PIATT COUNTY ILLINOIS NAMED IN HIS HONOR-FIRST PERMANENT SETTLER OF MONTICELLO-VETERAN OF THE BLACK HAWK INDIAN WAR AND WAR OF 1812
James Andrew Piatt, Sr. was a veteran of the Black Hawk Indian War and the War of 1812. He was the the first permanent settler of Monticello, Piatt County, Illinois. Piatt County is named in his honor. James Andrew Piatt was born Apr. 21, 1789 in Potter Twp., PA. He was the son of Major Abraham Piatt, an officer who served during the Revolutionary War and Anabelle Andrew Piatt. By 1814 James Andrew Piatt was the owner and operator of the Piatt Store in Brookville, Indiana, conducting business with customers from as far away as Cincinnati, Ohio. On Dec. 15, 1815, James A. Piatt married Jamima Ford in Cincinnati. They had seven children together. James A. Piatt later owned a mill at Little Cedar Lake, Indiana, worked as a hog trader in Cuba, managed a hotel in Lawrenceburg, Ind., and opened a tinning business in Indianapolis. In 1829, he moved to Monticello. There he developed a reputation as a hospitable host to travelers and a terror to horse thieves. He died on Oct. 22, 1838. Monticello's first resident was George Haworth. Haworth, a Quaker, came to the area in 1822 to serve as a U.S. liaison agent to local Native American tribes. Haworth did not remain. In 1829, James A. Piatt, Sr. purchased Haworth's small log cabin. Soon more settlers arrived. In 1837, residents decided to form a new town. Abraham Marquiss, William Barnes, James McReynolds, and James A. Piatt Jr. formed a joint stock company and purchased land from James A. Piatt, Sr. Upon Mc Reynold's suggestion, the town was christened Monticello – after the home of Thomas Jefferson. Monticello officially became a town on July 1, 1837. Townsfolk held a celebration on July 4. The first house in the new town was built by a Mr. Cass who used the building as his home and a grocery store. The second house was a log cabin built by John Tenbrooke. In 1839, Nicholas DeVore built the "Old Fort" which was later used as a hotel. Monticello continued to grow as the population increased over the next decade. The citizens of Monticello were unhappy with the distance required to travel to the county seat for their legal issues. Due to the petitions of George Patterson and others, a new county was established on Jan 27 1841: Piatt County - named in honor the first permanent settler, James A. Piatt, Sr. As it was the only town in the area at that time, Monticello was named the county seat. James Andrew Piatt, Sr. married Jamima Ford on December 21, 1815. Jamima Ford Piatt was born January 10, 1792 and died March 16, 1836. The children of James Andrew Piatt, Sr. and Jamima Ford Piatt:
(1) William Hart Piatt (Find-A-Grave #32174898) was born in Franklin County, Indiana, on October 23, 1816. He moved with his family to Illinois when he was twelve years old. William spent some time away from Illinois to help run a mill in Indiana, and the experience received in Indiana led to a career in milling. He married Clarinda Marquiss in 1838. Piatt took a partner by the name of Henry Sadorus and the pair bought a mill in Monticello. The two continued in business together for the next three decades. William attained fiscal security, which enabled him to invest in his younger brothers' financial endeavors. William died in 1887.
(2) John Piatt was born in Indiana in 1818. He moved briefly to California but eventually came back to Monticello, Illinois. John Piatt married Eliza Lowry on September 4, 1846. The couple had eight children. John Piatt died at Monticello, Illinois, in 1912.
(3) James Andrew Piatt, Jr. (Find-A-Grave #83963344) was born in 1820. At the age of 28, he married Katharine Bryden and ventured west to seek his fortune in the gold mines of California. The family left Kansas City in April and reached Butte County, California, in 1852. The family lived in California for the rest of their lives. They amassed a valuable legacy of nearly 1600 acres of land and assets of $250,000. James died April 8, 1873.
(4) Richard Ford Piatt was born in Indiana on March 31, 1823. He lived in Monticello until 1850 when he went to California to search for gold. Richard married Annabelle Stickel and they had two children. Richard was the last of the elder James A. Piatt's children to die. He lived for a time in Forbestown, formerly Dry Diggins Butte County, CA. He was a businessman in Napa City, California, with enterprises including mining, cattle, land, and investing in merchant goods stores. At age 91, Richard Piatt died in 1914.
There is little information on the two youngest sons of James A. Piatt, Sr.
(5) Annabelle A. Piatt Stickel (Find-A-Grave Memorial #32340643)
(6) Noah Noble Piatt (Find-A-Grave #29612272) lived in California close to a decade then moved back to Monticello. He sold his farm there and moved to Fullerton, Kansas. There is conflicting information regarding his death. An obituary lists him dying in 1912 in California and another indicating he died in Kansas.
Noah Noble Piatt was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Feb. 24, 1828. He married Hanna Phillips in 1855. They had five children: Martha (Mrs. Samuel) Slough: Clara Rees: Mrs. Katherine Thrall: William H; and Johnny, who died as an infant. In 1868, after the death of his first wife, Noah Noble married Olive Bryden in Monticello, Piatt County, Illinois. Roots of the Piatts were deep in Ohio and Illinois, where two "castles" are open today as museums, and Piatt Park is in downtown, Cincinnati. Noah Noble and Olive had three boys; Frank Bryden, 1869-1944; Phil N.; James, 1874-1967. Olive, Noah Noble, Phil and James came by train to Hamilton, claiming "everything the eye could see." Olive's two brothers, Bob and Jack Bryden, had already come to Kansas and had claimed land near what is now Sallyards. Olive and the two boys stayed with Jack while Noah Noble went back to Illinos to bring their belongings and the five other children, who were still in school. The tree older girls were in a teacher-training program, and all later taught around Hamilton. Growing up on Slate Creek provided happy memories for many people in this area. Jim had wonderfull tales to tell of early Greenwood County. He remembered Indians; and he recalled walking two miles to borrow a hot charcoal iron to iron shirts. The boys had a house built on skinds and would take it out to stay where the cattle were. Jum said, "We always moved when the house needed cleaning.
