Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois: Coles County

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1195082

^^^EAUOGV COUUECT.ON

1833 00839 3321

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HISTORICAL

ENCYCLQEEniA OF

TTJJNOIS EDITED BY

Newton Bateman, LL.

Pail Selbv, A. M.

D.

AND HISTORY OF

COLES COUNTY edited bv

Charles Edward Wilson

.

k ^V

C^''^

ILLUSTRATED CHICAGO:

MUNSELLPUBLISHING COMPANY PUBLISHERS. Ieen republished in five different languages of Europe, besides a volume of "'Conunon School Decisions,"

by authority of the General Assembly, and of which several editions have

originally published

since been issued.

nized

by the

volume has Ijeen recogand is still regarded as

Tliis

courts,

authoritative on the subjects to which it relates. In addition to his official duties during a part of this period, for three years he served as editor of •'The Illinois Teacher," and w;is one of a committee of three which prepared the bill adopted by Congre-ss creating the National Bureau of Education. Occupying a room in the old State Capitol at Springfield adjoining that used as an office by Abraham Lincoln cluringtlie first candidacv of tlie latter for the Presidencv. in 1860. a

'

HISTOKICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

38

up between the two men, which enabled the "School-master," as Mr. Lincoln playfully called the Doctor, to acquire an close intimacy sprang

insight into the character of the future emanci-

pator of a race, enjoyed by few men of that time, and of which he gave evidence by his lectures full of interesting reminiscence and eloquent appreciation of the high character of the "Martyr President." A few months after his retirement from the State Superintendency (1875), Dr. Bateman was offered and accepted the Presidency of

the deepest interest from the time of his assumption of the duties of its Editor-in-Chief. At the time of his death he had the satisfaction of knowing that his work in this field was practically complete. Dr. Bateman had been twice married, first in 1850 to Miss Sarah Dayton of Jacksonville, who died in 1857, and a second time in October, 1859, to Miss Annie N. Tyler, of Massachusetts (but for some time a teacher in Jacksonville

Female Academy), who Clifford

Knox College at Galesburg, remaining vmtil 1893, when he voluntarily tendered his resignation.

March

This, after having been repeatedly urged

upon

later

the Board, was finally accepted but that body immediately, and by unanimous vote, appointed him President Emeritus and Professor of Mental and Moral Science, under which he continued to discharge his duties as a special lecturer as his health enabled him to do so. During his incumbency as President of Knox College, he twice received a tender of the Presidency of Iowa State University and the Chancellorship of two other important State institutions. He also served, by appointment of successive Governors between 1877 and 1891, as a member of the State Board of Health, for four years of this period being President of the Board. In February, 1878, Dr. Bateman, unexpectedly and without solicitation on his part, received from President Hayes an appointment as "Assay Commissioner" to examine and test the fineness and weight of United States coins, in accordance with the provisions of the act of Congress of June 22, 1874, and discharged the duties assigned at the mint in Philadelphia. Never of a very strong physique, which was rather weakened by his privations while a student and his many years of close confinement to mental labor, towards the close of his life Dr. Bateman suffered much from a chest trouble which finally developed into "angina pectoris," or heart disease, from which, as the result of a most painful attack, he died at his home in Galesburg, Oct. 21, 1897. The event produced the most profound sorrow, not on ly among his associates in the Faculty and among the students of Knox College, but a large nmuber of friends throughout the State, who had known him offi-

lege,

;

and had learned to admire noble and beautiful traits of character. His funeral, which occurred at Galesburg on Oct. 25, called out an immense concourse of sorrowing friends. Almost the last labors performed by Dr. Bateman were in the revision of matter for this volume, in which he manifested cially or personally,

his

many

by

May

died.

Rush (Bateman), a son

his first marriage,

was

28,

of Dr.

bom

1878.

Bateman

at Jacksonville,

7, 1854, graduated at Amherst College and from the law department of Columbia Col-

New

York,

afterwards

prosecuting

his

studies at Berlin, Heidelberg

and Paris, finally becoming Professor of Administrative Law and Government in Columbia College a position especially created for him. He had filled this

—

position a little over one year

when

which was one of great promise

his career

—

was cut short by Three daughters of Dr. Bateman survive all the wives of clergymen. P. S. BATES, Clara Doty, author, was born at Ann death, Feb.

6,

1883.

—

—

Arbor, Mich., Dec. 23, 1838; published her first book in 1868; the next year married Morgan Bates, a Chicago publisher; wrote much for juvenile periodicals, besides stories and poems, some of the most popular among the latter being

"Blind Jakey" (1868) and "^sop's Fables" in She was the collector of a model

verse (1873).

library for children, for the World's

Exposition, 1893.

Columbian Died in Chicago, Oct. 14, 1895.

BATES, Erastns Newton,

soldier and State was born at Plainfield, Mass., Feb. 29, being descended from Pilgrims of the Mayflower. When 8 years of age he was brought by his father to Ohio, where the latter soon afterward died. For several years he lived with an uncle, preparing himself for college and earning money by teaching and manual labor. He graduated from Williams College, Mass., in 1853, and commenced the study of law in New York City, but later removed to Minnesota, where he served as a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1856 and was elected to the State Senate in 1857. In 1859 he removed to Centralia, III., and commenced practice there in August, 1862 was commissioned Major of the Eightieth Illinois Volunteers, being successively promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and Colonel, and finally brevetted Brigadier-General. For fifteen months he was a prisoner of war, escaping from Libby Prison only to be recaptured and later exposed to the fire of the Union batteries at Mor-

Treasurer, 1828,

;

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. Charleston harbor. In 1806 he was elected to the Legislature, and, in 1868, State Treasurer, being re-elected to the latter office under the new Constitution of 1870, and serving Died at Minneapolis, until January, 1873. Minn., May 39, 1898, and was buried at Springris Island,

field.

BATES, (ieorge C, lawyer and politician, was born in Canandaigua, N. Y., and removed to Michigan in 1834 in 1849 was appointed United States District Attorney for that State, but removed to California in 18.50, where he became a member of the celebrated "Vigilance Committee" at San Francisco, and. in 1850, delivered the first Republican speech there. From 1861 to 1871, he ja-acticed law in Chicago; the latter year was appointed District Attorney for Utah, serving two years, in 1878 removing to Denver, Colo., where he died, Feb. 11, 1886. Mr. Bates was an orator of much reputation, and was selected to express the thanks of the citizens of Chicago to Gen. B. J. Sweet, commandant of Camp Douglas, after the detection and defeat of the Camp Douglas conspiracy in November, 1864 a duty which he jierformed in an address of great eloquence. At an early day he married the widow of Dr. Alexander Wolcott, for a number of years previ;

—

ous to 1830 Indian Agent at Chicago, his wife being a daughter of John Kinzie, the first white settler of Chicago. BATH, a village of Mason County, on the Jacksonville branch of the Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis Railway, 8 miles south of Havana. Population (1880), 439; (1890). 384; (19Uii), 3;JU. BAYLIS, a corporate village of Pike County. line of the Wabash Railway, 40 miles southeast of Quincy has one newspaper. Popu-

on the main

;

lation (1890), 368; (1900), 340.

BAYLISS,

Alfred, Superintendent of Public Instruction, was born about 1846, served as a private in the First Michigan Cavalry the last

two years of the

Civil

War. and graduated from

in 1870. supporting himself during his college course by work upon a farm and teaching. After serving three years as County Superintendent of Schools in La Grange County, Ind., in 1874 he came to Illinois and entered upon the vocation of a teacher in the northern part of the State. He served for some time as Superintendent of Schools for the city of Sterling, afterwards becoming Principal of the Township High School at Streator, wliere he was, in 1898, when he received the nomination for the office of State Superintendent of Public Instruc-

Hillsdale College (Mich.),

tion, to

which he was elected

in

November

follow-

39

ing by a plurality over his Democratic opponent of nearly 70,000 votes.

BEARD, Thomas,

pioneer and founder of the was born in Granville,

city of Beardstown, III,

Washington County, N.

Y., in

179."),

taken

to

Northea-stern Ohio in 1800, and, in 1818, removed to Illinois, living for a time about Edwardsville and Alton. In 1820 he went to the locality of

the present city of Beardstown, and lat«r established there the first ferry across the Illinois River. In 1827, in conjunction with Enoch

March of Morgan County, he entered the land on which Beardstown was platted in 1829. Died, at Beardstown. in November,

1849.

BEARDSTOWN, a

city in Cass County, on the being the intersecting point for the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern and the Chicago, BurUngton & Quincy Railways, and the northwestern terminus of the former. It is 111 miles north of St. Louis and 90 miles south of Peoria. Thomas Beard, for whom the town was named, settled here about 1820 and soon afterwards established the first ferry across the Illinois River. In 1827 tlie land was patented by Beard and Enoch March, and the town platted, and, during the Black Hawk War of 1832, it became a principal base of supplies for the Illinois volunteers. The city has six churches and three schools (including a high school), two lianks and two daily newspapers. Several branches of manufacturing are carried on here flouring and saw mills, cooperage works, an axe-handle factory, two button factories, two stave factories, one shoe factory, large machine shops, and others The river is spanned here by of less importance. a fine railroad bridge, costing some .5300,000. Population (1890), 4,226; (1900), 4,827. BEATJBIEN, Jean Baptiste, the second permanent settler on the site of Chicago, was bora Illinois River,

—

at Detroit in 1780,

became

clerk of a fur-trader

on

Ottawa woman for his had a trading-post at Milwaukee, which he maintained until 1818. Ha visited Chicago as early as 1804, bought a cabin there soon after the Fort Dearborn massacre o€

Grand first

River, married an

wife, and, in 1800,

1812, married the daughter of Francis La Framboise, a French trader, and, in 1818, becama agent of the American Fur Company, having charge of trading posts at Mackinaw and elsewhere. After 1823 lie occupied the building known as "the faetorj-, " just outside of Fort De^rbom, wliich had belonged to the Government, but removed to a fai-m on the DesPlaines in 1840. Out of the ownership of this building grew his claim to the right, in 183.5, to enter .seventy-five

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

40

acres of land belonging to the Fort Dearborn reservation. The claim was allowed by the Land

and sustained by the State courts, but disallowed by the Supreme Court of the United States after long litigation. An attempt was made to revive this claim in Congress in 1878, but it was reported upon adversel3- by a Senate Committee of which the late Senator Thomas F. Bayard was chairman. Mr. Beaubien was evidently a man of no little prominence in his day. He led a company of Chicago citizens to the Black Hawk War in 1832, was appointed by the Governor the first Colonel of Militia for Cook County, and, in 1850, was commissioned Brigadier-General. In 18.58 he removed to Nashville, Tenn., and died there, Jan. 5, 1863. Mark (Beaubien), a younger brother of Gen. Beaubien, was born in Detroit in 1800, came to Chicago in 1826, and bought a log house of James Kinzie, in which he kept a hotel for some time. Later, he erected the first frame building in Chicago, which was known as the "Sauganash," and in which he kept a hotel until 1834. He also engaged in merchandising, but was not successful, ran the first ferry across the South Branch of the Chicago River, and served for manj' years as lightiiouse keeper at Chicago. About 1834 the Indians transferred to him a reservation of 640 acres of land on the Calumet, for which, some forty years afterwards, he received a patent which had been signed by Martin Van Buren— he having previously been ignorant of its existence. He was married twice and had a family of twenty -two children. Died, at Kankakee, 111., April 16, 1881. Madore B. (Beaubien), the second son of General Beaubien by liis Indian wife, was born on Grand River in Michigan, July 15, 1809, joined his father in Chicago, was educated in a Baptist Mission School where Niles, Mich., now stands; was licensed as a merchant in Chicago 'in 1831, but failed as a business man; served as Second Office officials

1833. In 1840 he accompanied his father to his farm on the Des Plaines, but returned to Chicago and for years past has been employed on the Chicago police force. BEBB, William, Governor of Ohio, was Iwrn in Hamilton County in that State in 1803; taught school at North Bend, the home of William Henry Harrison, studied law and practiced at Hamilton served as Governor of Ohio, 1846-48; later led a

in 1863,

Welsh colony

to Tennessee, but left at the outbreak of the Civil War, removing to Winnebago County, 111., where he had purchased a large body of land. He was a man of uncompromising loyalty and high principle served as Examiner of Pensions by appointment of President Lincoln and, in 1868, took a prominent part in tlie campaign which resulted in Grant's first election to the Presidency. Died at Rockford, Oct. 33, 1873. A daughter of Governor Bebb married Hon. John P. Reynolds, for many years the Secretary of the Illinois State Agricultural Society, and, during the World's Columbian Exposition, Director-in-Chief of the Illinois Board of World's Fair Commissioners. BECKER, Charles St. >'., ex-State Treasurer, was born in Germany, June 14, 1840, and brought to this country by liis parents at the age of 11 years, the family settling in St. Clair County. 111. Early in the Civil War he enlisted in the Twelfth Missouri regiment, and, at the battle of Pea ;

Ridge,

was so severely wounded that

it

was

found necessary to amputate one of his legs. In 1806 he was elected Sheriff of St. Clair County,

—

and, from 1873 to 1880, St. Clair Circuit Court.

Lieutenant of the Naperville Company in the Black Hawk War, and later was First Lieutenant of a Chicago Company. His first wife was a white woman, from whom he separated, afterwards marrying an Indian woman. He left Illinois with the Pottawatomies in 1840, resided at Council Bluffs and, later, in Kansas, being for

terms as a City Councilman of Belleville. In 1888 he was elected State Treasm-er on the Republican ticket, serving from Jan. 14, 1889, to Jan. 12, 1891. BECKWITH, Corydon, lawyer and jurist, was l)orn in Vermont in 1833, and educated at Providence, R. I., and Wrentham, Mass. He read law and was admitted to the bar in St. Albans, Vt., where he practiced for two years. In 1853 lie removed to Chicago, and, in January, 1864, was appointed by Governor Yates a Justice of tlie Supreme Court, to fill the five remaining months of the unexpired term of Judge Caton, wlu) had resigned. On retiring from the bench he re-

many

sumed private

years

tlie official

interpreter of the tribe

and, for some time, one of six Commissioners employed by the Indians to look after their affairs with the United States Government. Alexander (Beaubien), son of General Beaubien by his white wife, was born in one of the

buildings belonging to Fort Dearborn, Jan.

28,

practice.

BECKWITH, Hiram author,

was born

lie

served as clerk of the also served several

He

Died,

August

Williams,

at Danville,

111.,

18, 1890.

lawyer and

Marcli

5.

1S33.

Mr. Beckwith's father, Dan W. Beckwith, a pioneer settler of Eastern Illinois and one of the founders of the city of Danville, was a native of Wyalusing, Pa., where he was born about 1789,

]IIS|-(>I{I(AL his

mother being,

one of

tlie

in lier girllicwd,

ENCVCLOl'KDIA OF

Hannah York,

survivors of tlie famous Wyoming In 1817. the senior Beckwith. his brother George, desceniieii

Miivssacre of 1TT8.

in

company with

the Oliio River, afterwards ascending the Wabash to where Terre Haute now stands, but finally locating in what is now a part of Edgar County, 111. A year later he removed to the vicinity of the present site of the city of Danville. Having

been

employed

corps,

he

finally

for

a

time in

became a surveyor

During

of valuable notes.

a series of

18!)5-9(i

valuable articles

cliosen President of the Board.

by him. In connection with Guy W. Smith, then Receiver of Public Jloneys in the Land Office at Palestine, 111., he donated the ground on which the county-seat of Vermilion County was located, and it took the name of Danville from his first name "Dan." In 1830 he was elected Representative in the State Legislature for the District composed of Clark, Edgar, and Vermilion Counties, then including all that section of the State between Crawford County and the Kankakee River. He died in 1835. Hiram, the subject of this sketcli, thus left fatherless at less than three years of age, received only such education as was afforded in the common schools of tliat period. Nevertheless, he began the study of law in the Danville office of Lincoln & Lamou, and was admitted to practice in 1854, about the time of reaching his majority. He continued in their office and. on the removal of Lamon to Bloomington in 1859. he succeeded to the business of the firm at Danville. Mr. Lamon who, on Mr. Lincoln's accession to the Presidency in 1861, became Marshal of the District of Columbia was distantly related to Mr. Beckwith by a second marriage of tlie mother of the latter. While engaged in the practice of his profession, Mr. Beckwith has been over thirty years a zealous collector of records and other material bearing upon tlie early history of Illinois and the Northwest, and is probably now the owner of one of the most complete and valuable

—

—

—

in Illinois.

He

is

also

the author of several monographs on historic themes, including "The Winnebago War." "The Illinois and Indiana Indians," and "Historic Notes of the Northwest." published in the "Fergus Series." besides having edited an edition of "Reynolds" History of Illinois" (published by the

he contributed

"The

l^liicago

Trustees of the Illinois State Historical Libr.iry, serving until the e-xjiiration of his term in 1894.

and was re-apixjintcd Governor Tanner in

set off

to

Tribune" on various features of early Illinois and Northwest history. In 1H9() he was apjiointed by Governor Fifer a meinl>er of the first Board of

himself, and.

eastern part of the State, some of the Indian reservations in that section of the State being

Americana

lLLl.\i)l>

firm), whicli lie lias enriched by tlie addition

a surveyor's

on the organization of Vermilion County, served for a time as County Surveyor by appointment of the Governor, and was also employed by the General Government in surveying lands in the

collections of

same

BEECHEK,

to the

same

1897. in

position by each case being

Charles A., attorney and railway in Herkimer County, N. V., in 1836. removed with his family to Licking County, Ohio, where be liveil upon a farm until he reached the age of 18 yejirs. Having taken a course in the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, in 1854 he removed to Illinois, locating at Fairfield, Wayne County, and began the study of law in the office of his brother, Edwin Beecher. being admitted to pracIn 1867 he united with others in the tice in 1855. organization of the Illinois Southeastern Itailroad projected from Sliawneetown to Edgewood on the Illinois Central in Effingham County. This enterprise was consolidated, a year or two later, with the Pana, Springfield & Northwestern, taking the name of tlie Springfield & Illinois Southeastern, under which name it was v^mstructed and opened for traffic in 1871. (This line which Mr. Beecher served for some time as Vice-President now constitutes the Beards town & Shawneetown Division of the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern.) The Springfield & Illinois Southeastern Company having fallen into financial difficulty in 1873, Mr. Beecher was appointed receiver of the road, and, for a time, had control of its operation as agent for the Ixmdholders. In 1875 the line was conveyed to the Ohio & Mississippi Railroad (now a part of the Baltimore & Ohio), when Mr. Beecher l>ecume General Counsel of the controlling corporation, so remaining until 1888. Since that date he has been one of tlie assistant counsel of the Baltimore & Ohio system. His pre.sent home is in Cincinnati, although for over a (juarter of a century he has been prominently identified with one of the most imjMjrtant raihwiy enterprises in Southern Illinois. In politii's Mr. Beecher has always been a Republican, and was one of the few in Wayne County who voted for Fremont in 1856, and for Lincoln in 1860. He was also a member of the Republican State Central Committee of Illinois from 1860 for a perioil of ten or twelve solicitor,

August

—

years.

was born

27, 1829, but,

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

42

BEECHER, Edward, D. D., clergyman and educator, was born at East Hampton, L. I., August 27, 1803— the son of Rev. Lyman Beecher and the elder brother of Henry Ward graduated ;

at Yale College in 1822, taught for over a year at Hartford, Conn., studied theology, and after a service as tutor in Yale College, in 1826 was ordained pastor of the Park Street In 1830 Congregational Church in Boston. he became President of Illinois College at

year's

remaining until 1844, when he and returned to Boston, serving as the Salem Street Church in that

Jacksonville,

resigned pastor

of

city until 1856, also acting as senior editor of

"The Congregationalist" for four years. In 1856 he returned to Illinois as pa.stor of the Fii-st Congregational Church at Galesburg, continuing until 1871, when he removed to Brooklyn, where he resided without pastoral charge, except 188589, when he was pastor of the Parkville Congregational Church. While President of Illinois that institution was exposed to much criticism on account of his outspoken opposition to slavery, as

shown by

his participa-

tion in founding the first Illinois State

AntiSlavery Society and his eloquent denunciation of the murder of Elijah P. Lovejoy. Next to his brother Henry Ward, he was probably tlie most powerful orator belonging to that gifted family, and, in connection with his able associates in the faculty of the Illinois College, assisted to give that institution a wide reputation as a nursery of independent thought. Up to a short time before his death, he was a prolific writer, his productions (besides editorials, reviews and contributions on a variety of subjects) including nine or ten volumes, of which the most important are: "Statement of Anti-Slavery Principles and Address to the People of Illinois" (1837); "A Plea for Illinois College"; "History of the (1838); "The Concord of Ages" "Papal "The Conflict of Ages" (1854) Conspiracy Exposed" (1854), besides a number of others invariably on religious or anti-slavery

Alton Riots" (1853)

topics.

;

;

Died in Brooklyn, July

28, 1895.

BEECHEE, William H., clergyman — oldest son of Rev. Lyman Beecher and brother of Edward and Henry Ward— was born at East Hampton, N. Y., educated at home and at Andover, became a Congregationalist clergyman, occupying pulpits at Newport, R. I., Batavia, N. Y., and Cleveland, Ohio; came to Chicago in his later years, dying at the home of his daughters in that city, June 23, 1889. BEGGS, (Rev.) Stephen R.. pioneer Methodist

Episcopal preacher, was bom in Buckingham County, Va., March 30, 1801. His father, who was opposed to slavery, moved to Kentucky in 1805, but remained there only two years, when he removed to Clark Coimty, Ind. The son enjoyed but poor educational advantages here, obtaining his education chiefly by liis own efforts in what he called "Brush College." At the age of 21 he entered the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal Church, during the next ten years traveling different circuits in Indiana. In 1831 he was appointed to Chicago, but the Black Hawk War coming on immediately thereafter, he retired to Plainfield. Later he traveled various circuits in Illinois, until 1868, when he was superannuated, occupying his time thereafter in writing remi-

A

niscences of his early history. volume of this character published by him, was entitled "Pages

from the Early History of the West and Northwest." He died at Plainfield, in the 95th year of his age.

BEIDLER, Henry,

III, Sept. 9, 1895,

early settler,

was born

of

German

extraction in Bucks County, Pa., Nov.

37, 1812;

came

to Illinois in 1843, settling first at

where lie carried on the grocery business for five years, then removed to Chicago

Springfield,

and engaged in the lumber trade in connection with a brother, afterwards carrying on a large lumber manufacturing business at Muskegon, Mich., which proved very profitable. In 1871 Mr. Beidler retired from the lumber trade, investing largely in west side real estate in the city of Chicago, which appreciated rapidly in value, making him one of the most wealthy real estate owners in Chicago. Died, March 16, 1893.— Jacob (Beidler), brother of the preceding, was born in Bucks County, Penn., in 1815; came west in 1842, first began working as a carpenter, but later engaged in the grocery business with his brother at Springfield, 111. in 1844 removed to Chicago, where he was joined by his brother four years later, wlien they engaged largeh' in the lumber trade. Mr. Beidler retired from business ;

in 1891, devoting his attention to large real estate investments. He was a liberal contributor to religious, educational

and benevolent

Died in Chicago, March

institutions.

15, 1898.

Holmes, educator, was born in Philadelphia. Nov. 17, 1837; was educated at an Iowa College, and for a time was tutor in the same during the War of the Rebellion served in the army of tlie Cumberland, first as Lieutenant and afterwards as Adjutant of the Eighth Iowa Cavalry, still later being upon tlie .staff of Gen. E. M. McCook. and taking part in the

BELFIELD, Henry

;

HISTORICAL EKf"YCLOPKI>IA OF ILLINOIS. Atlanta

and Nashville

campaigns. While ;i prisoner in the hands of the rebels he was placed under tire of the Union batteries at Charle.ston. Coming to Chicago in 1866, he served as Principal in various public schools, including the North Division High School. He was one of the earliest advocates of manual training, and, on the establishment of the Chicago Manual Training School in 1884, was appointed its Director position which he has continued to occupy. During 1891-93 he made a trip to Europe by appointment of the Government, to investigate the school systems in European countries. BELKNAP, Hugh Rei(I,e.\-Memberof Congre.ss. was born in Keokuk, Iowa, Sept. 1, 1860, being the son of W. W. Belknap, for some time Secretary of War imder President Grant. After attending the public schools of his native city, he took a course at Adam.s Academy, Quincy, Mass., and at Phillips Academy, Andover, when he entered the service of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, where he remained twelve years in various departments, finally becoming Chief Clerk of the General Manager. In 1892 he retired from this jwsition to become Superintendent of the South Side Elevated Railroad of Chicago. He never held any political position until nominated (1894) as a Republican for the Fifty-fourth Congress, in the strongly Democratic Third DisAlthough the returns showed trict of Chicago. a plurality of thirty -one votes for his Democratic McGann). a recount proved (Lawrence opponent him elected, when, Mr. McGann having volunMr. Belknap was unanimously withdrawn, tarily awarded the seat. In 1896 he was re-elected from a District usually strongly Democratic, receiving a plurality of 590 votes, but was defeated by his Democratic opponent in 1898, retiring from Congress, March 3, 1899, when he re-

—

ceived an appointment as Paymaster in the Army from President McKinley with the rank of Major. ,

BELL, Robert, County,

111.,

la^%-yer,

was born in Lawrence Mount Carrael

in 1829, educated at

and Indiana State Univereity at Bloomington, graduating from the law department of the latter in 18.55;

while

j'et

in his minority edited

'The Mount Carmel Register," during 1851-53 becoming joint owner and editor of the same with his brother, Victor D. Bell. After gi-aduation he opened an office at Fairfield, Wayne County, but. in 1857, returned to Mount Carmel and from 1864 was the partner of Judge E. B. Green, until the appointment of the latter Chief Justice of Oklahoma by President Harrison in 1890. In 1869 Mr. Bell was appointed County

43

Judge of Lawrence County, Iwing elected to the s;inie office in 1894. He was also President of the Illinois Southern Railroad C(>ini)any until it w;is merged into the Cairo & Vincennes Road in 1867; later liecame Pre.sident of the St. Louis & Mt. Carmel Railroad, now a part of the Louisville. Evansville & St. Lany. June 1, 1883. The annual rental is §30,000. a sum equivalent to the interest on the bonded debt. The capital stock (1895) is 8500,000 and the bonde^l deVit S4J*5,000. In addition to these sums the floating debt swells the entire capitalization to 8995.054 or §57.317 per mile.

BELLEMLLE A ELDORADO RAILROAD, a road 50.4 miles in length running from BelleIt was chartered Feb. 22. ville to Duquoin, 111. 1S61. and completed Oct. 31, 1871. On .hily I.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

44

was leased to the St Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad Company for 486 years, and 1880.

it

has since been operated by that corporation in connection with its Belleville branch, from East At Eldorado the road St. Louis to Belleville. intersects the Cairo & Vincennes Railroad and the Sha^vneetown branch of the St. Louis & Southeastern Railroad, operated by the Louisville & Npshville Railroad Company. Its capital stock (1895) is .?1, 000,000 and its bonded debt

The corporate

$.550,000.

&

weekly paper.

Terre Haute Railroad.)

Chatham 29.

1833;

Centre, Columbia County, N. Y., June

was educated

BELLEVILLE & SOUTHERN ILLINOIS RAILROAD, a road (laid with steel rails) run-

herst, Mass.

ning from Belleville to Duquoin,

and, in 1856,

in length.

It

111.,

was chartered Feb.

15,

56.4 miles 1857,

and

completed Dec. 15, 1873. At Duquoin it connects with the Illinois Central and forms a short line between St. Louis and Cairo. Oct. 1. 1866, it was leased to the St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad Company for 999 years. The capital stock is $1,692,000 and the bonded debt §1,000,The corporate office is at Belleville. 000. BELLMOKT, a village of Wabash County, on the Louisville, Evansville & St. Louis Railway, 9 miles west of Mount Carmel. Population (1880), 350; (1890), 487; (1900), 634.

BELT RAILWAY COMPANY OF CHICAGO, THE, a corporation chartered, Nov. 22, 1883, and the lessee of the Belt Division of the Chicago & Western Indiana Railroad (which see). Its total trackage (all of standard gauge and laid with 66pound steel

rails) is 93.26 miles, distributed as fol-

lows Auburn Jimction to Chicago, Milwaukee & St. PaulJunction, 15.9 miles; branches from Pullman Jimction to Irondale, 111., etc., 5.41 miles; second track, 14.1 miles; sidings, 57.85 miles. The cost of construction has been §524, ,549; capiIt has no funded debt. tal stock, $1,300,000. The earnings for the year ending June 30, 1895, were $556,847, the operating expenses $878,012, :

and the taxes

$51,009.

BELVIDERE,an incorporated

city,

the county-

Boone County, situated on the Kishwaukee Rivei-, and on two divisions of the Chicago &

,seat

of

Northwe.stern Railroad, 78 miles west-northwest and 14 miles east of Rocklord is con-

of Chicago

;

nected with the latter city by electric railroad.

The city has twelve churches, five graded schools, and three banks (two national). Two daily and two semi-weekly papers are published here. Belvidere also has very considerable manufacturing interests, including manufactories of sewing machines,

bicycles,

automobiles,

besides

Pop. (1890), 1,129; (1900), 1,484. lawyer, born at

BENJAMIN, Reuben Moore,

office is at Belleville.

BELLEVILLE & ILLINOISTOWN RAILROAD. (See St. Louis. Alton

milk-condensing factor3- and two creameries. Population (1890), 3,807; (1900), 0,937. BEMENT, a village in Piatt County, at intersection of main line and Chicago Division of Wabash Railroad. 20 miles east of Decatur and 166 miles south-southwest of Chicago; in agricultural and stock-raising district; has three grain elevators, broom factory, water- works, electric-light plant, four churches, two banks and

a large

;

at

Amherst

College,

Am-

spent one year in the law depart-

inent of Harvard, another as tutor at

Amherst

came to Bloomington, 111., where, on an examination certificate furnished by Abraham Lincoln, he was licensed to practice. The first public office held by Mr. Benjamin was that of Delegate to the State Constitutional Convention of 1869-70, in which he took a prominent part in shaping the provisions of the

new

Constitution

In 1873 he was chosen relating to corporations. County Judge of McLean County, by repeated re-elections holding the position until 1886,

when

he resumed private practice. For more than twenty years he has been connected with the law department of Wesleyan University at Bloomington, a part of the time being Dean of the Faculty is also the author of several volumes of legal text-books.

BENNETT MEDICAL COLLEGE, Medical

School of

special charter 1868.

Its first

Chicago,

an Eclectic incorporated by

and oi^ened in the autumn of sessions were held in two large

rooms its faculty consisted of seven professors, and there were thirty matriculates. More commodious quarters were secured the following year, and a still better home after the fire of 1871. in which all the college property was destroyed. Another change of location was made in 1874. In 1890 the property then owned was sold and a new college building, in connection with a hos;

pital,

A

erected in a

more quiet quarter of the city. is conducted by the college.

free dispensary

The teaching faculty

(1896) consists of nineteen

with four assistants and demonstraare admitted as pupils on equal terms with men. BENT, Charles, journalist, Avas born in Chicago, Dec. 8, 1844, but removed with his family, in 1856, to Morrison, Whiteside County, where, two years later, he became an apprentice to the printing bvisiness in the office of "The Whiteside Sentinel." In June, 1864, he enlisted as a soldier professoi's,

tors.

Women

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA in the

One Hundred and Fortieth

Illinois (100

days' regiment) and, on the expiration of his term of service, re-enlisted in the One Hundred and

Forty-seventh Illinois, being mustered out at Savannah, Ga.. in January, 18G6, with the rank of Second Lieutenant. Tlien resuming his vocation as a printer, in July, 18G7, he purchased the ofKce of "The Whiteside Sentinel," in which he learned his trade, and has since been the editor of that paper, except during 1877-79 while engagetl in writing a "History of Wliiteside County." He is a charter member of the local Grand Army Post and served on the staff of the Department Coi;miander was Assistant Assessor of Internal Revenue during 1870-73, and, in 1878, was elected as a Republican to the State Senate for White;

and Carroll Counties, serving four

side

years.

Other positions held by him include the office of City Alderman, member of the State Board of Canal Commissioners (1883-85) and Commissioner He lias also of the Joliet Penitentiary (1889-93). been a memljer of the Republican State Central

Committee and served as

its

Chairman

1880-88.

BENTON, 111.

county-seat of Franklin County, on Cent, and Chi. & E. 111. Railroads; has electric-

and harness factwo banks, two flouring mills, shale brick and tile works (projected), four churches and light plant, water-works, saddle

now

45 Jacksonville

di-

vision of the Chicago & Alton Railroad; also served for many years iis a Trustee of Illinois College. In the latter years of his life he was. for a considerable period, the law partner of ex-Governor and ex Senator Richard Yates. Judge

Berdan was the ardent political friend and admirer of Abraham Lincoln, as well as an intimate friend and freqvient correspondent of the poet Longfellow, besides l)eing the correspondent, during a long period of his life, of a number of other prominent literary men. Pierre Irving. the nephew and biographer of Wasliington Irving, was his brother-in-law through the marriage of a favorite sister. Judge Berdan died at Jackson-

August 24, 1884. BERGEN, (Rev.) John (J., pioneer clergj-man, was born at Hightstown. N. J., Nov. 27, 1790; studied theology, and. after two years' service as tutor at Princeton and sixteen years as pastor of ville.

a Presbyterian church at Madison, N.

came

to Springfield,

erection of the

central part of

pastor until

first

111.,

tlie State,

Died,

1848.

and of

J.

,

a.ssisted

Protestant

in 1828 in

the

chiu'ch in the

which he remained Springfield.

at

Jan.

17, 1872.

BERGGREN, Augustus

tory,

three weekly papers. Pop. (1890), 939 -,(1900), 1,341. BERDAN, James, lawyer and County Judge,

ILLINOIS.

(iF

con.stituting a part of the

W.,

legislator,

born

in

17, 1840; came to the United States at Ki years of age and located at Oneida, Knox County, 111., afterwards removing to Gales-

Sweden, August

was born in New York City, July 4. 1805, and educated at Columbia and Yale Colleges, graduating from the latter in the class of 1824. His father, James Berdan, Sr. came west in the fall of 1819 as one of the agents of a New York Emigration Society, and, in January, 1820, visited the vicinity of the present site of Jacksonville, 111., but died soon after his return, in part from

including that of Senator pro tern, of the Senate 1887-89, and was Warden of the State penitentiary at Joliet, 1888-91. He was for many years the very able and efficient President of the Covenant Mutual Life Association of Illinois, and

exposure incurred during his long and arduous winter journey. Thirteen years later (1832) his son, the subject of this sketch, came to the same region, and Jacksonville became his home for tlie remainder of his Ufe. Mr. Berdan was a wellread lawyer, as well as a man of high principle and sound culture, with pure literarj' and social Although possessing unusual capabilities, tastes. his refinement of character and dislike of ostentation made him seek rather the association and esteem of friends than public oflfice. In 1849 he was elected County Judge of Morgan County, serving by a second election imtil 1857. Later he was Secretary for several years of the Tonica & Petersburg Railroad (at that time in course of

BERGIER, (Rev.) J, a secular priest, born in France, and an early mi.ssionary in Illinois. He labored among the Tamaroas. being in chargeof tlie mission at Cahokia from 1700 to his death in 1710.

