman, stayed in Effingham County. He was born June 27, 1857. My neighbor is descended from John Broom and let me copy a picture of William and his wife, Malinda (Alvis) Osman, and their three oldest children: Lottie, Everett and James. Those three children would all later have businesses in Edgewood. Everett had a restaurant; Lottie ran a variety store; and James or “Jimmy” had a grocery store. William Phineas Osman died Dec. 25, 1916 and is buried at Wabash Cemetery, where his father James is buried. Malinda died Aug. 1, 1940 and is also buried at Wabash Cemetery in rural Mason. James Joshua Osman married Iva Mae Culley. Their daughter, Lorene Osman, married Harry Burton. Harry and Lorene Burton’s daughter, Virginia, married Charles Herbert “Herb” White. Their oldest daughter is Susan Denise White.
Descendants of John Henry Loy
Another child of an early settler is George Washington Loy born Feb. 12, 1825, the son of John Henry and Mary “Polly” (Hodges) Loy. He was 6 years old when his family came to what became Effingham County, Illinois. George received little schooling in those early years of our county but he did know how to read and write and was quite intelligent. He helped on the family farm and learned how to build log cabins and loved to hunt. In 1847, he walked to Alton to enlist and serve during the Mexican War. He followed the same route to Mexico as James Portlock Tucker because they were both in Company C, 2nd Illinois Infantry. He was discharged in late August 1848. George married Nancy A. Warner of Tonti Township in Marion County, Illinois on October 1849. He rode over there on horseback and returned after their marriage with Nancy riding behind him.
George received a Military Warrant of 160 acres in Watson Township for serving in the Mexican War. They had three sons: William, James Edward and Harmon Benton. Sadly, his beloved wife, Nancy Ann (Warner) Loy, died Jan. 7, 1856 at the age of 24 and George Washington Loy died April 15, 1857 at the age of 32. Now there were three little boys who were orphans. Three of George’s brothers raised the boys: Joseph C. Loy, Dewitt Clinton Loy and James Henry. Those little boys were split up but they did get to see each other fairly often. However, they did not inherit their father’s land as George’s brothers kept the land and farmed it for many years. What I know about those early years of George Washington Loy and Nancy Warner Loy’s lives came from a note that was left saying Nancy Jane Tucker Loy told the children of George and Nancy’s middle son, James Edward Loy, what she knew about George and Nancy’s early years. I will always be thankful that she shared that information or it would have all been lost.
James Edward Loy was my great-great-grandfather. He was most commonly known as Eddie Loy. He married Malinda Jane “Linda” Wiley on Nov. 11, 1877. They had three children. Grace was born in 1880; Sibyl was born in 1882, and James Edwin “Ted” was born in 1893. They all were raised in the area of Watson Township known as Loy Prairie. Linda Wiley Loy was a teacher both before her marriage and after and made sure that her three children received a good education. Ted Loy married Joan Peters in May of 1916. They had two children: Katheryn and Richard Wiley. Richard Wiley Loy married Rhea Louise Cooley and I am the third child of that marriage, Jane Louise Loy.
Now I’ll tie the stories of these early settlers together. Three girls who were forever friends and classmates who graduated from Effingham High School in 1973 were Mickie (Evans) Alwardt, Susan (White) Pruemer and Jane (Loy) Ries. Yes, we three are descendants of some of those early settlers of Effingham County. The legacy continued on with us and hopefully we passed this legacy to the next generation. Sadly, Mickie (Evans) Alwardt passed away in 2015 so her children and grandchildren need to keep her family’s legacy going.
All of those relatives who came before us gave us three girls strong roots and we are indeed thankful for that.