The children of Noah Noble Piatt and Olive Bryden Piatt:
(5a) James A. Piatt, born May 1874, in Monticello, Illinois, and died May 20, 1967 at Hamilton. He was in the Spanish-American War. He took part in the Cherokee Strip Run and mined in Colorado. He married Essie Wood of Madison. They had three children: twins Frank and Noah Noble, and Beverly Tanner. Frank lived in Eureka. Beverly died of cancer in 1964. She married Maynard Tanner. They had three children: Jim, Joan, and Janet. She and the children lived in Hamilton in 1944, when Maynard was in the service. The children of James A. Piatt and Olive Bryden Piatt:
(5a.1) Frank Bryden Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial
#22826731.
(5a.2) Noah Noble Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial
#29612282.
(5a.3) Beverly Neva Piatt Tanner; Find A Grave Memorial
#32115136. She was the wife of Lt. Maynard Blair Tanner; Find A Grave Memorial #51724527, a veteran of World War II.
(5b) Phil N. Piatt was born in Monticello, Illinois, in 1872 and died in Eureka in 1967. Most of Phil's adult life was spent in CA. He had attended the Rolla School of Mines in Rolla, Missouri, and then had gone to CA. to mine. There he married Della. They had no children. However more than one generation of nieces and nephews could hardly wait for Phil's spring return to Kansas, where the fish called him each year. His piece of land at Burkett was his pride. He always said that when he grew old, he'd come to Kansas to retire. Finally, when he was about 92, he "found" his way back and lived his last years here. June 10, 1967: Philip N. Piatt, 95, formerly of the Hamilton community, died Saturday in the Greenwood County hospital in Eureka. He had been a resident of Modesto, California, for many years. Mr. Piatt, whose parents were the late Noah N. and Olive M. Bryden Piatt, was born Feb. 20, 1872, in Monticello, ILL., and was reared in Greenwood county. He was preceded in death by his wife, Della King Piatt, and by three brothers and three sisters. Funeral services were held Tuesday afternoon at the First Methodist church in Madison. Mrs. Dorsey sang "The Good Shepard" and "This Is My Father's World and Mrs. Walter E. Erickson was the organist. Pallbears were Maynard Tanner, Frank Piatt, Phil Piatt, John Piatt, George Eslinger and Albert Roglin. Interment was in the Hamilton Cemetery.
(5c)Frank Bryden Piatt married Dora Evalene "Lena" Ott in Hamilton in 1898. They had three children: Robert Bryden, 1898-1966: Phil Delbert, 1901-1932: and Mary Frances, 1904-1928. Frank and Lena lived on the home place. A new house was built nearby for Olive (this is the base of Harmon's present home.) The farm was quite large by that time, and took a lot of people to keep it going. Many people still tell me they worked for the Piatts. Girls would stay there to attend school and work for their keep. Boys stayed in the bunkhouse, worked, and walked across the pasture to the high school. Frank was a large man and always "chewed" a cigar. Lena was also a large woman. She attended the academy at Baker University and she gave music lessons. She was a fantastic cook, and everyone loved her. She was always there when you needed her. Many stories came from this life. As Granddad learned to drive his first car, doors had to be put on both ends of the garage. The boys opened them both up and Granddad would keep driving through until it "whoaed!" I'am not sure he ever really learned to drive because I remember he thought the whole road was his! Once when Grandmother was having a "society" meeting, Daddy and his brother decided it was time to teach sister to swim, even though she was only one year old, had the measles, and it was February. Another time, Daddy came to the house alone. Inquiring about Phil's whereabouts, the others were informed that he was gone. He was stuck in the "quicksand" at the creek. Daddy had tried and failed to get him out, so he had convinced Phil that was it and had left. What must have been a busy, "fun" life turned into tragedy. In 1928, Mary Frances, who was everyone's darling, was an opera singer in Chicago. She contracted pneumonia and died within a week. In 1929, Phil, who had married Ruth Milliken of Eureka, had stopped in at the doctor's office, on a trip to Emporia. It was decided he had appendicitis, He died on the operating table. This was more than Grandmother could take, and she passed away in 1933. As if this wasn't enough, the Depression hit and Grandad lost large amounts of money on cattle. He married Helen Griblin in 1935. He had diabetes and was very ill. He continued to struggle, but finally lost everything. They moved to Hamilton, and he worked for the State Banking Commission as a livestock appraiser during his last years. He passed away in 1944. Helen continued to live in Hamilton until she moved to the Madison nursing home and died in 1985, at the age of 102. She had been a graduate nurse.
(6) Annabelle A. Piatt Stickel (Find-A-Grave #32340643)
James Andrew Piatt, Sr. married Mahala Oxley on December 12, 1837, in Piatt County, Illinois, Mahala Oxley Piatt was born May 8, 1801 in Kentucky died November 16, 1851.
The child of James Andrew Piatt, Sr. and Mahala Oxley Piatt:
Mary Jane Piatt (Find-A-Grave #61277504)b: 1839 d: 1911 m: 5 Jun 1860 Piatt Co, IL, William Bryden d: 1866
The children of Mary Jane Piatt Bryden and William Bryden:
1.Charles Bryden
2.William Bryden
SOURCES:
Illinois History and Lincoln Collections
University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign
Utah State University donated the collection to the Library in 2006.
Wikipedia
Pyeatt Family Homepage
Marianne Cowan Pyeatt
Angelfire.com
History of Greenwood County Kansas
Drusilla Esslinger.