,

construction), serving until

the

St. Louis.

Jacksonville

it

&

was merged

into

Chicago Railroad.

burg;

held

various

Sheriff oi Kjiox (1881-89)

is

now

its

(1873-81), State

as President

Treasurer.

BERRY, born in

offices,

County

—serving

Orville F., lawyer and legislator, was 111., Feb. 16. 18.52;

McDonough County,

early left an orphan and. after working for some time on a farm, removed to Carthage, Hancock

County, where he read law ami was admitted to the bar in 1877; in IHh;^ was elected Mayor of Carthage and twice re-elected was elected to the State Senate in 1^88 and '92, and, in 1891, took a prominent part in securing the enactment of the compulsory education clause in the common school law. Mr. Berry presided over the Republican State Convention of 1890, the same j'ear was a candidate for re-election to the State Senate. ;

HISTOEICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

46

but the certificate was awarded to his Democratic competitor, plurality.

who was declared elected by On a contest before the Senate at

164

the

of the Fortieth General Assembly, the seat was awarded to Mr. Berry on the groimd of illegality in the rulings of the Secretary of State affecting the vote of his opponent. first session

BERRY,

William W,, lawyer and soldier, was born in Kentucky, Feb. 33, 1834, and educated at Oxford, Ohio. His home being then in Covington, he studied law in Cincinnati, and, at the age of 33, began practice at Louisville, Ky., being married two years later to Miss Georgie Hewitt of Frankfort. Early in 1861 he entered the Civil War on the Union side as Major of the Louisville Legion, and subsequently served in the Army of the Cumberland, marching to the sea with Sherman and, during the period of his After the close service, receiving four wounds. of the war he was offered the position oi Governor of one of the Territories, but, determining not to go further west than Illinois, declined. For three years he was located and in practice at Winchester, 111., but removed to Quincy in 1874, where he afterwards resided. He always took a

warm

(Col.)

interest in politics and, in local affairs,

was a leader of his party. He was an organizer of the G. A. R. Post at Quincy and its first Commander, and, in 1884-8r), served as Commander of the State Department of the G. A. R. He organized a Young Men's Republican Club, as he believed that the young minds should take an active part in politics. He was one of the committee of seven appointed by the Governor to locate the Soldiers' and Sailors' Home for Illinois, and, after spending six months inspecting various sites offered, the institution was finally was also Trustee of Knox located at Quincy College, at Galesburg, for several years. He was frequently urged by his party friends to run for public office, but it was so much against his nature to ask for even one vote, that he would not consent. He died at his home in Quincy, ;

much regretted. May 6, 1895. BESTOR, George C, legislator, born

in

Wash-

ington City, April 11, 1811; was assistant document clerk in the House of Representatives eight years;

came

to Illinois

and engaged in

in 1835

business at Peoria; was twice appointed Postma.ster of that city (1843 and 1861) and tlrree times elected Mayor served as financial agent of the Peoria & Oquawka ( now Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad), and a Director of the Toledo, Peoria & Warsaw a delegate to the Whig National Convention of 18.')3; a State real-estate

;

;

Senator (1858-63), and an ardent friend of Abra-

ham

Died, in Washington, May 14, prosecuting a claim against the construction of gunboats during the war. Lincoln.

while

1873,

Government

for the

BETHALTO, a

village of

Madison County, on

the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway, 35 miles north of St. Louis. Population (1880), 638; (1890), 879; (1900), 477.

BETHANY,

a village of Moultrie County, on

Peoria Division

111.

Cent. Railroad, 18 miles south-

in farming district has one newspaper and four churches. Pop. mostly American

east of Decatur

;

;

,

born. (1890), 688; (1900), 873; (1903,

est.), 900.

BETTIE STUART INSTITUTE, an tion for

young

ladies at Springfield,

111.,

institu-

founded

Mary McKee Homes, who consome twenty years, until her death.

in 1868 by Mrs.

ducted

it

for

Its report for 1898

shows a faculty

of ten instruct-

is valued at embraces the preparatory and classical branches, together with music, oratory and fine arts. BEVERIDGE, James H., State Treasurer, was born in Washington County, N. Y., in 1838; served as State Treasurer, 1865-67, later acted as Secretary of the Commission which built the State Capitol. His later years were spent in superintending a large dairy farm near Sandwich, De Kalb County, where he died in January, 1896. BEVEKIDtrE, John L., ex-Governor, was born in Greenwich, N. Y.. July 6, 1834; came to Illinois, 1843, and, after spending some two years in Granville Academy and Rock River Seminary, went to Tennessee, where he engaged in teaching

ors

and

§33,500.

135 pupils.

Its

property

Its course of instruction

while studying law. Having been admitted to the bar, he returned to Illinois in 1851, first locating at Sycamore, but three years later established himself in Chicago. During the first year of the war he assisted to raise the Eighth Regiment Illi-

and was commissioned first as Capand still later Major; two years later became Colonel of the Seventeenth Cavalry, which he commanded to the close of the war, nois Cavalry, tain

being mustered out, February. 1866, with the rank of brevet Brigadier-General. After the war he held the office of Sheriff of Cook Coimty four years; in 1870 was elected to the State Senate, and, in the following year, Congressman-at-large to succeed General Logan, elected to the United

resigned this office in January. having been elected Lieutenant-Governor,

States Senate; 1873,

and a few weeks later succeeded to the governorship by the election of Governor Oglesby to the United States Senate. In 1881 he was appointed.

HISTOraCAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. by President Arthur, Assistant United States Treasurer for Chicago, serving iintil after CleveHis present home (189S), is land's first election. near Los Angeles, Cal. BIENVILLE, Jean Baptiste le Moyne, Sieur de, was born at Montreal, Canada, Feb. 23, 1G80, and was the French Governor of Louisiana at the time the IlUnois country was included in that province. He had several brothers, a number of whom played important parts in the early history of the province. ana, in

Bienville

company with

first

visited Louisi-

his brother Iberville,

in

1698, their object being to establish a French colony near the mouth of the Mississippi. The first settlement was made at Biloxi, Dec. 6. 1699, and SanvoUe, another brother, was placed in charge. The latter was afterward made Governor of Louisiana, and, at his death (1701), he was succeeded by Bienville, who transferred the seat In 1T04 he was joined of government to Mobile. by his brother Chateaugay, who brought seventeen settlers from Canada. Soon afterwards

Iberville died,

and Bienville was recalled to but was reinstated the following

France in 1707, Finding the Indians worthless as tillers of year. the soil, he seriously suggested to the home government the expediency of trading off the coppercolored aborigines for negroes from the West Indies, three Indians to be reckoned as equivalent to two blacks. In 1713 Cadillac was sent out as Governor, Bienville being made LieutenantGovernor. The two quarreled. Cadillac was

superseded by Epinay in 1717, and, in 1718, Law's (see Company of the first expedition arrived West), and brought a Governor's commission for Bienville. The latter soon after founded New Orleans, which became the seat of government for the province (which then included Illinois), in 1723. In January, 1724, he was again summoned to France to answer charges; was removed in disgrace in 1726, but reinstated in 1733 and given the rank of Lieutenant-General. Failing in various expeditions against the Chickasaw Indians, he was again superseded in 1743, returning to France, where he died in 1768. BItrGS, WilUam, pioneer. Judge and legislator, in Maryland in 1753, enlisted in the Revolutionary army, and served as an officer imder Colonel George Rogers Clark in the expedition for the capture of Illinois from the British in 1778. He settled in Bellefontaine (now Blonroe County) soon after the close of the war. He was

was born

County for many

Sheriff of St. Clair later Justice of the

of

Common

years,

and

Peace and Judge of the Court

Pleas.

He

also

represented

his

county in the Territorial Legislatures of Indiana and Illinois. Died, in St. Clair County, i-u

1827.

BIG(JSVILLE, a

village of

on the Chicago, Burlington

Henderson County, Quincy Railroad,

&

15 miles northejvst of

Burlington; hiis a bank and two newsjjapers; considerable grain and livestock are shipped here. Population (1880), 358; (1890), 487; (1900). 417.

BIG MUDDY RIVER, a stream formed by the imiou of two branches which ri.se in Jefferson Countj-. It runs south and southwest through Franklin and Jackson Counties, and enters the Mississippi about five miles below Grand Tower. Its length is estimated at 140 miles. BILLINGS, Albert Merritt, capitahst, was born in New Hampshire, April 19. 1814, educated in the common schools of his native State and Vermont, and, at the age of 22, became Sheriff of Windsor County, Vt.. Later he was proprietor

for a time of the mail stage-coach line between Concord, N. H. and Bcston, but, having sold out, ,

invested his means in the securities of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway and became

with the business interests of Chicago. In the '50's he became associated with Cornelius K. Garrison in the People's Gas Company of Chicago, of which he served as President from 1859 to 1888. In 1890 Mr. Billings became extensively interested in the street railway enterprises of >Ir. C. B. Holmes, resulting in his becoming the proprietor of the street railway system at Memphis, Tenn., valued, in 1897, at §3,000.000. In early life he had been as.sociated with Commodore Vanderbilt in the operation of the Hudson River steamboat lines of the latter. In addition to his other business enterprises, he was principal owner and, during the last twenty-five years of his life. President of the Home National and Home Savings Banks of Chicago. Died, Feb. 7, 1897, leaving an estate valued at several millions identified

of dollars. TV., was bom at Conway, Amherst Coltwenty years of age, and began the study of law with Judge Foote, of Cleveland, Ohio, was admitted to the bar two years later and practiced there some two years longer. He then removed

BILLINGS, Henry

Mass., July 11, 1814, gradiiated at lege at

to St. Louis,

Mo., later resided

Waterloo and Cairo,

for a

time at

III, but, in 1.845, settled at

Alton; was elected Mayor of that city in 1851, and the first Judge of the newly organized City Court, in 1859, serving in this position six years. In 1869 he was elected a Delegate from Madison County to the State Constitutional Convention of

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OP ILLINOIS.

48

but died before the expiration of the session, on April 19, 18T(t. BIRKBECK, Morris, early colonist, was born in England about 1T62 or 1763, emigrated t" America in 1817, and settled in Edwards County. 111. He purchased a large tract of land and induced a large colony of English artisans, laborers and farmers to settle upon the same, founding the town of New Albion. He was an active, uncompromising opponent of slavery, and was an important factor in defeating the scheme to make He was appointed SecreIllinois a slave State. 1869-70,

tary of State by Governor Coles in October, 1834. but resigned at the end of three months, a hostile Legislature having refused to confirm him. A strong writer and a frequent contributor to the press, his letters and published works attracted attention both in this country and in Europe. Principalamong the latter were: "Notes on a Journey Through France" (181.'5); "Notes on a

Journey Through America" (1818). and "Letters from Illinois" (1818). Died from drowning in (See Slavery and 1825, aged about 6;i years. Slave Laws. ) BISSELL, William H., first Republican Governor of Illinois, was born near Cooperstown, N. Y., on April 25, 1811, graduated in medicine at Philadelphia in 1835, and, after practicing a short time in Steuben County, N. Y., removed to Monroe County, 111. In 1840 he was elected a Representative in the General Assembly, where he soon attained high rank as a debater. He studied law and practiced in Belleville, St. Clair County, becoming Prosecuting Attorney for that county in 1844. He served as Colonel of the Second Illinois "Volunteers during the Mexican War, and achieved

Buena

He

represented Illi18.55, being first On the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Bill, he left the Democratic party and, in 1856, was elected Governor on the Republican ticket. While in Congress he was distinction at

Vista.

nois in Congress from 1849 to

elected as an Independent Democrat.

challenged by Jefferson Davis after an interchange of heated words respecting the relative coTirage of Northern ann-ned to the West, and, in 1850, engaged in business for himself as a lead manufacturer in St. Louis, Mo., afterwards associating with him the late Morris Collins, under the firm name of Blatchford & Collins. In 1851 a branch was established in Chicago, known as Collins & Blatchford. After a few years the firm was dissolved, Mr. Blatchford taking the Chicago business, which has continued as E. W. Blatchford & Co to the present time. While Mr. Blatchford has invariably declined political offices, he has been recognized as a staunch Republican, and the services of few men have been in more frequent request for positions of trust in connection with educational and benevolent enterprises. Among the numerous positions of this character which he has been called to fill are those of Treasurer of the Northwestern Branch of the United States Sanitary Commission, during the Civil War, to which he devoted a large part of his time Trustee of Illinois College (1866-75); President of the Chicago Academy of Sciences a member, and for seventeen years President, of the Board of Trustees of the Chicago Eye and Ear Infirmary Trustee of the Chicago Art Institute; Executor and Trustee of the late Walter L. Newberry, and, since its ,

;

;

;

ILLINOIS.

incorporation. President of the lioard of Trustees of The Newberry Library Trustee of the John ;

Crerar Library; one of the founders and President of the Board of Trustees of the Cliicago Manual Training School; life member of tlie Chicago Historical Society for nearly forty years President of the Board of Directors of the Cliicago Theological Seminary; during his resi;

Chicago an officer of the New England Congregational Church; a corporate member of deni^e in

tlie

American Board

of Commissioners for For-

eign Missions, and for fourteen years its VicePresident; a charter member of the City Missionary Society, and of the Congregational Club of Chicago; a member of the Chicago Union League, the University, the Literary and the Commercial Clubs, of which latter he has been President. Oct. 7, 1858, Mr. Blatchford was married to Miss Mary Emily Williams, daughter of John C. Williams, of Chicago. Seven children four sons and three daughters have blessed this union, the eldest .son, Paul, being to-day one of Chicago's valued business men. Mr. Blatchford's life has been one of ceaseless and successful

—

activity in business,

much

and to him Chicago owes

of its prosperity.

and money

In the giving of time and benevo-

for Christian, educational

lent enterprises, he has been conspicuous for his

generosity, and noted for his valuable counsel and executive ability in carrying these enterprises to success.

BLATCHFORD, John, D.D., was bom at Newfield (now Bridgeport), Conn., May 24, 1799; removed in childhood to Lansingburg, N. Y., and was educated at Cambridge Academy and Union College in that State, graduating in 1820. He N.

finished his theological course at P*rinceton, J.,

in 1823. after

which he ministered succesand

sively to Presbyterian churches at Pittstown Stillwater, N. Y.

,

in 1830 accepting the pastorate

of the First Congregational Church of Bridgeport, Conn. In 1836 he came to the West, spending the following winter at Jacksonville, 111., and, in 1837,

was

installed the first pastor of the First

Presbjrterian Church of Chicago, where he remained until compelled by failing health to In 1841 he acresign and return to the East. cepted the chair of Intellectual and Moral Philosophy at Marion College, Jfo., subsequentljassiuning the Presidency. The institution having been purchased by the Free Masons, in 1844, he removed to West Ely, Mb., and thence, in 1847, to Quincy, 111., where he resided during the remainder of his hfe. His death occurred in St. Louis, April 8, 1855. The churches he served

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. testified

strongly to

Dr. Blatchford's

acceptable and successful ministerial duties.

faithful,

performance of his

He was married

in 1825 to

Frances Wickes, daughter of Eliphalet Wickes, Esq., of Jamaica, Long Island, N. Y. BLEDSOE, Albert Taylor, teacher and lawyer, was born in Frankfort, Ky., Nov. 9, 1809; graduated at West Point Military Academy in

two years' service at Fort Gibfrom the army in During 1833-34 he was Adjunct Professor of Mathematics and teacher of French at Kenyon 1830, and, after

son, Indian Territory, retired 1832.

College,

Ohio,

and,

in

1835-36,

Professor

of

Mathematics at Miami University. Then, having studied theology, he served for several years

Paul, the Michigan Southern and the Pittsburg Of the second named road he was one of the projectors, procuring its charter, and being identified with it in the several capacities of Attomej', Director and President. In 1870 President Grant appointed him Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. This position he continued to occupy for twenty two years, resigning it in 1892 to accept an appointment by President Cleveland as one of the counsel for the United States before the Behring Sea Arbitrators

& Fort Wayne Companies.

at Paris, wliich

was

his last official service.

BLOOMINGDALE, a village of Du Page County, 30 miles west by north from Chicago.

Population

as rector of Episcopal churches in Ohio. In 1838 he settled at Springfield, 111. and began the prac-

(1880), 226; (1890), 463; (1900), 235.

remaining several years, when he removed to Washington, D. C. Later he became Professor of Mathematics, first (1848-54) in the University of Mississippi, and (1854-61) in the University of Virginia. He then entered the Confederate service with the rank of Colonel, but soon became Acting Assistant Secretary of War in 1863 visited England to collect material for a work on the Constitution, which was pub-

County, a flourishing city and railroad center, 59 miles northeast of Springfield is in a rich agriBesides car cultural and coal-mining district. shops and repair works employing some 2,000 hands, there are manufactories of stoves, fur-

,

tice of law,

;

lished in 1866,

when he

settled at Baltimore,

where he began the publication of "The Southern Review," which became the recognized organ of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. Later he became a minister of the Methodist Church.

He

gained considerable reputation for eloquence during his residence in Illinois, and was the author of a number of works on religious and political subjects, the latter maintaining the right of secession; was a man of recognized Died ability, but lacked stability of character. at Alexandria, Va., Dec. 8, 1877. BLODGETT, Henry Williams, jurist, was born At the age of 10 at Amherst, Mass., in 1821. years he removed with his parents to Illinois, where he attended the district schools, later returning to Amherst to spend a year at the Academy. Returning home, he spent the years In 1842 he 1839-42 in teaching and surveying. began the study of law at Cliicago, being admitted to the bar in 1845, and beginning practice at Waukegan, 111., where he has continued In 1852 he was elected to the lower to reside. house of the Legislatm-e from Lake County, as an anti-slavery candidate, and, in 1858, to the State Senate, in the latter serving four years. He gained distinction as a railroad solicitor, being employed at different times by the Chicago & Northwestern, the Chicago, Milwaukee & St.

BLOOMINGTON,

the county-seat of

McLean

;

Nurseries are numerous and horse breeding receives much The city is the seat of Illinois Wes-

naces, plows, flour, etc. in the vicinity

attention.

leyan University, has fine public schools, several daily), besides educaThe business sec-

newspapers (two published

tional an"GTOX CONVENTION OF 1856. Although not formally called as sxich. this was the first Republican State Convention held in Illinois, out of which grew a permanent RepubA mass convenlican organization in the State. tion of those opposed to the repeal of the Missouri rebuilt

cipal streets are

(known as an "Anti-Nebraska Convention") was held at Springfield during the week of the State Fair of 1854 (on Oct. 4 and 5), and, although it adopted a platform in harmony with the principles which afterwards became the foundation of the Republican party, and appointed a State Central Committee, besides putting in nomination a candidate for State Treasurer tlie only State officer elected that year the organization was not perpetuated, the State Central

Compromise

—

—

The Bloomington failing to organize. Convention of 1856 met in accordance with a call issued by a State Central Committee appointed by the Convention of Anti-Nebraska editors held (See Anti-Nebat Decatur on February 22, 1856.

Committee

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. raska Editorial Convention.) The call did not even contain the word "Republican, but was addressed to those opposed to the principles of

53

for Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Hoff-

Editorial Convention at Decatur, but

man, having been found ineligible by lack of residence after the date of naturalization, withdrew, and his place was subsequently filled by the nomination of John Wood of Quincy. The platform adopted was outspoken in its pledges of imswerving loyalty to the Union and opposition

in the nature of a

to the extension of slavery into

"

the Nebraska Bill and the policy of the existing The Convention Democratic administration.

met on May

the date designated by the was rather mass than a delegate convenorganizations existed in few counparty as

tion,

29, 1856,

Consequently representation was very unequal and followed no systematic rule. Out of one hundred counties into which the State was then divided, only seventy were represented by delegates, ranging from one to twenty-five each, leaving thirty counties (embracing nearly the whole of the southern part of the State) entirelj' unrepre Lee Cotmty had the largest representa sented. ties

State at that

of the

tion (twenty-five),

time.

Morgan County

(the

home

of

Richard Yates) coming next with twenty delegates, while Cook County had seventeen and Sangamon had five. The whole number of delegates, as shown by the contemporaneous record,

was

Among

269.

the leading spirits in

the Convention were Abraham Lincoln, Archibald Williams. O. H. Browning, Richard Yates, John M. Palmer, Owen Lovejoy, Norman B. Judd, Burton C. Cook and others who afterwards

became prominent in State politics. The delegaCook County included the names of John Wentworth, Grant Goodrich, George Schneider, Mark Skinner, Charles H. Ray and Charles L. Wilson. The temporary organization was effected with Archibald Williams of Adams County in the chair, followed by the election of John M. Palmer of Macoupin, as Permanent President. The other officers were: Vice-Presidents John A. Davis of Stephenson; William Ross of Pike; James McKee of Cook; John H. Bryant of Bureau; A. C. Harding of Warren; Richard Yates of Morgan; Dr. H. C. Johns of Macon; D. L. Phillips of Union; George Smith of Madison Thomas A. Marshall of Coles J. M. Ruggles of Mason G.D. A. Parks of Will, and John Clark of Schuyler. Secretaries Henry S. Baker Charles L. Wilson of Cook John of Madison Tillson of Adams; Washington Bushnell of La A State Salle, and B. J. F. Hanna of Randolph. ticket was put in nomination consisting of William H. Bissell for Governor (by acclamation Francis A. Hoffman of Du Page County, for Lieutenant-Governor; Ozias M. Hatch of

tion from

—

;

;

;

—

;

;

)

:

Jesse K. Dubois of Lawrence, for Auditor; James Miller of McLean, for Treasurer, and William H. Powell of Peoria.

Pike, for Secretary of State

;

new

territory.

A

delegation was appointed to the National Convention to be held in Philadelphia on June 17, following,

named

and a State Central Committee was

to conduct the State campaign, consisting

James

C. Conkling of Sangamon County; Asahel Gridley of McLean Burton C. Cook of La Salle, and Charles H. Ray and Norman B, Judd of Cook. The principal speakers of the occasion, before the convention or in popular meetings held while the members were present in Bloomington, included the names of O. H. BrowTiing, Owen Lovejoy, Abraham Lincoln, Burton C. Cook, Richard Yates, the venerable John Dixon, founder of the city bearing his name, and Governor Reeder of Pennsylvania, who had been Territorial Governor of Kansas by appointment of President Pierce, but had refused to carry out the policy of the administration for making Kansas a slave State. None of the speeches were fully reported, but that of Mr. Lincoln has been universally regarded by those who heard it as the gem of the occasion and the most brilliant of his life, foreshadowing his celebrated "housedivided-against-itself speech of June 17, 1858. John L. Scripps, editor of "The Chicago Democratic Press," writing of it, at the time, to his paper, said: "Never has it been our fortune to listen to a more eloquent and masterly presentaFor an hour and a half he tion of a subject. (Mr. Lincoln) held the assemblage spellbound bj' the power of his argument, the intense irony of his invective, and the deep earnestness and fervid brilliancy of his eloquence. When he concluded, the audience sprang to their feet and cheer after cheer told how deeph' tlieir hearts had been touched and their souls warmed up to a generous enthusia,sm." At the election, in November following, although the Democratic candidate for President carried the State by a plurality of over 9,000 votes, the entire State ticket put in nomination at Bloomington was successful by majorities ranging from 3,000 to 20,000 for the

of

;

.

.

.

several candidates.

JBLUE ISLAND, a village of Cook County, on the Calumet River and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, the Chicago & Grand Trunk and the Illinois Central Railwavs. 15 miles south of

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

54

Chicago. It lias a high school, churches and two newspapers, besides brick, smelting and oil works. Population (1890), 2,521; (1900), 6,114. BLUE ISLAND RAILROAD, a short line 3.96 miles in length, lying wholly within Illinois; capital stock iJio.OOO; operated by the Illinois Central Railroad Company. Its funded debt

was S100,000 and its floating debt, §3,779. BLUE MOUND, a town of Macon County, on

(1895)

Wabash Railway, 14 miles southeast of Deand live-stock region; has three grain elevators, t%vo banks, tile factory and one newspaper. Pop. (1890), 696; (1900), 714. BLUFFS, a village of Scott County, at the junction of the Quincy and Hannibal branches of the Wabash Railway, 53 miles west of SpringPopulation field has a bank and a newspaper. the

catur;! in rich grain

;

(1880), 163; (1890), 431; (1900), 539.

BOAL, Robert, M.D., physician and legisborn near Harrisburg, Pa., in 1806; was brought by his parents to Ohio when Ato years old and educated at Cincinnati, graduating from the Ohio Medical College in 1838; settled at Lacon, 111., in 1836, practicing there until 1863, when, having been appointed Surgeon of the Board of Enrollment for that District, he removed to Peoria. Other public positions held by Dr. Boal have been those of Senator in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth General Assemblies (1844-48), Representative in the Nineteenth and Twentieth (18.54-58), and Trustee of the Institution for the Deaf and Dumb at Jacksonville, remaining in the latter position seventeen years under the successive administrations of Govlator,

ernors Bissell, Yates, Oglesby, Palmer and Beveridge— the last five years of his service being President of the Board. He was also President Dr. Boal of the State Medical Board in 1883.

continued to practice at Peoria until about 1890, when he retired, and, in 1893, returned to Lacon to reside with his daughter, the widow of the late Colonel Greenbury L. Fort, for eight years Representative in Congress from the Eighth District.

BOARD OF

ARBITB.ATIOiV, a Bureau

of the

State Government, created by an act of the Legis-

approved August 2, 1895. It is appointed by the Executive and is composed of three members (not more than two of whom can belong to the same political party), one of whom must be an employer of labor and one a member of some labor organization. The term of office for the lature,

members first named Avas fixed at two years; after March 1, 1897, it is to be three years, one

member

retiring annually.

A

compensation of

SI, 500 per annum is allowed to each member of the Board, while the Secretary, who must also be a stenographer, receives a salary of §1,300 per annum. When a controversy arises between an individual, firm or corporation employing not less

than twenty-five persons, and his or its employes, application may be made by the aggrieved party to the Board for an inquiry into the nature of the disagreement, or both parties may unite in the submission of a case. The Board is required to visit the locality, carefully investigate the cause of the dispute and render a decision as soon as practicable, the same to be at once made public. If the application be filed by the

employer, it must be accompanied by a stipulation to continue in business, and order no lock-out In for the space of three weeks after its date. like manner, complaining employes must promise to continue peacefully at work, under existing

The Board is for a like period. granted power to send for persons and papers and Its decisions to administer oaths to witnesses. are binding upon applicants for six months after rendition, or until either party shall have given the other sixty days' notice in writing of his or In case their intention not to be bound thereby. the Board shall learn that a disagreement exists conditions,

between employes and an employer having le.ss than twenty-five persons in his employ, and that a strike or lock-out is seriously threatened, it is made the duty of the body to put itself into communication with both employer and employes and endeavor to efi'ect an amicable settlement between them by mediation. The absence of any provision in the law prescribing penalties for its violation leaves the observance of the law, in its present form, dependent upon the voluntai-y action of the parties interested.

BOARD OF EQUALIZATION,

a body organ-

ized under act of the General Assembly, approved

March

8,

1867.

It first consisted of

twenty-five

members, one from each Senatorial District. first Board was appointed by the Governor, holding ofllice two years, afterwards becoming In 1872 the elective for a term of four years. law was amended, reducing the number of members to one for each Congressional District, the whole number at that time becoming nineteen, with the Auditor as a member ex-officio. who

The

usually presides. From 1884 to 1897 it consisted of twenty elective members, but, in 1897, it was

The Board meets to twenty-two. annually on the second Tuesday of August. The abstracts of the property iissessed for taxation in the several counties of the State are laid before increased

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. examination and equalization, but it may not reduce the aggregate valuation nor increase Its powers over the it more than one per cent. returns of the assessors do not extend beyond equalization of assessments between counties. The Board is required to consider the various clas.ses of property separately, and determine such rates of addition to or deduction from the listed, or assessed, valuation of each class as it it

for

may deem

equitable and just.

The statutes

pre-

scribe rules for determining the value of all the

—

enumerated personal, real, The valuation of the etc. telegraph and other capital stock corporations (except newspapers) is fixed by the having been completed, Its consideration Board. the Board is required to summarize the results of its labors in a comparative table, which must be again examined, compared and perfected. Reports of each annual meeting, with the results classes of property

railroad, telegraph,

of railroad.s,

reached, are printed at the expense of tlie State and distributed as are other public documents. (189T-19U1) consists by disGeorge F. McKnight, (2) John J, Solomon Simon, (4) Andrew Mc-

The present Board tricts of

McKenna,

(1)

(3)

(5) Albert Oberndorf, (6) Henry Severiu, Edward S. Taylor. (8) Theodore S. Rogers, Charles A. Works. (10) Thomas P. Pierce, (11) Samuel M. Barnes, (12) Frank P. Martin, (13) Frank K. Robeson, (14) W. O. Cadwallader, (15) J. S. Cruttenden, (16) H. D. Hirshheimer. (IT) Thomas N. Leavitt, (18) Joseph F. Long, (19) Richard Cadle, (20) Charles Emerson, (21) John W. Larimer, (22) William A. Wall, besides the Auditor of Public Accounts as ex-officio member the District members being divided politically in the proportion of eighteen Republicans to four Democrats. BOARD OF PUBLIC CHARITIES, a State Bureau, created by act of the Legislature in 1869, upon the recommendation of Governor Oglesby. The act creating the Board gives the Commissioners supervisory oversight of the financial and administrative conduct of all tlie

Ansh, (7) (9)

—

charitable and correctional institutions of the with the exception of the penitentiaries, and they are especially charged with looking after and caring for the condition of the paupers and the insane. As originally constituted the Board consisted of five male members who emState,

ployed a Secretary. Later provision was made for the appointment of a female Commissioner. The ofHce is not elective. The Board has always carefully scrutinized the accounts of the various State charitable institutions, and, under its man-

agement, no charge of peculation against any official connected with the same has ever been substantiated there have been no scandals, and only one or two isolated charges of cruelty to inmates. Its supervision of the county jails and ;

almshouses has been careful and conscientious, and has resulted in benefit alike to the tax-payers and the inmates. The Board, at the close of the year 1898, consisted of the following five members, their terms ending as indicated in parenthesis: J. C. Corbus (1898). R. D. I^wrence (1899), Julia C. Lathrop (1900), William J. Cal

houn

(1901),

bus was

Ephraim Banning (1902). J. C. Corand Frederick H. Wines.

President

Secretary.

BOGARDUS,

Charles,

legislator,

was born

in

Y.. March 28. 1841, and orphan at six years of age was educated the common schools, began working in a store

at

12,

in

Cayuga County, N.

left iin

and

;

and, in 1862, enlisted in the

Fifty-first

New York

One Hundred

Infantry, being electe have been issued by the Commissioners in 1839. which, upon investigation, he became convinced was counterfeit, or had been fraudulently issued. Having communicated his conclusions to Hon. Jesse K. Dubois, the State Auditor, in charge of the work of refunding the State indebtedness, an Illinois

none of the persons

made were known

in

whose names the

issue wa.s

or ever afterward discovered.

The developments made by the Senate Finance Committee led to an offer from Matteson to

HISTOKICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

78

indemnify the State, in wliich he stated that he had "unconsciously and innocently been made the instrument through whom a gross fraud upon the State had been attempted." He therefore gave to the State mortgages and an indemnifying bond for the sum shown to liave been funded by liim of this class of indebtedness, upon which the State, on foreclosure a few years later, secured judgment for .$355,000, although the property on being sold realized only §338,000. A further investigation by the Legislature, in 1861, revealed the fact that additional issues of bonds for similar scrip had been made amounting to §165,.340, for which the State never received any compensation. A search through the State House for the trunk and box placed in the hands of Governor Matteson in 1853, while the official investigation

was

in progress, resulted in the discovery of the

trunk in a condition showing it had been opened^ but the box was never found. The fraud was

made the subject of a protracted investigation by the Grand Jury of Sangamon County in May, although the jury twice voted to indict Governor Matteson for larceny, it as often voted to reconsider, and, on a third ballot, voted to "ignore the bill." CAJiBY, Richard Spring, jurist, was born in Green County, Ohio, Sept. 30, 1808 was educated at Miami University and admitted to the bar, afterwards serving as Prosecuting Attorney, member of the Legislature and one term (1847-49) In 1863 he removed to Illinois, in Congress. 1859, and,

;

locating at Olney, was elected Judge of the Twenty-fifth Judicial Circuit in 1867, resuming practice at the expiration of his term in 1873.

Died in Richland County, July 37, 1895. Judge relative of Gen. Edward Richard Spriggs Canby, who was treacherously killed by the Modocs in California in 1873. CANNON, Joseph G., Congressman, was born

Canby was a

at Guilford, N.

C, May

7,

1836,

and removed to

youth, locating at Danville, Vermilion County. By profession he is a lawyer, and served as State's Attorney of Vermilion Illinois in early

County for two terms (1861-68). Incidentally, he is conducting a large banking business at Danville. In 1873 lie was elected as a Republican to the Forty-third Congress for the Fifteenth Dis-

and has been re-elected biennially ever since, except in 1890, when he was defeated for the Fifty-second Congress by Samuel T. Busey. his Democratic opponent. He is now (1898) serving his twelftli term as the Representative for the Twelfth Congressional District, and has been re-elected for a thirteenth term in the Fiftytrict,

Mr. Cannon has been

sixth Congress (1899-1901).

an influential factor in State and National politics, as shown by the fact that he has been Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations during the important sessions of the Fifty-fourth

and

Fifty-fifth Congresses.

CANTON,

a flourishing city in Fulton County, from the Illinois River, and 28 miles southwest of Peoria. It is tlie commercial metropolis of one of the largest and richest counties in the "corn belt"; also has abundant supplies of timber and clay for manufacturing purposes. There are coal mines within the municipal limits, and various manufacturing establishments. Among the principal outputs are agricultural implements, flour, brick and tile, cigars, cigar boxes, foundry and machine-shop products, fireThe city is lighted arms, brooms, and marble. by gas and electricity, has water-works, fire department, a public library, six ward schools and Populaone high schoo', and three newspapers. 13 miles

tion (1890), 5,604; (1900), 6,564. CAPPS, Jabez, pioneer, was born in London, 9, 1796; came to the United States and to Sangamon County, 111., in 1819. For a time he taught school in what is now

England, Sept. in 1817,

called

Round

County of Calhoun (the original

Prairie, in the present

Sangamon, and

later in

name of a part of the city of Springfield), having among his pupils a number of those who afterwards became prominent citizens of Central Illinois. In 1836, in conjunction with two parthe laid out the town of Mount Pulaski, the Logan County, where he continued to live for the remainder of his life, and where, during its later period, he served as Postmaster some fifteen years. He also served as Recorder of Logan County four years. Died, April 1, 1896, in the 100th year of his age. CARBONDALE, a city in Jackson County, founded in 1853, ,57 miles north of Cairo, and 91 Three lines of railway miles from St. Louis. ners,

original county-seat of

center here. The chief industries are coal-mining, farming, stock-raising, fruit-growing and lumbering. It lias two preserving plants, eight churches, two weekly papers, and four public seat of the Southern Illinois

and is the Normal University.

schools,

Pop.(1890), 3,383 (1900), 3,318. ;

CARBONBALE & SHAWNEETOWN RAILROAD,

miles in length, extending from Marion to Carbondale, and operated by the St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad

a short

Company, as Murphy sboro its

line 17'4^

lessee.

