(1795-1876)  Joe was Matson's right-hand man in Illinois. "Joe Dean was one of those superserviceable creatures, belonging to that stigmatized class designated as 'poor white trash,'" according to Orlando Ficklin.  He was Matson's representative in Illinois when Matson was gone and was the main witness for him during the trial. Being associated with Matson was probably initially a boon for Dean, but by the end it cost him money.  Dean and his family lived on their own rented farm in northern Coles County. Dean posts two $50 bonds on behalf of Matson in 1847. The poor loyal fellow would have lost one of those bonds because Matson didn't show up for his trial on fornication with a woman to whom he was not married.  Lincoln also relied on Dean's testimony that Matson always declared that the slaves were in Illinois temporarily and their real home was in Kentucky.  He remained in the area until 1854 when he married his third wife and moved to her property in the Georgetown area on which he lived the remaining years of his life.