John Feland

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John Feland, Attorney-at-Law of Hopkinsville, son of Samuel and Nancy (Hamill) Feland, was born in Barren County, near Glasgow, December 23, 1837. His parents removed to Christian County in 1848, and he was educated in the schools at Hopkinsville and at Center College, attending college in 1858, contemporary with Blackburn, Dulaney and others who have distinguished themselves in public life. After leaving Center College he read law with Colonel James F. Buckner, who was for many years collector of internal revenue in Louisville, and was licensed to practice law by Judges Henry C. Stites and Thomas C. Dabney in 1859. He has been a citizen and lawyer of Hopkinsville ever since, except at short intervals.

He was elected to the legislature, August, 1875, and was re-elected in 1877 and 1879; and, notwithstanding the fact that he was one of the minority of Republicans in the house, he served on more committees than any other member. He was elected to the senate of Kentucky in 1885, to fill out the unexpired term of Hon. Austin Peay, resigned.

In 1889 President Harrison appointed him collector of internal revenue for the Second Collection District of Kentucky, with headquarters at Owensboro; and he held that office for four years.

John Feland and Sarah Kennedy of Todd County were united in marriage February 12, 1863, and they have four children: William S., civil engineer; John, Jr., lawyer; Logan, architect, and Mary, wife of John Gilmour, all of whom are now residents of Owensboro.

Samuel Feland (father) was born in Barren County, January 21, 1811, and was reared in that county as a farmer; but afterwards was a brickmason and builder. He removed to Christian County in 1848; married Nancy Hamill, daughter of John Hamill, a native of Ireland, who came to Kentucky from Pennsylvania about the time the Felands moved to the Green River country, and the families were neighbors. The date of their settlement in Kentucky is not known precisely, but it was about the beginning of the Revolutionary war.

Thomas Feland, the progenitor of the Felands who came to Kentucky, was of Scotch-Irish descent. He, with several brothers, came to America when the country was new, and located in Campbell County, Virginia. With the first tideof emigration to Kentucky, he removed to Lincoln County and lived there until he reached the unusual age of one hundred and fifteen years, when he died and was buried in Lincoln County.  His sons, James and John, lived and died in that county. Andrew removed to Missouri and Samuel went to Tennessee. Thomas Feland (greatgrandfather)  killed by the Indians. He left a widow and eight children. His son, WilliamFeland (grandfather) was then fourteen years of age. He removed to the Green River country, first to Barren and then to Warren County, where he died in 1839. He left six sons and eight daughters. The sons were: David, Thomas, James H., Joseph, Samuel (father) and John. William Feland married a daughter of David Culbertson of Culbertson’s Valley, Pennsylvania.

After quitting the revenue service at Owensboro in 1893, John Feland returned to Hopkinsville and resumed the practice of law. He is one of the leading men in his profession and has an extensive practice in the courts of Hopkinsville and in the adjacent counties, and in the Court of Appeals and the United States Courts at Louisville and Paducah.

Source: Biographical Cyclopedia of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. John M. Gresham Company, Chicago, Philadelphia, 1896.