“Oliver Davis came from Tennessee to Illinois about 1828 with his wife and baby daughter Jane. His wife and daughter rode on a horse, and he walked by their side. He settled on the bank of Crab Orchard Creek in what is now Williamson County Illinois, about 1/2 mile East of Pittsburg, Illinois.
“With his one horse he dragged logs to build his house. He raised nine children of his own, three girls and six boys, and two of his grandchildren: John M. Davis and Clarissa C. Davis, children of his son Oliver Jr. He raised cattle, horses, sheep and hogs. He walked through the wilderness to Old Frankfort, and would make 100 rails a day and walk back home at night. The wolves were very common in those days and would howl around the house and frighten his wife, and she would climb up on the house with the children and throw the ladder down. Then when he returned home he would put it back up for them to come down.
“Three of their sons were soldiers in the Civil War. The youngest son, Hezekiah, slipped away at the age of 18 to join the army. Both Hezekiah and Thomas returned home at the close of the war, but Oliver died in a prisoner of war camp. He was wounded in action, and is buried in the National Cemetery at Marietta Ga.
“Oliver Davis Sr. was a member of Old Squat church built in 1819. William Burns was one of the founders of the church and was there when the census was taken in 1818 and 1820. There being many Indians and wolves in the vicinity of the church in the early days, the members would carry rifles to church with them. Old Squat church was located between the Jefferson Sanders and Samuel Sherertz homes, near what is now Union Grove church, which was built in 1859.
“Oliver Davis was the son of David Davis of Tennessee, and a brother of David Davis, Jr. (1801-1873), who also came to Williamson County, Illinois, in 1828, and settled near what is now Pittsburg Illinois.” —– Ancestry Family Tree
Hester’s father, Thomas Davis, served in Company E of the 60th Illinois Infantry during the Civil War with his brothers Hezekiah and Oliver. After he was mustered out of the service at the end of the war in 1865 he married a local girl by the name of Elizabeth Scheretz on November 25, 1865. They had four children and she died in 1871. He re-married the same year on September 22, 1871 to Eliza Ann Pulley and they had five more children, one of which was Hester. In 1868, Thomas was a Trustee to the City Board of Marion and served as Marion Alderman in 1880 and 1881.
In the 1900 census, Hester is 14 years old and living with his parents. Although no specific addresses are given in that census, it is certain that he is living in the vicinity of the end of East Main Street due to his proximity to Benjamin Griggs in the census. Griggs was known to be living at 1001 E. College Street at that time. In the census, Hester, aged 14, and his 12 year old brother are already working as day laborers, which is what his father Thomas does. His mother Lizzie claims to have had nine children with five surviving. A sad fact that reflects the infant mortality of the day that was far too common before hospital care was available.
Hester married Georgia Stapleton on June 25, 1904. In a 1907 directory, Hester was listed as a clerk at Campbell’s and living in the rear of 915 E. Main Street. I presume that the reference to Campbell’s would be the Campbell’s store located at 1103 Public Square who sold boots, shoes, dry goods and groceries.
On October 8, 1907, Hester Louise Davis was born to the couple. This would be their one and only child. Hester acquired the nickname “Dink”, later in life, while her father’s nickname was “Heck” Davis.
Prior to the 1910 census, Hester and Georgia purchased a home at 915 E. Beech Street which is between E. Main and E. College Streets. The 915 address puts it within a stone’s throw of what is now Small’s Meat Market on E. Main Street. The couple is in their early twenties and Hester Louise is 3 years old. Hester has a job as a substitute mail carrier.
In September of 1918, when Hester registered for the WWI draft, he is described as 32, medium height, stout build, blue eyes and dark hair. His occupation at the time was farmer for the Southern Illinois Gas Company.
In 1919, Hester purchased an existing store located at 1005 E. Main Street. Since at least the turn of the century, there has been a store located in this spot. In 1907 it was listed as Griggs & Sons, and I have no doubt in my mind, that it was owned by the Benjamin Griggs family who only lived two short blocks away at 1001 E. College Street. The same family owned the Griggs Brick plant located at the end of E. College St.
