JOHN McDOWELL DAVIDSON
John McDowell Davidson, farmer, Delavan Township, Ill., was born near Saltsburg, Westmoreland County, Pa., November 4, 1823, and died June 9, 1904, being the son of Patrick an(l Jane (McDowell) Davidson. His parents were natives of Franklin County, in that state— the father born in 1790, and the mother, in l795. The paternal grandparents were John McDowell and Rachel (Maxwell) Davidson, while the great-grandparents were Elias and Susan Agnes (McDowell) Davidson and Capt. William and Elizabeth (Van Lear) McDowell.
Captain McDowell was a soldier of the Revolutionary War, in which he served seven years, and was commissioned Second and First Lieutenant, and later, brevetted Captain. Patrick Davidson, father of John McD. Davidson, was a merchant in early life, but in later years engaged in farming.
The subject of this sketch became a resident of Tazewell County, in 1855, purchasing at that time his present 160-acre farm, for which he paid $5 an acre, the same property being now valued at $125 per acre. He has been prominent in public affairs, having served as Commissioner of Highways, besides filling other local offices. On December 24, l874, Mr. Davidson was married in Franklin County, Pa., to Miss Susan Rebecca Hall, born March 16. 1841, and of this union there are five children:
John McDowell, Edward Hall, Charles Maclay, Jemnie Van Lear and Susan Rebecca.
The parents of Mrs. Davidson, John and Jane (McIhenny) Hall, were born near the battlefield of Gettysburg. The father was born in 1781, the son of Edward and Sally (Wilson) Hall, and died in 1875, while the mother, a daughter of Robert and Mattie (King) McIlhenny, was born in 1797 and died in 1889. Robert and Mattie (King) McIlhenny were early settlers in the vicinity of Gettysburg, the country at that time being occupied by Indians, and the dangers and hardships endured by the pioneers were sufficient to dishearten the most courageous.
Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and History of Tazewell County - page 994