Essie Piatt
Greenwood County Kansas Obituaries
Piatt Family Newsletter, Volume 7, 1992
Piatt Co, IL; Marriage records of Piatt Co, IL
Greenwood County Kansas History
1880 Census of Greenwood Co, KS
Special Collections and University Archives
Wichita State University Libraries Website
James Andrew Piatt, Sr. was a veteran of the Black Hawk Indian War and the War of 1812. He was the the first permanent settler of Monticello, Piatt County, Illinois. Piatt County is named in his honor. James Andrew Piatt was born Apr. 21, 1789 in Potter Twp., PA. He was the son of Major Abraham Piatt, an officer who served during the Revolutionary War and Anabelle Andrew Piatt. By 1814 James Andrew Piatt was the owner and operator of the Piatt Store in Brookville, Indiana, conducting business with customers from as far away as Cincinnati, Ohio. On Dec. 15, 1815, James A. Piatt married Jamima Ford in Cincinnati. They had seven children together. James A. Piatt later owned a mill at Little Cedar Lake, Indiana, worked as a hog trader in Cuba, managed a hotel in Lawrenceburg, Ind., and opened a tinning business in Indianapolis. In 1829, he moved to Monticello. There he developed a reputation as a hospitable host to travelers and a terror to horse thieves. He died on Oct. 22, 1838. Monticello's first resident was George Haworth. Haworth, a Quaker, came to the area in 1822 to serve as a U.S. liaison agent to local Native American tribes. Haworth did not remain. In 1829, James A. Piatt, Sr. purchased Haworth's small log cabin. Soon more settlers arrived. In 1837, residents decided to form a new town. Abraham Marquiss, William Barnes, James McReynolds, and James A. Piatt Jr. formed a joint stock company and purchased land from James A. Piatt, Sr. Upon Mc Reynold's suggestion, the town was christened Monticello – after the home of Thomas Jefferson. Monticello officially became a town on July 1, 1837. Townsfolk held a celebration on July 4. The first house in the new town was built by a Mr. Cass who used the building as his home and a grocery store. The second house was a log cabin built by John Tenbrooke. In 1839, Nicholas DeVore built the "Old Fort" which was later used as a hotel. Monticello continued to grow as the population increased over the next decade. The citizens of Monticello were unhappy with the distance required to travel to the county seat for their legal issues. Due to the petitions of George Patterson and others, a new county was established on Jan 27 1841: Piatt County - named in honor the first permanent settler, James A. Piatt, Sr. As it was the only town in the area at that time, Monticello was named the county seat. James Andrew Piatt, Sr. married Jamima Ford on December 21, 1815. Jamima Ford Piatt was born January 10, 1792 and died March 16, 1836. The children of James Andrew Piatt, Sr. and Jamima Ford Piatt:
(1) William Hart Piatt (Find-A-Grave #32174898) was born in Franklin County, Indiana, on October 23, 1816. He moved with his family to Illinois when he was twelve years old. William spent some time away from Illinois to help run a mill in Indiana, and the experience received in Indiana led to a career in milling. He married Clarinda Marquiss in 1838. Piatt took a partner by the name of Henry Sadorus and the pair bought a mill in Monticello. The two continued in business together for the next three decades. William attained fiscal security, which enabled him to invest in his younger brothers' financial endeavors. William died in 1887.
(2) John Piatt was born in Indiana in 1818. He moved briefly to California but eventually came back to Monticello, Illinois. John Piatt married Eliza Lowry on September 4, 1846. The couple had eight children. John Piatt died at Monticello, Illinois, in 1912.
(3) James Andrew Piatt, Jr. (Find-A-Grave #83963344) was born in 1820. At the age of 28, he married Katharine Bryden and ventured west to seek his fortune in the gold mines of California. The family left Kansas City in April and reached Butte County, California, in 1852. The family lived in California for the rest of their lives. They amassed a valuable legacy of nearly 1600 acres of land and assets of $250,000. James died April 8, 1873.
(4) Richard Ford Piatt was born in Indiana on March 31, 1823. He lived in Monticello until 1850 when he went to California to search for gold. Richard married Annabelle Stickel and they had two children. Richard was the last of the elder James A. Piatt's children to die. He lived for a time in Forbestown, formerly Dry Diggins Butte County, CA. He was a businessman in Napa City, California, with enterprises including mining, cattle, land, and investing in merchant goods stores. At age 91, Richard Piatt died in 1914.
There is little information on the two youngest sons of James A. Piatt, Sr.
(5) Annabelle A. Piatt Stickel (Find-A-Grave Memorial #32340643)
(6) Noah Noble Piatt (Find-A-Grave #29612272) lived in California close to a decade then moved back to Monticello. He sold his farm there and moved to Fullerton, Kansas. There is conflicting information regarding his death. An obituary lists him dying in 1912 in California and another indicating he died in Kansas.
Noah Noble Piatt was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Feb. 24, 1828. He married Hanna Phillips in 1855. They had five children: Martha (Mrs. Samuel) Slough: Clara Rees: Mrs. Katherine Thrall: William H; and Johnny, who died as an infant. In 1868, after the death of his first wife, Noah Noble married Olive Bryden in Monticello, Piatt County, Illinois. Roots of the Piatts were deep in Ohio and Illinois, where two "castles" are open today as museums, and Piatt Park is in downtown, Cincinnati. Noah Noble and Olive had three boys; Frank Bryden, 1869-1944; Phil N.; James, 1874-1967. Olive, Noah Noble, Phil and James came by train to Hamilton, claiming "everything the eye could see." Olive's two brothers, Bob and Jack Bryden, had already come to Kansas and had claimed land near what is now Sallyards. Olive and the two boys stayed with Jack while Noah Noble went back to Illinos to bring their belongings and the five other children, who were still in school. The tree older girls were in a teacher-training program, and all later taught around Hamilton. Growing up on Slate Creek provided happy memories for many people in this area. Jim had wonderfull tales to tell of early Greenwood County. He remembered Indians; and he recalled walking two miles to borrow a hot charcoal iron to iron shirts. The boys had a house built on skinds and would take it out to stay where the cattle were. Jum said, "We always moved when the house needed cleaning.
