JEAN HARGRAVE. One of the successful business men of Jonesboro,
Illinois, belonging to the younger generation, Jean Hargrave, has
illustrated in his career the opportunities that are presenting themselves
to the youths of today who are possessed of enterprise, have the ability and
are not afraid of hard, persistent labor. Mr. Hargrave is at present a
member of the well-known mercantile firm of Hargrave & Linneman, whose
operations cover the city of Jonesboro and the surrounding country for a
radius of some miles, yet but a few short years ago he began his business
career on borrowed capital. He was born in Jonesboro, in 1881, and is a son
of E. P. and Julia (Hunsaker) Hargrave.
E. P. Hargrave was born in Union county, near Jonesboro, in 1851, and during
the greater part of his life was engaged in operating a sawmill. In 1898 he
came to Jonesboro and established himself in a mercantile business, which he
successfully carried on until 1905, and in that year retired. His wife, who
was born south of Jonesboro in 1854, died in July, 1906. Jean Hargrave
attended the public schools in the vicinity of his home, and as a young man
worked in his father's sawmill, later becoming a clerk in the store at
Jonesboro. In 1905, at the time of his father's retirement, he formed a
partnership with Prank A. Linneman, and bought the stock and fixtures of his
father's place, and they now have a stock of merchandise worth twenty
thousand dollars. Mr. Hargrave has been successful because he possessed the
courage of his convictions, and when his opportunity came he was quick to
recognize it and not hesitant about grasping it. His confidence in the
future of Jonesboro and its commercial interests was pronounced, and this
confidence has been justified by the development of the prosperous and
rapidly growing business of which he is the head. His success, however, has
not been a matter of chance, as he is possessed of abilities that would no
doubt have enabled him to succeed in whatever line or in whatever locality
he found himself.
On January 1, 1905, Mr. Hargrave was united in marriage with Miss Mamie C.
Spence, of Anna, Illinois, daughter of J. L. Spence, a brick mason who died
in 1908. Mr. and Mrs. Hargrave are members of the Methodist Episcopal
church, of which Mr. Hargrave 's father is at present acting as deacon. He
is a member of the Jonesboro Blue Lodge, No. Ill, A. F. & A. M. In political
matters he is an adherent of Democratic principles, but he has been too
busily engaged with his business interests to enter the political field as
an active participant. Mr. Hargrave is known as one of the rising young
business men of his locality, and in very popular with all who know him.
Extracted 16 Jan 2018 by Norma Hass from 1912 A History of Southern Illinois, volume 2, pages 796-797.
| Jackson | Williamson | |
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Johnson |
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