Collins, Virgil

Born: 1825-01-28 Vermillion County, Indiana

Died: 1903-XX-XX Edgar County, Illinois

Flourished: Edgar County, Illinois

Virgil Collins, a mechanic, carpenter, and farmer, moved with his parents to Edgar County, Illinois, when he was young. In February 1846, he married Amanda E. Wheeler, with whom he had two children. Amanda died in 1849 and Collins married Fanny L. Miller in March 1850. The couple had four additional children. Collins held a number of local offices, including justice of the peace and school treasurer. Collins served as an Edgar County delegate to the 1858 Illinois Republican Convention. In 1860, he owned $1,200 in real estate and $411 in personal property.

Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, Edgar County, 23 February 1846; Edgar County, 16 March 1850, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; The History of Edgar County, Illinois (Chicago: Wm. Le Baron, Jr., 1879), 693; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Edgar County, IL, 177; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1960), Edgar County, Illinois, 201; George W. Rives to Abraham Lincoln; Daily Illinois State Journal (Springfield), 17 June 1858, 2:3; Gravestone, Edgar Cemetery, Paris, IL.