**************************************************************************** File contributed to the Fulton County ILGenWeb Project Copyright 2008, all rights reserved. These electronic pages cannot be reproduced in any format without the written consent of the author at http://fulton.ilgenweb.net. **************************************************************************** Source: Portrait and Biographical Album of Fulton County Biographical Publishing Co., Chicago, 1890 **************************************************************************** The Biography of Mrs. Jane Campbell HAND Pages 655-656, transcribed in full by Karen CRANE Goggin [Surnames: BARTLETT, CAMPBELL, DAVIS, GILSON, HAND, HUME, LYON, McDONALD, MYERS, NAPPIN, OLIVER, RAY, REED, SMITH] MRS. JANE CAMPBELL HAND. Although nearly fourscore years of age Mrs. Hand is very active, with mind and memory remarkably preserved for a lady of her years. Her remembrance of the scenes and incidents which have marked her pathway in life makes her conversation interesting to those who enjoy reminiscences regarding earlier times or who are capable of drawing lessons from the experiences of others. She is one of the most highly respected residents in Farmington, which became her home in 1849, although for a period she lived elsewhere. She is attractive in personal appearance and her manners are indicative of her excellent ancestry. John Oliver, the maternal grandfather of our subject, served in the Revolutionary War and was with Gen. Washington at Valley Forge during the historical winter. He filled the position of Regimental Clerk. He owned large landed estates in Mifflin County, Pa., and held a prominent place in the community. For several years he served as Associate Judge of the county and was also a member of the State Legislature. The Olivers in former years were strict adherents of the Presbyterian doctrines. The paternal grandfather of Mrs. Hand was Robert Campbell, who was born in Ireland of the Scotch-Irish stock. He married Jane Campbell who, although she bore the same surname, was of an entirely different family. This couple emigrated to America in Colonial times, first settling in Chester County, Pa., and subsequently becoming residents of Mifflin County. The settlers were much troubled by the Indians for sometime after the Campbells located there. Mr. Campbell had strong religious feelings, adhered to the ancestral faith of Presbyterianism, and did much to aid in building up that denomination in the vicinity of his home. In 1874 his descendants celebrated the one hundredth anniversary of his settlement in Mifflin County. The property bought by him, consisting of more than seven hundred acres, is still in the family. In the family of this worthy couple was a son Samuel, who grew to maturity in his native county of Pennsylvania, marrying Nancy Oliver, who was born and reared there. In 1814 they removed to Huntingdon County where the husband was engaged in farming. He acted as Justice of the Peace of Shirley Township. In 1831 he removed his family to Ohio, settling in Huron County, but subsequently removed to Morrow County, where he died at the age of sixty-two years. His widow died at the home of a daughter in Marshall County, Ind., when seventy-seven years old. Samuel Campbell was one of ten children and his own family consisted of the same number. Mrs. Hand is the third on the family roll. Of her brothers and sisters we note the following: John Oliver, a farmer, died at his home in Santa Cruz, Cal., in 1887, leaving five children - Carlista, Cornelia E., George O., Benjamin F., and Alonzo. Joseph F., a farmer in Bedford Bounty, Pa., died there, leaving a family of seven children; Margaret Ann is the widow of James Hume, formerly a farmer in Marshall County, Ind., and has three children - Robert Allen, Albert C. and Oliver A. Mary Agnes lives in the same county as her sister Margaret, being the widow of John Ray, a farmer, and the mother of a son, John Franklin. Robert died in Marion County, Ill., leaving two sons - Walter and Robert; his occupation was that of a tiller of the soil. Elizabeth I., married James Gilson, a mechanic, and died at her home in McDonough County, leaving four children; one of them died in the army, and one is at the Soldiers' Home at Quincy. The other two are Byron and Jane. Samuel F. died in McDonough County, where he had been engaged in farming; he had no children. Casandra Lyon, wife of David McDonald, died at her home in Marion County, Ind., leaving three children, who have since departed this life. James Alexander, who is unmarried, lives in Oregon. The natal day of Mrs. Hand was October 27, 1810, and her birthplace Mifflin County, Pa. The scenes of her earliest recollections are of Huntingdon County, where she attended school when the educational facilities were quite limited. In Huron County, Ohio, she made the acquaintance of Jacob D. Hand, to whom she was united in marriage in 1835. They operated a farm in the Buckeye State five years, then removed to this county where Mr. Hand turned his attention to mercantile pursuits, locating at Ellisville. In 1849 they removed to Farmington and from that time until his demise Mr. Hand enjoyed the leisure and comfort of a retired man. For several years he served as Supervisor of Farmington Township. In politics he was originally a Whig and later a Republican. His death occurred at Galesburg June 7, 1876, to which place he had removed in 1856. After his death his bereaved companion returned to Farmington where she has since continued to reside. In his worldly affairs Mr. Hand was prospered exceedingly and when he died left a large fortune. He wore his religion as an everyday garment, gaining the goodwill even of the opponents of Christianity and the deeper regard of those who knew him best. The parents of Mr. Hand were Henry and Sarah (Davis) Hand, natives of new Jersey, in which State he also was born. His birth took place at Westfield, Essex County, October 24, 1805. He was quite young when his parents removed to Genesee County, N. Y., and he subsequently accompanied them to Huron County, Ohio. To our subject and her husband four children were born, named respectively, Emily, Harriet Reed, George W. and Henrietta J. The son died when but three years old. The eldest daughter married Sylvester Reed, a merchant at Galesburg. She died leaving two children - George H. and Emily M. The former married Minnie Bartlett and makes his home in Frankfort, Kan., where he is engaged in the hardware business; he has a daughter, Catherine Beatrice, now a year old. Emily M. married Alva F. Myers, a farmer at Kankakee, this State. The second daughter of our subject became the wife of Capt. John S. Smith, and died in Farmington. The youngest child is the wife of David Nappin, the Farmington horticulturist; their family comprises two children - Emily Maude and Frank H. Mrs. Hand has, as will be seen from the above, four grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Mrs. Hand was reared under the tenets of the Presbyterian Church and while a young lady in Pennsylvania taught a class in Sunday-school. She afterward became identified with the Congregational denomination, to which Mr. Hand also belonged. The two gave valuable aid in building up the church at Farmington. A lithographic portrait of this venerable lady and of her deceased husband will be noticed on another page.