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JOHN B. MCGUYER,
one of the most successful and highly esteemed citizens of Akin, prominent in banking and business circles and a self-made man, has proven by a long and honorable career that it is not necessary for a youth to have financial advantages or the help of influential friends to give him his start in the commercial or financial world, but that industry, integrity and perseverance, when directed along the right channels, will invariably bring success. He was born in Kentucky, December 3, 1863, and is a son of William D. and Kelita (Sharp) McGuyer.

William McGuyer, grandfather of John B., was a farmer in Bedford county, Tennessee, where he spent his life, and from whence William D. McGuyer came to Illinois in 1868 and settled on a farm in Hamilton county. He followed farming throughout his life, won success in his undertakings, and at the time of his death, in 1907, left a good property, on which his widow, also a native of Bedford county, Tennessee, and a faithful member of the Baptist church, now resides.

John B. McGuyer received his education in the common schools of Hamilton county, and it was the intention of his father to rear him to agricultural pursuits. The son, however, had ambitions to enter the mercantile field, and in 1890 secured a position in the store of H. C. Vise, with whom he remained fourteen years. At the end of this time, through careful economy and industry, he had accumulated enough means to enter the business field on his own account, and subsequently bought the stock and fixtures of W. S. Mouse, successfully conducting that establishment until 1908, at which time he sold out to the Akin Mercantile Company. During the next year he went to West Franklin and engaged in a clothing business, but in 1910 moved to Macedonia, where he is interested in the same line with Mr. Vise. In June, 1910, Mr. McGuyer assisted in establishing the Farmers Exchange Bank of Akin, of which he was elected cashier and in which he is a heavy stockholder. This institution, one of the substantial and reliable banks of this section of the state, was capitalized at ten thousand dollars, and has average annual deposits of thirty-five thousand dollars. He also holds stock in the Bank of Macedonia, and is the proprietor of a flourishing hardware business at Akin. In his fraternal affiliations he is a prominent Mason, having served as master of Royal Lodge, No. 807, A. F. & A. M., at Macedonia, and also belongs to H. W. Hubbard Chapter, No. 160, R. A. M., at Mount Vernon. Mr. McGuyer's belief in the future of this section of the state has been shown by his investment in various pieces of valuable real estate, and he is the owner of an excellent farming property in Hamilton county. In his fraternal and social connections, as well as in business, he has, surrounded himself with numerous acquaintances throughout the city and the county, and in honest opinion of so honorable a man to the community it can be stated, without the slightest fear of contradiction, that his loss would be a severe blow to the business interests of the city and to his scores of friends.