Irwin, David M.

Born: 1814-02-06 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Died: 1892-02-07 Beardstown, Illinois

Flourished: Cass County, Illinois

David M. Irwin was a clerk, bookkeeper, and merchant. Irwin received his education in private schools of this native Philadelphia, and at the age of thirteen, he became a clerk in a wholesale retail establishment. He later worked as a bookkeeper in an import and export business. In 1839, Irwin married Sibylla Birchell, with whom he had one son. In 1841, Irwin moved to Springfield, Illinois, where he engaged in the mercantile trade. Sibylla Irwin died in 1841, and in July 1842, he married Virginia G. Payne, with whom he had one daughter. Irwin continued in business in Springfield until 1845, when he moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where he opened a mercantile establishment. In 1848, he moved to Virginia, Illinois, where he operated a general store. In 1850, Irwin owned real property valued at $7,000. In 1853, he opened a general merchandise store in Beardstown, Illinois. By 1860, Irwin owned real property valued at $3,000 and a personal estate of $2,300. He continued to operate his store in Beardstown until 1865, when he moved to Peoria, Illinois.

J. N. Gridley and Others, Historical Sketches [of Cass County, Illinois] (Virginia, IL: Virginia Enquirer, 1907), 37; William Henry Perrin, ed., History of Cass County, Illinois (Chicago: O. L. Baskin, 1882), 246; Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, Sangamon County, 19 July 1842, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Virginia, Cass County, IL, 44; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1860), Beardstown, Cass County, IL, 228; Gravestone, Beardstown City Cemetery, Beardstown, IL.