Biography - Alfred Reed
ALFRED REED. The sons of the pioneers have indeed reason to feel proud
of their honorable ancestry. The early settlers in Illinois were a class of
men and women who came to the New West not alone for personal aggrandizement
but mainly for the benefit of their posterity. They cheerfully endured
hardships and wrought gladly with their hands that they might provide a
future for those who are dependent upon them. Our subject was born in
Shelbyville Township, Shelby County, August 8, 1839, where he now resides,
his parents being Moses and Ruth (Fortner) Reed. The father was born in
Tennessee, March 3, 1807, and there married a lady who was born in North
Carolina, March 12, 1808, a daughter of Micajah Fortner.
This young wedded couple came to Illinois and settled in Shelby County about
the year 1825, when there were no houses between them and Vandalia and only
two or three houses anywhere in their vicinity. Indians still abounded in
Shelby County, deer and other game were plenty and wolves came about the
dooryard.
Moses Reed entered land and settled in section 23, where he also purchased
other land and dealt in real-estate more or less, having generally six
hundred acres of land in possession at a time. He made his permanent home
where he first settled and remained there until his death in November, 1884,
at the age of seventy-seven years. His widow died August 13, 1890, at the
very advanced age of eighty-three years. Their ten children are Lucinda, now
Mrs. Jackson; Edward; Elizabeth, deceased; Eliza, now Mrs. Henry Hilton;
Artimesia, now Mrs. Manning; Moses; Alfred, our subject; Elisha and Marion,
deceased; and one who died in childhood.
Having grown to manhood in Shelbyville Township, and undertaken as his work
for life agricultural pursuits, our subject decided to establish a home for
himself and in 1862 he married Rebecca, daughter of Jacob Kensil, who became
the mother of five children and died in 1873. Two only of her children are
now living, namely: Sarah, now Mrs. Bazel Haywood and Mary J., the wife of
Lewis Manning. In 1877 Mr. Reed married Alzira Hoard, daughter of Andrew J.
and Mary J. (Highland) Hoard. This lady was born in Union County, Ohio,
October 14, 1856, and came with her parents to Illinois in 1868. They
settled in Shelby County, and here this young girl grew up into a lovely
young womanhood and received a training in the useful arts of housewifery,
in which she became expert. Her beloved mother is still living and her
worthy father died July 4, 1886, at the age of sixty-four years. One child
only of the second marriage is now living, a daughter Zula; a little one
died at the age of eighteen months some years ago.
About three hundred acres of land now form the home farm of this successful
and thorough-going farmer. He prefers to devote himself largely to
stock-raising of which he makes a specialty, and in which he is very
prosperous. His political views have led him to ally himself with the
Democratic party, and he firmly believes that the principles endorsed by
"Old Hickory" are the reliable ground for political action now-a-days. The
high esteem in which he is held by his neighbors has often led them to urge
his acceptance of various local offices, but the only position which he has
ever felt willing to accept was that of a member of the School Board in
which he has been very useful and has aided materially in forwarding the
educational interests of his township. Socially he is a member of the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
Extracted 29 May 2017 by Norma Hass from 1891 Portrait and Biographical Record of Shelby and Moultrie Counties Illinois, pages 282-283.
