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Benjamin Canady Richie is one of the active and most successful business men of Georgetown, where he is interested in the real estate business. He was born at Georgetown, December 5, 1860, the son of James King and Sophia R. (Canady) Richie.

James King Richie was born in Tennessee, October 24, 1826. He became one of the leading merchants of Georgetown and met with great financial success in all his business undertakings. He was married May 31, 1854, to Sophia R. Canady, who was born at Georgetown, March 7, 1834, the daughter of Benjamin and Ann (Haworth) Canady, who were among the first settlers of Georgetown, having come here when it was little more than a wilderness. James King Richie died December 10, 1891, and his wife died February 1, 1881. Both are buried at Georgetown. Their children were: John F., who died August 28, 1856; Morris Edward, lives at Georgetown; Anna Cora, who died February 17, 1880; Benjamin Canady, the subject of this sketch; Mary Augusta, who died December 22, 1891; Charles K., who died March 3, 1868; and Willie B., who died August 4, 1874.

Benjamin Canady Richie grew up in Georgetown and attended the public schools. He later attended Earlham College and the University of Illinois. He began his business career in his father's store, but after his marriage went to Springfield, Illinois, where he established a grocery business. In 1891 he returned to Georgetown, and he has since devoted his time to his real estate interests in this city. He lives with his family on the old Richie homestead, which is among the historic landmarks of this section. Many interesting heirlooms of the Richie and Leaverton families are to be found in this lovely old home, which carries on its tradition of hospitality.

On October 27, 1886, Mr. Richie was united in marriage with Miss Mary Caroline Leaverton, of Chatham, Sangamon County, Illinois, born at Pocahontas, Bond County, Illinois, September 22, 1864, the daughter of Wilson and Jeanette T. (Johnson) Leaverton. Wilson Leaverton was born at Indianapolis, Indiana, March 16, 1825. He moved with his father's family to Pocahontas, Bond County, Illinois. In 1849 he crossed the plains to California when only twenty-four years of age, with only a yoke of oxen and very little money and he as well as the entire party came near perishing for want of water. He remained in California for two years, and came back with three thousand dollars in gold nuggets in a belt strapped around him. He invested this gold in a farm at Pocahontas, Bond County, Illinois. In 1871 he moved with his family to Chatham, Illinois, where he purchased a farm of one thousand acres. He died September 16, 1895, and is buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois. His wife, who died November 24, 1903, was a native of Pocahontas, Illinois, the daughter of Benjamin and Rebecca (Plant) Johnson. Her father was twice elected to the Illinois Legislature, once to the lower house, 1838 to 1840, and once to the Senate, from 1842 to 1846. To Benjamin Canady and Mary Caroline (Leaverton) Richie were born four children: (1) James King, born September 20, 1887, a graduate of the University of Illinois, now superintendent of the electrical department of George A. Spang & Company Oil Well Supplies, Butler, Pennsylvania. He is a member of the Phi Delta Theta and Eta Kappa Nu fraternities, also a Mason and a member of the Presbyterian Church. He married Miss Lillian Brandon Spang, of Butler, Pennsylvania, daughter of George A. and Laura Brandon Spang. She died November 17, 1918. (2) Wilson Leaverton, born January 13, 1889, attended the University of Illinois and the University of Boulder, Colorado, now engaged in the electrical business, Georgetown. He is a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity, a Mason, and a member of the Methodist Church. He married Miss Emma Adelia Keenan, of Bloomington, Illinois, the daughter of Rev. and Mrs. Wilbur E. Keenan. They have a son, Wilbur Benjamin Richie, born February 19, 1927. (3) Sadie May, born March 28, 1895, died November 27, 1901. (4) Harold Benjamin, born December 11, 1902, a graduate of the University of Illinois in 1925 and the University of Minnesota, having received the degree of Master of Science from the latter institution, and taught school for one year at the University of Minnesota. He is now doing research work in Dairy Bacteriology and Butter Culture in the chemical laboratories for Swift & Company, Chicago, Illinois. He married Miss Lucilla M. Madson, June 30, 1929, at Lanesboro, Minnesota. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. C. C. Madson, and was graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1929. They live in Chicago. He is a member of the Masonic order and the Methodist Church.

Politically, Mr. Richie is a Republican. He is a member of the Methodist Church, and belongs to the Knights of Pythias and Modern Woodmen of America.

Mrs. Benjamin C. Richie takes an active interest in local club work. She was president of the Woman's Foreign Missionary Society for seventeen years, is a life and memorial member, and a member of the Eastern Star, Women's Christian Temperance Union, and Home Missionary Society, and was president of Danville District W. F. M. S. for three years. Her great great grandfather, Samuel Johnson, came from Scotland in 1750 and settled in North Carolina, where he became an extensive land owner. Through this ancestry, Mrs. Richie holds membership in the Daughters of the Colonists. She also had four ancestors who served in the Revolutionary War, namely: Charles Johnson and Williamson Plant, who are buried at Pocahontas, Illinois; John Foster Leaverton, born in London, England, buried near Leesburg, Ohio; and William Buntain. Mrs. Richie is a member of Governor Bradford Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, of Danville, Illinois. Her father served in the Civil War as a member of Company F, One Hundred Thirty-fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and she holds membership in the Daughters of Veterans, Danville, Illinois, and Auxiliary Legion at Georgetown.

Wilson Leaverton Richie served during the World War, having enlisted September 6, 1917, as a member of Company D, Three hundred Thirteenth Engineers, Eighty-eighth Division, United States Army. He was sent to France August 13, 1918, and was discharged from the service on June 13, 1919.¹