It

was incorporated as the

& Shawneetown

name changed

in 1869 to

Railroad in 1867;

The Carbondale

&

ISTOKIIAI. KNCVCLOI'HDIA oT ILLINOIS. Shawneetown, was opened for business, Deo. 31, 1871, and leased in 188G for 980 years to the St. Louis Southern, through which it passed into the hands of the St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad, and by lease from the latter, in 189G, became apart of the Illinois Central System (which see). CAREY, William, lawyer, was born in the town of Turner, Maine, Dec. 29, 1826 studied law with General Fessenden and at Yale Law School, was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court of Maine in 1856, the Supreme Court of Illinois in 1857, and the Supreme Court of the United States, on motion of Hon. Lyman Trumbull, in 1873. Judge Carey was a member of the State Constitutional Convention of 1869-70 from Jo Daviess County, and the choice of the Republicans in that body for temporary presiding officer; was elected to the next General Assembly (the Twenty -seventli), serving as Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee through its four sessions; from 1873 to 1876 was United States District Attorney for Utah, still later occupying various offices at Deadwood, Dakota, and in Reno County, Kan. The first office held by Judge Carey in Illinois (that of Superintendent of Schools for the city of Galena) was conferred upon him through the influence of John A. Raw;

lins, afterwards General Grant's chief-of-staff during the war, and later Secretary of War although at the time Mr. Rawlins and he were

politicall}'

dence

is

opposed.

Mr.

Carey's present

resi-

in Chicago.

CARLIN, Thomas, former

Governor, was born of Irish ancestry in Fayette County, Ky., July 18, 1789; emigrated to Illinois in 1811, and served as a private in the War of 1812, and as a Captain While not highly eduin the Black Hawk War. cated, he was a man of strong common sense, high moral standard, great firmness of character and unfailing courage. In 1818 he settled in Greene County, of which he was the first Sheriff: was twice elected .State Senator, and was Register of the Land Office at Quincy, when he was elected Governor on the Democratic ticket in 1838. An uncompromising partisan, he nevertheless commanded the respect and good-will of Died at his home in his political opponents. Carrollton, Feb.

14, 18.52.

CARLIN, William Passmore, soldier, nephew of Gov. Thomas Carlin, was bom at Rich Woods, Greene County, 111., Nov. 24, 1829. At the age of 21 he graduated from the United States Military

Academy

at

West

Point, and, in 1855,

was

attached to the Sixth United States Infantry as Lieutenant. After several years spent in Indian

79

he was ordered to California, where he was promoted to a captaincy and assigned to recruiting duty. On August 15, 1861. he wjis commissioned Colonel of the Thirty-eighth Illi nois Volunteers. His record during the war was an exceptionally brilliant one. He defeated Gen. Jeff. Thompson at Fredericktown, Mo., Oct. 21. 1861 commanded the District of Southeast Missouri for eighteen months led a brigade under Slocum in the Arkansas camjiaign served with fighting,

;

;

;

marked

distinction in

Kentucky and

Mississippi;

took a prominent part in the battle of Stone River, was engaged in the TuUahoma campaign, at Chattanooga, Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, and, on Feb. 8, 1864, was commissioned Major in the Sixteenth Infantry. He also took part in the Georgia campaign, aiding in the capture of Atlanta, and marching with Sherman to the sea. For gallant service in the assault at Tenn., Sept. 1, 1864, he was made Colonel in the regular army, and, on March 13, 1865, was brevetted Brigadier-General formeritorious service at Bentonville, N. C, and Major-

Jonesboro,

General for services during the war. Colonel Carlin was retired with the rank of BrigadierGeneral in 1893. His home is at Carrollton. CARLINVILLE, the county-seat of Macoupin County; a city and railroad junction, 57 miles northeast of St. Louis, and 38 miles southwest of Blackburn University (wliich .^ee) Springfield. Three coal mines are operated, is located here. there are brick works, tile works, and one and newspaper. The city has gas and electric light Population (1880), plants and water-works. 3,117;

(,1890),

3,293; (1900), 3,502.

CARLTLE, the county-seat of Clinton County, 48 miles east of St. Louis, located on the Kaskaskia River and the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern Railroad. The town lias churches, parochial and public schools, water-works, lighting plant, and manufactures.

young

It

has a flourishing seminary for weekly papers, and a public Popula-

ladies, three

library connected with the high school.

tion (1890), 1,784; (1900), 1,874. CARMI, the county-seat of White County,

on

the Little Wabash River, 124 miles east of St. Louis and 38 west of Evansville. Ind. The surrounding country is fertile, yielding both cereals and fruit. Flouring mills and lumber manufacturing, including the making of staves, are the chief industries, though the city has brick and Populatile works, a plow factory and foundry. tion (1880), 2,512; (1890), 2,785; (1900), 2,939. CARPENTER. Milton, legislator and State Trea-surer; entered

upon public

life in Illinois

as

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. Representative in the Ninth General Assembly (1834) from Hamilton County, serving by successive re-elections in tlie' Tenth. Eleventh and While a inember of the latter (1841) Twelft"li. he was elected by the Legislature to the office of State Treasurer, retaining tliis position until tlie adoption of the Constitution of 1848, when he was chosen his own successor by popular vote, but died a few days after the election in August, 1848. He was buried in what is now known as a burying tlie "Old Hutchinson Cemetery" ground in the west part of the city of Springfield,

—

(1897) in

—

where his remains still a grave unmarked by a tombstone.

long since abandoned

lie

CARPENTER, Philo, [jioneer and early druggist, was born of Puritan and Revolutionary ancestry in the town of Savoy, Mass., Feb. 27, 1805 engaged as a druggist's clerk at Troy, N. Y. in 1828, and came to Chicago in 1832, where he established himself in the drug business, which was later extended into other lines. Soon after his arrival, he began inve.sting in lands, which have since become immensely valuable. Mr. Carpenter was associated with the late Rev. Jeremiah Porter in the organization of the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, but, in 1851, withdrew on account of dissatisfaction with the attitude of some of the representatives of that denomination on the subject of slavery, identifying himself with the Congregationalist Church, He was one of the in which he had been reared. original founders and most liberal benefactors of Theological Seminary, to which he Chicago the ;

gave in contributions, during his life-time, or in bequests after his death, sums aggregating not One of the Seminary buildfar from $100,000. ings was named in his honor, "Carpenter Hall." He was identified with various other organizations, one of the most important being the Relief and Aid Society, which did such useful work after the fire of 1871.

By

a

life

of probity, liber-

and benevolence, he won the respect of all August 7. 1880. C.VRPENTER, (Mrs.) Sarah L. Warren, pio-

ality

classes, dying,

neer teacher, born in Fredonia, N Y.. Sept. 1, 1813; at the age of 13 she began teaching at State Line. N. Y. in 1833 removed with her parents (Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Warren) to Chicago, and soon after began teaching in what was called the ;

"Yankee settlement." now the town of Lockport, Will County. She came to Chicago the following year (1834) to take the place of assistant of Granville T. Sproat in a school for boys, and is said to have been the first teacher paid out of the public 'liappell funds in Chicago, tliougli Miss Eliza (

(afterwards Mrs. Jeremiah Porter) began teaching the children about Fort Dearborn in 1833. Miss Warren married Abel E. Carpenter, whom slie survived, dying at Aurora, Kane County, Jan.

10. 1897.

CARPEX'TERSVILLE,

a

village

of

Kane

County and inanufa'-turing center, on Lake Geneva brand) of tlie ('lHeago& Northwestern Railroad, 6 miles north of East Elgin and about 48 miles from Chicago. Pop. (1890), 754 (1900), 1,002. CARR, Clark E., lawyer, politician and diplomat, was born at Boston, Erie County. N. Y., May 20, 1836 at 13 years of age accompanied his father's family to Galesburg, 111. where he spent ;

;

,

Knox College. In 1857 he graduated from the Albany Law School, but on returning to Illinois, soon embarked in politics, hLs

several years at

being uniformly with the Republican His first office was that of Postmaster at Galesburg, to which he was appointed by Presi dent Lincoln in 1861 and which lie held for twenty-four years. He was a tried and valued assistant of Governor Yates during the War of the Rebellion, serving on the staff of the latter with the rank of Colonel. He was a delegate to the National Convention of his party at Baltimore in 1864, which renominated Lincoln, and took an active part in the campaigns of that year, as well In 1869 he purchased as those of 1868 and 1872. "The Galesburg Republican," which he edited and published for two years. In 1880 he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor; in 1884 was a delegate to the Republican National Convention, from the Stateat-large, and, in 1887, a candidate for the caucus nomination for United States Senator, which was given to Charles B. Farwell. In 1888 he was affiliations

party.

defeated in the Republican State Convention as candidate for Governor by Joseph W. Fifer. In 1889 President Harrison appointed him Minister to Denmark, which post he filled witli marked ability and credit to the country until his resig-

nation was accepted by President Cleveland, when he returned to liis former home at GalesWhile in Denmark he did much to burg. promote American trade with that country, especially in the introduction of American corn as an article of food, which has led to a large increase in the annual exportation of this commodity to Scandinavian markets. CARR, Eugene A., .soldier, was born in Erie County, N. Y., May 20, 1830, and graduated at West Point in 1850, entering the Mounted Rifles. Until 1801 he was stationeil in the Far West, and fiigaged in Indian fighting, parning a First TIN()IS.

an influential family. He began preacliing at an early age, and continued to do so occasionally through his jwlitical career. In 1819, he look a I

if

l)rominent part in the organization of Jeffers()ii County, serving on the first Board of County

Commissioners; was an unsuccessful candidate for the Legislature in 1820, but wius elected Representative in 1822 and re-elected two years later; in 1826 was advanced to the Senate, serving until 1830, when lie was elected LieutenantGovernor, and during his incumbency took jmrt in the Black Hawk War. On March 1, 1833, he resigned the Lieutenant-Governorship to accept a seat as one of the three Congressmen from Illinois, to which he had been elected a few months previous, being subsequently re-elected for foirr consecutive terms. In 1842 he was again a candidate, but was defeated by John A. McClernand. Other public' positions held by him included those of Delegate to the Constitutional Conventions of 11^47 and 1H62, Representative in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth General Assemblies (1848-52), serving as Speaker in the former. He was again elected tt) the Senate in 1860, but died before the expiration of his term, Sept. 1862.

During the

latter years of his life

4.

he was

active in secm-ing the right of way for the Ohio & Mississippi Railroad, the original of the Mississippi division of the Baltimore, Ohio & SouthHe commenced life in poverty, but w-estern. acquired a considerable estate, and was the donor of the ground upon which the Supreme Court building for the Southern Division at Mount Vernon was erected.— Dr. Xewton R. (Casey), son of the preceding, was born in Jefferson

County, 111., Jan. 27, 1826, received his primary education in the local schools and at Hillsboro and Jlount Vernon Academies; in 1842 entered the Ohio University at Athens in that remaining until 1845, when he comState, menced the study of medicine, taking a course of lectures the following year at the Louisville Medical Institute; soon after began practice, and, in 1847, removed to Benton, 111., returning In following year to Mount Vernon. the 1850-57 he attended a second course of lectures at the Missouri Jledical College, St. Louis, the latter year removing to Mound City, where he filled a number of positions, including that of Mayor from 1859 to 1864, when he declined a re-election.

In 1860, Dr. Casey served as delegate from Illinois to the Democratic National Convention at and, on the establishment of Charleston, S. the United States Government Hospital at Mound Citv. in I'^ni. actel for some time as a volunteer

C

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

84

was

one time sold by

surgeon, later serving as Assistant Surgeon. In in the elected Representative 1866, he was

as at present laid out,

Twenty-fifth General Assembly and re-elected in 1868, when he was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Speaker in opposition to Hon. S. M.

county was set off from Morgan in 1837. The principal towns are Beardstown, Virginia, ChandThe countylerville, Ashland and Arenzville. seat, formerly at Beardstown, was later removed Beardstown was to Virginia, where it now is. incorporated in 1837, with about 700 inhabitants. Virginia was platted in 1836, but not incorporated

CuUom; also again served as Representative in the Twenty -eighth General Assembly (1872-74). Since retiring from public life Dr. Casey has given his attention to the practice of his profesCol. Thomas S. (Casey), another son, was sion. born in Jefferson County, 111., April 6, 1832, educated in the common schools and at McKendree College, in due course receiving the degree of A.M. from the latter; studied law for three years, being admitted to the bar in 1854 in 1860, was elected State's Attorney for the Twelfth Judicial District; in September, 1862, was commissioned Colonel of the One Hundred and Tenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, but was mustered out May 16, 1863, having in the meantime taken part in the battle of Stone River and other important engagements in Western Tennessee. By this time his regiment, having been much reduced in numbers, was consolidated with the Sixtieth In 1864, he was Illinois Volunteer Infantry. again elected State's Attorney, serving until 1868; in 1870, was chosen Representative, and, in 1872, Senator for the Mount Vernon District for a term of four years. In 1879, he was elected Circuit Judge and was immediately assigned to Appellate Court duty, soon after the expiration of

—

;

his term, in 1885. removing to Springfield, where he died, March 1. 1891. CASS COUNTY, situated a little west of the center of the State, with an area of 360 square miles and a population (1900) of 17,222— named French traders are believed for Gen. Lewis Cass.

have made the locality of Beardstown their headquarters about the time of the discovery of the Illinois country. The earliest permanent white settlers came about 1820, and among them were Thomas Beard, Martin L. Lindsley, John Cetrough and Archibald Job. As early as 1821 there was a horse-mill on Indian Creek, and, in 1827, M. L., Lindsley conducted a school on the bluffs. Peter Cartwright, the noted Methodist missionary and evangelist, was one of the earliest preacliers, and among the pioneers may be named

to

McDonald, Downing, Penny, Bergen and Hopkins. Beardstown was the original county-seat, and during both the Black Hawk and Mormon troubles was a depot of supplies and rendezvous for troops. Here also Stephen A. Douglas made his first political speech. The site of the town. Messrs. Robertson, Toplo,

Davis, Shepherd,

Mr.

Downing

for

at

twenty-five

dollars.

The

until 1843.

CASTLE, Orlando Lane,

educator,

was born at

Jericho, Vt., July 26, 1822; graduated at Denison

University, Ohio, 1846,- spent one year as tutor there, and, for several years, had charge of the

public schools of Zanesville, Ohio. In 1858, he accepted the chair of Rhetoric, Oratory and Belles-Lettres in Shurtleff College, at Upper Alton, 1892.

111.,

remaining until his death, Jan.

Professor Castle received the

LL.D. from Denison University in

CATHERWOOD, Mary

31,

degree of

1877.

HartweU, author, was

born (Hartwell) in Luray, Ohio, Dec. 16, 1844, educated at the Female College, Granville, Ohio,

where she graduated, in 1868, and, in 1887, was married to James S. Catherwood, with whom she 111. Mrs. Catherwood is the author of a number of works of fiction, which have been accorded a high rank. Among her resides at Hoopeston,

earlier productions are

"Craque-o'-Doom"

(1881),

"Rocky Fork" (1882), "Old Caravan Days" (1884), "The Secrets at Roseladies" (1888), "The Romance of Dollard" and "The Bells of St. Anne" (1889). During the past few years she has shown a predilection for subjects connected with early Illinois history, and has published popular romances under the title of "The Story of Tonty," "The White Islander," "The Lady of Fort St. John," "Old Kaskaskia" and "The Chase of Sant Castin and other Stories of the French

New World. CATOJf, John Dean, early lawyer and jurist, in Monroe County, N. Y., March 19, 1812. Left to the care of a widowed mother at an early age, his childhood was spent in poverty and manual labor. At 15 he was set to learn a trade, but an infirmity of sight compelled him to abandon it. After a brief attendance at an academy at Utica, where he studied law between the ages of 19 and 21. in 1833 he removed to Chicago, and shortly afterward, on a visit to Pekin, was examined and licensed to practice by Judge Stephen T. Logan. In 1834, he was elected in the

was born

Justice of

tlie

Peace,

served as Alderman

in

and sat upon the bench of the Supreme Court from 1842 to 1864, when lie resigned, hav1837-38,

IIISTOEICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

85

ing served nearly twenty-two years. During tliis period he more than onoe occupied the posiBeing embarrassed by the tion of Chief -Justice. financial stringency of 1837-38, in the latter year he entered a tract of land near Plainfield, and, taking his family with him, began farming. Later in life, while a resident of Ottawa, he became interested in the consti-uction of telegraph lines in the West, which for a time bore his name and were ultimately incorporated in the "Western Union," laying the foundation of a large fortune. On retiring from the bench, he devoted himself for the remainder of his life to his private

Acting Superintendent for several months, when the place was filled by the appointment of Dr. Andrew McFarland of New Hampshire, his administration continuing until 1870, when he resigned on account of ill-health, being succeeded

and to literary labors. Among works are "The Antelope and Deer of America," "A Summer in Norway," "Miscellanies," and "Early Bench and Bar of Illinois." Died in Chicago, July 30, 189.5. CATARLT, Alfred W., early lawyer and legis-

extension in which were to be the chapel, kitchen and employes' quarters. Subsequently these wings were greatly enlarged, permitting an increase in the number of wards, and as the exigencies of the institution demanded, appropri-

lator,, was born in Connecticut, Sept. 15, 1793; served as a soldier in the War of 1812, and, in

Numerous detached buildings have been erected within the past few years, and

affairs, to travel,

his published

to Illinois, first settling at Edwardsand soon afterwards at Carrollton, Greene Here he was elected Representative in the Fifth General Assembly (1820), and again to 1822,

came

ville,

Covmty.

the Twelfth (1840) also served as Senator in the Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth A.ssemblies (18-13-48), acting, in 1845, as one of the Commissioners to revise the statutes. In 1844, he was chosen a Presidential Elector, and, in 1846, was a prominent candidate for the Democratic nomination for Governor, but was defeated in convention by Augustus C. French. Mr. Cavarly was prominent both in his profession and in the Legislature while a member of that body. In ;

1853,

he removed to Ottawa, where he resided

until his death, Oct. 25, 1876.

CENTERTILLE (or Central City), a village in the coal-mining district of Grundy County, near Coal City. Population (1880), 673; (1900). 290.

CENTRAL HOSPITAL FOR THE INSANE, established under act of the Legislature passed ilarcli 1, 1847, and located at Jacksonville, Mor-

founding was largely due to the philanthropic efforts of Miss Dorothea L. Dix, who addressed the people from the platform and appeared before the General Assembly in behalf

gan County.

Its

of this class of

unfortunates.

Construction of

the building was begun in 1848. By 1851 two wards were ready for occupancy, and the first patient was received in November of that year. The first Superintendent was Dr. J. M. Higgins, who served less than two years, when he was succeeded by Dr. H. K. Jones, who had been Assistant Superintendent. Dr. Jones remained as

by Dr. Henry

F. Carriel of New Jersey. Dr. Carriel tendered his resignation in 1893, and, two further changes, in 1897 Dr. F. C. Winslow, who liad been xVssistant Superin-

after one or

tendent under Dr. Carriel, was placed in charge of the institution. The original plan of construction provided for a center building, five and a

and two wings with a rear

half stories high,

made

ations have been tional buildings.

for the erection of addi-

the capacity of the institution greatly increased "The Annex" admitting of the introduction of many new and valuable features in the classifica-

—

and treatment of patients. The number of inmates of late years has ranged from 1,200 to tion

The counties

1,400.

froni

which patients are

institution embrace: Rock Henry, Bureau, Putnam, Marshall, Stark, Knox, Warren, Henderson, Hancock, McDonough, Fulton, Peoria, Tazewell, Logan, Mason, Menard, Cass, Schuyler, Adams, Pike, Calhoun, Brown, Scott, Morgan, Sangamon, Christian, Montgomery, Macoupin, Greene and

received

in

this

Mercer,

Island,

Jerse}-.

CENTRALIA, a city and railway center of Marion County, 250 miles south of Chicago. It forms a trade center for the famous "fruit belt" of Southern Illinois; has a number of coal mines, a glass plant, an envelope fa' tory, iron foundries, railroad repair shops, flour and rolling mills, and an ice plant also has water- works and sewerage system, a fire department, two daily papers, and ;

excellent graded schools.

splendid 4,763;

pleasure

(1900),

6,721;

&

CENTRALIA {See Ct'iitralia

&

resorts. (1903,

Several parks afford Population (1890), e.-it.l

S.OOO.

ALTAMOXT RAILROAD.

C/ics/cr

l;,f,lrn,,.l.

i

CENTRALIA & CHESTER RAILROAD, way

a

rail-

wholly within the State, extending from Salem, in Marion County, to Chester, on the Mississippi River (91.0 miles), with a lateral branch from Sparta to Roxborough (5 miles), and trackage facilities over the Illinois Central from the branch junction to Centralia (2.9 miles) line

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. total, 99.5 miles.

The original

line

was chartered

& Chester Railroad, in December, completed from Sparta to Coulterville in and consolidated the same year with the

as the Centralia 1887,

1889,

& Evansville and the Centralia & Altaline completed Railroads (projected); from Centralia to Evansville early in 1894. The Rosborough was built in to Sparta from branch 1895, the section of the main line from Centralia in and that from miles) 1896, (14.9 Salem to Sparta niont

Chester (17.6 miles) in 1897-98. The road was placed in the hands of a receiver, June 7, 1897, and the expenditures for extension and equipment made under authority granted by the United States Court for the issue of Receiver's Evansville to

The total capitalization which $978,000 is in stocks and

is

certificates. 841, of

$2,374,-

$948,000 in

bonds.

CE>TRAL MILITARY TRACT RAILROAD. r its branches (1870-74) General Superintendent of the Missouri. Kansas & Texas (1874-76 1. Superintendent of the Western Division of the Wabash (1877-79). In 1S80, he accepted the jx>sition of Assistant CJeneral Superintendent "I the Chicago & Alton Railroad, lieing advanced in the next three years through the grades of General Superintendent and Assistant General Manager, to that of General Manager of the entire system, which he has continued to fill for over twelve years. Quietly and without show or display. Mr. Chappell continues in the discharge of his duties, assisting to make the system with which he is identified one of the most successful (1869-70); Assistant or Division

CHARLEVOIX,

Pierre Francois Xavier de,

celebrated French traveler and an early explorer of Illinois, born at St. Quentin, France, He entered the Jesuit Society, Oct. 29. 1682.

and while a student was .sent to Quebec (1695), where for four years he was instructor in the college, and completed his divinity studies In 1709 he returned to France, but came again to Quebec a few years later. He ascended the St. Lawrence, sailed through Lakes Ontario and Erie, and finally reached the Mississippi by waj- of the Illinois River, .\fter visiting Cahokia and the

surrounding county (1720-21). he continued down the Mississippi to New Orleans, and returned to France by way of Santo Domingo. Besides some works on religious subjects, he was the author of histories of Japan, Paraguay and San Domingo. His great work, liowever. was the "Historj- of New France." which was not published imtil twenty years after his death. His journal of his American explorations appeared about the same His history has long fc)een cited by time. scholars as authority, but no English translation was made imtil 1865. when it was undertaken by Died in France. Fnh. 1. 1761 Shea.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. CHASE, Bishop,

Philander,

was born

Episcopal

Protestant

in Cornish, Vt.,

and graduated at Dartmouth

Dec

14, 1775,

Although

in 1795.

he adopted the Episcopal faith, and was ordained a priest in 1799, for several years laboring as a missionary In 1805, in Northern and "Western New York. he went to New Orleans, but returning North in reared as a Congregationalist,

1811, spent six years as a rector at New Haven, Conn., then engaged in missionary work in Ohio, organizing a number of parishes and founding an academy at Worthington; was consecrated a

Bishop in raise

1819,

funds,

and

laid

after a visit to

the

foundation

England to of

Kenyon

and Gambier Theological Seminary, named in honor of two English noblemen who had contributed a large portion of the funds. Diflerences arising with some of his clergy in reference to the proper use of the funds, he resigned both the Bishopric and the Presidency of the college in 1831. and after three years of missionary labor in Michigan, in 1835 was chosen College

Bishop of Illinois. Making a second visit to England, he succeeded in raising additional funds, and, in 1838, foimded Jubilee College at Robin's Nest, Peoria Covmty, 111., for which a charter was obtained in 1847. He was a man of great religious zeal, of indomitable perseverance and the most successful pioneer of the Episcopal Church in the West. He was Presiding Bishop from 1843 until his death, which occurred Sept. Several volumes appeared from his pen, 20, 1853. the most important being "A Plea for the West" (1826), and "Reminiscences: an Autobiography, Comprising a History of the Principal Events in the Author's Life" (1848). CHATHAM, a village of Sangamon County, on the Chicago & Alton Railroad, 9 miles south of Population (1890), 482; (1900), (329.. Springfield. CHATSWOETH, town in Livingston County, on 111. Cent, and Toledo, Peoria & Western Railways, 79 miles east of Peoria; in farming and stock-raising district has two banks, three grain elevators, five churches, a graded school, two weekly papers, waterworks, electric lights, paved streets, cement sidewalks, brick works, and other ;

manufactories.

CHEBANSE,

Pop. (1890), 827; (1900), 1,038.

a town in Iroquois and Kankakee

Illinois Central Railroad, 64 miles south-southwest from Chicago; the place has two banks and one newspaper. Population

Counties, on the

(1880), 72S; (1890), 610; (1900), 555.

CHENEY, Charles Edward, Bishop of the Reformed Protestant Episcopal Church, was born in Canandaigua, N. Y., Feb. 12, 1836; graduated at

1857, and began study for the ministry of the Protestant Episcopal Chiu-ch. Soon after ordination he became rector of Christ Church,

Hobart in

Chicago, and was prominent among those who. imder the leadership of Assistant Bishop Cummins of Kentucky, organized the Reformed Episcopal Church in 1873. He was elected Missionary Bishop of the Northwest for the new organization, and was consecrated in Christ Church, Chicago, Dec.

14, 1873.

CHENEY, John

Vance, author and librarian, Groveland, N. Y., Dec. 29, 1848, though the family home was at Dorset, Vt.. where he grew up and received his primary education. He acquired his academic training at Manchester, Vt., and Temple Hill Academy, Genesee, N. Y., graduating from the latter in 1865, later becoming Assistant Principal of the same institution. Having studied law, he was admitted to the bar successively in Massachusetts and New York but meanwhile having written considerably for the old "Scribner's Monthly" (now "Century Magazine"), while under the editorship of Dr. J. G. Holland, he gi-adually adopted literature as a profession. Removing to the Pacific Coast, he took charge, in 1887, of the Free Public Library at San Francisco, remaining imtil 1894, when he accepted the position of Librarian of the Newberry Library in Chicago,

was born

at

;

as successor to Dr. William F. Poole, deceased. Besides two or three volumes of verse, Mr. Cheney is the author of numerous essays on literary His published works include "Thistlesubjects.

poems (1887); "Wood-Blooms," poems "Golden Guess," essays (1892); "That "Queen Helen," poem (1895) and "Out of the Silence," poem He is also editor of "Wood Notes Wild," (1897). by Simeon Pease Cheney (1893), and Caxton Club's Drift," (1888),

Dome

in Air," essays (1895);

edition of Derby's Phoenixiana. CHENOA, an incorporated city of McLean County, at the intersecting point of the Toledo, Peoria & Western and the Chicago & Alton Railroads, 48 miles east of Peoria, 33 miles northeast of Bloomington, and 103 miles south of Chicago. Agriculture, dairy farming, fruit-growing and coal-mining are the chief industries of the surrounding region. The city also has an electric light plant, water-works, canning works and tile works, besides two banks, seven churches, a graded school, two weekly papers, and telephone systems connecting with the surrounding country.

Population

(1890), 1,226; (1900), 1,513.

CHESBROUGH, EUis Sylvester, civil engineer, was born

in Baltimore, Md.,

July

6,

1813; at the

CHICAGO THOROUGHFARES.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. age of thirteen was chamman to an engineering party on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, being

employed ou other roads. In 1S37, he was appointed senior assistant engineer in the conlater

struction of the Louisville, Cincinnati

&

Charles-

ton Railroad, and, in 1846, Chief Engineer of the Boston "Waterworks, in 18.50 becoming sole Commissioner of the

Water Department

of that city.

he became engineer of the Chicago Board of Sewerage Commissioners, and in that capacity designed the sewerage system of the city also planning the river tunnels. He resigned the Commissioner of Public Works of '>flSce of Chicago in 1879. He was regarded as an authority on water-supply and sewerage, and was consulted by the officials of New York, Boston, In

1855,

—

Milwaukee and other cities. Died, August 19, 1886. CHESjVTJT, John A., lawyer, was bom in Ken-

Toronto,

father being a native of South Carolina, but of Irish descent. John A. was educated principally in his native State, but

tucky, Jan.

19, 1816, his

came

to Illinois in 1836, read law with P. H. Winchester at Carlinville, was admitted to the bar in 1837, and practiced at Carlinville until 1855, when he removed to Springfield and engaged Mr. Chesin real estate and banking business. nut was associated with many local business enterprises, was for several years one of the Trustees of the Institution for the Deaf and Dumb at Jacksonville, also a Trustee of the Illinois Female College (Methodist) at the same place, and was Supervisor of the United States Census for the Sixth District of Illinois in 1880.

Died, Jan. 14, 1898.

CHESTER, the county-seat of Randolph County, situated on the Mississippi River, 76 miles south of St. Louis. It is the seat of the Southern Illinois Penitentiary and of tlie State Asylum

for Insane Convicts

It

stands in the

heart of a region abounding in bituminous coal, and is a prominent shipping point for this commodity also has quarries of building stone. It ;

89

being chosen to the captaincy of a company in the Twelfth Regiment of Illinois Volunteers, which General Grant had declined participated in tlie campaign on the Tennessee River which resulted in the capture of Fort Donelson anu the battle of Shiloh, meanwhile being commissioned Lieutenant-Colonel also distinguished himself at 1801,

;

;

Corinth,

May,

where he remained in command and organized tlie first colored

1863,

until regi-

ment raised in the West. In December, 1863, he was promoted Brigadier-General and placed in charge of the organization of colored troops in Tenne.ssee, serving later in Kentucky and being brevetted Major-General in January, 1864. From January to October, 1865, he commanded the post at Memphis, and later the District of Talladega, Ala., xintil January, 1866, when he wivs mustered out of the service. General Chetlain of Internal Revenue for the District of Utah (1867-69), then appointed United States Consul at Brussels, serving until 1872, on his retm-n to the United States establishing himself as a banker and broker in Chicago. CHICAGO, the county-seat of Cook County, chief city of Illinois and (1890) second city in population in the United States. Situation.— Tlie city is situated at the southwest bend of Lake Michigan, 18 miles north of the extreme southern point of the lake, at the mouth of the Chicago River; 715 miles west of New York, 590 miles north of west from Wash•

and 260 miles northeast of St. Louis. the Pacific Coast it is distant 2,417 miles. Latitude 41° 52' north; longitude 87' 35' west of Greenwich. Area (1898), 186 square miles. Topography. Chicago stands on the dividing ridge between the Mississippi and St. Lawreace ington,

From

—

above sea-level, and its is some 18 feet above Lake MichiThe Chicago River is virtually a bayou, dividing into north and south branches about a half-mile west of the lake. The surrounding basins.

It is 502 feet

highest point

gan.

country

is

a low,

flat

but engineering for it in the

prairie,

much

has a grain elevator, flouring mills, rolling mills Population (1880), 3,580; (1890),

science and skill have done

2,708; (1900), 2,833.

terminates at a point on the south branch of the Chicago River, witliin the city limits, and unites the waters of Lake Michigan with those of the Illinois River.

and foundries.

CHETLAIN, Augustus

Louis, soldier, was born

in St. Louis, Mo., Dec. 26, 1834, of

—

French Hugue-

not stock his parents having emigrated from Switzerland in 1823, at first becoming members of the Selkirk colony on Red River, in Manitoba. Having received a common school education, he became a merchant at Galena, and was the first to volunteer there in response to the call for troops after the bombardment of Fort Sumter, in

way

of drainage.

—

The

Illinois

&

Michigan Canal

Commerce. The Cliicago River, with its branches, afi'ords a water frontage of nearly 60 miles, the greater part of which is utilized for the shipment and unloading of grain, lumber, stone, coal, merchandise, etc. Anrther navigable stream (the Calumet River) also lies within the

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

90

Dredging has made the Chicago River, with its hranclies, navigable for The liarhor has also been vessels of deep draft. widened and deepened. Well constructed break-

corporate limits.

waters protect the vessels lying inside, and the port is as safe as any on the great lakes. The city is a port of entry, and the tonnage of vessels arriving there exceeds that of any other port in

During 1897, 9,156 vessels an aggregate tonnage of 7,209,442, representing a tonnage of while 9,201 cleared, It. is the largest grain market in tlie 7,185,324. a capacity having 1897) (in world, its elevators

the United

States.

arrived, with

of 33,550,000bvishels. According to the reports of the

Board of Trade, the total receipts and shipments of grain for grain equivaits flour as the year 1898— counting lent in bushels— amounted to 323,097,453 bushels of the latter. bushels 289,920.028 of the former, to The receipts and shipments of various products for the

year (1898) were as follows:

Flour

bbls.

Receipts. (

Wheat

)

.

(bu.)

Corn

" •

Oats

.

.

.

Rye

"...

Barley

"

.

.

Cured Meats

.

.

.

.

(lbs.)

Dressed Bfeef " Hogs Live-stock

.

—

Cattle

Sheep Chicago

is

also

an important lumber market,

the receipts in 1895, including shingles, being As a center for beef and pork1,563,527 M. feet. packing, the city is without a rival in the amount of its products, there having been 92,459 cattle and 760,514 hogs packed in 1894-95. In bank clearings and general mercantile business it

ranks second only to New York, while it is also one of the chief manufacturing centers of the country. The census of 1890 shows 9,959 manufacturing establishments, with a capital of $292,477,038; employing 203,108 hands, and turning out products valued at S632, 1 84, 140, Of the output by far the largest was that of the slaughtering and meat-packing establishments, amounting to $203,825,092; men's clothing came next ($33,517,226) iron and steel, $31,419,854; foundry and machine shop products, $39,938,616; planed Chicago is also the most lumber, $17,604,494. important live-stock market in the United States. The Union Stock Yards (in the southwest part of ;

the city) are connected with all railroad lines entering the city, iiiul rover many hundreds of

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA the population of the infant settlement by drawing to it settlers from the interior for purposes of

mutual

Town

protection.

