William G. Law was born in Savanna in
1871 to William B. Law and the former Sarah
J. Law, a daughter of Andrew Law of Washington township, in the family home where the
Savanna township library now stands. The
father left County Fermanagh in 1857 spending
about ten years working in the mines of Australia and New Zealand before coming to
Savanna. Here he had a billiard hall and
started building residences and store buildings.
They had two children, William George and Fanny.
Son William G. first worked in the drug
store of Charlie Kellogg. Deciding to go into
the business, he was graduated from the Illinois
College of Pharmacy, Chicago and opened for
business in the north half of a small one-story
frame building in 1892.
After the death of Bothwell Pulford in 1905,
Law and a banker named Peck from Thomson
bought the Pulford business for a second store,
moving the little frame building to the back of
the lot where they kept their stock. Later the
same year they built the present building
closing the business in the Pulford opera house.
In 1922, Law took his two sons, Boyd and
Ives, both registered pharmacists, into partnership with him and changed the name of his
business to Law Drug Company; the sons
also started a drug store in Belvidere moving
to that city but continuing their interest here.
William G. Law died in 1939, and the drug
store in Savanna was taken over by the oldest
son, Ives Law and his mother Hazel who continued the business for 23 years. Following the
death of Ives, his sons Richard and Jason Law
took over his interest. Neither was a druggist at
heart, both being Navy men. Capt. Richard
Law is in command of part of the Pacific Fleet
stationed at Hawaii; and Commander Jason
Law of a division of the East Coast Fleet. It
was this Jason who unveiled the Pierce
monument at the Savanna centennial.
Source: A Goodly Heritage
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