Albert F. Wilcox, BiographyPorter County biographical sketches . . . .
Transcribed biography of Albert F. Wilcox
ALBERT F. WILCOX.
In this age of gross and almost universal adulteration, it is a pleasure to be able to refer to those reliable houses where the public is assured of obtaining only the purest and best goods, and where no imposition is practiced upon credulous patrons. Such is the responsible and orderly establishment of Mr. Wilcox, dealer in all kinds of wines and brandies, and in all imported wines and liquors. He is a representative of one of the oldest families of Porter County, Indiana, and is a product of Kouts, Indiana, where he first saw the light of day January 1, 1857, being a son of Eason and Mary (Kouts) Wilcox, the former of whom was one of the oldest and best known citizens of Hebron, having been a resident of Northwestern Indiana from early childhood. During his early manhood he gave his attention to the honorable pursuit of farming, but is best remembered by the early settlers of the State as the driver of the first stage ever run between Michigan City and Valparaiso. After his marriage Mr. Wilcox resided in Kouts, Indiana, but followed agricultural pursuits until 1863, when he removed to Valparaiso, in which city he opened a first-class saloon, and conducted it in an exemplary manner until the close of the war. He then engaged in the same business at the Union Stock Yards near Chicago, where he at once built up a brisk and active trade, but fate seemed to be against him there, for his establishment caught fire and all his possessions were consumed. He then returned to Hebron, with no other resources than his indomitable pluck and energy, opened another establishment, and soon found himself out of deep water and floating on a prosperous tide. At the time of his death, January 15, 1891, he left his family well provided for, and his son, the subject of this sketch, in the possession of an excellent business. His first wife died in 1883, and he took for his second wife an Arkansas lady, by whom he had one child. The fruits of the first marriage were four children: Sarah, wife of W. J. Irvan, resides in Hebron; Martha is a well-known milliner of that place; Maggie is the wife of William Wilson, of Hebron, and Albert, who is the second of the family in order of birth. He received his education in the public schools of Hebron and in the Valparaiso Normal College, the leading educational institution of Northwestern Indiana, and from earliest boyhood lent his father valuable assistance about his establishment, and upon the death of the head of the house succeeded to his present profitable business. Whatever prejudice may exist in the popular mind against the calling in which he is engaged, it is known and acknowledged that both Eason and Albert Wilcox have always been noted for the most scrupulous honesty and integrity, for the orderly manner in which they have conducted their houses, and for the interest they have taken in the welfare of Hebron and vicinity. Mr. Wilcox has always supported the principles of Democracy, and is a member of the honorable order of Foresters.
Source: Goodspeed Brothers. 1894. Pictorial and Biographical Record of La Porte, Porter, Lake and Starke Counties, Indiana. Chicago, Illinois: Goodspeed Brothers. 569 p.
Page(s) in Source: 526-527
This biography has been transcribed exactly as it was originally published in the source. Please note that we do not provide photocopies or digital scans of biographies appearing on this website.
Biography transcribed by Steven R. Shook