August

effected on

10,

ever, a charter

a city.

was 1832, the total number of The town grew rapidly

During May of that

The

was obtained and Cliicago became number of votes cast at that

total

time was 703. Tlie census of the city for the 1st of July of that year showed a population of 4, 180. The following table shows the names and term of office of tlie chief citv officers from 1837 to

Drganizatioii

Totes polled being 28. for a time, but received a set-back in the Hnancial crisis of 1837.

ILLI]^OI^

how-

year,

C'TV ATTOKNKY.

Wm.

B. Ogden BucknerS. Morris Ben).

N. Arnold, Geo. Davis Geo. Davis Wm. H. Brackett

(Ii.

il.

W. Raymond

I

Geo.

W.

Dole.

Thomas Hoyne Alexander Lloyd Mark Skinner W.S. Gurnee, N.H. BolIe«(3) Thomas Hoyne Geo. Manierre N. H. Bolles. F. C. Sherman J. Curtis Ben]. W. Raymond Henry Brown F. C. Sherman. James M. Lowe Augustus Garrett G. Manierre. Henry BrowniS) Walters. Gurnee. Henry W.Clarke Aug.Oarre tt, Alson S.shermaui 4 E. A. Rucker Walters. Gurnee. Aug.Garrett.AlsonS.ShermanEY, & OHIO RIVER RAILOhio River Railroad.) ROAD. (See Vlik-a(jo DANVILLE, URBANA, BLOOMINdiTON k PEKIN RAILROAD. (See Peoria & Eastern cf-

Railroad.)

D'ARTAIGUIETTE, Pierre, a French com inandant of Illinois from 1734 to 1736, having been appointed by Bienville, then Governor ot Louisiana.

He was

distinguished for gallantry

and courage. He defeated the Natchez Indians, but, in an unsuccessful expedition against the Chickasaws, was wounded, captured and burned at the stake.

DAVENPORT,

George,

soldier,

pioneer

ami

born in Lincolnshire, England, in 1783. i-ame to this country in 1804, and soon aftei enlisted in the United States army, with the rani of sergeant. He served gallantly on various expeditions in the West, where he obtained a knowledge of the Indians which was afterward trader,

During the War of 181'^ regiment was sent East, where he participated in the defense of Fort Erie and in other enterprises. In 1815, his term of enlistment having expired and the war ended, he entered the He selected service of the contract commissary. the site for Fort Armstrong and aided in planning of great value to him. his

and

super^-ising its construction.

He

cultivated

friendly relations with the surrounding tribes, and, in 1818, built a double log house, married, and engaged in business as a fur-trader, near the

the present city of Rock Island. He had the confidence and respect of the savages, was successful and his trading posts were soon scattered through Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin. In 1823 he piloted the first steamboat through the site of

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

128

upper Mississippi, and, in 1835, was appointed the first postmaster at Rock Island, being the only white civilian resident there. In 1826 he united his business with that of the American Fur Company, in whose service he remained. Although he employed every eifort to induce President Jackson to make a payment to Black Hawk and his followers to induce them to emigrate across the Mississippi voluntarily, when that Chief commenced hostilities, Mr. Davenport tendered his services to Governor Reynolds, bj whom he was commissioned Quartermaster-General with Immigration increased the rank of Colonel. rapidly after the close of the Black Hawk War In 1835 a company, of which he was a member, founded the town of Davenport, opposite Rock

which was named in his honor. In 1837 he was largely instrumental in negotiating treaties by which the Indians ceded their lands in Iowa to the United States. In the latter year he gave up the business of fur-trading, having accumulated a fortune through hard labor and scrupulous integrity, in the face often of grave perils. He had large business interests in nearly every town in his vicinity, to all of which he gave more or less personal attention. On the night of July 4, 1843, he was assassinated at his liome by robbers. For a long time the crime was shrouded in mystery, but its perpetrators were ultimately detected and brought to punishment. DAVIS, David, jurist and United States Senator, was born in Cecil County, Md., March Island,

and

9,

'43

academic studies at Kenyon and studied law at Yale. He settled

1815; pursued his

College, Ohio,

at Bloomington,

111.,

in 1836, and, after practicing

law there until 1844, was elected to the lower house After of the Fourteenth General Assembly. serving in the Constitutional Convention of 1847, Judicial the Eighth of he was elected Judge Circuit under the new Constitution in 1848, being He was a warm, perre-elected in 1855 and '61. sonal friend of Abraham Lincoln, who, in 1863, of the United States bench the Ijlaced him upon Supreme Court. He resigned his high judicial Senator in 1877 States United honors to become On Oct. 13, as successor to Logan's first term. tem. of the pro President 1881, he was elected Senate, serving in this capacity to the end of his term in 1885. He died at his home in Blooming-

June 26, 1886. DAVIS, George B., lawyer and Congressman, was born at Three Rivers, Mass., January 3, 1840; received a common school education, and a

ton,

Seminary, Easthamp(o 1865 he served in tlie

classical course at Williston

ton, Mass.

From

1h(!2

Union army, first as Captain in the Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, and later as Major in the Third Rhode Island Cavalry. After the war he removed to Chicago, where he still resides. By profession he is a lawyer. He took a prominent part in the organization of the Chicago militia, was elected Colonel of the First Regiment, I, N. G., and was for a time the senior Colonel in the State service. In 1876 he was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for Congress, but was elected in 1878,

and

re-elected in 1880

and

1883.

From

1886 to 1890 he was Treasurer of Cook County. He took an active and influential part in securing the location of the World's Columbian E.xposition at Chicago, and was Director-General of the Exposition from its inception to its close, by his executive ability demonstrating the wisdom of his selection. Died Nov. 35, 1899.

DAVIS, Hasbrouck, soldier and

journalist,

was

born at Worcester, Mass., April 33, 1837, being the son of John Davis, United States Senator and Governor of Massachusetts, known in his lifetime as "Honest John Davis." The son came to Chicago in 1855 and commenced the practice of law in 1861 joined Colonel Voss in the organization of the Twelfth Illinois Cavalry, being elected Lieutenant-Colonel and, on the retirement of Colonel Voss in 1863, succeeding to the colonelcy. In March, 1865, he was brevetted Brigadier-General, remaining in active service until August, After the war he was, 1865, when he resigned. for a time, editor of "The Chicago Evening Post," was City Attorney of the City of Chicago from 1867 to '69, but later removed to Massachusetts Colonel Davis was drowned at sea, Oct. 19, 1870. by the loss of the steamship Cambria, while on a voyage to Europe. DAVIS, James M., early lawyer, was born in Barren County, Ky., Oct. 9, 1793, came to Illinois ;

Bond County and is said to have taught the first school in that county. He became a lawyer and a prominent leader of the Whig party, was elected to the Tliirteenth General Assembly (1842) from Bond County, and to the Twenty-first from Montgomery in 1858, having, in the meantime, become a citizen of Hillsboro was also a member of the State Constitutional Convention of 1847. Mr. Davis was a in 1817, located in

;

man of

striking personal appearance, being over six feet in height, and of strong individuality. After the dissolution of the Whig party he identified

himself with the Democracy and was an

intensely bitter opponent of the war policy of Died, at Hillsboro, Sept. 17. the Government.

HISTORICAL ENCVCLOI'KDIA OF ILLINOIS

129

A., soldier, was born in Crawford County, Pa., Oct. 2.5. 1823; came to Stephen-

Journal of the American JIeV.,

to 1889 he rejjre.sented the First Illinois

District in Congress, after the expiration of his last term devoting his attention to his large

private liusiness.

His death took place suddenly

at Springfielom one of his trips to the Lake Superior country. With an imagination fired by what he then lea.-ned, he made a visit to his native country, receiving a

24€

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

grant from the French Government which enabled him to carry out his plans. With the aid of Henry de Tonty, an Italian who afterward accompanied him in his most important expeditions, and who proved a most valuable and efficient CO- laborer, imder the auspices of Frontenac, then Governor of Canada, he constructed a small vessel at the foot of Lake Erie, in which, with a liberal

company

of thirty-four persons, he set sail

on

the seventh of August, 1679, for the West. This vessel (named the "Griffon") is believed to have been the first sailing-vessel that ever navigated the lakes. His object was to reach the Illinois, and he carried with him material for a boat which he intended to put together on that stream. Arriving in Green Bay early in September, by way of Lake Huron and the straits of Mackinaw, he disembarked his stores, and, loading the Griffon with furs, started it on its return with instructions, after discharging its cargo at the starting point, to join him at the head of Lake Michigan. With a force of seventeen men and three missionaries in four canoes, he started southward, following the western shore of Lake Michigan past the mouth of the Chicago River, on Nov. 1, 1679, and reached the mouth of the St. Joseph River, at the southeast corner of the lake, which had been selected as a rendezvous. Here he was joined by Tonty, three weeks

with a force of twenty Frenchmen who had come by the eastern shore, but the Griffon never was heard from again, and is supposed to have been lost on the return voyage. While waiting for Tonty he erected a fort, afterward called Fort Miami. The two parties here united, and, leaving four men in charge of the fort, with the remaining thirty-three, he resumed his journey on the third of December. Ascending the St. Joseph to about where South Bend, Ind., now stands, he made a portage with his canoes and stores across to the headwaters of tlie Kankakee, which he descended to the Illinois. On the first of January he arrived at the great Indian town of the Kaskaskias, which Marquette had left for the last time nearly five years before, but found it deserted, the Indians being absent on a hunting expedition. Proceeding down the Illinois, on Jan. 4, 1680, he passed through Peoria Lake and the next morning reached the Indian later,

village of that name at the foot of the lake, and established friendly relations with its people. Having determined to set up his vessel here, he constructed a rude fort on the eastern bank of

the river about four miles south of the village. With the exception of the cabin built for Mar-

quette on the South Branch of the Chicago River in the winter of 1674-75, this was probably the structure erected by white men in Illinois. This received the name "Creve-Ccexu- "Broken Heart" which, from its subsequent history, proved exceedingly appropriate. Having dispatched Father Louis Hennepin with two companions to the Upper Mississippi, by way of the mouth of the Illinois, on an expedition which resulted in the discovery of the Falls of St. Anthony, La Salle started on his return to Canada for additional assistance and the stores which he had failed to receive in consequence of the loss of the Griffon. Soon after his departure, a majority of the men left with Tonty at Fort Creve-Coeur mutinied, and, having plundered the fort, partially destroyed it. This compelled first

—

—

Tonty and

five

companions who had remained

true, to retreat to the Indian village of the

Illi-

nois near "Starved Rock," between where the cities of Ottawa and La Salle now stand, where

he spent the summer awaiting the return of La In September, Tonty 's Indian allies having been attacked and defeated by the Iroquois, he and his companions were again compelled to flee, reaching Green Bay the next spring, after having spent the winter among the Pottawatomies in the present State of Wisconsin. During the next three years (1681-83) La Salle made two other visits to Illinois, encountering and partially overcoming formidable obstacles at each end of the journey. At the last visit, in company with the faithful Tonty, whom he had met at Mackinaw in the spring of 1681, after a separation of more than a year, he extended his exploration to the mouth of the Mississippi, of which he took formal possession on April 9, 1682, in the name of "Louis the Grand, King of France and Navarre." This was the first expedition of white men to pass down the river and determine the problem of its discharge into the Gulf of Mexico. Returning to Mackinaw, and again to Illinois, in the fall of 1682, Tonty set about carrying into effect La Salle's scheme of fortifying "The Rock, to which reference has been made under the name of "Starved Rock. " The buildings are said to have included store-houses (it was intended as a trading post), dwellings and a block-house erected on the summit of the rook, and to which the name of "Fort St. Louis" was given, while a village of confederated Indian tribes gathered about its base on tlie south which bore the name According to the historian, of La Vantum. Parkman, the population of this colony, in the Salle.

FORT DEARBORX FROM THE WEST,

WAR

EAGLE.

1808.

'f^^^m.^

FOKT DEARBORN

2D, IX 1853,

FROM THE SOUTHWEST.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OP ILLINOIS. days of its greatest prosperity,

was not

less

than

Tonty retained his headquarters at Fort Louis for eighteen years, during which he

20,000. St.

made extensive excursions throughout the West. The proprietorship of the fort was granted to him in 1690, but, in 1702, it was ordered by the Governor of Canada to be discontinued on the plea that the charter had been violated. It continued to be used as a trading post, however, as late as 1718, when it was raided by the Indians and burned. (See La Salle; Tonty; Hennepin, and Starved Bock. Other explorers who were the contemporaries or early successors of Marquette, Jollet, La Salle, Tonty, Hennepin and their companions in the Northwest, and many of whom are known to have visited the "Illinois Country," and probably all of whom did so, were Daniel Greysolon du Lhut (called by La Salle, du Luth), a cousin of Tonty, who was the first to reach the Mississippi directly from Lake Superior, and from whom the city of Duluth has been named Henry Joutel, a townsman of La Salle, who was one of the survivors of the ill-fated Matagorda Bay colony; Pierre Le Sueur, the discoverer of the Minnesota River, and Baron la Hontan, who made a tour through Illinois in 1688-89, of which he published an ;

account in 1703. Chicago River early became a prominent point in the estimation of the French explorers and was a favorite line of travel in reaching the Illinois by way of the Des Plaines, though probably sometimes confounded with other streams about the head of the lake. The Calumet and Grand Calumet, allowing easy portage to the Des Plaines, were also used, while the St. Joseph, from which portage was had into the Kankakee, seems tn have been a part of the route first used by La Salle.

Aborioines and Early Missions.— When the early French explorers arrived in the "Illinois it occupied by a number of most numerous being tlie which consisted of several families or bands that spread themselves over the country on

Country" they found

tribes of Indians, the "Illinois,"

both sides of the Illinois River, extending even west of the Mississippi the Piankeshaws on the the present western east, extending beyond ;

boundary of Indiana, and the Miamis in the northeast, with whom a weaker tribe called the Weas were allied. The Illinois confederation included

the

Kaskaskias.

Peorias,

Cahokias,

—

Tamaroas and Mitchigamies the last being the from which Lake Jlichigan took its name.

tribe

(See Ulinois Indians.)

There seems to have been

247

a general drift of some of the stronger tribes toward the south and east about this time, as Allouez represents that he found the Miamis and their neighbors, the Mascoutins, about

Green Bay

when he arrived there in 1670. At the same time, tliere is evidence tliat tlie Pottawatomies were located along the .southern shore of Lake Superior and about the Sault Ste. Marie (now known as "Tlie Soo"), though within tlie next fifty years they had advanced southward along the western shore of Lake Michipm until they reached where Chicago now stiinda. Other tribes from the north were the Kickapoos, Sacs and Foxes, and Winnebagoes, while tlio Shawnees were a branch of a stronger trilie from tlie southeast Charlevoix, who wrote an account of his visit to the "Illinois Country" in 1721, says: "Fifty years ago the Miamis were settled on the southern extremity of Lake Michigan, in a place called Chicago from the name of a small river which runs into the lake, the source of which is not far distant from that of tlie River Illinois." It does not follow necessarily that this was the Chicago River of to-day, as the name appears to have been applied somewhat indefinitely, by the early explorers, both to a region of country between the head of the lake and the Uhnois

River, and to

more than one

-stream

emptying

into the lake in that vicinity. It has been conjectured that the river meant by Charlevoix was the Calumet, as his description would apply as well to that as to the Chicago, and there is

other evidence that the Miamis, who were found about the mouth of the St. Joseph River during the eighteenth century, occupied a portion of

Southern Michigan and Northern Indiana, extending as far east as the Scioto River in Ohio. From the first, the Illinois seem to have conceived a strong liking for the French, and being pressed by the Iroquois on the east, the Sacs and Foxes, Pottawatomies and Kickapoos on the north and the Sioux on the west, by the beginning of the eighteenth century we find them, much reduced in numbers, gathered about the French settlements near the mouth of the Kaskaskia (or Okaw) River, in the western part of the present counties of Randolph, Monroe and St In spite of the zealous efforts of the mis the contact of the.se tribes with the whites was attended with the usual results demoralization, degradation and gradual extermiClair.

sionaries,

The latter result was hastened by the frequent attacks to which they were exposed from their more warlike enemies, so that by the latter part of the eighteenth century, they were nation.

HISTOEICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

248

reduced to a few hundred dissolute and depraved survivors of a once vigorous and warlike race.

During the early part of the French occupation, there arose a chief named Chicagou (from whom the city of Chicago received its name) who appears, like Red Jacket, Tecumseh and Logan, to have been a man of imusual intelligence and vigor of character, and to have exercised great influence with his people. In 1725 he was sent to Paris, where he received the attentions due to a foreign potentate, and, on his return, was given a command in an expedition against the Chickasaws, who had been making incursions from the south.

Such was the general distribution of the Indians and central portions of the State, within the first fifty years after the arrival of the French. At a later period the Kickapoos advanced farther south and occupied a considerable share of the central portion of the State, and even extended to the mouth of the Wabash. The southern part was roamed over by bands from beyond the Ohio and the Mississippi, including the Cherokees and Chickasaws, and the Arkansas tribes, some of whom were very powerful and ranged over a vast extent of country. The earliest civilized dwellings in Illinois, after the forts erected for purposes of defense, were undoubtedly the posts of the fur-traders and the missionary stations. Fort Miami, the first military post, established by La Salle in the winter of 1679-80, was at the mouth of the St. Joseph River within the boundaries of what is now the State of Michigan. Fort Creve-Cceur, partially erected a few months later on the east side of the Illinois a few miles below where the city of Peoria now stands, was never occupied. Mr. Charles Ballance, the historian of Peoria, locates this fort at the present village of Wesley, in Tazewell County, nearly opposite Lower Peoria. Fort St. Louis, built by Tonty on the summit of "Starved Rock," in the fall and winter of 1682, was the second erected in the "Illinois Country," but the first occupied. It has been claimed that Marquette established a mission among the Kaskaskias, opposite "The Rock," on occasion of his first visit, in September, 1673, and that he renewed it in the spring of 1675, when he visited it for the last time. It is doubtful if this mission was more than a season of preaching to tlie natives, celebrating mass, administering baptism, etc. at least the story of an established mission has been denied. That this devoted and zealous propagandist regarded it as a mission, however, is evident from his own journal. He gave to it in the northern

;

the name of the "Mission of the Immaculate Conception," and, although he was compelled by failing health to abandon it almost immediately, in 1677 by it is claimed that it was renewed Father Allouez, who had been active in founding missions in the Lake Superior region, and that it

was maintained until the arrival of La Salle in 1680. The hostility of La Salle to the Jesuits led Allouez' withdrawal, but he subsequently returned and was succeeded in 1688 by Father

to

Gravier, whose labors extended from to Biloxi

Mackinaw

on the Gulf of Mexico.

evidence that a mission had been established among the Miamis as early as 1698, under the name "Chicago," as it is mentioned by St. Cosme in the report of his visit in 1699-1700. This, for the reasons already given showing the indefinite use made of the name Chicago as applied to streams about the head of Lake Michigan, probably referred to some other locality in the vicinity, and not to the site of the present Even at an earlier date there city of Chicago. appears, from a statement in Tonty 's Memoirs, to have been a fort at Chicago probably about the

There

is

—

same

Speaking of his* locality as the mission. return from Canada to the "lUinois Country" in 1685, he says: "I embarked for the lUinois Oct. 30, 1685, but being stopped by the ice, I was obliged to leave my canoe and proceed by land. After going 120 leagues, I arrived at Fort Chicagou, where M. de la Durantaye commanded." According to the best authorities it was during the year 1700 that a mission and permanent settlement was established by Father Jacques Pinet among the Tamaroas at a village called Cahokia (or "Sainte Famille de Caoquias"), a few miles

south of the present Louis. This was the

by Europeans in the Illinois was

site of first

the city of East St.

permanent settlement

as that at Kaskaskia on broken up the same year. Illinois,

A few months after the establishment of the mission at Cahokia (which received the name of "St. Sulpice"), but during the same year, the Kaskaskias, having abandoned their village on the upper Illinois, were induced to settle near the mouth of the river which bears their name, and the latter afterward the mission and village becoming the first capital of the Territory and State of Illinois came into being. This identity of names has led to some confusion in determin-

—

—

ing the date and place of the first permanent settlement in Illinois, the date of Marquette's first arrival at Kaskaskia on the Illinois being given by some authors as that of the settlement

UISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. at Kaskaskia on the Mississippi,

years

twenty-seven

later.

Period of French Occupation.— As may be methods of French colonization, the first permanent settlements gathered about the missions at Cahokia and KasAt later kaskia, or rather were parts of them. periods, but during the French occupation of the country, other villages were established, the most important being St. Philip and Prairie du Rocher all of these being located in the fertile valley now known as the "American Bottom," between the older towns of Cahokia and Kaskaskia. There were several Indian villages in the vicinity of the French settlements, and this became, for a time, the most populous locality in the Mississippi Valley and the center of an active trade carried on with the settlements near the readily inferred from the

;

mouth of the Mississippi. Large quantities of the products of the country, such as flour, bacon, pork, tallow, lumber, lead, peltries, and even wine, were transported in keel-boats or batteaus to New Orleans; rice, manufactured tobacco, cotton goods and such other fabrics as the simple wants of the people required, being brought back in return. These boats went in convoys of seven to twelve in number for mutual protection, three months being required to make a trip, of which two were made annually one in the spring and the other in the autumn.

—

The French

possessions in North

America went

under the general name of " New France, but their boundaries were never clearly defined, though an attempt was made to do so through CommissionThey were underers who met at Paris, in 17.53. stood by the French to include the valley of the St. Lawrence, with Labrador and Nova Scotia, to '

'

the northern boundaries of the British colonies the region of the Great Lakes and the Valley of the Mississippi from the headwaters of the Ohio westward to the Pacific Ocean and south to the Gulf of Mexico. While these claims were contested by England on the east and Spain on the southwest, they comprehended the very heart of the North American continent, a region unsurpassed in fertility and natural resources and now the home of more than half of the entire population of the American Republic. That the French should have reluctantly yielded up so magnificent a domain is natural. And yet they did this by the treaty of 1763, currendering the region east of the Mississippi ;

(except a comparatively small district near the mouth of that stream) to England, and the remainder to Spain an evidence of the straits to

—

;49

which they had been reduced by a long devastating wars. (See French and

series of

Indiaii

Wars. ) In 1712 Antoine Crozat, under royal letterspatent, obtained from Louis XIV. of France a

monopoly of the commerce, with control of the country, "from the edge of the sea (Gulf of Mexico) as far as the Illinois." This grant having been surrendered a few years later, was re-

newed in 1717 to the "Company of the West," of which the celebrated John Law was the head, and under it jurisdiction was exerci.sed over the trade of Illinois. On September 27 of the same year (1717), the "Illinois Country." which had been a dependency of Canada, was incorporated with Louisiana and became part of that province. Law's company received enlarged powers imder the name of the "East Indies Company," and although it went out of existence in 1721 with the opprobrious title of the "South Sea Bubble," leaving in its wake hundreds of ruined private fortunes in France and England, it did much to stimulate the population and development of the Mississippi Valley. During its existence (in 1718) New Orleans was founded and Fort Chartres

named after the Due de Chartres. son of the Regent of France. Pierre Duque Boisbriant was the first commandant of Illinois and superintended the erection of the fort. (See Fort erected, being

Chartres.)

One of the privileges granted to Law's company was the importation of slaves and under ;

Philip F. Renault brought to the hundred slaves, besides two hundred artisans, mechanics and laborers. Two years later he received a large grant of land, and foimded the village of St. Philip, a few miles north of Fort Chartres. Thus Illinois became slave territory before a white settlement of any sort existed in what afterward became the slave it,

in

1721,

country

five

State of Missouri.

During

under control of the divided into nine civil

1721 the country

East Indies

Company was

and military

each presided over by a commandant and a judge, with a superior council at

New

districts,

Orleans.

Of

these. Illinois, the largest

and, next to New Orleans, the most populous, was the seventh. It embraced over one-half the

present State, with the country west of the Mis-

between tlie Arkansas and the 43d degree Rocky Mountains, and included the present States of Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, ssisippi,

of latitude, to the

Kansas and parts of Arkansas and Colorado. 1732, the Indies

Company surrendered

In

its

charter,

and Louisiana, including the District of

Illinois,

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

250

was afterwards governed by directly

by the crown.

officers

appointed

(See French Oovemors.)

As early as September, 1699, an attempt was made by an expedition fitted out by the English Government, under command of Captains Barr and Clements, to take possession of the country about the mouth of the Mississippi on the ground of prior discovery; but they found the French under Bienville already in possession at Biloxi, and they sailed away without making any further Meaneffort to carry the scheme into effect. while, in the early part of the next century, the

English were successful in attaching to their interests the Iroquois, who were the deadly foes of the French, and held possession of Western New York and the region around the headwaters of the Ohio River, extending their incursions

against the Indian allies of the French as far west The real struggle for territory beas Illinois. tween the English and French began with the formation of the Ohio Land Company in 1748-49, and the grant to it by the English Government of half a million acres of land along the Ohio River, with the excliusive right of trading with the Indian tribes in that region. Out of this grew the establishment, in the next two years, of trading posts and forts on the Miami and Maumee in Western Ohio, followed by the protracted French and Indian War, which was prosecuted with varied fortunes until the final defeat of the French at Quebec, on the thirteenth of September, 1759, which broke their power on the Ameri-

can continent. this struggle,

Among

those

who

took part in

was a contingent from the French

garrison of Fort Chartres. Neyon de Villiers, commandant of the fort, was one of these, being the only survivor of seven brothers who partici-

pated in the defense of Canada. Still hopeful of saving Louisiana and IlUnois, he departed with a few followers for New Orleans, but the treaty of Paris, Feb. 10, 1763, destroyed all hope, for by its terms Canada, and all other territory east of the Mississippi as far south as the northern boundary of Florida, was surrendered to Great Britain, while the remainder, including the vast territory between the Mississippi and the Rocky Mountains, was given up to Spain. Thus the "Illinois Country" fell into the hands of the British, although the actual transfer of Fort Chartres and the country dependent upon it did not take place until Oct. 10, 1765, when its veteran commandant, St. Ange who had come from Vincennes to assume command on the retirement of Villiers, and who held it faithfully surrendered it to Capt. for the conqueror

—

—

Thomas Stirling lish

as the representative of the Eng-

Government.

was the

last place

worthy of note that this on the North American con-

It is

tinent to lower the French

flag.

British Occupation.— The delay of the British in taking possession of the "Illinois Country,"

French at Quebec and the surrender of their possessions in America by the treaty of 1763, was due to its isolated position and the difficulty of reaching it with sufficient force to establish the British authority. The first attempt was made in the spring of 1764, when Maj. Arthur Loftus, starting from Pensacola, attempted to ascend the Mississippi with a force of four hundred regulars, but, V)eing met by a superior Indian force, was compelled to In August of the same year, Capt. retreat. Thomas Morris was dispatched from Western Pennsylvania with a small force "to take possession of the Illinois Country." This expedition got as far as Fort Miami on the Maumee, when its progress was arrested, and its commander narrowly escaped death. The next attempt was made in 1765, when Maj. George Croghan, a Deputy Superintendent of Indian affairs whose name has been made historical by the celebrated speech of the Indian Chief Logan, was detailed from Fort Pitt, to visit Illinois. Croghan being detained, after the defeat of the

Lieut. Alexander Frazer,

who was

to

accompany

him, proceeded alone. Frazer reached Kaskaskia, but met with so rough a reception from both the French and Indians, that he thought it advisable to leave in disguise, and escaped by descending the Mississippi to New Orleans. Croghan started on his journey on the fifteenth of May, proceeding down the Ohio, accompanied by a party of friendly Indians, but having been captured near the mouth of the Wabash, he finally returned to Detroit without reaching his The first British official to reach destination. Fort Chartres was Capt. Thomas Stirling. Descending the Ohio with a force of one hundred men, he reached Fort Chartres. Oct. 10, 1765, and received the surrender of the fort from the faithIt is estimated that ful and courteous St. Ange, at least one-third of the French citizens, including the more wealthy, left rather than become British subjects. Those about Fort Chartres left almost in a body. Some joined the French colonies on the lower Mississippi, while others, crossing the river, settled in St. Genevieve, then Mucli the larger number in Spanish territory. followed St. Ange to St, Louis, wliich had been established as a trading post by Pierre La Clede. during the previous year, and which now received

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. wiiat, in these later days,

would be called a great

"boom."

were Col. Edward Cole, Col. John Reed, Colonel Wilkins, Capt. Hugh Lord and Francois de Rastel, Chevalier de Roclieblave. Tlie last had been an oflScer in the French army, and, having resided at Kaskaskia, transferred his allegiance on occupation of the country by the British. He was the last official representative of the British Govern-

ment

in Illinois.

French villages in Illinois, at the time of their transfer to England, has been estimated at about 1,600, of which 700 were about Kaskaskia and 450 in the vicinity of Cahokia. Captain Pittman estimated the population of all the French villages in Illinois and on the Wabash, at the time of his visit in 1770, at about 2,000. Of St. Louis—or "Paincourt," as it was called Captain Pittman said: "There are about forty private houses and as many families." Most of these, if not all, had emigrated from the French villages. In fact, although nominally in Spanish territory, it was essentially a French town, protected, as Pittman said, by "a French garrison" consisting of "a Captain-Commandant, two Lieutenants, a Fort Major, one Sergeant. one Corporal and twenty men." Action of Continental Congress.—The first official notice taken of the "Illinois Country" by the Continental Congress, was the adoption by that body, July 13, 1775. of an act creating three Indian Departments a Northern. Middle and Tlie total population of the

—

—

was assigned to the second, with Benjamin Franklin and James Wilson, of Pennsylvania, and Patrick Henry, of Virginia, Southern.

Illinois

In April, 1776, Col. George Morgan, who had been a trader at Kaskaskia, was appointed agent and successor to these CommisThe sioners, with headquarters at Fort Pitt. promulgation of the Declaration of Independence, on the Fourth of July, 1776, and the events immediately preceding and following that event, directed attention to the colonies on the Atlantic coast; yet the frontiersmen of Virginia were watching an opportunity to deliver a blow to the Government of King George in a quarter where as Commissioners.

and where it was destined to have an immense influence upon the future of the new nation, as well as that of the American it

was

least expected,

continent.

Col.

a native of Virginia, then scarcely twenty-live having conceived a plan of seizing the settlements in the Mississippi Valley, sent trusty spies to learn the sentiments of the people and the condition of affairs at Kaskaskia. The report brought ti« him gave him encouragement, and. in DecemlH-r uf tlu' simie year, he laid before Gov. Patrick Henry, of Virginia, his plans for the reduction of the posts in Illinois. These were approved, and, on Jan 2, 1778, Clark received authority to recruit seven companies of fifty men ye;irs of age.

Captain Stirling was relieved of his command at Fort Chartres, Dec. 4, by Maj. Robert Farmer. Other British Commandants at Fort Chartres

George Rogers Clark's Expedition.

— During the year 1777.

Col.

George Rogers Clark,

each for three months' service, and (Jovernor Henry gave him $6,000 for expenses. Proceeding to Fort Pitt, he succeeded in recruiting three companies, who were directed to rendezvous at Corn Island, opposite the present city of Louisville. It has been claimed that, in order to deceive the British as to his real

destination,

Clark authorized the announcement that the object of the e.xpedition was to protect the settlements in Kentucky from the Indians. At Com Island another company was organized, making four in all. under the command of Captains Bowman, Montgomery, Helm and Harrod, and having embarked on keel-boats, they passed the Falls of the Ohio, June 24. Reaching the i.sland at the mouth of the Tennessee on the 28th. he was met by a party of eight American hunters, who had left Kaskaskia a few days before, and who, joining his command, rendered good service as guides. He disembarked his force at the mouth of a small creek one mile above Fort Massac, June 29, and, directing his course across the

country, on the evening of the sixth day (July 4, 1778) arrived within three miles of Kaskaskia. The surprise of the unsuspecting citizens of Kaskaskia and its small garrison was complete. His force having, under cover of darkness, been ferried across the Kaskaskia River, about a mile above the town, one detachment surrounded the town, while the other seized the fort, capturing

Roclieblave and his

little

command

witliout

fir-

ing a gun. The famous Indian fighter and hunter, Simon Kenton, led the way to the fort. This is supposed to have been what Captain Pittman called the "Jesuits' house," which had been sold by the French Government after the country was ceded to England, the Jesuit order having

been suppressed. A wooden fort, erected in 1736, and known afterward by the British as Fort Gage had .stood on the bluff opposite the town, but, according to Pittman. this was burnt in 1766, and there is no evidence that it was ever rebuilt. Clark's expedition was thus far a complete .sucproving recalcitrant, was Roclieblave, cess.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

252

placed in irons and sent as a prisoner of war to Williamsburg, while his slaves were confiscated, the proceeds of their sale being divided among Clark's troops. The inhabitants were easily conciliated, and Cahokia having been captured without bloodshed, Clark turned his attention to Vincennes. Through the influence of Pierre Gibault the Vicar-General in charge at Kaskas-

—

—

kia the people of Vincennes were induced to swear allegiance to the United States, and, although the place was afterward captured by a British force from Detroit, it was, on Feb. 24, 1779, recaptured by Colonel Clark, together with a body of prisoners but little smaller than the attacking force, and §50,000 worth of property. (See Clark, Col. George Rogers.) Under Government of Virginia.— Seldom in the history of the world have such important results been achieved by such insignificant instrumentalities and with so little sacrifice of life, as in this almost bloodless campaign of the youthful conqueror of Illinois. Having been won largely through Virginia enterprise and valor and by material aid furnished through Governor Henry,

the Virginia House of Delegates, in October, 1778, proceeded to assert the jurisdiction of that commonwealth over the settlements of the Northwest, by organizing all the country west and north of the Ohio River into a county to be called "Illinois," (see Illinois County), and empowering the Governor to appoint a "County-Lieutenant or Commandant-in-Chief" to exercise civil authority during the pleasure of the appointing power. Thus "Illinois County" was older than the States of Ohio or Indiana, while Patrick Henry, the eloquent orator of the Revolution, became ex-officio Col. John Todd, a citizen of its first Governor. Kentucky, was appointed "County-Lieutenant," Dec. 12, 1778, entering upon his duties in May following. The militia was organized,

Deputy-Commandants

for

Kaskaskiaand Cahokia

appointed, and the

first election of civil officers ever had in Illinois, was held under Colonel Todd's direction. His record-book, now in possession of the Chicago Historical Society, shows that he was accustomed to exercise powers scarcely inferior to those of a State Executive. (See Todd, Col. John.) In 1782 one "Thimothe Demunbrunt" subscribed himself as "Lt. comd'g par interim, etc." but the origin of his authority is not clearly understood. He assumed to act as Commandant until the arrival of Gov. Arthur St. Clair, first

—

Governor of the Northwest Territory, After the close of the Revolution, courts

Territorial

in 1790.

ceased to be held and civil affairs fell into great disorder. "In effect, there was neither law nor order in the 'Illinois Country' for the seven years from 1783 to 1790." During the progress of the Revolution, there

were the usual rumors and alarms in the "Illinois Country" peculiar to frontier life in time of war. The country, however, was singularly exempt from any serious calamity such as a general massacre. One reason for this was the friendly relations which had existed between the French and their Indian neighbors previous to the conquest, and which the new masters, after the capture of Kaskaskia, took pains to perpetuate. Several movements were projected by the British

and their Indian allies about Detroit and in Canwere kept so busy elsewhere that they had little time to put their plans into execution. One of these was a proposed movement from Pensacola against the Spanish posts on the ada, but they

lower Mississippi, to punish Spain for having engaged in the war of 1779, but the promptness with which the Spanish Governor of New Orleans proceeded to capture Fort Manchac, Baton Rouge and Natchez from their British possessors, convinced the latter that this was a "game at which

two could play. In ignorance of these results, an expedition, 750 strong, composed largely of Indians, fitted out at Mackinaw under command '

'

of Capt. Patrick St. Clair, started in the early

part of May, 1780, to co-operate with the expedition on the lower Mississippi, but intending to deal a

destructive blow to the Illinois villages and the Spanish towns of St. Louis and St. Genevieve on the way. This expedition reached St. Louis, May 36, but Col. George Rogers Clark, having arrived at Cahokia with a small force twenty-four hours earlier, prepared to co-operate with the Spaniards on the western shore of the Mississippi, and the invading force confined their depredations to killing seven or eight villagers, and then beat a hasty retreat in the direction they had come. These were the last expeditions organized to regain the "Country of the Illinois" or capture Spanish posts on the Mississippi. Expeditions Against Fort St. Joseph.— An expedition of a different sort is worthy of mention in this connection, as it originated in Illinois. This consisted of a company of seventeen men, led by one Thomas Brady, a citizen of Cahokia, who, marching across the country, in the month of October, 1780, after the retreat of Sinclair, from St. Louis, succeeded in surprising and capturing Fort St. Joseph about where La Salle had erected Fort Miami, near the mouth of the St.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. Joseph River, a hundred years before. Brady and his party captured a few British prisoners, and a large quantity of goods. On their return, while encamped on the Calumet, they were attacked by a band of Pottawatomies, and all were killed, woimded or taken prisoners except Brady and two others, who escaped. Early in January, 1781, a party consisting of sixty-five whites, organized from St. Louis and Cahokia, with some 200 Indians, and headed by Don Eugenio Pourre, a Spaniard, started on a second expedition against Fort St. Joseph. By silencing the Indians, whom they met on their way, with promises of plunder, they were able to reach the fort without discovery, captured it and, raising the Spanish flag, formally took possession in the name of the King of Spain. After retaining possession for a few Jays, the party returned to St. Louis, but in negotiating the treaty of peace at Paris, in 1783, this incident was made the basis of a claim put forth by Spain to ownership of the "Illinois Country" "by right of conquest." Tnn Territorial Period. At the very outset of its existence, the new Government of the United States was confronted with an embarrassing question which deeply affected the interests of the territory of which Illinois formed a part. This was the cLaim of certain States to lands lying between their western boundaries and the Mississippi River, then the western boundary of the Republic. These claims were based either upon the terms of their original charters or upon the cession of lands by the Indians, and it was under a claim of the former character, as well as by right of conquest, that Virginia assumed to exercise authority over the "Illinois Country" after This conits capture by the Clark expedition. struction was opposed by the States which, from their geographical position or other cause, had no claim to lands beyond their own boundaries, and the controversy was waged with considerable bitterness for several years, proving a formidable obstacle to the ratification of the Articles of Con-

—

As early as 1779 the subject received the attention of Congress in the adoption of a resolution requesting the States having such claims to "forbear settling or issuing warrants for unappropriated lands or granting the same during the continuance of the present (Revolufederation.

