This is the first carte de visite in my collection that actually comes from Lexington (IL) during the Civil War period. The young lady’s arm rests on a book, often used to suggest the educated student. Perhaps she is posing for her high school graduation picture. She appears to be about 17 which would mean that she was 11 or 12 in 1860, having been born about 1848.
Her carte de visite was taken by Stephen Merrill, photographer, in Lexington, Illinois, my hometown. Stephen Merrill, born 1830 in Maryland, who moved to Lexington in the fall of 1864, when he began his business. (Wm Le Baron, Jr & Co. 857)
Obviously the sitter in the picture could be from out of town, but the dress seems a very “in-town” upscale dress which leads me to believe it was someone who lived in town, not a farmer’s daughter who would be wearing something less tailored or fancy. Also, sausage roll curls take a lot of time and preparation. If one were helping with one’s family, would there be time to prepare such an elaborate hair style? A doting mother or servant would have been needed forming the curls.
Looking at the picture opens lots of questions. Did she know various members of my family. The Harnesses and Vandolahs lived on the south-west edge of town on the main road. Several of the Harness daughters were contemporaries of the girl in picture (who being about 17 would have been born ca1848). Was she a town girl and therefore considered more sophisticated? Did they attend the same school? Did she shop at Harness & Kennedy? Would she have known Caroline (Harness) Kennedy (then 23, with one child) if they had passed each other on the wooden sidewalks of town, avoiding the ducks and chickens? Did she go to dances and would she have danced with Ike’s younger son (then 21)? Would she have discussed out-going president James Buchanan’s rejection of the Southern states sucession and the claims that many of the farmers in the area were Copperheads? Would her parents have disapproved of slaves, although there were no blacks (free or otherwise) listed in the township? Might she have met President-elect Lincoln as a girl when he came to stay with the Spawrs while riding the circuit? If I knew her name, would I know her as someone I would recognize on the 1860 census?
The 1860 Census for Lexington Township (IL)
The Lexington Township 1860 census (taken 9-11 September 1860) counted 1,246 people living in 153 dwellings (401 men, 790 women), of whom 55 were foreign born. The census takers counted 2 apprentices, a baker, 2 barbers, 7 blacksmiths, a broom maker, 1 butcher, 7 cabinetmakers, 8 carpenters, a carriage maker, 2 clergymen (both Methodist Evangelical.), 7 clerks, a clothing merchant, 2 constables, a corn thrasher, a daguerian artist, 30 day laborers, a dentist, 3 domestic servants, a druggist, editor, 2 engineers, 7 farm laborers, 50 farmers, 1 grain buyers, 2 grain merchants, 5 grocers, a gunsmith, hardware merchant, 7 harness makers, a hotel keeper, a jeweler, 2 justice of the peace, 3 lawyers, 2 livery keepers, a lumber merchant, 7 master carpenters, 1 mechanic, 8 merchants, 2 millers, a milliner, a post office clerk, 2 painters, 4 physicians, 2 plasterers, a printer, a rail road foreman, 10 rail road laborers, a rail road watchman, 2 rail road station agents, a saddle maker, 4 school teachers, 4 shoemakers, a speculator, 2 tailors, a teacher of chirography, 3 teachers high school, 4 teamsters, a telegraph operator, 4 tinners, a town marshall, 2 wagon makers and a washerwoman.
Occupations in the town of Lexington, Illinois, 1860 [by name and age]
Occupation, Name Age
- Apprentice, Bisbee, James 15
- Apprentice, Tubs, James A. 18
- Baker, Baker, Jacob 38
- Barber, Cassida, Hugh 28
- Barber, Valentine, Frank 28
- Blacksmith, Blake, Louis C. 42
- Blacksmith, Davis, Hiram F. 31
- Blacksmith, Free, Nicholas 23
- Blacksmith, Gilsbins, William 37
- Blacksmith, Givler, Henry 43
- Blacksmith, Magill, Malcom 38
- Blacksmith, Woodard, Augustus G. 26
- Broom maker, Bode, William 27
- Butcher, Bosley, A. 35
- Cabinet maker, Bider, Anthony 27
- Cabinet maker, Deal, John 43
- Cabinet maker, Gray, Grafton E. 29
- Cabinet maker, Hann, H.W. 35
- Cabinet maker, Sprague, J.G. 44
- Cabinet maker, Valentine, William 29
- Cabinet maker, Zinn, John 32
- Carpenter, Bush, Charles 22
- Carpenter, Curtis, Daniel ??
