JOHN B. SHERMANHere are more vignettes of men who deserve recognition but are without enough information to merit individual descriptions. William Loving – Son of the more famous Oliver, William at age 19 was chosen by his father to take a herd to Illinois in 1857. The success of that drive prompted Oliver, along with John Durkee, to repeat the journey the following year. The plaque at the Loving ranch along the Brazos River in Palo Pinto County, Texas erroneously states that Loving's 1858 drive was the first one north to Illinois. Willis McCutcheon – McCoy wrote that McCutcheon as a boy accompanied his father on a drive in 1857 that ended in Quincy, Illinois. William Renick – McCoy wrote that Renick drove 1100 cattle from Texas to Springfield, Illinois in 1854. He sold some in Chicago that year and others in New York City the following spring. John B. Sherman – Born in New York state in 1825, John as a boy went with his father on cattle drives to New York City. About age 30 he moved to Chicago where he subsequently operated the Bull's Head Stock Yards and the Myrick Yards. He was one of the founders of and the manager of the Union Stock Yards. He died in 1902. Michael Lucas Sullivant – Born August 6, 1807 in Franklinton, Ohio, he inherited a large piece of land nearby. In 1854 he sold that property and moved to Illinois, buying 80,000 acres in the Champaign County vicinity. He attempted new methods in farming and stock raising, but eventually ran into financial problems. He was forced to sell a large portion of his estate to John T. Alexander, but was able to retain about 40,000 acres. He died January 29, 1879. Seymour Van Meter – He was born in Ohio February 14, 1807 and came to Illinois in 1830. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield has letters he sent to his wife Catherine in Sangamon County. In them he mentions two drives, but with little detail. August 19, 1846 Urbana, Ohio "We have had a very dry hot trip but our cattle look tolerably well … exactly 1 month from the time we started ..." June 22, 1848 Alboncy, Indiana "... I expect to be in Ohio in 8 or 9 days." REFERENCES Chicago's Pride – Louise Carroll Wade – 1987 Great American Cattle Trails – Harry Sinclair Drago – 1965 Historic Sketches of the Cattle Trade of the West and Southwest – Joseph G. McCoy – 1874 History of the Early Settlers of Sangamon County, Illinois – John Carroll Power – 1876 Illinois: A History of the Prairie State – Robert P. Howard - 1972 Most of the information I have is already on these pages, but if you have a question, go ahead and write and I'll see if I can help you. eelink@live.com If you'd prefer to send a paper letter, I can be reached at: Ed Link 3548 Winhaven Drive Waukegan, IL 60087-1403 |