War. " In the following year, New York authorized her Delegates in Congress to limit its boundaries in such manner as they might think expedient, and to cede to the Government its claim to western lands. The case was further complicated by the claims of certain land companies

tionary)

.>53

which had been previously organized.

New York

her cession to the General (Jovernment of lands claimed by her in October, 1782, followed by Virginia nearly a year later, and by Massafiled

chusetts and Connecticut in 1785 and 178G. Other States followed somewhat tardily, Georgia being

the last, in 1802. The only claims of this character affecting lands in Illinois were those of Virginia covering the southern part of the State, and

Connecticut and Massachusetts applying to the northern portion. It was from the splendid domain north and west of the Ohio thus acquired from Virginia and other States, that the Northwest Territory was finally organized. Ordinance of 1787.— The first step was taken in the passage by Congress, in 1784, of a resolution providing for the temporary government of the

Western Territory, and this was followed three years later by the enactment of the celebrated Ordinance of 1787. While this latter document contained numerous provisions which marked a new departure in the science of free government

—

as, for instance, that declaring that "religion, morality and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged" its crowning feature was the sixth article, as follows; "There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said Territory, otherwise than in the punishment of crime, whereof the party shall have been duly

—

convicted."

Although there has been considerable controversy as to the authorship of the above and other of this immortal document, it is worthy of note that substantially the same language was introduced in the resolutions of 1784. by a Delegate from a slave State— Thomas Jeffer son, of Virginia— though not, at that time, adopted. Jefferson was not a member of the

provisions

Congress of 1787 (being then Minister to France), to do with it is evident that the principle which he had advocated finally received the approval of eight out of the thirteen States, all that were represented in that Congress— including the slave States of Virginia. Delaware, North (See Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. Ordinance of I7S7.)

and could have had nothing directly the later Ordinance; yet

Northwest Territory Organized.-Under the Ordinance of 1787. organizing the Northwest Territory, Gen. Arthur St. Clair, who had been a soldier of the Revolution, was appointed the first

Governor on Feb

1.

1788,

with Winthrop

Sargent, Secretary, and Samuel Holden Parsons,

HISTOEICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OP ILLINOIS.

254

and John Cleves Mitchell Varnum Symmes, Judges. All these were reappointed by President Washington in 1789, The new Territorial Government was organized at Marietta, a settlement on the Ohio, July 15, 1788, but it was nearly two years later before Governor St. Clair visited Illinois, arriving at Kaskaskia, March 5,

(named after him) was organized at this time, embracing all the settlements between the Wabash and the Missis1790.

The County of

St. Clair

(See St. Clair County.) He found the inhabitants generally in a deplorable condition, neglected by the Government, the courts of justice practically abolished and many of the citizens sippi.

sadly in need of the obligations due them from the Government for supplies furnished to Colonel Clark twelve years before. After a stay of three

months, the Governor returned east. In 1795, Judge Turner held the first court in St. Clair County, at Cahokia, as the covmty-seat, although both Cahokia and Kaskaskia had been named as county-seats by Governor St. Clair. Out of the disposition of the local authorities to retain the official records at Cahokia, and consequent disagreement over the county-seat question, at least in part, grew the order of 1795 organizing the second county (Randolph), and Kaskaskia became In 1796 Governor St. Clair paid its county-seat. a second visit to Illinois, accompanied by Judge Symmes, who held court at both county-seats. On Nov. 4, 1791, occurred the defeat of Governor St. Clair, in the western part of the present State of Ohio, by a force of Indians under command of Little Turtle, in which the whites sustained a heavy loss of both men and property an event which had an unfavorable effect upon conditions throughout the Northwest Territory generally. St. Clair, having resigned his command of the army, was succeeded by Gen. Anthony Wayne, who, in a vigorous campaign, overwhelmed the Indians with defeat. This resulted in the treaty with the Western tribes at Greenville,

August

3,

1795,

which was the begin-

ning of a period of comparative peace with the (See all over the Western Country. Wayne, (Oen.) Anthony.) First Territorial Legislation.— In 1798, the Territory having gained the requisite population, an election of members of a Legislative Council Indians

and House of Representatives was held in accordance with the provisions of the Ordinance of 1787. This was the first Territorial Legislature organized in the history of the Republic. It met at Cincinnati, Feb, 4, 1799, Shadrach Bond being the Delegate from St, Clair County and John Edgar

Gen. William Henry Harrison, succeeded Sargent as Secretary of the June 26, 1798, was elected Delegate to Congress, receiving a majority of one vote over Arthur St. Clair, Jr. son of the Governor.

from Randolph.

who had

Territory,

,

Ohio and Indiana Territories.— By act

May

of

the Northwest Territory and Indiana Territories the latter embracing the region west of the present State of Ohio, and having its capital at "Saint Vincent" (Vincennes). May 13, William Henry Harrison, who had been the first Delegate in Congress from the Northwest Territory, was appointed Governor of Indiana Territory, which at first consisted of three counties Knox, St. Clair and Randolph the two latter being within the boimdaries of the present State of Illinois. Their aggregate population at this time was estimated at less than 5,000, During his administration Governor Harrison concluded thirteen treaties with the Indians, of which six related to the ces sion of lands in Illinois, The first treaty relating to lands in Illinois was that of Greenville, concluded by General Wayne in 1795. By this the Government acquired six miles square at the mouth of the Chicago River; twelve miles square at the moutli of the Illinois six miles square at the old Peoria fort the post of Fort Massac and 150,000 acres assigned to General Clark and his soldiers, besides all other lands "in possession of the French people and all other white settlers among them, the Indian title to which had been thus extinguished," {See Indian TVeaties; also, Oreenville, Treaty of. During the year 1803, the treaty with France for the purchase of Louisiana and West Florida was concluded, and on March 26, 1804, an act was passed by Congress attaching all that portion of Louisiana lying north of the thirty -third parallel of latitude and west of the Mississippi to Indiana Territory for governmental purposes, Tliis included the present States of Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, the two Dakotas and parts of Colorado, Wyoming and MonThis arrangement continued only until tana. the following March, when Louisiana was placed under a separate Territorial organization. For four years Indiana Territory was governed under laws framed by the Governor and Judges, but, the population having increased to the required number, an election was held. Sept, 11, 1804, on the proposition to advance the government to the "second grade" by the election of a Territorial Legislature, The smallness of the vote indicated the indifference of the people on Congress,

was divided

7,

1800,

into Ohio

:

—

;

;

;

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. the subject Out of 400 votes cast, the proposition received a majority of 138. The two Illinois counties cast a total of 142 votes, of which St. Clair furnished 81 and Randolph Gl. The former gave a majority of 37 against the measure and the latter 19 in its favor, showing a net negative majority of 18. The adoption of the proposition was due, therefore, to the affirmative vote in the other counties. There were in the Territory at this time six counties; one of these (Wayne) was in Michigan, which was set off, in 1805, as a separate Territory. At the election of Delegates to a Territorial Legislature, held Jan. 3, 180.5, Sliadrach Bond, St., and William Biggs were elected

County and George Fisher for RanBond having meanwhile become a mem-

for St. Clair

dolph.

ber of the Legislative Council, Shadrach Bond, The Legislature Jr., was chosen his successor. convened at Vincennes, Feb. 7, 180.5, but only to recommend a list of persons from whom it was the duty of Congress to select a Legislative Council. In addition to Bond, Pierre Menard

was chosen

for

Randolph and John Hay for

St.

Clair.

—

Illinois Territory Organized. The Illinois counties were represented in two regular and one special session of the Territorial Legislature during the time they were a part of Indiana Territory. By act of Congress, which became a law Feb. 3, 1809, the Territory was divided, the west-

and Monroe Counties, ami tlie first distinctively American colony in the "Illinois Country," was established by this party. Some of its members afterward became ijrominent in the history of the Territory and the Stati'. William Biggs, a member of the first Territorial Legislature, with others, settled in or near Kaskaskia about 1783, and William Arundel, the first American merchant at Cahokia, came there from Peoria during the same year. Gen. John Edgar, for many years a leading citizen and merchant at the capital, arrived at Kaskaskia in 1784, and WiUiam Morrison, Kaskaskia's principal merchant, civme from Philadelphia as early as 1790, followed some years afterward by several brothers. James Lemen came before the beginning of the present century, and was the founder of a large and influential family in the vicinity of Shiloh, St. Clair County, and Rev. David Badgle.r headed a colony 154 from Virginia, who arrived in 1797. other prominent arrivals of this period were John Rice Jones, Pierre Menard (first Lieutenant-Governor of the State), Shadrach Bond, Jr. (first Governor), John Hay, John Messinger, William Kinney, Capt. Joseph Ogle; and of a later date, Nathaniel Pope (afterward

of

Among

a sepa-

Secretary of the Territorj-, Delegate to Congress, Justice of the United States Court and father of the late Maj.-Gen. John Pope), Elias Kent Kane (first Secretary of State and afterward United States Senator), Daniel P. Cook (first AttorneyGeneral and second Representative in Congress).

rate political division, begins. While its boundaries in all other directions were as now, on the

George Forquer (at one time Secretarj- of State), and Dr. George Fisher all prominent in Terri-

extended to the Canada line. From what has already been said, it appears that the earliest white settlements were established by French Canadians, chiefly at Kaskaskia, Cahokia and the other villages in the southern part of the American Bottom. At the time of Clark's invasion, there were not known to have been more than two Americans among these people, except such hunters and trappers as paid them occasional

torial or State histoiy. (See biographical sketches of these early settlers under their respective names.) The government of the new Territory- was organized by the appointment of Ninian Edwards, Governor; Nathaniel Pope, Secretary, and Alexander Stuart, Obadiah Jones and Jes.se B. Thomas, Territorial Judges. (See Edwards, Ninian.) Stuart having been transferred to Missouri, Stanley Griswold was appointed in his stead. Governor Edwards arrived at KasAt that kaskia. the capital, in June, 1809. time the two counties of St. Clair and Randolph comprised the settled portion of the Territorj-. with a white population estimated at about 9,00(1 The Governor and Judges immediately proceeded to formulate a code of laws, and the appointments made by Secretary Pope, who had preceded the Governor in his arrival in the Territory, were confirmed. Benjamin H. Doyle was the first Attorney-General, but he resigned in a few

ern part being named Illinois. At tliis point the history of

north

visits.

Illinois, as

it

One

of the earliest

American

settlers in

Southern Illinois was Capt. Nathan Hull, who came from Massachusetts and settled at an early day on the Ohio, near where Golconda now stands, afterward removing to the vicinity of Kaskaskia, where he died in 1808. In 1781, a company of immigrants, consisting (with one or

two exceptions) of members of Clark's command in 1778, arrived with their families from Maryland and Virginia and established themselves on the American Bottom. The "New Design" settlement, on the boundary line between St. Clair

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. months, when the place was offered to John J. Crittenden the well-known United States Senator from Kentucky at the beginning of the Civil War but by him declined. Thomas T. Crittenden was then appointed. An incident of the year 1811 was the battle of Tippecanoe, resulting in the defeat of Tecumseh, the great chief of the Shawnees, by Gen. William Henry Harrison. Four companies of mounted rangers were raised in Illinois this year under direction of Col. William Russell, of Kentucky, who built Camp Russell near Edwardsville the following year. They were commanded by Captains Samuel Whiteside, William B. Whiteside, James B. Moore and Jacob Short. The memorable earthquake which had its center about New Madrid, Mo., occurred in December of this

—

—

year,

and was quite violent in some portions of

Southern lUinois. (See Earthquake of ISll. ) War of 1812.— During the following year the second war with England began, but no serious outbreak occurred in Illinois until August, 1812, when tlie massacre at Fort Dearborn, where Chicago now stands, took place. This had long been a favorite trading post of the Indians, at first under French occupation and afterward under the Americans. Sometime during 1803-04, a fort had been built near the mouth of Chicago River on the south side, on land acquired from the Indians by the treaty of Greenville in 1795. (See Fort Dearborn.) In the spring of 1812 some alarm had been caused by outrages committed by Indians in the vicinity, and in the early part of August, Capt. Nathan Heald, commanding the garrison of less than seventy-five men, received instructions from General Hull, in command at Detroit, to evacuate the fort, disposing of the public property as he might see fit. FriendlyIndians advised Heald either to make preparations for a vigorous defense, or evacuate at once. Instead of this, he notified the Indians of his intention to retire and divide the stores among them, with the conditions subseqviently agreed upon in council, that his garrison should be afforded an escort and safe passage to Fort Wayne. On the 14th of August he proceeded to distribute the bulk of the goods as promised, but

appeared before Captain Heald and informed him plainly that his young men intended to imbrue their hands in the blood of the whites; that he was no longer able to restrain them, and, surrendering a medal he had worn in token of amity, closed by saying: 'I will not wear a token of peace while I am compelled to act as an enemy.' In the meantime the Indians were rioting upon the provisions, and becoming so aggressive in their bearing that it was resolved to march out the next day. The fatal fifteenth arrived. To each soldier was distributed twenty-five rounds of reserved ammunition. The baggage and ambulance wagons were laden, and the garrison slowly wended its way outside the protecting walls of the fort the Indian escort of 500 following in the rear. What next occurred in this disastrous movement is narrated by Captain Heald in his report, as follows: 'The situation of the country rendered it necessary for us to take the beach, with the lake on our left, and a high sand bank on our right at about three hundred yards distance. We had proceeded about a mile and a half, when it was discovered (by Captain Wells) that the Indians were prepared to attack us from behind the bank. I immediately marched up with the company to the top of the bank, when the action commenced; after firing one round, we charged, and the Indians gave way in front and joined those on our flanks. In about fifteen minutes they got possession of all our horses, provisions and baggage of every description, and finding the Miamis (who had come from Fort Wayne with Captain Wells to act as an escort) did not assist us, I drew off the few men I had left and took possession of a small elevation in the open prairie out of shot of the bank, or any other cover. The Indians did not follow me but assembled in a body on top of the bank, and after

—

some consultation among themselves, made signs for me to approach them. I advanced toward

them alone, and was met by one of the Pottawatomie chiefs called Black Bird, with an interpreter. After shaking hands, he requested me to surrender, promising to spare the lives of all the prisoners. On a few moments' consideration I concluded it would be most prudent to comply with this request, although I did not put entire confidence in his promise. The troops had made a brave defense, but what could so small a force do against such overwhelming numbers? It was evident with over half their number dead upon the field, or wounded, further resistance would be hopeless. Twenty-six regulars and twelve militia, with two women and twelve children, were killed. Among the slain were Captain Wells, Dr. Van Voorhis and Ensign George Ronan. (Captain Wells, when young, had been

ammunition, guns and liquors were deThis he justified on the ground that a bad use would be made of them, while the Indians construed it as a violation of the agreement. The tragedy which followed, is thus de-

captured by Indians and had married among them.) He (Wells) was familiar with all the wiles, stratagems, as well as the vindictiveness of the Indian character, and when the confiict began, he said to his niece (Mrs. Heald), by whose side he was standing, 'We have not the slightest chance for life; we must part to meet

scribed in Moses' "History of Illinois:"

no more

"Black Partridge, a Pottavpatomie Chief, who had been on terms of friendship witli the whites.

knowing what

the

stroyed.

in this world. God bless you.' With these vi'ords he dashed forward into the thickest of the fight. He refused to be taken prisoner, his fate

would

be,

when a young

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. cut

him down with

jumped upon

his hody, cut out

a portion of

with savage deUght.

red-skin

it

tomahawk, heart and ate

liis liis

"The prisoners taken were Captain Heald and wife, both wounded, Lieutenant Helm, also wounded, and wife, with twenty-five non-commissioned officers and privates, and eleven women and children. The loss of the Indians was fifteen killed. Mr. Kinzie's family had been entrusted some friendly Indians and were not with the retiring garrison. The Indians engaged in this outrage were principally Pottawatomies, with a few Chippewas. Ottawas, Winnebagoes, and Kickapoos. Fort Dearborn was plundered and burned on the next morning."" (See For( Dearborn; also War of IS 12.)

to the care of

was erected

J57

and Fort Edwards at War saw, opposite the mouth of the Des Moines, at the close of the campaign of 1814. A council with the Indians, conducted by Governors Edwards of Illinois and Clarke of Missouri, and Auguste Chouteau, a mercliant of St. Louis, as in

1813,

Government Commissioners, on the Mississippi below Alton, in July, 1815, concluded a treaty of peace with the principal Northwestern just

thus ending the war. First Territori.\l Legislature.— By act of

tribes,

Congress, adopted

May

21, 1812,

the Territory of

Illinois was raised to the second grade— i. e. empowered to elect a Territorial Legislature. In September, three additional counties— Madison, Gallatin and Johnson were organized, making five in all, and, in October, an election for the choice of five members of the Council and seven Representatives was held, resulting as follows: Councilmen— Pierre Menard of Randolph County William Biggs of St. Clair; Samuel Judy of Madison; Thomas Ferguson of Johnson, and Benjamin Talbot of Gallatin. RepresentativesGeorge Fisher of Randolph Joshua Oglesby and Jacob Short of St. CUiir; William Jones of Madison; Plnlip Trammel and Alexander Wilson of Gallatin, and John Grammar of Johnson. The Legislature met at Kaskaskia, Nov. 25, the Council organizing with Pierre Menard as President and John Thomas, Secretary; and the House, with George Fisher as Speaker and William C. Greenup, Clerk. Shadrach Bond was elected the ,

Thus ended the most bloody tragedy that ever occurred on the soil of Illinois with Americans as victims. The place where this affair occurred, as described by Captain Heald, was on the lake the foot of Eighteenth Street in the present city of Chicago. After the destruction

.shore

about

of the fort, the site of the present city of Chicago

—

remained unoccupied until 1816. when the fort was rebuilt. At that time tlie bones of the victims of the massacre of 1812 still lay bleaching upon the sands near the lake shore, but they were gathered up a few years later and buried. The new fort continued to be occupied somewhat irregularly until 1837, when it was finally abandoned, there being no longer any reason for maintaining it as a defense against the Indians. Other Events of the War.—The part played by Illinois in the War of 1813, consisted chiefly in looking after the large Indian population within and near its borders. Two expeditions were iindertaken to Peoria Lake in the Fall of 1813; the first of these, under the direction of Governor Edwards, burned two Kickapoo villages, one of them being that of "Black Partridge," who had befriended the whites at Fort Dearborn. A few weeks later Capt. Thomas E. Craig, at the head of a company of militia, made a descent upon the ancient French village of Peoria, on the pretext that the inhabitants had harbored hostile Indians and fired on his boats. He burned a part of the town and, taking the people as prisoners down the river, put them ashore below Alton, in the beginning of winter. Both

and Franklin, Union and Washington in 1818, making fifteen in all. Of these all but the three last-named were organized previous to the passage by Congress of the enabling act author-

these affairs were severely censured. There were expeditions against the Indians on

government.

the Illinois and 1814.

Upper

Mississippi in 1813

and

In the latter year, Illinois troops took part

with credit in two engagements at Rock Island the last of these being in co-operation with regulars, under command of Maj. Zachary Taylor, afterwards President, against a force of Indians supported by the British. Fort Clark at Peoria

;

Delegate to Congress. A second Legislature was elected in 1814, convening at Kaskaskia, Nov. 14. Menard was continued President of the Council during the whole Territorial period; while George Fisher was Speaker of each House, except the Second. The county of Edwards was organized in 1814, and White in 1815. Other counties organized under the Territorial Government were Jackson, Monroe, Crawford and Pope in 1816; Bond in 1817, first

izing the Territory of Illinois to organize a State In 181G the Bank of Illinois was

established at Shawueetown,

with branches at Edwardsville and Kaskaskia. Early Towns.— Besides the French villages in the American Bottom, there is said to have been a French and Indian vilLage on the west bank of Peoria Lake, as early as 1711. This site appears to have been abandoned about 1775 and a new

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

258

village established on the present site of Peoria soon after, which was maintained until 1813, when it was broken up by Captain Craig. Other early towns were Shawneetown, laid out in 1808 Belleville, established as the county-seat of St. Clair County, in 1814; Edwardsville, founded in 1815; Upper Alton, in 1816, and Alton, in 1818. Carmi, Fairfield, Waterloo, Golconda, Lawrenceville. Mount Carmel and Vienna also belonged to this period; while Jacksonville, Springfield and Galena were settled a few years later. Chicago is mentioned in "Beck's Gazetteer" of 1833, as "a village of Pike County." Admission as a State.— The preliminary steps for the admission of Illinois as a State, were taken in the passage of an Enabling Act by Congress, April 13, 1818. An important incident in this connection was the amendment of the act, making the parallel of 43° 30' from Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River the northern boundary, instead of a line extending from the southern extremity of the Lake. This was obtained through the influence of Hon. Nathaniel Pope, then Delegate from Illinois, and by it the State secured a strip of country fifty-one miles in width, from the Lake to the Mississippi, embracing what have since become fourteen of the most populous counties of the State, including the city of Chicago. The political, material and moral results which have followed this important act, have been the subject of much interesting discussion and cannot be easily over-estimated. (See Northern Boundary Question; also Pope. Nathaniel.

Another measure of great importance, which Mr. Pope secured, was a modification of the provision of the Enabling Act requiring the appropriation of five per cent of the proceeds from the sale of public lands within the State, to the construction of roads and canals. The amendment which he secured authorizes the application of two-fifths of this fund to the making of roads leading to the State, but requires "the residue to be appropri-

by the Legislature of the State for the encouragement of learning, of which one-sixth part shall be exclusively bestowed on a college or university." This was the beginning of that system of liberal encouragement of education bj' the General Government, which has been attended with such beneficent results in the younger States, and has reflected so much honor upon the Nation. (See Education; Railroads, and Illinois ated

& Miclu(jun

Canal.)

The Enabling Act required

as a precedent condition that a census of the Territory, to be taken

that year, should show a population of 40,000. Such a result was shown, but it is now confessed that the number was greatly exaggerated, the true population, as afterwards given, being 34,030. According to the decennial census of 1830, the population of the State at that time was 55,163. If there was any short-coming in this respect in 1818, the State has fully compensated for it by

unexampled growth in later years. An election of Delegates to a Convention to frame a State Constitution was held July 6 to 8, 1818 (extending through three days), thirty-three Delegates being chosen from the fifteen coimties of the State. The Convention met at Kaskaskia, August 3, and organized by the election of Jesse B. Thomas, President, and William C. Greenup, Secretary, closing its labors, August 26. The Constitution, which was modeled largely upon the Constitutions of Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana, was not submitted to a vote of the people. (See Constitutional Conventions, especially Convenits

tion of ISIS. ) Objection was made to its acceptance by Congress on the ground that the population of the Territory was insufficient and

that the prohibition of slavery was not as explicit as required by the Ordinance of 1787 but ;

these arguments were overcome and the docu-

ment accepted by a vote of 117 yeas to 34 nays. The only oflScers whose election was provided for vote, were the Governor, LieutenantGovernor, Sheriffs, Coroners and County Commissioners. The Secretary of State, State Treasurer, Auditor of Public Accounts, Public Printer and Supreme and Circuit Judges were all appointive either by the Governor or General Assembly. The elective franchise was granted to all white

by popular

male inhabitants, above tlie age of 21 years, wlio had resided in the State six months. The first State election was held Sept. 17, 1818, resulting in the choice of Shadrach Bond for Governor, and Pierre Menard, LieutenantGovernor. The Legislature, chosen at the same time, consisted of thirteen Senators and twentyseven Representatives. It commenced its session at Kaskaskia, Oct. 5, 1818, and adjourned after a .session of ten days, awaiting the formal admission of the State, which took place Dec. 3. A second session of the same Legislature was held, extending from Jan. 4 to March 31, 1819. Risdon Moore was Speaker of the first House. The other State officers elected at the first session were Elijah C. Berry, Auditor John Thomas. Treasurer, and Daniel P. Cook, Attorney-General. Elias Kent Kane, having been appointed Secretary of State by the Governor, was confirmed by ;

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOl'KDIA OF ILLINOIS. Ex-Governor Edwards and Jessi- 15. Thomas were elected United States Senators, the former drawing the short term and serving one Thomas served year, when he was re-elected.

the Senate.

two

terms, retiring in 1829.

The

first

Supreme

Court consisted of Joseph Phillips, Chief Justice, with Thomas C. Browne, AVillium P. Foster and

John Reynolds, Associate Justices. Foster, who was a mere adventurer without any legal knowledge, left the State in a few months and was succeeded by William Wilson. (See State Officers. United States Senators, and Judiciari/.) Menard, who served as Lieutenant-Governor four years, was a noteworthy man. A native of Canada and of French descent, he came to Kaskaskia in 1790. at the age of 24 years, and engaged in mercantile pursuits. He was hospitable, frank, liberal

and enterprising.

The

fol-

Assembly, which met at Vandalia, Dec. 4, 1820, a bill was passed establishing a State Bank with branches at Shawneetown, Edwardsville and Brownsville. John McLean, who had been tlie first Representative in Congress, was Speaker of tlie House at thi.s session. He wjis twice electeil ti> the United States Senate, though lie served only about two years, 'dalia.— At the second session of the General Assembly, five Commissioners were appointed to select a

tion being in session at the date of the latter visit, he took a deep interest in tlie discussion of the slavery question and exerted his influence in securing the adoption of the prohibitory article On April 1, 1819, he started in the organic law. from his home in Virginia to remove to EdwardsThe ville, 111., taking with him his ten slaves. journey from Brownsville, Pa., was made in two flat-boats to a point below Louisville, where he disembarked, traveling by land to Edwardsville. While descending the Ohio River he .surprised his slaves by announcing that they were free. The scene, as described by himself, was most dramatic. Having declined to avail themselves of the privilege of leaving him, he took

;

;

appointed, and

—

'

new

site for

the State Capital.

city of Vandalia

was

What

selected, and, in

is

now

the

December,

the State were removed to the new capital, being transported in one small wagon, at a cost of $25.00, under the supervision of the late Sidney Breese, who afterwards became United States Senator and Justice of the Supreme Court. (See State Capitals. During the session of the Second General 1820, the entire archives of

them with him

to

his

destination,

where he

eventually gave each head of a family IGO acres Arrived at Edwardsville, lie assumed of land. tlie position of Register of tlie Land Ofl^ice, to whicli he had been appointed by President Monroe, before leaving Virginia. The act of Coles with reference to his slaves established his reputation as an opixinent of slavery, and it was in this attitude that he stood

as a candidate for Governor— both Phillips and Browne being friendly to "the institution," which had had a virtual existence in the "Illinois

Country" from the time Renault brought 500

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

260

slaves to the vicinity of Kaskaskia, one hundred years before. Although the Constitution

declared that "neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall hereafter be introduced into the State," this had not been effectual in eliminating it.

In

while this language was construed,

fact,

so long as it remained in the Constitution, as prohibiting legislation authorizing the admission of slaves from without, it was not regarded as

inimical to the institution as it already existed and, as the population came largely from the slave States, there had been a rapidly growing sentiment in favor of removing the inhibitory clause. Although the pro-slavery party was

divided between two candidates for Governor, of it had hardly contemplated the possibility defeat, and it was consequently a surprise when the returns showed that Coles was elected, receiving 2.854 votes to 2,687 for Phillips, 2,443 for Coles' plurality 622 for Moore being 167 in a total of 8,606. Coles thus became Governor on less than one-third of the popular Daniel P. Cook, who had made the race vote. for Congress at the same election against

—

Browne and

McLean, as an avowed opponent of slavery, was by a majority of 876. (See Coles, Edward; also C'oofc, Daniel Pope. The real struggle was now to occur in the LegisThe House lature, which met Dec. 2, 1822. organized with William M. Alexander as Speaker,

successful

while the

Senate elected Thomas

Lippincott

(afterwards a prominent Presbyterian minister and the father of the late Gen. Charles E. Lippincott), Secretary, and Henry S. Dodge, Enrolling and Engrossing Clerk. The other State oflScers appointed by the Governor, or elected by the Legislature, were Samuel D. Lockwood, Secretary of State; Elijah C. Berry, Auditor; Abner Field, Treasurer, and James Tumey, Attorney-General. Lockwood had served nearly two years previously as Attorney-General, but remained in the oflBce of Secretary of State only three months, when he resigned to accept the position of Receiver for the Land Office. (See Lockwood, Samuel Drake. ) The slavery question came up in the Legislature on the reference to a special committee of a portion of the Governor's message, calling attention to the continued existence of slavery in spite

and recommending that steps be taken for its extinction. Majority and minority reports were submitted, the former

of the ordinance of 1787,

claiming the right of the State to amend its Constitution and thereby make such disposition of the slaves as

it

saw proper.

Out of

this

grew a

resolution submitting to the electors at the next

election a proposition for a convention to revise

the Constitution. This passed the Senate by the necessary two-thirds vote, and, having come up in the House (Feb. 11, 1823), it failed by a single vote Nicholas Hansen, a Representative from Pike County, whose seat had been unsuccessfully contested by John Shaw at the beginning of the session, being one of those voting in the negative. The next day, without further investigation, the majority proceeded to reconsider its action in seating Hansen two and a half months previously, and Shaw was seated in his place; though, in order to do this, some crooked work was necessary to evade the rules. Shaw being seated, the submission resolution was then passed. No more exciting campaign was ever had in Illinois. Of five papers then published in the State, "The Edwardsville Spectator," edited by Hooper Warren, opposed the measure, being finally reinforced by "The Illinois Intelligencer," which had been removed to Vandalia; "The Illinois Gazette," at Shawneetown, published articles on both sides of the question, though rather favoring the anti-slavery cause, while "The Republican Advocate," at Kaskaskia, the organ of Senator Ellas Kent Kane, and "The Republican," at Edwardsville, under direction of Judge Theophilus W. Smith, Emanuel J. West and Judge Samuel McRoberts (afterwards United States Senator), favored the Convention. The latter paper was established for the especial purpose of supporting the Convention scheme and was promptly discontinued on the defeat of the measure. (See Newspapers, Early.) Among other supporters of the Convention proposition were Senator Jesse B. Thomas, John McLean, Richard M. Young, Judges Phillips, Browne and Reynolds, of the Supreme Court, and many more; while among the leading champions of the opposition,

—

were Judge Lockwood, George Forquer

(after-

ward Secretary of State), Morris Birkbeck, George Thomas Mather and Rev. Thomas Lip-

Churchill, pincott.

