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BENJAMIN R. HIERONYMUS is Cashier of the Illinois National Bank at Springfield, of which the Hon. DeWitt W. Smith is President, the Hon. Milton Hay Vice-President, H. B. Prentice Assistant Cashier, and E. S. Scott Teller. The name Hieronymus is of very ancient origin. It is mention in II Maccabees, Chapter xii. To further show the great age of the name we insert an extract from Calvin E. Stowe's "History of the Books of the Bible," page 119, who quotes one hundred ancient historians, of one of whom he says: "Hieronymus (Sophronius Eusebius) was born in the year 330 at Strido in Dalmatia. He was one of the most learned of all the church fathers, particularly in everything pertaining to the literature of the Bible. He received at Rome his first instruction in the sciences, traveled extensively, and finally withdrew to a solitude near Bethlehem in Palestine, where he spent his life in the study of the Scriptures and the composition of various learned works in the several departments of Christian literature. He employed a Jew to teach him Hebrew, and was a diligent and faithful student.

"His greatest work was the revising of the common Latin translation of the Bible called Vulgate, and writing for the several books of the Scripture erudite prefaces containing all that could b ascertained respecting the authors, times, and occasions of writing, etc. Even the most laborious investigations of modern times have in many instances scarcely advanced beyond the results of Hieronymus. Of most of the sacred books he made new translations very much superior to any that had preceded. His writings are among the richest of the ancient sources of critical investigation, and there are passages in them of surpassing eloquence; he was altogether sincere and earnest. He had several fierce controversies with Rufinus, Augustine and others. His writings were numerous, mainly on exegetical and historical subjects; they have been carefully preserved, and are accessible in many good editions. He died in the year 420 at the age of ninety."

About the year 1650 three brothers of this name came from Germany, settling in Virginia. An old gentleman by the name of Pendleton Hieronymus now living at Alexandria, Va., has an old German Bible, an heirloom, brought to this country by the first three. From there the descendants have scattered until they may be found in many States. Our subject's grandfather went from Loudoun County, Va., to Kentucky, near Frankfort, in 1804, where he was a contemporary of Daniel Boone. In the year 1828 he with his family came to Illinois and settled in a small grove in what is now Hittle Township in Tazewell County. He was the first settler at the grove and it was ever afterward known as Hieronymus Grove. Here he spent the first winter in a rude shed of logs with only three sides and open to the south, and for many years, with a large family, he experienced all the hardships of a pioneer life. The famous deep snow was one event of importance. Indians roamed at will, while buffalo, deer, wolves and other wild animals were still in possession of the country and the nearest neighbors were many miles away.

James Hieronymus, the father of our subject, was fourteen years old when the family came to Illinois, and was just the age to make himself useful in hunting, for by this the early settlers largely lived, and in subduing the wilderness by cultivation. This he continued to do faithfully, being noted for his skill with the broad-axe, until he reached his majority. He then married Malinda C. Thompson, whose parents came from Tennessee a few years before. Of the seven children born to them four are living, namely: Alvira, Benjamin R., John P. and Thomas H. The parents died in 1848. The subject of this biographical review was born June 27, 1841, in that part of Tazewell County which was then Sangamon County. He was reared by his uncle and aunt, Enoch Hieronymus and his wife, the latter being his mother's sister. He obtained a common school education in a school held in a primitive log cabin, which he attended only in the winter, as he had to work on a farm in the summer. He afterward had the benefit of a good course of study in the Atlanta High School.

Mr. Hieronymus served three years in the War of the Rebellion, enlisting August 7, 1862, at McLean in McLean County. The company was mustered into service at Camp Butler, near Springfield. S. B. Kinsey was the first Captain, H. W. Wood First Lieutenant, and Dennis Kenyon, Second Lieutenant. This company was assigned as Company A, to the One Hundred and Seventeenth Illinois Infantry. The other companies of the regiment were from Madison and St. Clair Counties. Risdon M. Moore, president of McKendree College, was made Colonel; Jonathan Merriam, of Tazewell County, Lieutenant-Colonel; and E. J. Newsham, of Madison County, Major. During the three years of active service Mr. Hieronymus filled successively the following positions: right guide of the regiment, clerk for the Regimental Quartermaster, Fourth Sergeant, clerk for the Ordinance Officer of Ft. Pickering, color bearer of the regiment, First Sergeant, First Lieutenant and was breveted Captain at the close of the war and was mustered out with the regiment August 5, 1865. During that long period the whole distance traveled by his company was as follows: by railroad, eleven hundred and twenty-six miles; by steamboat, six thousand one hundred and thirty-nine miles; and marching two thousand and eighty-six miles. Total, nine thousand, three hundred and fifty-one miles.

