Chamberlin, William O.

Born: 1811-11-07 Vermont

Flourished: Princeton, Illinois

Alternate name: Chamberlain

Chamberlin was one of the pioneer physicians in Bureau County, Illinois. Prior to moving to Illinois, he was an apprentice in the printing office of the Hampshire County Gazette, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, where he served from 1828 to 1831. After reading an account of Lewis' and Clark's travels, Chamberlin became intrigued by the Old Northwest, particularly in Illinois. In April 1831, he and others from Hampshire County set out for Illinois. In 1832, he settled one mile south of what would become Princeton. In April 1833, he became first lieutenant in a militia company raised to protect the community. In 1838, he married Lucy Topliff, with whom he had two children. Chamberlin became active in the Whig Party. In 1850, he was practicing medicine and owned real estate valued at $4,200. By 1860, he owned real estate valued at $72,000 and had a personal estate of $3,300.

N. Matson, Reminiscences of Bureau County, Illinois, in Two Parts (Princeton, IL: Republican Book and Job Office, 1872), 176; George B. Harrington, Past and Present of Bureau County, Illinois (Chicago: Pioneer, 1906), 145; H. C. Bradsby, ed., History of Bureau County, Illinois (Chicago: World, 1885), 91, 126, 127, 149, 293; Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, Bureau County, 31 October 1838, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Bureau County, IL, 238; State of Vermont, Vermont Vital Records through 1870 New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, MA; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1860), Princeton, Bureau County, IL, 6; William O. Chamberlin and Others to Abraham Lincoln.