Daniel

P

Cook, then Representative in

Congress, was the leading champion of freedom on the stump, while Governor Coles contributed the salary of his entire term ($4,000), as well as

Govhis influence, to the support of the cause. ernor Edwards (then in the Senate) was the owner of slaves and occupied a non-committal position. The election was held August 2, 1824, resulting in 4,972 votes for a Convention, to 6,640 against it, defeating the proposition by a majority of 1,668. Considering the size of the aggregate vote By it (11,612), the result was a decisive one. Illinois escaped the greatest danger it ever en-

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. countered previous to the War of the Rebellion (See Slavery and Slatr Lairs. At the same election Cook was re-elected to Congress by 3,016 majority over Shadrach Bond. The vote for President was divided between John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay and William H. Crawford Adams receiving a plurality, but much below a majority. The Electoral College failing to elect a President, the decision of the question passed into the hands of the Congressional House of Representatives, when Adams was elected, receiving the vote of Illinois through its only Representative, Mr. Cook. During the remainder of his term, Governor Coles was made the victim of much vexatious litigation at the hands of his enemies, a verdict being rendered against him in the sum of $2,000 for bringing his emancipated negroes into the The Legis State, in violation of the law of 1819. lature having passed an act releasing him from the penalty, it was declared unconstitutional by a malicious Circuit Judge, though his decision was promptly reversed by the Supreme Court. Having lived a few years on his farm near Edwardsville, in 1832 he removed to Philadelphia, where he spent the remainder of his days, his death occurring there, July 7, 1868. In the face of opprobrium and defamation, and sometimes in danger of mob violence, Governor Coles performed a service to the State which has scarcely (See Coles, Edward.) yet been fully recognized. A ridiculous incident of the closing year of Coles' administration was the attempt of Lieut. Gov. Frederick Adolphus Hubbard, after having tasted the sweets of executive power during the Governor's temporary absence from the State, to usurp the position after the Governor's return. The ambitious aspirations of the would-be usurper were suppressed by the Supreme Court. An interesting event of the year 1825, was the He visit of General La Fayette to Kaskaskia. was welcomed in an address by Governor Coles, and the event was made the occasion of much festivity by the French citizens of the ancient

—

capital. (See La Fayette, Visit of.) The first State House at Vandalia having been destroyed by fire, Dec. 9, 1823, a new one was erected during the following year at a cost of 112,381.50, toward which the people of Vandalia contributed $5,000. Edwards' Administration.—The State elec tion of 1826 resulted in again calUng Ninian Edwards to the gubernatorial chair, which he had filled during nearly the whole of the exist Elected one of the ence of Illinois as a Territory

261

United States Senators, and re-elected for a second term in 1819, he had resigned this office in first

1824 to accept

tlie

position of Minister to Mexico,

by appointment of PresiF.i

Beginning of the Rebellion —Almost simul-

introduction to Governor Yatea from Congn-s.-i-

taneously with the accession of the new State Government, and before the inauguration of the President at Washington, began that series of startling events which ultimately culminated in the attempted secession of eleven States of the Union the first acts in the great drama of war which occupied the attention of the world for the next four j-ears. On Jan. 14, 1861. the new State administration was inaugurated on Feb. 2, Commissioners to the futile Peace Convention held at Washington, were appointed from Illinois, consisting of Stephen T. Logan, John M. Palmer. ex-Gov. John Wood, B. C. Cook and T. J. Turner; and on Feb. 11, Abraham Lincoln took leave of his friends and neighbors at Springfield on his departure for Washington, in that simple, touching speech which has taken a place beside his inaugural addresses and his Gettj'sburg speech, as an American classic. The events which followed the firing on Fort Sumter on the twelfth of April and its surrender; the call for 75,000 troops and the excitement which prevailed all over the country, are matters of National his-

man E. B. Washburne. Thougli he had been a Captain in the regular army and had seen service in the war witli Mexico, ho sot up no pretension on tliat account, but after days of patient w:iiting, was given temporary employment as a clerk in the office of the Adjutant General, Col. T. S. Mather. Finally, an emergency having arisen requiring the services of an officer of military experience as commandant at Camp Yates (a camp of rendezvous and in.-itruction near Springfield), he was assigned to the place, rather as an experiment and from neces-sity than from convic-

—

;

;

lUinoisans responded with promptness and enthusiasm to the call for six regiments of State militia for three months" service, and one week later (April 21), Gen. R. K. Swift, of Cliicago, at the head of seven companies numbering 595 men, was en route for Cairo to execute the order of the Secretary of War for the occupation of that tory.

The offer of military organizations proceeded rapidly, and by the eighteenth of April, fifty companies had been tendered, while the public-spirited and patriotic bankers of the principal cities were offering to supply the State with money to arm and equip the hastily organized Following in order the six regiments troops. which Illinois had sent to the Mexican War. those called out for the three months' service in 1861 were numbered consecutively from seven to twelve, and were commanded by the following officers, respectively; Cols. John Cook, Richard J. Oglesby, Eleazer A. Paine, James D. Morgan, W. H. L. Wallace and John McArthur, with Gen. Benjamin M. Prentiss as brigade commander. The rank and file numbered 4,680 men, of whom 2,000, at the end of their term of service, reenUsted for three years. (See Tr«r o/ the place.

of any peculiar fitness for the jxjsition. Having acquitted himself creditably here, he was weeks later, to the command of a

tion

assigned, a few

regiment (The Twenty-finst Illinois Volunteers) which, from previous bad management, had manifested a mutinous tendency. And thus Ulysses S. Grant, the most successful leader of the war, the organizer of final victory over the Rebellion, the Lieutenant-General of the armies of the Union and twice elected President of the United States, started upon that career which won for him the plaudits of the Nation and tlic title of the grandest soldier of his time. (See Gra7it. Ulysses S.)

The responses of

its

patriotic

of Illinois, under the leadership

"War Governor,"

Richard Yates,

to the repeated calls for volunteers through the

four years of war, were cheerful and prompt. Illinois troops took part in nearly every important battle in the Mississippi Valley

and

in

many

of

those in the East, besides accompanying Sherman in his triumphal "March to the Sea." Illinois blood stained the field at Belmont, at Wilson's Creek, Lexington, Forts Donelson and Henry; atShiloh. Corinth, Na.shville, Stone River

and Chickamauga; at Jackson, during the siege of Vicksburg, at Allatoona Pass, Kenesaw MounPeach Tree Creek and Atlanta, in the South and West; and at Chancellorsville, Antietam, Gettysburg, Petersburg and in the Of all battles of "the Wilderness" in Virginia. the States of tlio Union, Illinois alone, up to tain, Resaca,

months of war to offer their services Government in suppressing the Rebellion, one of the most modest and unassuming was a

Feb. 1, 1864. presented the proud record of having answered every call upon her for troops without a draft. The wliole numtter of enlistments from the State under the various calls from 1861 to 1865, according to the records of the War Department, was 255,057 to meet quotas aggre gating 244.490. The ratio of troops furnished to population was 15.1 per cent, which was only exceeded by the District of Columbia (which

gentleman from Galena who brought a

had a

Rebellion.

Among

the

many who

visited the State Capitol

in the early

to the

letter of

lartce influx

from the States), and

Kan.SftK

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

272

and Nevada, each of which had a much larger proportion of adult male population. The whole of regimental organizations, according to the returns in the Adjutant General's office, was 151 regiments of infantry (numbered con-

number

secutively from the Sixth to the One Hundred and Fifty-seventh), 17 regiments of cavalry and 2 regiments of artillery, besides 9 independent bat teries.

The total losses of

Illinois troops, officially

War

Department, were 34,834 reported by the (13.65 per cent), of which 5,874 were killed in battle, 4,030 died of wounds, 22,786 died of disease,

and

3,154

from other

Commander-in-Chief,

Besides the great Lincoln, and

causes.

Abraham

Lieut. -Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, Illinois furnished viz. volunteers, 11 full Major-Generals of

Generals John Pope, John A. McClernand, S. A. Hurlbut, B. M. Prentiss, John M. Palmer, R. J. Oglesby, John A. Logan, John M. Schofield, Giles A. Smith, Wesley Merritt and Benjamin H. Grierson 30 Brevet Major-Generals 24 BrigadierGenerals, and over 120 Brevet Brigadier-Generals. ;

;

(See sketches of these officers under their respecAmong the long list of regimental tive names. ) officers who fell upon the field or died from wounds, appear the names of Col. J. R. Scott of

the Nineteenth Col. Thomas D. Williams of the Twenty-fifth, and Col. F. A. Harrington of the Twenty-seventli all killed at Stone River; Col. John W. S. Alexander of the Twenty-first; Col. Daniel Gilmer of the Thirty -eighth Lieut. -Col. Duncan J. Hall of the Eighty -ninth Col. Timothy O'Meara of the Ninetieth, and Col. Holden Putnam, at Chickamauga and Missionary Ridge; Col. John B. Wyman of the Thirteenth, at ;

—

;

;

Chickasaw Bayou;

Lieut. -Col.

of the Thirty-second, at

Thomas W.

Shiloh;

Col.

Ross,

John A.

Davis of the Forty-sixth, at Hatchie; Col. William A. Dickerman of the One Hundred and Third, at Resaca; Col. Oscar Harmon, at Kenesaw; Col. John A. Bross, at Petersburg, besides Col.

Mihalotzy,

Col.

Silas

Miller,

Lieut. -Col.

Melancthon Smith, Maj. Zenas Applington, Col. John J. Mudd, Col. Matthew H. Starr, Maj. Wm. H. Medill, Col. Warren Stewart and many more on other battle-fields. (Biographical sketches of many of these officers will be found under the proper heads elsewhere in this volume.) It would be a grateful task to record here the names >f a host of others, who, after acquitting themselves bravely on the field, survived to enjoy the plaudits of a grateful people, were this within I

the design and scope of the present work. One of the most brilliant exploits of the War was the raid

from La Grange. Tenn., to Baton Rouge,

La., in May, 1863, led by Col. B. H. Grierson, of the Sixth Illinois Cavalry, in co-operation with the Seventh under command of Col. Edward

Prince.

Constitutional Convention incident of a different character

of

1862.

was the

— An

calling

of a convention to revise the State Constitution, which met at Springfield, Jan. 7, 1863.

A

majority of this body was composed of those opposed to the war policy of the Government, and a disposition to interfere with the affairs of the State administration and the General Government was soon manifested, which was resented by the executive and many of the soldiers in the field. The convention adjourned March 24, and its work was submitted to vote of the people, June 17, 1863, when it was rejected by a majority of more than 16,000, not counting the soldiers in the field, who were permitted, as a matter of policy, to vote upon it, but who were practically

unanimous in opposition to it. Death of Douglas.— A few days before

this

3, 1863), United States Senator Stephen A. Douglas died, at the Tremont House in Chicago, depriving the Democratic party of the State of its most sagacious and patriotic adviser. (See Douglas, Stephen A.) LeqisIjATUKE of 1863. Another political incident of this period grew out of the session of the General Assembly of 1863. This body having been elected on the tide of the political revulsion

election (June

—

which followed the issuance of President Lincoln's preliminary Proclamation of Emancipation, in both branches. One of its election of William A. Richardson United States Senator, in place of O. H. Browning, who had been appointed by Governor Yates to the vacancy caused by the death of Douglas. This Legislature early showed a tendency to follow in the footsteps of the Constitutional Convention of 1862, by attempting to cripple the State and General Governments in the prosecution of the war. Resolutions on the subject of the war, which the friends of the Union regarded as of a most mischievous charac ter, were introduced and passed in the House, but owing to the death of a member on the majority These side, they failed to pass the Senate. denounced the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus; condemned "the attempted enforcement of compensated emancipation" and "the transportation of negroes into the State;" accused the General Government of "usurpation," of "subverting the Constitution" and attempting to establish a "consolidated military despotism;"

was Democratic first acts was the

IIISTOIIICAT,

KXCYCLOPKDIA OK ILLINOI>

charged that the war had been "diverted from its first avowed object to that of subjugation and the abolition of slavery;" declared the belief of the authors that its "further prosecution ....

cannot result in the restoration of the Union .... unless the President's Emancipation Proclamation be withdrawn;"' appealed to Congress to secure an armistice with the rebel States, and closed by appointing six Couimissioners (who were named) to confer with Congress, with a view to the holding of a National Convention to adjust the differences between the States. These measures occupied the attention of the Legislature to the exclusion of subjects of State interest,

—

was accomplished not pven the ordinary appropriation bills being passed. so that little legislation

Legislature Prorogued.— At tliis juncture, the two Houses having disagreed as to the date of adjournment, Governor Yates exercised the constitutional prerogative of proroguing them,

which he did

in

a message on June

10.

declaring

them adjourned to the last day of their constitutional term. The Republicans accepted the result and withdrew, but the Democratic majority in the House and a minority in the Senate continued in session for some days, without being able to transact any business except the filing of an empty protest, when they adjourned to the first

Monday of January, 1864. The excitement produced by this affair, in the Legislature and throughout the State, was intense but the action of Governor Yates was sustained by the Supreme Court and the adjourned session was never held. ;

The

make provision Government and the the field, made it necessary for Governor Yates to accept that aid from the public-spirited bankers and capitalists of the State which was never wanting when needed during this critical period. (See Twenty-Third General Assembly.) failure of the Legislature to

ar;{

Political Campaign of 1864.— The year 1864 was full of exciting political and military events. Among the former was the nomination of George B. McClellan for President by the Democratic Convention held at Chicago, August '29, on a platform declaring the wara "failure" as an "experiment" for restoring the Union, and demanding a "cessation of hostilities" with a view to a convention for the restoration of peace. Mr. Lincoln had been renominated by the Republicans at Philadelphia, in June previous, with Andrew Johnson as the candidate for Vice-President. The leaders of the respective State tickets were Gen. Richard J. Oglesby, on the part of the Republicans, for Governor, with William Bross, for Lieutenant-Governor, and James C. Robinson as tlie Democratic candidate for Governor. Camp Douglas Conspiracy. For months rumors had been rife concerning a conspiracy of rebels from the South and their sympathizers in

—

the North, to release the rebel prisoners confined in Camp Douglas, Chicago, and at Rock Island,

—

and Alton aggregating over 25,000 It was charged that the scheme was to be put into effect simultaneously with the November election, but the activity of the military authorities in arresting the leaders and seizing their arms, defeated it. The investigations of a military court before whom a number of the arrested parties were tried, proved the existence of an extensive organization, calling itself "American Knights" or "Sons of Liberty," of which a number of well-known politicians in Illinois were members. (See Camjy Doughis Springfield

men.

for the expenses of the State

Consjjiracy.)

relief of the soldiers in

At the November election Illinois gave a majorand for Oglesby, for Governor, of 33,675, with a proportionate major ity for the rest of the ticket. Lincoln's total vote in the electoral college was 212, to21 for McClellan. Legislature of 1865. The Republicans had a decided majority in both branches of the Legislature of 1865, and one of its earliest acts was the election of Governor Yates, United States Senator, in place of William A. Richardson, who had been elected two years before to the seat formerly held by Douglas. This was the last public position held by the popular Illinois "War Governor." During his official term no more popular public servant ever occupied the executive chair a fact demonstrated by the promptness with which, on retiring from it, be was elected to the United States Senate. His personal and political integrity was never questioned by his most bitter political opponents, while those who had known

Peace Conventions.— Largely attended "peace conventions" were held during this year, at Springfield on June 17, and at Peoria in September, at which resolutions opposing the "further offensive prosecution of the war" were adopted. An immense Union mass-meeting was also held at Springfield on Sept. 3, which was addressed by distinguished speakers, including both Republicans and War-Democrats. An important incident of this meeting was the reading of the letter from President Lincoln to Hon. James C. Conkling, in which he defended his war policy, and especially his Emancipation Proclamation, in a characteristically logical

ity for Lincoln of 30,756,

—

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

274

women who had given their husbands, sons and brothers for the defense of the Union,

longest and most intimately, trusted him most implicitly. The service which he performed in giving direction to the patriotic sentiment of

patriotic

the State and in marshaling its heroic soldiers for the defense of the Union can never be overestimated. (See Yates, Richard.) Oqlesby's Administration.— Governor Oglesby and the other State officers were inaugu-

ity.

If

nois,

at the taking off of

him

rated Jan. 17, 1865. Entering upon its duties with a Legislature in full sympathy with it, tlie

new

administration was confronted by no such with which its predecessor

difficulties as those

had to contend. Its head, who had been identified with the war from its beginning, was one of the first lUinoisans promoted to the rank of was personally popular and Major-General, enjoyed the confidence and respect of the people of the State. Allen C. Fuller, who had retired from a position on the Circuit bench to accept that of Adjutant-General, which he held during the last three years of the war, was Speaker of the House. This Legislature was the first among those of all the States to ratify the Thirteenth Amendment of the National Constitution, aboUshing slavery, which it did in both Houses, on the evening of Feb. 1, 1865 the same day the resolu-

—

finally acted on by Congress and the sanction of the President. The odious "black laws," which had disgraced the State for twelve years, were wiped from the statute-book at this session. The Legislature

tion

had been

received

adjourned after a session of forty-six days, leaving a record as creditable in the disposal of business as that of its predecessor had been discreditable. (See Oglesby, Richard J.) Assassination of Lincoln.— The war was now rapidly approaching a successful termination. Lee had surrendered to Grant at Appomattox, April 9, 1865, and the people were celebrating this event with joyful festivities through all the loyal States, but nowhere with more enthusiasm than in Illinois, the home of the two great In the naidst of leaders Lincoln and Grant.

—

came the assassination of President Lincoln by John Wilkes Booth, on the evening of April 14, 1865, in Ford's Theater, Washington. The appalling news was borne on the wings of the telegraph to every corner of the land, and instantly a nation in rejoicing was changed to a nation in mourning. A pall of gloom hung over every part of the land. Public buildings, business houses and dwellings in every city, village and hamlet throughout the loyal States were draped with the insignia of a univerMillions of strong men, and tender, sal sorrow.

these jubilations

wept as

if overtaken by a great personal calamthe nation mourned, much more did Illiits chief citizen, the grandest character of the age, who had served both State and Nation with such patriotic fidelity, and perished in the very zenith of his fame and in the hour of his country's triumph. The Funeral. Then came the sorrowful march of the funeral cortege from Washington to Springfield the most impressive spectacle witnessed since the Day of the Crucifixion. In all this, Illinois bore a conspicuous part, as on the fourth day of May, 1865, amid the most solemn ceremonies and in the presence of sorrowing thousands, she received to her bosom, near his old home at the State Capital, the remains of the Great Liberator. The part which Illinois played in the great struggle has already been dwelt upon as fully as the scope of this work will permit. It only remains to be said that the patriotic service of the men of the State was grandly supplemented by the equally patriotic service of its women in "Soldiers' Aid Societies," "Sisters of the Good Samaritan," "Needle Pickets," and in sanitary organizations for the purpose of contributing to the comfort and health of the soldiers in camp and in hospital, and in giving them generous receptions on their return to their homes. The work done by these organizations, and by individual nurses in the field, illustrates one of the brightest pages in the history of the war. Election of 1866. —The administration of Governor Oglesby was as peaceful as it was prosperous. The chief political events of 1866 were the election of Newton Bateman, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, and Gen. Geo. W. Smith, Treasurer, while Gen. John A. Logan, as Representative from the State-at-large. reentered Congress, from which he had retired in 1861 to enter the Union army. His majority was \mprecedented, reaching 55,987. The Legislature of 1867 reelected Judge Trumbull to the United States Senate for a third term, his chief competitor in the Republican caucus being Gen. John M. Palmer. The Fourteenth Amendment to the National Constitution, conferring citizenship upon persons of color, was ratified by this I.,egis-

—

—

lature.

—

Election of 1868. The Republican State Convention of 1868, held at Peoria, May 6, nominated the following ticket: For Governor, John M. Palmer, Lieutenant-Governor, John Dougherty;

HISTOHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF Secretary of State. Edward Ruinmell; Auditor, Charles E. Lippincott, State Treasurer, Erastus N. Bates Attorney General. AVaslnngton Buslmell. John R. Eden, afterward a memher of Congress for three terms, headed tlie Democratic ticket as candidate for Governor, with William H. \'an Epps for Lieutenant-Governor. The Republican National Convention was held at Chicago, May 21, nominating Gen. U. S. Grant for President and Schuyler Colfax for Viceopposed by Horatio President. They were Seymour for President, and F. P. Blair for Vicein November was the President. The result election of Grant and Colfax, who received 214 ;

electoral votes

from 26

States,

to 80

electoral

Seymour and Blair from 8 States— three States not voting. Granfs majority in Illinois was 51,150. Of course the Republican State ticket was elected. The Legislature elected at the same time consisted of eighteen Republicans to nine Democrats in the Senate and fifty-eight votes for

Republicans to twenty-seven Democrats in the House. Palmer's Administration.— Governor Palmer's administration began auspiciously, at a time when the passions aroused b}' the war were subsiding and the State was recovering its normal prosperity. (See Palmer, John 31.) Leading events of the next four years were the adoption of a new State Constitution and the Chicago fire. The first steps in legislation looking to the control of railroads were taken at the session of 1869, and although a stringent law on the subject passed both Houses, it was vetoed by the Governor. A milder measure was afterward enacted, and, although superseded by the Constitution of 1870, it furnished the kej'-note for much of the legislation since had on the subject. The celebrated "Lake Front Bill," conveying to the city of Chicago and tlie Illinois Central Railroad the title of the State to certain lands included in what was known as the "Lake Front Park," was passed, and altliough vetoed by the Governor, was re-enacted over his veto. This act was finally repealed by the Legislature of 1873. and after many years of litigation, the rights claimeii under it by the Illinois Central Railroad Company have been recently declared void by the Supreme Court of the United States. The Fifteenth Amendment of the National Constitution, prohibiting the denial of the riglit of suffrage to "citizens of the United States .... on account of race, color or previous condition of servitude." was ratified by a strictly party vote in each House, on March 5.

The

11.1,

IXdS.

step toward tlie erection of a now State Capitol at Sprinnlii'M had been taken in an first

appropriation of .ii4.'i(),000, at tlie session of ISliT, the total cost being limited to §3,000,000. \

second appropriation of

iiti.lO.OOO was made at the The Constitution of 1870 limited the cost to §3.500,000, but an act jias-sed by the Legislature of 1883. making a final appropriation of §531,713 for completing and furnishing the building, was ratified by the people in 1884. The original cost of the building and its furniture

session of 1809.

exceeded §4,000,000. (See Stute Jlousen. The State Convention for framing a new Constitution

met

at

It consisted of

Springfield,

eighty-five

Dec.

13,

1809.

menibens— forty-four

Republicans and forty-one Democrats. A number classed as Republicans, however, wore elected as "Independents" and cooperated with the Democrats in the organization. Charles Hitchcock was elected President. The Convention terminated its labors, May 13, 1870; the Constitution was ratified by vote of the people, July 2,

and went into

effect,

August

8,

A

1870.

special

provision establisliing the principle of "minority representation" in the election of Representatives in the General Assembly, was adopted by a smaller vote than tlie main instrument. A leading feature of the latter was the general restriction

upon

special legislation

and the enumeration

of a large variety of subjects to be provided for imilor general laws. It laid the basis of our

present railroad and warehouse laws; declared the inviolability of the Illinois Central Railroad tax; prohibited the sale or lease of the Illinois

&

Michigan Canal without a vote of the people prohibited municipalities from becoming subany railroad or private

scribers to the stock of

corporation; limited the rate of taxation and of indebtedness to be incurred required the enactment of laws for the protection of miners, etc. The restriction in the old Constitution against the re-election of a Governor as his own immediate successor was removeil, but placed upon the office of State Treasurer. The Legislature consists of 204 members— 51 Senators and 153 Representatives one Senator and three Representatives being chosen from each district. (See Const it tit ional Convention of LW.i-:u: also Co»i-

amount

;

—

stilution of

Ji'70.

At the election of 1870, General Logan was reelected Congressman-at-large by 24,072 majority; Gen. E. N. Bates, Treasurer, and Newton Bateman, State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Legislature of 1871.—The Twenty-sovonth General Assembly (1871), in its various sessi'His,

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

27C

than any other in spent more time the history of the State a fact to be accounted Chicago Fire and the extenfor, in part, by the sive revision of the laws required in consequence new Constitution. Besides of the adoption of the the regular session, there were two special, or called, sessions and an adjourned session, covering, in all, a period of 293 days. This Legislature adopted the system of "State control" in the management of the labor and discipline of the convicts of the State penitentiary, which was strongly urged by Governor Palmer in a special message. General Logan having been elected United States Senator at this session, Gen. John L. Beveridge was elected to the vacant position of Congressman-at-large at a special election held in legislation

—

Oct.

4.

Chicago Fire op 1871.—The calamitous

fire

Chicago, Oct. 8-9, 1871, though belonging rather to local than to general State history, excited the profound sympathy, not only of the people of the State and the Nation, but of the civilized world. The area burned over, including streets, covered 3,134 acres, with 13,500 buildings out of 18,000, leaving 92,000 persons homeless. The loss of life is estimated at 250, and of property at $187,937,000. Governor Palmer called the Legislature together in special session to act upon the emergency, Oct. 13, but as the State was precluded from affording direct aid, the plan was adopted of reimbursing the city for the amount it had expended in the enlargement of the Illinois & Michigan Canal, amounting to !?2,955,340. The unfortunate shooting of a citizen by a cadet in a regiment of United States troops organized for guard duty, led to some controversy between Governor Palmer, on one side, and the Mayor of Chicago and the military authorities, including President Grant, on the other; but the general verdict was, that, while nice distinctions between civil and military authority may not have been observed, the service rendered by the military, in a great emergency, was of the highest value and was prompted by the best intentions. (See Fire of 1S71 under title Chicago.) Political. Campaign of 1872.—The political 1;R'AL Cullom was reduced to

6,798.

ENCYt'LOPKDlA OF ILLINOIS.

The other State

elected were: Andrew Sliuman, Lieutenaut-Governor; George H. Harlow, Secretary State; Thomas B. Needles, Auditor; Edward Kutz, Treasurer, and James K. Eds;ill, AttorneyEach of these had pluralities exceeding General. 20,000, except Needles, who, having a single competitor, had a smaller majority than Cullom. The new State House was occupied for the first time by the State officers and the Legislature chosen at this time. Although the Republicans had a majoritj' in the House, the Independents held the ""balance of power" in joint session of the General Assembly. After a stubborn and protracted struggle in the effort to choose a United States Senator to succeed Senator John A. Logan, David Davis, of Bloomington, was elected on the fortieth ballot. He had been a Whig and a warm personal friend of Lincoln, by wliom he was appointed Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States in 1862. His election to the United States Senate by the Democrats and Independents led to his retirement from the Supreme bench, thus preventing his appointment on the Electoral Commission of 1877 a circumstance which, in the opinion of many, may have had an important bearing upon the decision In the latter part of his term of that tribunal. he served as President pro tempore of the Senate, and more frequently acted with the Republicans than with their opponents. He supported Blaine and Logan for President and Vice-President, in 1884. (See Davis. David.) Strike of 1877. The extensive railroad strike, ill July, 1877, caused widespread demoralization of business, especially in the railroad centers of the State and throughout the country generally. The newly -organized National Guard was called out and rendered efficient service in restoring order. Governor Cullom"s action in the premises was prompt, and has been generally commended as eminently wise and discreet. Election of 1878. Four sets of candidates were in the field for the offices of State Treasurer and Superintendent of Public Instruction in 1878 Republican, Democratic, Greenback and Prohibition. The Republicans were successful. Gen. John C. Smith being elected Treasurer, and James P. Slade, Superintendent, by pluralities averaging about 35,000. The same party also elected eleven out of nineteen members of Con.iq-ess, and, for the first time in six years, secured a majority in each branch of the General Assembly. At the session of this Legislature, in January following, John A. Logan was elected to the (.fticers

iif

—

—

—

—

277

United States Senate as successor to Gen. R. J. Oglesby, whose term expired in March following. Col. William A. James, of Lake County, .served as Speaker of the House at this session. (See Smith. John Corson: Slade, James P.; stisoThirtyGeneral Assembly.

first

Cami'.mon of of 1880

is

1880.— The

memorable

made by the

for the

i)olitical

campaign

determined struggle

friends of General Grant to secure

nomination for the Presidency for a third The Republican State Convention, Ijeginning at Springfield, May 10, lasted three days, ending in instructions in favor of General Grant by a vote of 399 to 285. These were nuUi.aed, however, by the action of the National Convention two weeks later. Governor Cullom was nominated for reelection; John M. Hamilton for Lieutenant-Governor; Henry D. Dement for .Secretary of State; Charles P. Swigert for Auditor; Edward Rutz (for a third term) for Treasurer, and James McCartney for Attorney -General. (See Dement, Henry D.; Sunijcrt, Charlea P.; Rutz, Edward, a.Dd McCartney, Jaines.) Ex-Senator Trumbull headed the Democratic ticket as its candidate for Governor, with General L. B. Parsons for Lieutenant-Governor. The Republican National Convention met in Chicago, June 2. After thirty-six ballots, in which 306 delegates stood unwaveringly by Genhis

term.

Grant, James A. Garfield, of Ohio, was nominated, with Chester A. Arthur, of New York, for Vice-President. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock was the Democratic candidate and Gen. James B. Weaver, the Greenback nominee. In

eral

votes were cast, Garfield receiving a plurality of 40,716. The entire Republican was elected by nearly the same pluralities, and the Republicans again had decisive majorities in both branches of the Legislature. No startling events occurred during Governor CuUom's second term. The State continued to increase in wealth, popuUition and prosiierity, and the heavy debt, by which it had l>een burIllinois, 622,156

State ticket

dened thirty years before, was practically "wiped out."

Election of 1882.— At the election of 1882, Gen. John C. Smith, who had been elected State Treasurer in 1878, was re-elected for a second term, over Alfred OrendorIT, while Charles T. Strattan, the Republican candidate for State Superintendent of Public Instruction, was defeated by Henry Raab. The Republicans again had a majority in each House of the General A.ssembly, amounting to twelve on joint tiallot. Loren C. Collins was elected Speaker of the

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

278 House.

In the election of United States Senator,

which occurred at tliis session, Governor CuUoni was chosen as the successor to David Davis, Gen. John JI. Palmer receiving the Democratic vote. Lieut.-Gov. John M. Hamilton thus became Gov(See ernor, nearly in the middle of his term. C'ullom, Shelby 21.; Hamilton, John 31.; Collin.?, Loren C, and Raab, Hennj.) The "Harper High License Law,"" enacted by the Thirty-third General Assembly (1883), has become one of the permanent features of the Illinois statutes for the control of the liquor traffic, and has been more or less closely copied in other States.

—

Political Campaign of 1884. In 1884, Gen. R. J. Oglesby again became the choice of the Republican party for Governor, receiving at Peoria the conspicuous compliment of a nomination for a third term, by acclamation. Carter H. Harrison was the candidate of the Democrats. The Republican National Convention was again held in Chicago, meeting June 3. 1884; Gen. John A. Logan was the choice of the Illinois Republicans for President, and was put in nomination The in the Convention by Senator Cullom. choice of the Convention, however, fell upon James G. Blaine, on the fourth ballot, his leading competitor being President Arthur. Logan was then nominated for Vice-President by acclamation.

At the election in November the Republican party met its first reverse on the National battlefield since 18.56, Grover Cleveland and Thomas A. Hendricks, the Democratic candidates, being elected President and Vice-President by the narrow margin of less than 1,200 votes in the State of New York. Tlie result was in doubt for several days, and the excitement throughout the country was scarcely less intense than it had been in the close election of 1876. The Greenback and Prohibition parties both had tickets in Illinois, polling a total of nearly 33,000 votes. The plurality in the State for Blaine was 25,118. Tlie Republican State officers elected

were Richard

Oglesby, Governor; John C. Smith, Lieutenant-Governor; Henry D. Dement, Secretary of J.

Charles P. Swigert, Auditor Jacob Gross, State Treasurer; and George Hunt, AttorneyGeneral receiving pluralities ranging from 14,-

State

;

;

—

UOO to 35,000.

Both Dement and Swigert were and Hunt

elected for a second time, while Gross

(See Gross, Jacob, were and Hunt, Oeorge. Chicago Election Frauds.— An incident of this election was the fraudulent attempt to seat

chosen for first terms.

Rudolph Brand (Democrat) as Senator in place of Henry W. Leman, in the Sixth Senatorial DisCook County. The fraud was exposed and Joseph C. Mackin, one of its alleged perpetrators, was sentenced to the penitentiary for four years for perjury growing out of the inve.stigatrict of

A motive for this attempted fraud wa.s found in the close vote in the Legislature for United States Senator Senator Logan being a candidate for re-election, while the Legislature stood 103 Republicans to 100 Democrats and two Greenbackers on joint ballot. A tedious contest on the election of Speaker of the House finally resulted in the success of E. M. Haines. Pending tion.

—

the struggle over the Senatorship, two seats in the House and one in the Senate were rendered

—

vacant by death the deceased Senator and one of the Representatives being Democrats, and the other Representative a Republican. The special election for Senator resulted in filling the vacancy with a new member of the same political faith as his predecessor but both vacancies in the House were lilled by Republicans. The gain of a Repulilican member in place of a Democrat in the House was brought about by the election of Captain William H. Weaver Representative from the Thirty-fourth District (composed of Mason, Menard, Cass and Schuyler Counties) over the Democratic candidate, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Representative J. Henry Shaw, Democrat. This was accomplished by what is called a "still hunt"' on the part of the Republicans, in which the Democrats, being taken liv It furnished the sensurprise, sufi'ered a defeat. sation not only of the session, but of special elections generally, especially as every county in tlie District was strongly Democratic. This gave the Republicans a majority in each House, and the re-election of Logan followed, though not until two months had been consumed in the contest. (See Logan. John. A.) Oglesby's Third Term.— The only disturbing events during Governor Oglesby's third term were strikes among the quarrymen at Joliet and Lemont, in May, 1885 by the railroad switchmen at East St. Louis, in April, 1886, and among tlic employes at the Union Stock- Yards, in November In each case troops were called of the same year. out and order finally restored, but not imtil several persons had been killed in the two former, and both strikers and employers had lost heavily ;

;

in the interruption of business.

At the

John R. Tanner and Edwards (Republicans) were respecand State Superin-

election of 1886,

Dr. Richard

tively elected State Treasurer

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OK ILLINOIS. tendent of Public Instruction, by :i4..si(; pluralitv for the former and 29,928 for tlie Latter. (See Tanner, John li.: Edwards. Richard.) In the Thirty-tifth General Assembly, whicli met January, 1887. the Republicans had a majority in each House, and Charles B. Farwell was elected to the United States Senate in place of Gen. John A. Logan, deceased. (See Fani-cII. Charles B.)

FiTER Elected Goveexor. campaign of 1888 was a spirited

— The

political

though less than the one of four years previous. ExSenator Joseph W. Fifer, of McLean County, and Ex-Gov. John M. Palmer were pitted against each other as opposing candidates for Governor. (See Prohibition and Labor tickets Fifer, Joaeph W.) were also in the field The Republican National Convention was again held in Chicago. June 20-25, resulting in the nomination of Benjamin Harrison for President, on the eighth ballot. The delegates from Illinois, with two or three exceptions, voted steadily for Judge Walter Q. Gresham. (See Gresliam, M'alfcr Q.) Grover Cleveland headed the Democratic ticket as a one.

bitter

candidate for re-election. At the November election, 747,683 votes were cast in Illinois, giving the Republican Electors a plurality of 22,104. Fifer's plurality over Palmer was 12.547, and that of the remainder of the Republican State ticket, still larger. Those elected were Lyman B. Ray, Lieutenant-Governor; Isaac N. Pearson, Secretary of State Gen. Charles W. Pavey. Auditor Charles Becker, Treasurer, and George Hunt, (See Rdi/. Lyman B.: PearAttorney-General. son, Isaac y.: Pavcy. Ciiartes W: and Becker. Charles.) The Republicans secured twenty-six majority on joint ballot in the Legislature the Among the acts of the Legislargest since 1881. lature of 1889 were the reelection of Senator Cullom to the United States Senate, practically without a contest the revision of the compulsory education law. and the enactment of the Chicago drainage law. At a special session held in July. 1890, the first steps in the preliminary legislation looking to the holding of the "World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 in the city of Cliicago, were (See World's Columhian E.rjmsifion.) taken. ;

—

;

Republican Defeat of

1890.