The children of Noah Noble Piatt and Olive Bryden Piatt:
(5a) James A. Piatt, born May 1874, in Monticello, Illinois, and died May 20, 1967 at Hamilton. He was in the Spanish-American War. He took part in the Cherokee Strip Run and mined in Colorado. He married Essie Wood of Madison. They had three children: twins Frank and Noah Noble, and Beverly Tanner. Frank lived in Eureka. Beverly died of cancer in 1964. She married Maynard Tanner. They had three children: Jim, Joan, and Janet. She and the children lived in Hamilton in 1944, when Maynard was in the service. The children of James A. Piatt and Olive Bryden Piatt:
(5a.1) Frank Bryden Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial
#22826731.
(5a.2) Noah Noble Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial
#29612282.
(5a.3) Beverly Neva Piatt Tanner; Find A Grave Memorial
#32115136. She was the wife of Lt. Maynard Blair Tanner; Find A Grave Memorial #51724527, a veteran of World War II.
(5b) Phil N. Piatt was born in Monticello, Illinois, in 1872 and died in Eureka in 1967. Most of Phil's adult life was spent in CA. He had attended the Rolla School of Mines in Rolla, Missouri, and then had gone to CA. to mine. There he married Della. They had no children. However more than one generation of nieces and nephews could hardly wait for Phil's spring return to Kansas, where the fish called him each year. His piece of land at Burkett was his pride. He always said that when he grew old, he'd come to Kansas to retire. Finally, when he was about 92, he "found" his way back and lived his last years here. June 10, 1967: Philip N. Piatt, 95, formerly of the Hamilton community, died Saturday in the Greenwood County hospital in Eureka. He had been a resident of Modesto, California, for many years. Mr. Piatt, whose parents were the late Noah N. and Olive M. Bryden Piatt, was born Feb. 20, 1872, in Monticello, ILL., and was reared in Greenwood county. He was preceded in death by his wife, Della King Piatt, and by three brothers and three sisters. Funeral services were held Tuesday afternoon at the First Methodist church in Madison. Mrs. Dorsey sang "The Good Shepard" and "This Is My Father's World and Mrs. Walter E. Erickson was the organist. Pallbears were Maynard Tanner, Frank Piatt, Phil Piatt, John Piatt, George Eslinger and Albert Roglin. Interment was in the Hamilton Cemetery.
(5c)Frank Bryden Piatt married Dora Evalene "Lena" Ott in Hamilton in 1898. They had three children: Robert Bryden, 1898-1966: Phil Delbert, 1901-1932: and Mary Frances, 1904-1928. Frank and Lena lived on the home place. A new house was built nearby for Olive (this is the base of Harmon's present home.) The farm was quite large by that time, and took a lot of people to keep it going. Many people still tell me they worked for the Piatts. Girls would stay there to attend school and work for their keep. Boys stayed in the bunkhouse, worked, and walked across the pasture to the high school. Frank was a large man and always "chewed" a cigar. Lena was also a large woman. She attended the academy at Baker University and she gave music lessons. She was a fantastic cook, and everyone loved her. She was always there when you needed her. Many stories came from this life. As Granddad learned to drive his first car, doors had to be put on both ends of the garage. The boys opened them both up and Granddad would keep driving through until it "whoaed!" I'am not sure he ever really learned to drive because I remember he thought the whole road was his! Once when Grandmother was having a "society" meeting, Daddy and his brother decided it was time to teach sister to swim, even though she was only one year old, had the measles, and it was February. Another time, Daddy came to the house alone. Inquiring about Phil's whereabouts, the others were informed that he was gone. He was stuck in the "quicksand" at the creek. Daddy had tried and failed to get him out, so he had convinced Phil that was it and had left. What must have been a busy, "fun" life turned into tragedy. In 1928, Mary Frances, who was everyone's darling, was an opera singer in Chicago. She contracted pneumonia and died within a week. In 1929, Phil, who had married Ruth Milliken of Eureka, had stopped in at the doctor's office, on a trip to Emporia. It was decided he had appendicitis, He died on the operating table. This was more than Grandmother could take, and she passed away in 1933. As if this wasn't enough, the Depression hit and Grandad lost large amounts of money on cattle. He married Helen Griblin in 1935. He had diabetes and was very ill. He continued to struggle, but finally lost everything. They moved to Hamilton, and he worked for the State Banking Commission as a livestock appraiser during his last years. He passed away in 1944. Helen continued to live in Hamilton until she moved to the Madison nursing home and died in 1985, at the age of 102. She had been a graduate nurse.
(6) Annabelle A. Piatt Stickel (Find-A-Grave #32340643)
James Andrew Piatt, Sr. married Mahala Oxley on December 12, 1837, in Piatt County, Illinois, Mahala Oxley Piatt was born May 8, 1801 in Kentucky died November 16, 1851.
The child of James Andrew Piatt, Sr. and Mahala Oxley Piatt:
Mary Jane Piatt (Find-A-Grave #61277504)b: 1839 d: 1911 m: 5 Jun 1860 Piatt Co, IL, William Bryden d: 1866
The children of Mary Jane Piatt Bryden and William Bryden:
1.Charles Bryden
2.William Bryden
SOURCES:
Illinois History and Lincoln Collections
University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign
Utah State University donated the collection to the Library in 2006.
Wikipedia
Pyeatt Family Homepage
Marianne Cowan Pyeatt
Angelfire.com
History of Greenwood County Kansas
Drusilla Esslinger.
