Onstott, Henry

Born: 1804-11-27 Kentucky

Died: 1876-08-01 Mason County, Illinois

Flourished: Mason County, Illinois

Henry Onstott, was a cooper, tavern owner, farmer, and early acquaintance of Abraham Lincoln. In September 1824, Onstott married Susana (Susannah) Schmick in Lincoln County, Kentucky. Stott moved to Sugar Grove, Illinois, in 1825. In 1830, he moved to New Salem, where he opened a cooperage. In 1834, he purchased a tavern, which he operated for a year before building a new house and cooperage in another part of town. Onstott's house was one of the nicest in New Salem, featuring stone fireplaces, brick hearths, and iron locks. In 1839, he moved to Petersburg, and in 1845, he moved to Mason County, settling permanently in Havana. Onstott supplemented his work as a cooper with farming. In 1860, he owned a personal estate valued at $350. Onstott was a Presbyterian, frequently attending camp revivals in the area, and he was a Whig.

Benjamin P. Thomas, Lincoln's New Salem (Springfield, IL: Abraham Lincoln Association, 1934), 6, 12, 34, 38, 107; T. G. Onstot, Pioneers of Menard and Mason Counties (Forest City, IL: T. G. Onstot, 1902), 351-53; Joseph Cochrane, Centennial History of Mason County (Springfield, IL: Rokker's, 1876), 223-24; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Mason County, IL, 197; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1860), Havana, Mason County, IL, 133; Gravestone, Fullerton Cemetery, Havana, IL.