ILMCDONO-L Archives

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Subject: WILLIAM T. BROOKING, also SHERWIN, THRESHLY, UPSHAW, WALKER, SMITH & WINSLOW
Date: Wed, 03 Nov 1999 12:23:55 -0600

Not only are the agricultural fortunes of McDonough County inseparably
associated with those bearing the name of Brooking, but practically
every war of importance in the country which has caused the spirit of
independence to rise with renewed strength above the smoke of its
battle-fields, has counted among its valiant soldiers men of of this
family of pioneers. William T. Brooking, a retired farmer of Macomb, all
but ten of whose eighty-three years have been passed within the
boundaries of this county, upholds the character and ideals of his
forefathers. Born May 6, 1824, in Union County, KY., he is a son of
THOMAS A. and grandson of THOMAS V. BROOKING, both natives of Richmond,
Va., and the latter of whom married ELIZABETH SHERWIN. His mother, MARY
LOUISE (THRESHLY) BROOKING, was born on a farm near Frankfort, KY., a
daughter of WILLIAM AND LUCY (UPSHAW) THRESHLY, natives of Kentucky and
England, respectively. The father of Thomas V. Brooking and the father
of his wife, Elizabeth Sherwin, were both Colonels in the War of the
American Revolution. Thomas A. Brooking and his father also shouldered
muskets in the War of 1812.
Thomas A. moved in early manhood to Kentucky, married there, and in 1834
went overland to McDopnough County, Ill. There he found silent prairies,
uncrossed by fences or directing roads. The red men's teepee still
adorned the landscape. Chicago, then the mart of the Central West, was a
log-hut settlement, populated by about one hundred whites and
half-breeds and seventy soldiers. Yet the Virginian's heart quailed not,
and he bravely took up his life of self-sacrifice and consecration to
the unfolding of the resources around him. Entering eighty acres of
land, he added thereto until he owned at one time 500 acres. A man of
education and refinement, he engaged in school teaching for one year at
Macomb, and he subsequently established a brick manufactory on the site
of the present Catholic cemetery. His farms were his chief concern and
most ready source of income, however, and upon his retirement from
active life to the village of Macomb, he was the possessor of large
wealth - as wealth was counted in those days. His death occurred in
February, 1858, while yet men were arriving who called themselves
pioneers, yet who could never realize the trials and privations to which
he himself had been subjected. He was the parent of four sons and seven
daughters.
William T. Brooking lived at home until he was twenty-six years old - or
until his marriage, March 7, 1850, to LOUISIANA WALKER, who was born in
Indiana in 1833. Up to this time his life had been devoted to hard work,
and even the meager schooling of the early subscription institutions was
acquired with difficulty, owing to the tasks which pressed around his
youth. A break in the monotony of farming presented itself in the
disturbance at Nauvoo, in 1845, when the Mormons were driven out of the
town. Mr. Brooking was on the scene at the time, but taking his
departure at eleven in the morning, he escaped the riot which followed
the killing of JOSEPH SMITH and HYRUM SMITH the same evening. With his
young wife he established his home on 160 acres of land across the road
from his father's homestead, but disposed of this tract in 1864, and
soon after purchased 270 acres of the old place, upon which he moved in
the spring of 1866. In 1885 he thought to retire permanently from
farming, sold all his land, and engaged in the grocery business in
Macomb. The peace of the country again called him in 1893, and he
settled on a farm recently purchased, consisting of eighty acres, which
remained his home until retiring from active life to Macomb in 1898.
While no partisan, Mr. Brooking has always been a stalwart Republican.
His official services extended back to the early history of the county.
In 1870 he was Assessor of Macomb Township, and for twenty years was a
member of the School Board. For many years he has been a prominent and
popular member of the Masonic fraternity. The shadow of loss fell across
his life January 5, 1902, when the wife who had shared his struggles and
successes for fifty-two years passed away. There were six children born
of this union: W. A.; LUCIAN THRESHLY; DOLLY, wife of W. M. WINSLOW; two
who died in infancy, and one who died at the age of twelve years. Mr.
Brooking's career has given direction and character to the development
of Macomb Township. His undertakings have been invested with
conservatism and resulted in substantial success. As an agriculturist
and business man, his well known integrity and good judgment have
materially smoothed his path, and brought him an unassailable
confidence. He is kindly in manner and generous of heart, and those who
have known him for many years are still his friends and well wishers.

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