William Russell ‘Bill’ Hobson, Sr. | 92 | Carrollton

William Russell “Bill” Hobson, Sr. passed away Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022 at the age of 92. Bill was born Aug. 27, 1930 in a log cabin in Walkerville, Illinois, the first son of Howard and Mary (Keller) Hobson. Bill is survived by his wife of 70 years Lindy (Helen Lind) Hobson and their four sons. David (Jean) Hobson of Hillsboro, Russell (Donna) Hobson of Carrollton, Kenneth Hobson of Eldred and Steven (Becky) Hobson of Macomb, six grandchildren: Kari (Matt) Crepps, Katie (Nick) Cramer, Tara Hobson, Alexis (Travis Tripplett) Hogan-Hobson, Jake Hobson, Cooper Hobson, four great grandchildren: Henry Crepps, Alice Crepps, Spencer Cramer and Oliver Cramer. Bill also had two brothers Phil Hobson who preceded him in death and Gene Hobson of Bryan, Texas.
Bill’s Ancestry includes John Russell, known as the Sage of Bluffdale who started a post office in the area and was a writer whose works included “Venomous Worm” featured in McGuffey’s Fifth Reader and the “Legend of the Piasa” Bill was a nephew of the heroine teacher of the Centerville school, Annie Louise Keller, who lost her life saving the schoolchildren in her care in the tornado of 1927. The children saved are now the modern-day patriarchs of the community.
Bill grew up in Walkerville, attended high school in Carrollton and college at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign which is where he met his wife, Lindy. They married on Jan. 26, 1952. He then taught Agriculture at the schools of Ellsworth and Downs near Bloomington where he was often thought to be a student because of his youthful appearance due to having skipped a grade in his earlier years. Uncle Sam called him to serve in Korea where he spent two years as a supply sergeant. Once when a U.S. Army unit was overrun by the enemy and had to abandon everything to escape, Bill’s supply outfit re-supplied everything they needed within 24 hours from jeeps to guns to boots and as a result received a unit citation.
In 1955 Bill returned to the family farm at Bluffdale and started farming and raising hogs. Through the years the relatives enjoyed visiting the farm so much that Lindy and Bill began taking in summer guests from the city and started the first Farm Vacation business in Illinois.
Bill served his community as a Sunday School Teacher at the Carrollton United Methodist Church and as a board member in the Soil and Water Conservation District, the Farm Bureau, and for an astounding 35 years on the Carrollton School Board. He was the founder of the District One Foundation for Scholarships for Carrollton schools.
Bill worked as an independent contractor replacing roofs and spraying paint until he was 62. He also enjoyed fishing, planting vegetables, fruit trees and flowers, and watching Cardinal ball games. He was always cordial and had a ready smile. He appreciated a good joke but had trouble keeping a straight face when telling the punch line. He and Lindy enjoyed hosting big feasts for guests during the summer and for family at the holidays.
A funeral service was held at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022 at the Airsman-Hires Funeral Home in Carrollton. Burial was in the family cemetery at Bluffdale. A visitation with the family was held on Monday from 4 until 7 pm at the funeral home.
Memorial contributions can be made to District One Foundation. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.airsman-hires.com