A piece of Delavan’s history has resurfaced thanks to local resident Mark Walsh, who uncovered a connection between his family, President Abraham Lincoln and the City of Delavan. 

Walsh, a native citizen of Delavan, inherited late president Abraham Lincoln’s signature as a wedding present. Being curious about its origins, Walsh began researching his family and town’s history and uncovered the secret behind the signature. Turns out, the signature was connected to one of Delavan’s earliest landmarks, the Phillips House hotel, which sat between 3rd and 4th street. The Phillips House once served as an important stop for travelers, which is why Abraham Lincoln stayed at the hotel during his travels through Illinois. 

Walsh’s research also uncovered a family connection to the hotel’s owner, Ira B. Hall. Hall married Sarah Hall, whose daughter, Florence Hall, later married Allen Trone. Trone was the maiden name of Walsh’s great-grandmother, Mabel Yurrington, who served as Delavan’s city clerk.

Beyond staying at the Phillips House, Lincoln also represented Hall in court on multiple occasions before his time as president. In 1843, while being accused of unlawfully detaining 10 stage horses and two harnesses, Lincoln was hired as his attorney to defend the hotel owner in the case. Almost a decade later, in 1852, Lincoln once again defended Hall in a dispute involving money that was owed to him by another individual.

Although the Phillips House was destroyed by a fire in 1880, its memories represent a significant part of Delavan’s history. Through Walsh’s family research and discovery of Lincoln’s signature, another chapter of the town’s past has come to light, offering residents a glimpse into the impact our small town has created over time and the ties Delavan has to one of America’s most influential presidents. What started as a wedding gift, has evolved into an important reminder that even small towns can have connections to national history, preserving stories that might otherwise have been forgotten.