Cantrall, Levi (Cantrill)

Born: 1787-10-01 Botetourt County, Virginia

Died: 1860-02-22

Alternate name: Cantrill

Cantrall moved to what would eventually become Bath County, Kentucky, in 1789. In 1809, he married Fanny England, with whom he had six children. In 1811, Cantrall moved to Madison County, Ohio, where they stayed until 1819, when they moved to Springfield, Illinois. He built a horse mill north of the Sangamon River in 1820 and, later, a water mill. His primary occupation was owning and operating a tannery. Fanny died in 1835 and Cantrall married Ann Barnett the following year, with whom he had seven children. In 1850, he was working as a farmer and owned $10,000 in real estate. Cantrall knew Abraham Lincoln and surveyed a road with him. Cantrall, Illinois, is named for him because it is located near the site of his land.

John Carroll Power and S. A. Power, History of the Early Settlers of Sangamon County, Illinois (Springfield, IL: Edwin A. Wilson, 1876), 181-83; History of Sangamon County, Illinois (Chicago: Inter-State, 1881), 898, 900; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Sangamon County, IL, 251; Report of James Strawbridge, Levi Cantrall, and Abraham Lincoln to the Sangamon County Commissioners’ Court.