My Genealogy Hound

SAMUEL W. McKELVEY. Among those to whom Randolph County owes a debt of gratitude for their share in the development of her great agricultural resources and the various affairs through which the interests of society are advanced, the name of Samuel McKelvey should not be passed unnoted. He was born in township 4, range 6, of this county, January 26, 1829, and is still residing on the home farm located on section 36, where he is the proprietor of four hundred broad acres. The early recollections of our subject are of a country much more primitive in appearance than that upon which his eyes now rest. The pioneer school which he attended during his boyhood was held in a log house with primitive furnishings.

The father of our subject, Charles McKelvey, was born in the Chester District, S. C., in November, 1789. He was the eldest son of Hugh McKelvey, a native of County Antrim, Ireland, who came to America and located in South Carolina about 1787. The grandfather of our subject came to Illinois the year it was admitted into the Union as a state, and located upon the farm now occupied by the widow of William McElheiney, situated on the Sparta road from Coulterville, in this county. He was one of the very early settlers in this locality and accumulated a large amount of land. He had three sons and three daughters, all of whom are now deceased, and he departed this life about 1836.

Mrs. Mary (Hunter) McKelvey, the mother of our subject, was also a native of South Carolina, where her birth occurred July 22, 1797. She was the daughter of John Hunter, who lived and died in that state. The parents of our subject were married March 26, 1817, in South Carolina, and in the fall of 1823 came overland to Illinois, locating on the farm which our subject is now occupying. The tract included a quarter-section of oak openings, and at the time of his decease, April 26, 1856, Charles McKelvey had placed one hundred acres under good improvement. His wife died January 22, 1881, after having become the mother of ten children, only five of whom are living, Alexander R., James R., our subject, Sarah (Mrs. John C. Ritchie) and Amelia (Mrs. William Walker). The parents were active members of the Reformed Presbyterian Church and had many sincere friends throughout their community.

Samuel W. McKelvey has spent his entire life on the home farm. He supplemented the knowledge gained in the primitive schools of his locality by attendance at the Sparta Academy. After the decease of his father he took charge of the farm, which now embraces four hundred acres all in one body, and which is devoted to general farming. He is also one of the largest stock-raisers in the county, having included this branch of farming with his other large interests in 1880. He now has a herd of over eighty head of registered Jersey cattle on his estate and supplies one creamery in this locality with cream. He has paid great attention to the breeding of his cattle, and it is safe to say he has one of the finest herds in the United States. He was one of the first to establish the Sparta Creamery, which is still in existence, and in many other ways he has aided in the industrial development of this country.

May 18, 1858, Samuel W. McKelvey and Miss Nancy T., daughter of Henry L. and Elizabeth (Campbell) McGuire, were united in marriage. The lady is a native of Washington County, Ill., where her birth occurred April 12, 1833. Her father was a native of South Carolina, and her mother was born near Erie, Pa. By her union with our subject have been born five children, viz.: Charles Sumner, Eliza, Ella, Henry Elmer and Samuel W. The eldest son married Miss Lizzie Gaud, and makes his home in Santa Anna, Cal., where he is practicing law. He is a graduate of Knox College, Galesburg, Ill., while the remaining children completed their studies in the Monmouth College. The family are members of the United Presbyterian Church at Sparta, and our subject is one of its most active members, having been Trustee, a member of the session and a delegate from his church to the synod held at Hanover, Ill. He has always been a great worker in the Sunday-school, and held the Superintendency for thirteen years.

Mr. McKelvey never fails to cast his vote in favor of Republican candidates, and although frequently solicited to do so, always refuses to accept office of any kind. In 1870 he erected a fine brick residence on his place which cost $5,500, and which is finished and furnished in modern style. The estimable character and useful life of our subject have secured for him the respect of his acquaintances and the deep regard of those who know him best.