- JOHN DATES, one of the honored pioneers of this county, residing
in the city of Beloit, was
- born on the 19th day of September, 1813, in Dutchess County,
N.Y., and his parents were Andrew and Elizabeth (MASTON) DATES.
They had a family of five children, as follows: Julia A.; John,
of this sketch; Harry; Gertrude, who is residing in Tompkins
County, N.Y.; and Thomas, of Rochester, N.Y. The ancestors of
the DATES family emigrated from Holland to America in the early
colonial days, setting in the Mohawk Valley, and the father of
John DATES was a soldier in the war of 1812, and his grandfather
was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. Andrew and Elizabeth
DATES have both now passed away, dying in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
- Our subject received such educational advantages as the district
schools afforded, and was reared
- to manhood upon a farm. When nineteen years of age he left
home and began life's battle for himself. He first went to Chemung
County, N.Y., and subsequently located at Monroe, near Rochester,
where on the 28th day of April, 1842, his marriage with Miss
Caroline VERVALIN was celebrated. The lady is a daughter of Col.
Isaac H. VERVALIN, who was a soldier in the War of 1812, and
who for his services received a pension. His death occurred in
1884, at the age of eighty-five year, and his wife died in Beloit
in 1872. Col. VERVALIN was a Universalist, and Mrs. VERVALIN
a member of the Methodist Church, and were both earnest, consistent
Christians.
- In the year 1844, Mr. DATES, accompanied by his wife, left
the Empire State, and followed the
- course of emigration westward, becoming a resident of Winnebago
County, Ill., where he remained for one year. At the expiration
of that time he came to Beloit, where he has since made his home.
At that time Rock County was almost in its primitive condition,
but few settlements had been made, and in the present flourishing
city of Beloit but one house had been built on the west side
of the river. Like all others who settled on the frontier, Mr.
DATES endured the many trials and inconveniences of pioneer life,
but has been one of the active participants in the upbuilding
of the county, and in the work of development which has transformed
its wild lands into farms of great fertility. Immediately after
his arrival, he purchased the land now owned by A. B. CARPENTER,
within the city limits of Beloit, paying $6 an acre. At that
time, only a quarter of an acre had been put under the plow,
and the improvements consisted of a little frame house, but he
immediately began the work of cultivation and development, and
in the course of time was the owner of one of the fine farms
of Rock County.
- Mr. and Mrs. DATES are the parents of three children. George
enlisted in the late Rebellion, in
- the 22d Wisconsin Infantry, and was discharged on account
of sickness, but, regaining his health, he again enlisted in
the 42d Wisconsin regiment, serving until the close of the war.
He died on the 16th day of January, 1887. Alice, the only daughter,
is now the wife of J. R. GODFREY, of Parma, Mich. Frank, the
youngest, is a resident of New Richland, Minn. In early life,
Mr. DATES was a Jackson Democrat, but since the organization
of the Republican party, has supported that body with his ballot.
His wife, who is a most estimable lady, has been a member of
the Methodist Church for twenty-five years. This worthy couple,
who have been residents of Rock County for almost forty-five
years, are held in the highest respect by all who know them,
and in the hearts of their many friends, hold an enviable place.
-
- Taken from "The Portrait and Biographical Album of
Rock County, Wis." (c)1889, pp. 813-814.
-
- Courtesy of Carol
|