Earnest, Peter L.

Born: 1825-11-06 Sangamon County, Illinois

Flourished:

Earnest married Elizabeth A. Thompson in 1849, with whom he had ten children. In 1850, he was working as a farmer and owned $300 in real estate. Earnest was one of the original settlers of Williamsville, Illinois, and opened its first general store in 1853. A Republican, he was a part of Abraham Lincoln's political circle.

John Carroll Power and S. A. Power, History of the Early Settlers of Sangamon County, Illinois (Springfield, IL: Edwin A. Wilson, 1876), 275; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Sangamon County, IL, 201; Illinois State Register (Springfield), 26 April 1915, 3:1; Abraham Lincoln and others to the Voters of Sangamon County.