Timothy Bannister Lillie (abt. 1812 - 1880)

Born about 10 Jan 1812 in Potsdam, St. Lawrence, New York, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Lovisa (Streeter) Lillie — married 25 Oct 1832 in Edwards, St. Lawrence, New York

Descendants

Died 23 Aug 1880 at about age 68 in Wright Twp, Ottawa, Michigan, USA

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Biography

Timothy Bannister Lillie was an early pioneer of Ottawa County, Michigan. He was born in Potsdam, New York in 1812 to Roswell Lillie and Ruth Bannister. He died in Wright Township, Michigan at the age of 68.

His headstone is in Advent Cemetery in Coopersville, Michigan. It can be vaguely made out to say that he died Aug 23, 1880, aged 68 yrs. 7 ms. 13 days. Going back this amount of time from 23 Aug 1880 leads to a birth date of 10 Jan 1812. An image of a Lillie family register corroborates these dates.^[1][2]

Articles

Although at a very early day settlers clustered around Lamont, the town of Polkton made but little progress for quite a number of years. Timothy B. and Benjamin Lilly pushed on a distance from the "Landing" in 1843, and settled themselves where they have ever since resided. They cut their own road from the Landing. ^[3]

Several settlers came in 1840, among them the Lillie brothers (Benjamin and Timothy B), who gave a name to a part of the town - the "Lillie Settlement."^[4]

T.B. Lillie appears on a poll list of annual election in town of Wright November 9, 1856. ^[5]

Up to 1850 there had been but a small portion of the county opened for farming purposes, except along the river. Benjamin and Timothy Lillie were the first ones that located land for farming in the town of Wright. They settled there in 1844, and in 1845 Benjamin raised three-quarters of an acre of spring wheat, and Timothy put in a small piece of winter wheat. Mr. Lillie reports that they dragged in the first crop of wheat among the stumps and roots, seeded the land to grass, and waited four or five years for the roots and stumps to rot, so that the land might be plowed.^[6]

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Children

Twenty-four children were born to him and his three wives.^[7]

Based on an image of a Lillie family register, Timothy Banister Lillie and Lovisa Streeter had 14 children together.^[2] Their names and birthdates are:

1. Emily, 11 Jul 1833 in Edwards, NY
2. Mary, 21 Jul 1834 in Edwards, NY
3. Julia, 25 Apr 1836 in Emmet, MI
4. Lamira, 23 Jun 1837 in Battle Creek, MI
5. Roswell, 25 Oct 1839 in Emmet, MI
6. Levi, 25 Dec 1840 in Emmet, MI
7. Warren, 25 Jan 1842 in Emmet, MI
8. Edward Franklin, 26 Feb 1844 in Emmet, MI
9. Sarah Jane, 25 May 1845 in Wright, MI
10. Spaulding J, 23 Sep 1846 in Wright, MI
11. Timothy Eastman, 8 Dec 1847 in Wright, MI
12. Lorenzo B, 25 Apr 1849 in Wright, MI
13. Joseph, 7 Apr 1851 in Wright, MI
14. David, 30 Sep 1852 in Wright, MI

After the death of his wife, Lovisa, on 16 Oct 1852, Timothy married Lucinda M Williams on 8 Dec 1852 in Ottawa County, Michigan.^[8] She passed away very quickly after this marriage on 7 Dec 1853.^[9]

After the death of his second wife, Lucinda, Timothy married Christy Ann Himelberger on 2 Feb 1854 in Polkton, Michigan. He was 42 years old and she was 18.^[10] They had nine children together, one of whom died in infancy.^[11]

1. Truman Henry (b. 30 Mar 1855)
2. Charles Porter (b. 28 Dec 1856)
3. Addie A (b. abt. 1859)
4. Harriet (b. abt. 1861)
5. Phila (b. abt. 1863)
6. Minnie B (b. 11 Dec 1865) (d. 20 Mar 1866)
7. George (b. abt. 1867)
8. Samuel (b. 21 Oct 1874)
9. Clyde (b. 15 Oct 1876)

