Biography - JAMES MARION LONG
James Marion Long, of Stubblefield, engaged at that point in the general
merchandise business and also holding the office of postmaster, is one of
the well-known and highly esteemed citizens of Bond county. He has spent his
entire life in this district and is very loyal to its institutions. His life
record began October 26, 1874, on his father's farm situated about a mile
and a half north of Stubblefield. His father. Thomas Jefferson Long, was a
native Tennessean. his birth having occurred in Knox county, that state,
April 19, 1846. His youth was passed in Tennessee and several years before
he attained to his majority the outbreak of the Civil war disturbed the even
tenor of life in the United States. He was a patriotic young fellow and
uninfluenced bv the sentiment of the section in which he lived and when he
enlisted it was as a member of the Seventh Tennessee Regiment of the Federal
army. In 1869 the elder Mr. Long removed to Illinois and located near the
Smith's Grove settlement. Here in 1872 he married Caroline Watkins of Bond
county, Illinois. To their union were born six children, the eldest of the
number being James Marion, immediate subject of this review, and only two
brothers survive besides himself, namely: John Finesse, a farmer in Bond
county; and William Thomas, also a Bond county agriculturist. Both Mr. and
Mrs. Long survive, making their home on their farm near Stubblefield, and
happy in the possession of many friends and the respect of the community
which for nearly half a century has had them in its midst and found them in
every way desirable citizens. The father is actively engaged in farming. In
politics he has always given allegiance to the "Grand Old Party," and
although too young to vote for Father Abraham, to whose call he so
cheerfully answered, he has supported with his vote all succeeding
candidates. As a member of the Grand Army of the Republic he renews
association with the comrades of other days and he and his wife attend the
Baptist church.
The boyhood and youth of James M. Long were spent in Bond county on his
father's farm, where he became well-grounded in the many departments of
agriculture, and to the country schools he is indebted for his education. He
found occupation after his school days as an assistant to his father in his
agricultural endeavors and continued thus engaged until September, 1901,
when he opened a general merchandise store in Stubblefield. In the same year
he was appointed postmaster, and the office he still holds after the lapse
of ten years, his services having ever been faithful and efficient. His
mercantile business has steadily increased since he opened his store and he
has trade from all the surrounding farming country. He also owns a small
farm of twenty-four acres, which is under successful cultivation, and has
forty acres in Alabama. He is a Republican in politics and a Baptist in
religion. He is unmarried and makes his home with his parents.
Extracted 10 Nov 2018 by Norma Hass from 1912 History of Southern Illinois, by George W. Smith, volume 3, pages 1321-1322.