Essie Piatt
Greenwood County Kansas Obituaries
Piatt Family Newsletter, Volume 7, 1992
Piatt Co, IL; Marriage records of Piatt Co, IL
Greenwood County Kansas History
1880 Census of Greenwood Co, KS
Special Collections and University Archives
Wichita State University Libraries Website
PIATT COUNTY ILLINOIS NAMED IN HIS HONOR-FIRST PERMANENT SETTLER OF MONTICELLO-VETERAN OF THE BLACK HAWK INDIAN WAR AND WAR OF 1812
James Andrew Piatt, Sr. was a veteran of the Black Hawk Indian War and the War of 1812. He was the the first permanent settler of Monticello, Piatt County, Illinois. Piatt County is named in his honor. James Andrew Piatt was born Apr. 21, 1789 in Potter Twp., PA. He was the son of Major Abraham Piatt, an officer who served during the Revolutionary War and Anabelle Andrew Piatt. By 1814 James Andrew Piatt was the owner and operator of the Piatt Store in Brookville, Indiana, conducting business with customers from as far away as Cincinnati, Ohio. On Dec. 15, 1815, James A. Piatt married Jamima Ford in Cincinnati. They had seven children together. James A. Piatt later owned a mill at Little Cedar Lake, Indiana, worked as a hog trader in Cuba, managed a hotel in Lawrenceburg, Ind., and opened a tinning business in Indianapolis. In 1829, he moved to Monticello. There he developed a reputation as a hospitable host to travelers and a terror to horse thieves. He died on Oct. 22, 1838. Monticello's first resident was George Haworth. Haworth, a Quaker, came to the area in 1822 to serve as a U.S. liaison agent to local Native American tribes. Haworth did not remain. In 1829, James A. Piatt, Sr. purchased Haworth's small log cabin. Soon more settlers arrived. In 1837, residents decided to form a new town. Abraham Marquiss, William Barnes, James McReynolds, and James A. Piatt Jr. formed a joint stock company and purchased land from James A. Piatt, Sr. Upon Mc Reynold's suggestion, the town was christened Monticello – after the home of Thomas Jefferson. Monticello officially became a town on July 1, 1837. Townsfolk held a celebration on July 4. The first house in the new town was built by a Mr. Cass who used the building as his home and a grocery store. The second house was a log cabin built by John Tenbrooke. In 1839, Nicholas DeVore built the "Old Fort" which was later used as a hotel. Monticello continued to grow as the population increased over the next decade. The citizens of Monticello were unhappy with the distance required to travel to the county seat for their legal issues. Due to the petitions of George Patterson and others, a new county was established on Jan 27 1841: Piatt County - named in honor the first permanent settler, James A. Piatt, Sr. As it was the only town in the area at that time, Monticello was named the county seat. James Andrew Piatt, Sr. married Jamima Ford on December 21, 1815. Jamima Ford Piatt was born January 10, 1792 and died March 16, 1836. The children of James Andrew Piatt, Sr. and Jamima Ford Piatt:
(1) William Hart Piatt (Find-A-Grave #32174898) was born in Franklin County, Indiana, on October 23, 1816. He moved with his family to Illinois when he was twelve years old. William spent some time away from Illinois to help run a mill in Indiana, and the experience received in Indiana led to a career in milling. He married Clarinda Marquiss in 1838. Piatt took a partner by the name of Henry Sadorus and the pair bought a mill in Monticello. The two continued in business together for the next three decades. William attained fiscal security, which enabled him to invest in his younger brothers' financial endeavors. William died in 1887.
(2) John Piatt was born in Indiana in 1818. He moved briefly to California but eventually came back to Monticello, Illinois. John Piatt married Eliza Lowry on September 4, 1846. The couple had eight children. John Piatt died at Monticello, Illinois, in 1912.
(3) James Andrew Piatt, Jr. (Find-A-Grave #83963344) was born in 1820. At the age of 28, he married Katharine Bryden and ventured west to seek his fortune in the gold mines of California. The family left Kansas City in April and reached Butte County, California, in 1852. The family lived in California for the rest of their lives. They amassed a valuable legacy of nearly 1600 acres of land and assets of $250,000. James died April 8, 1873.
(4) Richard Ford Piatt was born in Indiana on March 31, 1823. He lived in Monticello until 1850 when he went to California to search for gold. Richard married Annabelle Stickel and they had two children. Richard was the last of the elder James A. Piatt's children to die. He lived for a time in Forbestown, formerly Dry Diggins Butte County, CA. He was a businessman in Napa City, California, with enterprises including mining, cattle, land, and investing in merchant goods stores. At age 91, Richard Piatt died in 1914.
There is little information on the two youngest sons of James A. Piatt, Sr.
(5) Annabelle A. Piatt Stickel (Find-A-Grave Memorial #32340643)
(6) Noah Noble Piatt (Find-A-Grave #29612272) lived in California close to a decade then moved back to Monticello. He sold his farm there and moved to Fullerton, Kansas. There is conflicting information regarding his death. An obituary lists him dying in 1912 in California and another indicating he died in Kansas.
Noah Noble Piatt was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Feb. 24, 1828. He married Hanna Phillips in 1855. They had five children: Martha (Mrs. Samuel) Slough: Clara Rees: Mrs. Katherine Thrall: William H; and Johnny, who died as an infant. In 1868, after the death of his first wife, Noah Noble married Olive Bryden in Monticello, Piatt County, Illinois. Roots of the Piatts were deep in Ohio and Illinois, where two "castles" are open today as museums, and Piatt Park is in downtown, Cincinnati. Noah Noble and Olive had three boys; Frank Bryden, 1869-1944; Phil N.; James, 1874-1967. Olive, Noah Noble, Phil and James came by train to Hamilton, claiming "everything the eye could see." Olive's two brothers, Bob and Jack Bryden, had already come to Kansas and had claimed land near what is now Sallyards. Olive and the two boys stayed with Jack while Noah Noble went back to Illinos to bring their belongings and the five other children, who were still in school. The tree older girls were in a teacher-training program, and all later taught around Hamilton. Growing up on Slate Creek provided happy memories for many people in this area. Jim had wonderfull tales to tell of early Greenwood County. He remembered Indians; and he recalled walking two miles to borrow a hot charcoal iron to iron shirts. The boys had a house built on skinds and would take it out to stay where the cattle were. Jum said, "We always moved when the house needed cleaning.
