No man in Hanover Township is held in higher respect than the subject of this notice. Possessing more than ordinary capabilities, he has accumulated a competence, chiefly by farming and stock-raising, and at the same time has fully established himself in the esteem and confidence of his fellow-citizens. He is courteous and affable both to friend and stranger and would at once be recognized as a gentleman of birth and breeding, with charity for the weaknesses of his fellow-men, and a large benevolence which readily sympathizes in a substantial manner with the unfortunate. A native of Philadelphia, Pa., our subject was born Nov. 4, 1830. It may be well before proceeding further to place at the parental history. By referring to the records we find that he is the son of John and Mary (Fowler) McKinley, who were native of the North of Ireland, and are still living, having their home in the city of Galena. They were married in their native county, and emigrated to America in 1827, settling in Philadelphia; but not long afterward came to Northern Illinois, taking up their abode in Galena, this county, in May, 1836. William McKinley, the great advocate of protection, and prominent in Ohio politics, is the second cousin of the father of our subject, and other members of the family have become prominent in social and financial circles.

John McKinley, on coming to this county, was engaged in mercantile business for a number of years. He sold out about 1848, and removed to the farm now owned by his son, our subject. The year following he went to California and engaged in gold mining a few months: in the meantime being quite successful. Upon returning to this county, in 1850, he purchased a claim, upon which he settled prior to going to California, and where not a furrow had been turned. He occupied this until 1875, then retired from active labor, and, with his estimable wife, has since made his home in Galena.

The father of our subject, upon taking possession of his land, which was part timber and part prairie, built a log house, which the family occupied a number of years. It was then replaced with a more modern structure, and other buildings were erected, fruit and shade trees were planted, and the once uncultivated tract of land in due time assumed the proportions of a well-regulated farm. Mr. McKinley was a man quiet and unobtrusive in his demeanor, and, although well qualified to serve the people in official positions, had no ambition for political preferment, although he was frequently solicited to hold office. He was singularly attached to his family and his fireside, and a member in good standing of the Methodist Episcopal Church, to which he has given a liberal support these many years. He was a Whig in the early days, but later joined the Republican party, and is now one of its most earnest defenders.

To the parents of our subject there were born eight children, of whom the following survive, namely; Hugh, a proof-reader with the Evening Post Book and Job Department, of New York City; William, our subject; Jane, the wife of W. B. Photon, of Sioux County, Iowa; Mary, who is at Galena; and Sarah, the wife of John Kearney, of Derinda Township. The three deceased are Robert, Eliza, and John. The parents are now well advanced in years, the father being eighty-six, and the mother eighty-five years, old. They present the picture of a pleasant and congenial old couple, who, after well-spent lives, are passing their declining days in the midst of the comforts they have so justly earned, and surrounded by hosts of friends.

The subject of this sketch was reared to man’s estate under the parental roof, and studied his first lessons in the subscription schools. After the return of his father from California he, too, determined to visit the Pacific Slope. He remained a few months, and then took ship to the Sandwich Island, went from there to the Navigator’s Islands, and thence to New Zealand, where he remained six months. He next embarked to Australia, where he spent about two and one-half years, then sailed to Liverpool, England, where he sojourned one month, and in 1856 set his face toward his native shores. Since that time he has been content to pursue the peaceful life of an agriculturist. He settled on the home farm, and has lived here now for a period of thirty-three years. He owns 140 acres and operates 240 acres of land belonging to his father, and his beautiful residence is flanked by neat and substantial outbuildings, forming a most pleasing picture in the landscape.

The 12th of January, 1860, witnessed the marriage of our subject with Miss Ann, daughter of William and Jane (Alexander) Kearney. This union resulted in the birth of nine children, of whom the following survive, namely: John, Emma (the wife of Charles Bertsch), George, Lilly, Eva, Ira, and Robert. William died when nineteen years old, and one child died in infancy unnamed.

Mr. McKinley, following in the footsteps of his honored father, is a stanch supporter of Republican principles, and has served as School Director in his district for many years. Socially, he belongs to the Masonic fraternity, being a prominent member of the lodge at Hanover. It is conceded by all that the McKinley arm is one of the best-arranged and finest stock farms in Jo Daviess County, and, in fact, in Northern Illinois. The handsome residence is beautifully furnished, and has about it an air of culture rarely found in rural homes.

Contributed by Carol Parrish - Portrait and Biographical Album of Jo Daviess and Carroll Counties, Illinois (1889)