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Eight miles northwest of Winchester, between Bloomfield and Oxville, in what is known as the Campbell Hollow school district Silas C. Walker was born fifty-four yeas ago. The exact date of his birth is January 8, 1849. As a child he lived there and as he grew up he attended school at Campbell Hollow and worked on the home farm. It was work, work, work. He remained at home until his mother died and his father broke up housekeeping, when he accepted a place and went to work for Richard Hamilton. This was in 1866. He remained with Mr. Hamilton for some time and then went to work for H. B. Taylor.

In 1869 he concluded to try it in a new country. He had heard of a land out west where they were gathering the dollars from the prairie flowers, and so chased the Eutopian dream to northwest Missouri. It was while in Missouri that on July 13, 1871, he was married to Miss Rachel Quinn. He remained in Missouri for a time and for about one year was engaged in the business of buying and shipping stock. He was a good judge of cattle and hogs and in the undertaking made some money.

Farming is his occupation and since his return to Illinois is living at the old home where his happy childhood days were spent. He is a good, straight man honest, tried and true, and is one of the characters of the county with whom the hand of time has dealt roughly yet well.