The children of Noah Noble Piatt and Olive Bryden Piatt:
(5a) James A. Piatt, born May 1874, in Monticello, Illinois, and died May 20, 1967 at Hamilton. He was in the Spanish-American War. He took part in the Cherokee Strip Run and mined in Colorado. He married Essie Wood of Madison. They had three children: twins Frank and Noah Noble, and Beverly Tanner. Frank lived in Eureka. Beverly died of cancer in 1964. She married Maynard Tanner. They had three children: Jim, Joan, and Janet. She and the children lived in Hamilton in 1944, when Maynard was in the service. The children of James A. Piatt and Olive Bryden Piatt:
(5a.1) Frank Bryden Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial
#22826731.
(5a.2) Noah Noble Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial
#29612282.
(5a.3) Beverly Neva Piatt Tanner; Find A Grave Memorial
#32115136. She was the wife of Lt. Maynard Blair Tanner; Find A Grave Memorial #51724527, a veteran of World War II.
(5b) Phil N. Piatt was born in Monticello, Illinois, in 1872 and died in Eureka in 1967. Most of Phil's adult life was spent in CA. He had attended the Rolla School of Mines in Rolla, Missouri, and then had gone to CA. to mine. There he married Della. They had no children. However more than one generation of nieces and nephews could hardly wait for Phil's spring return to Kansas, where the fish called him each year. His piece of land at Burkett was his pride. He always said that when he grew old, he'd come to Kansas to retire. Finally, when he was about 92, he "found" his way back and lived his last years here. June 10, 1967: Philip N. Piatt, 95, formerly of the Hamilton community, died Saturday in the Greenwood County hospital in Eureka. He had been a resident of Modesto, California, for many years. Mr. Piatt, whose parents were the late Noah N. and Olive M. Bryden Piatt, was born Feb. 20, 1872, in Monticello, ILL., and was reared in Greenwood county. He was preceded in death by his wife, Della King Piatt, and by three brothers and three sisters. Funeral services were held Tuesday afternoon at the First Methodist church in Madison. Mrs. Dorsey sang "The Good Shepard" and "This Is My Father's World and Mrs. Walter E. Erickson was the organist. Pallbears were Maynard Tanner, Frank Piatt, Phil Piatt, John Piatt, George Eslinger and Albert Roglin. Interment was in the Hamilton Cemetery.
(5c)Frank Bryden Piatt married Dora Evalene "Lena" Ott in Hamilton in 1898. They had three children: Robert Bryden, 1898-1966: Phil Delbert, 1901-1932: and Mary Frances, 1904-1928. Frank and Lena lived on the home place. A new house was built nearby for Olive (this is the base of Harmon's present home.) The farm was quite large by that time, and took a lot of people to keep it going. Many people still tell me they worked for the Piatts. Girls would stay there to attend school and work for their keep. Boys stayed in the bunkhouse, worked, and walked across the pasture to the high school. Frank was a large man and always "chewed" a cigar. Lena was also a large woman. She attended the academy at Baker University and she gave music lessons. She was a fantastic cook, and everyone loved her. She was always there when you needed her. Many stories came from this life. As Granddad learned to drive his first car, doors had to be put on both ends of the garage. The boys opened them both up and Granddad would keep driving through until it "whoaed!" I'am not sure he ever really learned to drive because I remember he thought the whole road was his! Once when Grandmother was having a "society" meeting, Daddy and his brother decided it was time to teach sister to swim, even though she was only one year old, had the measles, and it was February. Another time, Daddy came to the house alone. Inquiring about Phil's whereabouts, the others were informed that he was gone. He was stuck in the "quicksand" at the creek. Daddy had tried and failed to get him out, so he had convinced Phil that was it and had left. What must have been a busy, "fun" life turned into tragedy. In 1928, Mary Frances, who was everyone's darling, was an opera singer in Chicago. She contracted pneumonia and died within a week. In 1929, Phil, who had married Ruth Milliken of Eureka, had stopped in at the doctor's office, on a trip to Emporia. It was decided he had appendicitis, He died on the operating table. This was more than Grandmother could take, and she passed away in 1933. As if this wasn't enough, the Depression hit and Grandad lost large amounts of money on cattle. He married Helen Griblin in 1935. He had diabetes and was very ill. He continued to struggle, but finally lost everything. They moved to Hamilton, and he worked for the State Banking Commission as a livestock appraiser during his last years. He passed away in 1944. Helen continued to live in Hamilton until she moved to the Madison nursing home and died in 1985, at the age of 102. She had been a graduate nurse.
(6) Annabelle A. Piatt Stickel (Find-A-Grave #32340643)
James Andrew Piatt, Sr. married Mahala Oxley on December 12, 1837, in Piatt County, Illinois, Mahala Oxley Piatt was born May 8, 1801 in Kentucky died November 16, 1851.
The child of James Andrew Piatt, Sr. and Mahala Oxley Piatt:
Mary Jane Piatt (Find-A-Grave #61277504)b: 1839 d: 1911 m: 5 Jun 1860 Piatt Co, IL, William Bryden d: 1866
The children of Mary Jane Piatt Bryden and William Bryden:
1.Charles Bryden
2.William Bryden
SOURCES:
Illinois History and Lincoln Collections
University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign
Utah State University donated the collection to the Library in 2006.
Wikipedia
Pyeatt Family Homepage
Marianne Cowan Pyeatt
Angelfire.com
History of Greenwood County Kansas
Drusilla Esslinger.
