Haven, Orlando H.

Born: 1816-XX-XX New York

Died: 1854-XX-XX Joliet, Illinois

Born into a wealthy family, Orlando H. Haven was a mill owner, state representative, and real estate investor. In 1834, he moved to Joliet, Illinois from New York along with his father, mother, and brothers. In the late-1830s, he and his brother Philo A. Haven purchased land in Joliet along the Des Plaines River, dammed part of the river, and established a successful water-powered mill. In 1846, he ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Illinois General Assembly as an abolitionist candidate. That same year, he married Lucia King, with whom he eventually had at least three children. In 1849, he won election to the Illinois House of Representatives, to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Lorenzo D. Brady, serving the Sixteenth General Assembly. By 1850, he owned real estate valued at $3,000. He continued investing, purchasing hundreds of acres of public land in both Will and Cook counties between 1851 and 1853. In 1854, some Democrats in Will County tabbed Haven as their candidate for the General Assembly, but his abolitionist views cost him political favor at the Will County Democratic Convention and scuttled his candidacy. He died of cholera soon after.

Wayne C. Temple, “A. Lincoln, Lobbyist,” Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association 21 (Summer 2000), 35; The History of Will County, Illinois (Chicago: Wm. Le Baron, Jr., 1878), 285, 371-72; Souvenir of Settlement and Progress of Will County, ILL. (Chicago: Historical Directory, 1884), 155; Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, Kane County, 19 November 1846, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; Illinois House Journal. 1849. 16th G. A., 17; John Clayton, comp., The Illinois Fact Book and Historical Almanac, 1673-1968 (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1970), 216-17; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Joliet, Will County, IL, 203; For an exhaustive list of Haven's land purchases, search "Haven O H," https://www.ilsos.gov/isa/landsrch.jsp; Illinois Daily Journal (Springfield), 25 September 1854, 2:2.