Francis Grant Minor (1852 - 1918) - Happy 167th Birthday

Francis Grant Minor is my great-great grandfather; my grandpa's grandpa. Today is his 167th birthday!  He is part of my deep roots in the city of Peoria, Illinois, born on 18 Oct 1852 (1), the only son of John and Martha (Neel) Minor.  John and Martha had just come to Peoria around 1850 from what is now West Virginia.

His relationship to me is as follows:  me > my dad > William Minor > John  Minor > Francis Grant.

F.G. started out his long and varied working career on 11 December 1871 in a clerk position at the Mechanics' National Bank (later the Merchants' National Bank) in his hometown.(2)  He was with the bank through November, 1888 when he became Clerk of Peoria County, Illinois which is an elected position.(3)  He served one 4 year term in this position.  After this he became involved in some private enterprises including a coal business with the Peoria Mayor, Philo B. Miles. (4)

But in our family he is known as "The Sheriff" being elected this Peoria County position in November 1910. (5)  It appears he only served one term in office before retiring to him home and farm in Millbrook Township, Peoria, Illinois.

"Minor, Former Sheriff, Is Dead," obituary, 29 May, 1918, Peoria (Illinois) Journal, p. 1.

On New Year's Day, January, 1879, he married Pauline Pruschwitz, the daughter of Polish immigrants, in Peoria.(6).  He was 26 and she was 22.  They raised three boys - John, Ewalt (Walt) and Francis Grant, Jr.  I am descended from their son John who is my grandfather's dad.  Francis Grant, Jr. would go on to be elected to the office of Peoria County Sheriff also.  John was a rural postal carrier and Walt was a farmer in Millbrook Township.

F.G. passed away on 28 May 1918 on his farm in Millbrook Township after a long illness. (7)  He and Pauline are buried in Springdale Cemetery (8) in Peoria along with his parents, sisters (Louise, Margaret (Minor) Miles, California "Callie" (Minor) Tripp and Edna.  His sons John and Francis Grant, Jr are also buried in Springdale.

Unfortunately, I did not know much of this story until after my grandfather passed.  He was only 3 years old when F.G. passed so he did not remember him but he knew about him being a sheriff.  He would very much have enjoyed learning about all of these details and remembering his grandparents through these stories.

Related Posts -
John Minor (1819 or 1820 - 1885) Happy 200th (or maybe 199th) Birthday!

Bibliography -
(1) Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate no. 3 (28 May 1918), Francis G Minor, Peoria County Clerk.  Also see "Death of F. G. Minor," obituary, Brimfield (Illinois) News, 6 Jun 1918, p. 1, col. 4; digital image, Brimfield Public Library digital newspaper collection (http://brimfield.advantage-preservation.com : accessed 14 Oct 2019).
(2) James Montgomery Rice, 1842-1912. Peoria City And County, Illinois: a Record of Settlement, Organization, Progress And Achievement (La Crosse, Wisconsin: Brookhaven Press, 2001), p. 276-277; digital image, Hathi Trust Digital Library (https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89077938587&view=1up&seq=288 : accessed 14 Oct 2019).
(3) Ibid.
(4) Ibid.
(5) Ibid.  Also, see (2) above.  Also, Franks Peoria Directory Co., compiler, Franks Peoria City Directory 1913:  volume XXXI (Peoria, Illinois:  Franks Peoria Directory Co. Publishers, 1913), 714, entry for "Francis Grant and Pauline Minor"; digital image, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 4 Oct 2014).
(6). Peoria County, Illinois, marriage certificate, no number given, Francis G Minor and Pauline Pruschwitz, 1 Jan 1879, Peoria County Clerk.
(7). Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate, no number given (28 May 1918), Francis G Minor, Peoria County Clerk.
(8). Springdale Cemetery (3014 N. Prospect Road, Peoria, Illinois), John Minor marker; photograph taken by Diane Minor, 2007.  Also, Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 14 October 2019), memorial page for Francis Grant Minor (1852–1915), memorial no. 68667142, cemetery marker in Springdale Cemetery and Mausoleum, Peoria, Peoria County, Illinois, USA; maintained by "Denise Parsons," contributor no. 47102203.

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