James Higgins (1844-1916)

James, like Henry, was born after the family moved to Brooklyn.  He came into the world on February 5, 1844.[1]  He was the youngest, having four older brothers and one older sister Julia, who was thirteen at the time of his birth.  Julia surely enjoyed helping care for the new baby in the family.  James probably spent much of his childhood running around on the farm in his bare feet helping with the chores.

            Once James turned nine, he had more responsibility, such as arising early to milk the five cows each morning and feed the twenty hogs.  As he matured, his skill and knowledge in farming techniques increased as well.   He continued to live in his childhood home with his parents and farm the land owned by his father.  His brother Jackson lived close by, at the next farm over.  Julia’s two remaining children lived on the other side of his home with their father and stepmother.  John W. and Lucinda’s children were just down the road a bit, giving him opportunities to mingle with his many nieces and nephews.[2] 

            When his mother Sarah died in 1880, James became his father’s  companion until Daniel died in 1892.[3]  Eight year later, at the age of fifty-six, James was living with his brother Jackson, sister-in-law Sarah and his two nephews, William and John, and helping with the farm work.[4]  In 1910, James, age sixty-six, lived with his brother Henry, sister-in-law Sarah and her 78-year-old father, Thomas.  James and Henry were both farming.[5]  James passed away right before Christmas 1916.  He was buried in the Blackburn Cemetery close to his other deceased family members.[6]

            Daniel and Sarah took a leap of faith when they moved their young family 500 miles west.  They left behind family, friends and all that was familiar for the unknown of the American frontier.  By the time Daniel passed away in 1892, his family had lived in Brooklyn for fifty-six years.  The family of six, who arrived in 1838, grew to a family of over seventy-five at the time of Daniel’s death.  Daniel and Sarah had twenty-seven known grandchildren and many great grandchildren.  Daniel and Sarah left a legacy of courage, hard work, religious conviction, civil responsibility and most importantly, the love of family. 

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[1] Illinois, Deaths and Stillbirths Index, “James Higgins” ancestry.com (accessed May 15 2013)

[2] Mansberger and Stratton, Archaeological Investigations, 10

[3] Higgins Obituary, Rushville, Illinois, 1896

[4] 1900 Federal Census Brooklynn

[5] 1910 Federal Census Brooklyn, Schuyler, IL “Henry Higgins” ancestry.com (accessed January 15, 2013)

[6] Illinois Find A Grave, “Henry Higgins”, http://www.findagrave.com (accessed January 25, 2013)