Essie Piatt
Greenwood County Kansas Obituaries
Piatt Family Newsletter, Volume 7, 1992
Piatt Co, IL; Marriage records of Piatt Co, IL
Greenwood County Kansas History
1880 Census of Greenwood Co, KS
Special Collections and University Archives
Wichita State University Libraries Website
James Andrew Piatt, Sr. was a veteran of the Black Hawk Indian War and the War of 1812. He was the the first permanent settler of Monticello, Piatt County, Illinois. Piatt County is named in his honor. James Andrew Piatt was born Apr. 21, 1789 in Potter Twp., PA. He was the son of Major Abraham Piatt, an officer who served during the Revolutionary War and Anabelle Andrew Piatt. By 1814 James Andrew Piatt was the owner and operator of the Piatt Store in Brookville, Indiana, conducting business with customers from as far away as Cincinnati, Ohio. On Dec. 15, 1815, James A. Piatt married Jamima Ford in Cincinnati. They had seven children together. James A. Piatt later owned a mill at Little Cedar Lake, Indiana, worked as a hog trader in Cuba, managed a hotel in Lawrenceburg, Ind., and opened a tinning business in Indianapolis. In 1829, he moved to Monticello. There he developed a reputation as a hospitable host to travelers and a terror to horse thieves. He died on Oct. 22, 1838. Monticello's first resident was George Haworth. Haworth, a Quaker, came to the area in 1822 to serve as a U.S. liaison agent to local Native American tribes. Haworth did not remain. In 1829, James A. Piatt, Sr. purchased Haworth's small log cabin. Soon more settlers arrived. In 1837, residents decided to form a new town. Abraham Marquiss, William Barnes, James McReynolds, and James A. Piatt Jr. formed a joint stock company and purchased land from James A. Piatt, Sr. Upon Mc Reynold's suggestion, the town was christened Monticello – after the home of Thomas Jefferson. Monticello officially became a town on July 1, 1837. Townsfolk held a celebration on July 4. The first house in the new town was built by a Mr. Cass who used the building as his home and a grocery store. The second house was a log cabin built by John Tenbrooke. In 1839, Nicholas DeVore built the "Old Fort" which was later used as a hotel. Monticello continued to grow as the population increased over the next decade. The citizens of Monticello were unhappy with the distance required to travel to the county seat for their legal issues. Due to the petitions of George Patterson and others, a new county was established on Jan 27 1841: Piatt County - named in honor the first permanent settler, James A. Piatt, Sr. As it was the only town in the area at that time, Monticello was named the county seat. James Andrew Piatt, Sr. married Jamima Ford on December 21, 1815. Jamima Ford Piatt was born January 10, 1792 and died March 16, 1836. The children of James Andrew Piatt, Sr. and Jamima Ford Piatt:
(1) William Hart Piatt (Find-A-Grave #32174898) was born in Franklin County, Indiana, on October 23, 1816. He moved with his family to Illinois when he was twelve years old. William spent some time away from Illinois to help run a mill in Indiana, and the experience received in Indiana led to a career in milling. He married Clarinda Marquiss in 1838. Piatt took a partner by the name of Henry Sadorus and the pair bought a mill in Monticello. The two continued in business together for the next three decades. William attained fiscal security, which enabled him to invest in his younger brothers' financial endeavors. William died in 1887.
(2) John Piatt was born in Indiana in 1818. He moved briefly to California but eventually came back to Monticello, Illinois. John Piatt married Eliza Lowry on September 4, 1846. The couple had eight children. John Piatt died at Monticello, Illinois, in 1912.
(3) James Andrew Piatt, Jr. (Find-A-Grave #83963344) was born in 1820. At the age of 28, he married Katharine Bryden and ventured west to seek his fortune in the gold mines of California. The family left Kansas City in April and reached Butte County, California, in 1852. The family lived in California for the rest of their lives. They amassed a valuable legacy of nearly 1600 acres of land and assets of $250,000. James died April 8, 1873.
(4) Richard Ford Piatt was born in Indiana on March 31, 1823. He lived in Monticello until 1850 when he went to California to search for gold. Richard married Annabelle Stickel and they had two children. Richard was the last of the elder James A. Piatt's children to die. He lived for a time in Forbestown, formerly Dry Diggins Butte County, CA. He was a businessman in Napa City, California, with enterprises including mining, cattle, land, and investing in merchant goods stores. At age 91, Richard Piatt died in 1914.
There is little information on the two youngest sons of James A. Piatt, Sr.
(5) Annabelle A. Piatt Stickel (Find-A-Grave Memorial #32340643)
(6) Noah Noble Piatt (Find-A-Grave #29612272) lived in California close to a decade then moved back to Monticello. He sold his farm there and moved to Fullerton, Kansas. There is conflicting information regarding his death. An obituary lists him dying in 1912 in California and another indicating he died in Kansas.
Noah Noble Piatt was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Feb. 24, 1828. He married Hanna Phillips in 1855. They had five children: Martha (Mrs. Samuel) Slough: Clara Rees: Mrs. Katherine Thrall: William H; and Johnny, who died as an infant. In 1868, after the death of his first wife, Noah Noble married Olive Bryden in Monticello, Piatt County, Illinois. Roots of the Piatts were deep in Ohio and Illinois, where two "castles" are open today as museums, and Piatt Park is in downtown, Cincinnati. Noah Noble and Olive had three boys; Frank Bryden, 1869-1944; Phil N.; James, 1874-1967. Olive, Noah Noble, Phil and James came by train to Hamilton, claiming "everything the eye could see." Olive's two brothers, Bob and Jack Bryden, had already come to Kansas and had claimed land near what is now Sallyards. Olive and the two boys stayed with Jack while Noah Noble went back to Illinos to bring their belongings and the five other children, who were still in school. The tree older girls were in a teacher-training program, and all later taught around Hamilton. Growing up on Slate Creek provided happy memories for many people in this area. Jim had wonderfull tales to tell of early Greenwood County. He remembered Indians; and he recalled walking two miles to borrow a hot charcoal iron to iron shirts. The boys had a house built on skinds and would take it out to stay where the cattle were. Jum said, "We always moved when the house needed cleaning.