The very next year in the census of 1920, Hester is now a grocer with a business at 1005 E. Main and a home next door to the west at 1001 E. Main Street. They are doing business as H.L. Davis Grocery.
According to a fire report article written December 1, 1922, the grocery store and a couple of adjoining homes were destroyed in a fire on a previous evening offering Hester a big setback. Unfortunately, fire wasn’t done with him, because another article dated February 1, 1929 indicates yet another fire destroyed the building.
In the 1930 census, when Hester lists his occupation as hardware merchant it has to make you wonder if he was considering going a different direction for a while after his luck in the grocery business, or possibly, he is moonlighting while his store is rebuilt. The couple is now reaching their mid 40’s and Louise is 22. They have his nephew, Bobby Joe Neely, aged 7, living with them. Louise is working as a billing clerk for a public utility. They still live next door at 1001 and Hester values the home at $5,000 as the depression begins.
Between 1930 and 1940 Hester Louise marries Carl B. Sorgen from Carbondale in Jackson County.
In the 1940 census, Hester is 54 and Georgia is 53, he lists himself as a merchant working 60 hours a weeks, 52 weeks a year. He now values his home at 1001 E. Main at $4,000.
On May 6, 1940, Georgia passed away and was buried at Rose Hill Cemetery.
In 1942, when Hester filled out his WWII draft registration he is 56 years old and described as 5’8” tall, 210 lbs., blue eyes and grey hair. His contact person is Hester Sorgen, his daughter.
Around 1950, Hester sold his business to a Mrs. Shreve who lived near the store on Gray Street. Hester purchased the home to the rear of the store located at 109 S. Gray Street. Sometime around this period he remarried to a lady name Lottie E. and I do not know her maiden name. The market reopened under the name Shreve’s IGA Super Market and around the early 1960’s it became Small’s Food Market, which it more or less remains today.
Hester’s new wife, Lottie Davis was known to have worked at the Dotty Shoppe on the Marion square for years.
In 1953, H.L. Davis served as Marion Chief of Police.
Hester and his wife Lottie occupied the home behind the store to this death in February of 1976. He was buried on February 13th at Rose Hill Cemetery. Lottie Davis passed away on June 18, 1983.
Hester’s daughter who married Carl Sorgen occupied the family home at 1001 E. Main Street after her dad moved over to Gray Steet. They remained in it for decades while he operated his Carl Sorgen Studio on N. Market and after the big fire, later on the public square around 1965. They had one child, a girl, named Carol Sorgen who can be seen in photographs of her dad’s Memory Kit ads.
Hester Louise (Davis) Sorgen was born October 8, 1907 and died on March 5, 1993. Carl Sorgen was born August 5, 1904 and died on March 17, 1989.
Sam’s Notes:
Growing up at 917 E. College Street attaches me slightly to this story since these were my old stomping grounds. I don’t recall the Davis family as much as the Sorgen’s who lived next to the store because of age differences. Shreve’s Market was my era. It wasn’t uncommon for local kids, like myself, to grow and sell vegetables to small stores like this one, to raise a little spending money. They were also a great place to redeem the refunds on returnable bottles. Glass soda bottles were 1 or 2 cents and larger glass gallon bottles were redeemed at 5 or 10 cents, a great find for the time.
Carl Sorgen had the hobby of building and running an incredible model railroad set in his basement that seemed enormous to my young eyes. I couldn’t get invited down enough to watch him run it. My personal impression of Carl through life was that he was a very intelligent, personable and creative individual.
The Baker Family Connection:
Hester’s grandfather Oliver Davis married Annie Baker. Annie’s brother William Baker, married Oliver’s sister Sarah Davis.
(Data from Federal Census Records; Marion City Directories; Marion City Cemetery Records; Ancestry.com; compiled by Sam Lattuca on 04/26/2013)