Silas D Henderson was the son of John Monroe and Nancy Agness Wakefield Henderson. He was born and raised in Smith County, Tennessee. All records of him only list him with the middle initial "D," and none indicate whether he actually had a full middle name, or just the initial. One of his grandsons, Myron D English, also seemingly had only the middle initial.

Silas' father, John, was listed on the 1830 and 1840 censuses as living in Smith County, Tennessee; Silas can be found on those records as a child in John's household. John died sometime before 1850, perhaps 1848. Silas' widowed mother and younger brothers (John and Adolphus) migrated to Illinois in about 1849, and were recorded on the 1850 census as living in Schuyler County.

Silas has not been found on the 1850 census (as of yet). However, since his mother and brothers had migrated to Illinois by 1850, it is assumed that Silas migrated with them around the same time. Silas' second child, Nancy, was born in 1848 in Tennessee, so he must have migrated no earlier than that year. His first wife, Martha, died in July of 1852 in Schuyler County, Illinois, so clearly he had moved there by then. He is also recorded on two Illinois state census records, both from 1855, which state that he lived in both Livingston and Morgan Counties. In 1860, 1870, and 1880, he is listed on census records as living in Astoria, Fulton County. His July 1863 draft registration record places his residence in Ramsey Township, Fayette County, Illinois.

On July 31, 1862, Silas enlisted for military service in Fulton County for the Civil War. He was mustered in on August 27, 1862 at Peoria, Illinois. During his time in the war, Silas served in Company H of the 85th Illinois Infantry, and fought with General Sherman, General Sheridan, and General Grant. He survived the war and was mustered out on June 5, 1865 in Washington DC with the rank of Sergeant by one Lieutenant Scroggs.

After the war, Silas settled back into his life of farming and day labor in Astoria. Sometime in the 1880's, he migrated with his family from Astoria to Bader, Schuyler County (then known as Baders), a small farming community about 4 miles to the south. He worked and continued to raise his children until his death.

Silas married three times and had a total of either 12 or 13 children, one of whom died in infancy. There is a possibility that he had more who died young, but there is no clear proof as of yet.

First - Martha Russell; they were married in about 1846, and she died in 1852. There are no records to fix an exact date of their marriage, and an estimation was made by subtracting a year from the birth of their first child. Silas and Martha had two children.

1. John Monroe Henderson (1847-1937)** see below

2. Nancy Jane Henderson (1848-1935)** see below

Second - Eliza Jane Wilson; they were married on March 11, 1858; she died in 1873. Silas and Eliza had five children.

3. Martha L. "Mattie" Henderson (1859-1913)** see below

4. Charles Henry Henderson (1862-1937)** see below

5. George E. Henderson (1870-1918)** see below

6. Mary Matilda Henderson (1872-abt. 1895)

Third - Josephine S. Powell; they were married on February 25, 1877. She survived him. Silas and Josephine had 7 children together.

*7. Maletha Belle Henderson (or Powell) (1869-1947) **see below [Maletha may not have been Silas' daughter, as her maiden name on her marriage documents was Powell (also her mother's maiden name). She was born 8 years before Silas and Josephine married. Obituaries and census data indicate that Josephine was her parent, and not necessarily Silas, so it's likely that Josephine had Maletha out of wedlock before her marriage to Silas, either with him or a different man].

8. William Tecumseh Sherman Henderson (1879-1942)** see below [He was named after General Sherman, with whom Silas had fought in the Civil War]

9. Phillip Sheridan Henderson (1881-1944)** see below [He was named after General Phillip Sheridan of the Civil War].

10. Helen Powell Henderson (1882-1915)** see below

11. Lydia May Henderson (1884-1916)** see below

12. Infant Daughter Henderson (perhaps about 1886-1888) [No historical records (as of yet) tell anything specific about this daughter, save that she existed and died young. The only indications of her are on her mother's 1924 obituary, which states that Josephine was preceded in death by 3 daughters, and on the 1900 and 1910 censuses, which state that Josephine had 7 children, 6 of whom survived].

13. Robert Lincoln Henderson (1890-1922)** see below

Silas applied for Civil War Pension on April 2, 1888.

Silas became ill by March 19, 1891, in which the Rushville Times stated that "Silas Henderson of Baders is said to be hopelessly ill."

Silas died in Baders on March 30, 1891, at 62 years of age. His death was due to "catarrh of head, throat, lungs, and stomach. Also sore throat and mouth." His death record states that he died at 10 pm, and that the attending physician was Dr. William Powell, Silas' father-in-law. Silas was buried in Astoria, survived by his wife and children.

On April 2, 1891, a notice of his death was printed in the same newspaper, which said, "Silas Henderson of Baders, and the aged Becca Reno of Ridgeville, both died yesterday morning. Mr. Henderson's age was about 60 years and the widow Reno's was 80 years or more."

Silas' widowed wife, Josephine, filed for Civil War widows benefits on May 1, 1891.