The following is a list of the battles and skirmishes in which our subject was engaged and the dates on which they took place: Queen's Hill, Miss., February 5, 1864; Ft. DeRussey, La., March 14, 1864; Pleasant Hill, La., April 9; Cloutierville, La., Apr. 23; Gov. Moore's Plantation, May 2; Marksville Prairie, May 16; Yellow Bayou, May 18; Lake Chicot, Ark., June 6; Tupelo, Miss., July 14; Old Town Creek, Miss., July 16; Hurricane Creek, Miss., August 13; Franklin, Mo., October 1; Nashville, Tenn., December 15 and 16; Spanish Fort and Ft. Blakeley, Ala., April 5-9, 1865. The capture of Ft. Blakeley after a siege of several days and continued firing took place on the 9th of April, 1865, the dat that Lee surrendered to Grant. Ft. Blakeley and Spanish Fort were on the bay opposite the city of Mobile, and with their fall the city passed into the hands of the Union forces. When the forts surrendered large numbers of Confederates ran down the hills and into the water. This was a literal fulfillment of the John Brown song: "We will drive all the rebels into the Gulf of Mexico."

On his return from the war Mr. Hieronymus quietly resumed farming, which he continued until November 15, 1873, when he entered the office of Collector of Internal Revenue at Springfield. Jonathan Merriam had just been appointed collector after the famous defalcation of Harper. He first served a few months as office clerk and was then appointed Deputy Collector for the Second Division, comprising the counties of Sangamon and Logan, and was subsequently made chief Deputy of the district, serving the Government in this way another three years. During this service he collected and faithfully accounted to the Government for the sum of $2,102,729.54. His experience in the army as clerk and in the Internal Revenue office has been of great value to him since. By this training the idea of exactness is instilled, for the different departments of the Government insist upon everything being exactly right.

During the winter of 1875-76 Mr. Hieronymus with associates was instrumental in organizing the Farmers' National Bank at Pekin, Ill., and March 1, 1878, he resigned his position as Chief Deputy Collector of Internal Revenue to assume the Cashiership of this bank. That position he held until August, 1886, when he assisted in the organization of the Illinois National Bank at Springfield, of which he was made Cashier, and this office he still holds. The paid up capital is $300,000, surplus and profits $30,000. It is one hundred and twenty-five stockholders, who are representative men of the county, and over seven hundred depositors. Its high standing and the confidence it enjoys among the business men throughout Central Illinois is, without doubt, due in some measure to the connection of our subject with it.

Mr. Hieronymus was married in September, 1861, to Miss S. M. Mountjoy, of Logan County, who died in 1873. To them were born a son and two daughters - R. E., Alice and Lulu. On October 4, 1876, he was united in marriage with Miss Nettie P. Clark, of Springfield, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ervin Clark, who came to Sangamon County in 1838 from Vermont. After accumulating a competence by farming they retired to a more quiet life in the city. They now make their home in their old age with their daughter. Mrs. Hieronymus was born April 26, 1850, and by her union with our subject he has gained the richest of blessings, a true wife. To them have been born two children: Lora, born May 14, 1878, and Roy, May 19, 1881.

Mr. Hieronymus united with the Christian Church in 1858, and is one of the Elders of the congregation in Springfield. He is devoted to the interests of his church and is prominent in its affairs. While a shrewd business man he is also a large-hearted, benevolent and consistent Christian gentleman. The attention of the reader is directed to a lithographic portrait of Mr. Hieronymus, present elsewhere in this volume.