- Carpenter, Hardman, Samuel C. 28
- Carpenter, Hurst, Henry 48
- Carpenter, Kittsmiller, Theodore 26
- Carpenter, Ragan, John 16
- Carpenter, Shade, Samuel 27
- Carpenter, Skelly, William 26
- Carriage maker, Stevenson, Richard 31
- Clergyman Meth E., Christ, P.A. 25
- Clergyman Meth E., Kent, Lyman 30
- Clerk, Ambrose, Joseph B. 31
- Clerk, Dement, R.L. 16
- Clerk, Dunkle, George 23
- Clerk, Goddard, Edward M. 24
- Clerk, McGurdy, Horace 23
- Clerk, Okeson, J.B. 29
- Clerk Thomas, Isaac 35
- Clothing merchant, Kennedy, W.H. 28
- Constable, Best, Jacob 30
- Constable Hand, Jackson 33
- Corn Thrasher, Wassel, Peter 27
- Daguearian Artist, Beem, Reason 24
- Day laborer, Benjamin 40
- Day laborer, Bisbee, Almon 54
- Day laborer, Carlin, Bryan 27
- Day laborer, Elliot, Reuben 34
- Day laborer, Flanley, John 38
- Day laborer, Hemke, Charles 41
- Day laborer, Hiltbruneer, A.J. 26
- Day laborer, Kent, Elisha 52
- Day laborer, Kent, George W. 27
- Day laborer, Kent, Ransaleer E. 21
- Day laborer, Lee, Abram 39
- Day laborer, Lovel, Coleman 38
- Day laborer, Loving, James 20
- Day laborer, Marty, John 30
- Day laborer, Mason, Simon 48
- Day laborer, Myers, John 29
- Day laborer, Noel, Linsly 37
- Day laborer, Reple, Lenard 40
- Day laborer, Richards, Evan 37
- Day laborer, Rogers, John 45
- Day laborer, Schlepick, Henry 28
- Day laborer, Smith, Philip 52
- Day laborer, Smith, Philip 18
- Day laborer, Snyder, Anthony 30
- Day laborer, Stumpff, Peter 40
- Day laborer, Tucker, John 31
- Day laborer, Turpin, William 40
- Day laborer, Valentine, Andrew 30
- Dentist, Gray, Charles T. 38
- Domestic, Cobum, Sarah (f) 20
- Domestic, Fany, Margaret 32
- Domestic, Hemke, Mary (f) 16
- Druggist, Reynolds, William 41
- Editor, Craig, William 25
- Engineer, Cutler, William 37
- Engineer, Hanson, U.R. 37
- Farm laborer, Lovel, Richard 22
- Farm laborer, Hand, Wayne 22
- Farm laborer, Murphy, Nicholas 35
- Farm laborer, Wood, George 22
- Farm laborer, Wood, James 30
- Farm laborer, Wood, John 26
- Farm laborer, Wood, Absalem 20
- Farmer, Adams, Thomas 38
- Farmer, Brooks, Robert 34
- Farmer, Brothuton, Samuel 26
- Farmer, Brothuton, Robert 21
- Farmer, Crume, W.W. 30
- Farmer, Dawson, Crogan 35
- Farmer Dawson, Samuel 37
- Farmer, Dunkle, William A. 18
- Farmer, Fisk, James 45
- Farmer, Fitzgerald, David 77
- Farmer, Fulwiler, David 21
- Farmer, Gray, Joseph 25
- Farmer Hand, Paris 28
- Farmer, Harness, Isaac 51
- Farmer, Harness, Milton 16
- Farmer, King, J.W. 37
- Farmer, Jackson, John 50
- Farmer, Leanght, James 23
- Farmer, Long, C.W. 45
- Farmer, Lovel, George 24
- Farmer, Lovel, Samuel 19
- Farmer, Lovel, Thomas 28
- Farmer, Mahan, A.W. 23
- Farmer, Mahan, John 22
- Farmer, Mahan, W.J. 18
- Farmer, Peak, Henderson 38
- Farmer, Popejoy, Allen 21
- Farmer, Popejoy, Comadore 18
- Farmer, Popejoy, George 24
- Farmer, Popejoy, Harrison 22
- Farmer, Popejoy, William 67
- Farmer, Richmond, Braddock 81
- Farmer, Spawr, Jacob 57
- Farmer, Strawther, George 51
- Farmer, Strayer, Isaac 18
- Farmer, Strayer, John 20
- Farmer, Scrogin, Levin P. 37
- Farmer, Strode, John 27
- Farmer, Stumpff, Henry 44
- Farmer, Valentine, Joseph 35
- Farmer, Waters. George 35
- Farmer, Waybright, Miles 36
- Farmer, Wood, Amos 58
- Farmer, Weakley, Joseph M. 19
- Farmer, Weakley, John A. 26
- Farmer, Weakley, Thornton 64
- Farmer, Wood, Isaac 27
- Farmer, Wood, James 62
- Farmer, Wood, Robert 20
- Farmer, Wood, Noah 19
- Grain buyer, Brown, William 38
- Grain merchant, Heath, F.C. 41
- Grain merchant, Rogers, Milton 35
- Grocer, Heath, Alfred 44
- Grocer, Marshall, David 23
- Grocer, Preble, Charles H. 28
- Grocer, Smith, J.W. 59
- Grocer, Van Doren, Garrit 34
- Gunsmith, Snyder, W.H. 60
- Hardware merchant, Marshall, James 26
- Harness maker, Brotherton, James 22
