John Henry Coile/Kile

Born 1795 in western Virginia.  The name appears to have been Kile as John Henry was married by the Kile name in East Tenn. John Henry Coile came from Greene County, East Tennessee arriving in Cheney's Grove, McLean County, Ill, in the latter part of November, 1849. His family was his wife Mary and two sons John and Ezekiel. Family tradition was that John Henry walked from East Tennessee first to see the area, then returned and brought his family. The family first lived on the property and worked for Ephraim Scudder Myers. This was in the southeast part of section 18 of Cheney's Grove. Later John Henry acquired 80 acres of section 16 from the state of Illinois. The title is dated January 31, 1851 and the purchase price was $100.00. It is signed by the Governor, Augustus French and the Secretary of State D. L. Gregg.

A log cabin was built which was situated on the east side of the three-mile spur leading to route nine on a slight rise just south of the small creek running east to west. Grandfather Frank Coile remembered playing in the log building as a child.  It was then used as a corn crib. He said he injured his arm falling from the loft area. Grandfather Frank Coile's sister Sarah (Aunt Sallie) was born in the log cabin, May 22, 1869. On February 28, 1855.  John Henry paid taxes of $8.96 on 160 acres in section 16 and 10 acres in section 27.

John Henry's burial place was originally in the old cemetery in the northeast corner of section 19. This cemetery was later moved and the graves of the Coile ancestors are in the cemetery south of the Sangamon Creek in section.

 

Mary Neil Coile

 

Mary was also called Polly. In the 1880 census, she was listed as Polly (age 86) living with her son Ezekiel. Her obituary in the Saybrook paper read, "The death of Mrs. Mary Coile occurred on last Saturday at the residence of her son, Ezekiel Coile, who lives two miles north of this place. Mrs. Coile was born in Greene County, Tennessee and was 87 years old at the time of her death. She has lived in Cheney's Grove for 40 years. She was one of seventeen children, thirteen sons and four daughters. There is(sic) only three of the family now living. The deceased had only two children, both sons, Ezekiel, living here and John in Kansas. Mary is buried in the cemetery south of Saybrook, Ill.

 

Mary’s parents were Ezekial Stanborough and Esther Neil. Ezekial born in 1759 in Frederick Co. Virginia. Esther name on the marriage license Esther Kremer, but in later years her son Isaac said his mother’s maiden name was Neil.

Ezekial and Esther had by some accounts 15 children by others 17.  The names of 15 are: (Some of the last names are spelled differently.)

 

William Stanbury

Solomon Stansbury

Ezekiel Stanbury

Mary Stanbury

Samuel Stansberry

Elijah Stanbury

Edward Stanbury

Thomas Stanberry

Jacob Stanbury

Margaret Stansbury

Isaac Stanberry

Abraham Stansberry

James Stanberry

Elizabeth Stanbery

Esther Stanbery

Contributed by Alan Coile