The name of George B. Arnett in business circles of Carlinville is a
synonym for enterprise and progressiveness and, as he has been
remarkably successful in a number of business ventures, he is well and
favorably known in other parts of the state outside of Macoupin county.
He was born in Bird township, Macoupin county, February 16, 1868, a son
of George W. and Serena E. (Lasiter) Arnett. The father was a native of
Tennessee and the mother of Illinois. In their family were four
children: Viola A., the widow of E. P. Deeds, of Carlinville; Horace W.,
who died in 1880; Lilly M., who married H. C. Wilhite, of Greenfield,
Illinois; and George B., of this review.
The father of our
subject was brought to Macoupin county by his parents when he was four
years of age and has ever since made his home in this county, being now
eighty-two years old. He engaged successfully in farming and accumulated
about two hundred and fifty acres of land in Bird township, which he
developed into a valuable property. In 1889 he took up his residence at
Carlinville, where he and his wife are now living. He was formerly
actively interested in local affairs and for a number of years was
supervisor of Bird township, serving in that capacity for a number of
years. He and his wife are members of the Baptist church.
Thomas
Arnett, the grandfather of our subject on the paternal side, was born in
Tennessee, the family originally coming from Virginia. He married a Miss
Reader and they both passed their declining days in Macoupin county, the
grandfather dying when he was about sixty-five years of age. Their
children were: George W.; William D.; John H.; Paschal L.; Thomas;
Martha, who married John Wiggins; and Nancy. The grandfather on the
maternal side was also a native of Tennessee and was an early settler of
Greene county, Illinois. He married Charity Hill. He was killed
accidentally in middle life by the running away of a team which he was
driving. In his family were five children: Eliza, who married Joseph
Bird; Serena E., the mother of our subject; Mary, who became the wife of
W. R. Fitzgerell; Myra, who married Joseph Casteel; and Jennie, who
married Horatio Peebles. Mrs. Lasiter, the mother of these children, was
married again, her second husband being John Courtney, and they had two
children, Carroll and Cyrus B.
George B. Arnett was reared on
his father’s farm and possessed advantages of education in the district
schools. Later he attended Blackburn University and the Northern Indiana
Normal school at Valparaiso, Indiana, completing a business course at
the latter institution. He paid his expenses at the higher institutions
by teaching school and, being a young man of ambition and energy, it did
not require him long to secure a position in the business world. He
began his active career as a traveling man for D. M. Osborn & Company,
selling binders, mowers, reapers, etc., and later was employed in expert
work by the company for a year. He was then appointed general agent of
the same company for Kentucky, Tennessee and southern Indiana, with
headquarters at Louisville, Kentucky, and continued in that position
from 1890 to 1895. In the latter year he accepted appointment as manager
of the office of the Smith Premier Typewriter Company at Louisville and
six months afterward was promoted to the Cincinnati office, which
controlled a number of other city offices. He spent a year at Cincinnati
and then, in 1896, came to Carlinville and accepted a position as
traveling man for the Parlin & Orendorf Company, in which capacity he
continued for five years. During this time he also was at the head of a
retail implement and vehicle business in this city. In 1903 he bought
out R. R. Simmons, of Greenfield, who was the owner of one of the
largest hardware stores in Greene county, and conducted the store until
1908, when he disposed of it to the Melvin Hardware Company. He
continued in Greenfield for a year, being engaged in the real-estate
business, and then purchased a beautiful residence at Carlinville, which
was known as theW. O. Steimeyer property. Pie has since lived in this
city and gives his attention to the real-estate, loan and insurance
business. He owns eighty acres of land in Mississippi county, Missouri,
and also the Greenfield Opera House and other property in Greenfield and
Carlinville.
On the 19th of October, 1892, Mr. Arnett was
married to Miss Olive J. Sangbush, a daughter of Henry and Mary (Cutler)
Sangbush. Six children have been born to this union, Irene Esther,
George Clifford, Henry Howard, Olive Adaline, Cleo Frances and Thomas
Russell. Mrs. Arnett was born in Woodford county, Illinois. Her father
was born in Germany and came to this country as a boy, while her mother
was born in Woodford county. The mother died in 1906, but the father is
still living and makes his home at Washburn, Illinois. They had three
children, Mrs. Arnett being the only one now living.
Mr. and
Mrs. Arnett are valued members of the Methodist church. He is identified
with the Knights of Pythias and during his life in many ways has
practically exemplified the beneficial teachings of that order. In
politics he is in close sympathy with the principles of the democratic
party. He has never sought to avoid responsibility and in the discharge
of his duties has shown a clearness of judgment and a knowledge of
conditions which have been productive of generous financial returns.
Hence, he ranks as one of the leaders in business circles of this
section — a position which he has attained by methods entirely
legitimate, as he has never sought to advance his own interests to the
injury of others.
Extracted 14 Nov 2018 by Norma Hass from History of Macoupin County, Illinois: Biographical and Pictorial, by Charles A. Walker, published in 1911, Volume 2, pages 259-261.
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