— The

campaign

of 1890 resulted in a defeat for the Republicans on

both the State and Legislative tickets. Edward S. Wilson was elected Treasurer by a plurality nf 9,847 and Prof. Henry Raab, who had been Superintendent of Public Instruction between 1883 and

was elected for a second term by 34,042. Though lacking two of an absolute majority on 1887,

Jiiiiil

ballot in the

Legislature,

the Democrats

with the aid of two menil>ers l)elonging Farmers' AUianire, after a prolonged and exciting contest, to elect Ex-(iov. John M. Palmer United States Senator, as successor to C. B. Farwell. The election took place on March 11, resulting, on the 154th ballot, in 103 votes for Palmer to 100 for Cicero J. Lindley (Republican) and one for A. J. Streeter. (See Palnier. Johti M. Elections ok 1892.— At the elections of 1892 the Republicans of Illinois sustained their first defeat on both State and National issues since 1856. The Democratic State Convention was held at Springfield, April 27. and that of the Republicans on May 4. The Democrats put in nomination John P. Altgeld for Governor; Joseph B. Gill for Lieutenant-* Jovernor; William H. Hinrichsen for Secretary of State; Rufus N. Ramsay for State Treasurer; David Gore for Auditor Maurice T. Jloloney for Attorney-General, with John C. Black and Andrew J. Hunter for Congressmen-at-large and three candidates for Trustees of the University of Illinois. The canFor Govdidates on the Republican ticket were ernor, Joseph W. Fifer; Lieutenant-Governor, \\

ere able,

to the

;

:

Lyman

B.

Ray

;

Secretarj' of State. Isaac N. Pear-

son; Auditor, Charles W. Pavey: Attorney-General, George W. Prince; State Treasurer, Henry L. Hertz Cougressmen-at-large, George S. Willits ;

and Richard "i'ates, with three University TrusThe first four were all incumbents nomitees. nated to succeed themselves. The Republican National Convention held its session at Miimeapolis June 7-10. nominating President Harrison for re-election, while that of the Democrats met in Chicago, on June 21, remaining in session until June 24, for the third time choosing, as its standard-bearer, Grover Cleveland, with .\dlai T. Stevenson, of Bloomington, 111., as his runningmate for Vice-President. The Prohibition and People's Party also had complete National and State tickets in the field. The State campaign was conducted with great vigor on both sides, tlie Democrats, under the leadership of Altgeld, mak-

ing an especially bitter contest upon some features of the compulsory school law, and gaining manyvotes from the ranks of the German-Republicans. The result in the State showed a plurality for Cleveland of 20.993 votes out of a total 873,646— the combined Prohibition and People's Party vote amounting to 48,077. The votes for the respective heads of

the State tickets were:

^Vltgeld

(Dem.l, 42.->,4fl8; Fifer (Rep.), 402.6.59; Link (Pro.). 25,628:Barnet (Peo.). 20, lOS— plurality for Altgeld, 22.808. The vote for Fifer was the high-

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

280 est given to

any Republican candidate on either

the National or the State ticket, leading that of President Harrison by nearly 3,400, while the vote for Altgeld, though falling behind that of Cleveland, led the votes of all his associates on the Democratic State ticket with the single exception of Ramsay, the Democratic Candidate for Treasvirer. Of the twenty-two Representatives in Congress from the State chosen at this time, eleven were Republicans and eleven Democrats, including among the latter the two Congressmen from the State-at-large. The Thirty-eighth General Assembly stood twenty-nine Democrats to twenty-two Republicans in the Senate, and seventy -eight Democrats to seventy -five Republicans in the House. The administration of Governor Fifer the last in a long and unbroken line under Republican Governors closed with the financial and industrial interests of the State in a prosperous condition, the State out of debt with an ample surplus in its treasury. Fifer was the first private soldier of the Civil War to be elected to the Governorship, though the result of the next two elections have that he was not to be the last both of his belonging to the same class. Governor Altgeld was the first foreign-born citizen of the State to be elected Governor, though the State has had four Lieutenant-Governors of foreign birth, viz. Pierre Menard, a French Canadian John Moore, an Englishman, and Gustavus Koerner and Francis A. Hoffman, both Germans. Altgeld's Administration. The Thirtyeighth General Assembly began its session, Jan. 4, 1893, the Democrats having a majority in each House. (See Thirty-eighth General Assembly.) The inauguration of the State officers occurred on January 10. The most important events connected with Governor Altgeld's administration were the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, and the strike of railway employes in 1894. Both of these have been treated in detail under their proper heads. (See World's Columbian Exposi-

—

—

—

:

—

tion,

and Labor

Troubles.)

A

serious

disaster

by fire, on the night of Jan. 3, 1895, of a portion of the buildings connected with the Southern Hospital for the Insane at Anna, involving a loss to the State of nearly §200,000, and subjecting the inmates and officers of the institution to great risk and no small amount of suffering, although no lives were lost. The Thirty-ninth General Assembly, which met a few days after the fire, made an appropriation of $171,970 for the restoration of the buildings destroyed, and work was begun immediately. befell the State in the destruction

The defalcation of Charles W. Spalding, Treasurer of the University of IlUnois, which came to Governor Altgeld's term,

light near the close of

involved the State in heavy loss (the exact amount of which is not even yet fully known), and operated unfortunately for the credit of the retiring administration, in view of the adoption of a policy which made the Governor more directly

management of the State inby most of his predeThe Governor's course in connection with the strike of 1894 was also severely criticised in some quarters, especially as it brought him in responsible for the

stitutions than that pursued cessors.

opposition to the policy of the National adminis-

and exposed him to the charge of sympathizing with the strikers at a time when they were regarded as acting in open violation of law. tration,

Election of 1894.— The election of 1894 showed as surprising a reaction against the Democratic

had been in an opposite The two State offices to be vacated

party, as that of 1892 direction.

—State Treasurer and State Superintendent of Public Instruction — were fiUed by the electhis year

tion of Republicans by unprecedented majorities. The plurality for Henry Wulff for State Treasurer,

was

133,437,

and that

in favor of

Samuel M.

Inglis for State Superintendent of Public Instruc-

Of twenty-two Representatives in Congress, all but two returned as elected were Republicans, and these two were unseated as the result of contests. The Legislation, scarcely 10,000 less.

ture stood thirty-three Republicans to eighteen Democrats in the Senate, and eighty -eight Republicans to sixty -one Democrats in the House.

One of the most important acts of the Thirtyninth General Assembly, at the following session, was the enactment of a law fixing the compensation of members of the General Assembly at SI, 000 for each regular session, with five dollars per day and mileage for called, or extra, sessions. This Legislature also passedacts making appropriations for the erection of buildings for the use of the State Fair, which had been permanently located at Springfield for the establishment of two additional hospitals for the insane, one near Rock Island and the other ( for incurables) near Peoria for the Northern and Eastern Illinois Normal Schools, and for a Soldiers' Widows' Home at ;

Wilmington.

Peum.\nent Loc.\tion of the State Fair.— In consequence of the absorption of public attention especially among the indu.strial and manufacturing classes by the World's Columbian Exposition, the holding of the Annual Fair of the Illinois State Board of Agriculture for 1893 was

—

—

HISTORICAL EXrYCLOPEDIA OK ILLINOIS.

281

time since the Civil W;ir The initial steps were taken by the Board at its annual meeting in Springfield, in January of that

crats followed, at Peoria,

permanent location of the Fair; and. at a meeting of the Board held in Chicago, in October following, formal specifications

James A. liose for Secretary of State; James S. McCullough for Auditor; Henry L. Hertz for Treasurer, and Edward C. jVkin for AttorneyGeneral, with Mary Turner Carriel, Thomas J. Smyth and Francis M. McKay for University Trustees. The ticket put in nomination by the Democracy for State oflicers embraced John P.

omitted for the

first

year, looking to the

were adopted prescribing the conditions to be met These were sent to cities intending to compete for the location as the basis Responses of proposals to be submitted by them. were received from the cities of Bloomington, Decatur, Peoria and Springfield, at the annual meeting in January, 1894, with the result that, on the eiglith ballot, the bid of Springfield was accepted and the Fair permanently located at that place by a vote of eleven for Springfield to The ten divided between five other points. Springfield proposal provided for conveyance to the State Board of Agriculture of 15.5 acres of land— embracing the old Sangamon County Fair Groimds immediately north of the city besides a cash contribution of §50,000 voted by the Sangamon County Board of Supervisors for the in securing the prize.

—

erection of permanent buildings. Other contributions increased the estimated value of the

donations from

Sangamon County

(including the land) to §139,800, not including the pledge of the city of Springfield to pave two streets to the gates

Grounds and furnish water free, bean agreement on the part of the electric

of the Fair sides

company to furnish light The construction of charge. begun the same year, and the light

for

two years

of buildings first

free

was

Fair held on

September following. Additional buildings have been erected and other improvements introduced each year, until the grounds

the

site

in

now regarded

among

the best equipped for exhibition purposes in the United States. In the meantime, the increasing success of the Fair from year to year has demonstrated the wisdom of the action taken by the Board of Agriculture in the matter of location. are

as

—

Campaign of 1896. The political campaign was one of almost unprecedented activity

of 1896

in Illinois, as well as

remarkable for the variety

and character of the

number

issues involved

of party candidates in the

usual, the Democratic

and

tlie

field.

As

and the Republican

parties

were the chief factors in the contest, although there was a wide diversity of sentiment in each, which tended to the introduction of new issues and the organization of parties on new lines.

The Republicans took the

lead in organizing for the canvass, holding their State Convention at Springfield on April 29 and 30. while the Demo-

on June 23. The former put in nomination John R. Tanner for (loveruor; William A. Northcott for Ijieutenant-Governor;

Altgeld for re-election to the Governorship; for Lieutenant-Governor, Monroe C. Crawford; Stivretarj'

of

Andrew

L.

State,

Finis

E.

Downing: Auditor,

Maxwell; Attorney-General, George

A. Trude, with tliree candidates for Trustees.

The National Republican Convention met at St. Louis on June 16, and, after a thrive days' session, put in nomination William McKinley, of Ohio, for President, and Garret A. Hobart, of Now Jersey, for Vice-President; while their Democratic opponents, following a policy which had been maintained almost continuously by one or the other party since 1860, set in motion its party machinery in Chicago holding its National Convention in that city, July 7-11, when, for the first time in the history of the nation, a native of Illinois was nominated for the Presidency in tlie person of William J. Bryan of Nebraska, with Arthur Sewall, a ship-builder of Maine, for the second place on the ticket. The main issues, as enunciated in the platforms of the respective parties, were industrial and financial, as shown by the prominence given to the tariff and monetary questions in each. This was the natural result of

—

the business depression which Iiad prev.iiled since 1893. While the Republican platform adhered to the traditional position of the party on the tariff issue, and declared in favor of maintaining the gold standard as the basis of the monetary system of the country, that of the Democracy took a new departure by declaring unreservedly for the "free and unlimited coinage of both silver and gold at the present legal ratio of IG to 1;" and this became the leading issue of the campaign. The fact that Thomas E. Watson, of Georgia, who had been favored by the Populists as a candidate for Vice President, and was afterwards formally nominated by a convention of that party, with Mr. Bryan at its head, was ignored by the Chicago Convention, led to much friction between the Populi.st and Democratic wings of the party At the same time a very considerable Ixjdy in infiuence and political prestige, if not in numbers in the ranks of the old-line Democratic party, refused to accept the doctrine of the free-silver

—

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. section on the nionetary question, and, adopting the name of "Gold Demociats,'' put in nomination a ticket composed of John M. Pahner, of Illinois, for President,

and Simon

tucky, for Vice-President. hibitionists,

and

B.

Buckner, of Ken-

Besides these, the Pro-

Nationalists, Socialist-Labor

"Middle-of-the-Road""

(or

Party

".straight-out'')

Populists, had more or less complete tickets in the field, making a total of seven sets of candidates appealing for the votes of the people on issues assumed to be of National importance. The fact that the two great jjarties Democratic and Republican established their principal headquarters for the prosecution of the campaign in Chicago, had the effect to make that city and tlie State of Illinois the center of political activDemonstrations of an imposity for the nation. ing character were held by both parties. At the November election the Republicans carried the

—

—

day by a plurality, in

Illinois,

of 141,517 for their

national ticket out of a total of 1,090,869 votes, while the leading candidates on the State ticket received the following pluralities: John R. Tanner (for Governor), 113,381; Northcott (for Lieu-

tenant-Governor), State), 136.fill;

137,3.54;

Rose (for Secretary of

McCullough

(for Auditor), 138,-

Hertz (for Treasurer). 116,064; Akin (for Attorney -General), 132,650. The Republicans also elected seventeen Representatives in Congress to three Democrats and two People's Party men. The total vote cast, in this campaign, for the "Gold Democratic" candidate for Governor was 8,100. Gov. Tanner's Administr.\tion The Fortieth General Assembly met Jan. 6, 1897, consisting of eighty-eight Republicans to sixty-three Democrats and two Populists in the House, and thirtynine Republicans to eleven Democrats and one Populist in the Senate. The Republicans finally gained one member in each house by contests. Edward C. Curtis, of Kankakee County, was chosen Speaker of the House and Hendrick V. Fisher, of Henry County, President pro tem. of the Senate, with a full set of Republican officers The inauguration in the subordinate positions. of the newly elected State officers took place on the 11th, the inaugural address of Governor Tanner taking strong ground in favor of maintaining the issues indorsed by the people at the late election. On Jan. 20, "William E. Mason, of Chicago, was elected United States Senator, as the successor of Senator Palmer, wliose term was about to expire. Mr. Mason received the full Republican strength (125 votes) in the two Houses, to the 77 Democratic votes cast for John (See Fortieth General Assembly.) P. Altgeld.

013;

—

Among

the principal measures enacted by the its regular session

Fortieth General Assembly at

The "Torrens Land Title System," regulating the conveyance and registration of land the consolidation of the three titles (which see) Supreme Court Districts into one and locating the Supreme Court at Springfield, and the Allen Street-Railroad Law, empowering City Councils and other corporate authorities of cities to grant were;

;

street railway

years.

On

for a period of fifty the Legislature met in Governor, nam-

franchises

Dec.

special session

7,

1897,

under a

call of the

ing five subjects upon which legislation was suggested. Of these only two were acted upon

a law prescribing the manner of conducting the election of delegates to nominating political conventions, and a new revenue affirmatively, viz.

:

law regulating the assessment and collection of

The main feature of the latter act is the requirement that property shall be entered upon the books of the assessor at its cash value, subject to revision by a Board of Review, the basis of valuation for purposes of taxation being one-fifth taxes.

of this amount.

The Spanish-American War.—The most

not-

able event in the history of Illinois during the year 1898 was the Spanish-American War, and the part Illinois played in it. In this contest

manifested the same eagerness to serve their country as did their fathers and fellow citizens in the War of the Rebellion, a third Illinoisans

The first call for volunteers was responded to with alacrity by the men composing the Illinois National Guard, seven regi-

of a century ago.

ments of infantry, from the

First to Seventh inclusive, besides one regiment of Cavalry and one Battery of Artillery in all about 9,000 men being mustered in between Maj- 7 and May 21. Although only one of these the First, imder the command of Col. Henry L. Turner of Chicago saw practical service in Cuba before the surrender

—

—

—

at Santiago, others in

camps

of instruction in the

to the demand for Under the second call for troops two other regiments — the Eighth and the Ninth — were organized and the former (composed of Afro- Americans officered by men of

South stood ready to respond their service in the

field.

own race) relieved the First Illinois on guard duty at Santiago after the surrender. A body of engineers from Company E of the Second United States Engineers, recruited in Chicago, were among the first to see service in Cuba, while many Illinoisans belonging to the Naval Reserve were assigned to duty on United States war vessels, and rendered most valuable service in the their

HISTOHICAL ENCYCLoi' naval engagements in Cuban waters. The Thini Regiment (Col. Fred. Hennitt) also took part in the movenient for the occupation of Porto Rico. The several regiments on their return for musterout, after the conclusion of terms of peace with Spain, received most enthusiastic ovations from their fellow-citizens at home. Besides the regiments mentioned, several Provisional Regiments were organized and stood ready to respond to the call of the Government for their services had the emergency required. (See War. The Spani>th Americau.)

Labor Distirbaxces.

— The

principal labor

disturbances in the State, under Governor Tanner's administration, occurred during the coalminers" strike of 1897. and the lockout at the

Pana and Virden mines

in 1898.

The attempt

to

introduce colored laborers from the South to operate these mines led to violence between the adherents of the "Miners' Union" and the mineowners and operators, and their employes, at

which it was necessary to out the National Guard, and a number of were sacrificed on both sides. A flood in the Ohio, dviring the spring of 1898. caused the breaking of the levee at Shawneetown. 111., on the 3d day of April, in consequence of ^vhich a large proportion of the city was flooded, many homes and business houses wrecked or greatly injured, and much other property deThe most serious disaster, however, was stroyed. the loss of some twenty-five lives, for the most part of women and children who, being surpriseil in their homes, were unable to escape. Aid was promptly furnished by the State Government in the form of tents to shelter the survivors and rations to feed them and contributions of money and provisions from the citizens of the State, collected by relief organizations during the next two or three months, were needed to moderate the suffering. (See Iiiini(latioiix, Hciiuifkcible.) these points, during call

lives

;

Campaign of 1898.—The political campaign of 1898 was a quiet one. at least nominally conducted on the same general issues as that of 189fi. although the gradual return of business prosperity had greatly modified the intensity of interest with which some of the economic questions of the preceding campaign had been regarded. The only State officers to be elected were a StateTreasurer, a Superintendent of Public Instruction, and three State University Trustees

—

the total vote cast for the former bein.^' 878,622 against 1,090,869 for President in 1896. Of the former, Floyd K. Whittemore (Republican candidate for State Treasm-er) received 448.940 to 405,490 for

A

M

F.

(IF

ILLIXOIS.

>s:?

Dunlap (Democrat), with

l)et\veen

three

other candidates:

24,192 divided

while Alfred

Bayhss (Republican) receive

of in 1765.251.

avj.

Grant, Uly se.s s Colonel of Tu

.

;

oxplorei, 244-6.

Baker, Col. E. D., 263: orator at laying the corner-stone of Slate capitol. 264. Bateinan, Newton. State Superintendent of Public Instruction. 270.274,275.

Beveridge, John L., Congressman and liieutenant-Governor: becomes Governor by resigiiiitlon of Governor Oglesby, 276. Blrkbeck, Morris, 2G0. Bissell, William H., Colonel In Mexican War. 265: Governor. 269: death, 270.

Black

Hawk War

262.

Blodgett, Henry W., Free Soil tbe Legislature. 268.

member

Bloomington Convention (18561,269 Bolsbriant, first French Commandant.

of

249.

Bond, Sbadrach, 255; Delegate iu Congress. 257; flist Governor, 258. Breese, Sidney, 259.

Browne. Thomu-s C, 260. Browning. Orville H., In

Bloomington

Convention, 269; C S. Senator. 27:i. Cahokla, first French settlement at, 262. Camp Douglas conspiracy, 273. Canal Scrip Fraud, 270. Carlln, Thomas, elected Governor, 263. Casey, Zaduc, elected to Congre.ss; resigns the Lieutenant-Governorship, 202.

riesof the "Illinois Country." '241. Pope, Nathaniel, Secretary or lUiiiolsTerrltory. i'lS: ]).-lfe:;ii.- in Congress: service in lixln?

of in estimation of early explorers, 247 Chicago election frauds, 278.

Chicago, fire of 1871,276. Chicagou, Indian Chief for

whom Chicago

Patrick Heury,

House lis .

Richardson, William Governor, 270: U.S. Senator.

of Dol.'ijates.

Term

Commandant prisoner of

Constitutional Convention of 1870.275. 255:

Attorney-General,

258; elected to Congress, 260-61. Craig, Capt. Thomas, expedition against iJidlans at Peoria. 257.

Cullom, Shelby M.,Speaker of General Assembly, 270; elected Governor, 276; feiitures of his administration: re-elected, 277; elected to U. a Senate. 278. Davis, David. United States Senator. 277. Douglas, Stephen A., 263: Justice Supreme

Court. 264, iLlncoln. 26S-70: re-elected V. S. Sen-

Duncan, josepn, 'Governor; character of bla admlnistratloD. 262-63.

Early towns,

1811.256.

Illinois Terri-

tory. 255, elected U. s. Senator. 259; elected Governor; aUmiuisirauou and death, 261. Ewing, William L. D., becomes acting Governor; ocrupanl of many offices, 262. Explorers, early French, 244-5. Farwell. CharlRS B., 279 Field- .McClernand contest. 261. Fifer, Joseph W.. elected Guvernnr, 279. FiBher,Dr. George. Speaker of Territorial Bof Represent;

last Brillsh In Illinois. 251; sent aa a

war

to Wllltumsburg,

Kane, Elias Kent. 258. Kansas-Nebraska contest. 263. Kaskaskia Indians remove from Upper

mouther

Illinois to

autborlzeu.

Kiuskaskia. 248.

Kenton, Simon, guide for Clark's expedition again. t Kaskaskia. 251. Labor disturbances. 270, 280, 283.

La Fayette, visit of, La Salle, expedition

tuKa.skaskia,261. *

'"'

of Fort St. Louis. 246.

Lincoln,

Abraham, Representative

in the

General Assembly, 263; elected to Congress, 266; unsuccessful candidate for the United States Senate; member of of

1856;

" House divided-against-itseU'" speech, 269: elected President. 270: departure for

Todd. Col. John. Cou nois County, 2.V2. T..Miy. Hi-nryduiseeLaSalle). Lyiinui, Secretary of Stale. 264 United States Senator. 2I19-70: Mtic candidate for Governor. 277. !hesecond State capital, ZW. M'.:, 236; expeditions to Peoria

I

Secretary slavery coi Logan. Gen.


& Alton Railroad, near Chicago, in 1886, resulting in his being permanently disabled physically, in consequence of which he declined a re-election to tlie l>encli in 1^ Samuels. Marshall, D.

IS47.

847-49 847-49

Third...

R R

Trumbull,

Resigned, Dec,

845-40 849-51

Feb. to Mar..

.

R

James Knox,R Knoxville.... James C. Allen, D Palestine. ... James C. Allen, D Palestine James H. Woodworth. K. Chicago Jacob

Seventh

D...

W

Washburne, R

B. B. Washburne,

.

Sixth Seventli Sixth.... Seventh,. First Eighth... Third. .. Second... Ninth.... Fourth...

Marion

Richard Yates, >V Richard Yates. E. B.

.

..

Stephen A. Douglas, D William A. Richardson, 1). jRusl William A. Richardson, D. iQuiii Joseph P. Hoge, D John J. Hardin, Edward D. Baker, Edward D. Baker, Galena,

S.

Died: term completed by Reyr

One and one-halt terms.

D

John A. McClernand, John A McClernand,

Richard

•:

Elected Governor; resigned.

To succeed Duncan.

.

Belleville... Springfield.., Springfield...

W

John T.Stuart, O.P Robert Smith,

State Third.. Third.. .

Jacksonville

JohnT.

Elected U. S. Senator, 1824 and

State

Daniel P. Coolt Joseph Duncan

.

.

..

Princeton Princeton

Third

Quincy

Fifth..!

.

Died, Mar..

Fifth... 857-63 857-61.... to

Ma

'64;

I

filled

li

'.if

by E.C.IngersoU.

" rhos

.

L.'

Harris

.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

Lawrencevilte Marshall Marshall

James C. Kobiuson, U.

D

Philip B. Fouke.

Springfield Springfield

.

...

.mied by W.J.Allen. tnr.1871; resigned: term licverldge.

Jersey ville.

Oquawka.

D

JotmR. Eden, D

Lewi! W. Root. D Morrison. D.. William William R. Morrison, D William R. Morrison, D.. a W. Moulton, R aw. Moulton, D

Peoria

Fifth

Seventh

Waterloo

Stale-at-large.

Seventeenth Fourth

Fifteenth

.

.

,883-85..

865-89.. '7u

IjutresM before beg'iig of term.

Tenth.

Belleville.... Belleville... Bellertlle ...

Twelfth Eightee

Vienna Chicago CarroUton

Thirteeni First .

Tenth

.

.

Rock Island.. Rock Island

Sbcth..

.

I

unexpired term of

Wi

'.'.'.

Decatur Petersburg... BelleviUe.

Evanslon Chicago Oiicago

Served unexpired term of Logan.

.

First

...

Third Third

. .

.

Joliet

to J.

871-73..

Tenth

Hillsboro

Chicago

May, 76, seat awarded

Fifth Sixth

Princeton..

D

First

. .

Chicago....

.iFlrst

Belvldere

.

873-74!!

'Second iFourth .Seventh., .

Peru

.Eighth .Ninth

L. Fort. R..

Granville Barriere, R. Jerseyvilie Jerseyvilie

Bloomington Tuscola and Daiivi

R R R

.Eleventh.... .Thirteenth.. Fourteenth., ..Fifteenth....

Danville Danville

Pifieenth... .

R

.' Salem Carbondale Chicago Chicago . . .

I) 1)

Princeton Princeton

..

.iTenth

Rushville

William H. Ray. R... Robert M. Knapp, D... Robert U. Knapp, D... John McNulta, I

.

'

Twelfth I

SLtteenth... Eighteenth.,

Third

Awarded seat, vice Farwell.

..!!!!.

& Genesi

Alexander Campbell, Q.B La Salle Richard H. Whiting. R. Rushviile John C. Bagbv, D Pittafield Scott Wike, D .Scott Wike, D Pittsfield William M. Springer. D... Springfield William M. Springer, D. Springfield Adlai E. Stevenson, D Bloomington Adlai Stevenson. D William A. J. Sparks. D Carlyle William Hartzell.D .. Chester WiUiam B. Anderson, D Mt. Vernon.. William Aldrich. R Chicago Carter H Harrison. D ... Chicago Chicago Lorenz Brentano. R William Lathrop. R Rockford.... PhUipC. Hayes. R Lewiston.... Thomas A. Boyd, R Benjamin F Marsh, R .. Warsaw .

t

881.83.. .

Third.... Fifth

Jasper D. Ward. R. Stephe Hurlbu Franklin Corwin, R...

Isaac Clements. R Carter H. Harrison, John V. Le Moyne. T. J. Henderson, R T.J. Henderson, K

term.

Lovejiiys unexpired

Eighteenth...

.

Shelbyville

Metropolis

Charles B. Farwell, R..-. Charles B. Farnell, R..Charles B. Farwell, R. Brad. N. Stevens, R Henry Snapp, R Edward Y. Rice. D

James S. Martin,

term.

uiie.\p'lred

...

.

Shelby vUle.. Shelby vUle..

Springfield.. Shelbyville..

.

.

\|,iird

Charleston'.'.

.

—

Green B. Raum, R Horatio C. Burchard, R.. HoralioC. Burchard, R.. John B. Hawley, R JohnB. Hawley, R Jesse H. Moore, R Thomas w. McNeeley, D JohnB. Hay, R John M. C'rebs. D John L. Beveridge. R

Joseph G. Cannon, Joseph G. Cannon. Joseph G. Cannon,

-'65 filled

Re-elected, .

.

Fifteenth...

Monmouth..

Abner

.

Served Mi-Clcniiiii.rs

I...;;.in > in

Tenth Fourth

.

.

Sullivan.... Sullivan.... Sullivan...

Waterloo

aw.

—

Servi-d

Waterloo....

.

Moulton, D C. Harding. R Burton U. Cook, R H. P. H. Bromnell. R. Shelby M. Cullom, R iithony Thornton, 1} Jehu Baker. R Jehu Baker, R Jehu Baker, P A. J. Kuykendall,

Ninth Thirteenth. Fifth

Lewi:

R

Greenbury

....

Fhrst

Jerseyvilie

B. Rice.B B. G. Caullield.

Eighth

K R

William J. AUen, D... William J. Allen, D... A. L. Knapp, I>

John

Eleventh..

.

T>

Isaac N. Arnold, Isaac N, Arnold.

.

Sixteenth.. Iseventh...

R

John A. Logan, Johu A. Logau,

JotanR. Eden,

.

.

.

K

.

. .

877-81

.

877-83.!!

V. Le Moyne.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

448

Benjamin F. Marah, Ji Benjamin F. Marsh, K.

Eleventh....

Thomas

Thirteenth Nineteenth

Fifteenth....

F. Tipton, R..

George R. Davis,

Hiram Barber, E

R

Third Fourth

John C.Sherwin, R.... R. MA. Hawll.R James W. Singleton, D

Geneva and Elgin Quincy

Eleventh

A. P. Forsythe.G. B....

Isabel

Fifteenth

JohnR. Thomas, John R. Thomas,

Metropolis Metropolis Ottawa...

Eighteenth

R R William Cullen, E William Cullen, E Lewis B. Payson, R Lewis E. Payson, R. John H. Lewis. R Dietrich C. Smith, R. B. W. Dunham, R John F. Finerty, E George E. Adams, R Eeuben EUwood, E Robert E. Hltt, E Eobert R. Hltt, E

.

..

.

.

Second Fourth Fifth Sixth

Mt. Morris Mt. Morris

R. M. A. Hawk, deceased.

Ninth Tenth Eleventh Twelfth

Winchester Bloomington Chicago .

D

.

Thirteenth

Fourteenth.

.

Second Third

Albert J. Hopkins, R Albert J. Hopkins, R

R

.

First

Sycamore

athan H. Rowell.E.. Prank Lawier, D James H. Ward, D

William E. Mason.

.

Eighth Ninth Ninth

Pontiac Pontiac Knoxville Pekin Chicago Chicago Chicago

.

N. E. Worthington, V.

Ralph Plumb,

Died, '82; succeeded by E. E. Hltt.

Fifth

Carroll

Ottawa

.

Silas G. Landes,

..

Third..'.'.'.'.!!

Fifth

Eighth Eighth 'Sixteenth IThird

R

Philip Sidney Post. R.

.

Died, Jan.

Tenth

.

6, I89S.

Eleventh Twelfth Seventeenth. First

Charles A. Hill, R Geo. W. Fithian. 1

Eighth Sixteenth....

Eighteenth.. Eighteenth..

Williams. Formal James R. Williams James R. Williami George W.Smith, th. B... George W, Lawrence E. McOanii, 1

Carmi Murphysbor'

]

Murphysbor Second Third Fourth Eighth Ninth Eleventh

Allan C. Durborow, Jr. WalterC. Newberry, r Lewis Steward, Ind ... Herman W. Snow, R. .

Benjamin T. Cable,

Owen

Scott,

Samuel

D.,

D

T. Busey, D.

Fourteenth.... Fifteenth

Urbana

.

Paris Paris

Andrew J. Hunter, D. J.

Frank Aldrich.B...

Julius Goldzier. D Eobert A. Childs, R

Chicago '

.

.

'

Hamilton K. Wheeler John J. McDannold, 1 Benjamin F. Funk. R. William Lorimer,B..

,

Hinsdale'..'.'.'.'.'

Kankakee .Mt.

.

Hugh R. Belknap, B. Charles W. Woodman Geo. E. White, E Edward D. Cooke. B. George B. Foss, R George W. Prince, R.

.

Sterling

Bloomington.

Chicago

1)

F. L. Hadley,

Benson Wood,

R

Died! jfuu'e

''98';'

su'c'd'.'by

Eleventh Thirteenth.. Fourteenth

.

Springfield....

IVandalia Edwardsville

rS'.

1

R. Cu3ack,D....

P. Foster,

Twentieth

....

Twenty-first First

lliUsboro

Eightee'iith!!'.

McLeans boro. Chicago

Third

"..'.

jChicago

Fourth

Edgar T. Noonan, D.

Chicago

Henry

iChicago

W.

Ipittsfleld

Fifth Sixth Sixteenth ISeventeenth {Nineteenth...

Thomas

i!

Tenth

.

R

James E. Mann, E. Daniel W. Mills, E... Thomas M. Jett, D... James R. Campbell, George

Awarded seat attercon. with L. K. McGann.

IThird...

Fourth.. Fifth...

James A. Connolly, R. Frederick Remann, R.

Wm.

1893-95.. 1893-95..

Fourth Eighth Ninth

.

.Graff.R Finis E. Downing,

1891-93.. 1891-93..

State-at-large 1693-95.. State-at-large 1893-95.. Nineteenth.... 1897-99.. 1893-97.. First

Chicago

."S. Boutell, E.. E. Williams.D.... B. P. Caldwell, D

Joseph B. Crowley, l> W.A. Rodenberg, R.,

Chatham Robinson East St. Louis

.

(Twenty

first..

,

Succeeded E. D. Cooke,

Henry

a'soutel'l.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. REYNOLDS, John,

and fourth Governor of ancestry, in 1789, 111.,

Supreme Court was born of Irish

Justice of Illinois,

Montgomery County,

and brought by

Pa.,

Feb. 26,

his parents to Kaskaskia,

in 1800, spending the first nine years of his

After receiving a comlife in Illinois on a farm. mon school education, and a two years' course of study in a college at Knoxville, Tenn., he studied law and began practice. In 1812-13 he served as a scout in the campaigns against the Indians, winning for himself the title, in after life, of 'The removed to Afterwards he Ranger." Old where he began the practice of Cahokia, law, and, in 1818, became Associate Justice of the Retiring first Supreme Court of the new State. from the bench in 182o, he served two terms in '

the Legislature, and was elected Governor in 1830, in 1833 personally commanding the State volunteers called for service in the Black Hawk War. Two weeks before the expiration of his term (1834), he resigned to accept a .seat in Congress, to which he had been elected as the successor of Charles Slade, who had died in office, and was again elected in 1838, always as a Demo-

He also served as Representative in the Fifteenth General Assembly, and again in the Eighteenth (18.53-54), being chosen Speaker of the latter. In 1858 he was the administration (or Buchanan) Democratic candidate for State Superintendent of Public Instruction, as opposed to tlie Republican and regular (or Douglas) DemoFor some years he edited a cratic candidates. daily paper called "The Eagle," which was pubcrat.

lished at Belleville.

While Governor Reynolds

acquired some reputation as a "classical scholar," from the time spent in a Tennessee College at that early day, this was not sustained by either He was an his colloquial or written style. ardent champion of slavery, and, in the early

days of the Rebellion, gained unfavorable notoriety in consequence of a letter written to Jefferson Davis expressing sympathy with the cause of "secession." Nevertheless, in spite of intense prejudice and bitter partisansliip on some questions, he possessed many amiable qualities, as shown by his devotion to temperance, and his popularity among persons of opposite political

Although at times crude in style, and not always reliable in his statement of historical facts and events, Governor Reynolds has rendered opinions.

a valuable service to posterity by his \%Titings relating to the early history of the State, espe-

connected with his own times. His best known works are: "Pioneer History of Illinois" (Belleville, 1848); "A Glance at the Crystal cially those

•149

Palace, and Sketches of Travel" (1854); and "My Life and Times" (1855). His death occurred at Belleville,

May

8,

1865.