Obituary

Timothy B. Lillie, of the town of Wright, one of the first settlers in that now rich town, was born in St. Lawrence county, NY, in 1812, and died at his comfortable home August 23, 1880, 68 years of age. He purchased his land for a farm in an unbroken forest, and by his hard, persistent labor left a home fit for a prince. He there raised and educated a large family of sons and daughters. Twenty-four children were born to him and his three wives. The third is now living as the wife of Joel Lillie, a cousin of Timothy B., and excellent woman. I have no heard of any deaths among the children. They are nearly all living, if not quite. All the sons are following the occupation of the father, farmers. The daughters are all married to good husbands, who, with the communities in which they live, know how to appreciate them. Timothy B. Lillie always declined office, and still it may be said that he was a leader of men. He was possessed of power at the polls, and if a man in office had been dishonest, or done anything wrong, the influence of T. B. Lillie was sufficient to defeat him, and the wounded would hardly know who hurt them. Generous and open hearted, there was always a seat at his table for the hungry; the needy never asked him for help in vain. If worthy and trying to help themselves they were helped with a generous hand and measure. A firm believer in the doctrine of universal salvation, while living he gave of his means for the support of the faith that was in him. ^[7]

Sources

• 1840 US Census^[12]
• 1850 US Census^[13]
• 1860 US Census^[14]
• 1870 US Census^[15]
• 1880 US Census^[16]
• Death Record^[17]

1. ↑ Find A Grave
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Lillie Family Register, found on Ancestry.com
3. ↑ Memorials of the Grand River Valley, page 503
4. ↑ HISTORY OF OTTAWA COUNTRY. 1882. Page 112.
5. ↑ Wright Township, Ottawa County, Michigan, The First 150 Years 1847-1997" by Shirley Voogt
6. ↑ Historical collections. Collections and researches made by the Michigan pioneer and historical society...Reprinted by authority of the Board of sate auditors. Volume 9 Agriculture of Ottawa County
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1} Michigan Historical Collections, Volume 6, Page 403
8. ↑ "Michigan, County Marriages, 1820-1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FCFQ-LLX : 25 April 2016), Timothy B. Lillie and Lucinda M. Williams, 08 Dec 1852, , Ottawa, Michigan, United States; citing reference ID 0, various archives, Michigan; FHL microfilm 984,230.
9. ↑ Find A Grave
10. ↑ "Michigan, County Marriages, 1820-1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FCFQ-GZW : 25 April 2016), Timothy B. Lillie and Christa Ann Himelberger, 02 Feb 1854, Polkton, Ottawa, Michigan, United States; citing reference ID 0, various archives, Michigan; FHL microfilm 984,230.
11. ↑ The Coopersville Observer, 29 Aug 1913, page 4
12. ↑ "United States Census, 1840," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHYQ-L1S : 24 August 2015), Timothy B Lillie, Emmett Township, Calhoun, Michigan, United States; citing p. 168, NARA microfilm publication M704, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 203; FHL microfilm 14,795.
13. ↑ "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MF8L-MGX : 12 April 2016), Timothy B Lilley, Wright, Ottawa, Michigan, United States; citing family 133, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
14. ↑ "United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MWD8-822 : 26 July 2017), Timothy B Lillie, 1860.
15. ↑ "United States Census, 1870," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHCD-WY5 : 12 April 2016), Timothy Littie, Michigan, United States; citing p. 7, family 45, NARA microfilm publication M593 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 552,196.
16. ↑ "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MW34-9M7 : 11 August 2016), Timothy B Lillie, Wright, Ottawa, Michigan, United States; citing enumeration district ED 232, sheet 240C, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 0600; FHL microfilm 1,254,600.
17. ↑ "Michigan Deaths, 1867-1897," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N3N1-KMQ : 12 December 2014), T. B. Lillie, 23 Aug 1880; citing p 61 rn 323, Wright Twp, Ottawa, Michigan, Department of Vital Records, Lansing; FHL microfilm 2,363,668.

Acknowledgments

Thanks to Living Large for starting this profile.

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