At the Aug. 6, 1888, annual meeting of the Hancock County Pioneers' Association and Historical Society held in LaHarpe, a decision was reached to buy a Scrapbook and appoint someone to prepare short biographical sketches of the prominent pioneer founders of the County for inclusion in this book.  Mr. Thomas Gregg, author of the 1880 County History, was named to do this. ~ ~ The "Pioneer Biographies" Scrapbook from which this series of 67 biographical sketches ~ is taken is undoubtedly the most substantial treasure trove of historical material brought to the attention of citizens of the County and of the State of Illinois in recent years. ~ ~ The Society bought a ledger type book ~, about 18 X 12 inches in size, with about 500 heavy white paper pages ~ a book substantial enough to last several centuries.  In 1899 Mr. Gregg began work on the project.  He began ~ writing the sketches, first in pencil on rough tablet paper and then copying them in ink in the book.  As nearly as can be ascertained now, he wrote between 60 and 70 of these ~ before death overtook him in 1892.

Jesse was born in 1784 in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, to Jonas Hadley Sr. and Azubah Prescott.  Jonas moved the family to Rutland County, Vermont, about 1797.

Jesse and Lucinda Lawrence were married about 1809 in Mt. Holly, Rutland County.  Their two eldest children, Franklin and Adeline, were born there.

When Jesse was 27, he, Lucinda, Franklin and Adeline moved to Centreville, Allegany County, New York; this would have been late 1811 or 1812.  Nine more children were born, three of whom died before the fall of 1833.

The first Centreville town meeting was held in 1819.  Jesse was one of two constables elected. During the years 1826-1828, he was Supervisor for the town of Centreville.

If we assume that the above male age 15-19 was Frankin and if we include Helinda (born about 1833), we can account for only 9 of the 11 children mentioned in the biography.

In the fall of 1833, Jesse, Lucinda and family left for Illinois: Franklin, Adeline, Elvira, Ortentia, Jesse Herschel, Marinda, Helinda and the eighth child.  They arrived in Fountain Green, Hancock County, Illinois, on January 1, 1834.

The first public record we have of Jesse Hadley in Illinois is a purchase of 40 acres on July 3, 1835.  The land was the southwest quarter of the northwest quarter of Section 27 in Fountain Green Township.  The purchase price was $1.25 per acre, $50.00 total.

On July 18, 1836, for the same purchase price, he bought an adjoining 40 acres located in the northwest quarter of the northwest quarter of Section 27.

The patents for both of these purchases were not recorded until the fall of 1840.  Transactions were often recorded many months after the purchaser had already taken possession of the land, due to the volume of purchases the land offices had to process.  In some cases the delayed recording and transfer of deed was because the purchaser bought the land in installments.
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Adeline married in 1835, Elvira in 1838, Ortentia in 1839.

Franklin, at 30, was probably living elsewhere and working as a farmhand.  The age of the listed female child is a match for Helinda.  Did the eighth child mentioned in the biography die in Illinois? Marinda had such a tender soul, it seems likely she would have made mention of a child's death during the long journey from New York to Illinois.  And where was Marinda in 1840? She would have turned 11 that year.

One strong possibility is that Marinda was enumerated in the home of her elder sister, Adeline. Abel's and Adeline's oldest daughter was born about 1840, yet included with Abel's family in the 1840 Census was a female child aged 10 to 14.  The final page of the Brown County Census was noted with the date of October 30; the specific date on which the enumerator visited Abel's home is unknown.  We know from letters written by Abel Larkin that the family members visited with each other, despite the two or three-day journey that separated them.  It seems reasonable that Marinda may have stayed with Adeline around the time her baby was born.

Mentioned in the Pioneer Biography is Jesse's stint as Justice of the Peace.  One marriage he perfomed was that of Stephen H. Tyler, Jr., and Francina R. Ferris, on December 15, 1842.

Helinda died in the fall of 1856.

In June of 1857, Abel Larkin wrote to his brother: "Father in law gave me $200 this spring on a loan though Adaline's mother says that she intends Adaline shall eventually have it.  She being her favorite child.  I suppose she has done more for the family than any of the rest of [the] girls.  The old folks have sold the most of their farm and calculate to live on the interest of the money.  They are well."

Jesse died at his home on September 7, 1859.  Abel Larken wrote that he died "with the hectic fever.  Adaline was with them some three weeks just before he died.  He was a Universalist and continued so to his death.  Died sensable, easy without a struggle.  Since that time the old lady has been confined and is yet with the dropsy and is not expected to live but a short time.

"Adaline has just returned from her mothers attendace, four or five weeks and may return again. We got there by railroad, except ten miles and that by stage."

Lucinda passed to her reward on January 29, 1860.  She and Jesse were both buried in the Hadley Cemetery.

Frank Hadley appears alone in the 1860 Census for Fountain Green Township.  In 1870 he was counted in the Brown County household of Abel and Adeline Hadley Larkin.  There is no indication that Franklin ever married.  We do not know his exact date of death or his burial location.  We can reasonably assume that Helinda and the unnamed child were buried in the Hadley Cemetery.  If stones were ever placed, they are long gone.