06/10/2026
There are things I'm going to re-share every year. And Mr. Lynch is one of them.
William Lynch was born on 10 June 1799 in Ireland. This photo was taken on his 100th birthday, 10 June 1899.
He arrived with his family in Kenosha County in the fall of 1842, and settled on a 100 acre farm in the town of Pleasant Prairie. Mr. Lynch was elected and acted as the first assessor of the Township of Pleasant Prairie in Kenosha County. In 1846, the family moved to the Township of Paris, where Mr. Lynch served as Town Chairman. After the Civil War, he became a resident of the City of Kenosha.
From what we can tell, William Lynch lived the last years of his life with his daughter, Sarah Hannan, a widow, and her children, at 314 Chicago Street, which translates to 5815 8th Ave. Across the street from the Unitarian Church, about the middle of the block occupied by the former Kenosha News building. We have photos of the ends of the block, and of across the street, but apparently nothing from the middle of the block at the time.
Unfortunately, he did not live long enough to live in three centuries. He passed away, peacefully, on the 1 July 1899, less than a month after the photo was taken.
There was some drama after his death, regarding his estate. William Lynch left some $2000 to his son John Lynch. The problem was that John had disappeared in 1892. He and his father were always on good terms, and they kept in contact when John moved away. His last letter was from 1892, postmarked from Iowa. And then the letters stopped. But William did not give up hope and gave his son a large allotment from his estate.
As William bequeathed the money, amounting to somewhere around $80,000 today when you only factor in inflation, notes were sent all over the region seeking John Lynch. And imposters began arriving. They were named John Lynch, but were not the correct one. The Evening News references at least two, but we can probably assume there more inquiries.
Finally, in December 1912, it was ruled that John Lynch must have been deceased, he probably predeceased his father, and was declared legally dead. The evidence presented before the judge showed a 12 year journey to try to find him. It was found that he had told people in Iowa that he was going to the northwest, perhaps to try his hand at logging. And that was the last anyone saw him. Inquiries west to Washington and Oregon met with no word. The Kenosha Evening News reported that the family speculated he had become a victim of "Indians or bandits." Although in hindsight it's more likely he succumbed to accident or disease. The money was then divided between William Lynch's other heirs.
