Biography - EDWARD EWIN

Edward Ewin, who has gained an enviable reputation as a successful breeder of horses and is also a prominent farmer of Macoupin county, was born at “The Heights,” in Westmoreland county, England, September 11, 1865. He comes of one of the old families of Westmoreland county and is a son of William and Elizabeth (Harrison) Ewin, the former of whom was born on the family homestead in 1817, and the latter at Soulby, Westmoreland county, in 1831. Thomas Ewin, the grandfather of our subject, was the youngest of seven children and upon the death of his parents came into possession of the family estate known as The Heights. There were four sons in the family, and two of them became prominent in the dry-goods business in London. They died without issue, leaving their property to their brothers’ families. William Ewin continued upon the ancestral estate until his death, in 1879. The Harrison family has also been long known in Westmoreland county. William Harrison, the grandfather of our subject on the maternal side, was a landowner of Soulby and owned a fine estate called Sandridge. He had two children, William and Elizabeth. Our subject is one of a family of eight children, namely: Mary, the wife of John Birbeck who resides at The Heights; Margaret, who married William Heslop, of Ormside, near Appleby, England; John, who came to America and is now living near Fidelity, Illinois; Elizabeth, the wife of Thomas Ewin, of Flitholm, Westmoreland county, England; Edward, of this review; Louisa, who married Thomas Bird, of Drybeck; William, who makes his home at Kirby Stephen, Westmoreland county; and Thomas, a resident of Ormside.

Mr. Ewin, whose name introduces this sketch, received his early education in the public schools of his native county. At the age of thirteen he went to London and became an apprentice in the dry-goods business under his uncle, Edward Ewin. At nineteen years of age, after completing his apprenticeship, he returned home, where he remained for one year. Having decided to cast his lot with the American republic, he came to Illinois with his brother John in 1886 and engaged in general farming near Jerseyville, in Jersey county. Three years after his arrival he purchased two hundred and forty acres of land and later acquired four hundred acres additional, all of which he brought to an excellent state of improvement. He lived upon his farm until 1904, when he moved to Jerseyville and directed his attention to the breeding of fancy harness horses, soon gaining recognition as one of the successful men in that line. In 1910 he took up his abode on section 20, Shipman township, east of Piasa, where he owns a valuable farm and an ideal country residence. He devotes his time entirely to breeding and raising fancy horses, especially harness horses. He is the owner of Constanero, No. 30,659, whose trotting record is 2:16-1/4. This animal is the sire of the world’s champion trotting gelding, Paderewski, and also of the world’s champion pacing stallion, Ross K., 2:01-1/2. These are the two fastest records ever made in a race up to the present time, and are practical evidences of the ability of Mr. Ewin as a horse breeder. He keeps in close touch with the progress of the world, especially along the line to which he devotes his best thought and energies, and is a valued member of the Trotting Horse Association of America.

On November 5, 1889, Mr. Ewin was married to Miss Clara E. Bohn, a daughter of William and Ellen (Hurley) Bohn, of Jerseyville. To this union three children have been born, Ralph Edward, Charles William and Mabel Ellen, all of whom are living at home. Henry Bohn, grandfather of Mrs. Ewin, came to America with his family from Alsace-Lorraine and located in Macoupin county, Illinois, near Brighton. He engaged in farming during the remainder of his life and died at Brighton. William Bohn, the father of Mrs. Ewin, was the eldest of seven children. He was born in Alsace-Lorraine and came to America when he was nine years of age. He grew to manhood on his father’s farm and in the district schools secured his education. About 1887 he purchased land in Jersey county, near Jerseyville, which he cultivated until 1893, when he entered the general mercantile business at Brighton. He disposed of his business in 1908 and retired. He was a soldier in behalf of the Union at the time of the Civil war and is one of the highly respected citizens of Macoupin county. In the family of Mr. and Mrs. Bohn were seven children: Clara E., now Mrs. Edward Ewin; Martha, who married Harry Cummings, of Jerseyville, and is the mother of one child, William; Dorothy Mildred, who is the wife of Oliver Parsed, of Jerseyville; William Charles, of Golconda, Illinois; Virginia A., who married Leslie Waddill, of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania; Joseph, who died at the age of twenty-one; and Letitia E., who married Frank Martin, of Brighton.

In politics Mr. Ewin gives his support to the republican party, being a firm believer in the centralization of authority and the protection of home industries. He and his family are members of the Methodist church, and fraternally he is identified with Lodge No. 954, B. P. O. E., of Jerseyville. A lover of country life, he has made many valuable improvements on his place, including a handsome modern residence, so that it is now a model country home and a center of hospitality, where friends and acquaintances are assured of a cordial greeting. As a stock breeder Mr. Ewin has gained a wide reputation. It is men like him who add honor and dignity to the calling, and have revolutionized the live-stock business by increasing the value of farm animals many fold. The people of Macoupin county justly regard Mr. Ewin as one of the most valued and progressive citizens of this section, and he is accorded the respect that rightfully belongs to one who has ever faithfully attempted to discharge his duty to his fellow men.

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 291-293.