HUNTOON FAMILY HOME PAGE

BIOGRAPHY/HISTORY

Emeline C. Huntoon (Compiled from the book, "A House with a Heritage" by Michael Kelly, "Albumn of Genealogy and Biography, Cook County, Illinois", Information from the Evanston and Wilmette Historical Societies, and information from many of Emelines descendants)

Emeline C. Huntoon was born at Champlain, Clinton, New York on March 11, 1824 to George Washington and Lucinda (Bowler) Huntoon. Emeline and her family lived at Champlain, New York (a village five miles west of Lake Champlain, just south of the Canadian border). During the early 1830's, the Huntoon family joined the westward migration, settling in the state of Ohio. It is likely that the family lived for several years in the small town of Georgetown, Ohio in the Ohio River Valley. We do know that at some time during the mid 1830's, the Huntoon family moved north to Cleveland, Ohio's booming port city on Lake Erie.

In 1839, after a visit with one of his sons in Chicago, George W. Huntoon, (Emeline's father) decided it was time to resettle again. Five members of the Huntoon family set out for Grosse Pointe, Illinois in that autumn of 1839. They included George W. and Lucinda Huntoon and their three youngest daughters, Emeline, Ann and Maria. Upon arrival in Chicago, George W. Huntoon arranged to move his family and goods by ox-team to their new cabin. Many years later, in 1901, Emeline recalled the ten mile journey from Chicago to Grosse Pointe in a conversation with J. Seymour Currey. Mr Curry later wrote: "Charles Pritchard was the owner of the ox team and lived here at the time. They (the family) started in the morning from the city with the family; father, mother, Emeline and two sisters, five in all, together with their goods. Some of the goods had been moved to the house previously. A log house was just building when they arrived. As yet the house was without doors, windows or floors. They fastened up bed quilts at the doors and windows, until her father, who was a carpenter, could make them." After the Huntoons awoke the following morning, they removed the blanket from one of the windows and beheld a deer in front of the house, calmly chewing the bark from a maple tree.

On November 27, 1842, Emeline married Alexander McDaniel (born Feb. 13, 1815 in Painted Post, Stueben, New York). Justice of the Peace, Edward Mulford performed the wedding ceremony at his house on Ridge Avenue, this being the second marriage ceremony he had ever performed in his capacity as a justice of the peace. Alexander McDaniel had arrived in Chicago on May 27, 1836. He worked there until August of that year when he went out to New Trier Township (Wilmette), spending several days looking up lands on the Ouilmette Indian Reservation. He then returned to Chicago. In October of that same year he went back to New Trier where he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of government land. He built a log cabin, one of the first four houses which stood between Chicago and the present site of Winnetka, and there he kept a bachelor's hall for four years. During that time he purchased another forty-three acres of land. Upon this land a part of the town of Evanston now stands. Alexander and Emeline made their first home on the present-day northwest corner of Ridge Ave. and Church Street in Evanston. Their first child Jane,was born there on October 28, 1843. Two more children followed; Ellen who was born on October 9, 1845 and Charles, born January 4, 1848. In 1849, newspaper accounts began to reach Grosse Pointe, telling of the discovery of gold in California and of the incredible fortunes to be made in that far off land. Spurred on by these reports, a party of thirty men set out from Gross Pointe in April, 1850 to seek their fortune in the "Golden West." Alexander McDaniel was one of the forty-niners from Grosse Pointe. In the "Centennial Jubilee of Northwestern University 1851-1951," the following was written about Alexander and Grosse Pointe: "Grosse Pointe Gulch-Evanstonians are proud of their city and herald its name where ever they go. One of the city's first citizens to show this civic pride was Alexander McDaniel, a pioneer who left Grosse Pointe to join the 1849 gold rush. Because he wanted the folks in the California gold fields to know where he came from, he named one of the first sites he prospected Grosse Pointe Gulch."

Alexander McDaniel circa 1850

Alexander returned home in 1852. He was fairly successsful in his search for gold. His claim, earned him over $2700, which he used to buy more land. That same year another child was born to Emeline and Alexander, George who was born on October 30, 1852. The following year, they moved from Grosse Pointe (Evanston) to Wilmette. They occupied a log cabin owned by Joel Stebbins at the southwest corner of Linden Avenue and Sheridan Road. while their home was being built at the northwest corner of the present-day Maple Avenue and Sheridan Road. (which still stands today) Two more children were born during this time, Henry, who was born on December 20, 1854 and William who was born April 20, 1861. In the early years in Wilmette, Alexander split wood, banked logs and freighted merchandise by horse and wagon to Chicago. Years later, in 1868, he helped to lay out the present-day village of Wilmette when it was organized upon the transfer of the Ouilmette reservation to the government.  Alexander and Emeline then moved to a new home in the village center, where Alexander conducted a real estate business for many years. Also during this time, Alexander was appointed to be the first postmaster of Wilmette on June 25, 1870, and held the office for nineteen years, resigning in favor of William Kinney (who married Alexander and Emeline's daughter, Jane). The following is a letter from Alexander turning over his duties to William Kinney: (spelling as is in the letter)

Wilmette March 17, 1889 Honerable George E Adams, Dear Sir, I was appointed Post Master at Wilmette, Cook County, Illinois, April 19th 1870, on account of poor health my wife and myself espects to go to Colorado the coming summer and I wish to resign and have William H. Kinney appointed Post Master in my place. Mr. Kinney has been my deputy for the last seventeen years and is well qualified in every way to perform the duties of the office. Will you please assist me at the Post Office department in Washington in getting my resignation excepted and William H. Kinney appointed in my place. if this is not the proper course to take to hand in my resignation will you please inform me. Yours truly, A. McDaniel

Alexander and Emeline did go to Colorado that year, but not for health reasons. Their son, George McDaniel, a Colorado miner, was convicted of larceny. Alexander came to his rescue and George received a full pardon from Colorado governer, James Grant, in 1892.

That same year, Alexander and Emeline had a new, more modern and substantial dwelling erected on the same street where they had lived for twenty-six years. Here they spent their remaining days. Alexander died October 11, 1898.  On October 5, 1902, while staying with her son Charles, Emeline passed away from pnemonia. The funeral services were held by Rev. E.C. Arnold of the Methodist Church, where Emeline held membership and took an active part in its work and upbuilding for many years. Both Alexander and Emeline are buried at Rosehill Cemetery in Chicago, Illinois.

During the two years Alexander McDaniel was in California for the Gold Rush, there was a steady correspondence between the Huntoon family and Alexander. These letters give a fascinating picture of the lives of the Huntoon family and their life in Grosse Pointe during the early 1850's. To read these letters and to learn more about the California Gold Rush, click here.

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