J. R. Driver Passed Peacefully Away Tuesday Afternoon

At 12:50 o’clock Tuesday afternoon the body and spirit of James R. Driver were separated, the soul taking its flight to the home above prepared for its reception.

The news of the death of ‘Squire Driver, as he was called by all who knew him, came not as a shock for it has been expected for some time, and his loved ones knowing this were prepared for his departure.

Mr. Driver, was until recently an active man for his years and superintended the work about his place. He was a man whose life and thought were pure, and ever conscientious and faithful to the principles he talked. In judgment he, as all others, made mistakes, but to deliberately do one wrong was not the way ‘Squire Driver lived.

He was born February 21, 1831, near Lebanon, Tennessee, and moved with his parents to this county in 1841, and lived in Shiloh township.

Mr. Driver was a soldier in the Civil War, but his term of service was short, owing to a physical ailment. He belonged to Company C, 16th Illinois Infantry.

As a member of the Baptist church he was recognized as one of the truest, and his membership with that church covers a period of many years.

In 1852 he was married to Miss Matilda C. Allen, and to this union four children were born, all having passed away except J. Merritte Driver.

His first wife died, and in 1860 he was married to Mrs. Elizabeth Pate, who survives him.

The funeral was held at the residence Wednesday morning at 11 o’clock, conducted by Rev. E. B. Surface and the interment followed at the Odd Fellows’ Cemetery at Woodlawn.

Source: The Daily Register Mt. Vernon, IL
Date: Wednesday May 25, 1904
Submitted by: Mary