- Harness maker, Denham, William 25
- Harness maker, Dingman, James 32
- Harness maker, Empie, Benjamin 36
- Harness maker, Fish, Edward 21
- Harness maker, Garrison, Benj. 25
- Harness maker, Stevens, Dorus 31
- Head of household (no occupation), Arbogast, Benjamin 31
- Head of household (no occupation), Benedict, Mary (f) 39
- Head of household (no occupation), Bowers, Nancy A. 34
- Head of household (no occupation), Champlin, Abigal 58
- Head of household (no occupation), Clagget, Frank 23
- Head of household (no occupation), Cobum, G.A. (m) 37
- Head of household (no occupation), Dawson, Elizabeth 60
- Head of household (no occupation), Fell, Matilda C. (f) 40
- Head of household (no occupation) Mahan, Mary C. 58
- Head of household (no occupation), Lovel, Elizabeth 63
- Head of household (no occupation), Strayer, Esther 46
- Head of household (no occupation), Tucker, Mary 50
- Hotel keeper Kerr, Hannah (f) 38
- Jeweler, Luccock, Thomas E. 27
- Justice of the Peace, Dunkle, C.B. 49
- Justice of the Peace, Mahan, J.S. 28
- Laborer, Gear, Allen 20
- Laborer, Millard, Ebineezer 18
- Lawyer, Barnd, A.F. 48
- Lawyer, Strayer, Marinus W. 25
- Lawyer, Tipton, Thomas F. 27
- Livery Keeper, Vandolah, D. 21
- Livery Keeper, Vandolah, George 30
- Lumber merchant, Hunt, D.H. 28
- Master carpenter, Bold, Hiram T. 27
- Master carpenter, Fell, Thomas 54
- Master carpenter, Kenedy, John H. 34
- Master carpenter, Lindsey, William 39
- Master carpenter, Ragan, Fielding 57
- Master carpenter, Ralston, Jonathan L. 33
- Master carpenter, Roberts, Timothy 34
- Mechanic, Mahon, John W 33
- Merchant, Claggett, S.R. 35
- Merchant, Dement, G.L. 45
- Merchant, Franklin, G.H. 27
- Merchant, Fulwiler, John 50
- Merchant, Hefner, Henry 33
- Merchant, Knotts, G.W. 46
- Merchant, Mahan, Jacob 34
- Merchant, Smith, William M. 34
- Miller, Goddard, Fletcher 45
- Miller, Kidd, Richard 25
- Milliner, Nixon, Mary (f) 54
- No occupation listed, Richmond, Samuel 35
- Post office clerk, Watkins, Emery 21
- Painter, Robinson, John 33
- Painter, Watkins, David 52
- Physician, Fell, Jonas 44
- Physician, Mahan, Alexander 51
- Physician, Martin, E. 64
- Physician, McAferty, Ethan 42
- Plasterer, Fitzgerald, William 36
- Plasterer, Guthire, Peter 30
- Printer, Goddard, E.M. 22
- R.R. foreman, Enos, J 30
- R.R. laborer, Cassady, John 30
- R.R. laborer, Dempsy, Mark 35
- R.R. laborer, Dublin, Edward 20
- R.R. laborer, Finton, John 29
- R.R. laborer, Lyons, John 30
- R.R. laborer, McCrackin, William 28
- R.R. laborer, McGuire, James 25
- R.R. laborer, Shine, Daniel 38
- R.R. laborer, Smith, Michael 19
- R.R. laborer, Sound, Peter 28
- R.R. station agent, Dexter, Smith H. 36
- R.R. watchman, Killian, William 28
- Saddle & harness maker, Stevens, L.A. 30
- School teacher, Dexter, Mary 20
- School teacher, Luce, Sarah 20
- School teacher, Mahan, Helena S.G. (f) 17
- School teacher, Sprague, Chloe A. 18
- Shoemaker, Beal, John M. 40
- Shoemaker, McCay, Richard 26
- Shoemaker, McKinney, B.L. 27
- Shoemaker, Roberts, Davis 35
- Speculator, Marshall, R.F. 32
- Station Agent, Edick, A.J. 28
- Student, Kitchen, Charles 21
- Student, Kitchen, Joseph 17
- Tailor, Barrett, Jonathan 36
- Tailor, Kitchen, John 51
- Teacher Chirography, Boler, John 36
- Teacher high school, Anderson, A.J. 27
- Teacher high school, Cook, E.M. (f) 35
- Teacher high school, Goodrich, Permelia C. (f) 27
- Teamster, Bartens, James 24
- Teamster, Champlin, Percival 32
- Teamster, Michell, Henry 50
- Teamster, Reynolds, Pinkney 24
- Telegraph operator, Lewis, William L. 16
- Tinner, Heller, Jacob 27
- Tinner, Powley, John W. 21
- Tinner, Powley, Joseph 25
- Tinner, Powley, William 45
- Town marshall, Kawouse, U. 51
- Wagon maker, Doughty, Daniel 28
- Wagon maker, Stevenson, William 28
- Washerwoman, Snyder, Mary (f) 28
