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Jill Loeser and Jean Miller - Sangamon County

Jean Miller (Trainer) and Jill Loeser (Trainer) discussed how and why their ancestor Leonard Trainer obtained the property belonging at one time to William Herndon, the former law partner and biographer of Abraham Lincoln. They also discussed what happened to the house the Herndons lived in through the years up to the present day, and also what happened to the farm, both of which were located in rural Sangamon County, near Cantrall.

Interview Links

Abstract

Interview Session (Audio)

Photos

Caption
A front addition to the William Herndon home near Cantrall, Illinois. The addition was built in 1911, when this photo was reported to be taken.

Where:
Cantrall, Illinois

When:
1911

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.

Caption
The front addition to the Herndon home was added in 1911. Pictured in 1916 is the family of Leonard and Mary Trainer, who owned the farm at that time, along with their grandson, George, their daughter-in-law Flossie, and their son, George.

Where:
Cantrall, Illinois

When:
1916

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.

Caption
The William Herndon home with grape vines growing around Billy’s study in approximately 1925. Fairview Farm was north of Springfield, Illinois. (Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.)

Where:
Cantrall, Illinois

When:
1925

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.

Caption
The William Herndon home in approximately 1925, in Sangamon County, Illinois. The individual in the photo cannot be identified.

Where:
Sangamon County

When:
1925

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.

Caption
William Herndon home near Cantrall, Illinois. Herndon retired here to write his book dealing with the life of Abraham Lincoln. The picture was taken in 1925.

Where:
Cantrall, Illinois

When:
1925

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.

Caption
William Herndon home near Cantrall, Illinois. It was said he loved to sit on this porch which overlooked the beautiful Sangamon River Valley. The picture was taken in 1925.

Where:
Cantrall, Illinois

When:
1925

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.

Caption
This covered well was in the midst of fruit and shade trees, many of which William Herndon planted on his property near Cantrall, Illinois. The picture was taken in 1925.

Where:
Cantrall, Illinois

When:
1925

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.

Caption
The William Herndon home near Cantrall, Illinois. The photo was taken on February 24, 1927. This was reported to be the room in which William Herndon died in 1891.

Where:
Cantrall, Illinois

When:
February 24, 1927

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.

Caption
This photo of the Herndon home was taken during a rebuild of the front addition after a fire in 1960. Many community friends and members of the Cantrall United Methodist Church helped Don Trainor, who is using the saw.

Where:
Cantrall, Illinois

When:
1960

Ownership:
Narrators’ photo, Courtesy of Don Trainor.