The children of Noah Noble Piatt and Olive Bryden Piatt:
(5a) James A. Piatt, born May 1874, in Monticello, Illinois, and died May 20, 1967 at Hamilton. He was in the Spanish-American War. He took part in the Cherokee Strip Run and mined in Colorado. He married Essie Wood of Madison. They had three children: twins Frank and Noah Noble, and Beverly Tanner. Frank lived in Eureka. Beverly died of cancer in 1964. She married Maynard Tanner. They had three children: Jim, Joan, and Janet. She and the children lived in Hamilton in 1944, when Maynard was in the service. The children of James A. Piatt and Olive Bryden Piatt:
(5a.1) Frank Bryden Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial
#22826731.
(5a.2) Noah Noble Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial
#29612282.
(5a.3) Beverly Neva Piatt Tanner; Find A Grave Memorial
#32115136. She was the wife of Lt. Maynard Blair Tanner; Find A Grave Memorial #51724527, a veteran of World War II.
(5b) Phil N. Piatt was born in Monticello, Illinois, in 1872 and died in Eureka in 1967. Most of Phil's adult life was spent in CA. He had attended the Rolla School of Mines in Rolla, Missouri, and then had gone to CA. to mine. There he married Della. They had no children. However more than one generation of nieces and nephews could hardly wait for Phil's spring return to Kansas, where the fish called him each year. His piece of land at Burkett was his pride. He always said that when he grew old, he'd come to Kansas to retire. Finally, when he was about 92, he "found" his way back and lived his last years here. June 10, 1967: Philip N. Piatt, 95, formerly of the Hamilton community, died Saturday in the Greenwood County hospital in Eureka. He had been a resident of Modesto, California, for many years. Mr. Piatt, whose parents were the late Noah N. and Olive M. Bryden Piatt, was born Feb. 20, 1872, in Monticello, ILL., and was reared in Greenwood county. He was preceded in death by his wife, Della King Piatt, and by three brothers and three sisters. Funeral services were held Tuesday afternoon at the First Methodist church in Madison. Mrs. Dorsey sang "The Good Shepard" and "This Is My Father's World and Mrs. Walter E. Erickson was the organist. Pallbears were Maynard Tanner, Frank Piatt, Phil Piatt, John Piatt, George Eslinger and Albert Roglin. Interment was in the Hamilton Cemetery.
(5c)Frank Bryden Piatt married Dora Evalene "Lena" Ott in Hamilton in 1898. They had three children: Robert Bryden, 1898-1966: Phil Delbert, 1901-1932: and Mary Frances, 1904-1928. Frank and Lena lived on the home place. A new house was built nearby for Olive (this is the base of Harmon's present home.) The farm was quite large by that time, and took a lot of people to keep it going. Many people still tell me they worked for the Piatts. Girls would stay there to attend school and work for their keep. Boys stayed in the bunkhouse, worked, and walked across the pasture to the high school. Frank was a large man and always "chewed" a cigar. Lena was also a large woman. She attended the academy at Baker University and she gave music lessons. She was a fantastic cook, and everyone loved her. She was always there when you needed her. Many stories came from this life. As Granddad learned to drive his first car, doors had to be put on both ends of the garage. The boys opened them both up and Granddad would keep driving through until it "whoaed!" I'am not sure he ever really learned to drive because I remember he thought the whole road was his! Once when Grandmother was having a "society" meeting, Daddy and his brother decided it was time to teach sister to swim, even though she was only one year old, had the measles, and it was February. Another time, Daddy came to the house alone. Inquiring about Phil's whereabouts, the others were informed that he was gone. He was stuck in the "quicksand" at the creek. Daddy had tried and failed to get him out, so he had convinced Phil that was it and had left. What must have been a busy, "fun" life turned into tragedy. In 1928, Mary Frances, who was everyone's darling, was an opera singer in Chicago. She contracted pneumonia and died within a week. In 1929, Phil, who had married Ruth Milliken of Eureka, had stopped in at the doctor's office, on a trip to Emporia. It was decided he had appendicitis, He died on the operating table. This was more than Grandmother could take, and she passed away in 1933. As if this wasn't enough, the Depression hit and Grandad lost large amounts of money on cattle. He married Helen Griblin in 1935. He had diabetes and was very ill. He continued to struggle, but finally lost everything. They moved to Hamilton, and he worked for the State Banking Commission as a livestock appraiser during his last years. He passed away in 1944. Helen continued to live in Hamilton until she moved to the Madison nursing home and died in 1985, at the age of 102. She had been a graduate nurse.
(6) Annabelle A. Piatt Stickel (Find-A-Grave #32340643)
James Andrew Piatt, Sr. married Mahala Oxley on December 12, 1837, in Piatt County, Illinois, Mahala Oxley Piatt was born May 8, 1801 in Kentucky died November 16, 1851.
The child of James Andrew Piatt, Sr. and Mahala Oxley Piatt:
Mary Jane Piatt (Find-A-Grave #61277504)b: 1839 d: 1911 m: 5 Jun 1860 Piatt Co, IL, William Bryden d: 1866
The children of Mary Jane Piatt Bryden and William Bryden:
1.Charles Bryden
2.William Bryden
SOURCES:
Illinois History and Lincoln Collections
University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign
Utah State University donated the collection to the Library in 2006.
Wikipedia
Pyeatt Family Homepage
Marianne Cowan Pyeatt
Angelfire.com
History of Greenwood County Kansas
Drusilla Esslinger.
Essie Piatt
Greenwood County Kansas Obituaries
Piatt Family Newsletter, Volume 7, 1992
Piatt Co, IL; Marriage records of Piatt Co, IL
Greenwood County Kansas History
1880 Census of Greenwood Co, KS
Special Collections and University Archives
Wichita State University Libraries Website
Family Members
Siblings
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Records on Ancestry
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