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WILLIAM P. SEEBER. One of the leading young professional men of Franklin county, Illinois, is found in the person of William P. Seeber, of Benton, who, as a lover of his profession, that of law, has pursued it upon the same methods as the scholar in science_quietly, enthusiastically and industriously, bringing to it the highest intellectual qualities and attributes of character, which have given him an enviable reputation and earned for him conspicuous success. He is a native of Franklin county, and was born February 17, 1878, a son of William D. and Florence (Pope) Seeber.
W. M. Seeber, the paternal grandfather of William P., and the progenitor of the Seeber family in America, was born in Germany, and came as a young man to America, settling in the state of New York, where he spent the remainder of his life. William D. Seeber, his son, was born in the Empire state in 1844, and was seventeen years of age when he came to Illinois and settled in the southwestern part of the county. He soon engaged in farming, winning himself a place among the substantial citizens of Franklin county, who, recognizing his ability in handling his own affairs and rightly surmising that he had the ability to handle matters of a public nature, elected him, in 1878, to the office of sheriff of the county, he being the first Republican to hold that position.
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Mr. Seeber is now serving his third term as county clerk, his office being in Benton, and he is known and respected throughout this part of the county. His wife is a consistent member of the Christian church, and is active in movements of a religious or charitable nature. Her father, Benjamin Pope, was born in Illinois, and was a member of one of the old pioneer families of this state.
William P. Seeber received his early educational training in the public schools of Benton, and graduated from the Benton High School in 1898, immediately after which he entered the law office of Flannigan & Cantrell, having decided to become a member of the legal profession. When only twenty-one years of age, and still a law clerk, he received the nomination for the office of state's attorney, but in the ensuing election, in 1900, he was defeated by a small majority. In 1904 he was again the recipient of the nomination for this office, and this time was elected, and while an incumbent thereof he completed his law studies and was admitted to he bar in 1908. A that time Mr. Seeber formed a partnership with Mr. J. P. Mooneyham, and they now practice in all the courts and have built up a large and lucrative practice. Mr. Seeber is considered one of the brightest young attorneys in Southern Illinois, and he is also possessed of keen business judgment, and honest in all of his dealings. He is enthusiastically in favor of those things that stand for the right and bitterly opposed to dishonesty and underhandedness, and is ever interested in the welfare of his friends. He has the happy faculty of drawing men to him, and enjoys the utmost confidence of those with whom he has come in contact. He has been an active worker in the ranks of the Republican party and has served as a delegate to a number of county conventions and two state conventions. He is prominent fraternally as a member of the Court of Honor, and is a charter member of the Knights of Pythias at Benton. A hard and industrious worker, Mr. Seeber has given all of his attention to his practice, with the result that he is able to enjoy the good things of life.
In 1899 Mr. Seeber was united in marriage with Miss Elfie Harrison, daughter of Isom Harrison, who now lives at Mulkeytown, Franklin county and was one of the earliest settlers of this county, where he is universally respected. He now lives retired, being past eighty years of age, and is a popular comrade of the G. A. R., having served through the Civil war. Mr. and Mrs. Seeber have been the parents of four children: Earl and Charles, who are attending school, and Dayton and William, who died in infancy. Mrs. Seeber is a member of the Christian church, and regularly attends its services in Benton.