Risley, Hamilton D.

Born: 1802-06-29 New York

Died: 1862-11-28 Joliet, Illinois

Flourished: Will County, Illinois

Hamilton D. Risley was a sheriff, jailor, banker, and businessman. In July 1825, Risley married Minerva Blakesly in Lansingburgh, New York. In 1833, Risley and his family moved to Will County, Illinois, settling first in Channahon. In 1835, Risley purchased approximately 103 acres of public land northeast of Channahon. He soon moved to Joliet, where in 1840, he won election, as a Whig, as sheriff of Will County, a position he held until 1844. In 1850, Risley made an unsuccessful bid to win reelection as sheriff. In 1850, he was living in Joliet and working as a jailor; he owned real property valued at $3,000. Risley was among the original incorporators of the Oswego & Indiana Plank Road Company, and when the stockholders organized the company in 1851, he became president of the company and general superintendent for the construction of the road. In 1860, Risley was employed as a banker and owned real property valued at $12,000 and had a personal estate of $1,500.

W. W. Stevens, Past and Present of Will County, Illinois (Chicago: S. J. Clarke, 1907), 54, 143, 208; Souvenir of Settlement and Progress of Will County, Ill. (Chicago: Historical Directory, 1884), 154, 156; New York, U.S., Marriage Notices, 1800-1855, 7 July 1825, Rensselaer County, (Lehi, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, 2000); Illinois Public Domain Land Tract Sales, Will County, 685:165, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Joliet, Will County, IL, 28; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1860), Joliet, Will County, IL, 511; Gravestone, Oakwood Cemetery, Joliet, IL.