McDonough ILGenWeb

HUNGATE, John H., lawyer and banker of La Harpe, Hancock County, Ill., was born in that county June 2, 1838. His early education was obtained in the public schools of his native place, and he afterward pursued a preparatory course in Knox College and Burlington University. Subsequently he qualified himself for the legal profession by taking a course in the Law Department of Northwestern University, from which he received the degree of LL. B., when he entered upon the practice of law in Macomb. From 1864 to 1868, he held the office of Circuit Court Clerk of McDonough County, Ill., and is the author of the law requiring an index of court records. In 1868 he opened a law office in St. Louis, Mo., where he remained over four years. In 1874 he came to La Harpe, Ill., and organized the Bank of Hungate, Ward & Co. In 1876 Mr. Hungate was the candidate of his party for Congress, but met with defeat. He assisted in organizing the Title and Trust Company of Peoria, Ill., which was afterward consolidated with the Dime Savings Bank of that city. In January, 1907, the Bank of Hungate, Ward & Co., was changed to the First National Bank of La Harpe, and Mr. Hungate became its President. He is President of the Board of Trustees of Gittings Seminary at La Harpe, Ill., and President of the Board of La Harpe High School. At one time he and his partner, Mr. Q. C. Ward, purchased the First National Bank at Macomb, and converted it to a private bank. Mr. Hungate has been interested in banks at Good Hope and Sciota, McDonough County, and in Fulton County. On May 8, 1878, Mr. Hungate was united in marriage with Florence E. Matthews, of Monmouth, Ill., and they have four children: Ward, Edith, John and Harold. In fraternal circles, Mr. Hungate is identified with the A. F. & A. M., having been a Mason at Macomb, Ill., and is also a member of I. O. O. F. He is a man of broad information, and has traveled extensively in the United States and Europe.

---

Source: The Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and History of McDonough County, compiled by Dr. Newton Bateman, and Paul Shelby, 1907, volume 2, page 915, extracted 09 Mar 2019 by Norma Hass.