BIOGRAPHY - JOHN PEARSON
A
farm of eighty acres on section 20, comprising the north half of the
northwest quarter, pays tribute to the care and labor of John Thomas
Pearson, who has continuously made his home upon this place for twenty
years. He was born in Tallington, Lincolnshire, England, November 2, 1861,
and is a son of John Thomas and Harriet (Taylor) Pearson. The father, whose
birth occurred in Lincolnshire, on the 9th of March, 1833, died in August,
1905, and the mother, who was born in Northamptonshire in 1827, now makes
her home with her son John T. and has passed the eighty-first milestone on
life's journey. The father was also living with his son John at the time of
his death, which resulted from an accident. In their family were three
children: John Thomas; Benjamin, who was born July 16, 1864, and is living
in Douglas county, Missouri; and Mary, the wife of C. A. Petterson, of Grant
county, Indiana.
John Thomas Pearson spent the first twenty-three years of his life in the land of his nativity and in June, 1885, arrived in Livingston county, Illinois, with his parents, his brother and sister. He has since made his home in this state and on the 1st of March, 1888, removed from Livingston to Ford county, taking up his abode upon the farm which has since been his home. It comprises eighty acres of land on section 20, being the north half of the northwest quarter. All of the improvements here have been made by Mr. Pearson, for when he took possession of the place there was only a little shanty and a corn crib upon the farm. He has erected substantial buildings and had brought the fields into a state of rich fertility, so that he annually harvests good crops and derives therefrom a gratifying income. He is not only progressive but also thoroughly practical in his methods and what he undertakes he carries forward to successful completion.
In December, 1905, Mr. Pearson was married to Miss Sarah Law, who was born in Utica, New York, December 5, 1853, her parents being John and Hannah (Hodges) Law, natives of England. They removed from the Empire state to Grundy county, Illinois, and in 1859 became residents of Livingston county.
In his political views Mr. Pearson is a stalwart republican but without desire for the honors or emoluments of public office. He has always preferred to concentrate his energies upon his business affairs and is justly accounted one of the representative and substantial farmers of the community.
Extracted 16 Oct 2016 by Norma Hass from History of Ford County, Illinois, From Its Earliest Settlement to 1908, author E. A. Gardner, Volume 2, pages 580-583.