REYNOLDS, John Parker, Secretary and President of State Board of Agriculture, was born at Lebanon, Ohio, March 1, 1820, and graduated from the Miami University at the age of 18. In 1840 he graduated from the Cincinnati Law School, and soon afterward began practice.

He

removed to Illinois in 1854, settling first in Winnebago County, later, successively in Marion County, in Springfield and in Chicago. From 1860 to 1870 he was Secretary of the State Agricultural Society, and, upon the creation of the State Board of Agriculture in 1871, was elected its

President, filling

that

position

until 1888,

when he resigned. He has also occupied numerous other posts of honor and of trust of a public or semi-public character, having been President of the Illinois State Sanitary Commission during the War of the Rebellion, a Commissioner to the Paris Exposition of 1867, Chief Grain Inspector from 1878 to 1882, and Secretary of the InterState Industrial Exposition Company of Chicago, from the date of its organization (1873) until its final dissolution. His most important public service. In recent years, was rendered as Directorin-Chief of the Illinois exhibit in the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893.

REYNOLDS, Joseph Smith, soldier and legiswas born at New Lenox, 111., Dec. 3, 1839;

lator,

at 17 years of age

went

was educated

to Chicago,

in the high school there, %vithin a

month

after

graduation enlisting as a private in the Sixtyfourth Illinois Volunteers. From the ranks he rose to a colonelcy through the gradations of Second-Lieutenant and Captain, and, in July, 1865, was brevetted Brigadier-General. He was a gallant soldier, and was thrice wounded. On his return home after nearly four ye^irs" service, he entered the law department of the Cliicago University, graduating therefrom and beginning practice in 1866. General Reynolds has been prominent in public life, having served as a member of both branches of the General Assembly, and having been a State Commissioner to the Vienna Exposition of 1873. He is a member of the G. A. R., and, in 1875, was elected Senior Vice-Commander of the order for the United States.

REYNOLDS, William Morton, clergjman, was born in Fayette County, Pa., March 4, 1812; after graduating at Jefferson College, Pa., in 1832, waa connected with various institutions in that State, as well as President of Capital University at

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

450 Columbus, Ohio,

;

then, coining to Illinois,

was

the Illinois State University at which he became PrinPrevicipal of a female seminary in Chicago. ously a Lutheran, he took orders in the Protestant Episcopal Church in 1864, and served several parishes until his death. In liis early life he founded, and, for a time, conducted several religious publications at Gettysburg, Pa., besides issuing a number of printed addresses and other published works. Died at Oak Park, near Chiof

Presiilent

Springfield, 1857-60, after

cago, Sept.

RICE, John

1876.

5,

RHOADS, (Col.) Franklin Lawrence, soldier and steamboat captain, was born in Harrisburg, Pa., Oct.

County, er's

brought to Pekin, Tazewell where he learned the printon the breaking out of the

1824;

11,

111.,

trade,

in 1836,

and,

Mexican War, enlisted, serving to the close. Returning home he engaged in the river trade, and, for fifteen years, commanded steamboats on the Illinois, Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. In

was commissioned Captain

of a men attached to the Volunteer Infantry, and, on the reorganization of the regiment for the threeyears' service, was commissioned LieutenantColonel, soon after being promoted to the colonelcy, as successor to Col. Richard J. Oglesby, who had been promoted Brigadier-General. After serving through the spring campaign of 1863 in Western Kentucky and Tennessee, he was compelled by rapidly declining health to resign, when he located in Shawneetown, retiring in 1874 to During the latter years his farm near that city. of his life he was a confirmed invalid, dying at April, 1861, he

company Eighth

of three months'

Illinois

Shawneetown, Jan.

RHOADS,

6,

1879.

Joshua, M.D., A.M., physician and

educator, was born in Philadelphia, Sept. 14, 1806; studied medicine and graduated at the University of Pennsylvania with the degree of M.D., also receiving the degree of A.M., from Princeton; after several years spent in practice as a physician, and as Principal in some of tlie public schools of Pliiladelphia, in 1839 he was elected Principal of the Pennsylvania Institution for the Blind, and, in 1850, took charge of the State Institution for the Blind at Jacksonville, 111.,

then in

its

infancy.

Here he remained until

when he retired. Died, February 1, 1876. RICE, Edward T., lawyer and juri.st, born in Logan County, Ky., Feb. 8, 1820, was educated in

1874,

common

schools and at Shurtleff College, which he read law with John M. Palmer at Carlinville, and was admitted to practice, in 1845, at Hillsboro; in 1847 was elected County Recorder

the

after

Montgomery County, and, in 1848, to the Sixteenth General Assembly, serving one term. Later he was elected County Judge of Montgomery County, was Master in Chancery from 1853 to 1857, and the latter year was elected Judge of the Eighteenth Circuit, being re-elected in 1861 and again in 1867. He was also a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1869-70, and, at the election of the latter year, was chosen Representative in the Forty -second Congress as a Democrat. Died, April 16, 1883. of

B., theatrical manager.

Mayor

of

Chicago, and Congressman, was born at Easton, Md., in 1809. By profession he was an actor, and, coming to Chicago in 1S47, built and opened there the fir-st tlieater. In 1857 he retired from the stage, and, in 1865, was elected Mayor of Chicago, the city of his adoption, and re-elected He was also prominent in the early in 1867. stages of the Civil War in the measures taken to raise troops in Chicago. In 1872 he was elected to the Forty-third Congress as a Republican, but, before the expiration of his term, died, at Norfolk, Va., on Dec. 6, 1874. At a special election to fill the vacancy, Bernard G. Caulfield was chosen to succeed him.

RICHARDSON, William

A., lawyer and poliborn in Fayette County, Ky., Oct. 11, at Transylvania University, came to the bar at 19, and settled in Schuyler County, 111., becoming State's Attorney in 1835; was elected to the lower branch of the Legislature in 1836. to the Senate in 1838, and to the House again in 1844, from Adams County the latter year being also chosen Presidential Elector on the Polk and Dallas ticket, and, at the succeeding session of the General Assembly, serving as Speaker of the House. He entered the Mexican War as Captain, and won a Majority through tician, 1811,

was educated

—

gallantry at Buena Vista. From 1847 to 1856 (when he resigned to become a candidate for

Governor), he was a Democratic Representative in Congress from the Quiucy District re-entered Congress in 1861, and, in 1863, was chosen United States Senator to fill the unexpired term He was a delegate to the of Stephen A. Douglas. National Democratic Convention of 1868, but after that retired to private life, acting, for a ;

short time, as editor of

'The Quincy Herald."

Died, at Quincy, Dec. 27, 1875.

RICHLAND COUNTY,

situated in the south-

and has an area of 361 was organized from Edwards

east quarter of the State,

square miles.

It

County in 1841. Among the early pioneers may be mentioned the Evans brothers, Thaddeus

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

451

Morehouse, Hugh Calhoun and son, Thomas Gardner, James Parker, Cornelius De Long, James Gilmore and Elijah Nelson. In 1820 there were but thirty families in the district. The first frame houses the Nelson and Morehouse homesteads were built in 1821, and, some

leaving school was engaged, for a time, in the dry-goods trade, but, in 1829. came to St. Louis to assume a clerksliip in the branch of the United States Bank just organized there. In 1835 a branch of the State Bank of Illinois was established at Springfield, and Mr. Ridgely

years later, James Laws erected the first brick The pioneers traded at Vincennes, but, house.

became

in 1825, a store was opened at Stringtown by Jacob 3Iay and the same year the first school was opened at Watertown, taught by Isaac ChaunThe first church was erected by the Bapcey. tists in 1822, and services were conducted by William Martin, a Kentuckian. For a long time the mails were carried on horseback by Louis

up

—

—

;

and James Beard, sell

but, in 1824, Mills

and Whet-

established a line of four-horse stages. The known as the "trace road," lead-

principal road,

ing from

Louisville

to

Cahokia,

followed

a

and Indian trail about where the main Olney now is. Olney was selected as the county-seat upon the organization of the county, and a Sir. Lilly built the first house The chief branches of Industry followed there. by the inhabitants are agriculture and fruitbuffalo

street of

growing.

Population

(1880),

15,54.5;

(1890),

15.019; (1000). 16,391.

RIDGE FARM, a

village of Vermillion County,

at junction of the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago St. Louis and the Toledo, St. Louis & Western Railroads, 174 miles northeast of St. Louis; has

&

electric light plant, planing mill, elevators,

and two

bank

Pop. (1900), 933; (1904), 1,300. a manufacturing and mining suliurb of the city of Springfield. An extensive rolling mill is located there, and there are several coal-shafts in the vicinity. Population(1900}, 1,169. RIDGELT, Charles, manufacturer and capitalist, born in Springfield, 111, Jan. 17. 1836; was educated in private schools and at Illinois College; after leaving college spent some time as a papers.

RIDGELY,

bank at Springfield, finally becoming a member of the firm and successively Cashier and Vice-President. In 1S70 lie was Democratic candidate for State Treasurer, but later has affiliated with the Republican party. About 1872 he became identified with the Springfield Iron Company, of which he has been President for many years has also been President of

clerk in his father's

;

the Consolidated Coal Company of St. Louis and. for some time, was a Director of the Wabash Railroad. Mr. Ridgely is also one of the Trustees of Illinois College.

RIDGELY, born

in

Nicholas H., early banker, was Baltimore, Md., April 27, 1800; after

dation,

its cashier,

and,

when

was appointed one

it

went

into liqui-

of the trustees to

wind

He subsequently became Presiits affairs. dent of the Clark's Exchange Bank in tliat city, but this having gone into liquidation a few years later, he went into the private banking business as head of the "Ridgely Bank," which, in 1866, became the "Ridgely National Bank," one of the strongest financial institutions in the State outAfter the collapse of the interside of Chicago. nal improvement scheme, Mr. Ridgely became one of the purchasers of the "Northern Cross Railroad" (now that part of the Wabash system extending from the Illinois river to Springfield), when it was sold by the State in 1847, paying therefor 821,100. He was also one of the Springfield bankers to tender a loan to the State at the beginning of the war in 1861. He was one of the builders and principal owner of the Springfield gas-light system. His business career was an eminently successful one, leaving an estate at his death, Jan. 31, 1888. valued at over $2,000,000. RIDGWAY, a village of Gallatin County, on the Shawneetown Division of the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern Railway, 12 miles northwest of Shawneetown has a bank and one newspaper. ;

Pop. (1890).

.523;

(1900), ,839; (1903. est), 1,000.

RIDGWAY, Thomas

S., merchant, banker and at Carmi, 111, August 30, His father having died when he was but 4 years old and his mother when he was 14, his education was largely acquired through contact with the world, apart from such as he received from his mother and during a year's attendance When he was 6 years of age at a private school. the family removed to Shawneetown, where he ever afterwards made his home. In 1845 he embarked in business as a merchant, and the firm of Peeples & Ridgway soon became one of the most prominent in Southern Illinois. In 1865 the

politician,

was born

1826.

partners closed out their business and organized the first National Bank of Shawneetown. of which, after the death of Mr. Peeples in 1875.

He was one of Mr. Ridgway was President. the projectors of the Springfield & Illinois Southeastern Railway, now a part of the Baltimore & Ohio Soutliwestern system, and, from 1867 to He was an ardent 1874, served as its President. and active Republican, and served as a delegate

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

452

to every State and National Convention of his party from 1868 to 1896. In 1874 he was elected

State Treasurer, the candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction on the same ticket being In 1876 and 1880 he was an unsuccessdefeated. ful candidate for his party's nomination for GovThree times he consented to lead the

ernor.

forlorn hope of the Republicans as a candidate

Congress from an impregnably Democratic For several years he was a Director McCormick Theological Seminary, at Chicago, and, for nineteen years, was a Trustee of the Southern Illinois Normal University at Carbonfor

stronghold.

of the

dale, resigning in 1893.

Nov.

Died, at Shawneetown,

M., ex-Congressman, was born in Scott County, 111., April 17, 1839, where he received a common school education, supple-

RIGGS, James

partial collegiate course.

He

is

a

practicing lawyer of Winchester. In 1864 he was elected Sheriff, serving two years. In 1871-73 he represented Scott County in the lower house of

the Twenty -seventh General Assembly, and was In 1883, and State's Attorney from 1873 to 1876. again in 1884, he was the successful Democratic candidate for Congress in the Twelfth IlUnois District.

RIGGS,

Democratic

Scott,

pioneer,

was born

in

North

about 1790; removed to Crawford Covmty, 111, early in 1815, and represented that county in the First General Assembly (1818-30). In 1825 he removed to Scott County, where he continued to reside until his death, Feb. 24, 1872. RINAKER, John I., lawyer and Congressman, born in Baltimore, Md., Nov. 18, 1830. Left an orphan at an early age, he came to Illinois in 1836, and, for several years, lived on farms in Sangamon and Morgan Counties; was educated at Illinois and MoKendree Colleges, graduating from the latter in 1851; in 1852 began reading Carolina

law with John M. Palmer at Carlinville, and was admitted to the bar in 1854. In August, 1863, he recruited the One Hundred and Twenty-second Illinois Volunteers, of which he was commissioned Colonel. Four montlis later he %vas wounded in battle, but served with his regiment through the war, and was brevetted BrigadierGeneral at its close. Returning from the war he resumed the practice of his profession at CarlinSince 1858 he has been an active Repubville. lican; has twice (1873 and '76) served his party as a Presidential Elector— the latter year for the State-at-large— and, in 1874, accepted a nomination for Congress against William R. Morrison, largely reducing the normal Democratic major-

District.

RIPLEY, Edward Payson, Railway was born

17, 1897.

mented by a

At the State Republican Convention of 1880 he was a prominent, but unsuccessful, candidate In for the Republican nomination for Governor. 1894 he made the race as the Republican candidate for Congress in the Sixteenth District and, altliough his opponent was awarded the certificate of election, on a bare majority of 60 votes on the face of the returns, a re-coimt, ordered by the Fifty-fourth Congress, showed a majority for General Rinaker, and he was seated near the He was a candidate close of the first session. for re-election in 1896, but defeated in a strongly ity.

in Dorchester

President,

(now a part of Boston),

Mass., Oft. 30, 1845, being related, on his mother's side, to the distinguished author. Dr. Edward

Payson. After receiving his education in the high school of his native place, at the age of 17 he entered upon a commercial life, as clerk in a wholesale dry-goods establishment in Boston. About the time he became of age, he entered into the service of the Pennsylvania Railroad as a clerk in the freight department in the Boston office, but, a few years later, assumed a responsible position in connection with the Chicago. Burlington & Quincy line, finally becoming General Agent for the business of that road east of Buffalo, though retaining his headquarters at Boston. In 1878 he removed to Chicago to accept the position of General Freight Agent of the Chi-

& Quincy System, with which he remained twelve years, serving successively as General Traffic Manager and General Manager, until June 1, 1890, when he resigned to become Third Vice-President of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul line. This relation was continued cago, Burlington

Jan. 1, 1896, when Mr. Ripley accepted the Presidency of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad, which (1899) he now holds. Mr. Ripley was a prominent factor in securing the location of the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago, and, in April, 1891, was chosen one of the Directors of the Exposition, serving on the Executive Committee and the Committee of Ways and Means and Transportation, being Chairuntil

man of the latter. RIVERSIDE, a suburban town

on the Des

Plaines River and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railway, 11 miles west of Chicago; has handsome parks, several churches, a bank,

two local papers and numerous fine residences. Population (1890), 1,000; (1900), 1,551. RIVERTON, a village ,in Clear Creek Township, Sangamon County, at the crossing of the

HISTOEICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. AVabash Railroad over the Sangamon River, G}4 miles east-northeast of Springfield. It has four churches, a nursery, and two coal mines. Population (1880), est),

about

7(1.5:

C.

(1890), 1,137, (1900).

1, .511

;

(1908,

000.

RIVES, John Cook, early banker and journalist, was born in Franklin County, Va., May 04. 179.5;

in 1806

removed

to

grew up under care of an

Kentucky, where he uncle,

Samuel Casey.

He received a good education and was a man of high character and attractive manners. In his early manhood he came to Illinois, and was connected, for a time, with the Branch State Bank at Edwardsville, but, about 1824, removed to Shawneetown and held a position in the bank there: also studied law and was admitted to FiuaUy, having accepted a clerkship practice. in the Fourth Auditor's Office in Washington, he removed to that cit}', and, in 1830, became associated with Francis P. Blair, Sr., in the establishment of "The Congressional Globe (the predecessor of "'The Congressional Record"), of which he finally became sole proprietor, so remaining until 1804. Like his partner, Blair, although a native of Virginia and a life-long Democrat, he was intensely loyal, and contributed liberally of his means for the equipment of .soldiers from the District of Columbia, and for the support of their families, during the Civil War. His expenditures for these objects have l)een estimated at some $30,000. Died, in Prince George's County, Md., April 10, 1864. RO.OOKE, a village of Woodford County, on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway, 26 "

miles northeast of Peoria; is in a coal district: has two banks, a coal mine, and one newspaper. Populatiou (1880), 3.5.5; (1890), 831; (1900), 966. ROBB, Thomas Patten, Sanitary Agent, was horn in Batli, Maine, in 1819; came to Cook County, 111., in 1838, and, after arriving at manhood, established the first exclusive wholesale grocery house in Chicago, remaining in the business until 1850. He then went to California, establishing liimself in mercantile business at Sacramento, where he remained seven years, meanwhile being elected Mayor of that city. Returning to Chicago on the breaking out of the war, he was appointed on the staff of Governor Yates with the rank of Major, and. while serving in this capacity, was instrumental in giving Cteneral Grant the first duty he performed in the oflice of the Adjutant-General after his arrival from Galena. Later, he was assigned to duty as Inspector-General of Illinois troops with the rank of Colonel, having general charge of sanitary

453

affairs until tlie close of the war,

when he was

Agent for the State of Georgia. President of the Board of Tax Commissioners for that State. Other positions held by him were those of Postmaster and Col-

.Tppuinted Cotton

and,

later.

still

lector of Customs at Savannah, Ga. ho was also one of the publishers of "The New Era," a Republican paper at Atlanta, and a prominent actor in reconstruction affairs. Resigning the CoUectorship, he was appointed by the President United States Commissioner to investigate Mexican outrages on the Rio Grande border: was subsequently identified with Texas railroad interests as the President of the Corpus Christi & Rio Grande Railroad, and one of the projectors of the Chicago, Texas & Mexican Central Railway, being thus engaged until 1872. Later he returned to California, dying near Glenwood, in that State, April 10, 1895, aged 75 years and 10 months. ROBERTS, William Cliarles, clergyman and educator, was born in a small village of Wales. England., Sept. 23, 1832; received his primary education in that country, but, removing to America during his minority, graduated from Princeton College in 1855, and from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1858. After filling various pastorates in Delaware, New Jersey and Ohio, in 1881 he was elected Corresponding Secretary of the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions, the next year being offered the Presidency of Rutgers College, which he declined. In 1887 lie accepted the presidency of Lake Forest Uni\t'rsity, which he still retains. From 1859 to l.'^6;i he was a Trustee of Lafayette College, and. in 1866, was elected to a trusteeship of liis Alma Mater. He has traveled extensively in the Orient, and was a member of the first and third councils of the Reformed Churches, held at Edinburgh and Belfast. Besides occasional sermons and frequent contributions to English. American, German and Welsh periodicals. Dr. Roberts has published a Welsh translation of the Westminster shorter catechism and a collection of letters on the great preachers of Wales, which appeared in Utica, 1868. He received the degree of D.D., from Union College in 1872, and that of LL.D.. from Princeton, in 1887. ;

ROBINSOX, an incorporated city and the county-seat of Crawford County. 25 miles northwest of Vincennes. Ind.. and 44 miles south of Paris, 111. is on two lines of railroad and in the heart of a fruit and agricultural region. The city has water-works, electric lights, two banks and three weekly newspapers Population (1890). ;

1,387; (1900), 1,683; (1904),

about

3.000.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

454

KOBINSON, James C, lawyer and former Congressman, was born in Edgar County, 111., in 1822, read law and was admitted to the bar in 1850. He served as a private during the Mexican War, and, in 1858, was elected to Congress as a Democrat, as he was again in 1860, '63, "70 and '73. In 1864 he was the Democratic nominee for Governor. He was a fluent speaker, and attained considerable distinction as an advocate in criminal practice. Died, at Springfield, Nov. 3, 1886. ROBINSON, John M,, United States Senator, born in Kentucky in 1793, was liberally educated and became a lawyer by profession. In early life he settled at Carmi, 111. where he married. He was of fine physique, of engaging manners, and ,

personall}'

*

popular.

Through

his

association

with the State militia he earned the title of "General. " In 1830 he was elected to the United States Senate, to fill the unexpired term of John McLean. His immediate predecessor was David Jewett Baker, appointed by Governor Edwards, who served one month but failed of election by the Legislature. In 1834 Mr. Robinson was reelected for a full term, which expired in 1841. In 1843 he was elected to a seat upon the Illinois Supreme bench, but died at Ottawa, April 37, of the same year, within three months after

his

ROCKFORD, a flourishing manufacturing the county-seat of Winnebago County lies on both sides of the Rock River, 93 miles west of Chicago. Four trunk lines of railroad the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, the Chicago & Northwestern, the Illinois Central and the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul intersect here. Excellent water-power is secured by a dam across the river, and communication between the two divisions of the city is facilitated by three railway and three highway bridges. Water is provided from five artesian wells, a reserve main leading to the city,

;

—

—

The city is wealthy, prosperous and proThe assessed valuation of property, in §6,531,235. Churches are numerous and schools, both public and private, are abundant and well conducted. The census of 1890 showed river.

gressive. 1893,

was

$7,715,069 capital invested in 346

establishments, which employed

5,

manufacturing 223 persons and

turned out an annual product valued at $8,888,904. The principal industries are the manufacture of agricultural implements and furniture, though watches, silver-plated ware, paper, flour and grape sugar are among the other products. Pop. (1880), 13,139; (1890), 33,584; (1900), 31,051. ROCKFORD COLLEGE, located at Rockford, 111. incorporated in 1847 in 1898 had a faculty ;

,

The branches taught include the classics, music and fine arts. It has a library of 6,150 volumes, funds and endowment aggregating §50,880 and property valued at 1240,880, of which §150,000 is real of 21 instructors with 161 pupils.

elevation.

ROCHELLE,

a city of Ogle County and an intersecting point of the Chicago & Northwestern and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railways. It is 75 miles west of Chicago, 27 miles south of Rockford, and 33 miles east by north of Dixon. It is in a rich agricultural and stock-raising region, rendering Rochelle

an important

ship-

Among its industrial establishping point. ments are water-works, electric lights, a flouring The city has mill and silk-underwear factory three banks, five churches and three newspapers. Pop. (1890), 1,789; (1900), 2,073; (1903), 2,.500. ROCHESTER, a village and early settlement in Sangamon County, laid out in 1819; in rich agricultural district, on the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern Railroad, T/i miles southeast of Springfield has a bank, two churches, one school, and a newspaper. Population (1900). 365 ROCK FALLS, a city in Whiteside County, on Rock River and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad; has excellent water-power, a good public school system with a high school, banks and a weekly newspaper. Agricultural implements, barbed wire, furniture, flour and paper are ;

chief manufactures. Water for the navigable feeder of the Hennepin Canal is taken from Rock

its

River at this point.

Pop. (1900), 3,176.

estate.

ROCK ISLAND, seat of

the principal city and countyRock Island County, on the Mississippi

River, 183 miles west by south from Chicago; is the converging point of five lines of railroad, and

the western terminus of the Hennepin Canal. The name is derived from an island in the Mississippi River, opposite the city, 3 miles long, which belongs to the United States Government and contains an arsenal and armory. The river channel north of the island is navigable, the southern channel having been dammed by the Government, thereby giving great water power to Rock Island and MoUne. A combined railway and highway bridge spans the river from Rock Island to Davenport, Iowa, crossing the island, while a railway bridge connects the cities a mile below. The island was the site of Fort Armstrong during the Black Hawk War, and was also a place for the confinement of Confederate prisonRock Island is in a reers during the Civil War. gion of much picturesque scenery and has extensive manufactures of lumber, agricultural iniple-

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. ments, iron, carriages and wagons and oilcloth; also five banks and three newspapers, two issuing Pop. (1890), 13,634; (1900), 19,493. daily editions. ROCK ISLAND COUNTY, in the northwestsrn section of the State bordering upon the Jlissis-

(which constitutes its northwestern more than 60 miles), and having an

sippi River

boundary

for

miles.— (History.)

455 The company

a reorganization (Oct. 9, 1877) of the Peoria & Rock Island Railroad Company, whose road was sold under foreclosure, April 4, 1877. The latter Road was the result of the consolidation, in 1809, of two corporations the Rock Island & Peoria 121.10

is

—

and the Peoria & Rock Island Railroad Compa-

— the

new

area of 440 square miles. In 1816 the Government erected a fort on Rock Island (an island in the llississippi, 3 miles long and one-half to tliree-quarters of a mile wide), naming it Fort Armstrong. It has always remained a military post, and is now the seat of an extensive arsenal

organization taking the latter name. The road was opened through its entire length, Jan. 1, 1872, its sale under foreclosure and reorganization imder its present name taking The Cable place, as already stated, in 1877. Branch was organized in 1870, as the Rock Island

and work-shops. In the spring of 1828, settlements were made near Port Byron by John and Thomas Kinney, Archibald Allen and George Harlan. Other early settlers, near Rock Island and Rapids City, were J. W. Spencer, J. W. Barriels, Benjamin F. Pike and Conrad Leak; and among the pioneers were "Wells and Michael Bartlett, Joel Thompson, the Simms brothers and George Davenport. The country was full of

&

Indians, this being the headquarters of

Black

Hawk and

Hawk

the initial point of the Black

(See Black

"War.

Ha wk. and

Black Haick War.

By 1829 settlers were increased in number and county organization was effected in 183.5, Rock Island (then called Stephenson) being made the first county-seat. Joseph Conway was the County Clerk, and Joel Wells. Sr., the first Treasurer. The first court was held at the residence The of John W. Barriels, in Farnhamsburg. county is irregular in shape, and the soil and Coal is abundant, the water-power inexhaustible, and the county's mining and manufacturing interests are very extensive. Several lines of railway cross the county, affording admirable transportation facilities to both eastern and western markets. Rock Island and Jloline (which see) are the two principal cities in the county, though there are several other important points. Coal Valley is the center of large mining interests, and Milan is also a manufacturing center. Port Byron is one of the oldest towns in the county, and has considerable lime and lumber interests, while Waterscenery greatl}' varied.

town

seat of the Western Hospital for the Population of the county (1880), 38,302;

is tlie

Insane.

(1890), 41,917; (1900),

.5.5,249.

KOCK ISLAND & PEORIA RAILWAY,

a extend-

standard-guage road, laid with steel rails, ing from Rock Island to Peoria, 91 miles. It is lessee of the Rock Island & Mercer County Railroad, running from Milan to Cable. 111., giving it a total length of 118 miles— with Peoria Terminal,

nies

!Mercer County Railroad, and opened in December of the same year, sold under foreclosure in 1877, and leased to the Rock Island & Peoria Rail-

road, July 1, 188.5. for 999 years, the rental for the entire period being commuted at $4.50,000. (FiXANXlAL.) The cost of the entire road and equipment was 52,6.54,487. The capital stock (1898) is 81,500,000; funded debt, 8000,000; other forms of indebtedness increasing the total capital invested to §2,181,066. ROCK RIVER, a stream which rises in AVashington County, Wis., and flows generally in a southerly direction, a part of its course being very sinuous. After crossing the northern boundary of Illinois, it runs southwestward, intersecting the counties of Winnebago, Ogle, Lee, Whiteside and Rock Island, and entering the MLssissippi three miles below the city of Rock Island. It is about 375 miles long, but its navigation is partly obstructed by rapids, which, however, furnish abimdant water-power. The principal towns on its banks are Rockford, Dixon and Sterling. Its valley is wide, and noted for its beauty and fertility. ROCKTON, a village in Winnebago County, at the junction of two branches of the Chicago,

Slilwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, on Rock River, 13 miles north of Rockford; has manufactures of paper and agricultural implements, a feed mill,

and

local paper.

Pop. (1890), 892; (1900), 930. A.B., M.D., physician,

ROE, Edward Reynolds,

and author, was born at Lel)anon, Ohio, June 22. 1813; removed with his father, in 1819, to Cincinnati, and graduated at Louisville Medical Institute in 1842 began practice at Anderson, Ind., but soon removed to Shawneetown, 111., where he gave much attention to geological research and made some extensive natural his-

soldier

;

tory collections. From 1848 to '52 he resided at Jacksonville, lectured extensively on his favorite science, wrote for the press and. for two years (1850-52). edited ''The Jacksonville Journal," still

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

456

editing the newly established "ConstituDuring a part of tionalist" for a few months. this period he was lecturer on natural science at later

ShurtlefT College

also delivered a lecture before the State Legislature on the geology of Illinois, which was immediately followed by the passage of the act establishing the State Geological Department. A majority of both houses joined ;

appointment as State Geolo-

in a request for his

was rejected on partisan grounds he, then, being a Whig. Removing to Bloomington in 1852, Dr. Roe became prominent in educagist,

but

it

tional matters, being the first Professor of Natural

Science in the State Normal University, and also a Trustee of the Illinois Wesleyan University. Having identified himself with the Democratic party at this time, he became its nominee for State Superintendent of Public Instruction in 1860, but, on the inception of the war in 1861, lie promptly espoused the cause of the Union, raised three companies (mostly Normal students) which were attached to the Thirty-third Illinois (Normal) Regiment was elected Captain and successively promoted to Major and Lieutenant-Colonel, Having been dangerously wounded in the assault at Vicksburg, on May 32, 1863, and compelled to return home, he was elected Circuit Clerk by the combined vote of both parties, was re-elected four 3'ears later, became editor of "The Bloomington Pantagraph" and, in 1870, was elected to the Twenty-seventh General Assembly, where he won distinction by a somewhat notable humorous speech in opposition to removing the State Capital to Peoria. In 1871 he was appointed Marshal for the Southern District of Illinois, serving nine years. Dr. Roe was a somewhat prolific author, having produced more than a dozen works which have appeared in book form. One of these, "Virginia Ro.se: a Tale of Illinois in Early Days," first appeared as a prize serial in "The Alton Courier" in 1852. Others of his more noteworthy productions are "The Gray and the Blue"; "Brought to Bay"; "From the Beaten Path"; "G. A. R. or How She Married His Double"; "Dr. Caldwell; or the Trail of tlie " Serpent"; and "Prairie-Land and Other Poems He died in Chicago, Nov. 6, 1893. ROGERS, George Clarke, soldier, was born in Grafton County, N H,, Nov. 23, 1838; but was educated in Vermont and Illinois, having removed to the latter State early in life. While teacliing he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1860; was the first, in 1861, to raise a company in I^ake County for the war, which was mustered into the Fifteenth Illinois Volunteers ;

:

;

was chosen Second-Lieutenant and later Captain was wounded four times at Shiloh, but refused to leave the field, and led his regiment in the final charge; was promoted Lieutenant-Colonel and soon after commissioned Colonel for gallantry at Hatchie. At Champion Hills he received three wounds, from one of which he never fully recovered took a prominent part in the operations at Allatoona and commanded a brigade nearly two years, including the Atlanta campaign, retiring with the rank of brevet Brigadier-General. Since the war has practiced law in Illinois and in Kansas. ;

ROGERS, Henry Wade, educator, lawyer and was born in Central New York in 1853 entered Hamilton College, but the following year became a student in Michigan University, graduating there in 1874, also receiving the degree of A.M., from the same institution, in 1877. In 1883 he was elected to a professorship in the Ann Arbor Law School, and, in 1885, was made Dean of the Faculty, succeeding Judge Cooley, at the age of 32. Five years later he was tendered, and accepted, the Presidency of the Northwestern University, at Evanston, being the first layman chosen to the position, and succeeding a long line of Bishops and divines. The same year (1890), Wesleyan University conferred upon him the honorary degree of LL.D. He is a member of the American Bar Association, has served for a number of years on its Committee on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar, and was the first Chairman of the Section on Legal Education. President Rogers was the General Chairman of the Conference on the Future Foreign Policy of the United States, held at Saratoga Springs, N. Y., in August, 1898. At the Congress held in 1893, as auxiliary to the Columbian Exposition, he was chosen Chairman of the Committee on Law Reform and Jurisprudence, and was for a time associate editor of "The American Law Register," of Philadelphia. He is also the author of a treatise on "Expert Testimony, which has passed through two editions, and has edited a work entitled "Illinois Citations," besides doing much other valuable literary work author,

'

of a similar character.

ROGERS, John Gorln, jurist, was born at Glasgow, Ky., Dec. 28, 1818, of English and early Virginian ancestry; was educated at Center College, Danville, Ky., and at Transylvania University, graduating from the latter institution in For 1841, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. sixteen years he practiced in his native town, and, in 1857, removed to Chicago, where he soou

hist()i;r'al

encyclopedia of

attained professional prominence. In 1870 he was elected a Judge of the Cook County Circuit Court, continuing on the bench, through repeated re-elections, until his death, which occurred suddenly, Jan. 10, 1887, four years before the expiration of the term for which he had been

ROGERS PARK, a village and suburb 9 miles north of Chicago, on Lake Michigan and the Chicago & Nortliwestern and tlie Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railways has a bank and two weekly newspapers is reached by electric streetcar line from Chicago, and is a popular residence suburb. Annexed to City of Chicago, 1893. ROLL, John E., pioneer, was born in Green ;

;

June 4, 1814; came to Illinois in He settled in Sangamon County. Abraham Lincoln in the construction of

Village, N. J., 1830,

»

and

the flat-boat with which the latter descended tlie Mr. Mississippi River to New Orleans, in 1831. Roll, who was a mechanic and contractor, built a number of houses in Springfield, where he has since continued to reside.

ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH.

The earUest

Christians to establish places of worship in Illiwere priests of the Catholic faith. Early

nois

Catholic missionaries were explorers and histori-

ans as well as preachers. (See Allouez; Bergier, Early Missionaries; Gravier; Marquette.) The church went hand in hand with the representatives of the French Government, carrying in one hand the cross and in the other the flag of France, simultaneously disseminating the doctrines of Christianity and inculcating loyalty to the House of Bourbon. For nearly a hundred years, the self-sacrificing and devoted Catholic clergy of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries ministered to the spiritual wants of the early French settlers and the natives. They were not without factional jealousies, however, and a severe blow was dealt to a branch of them in the order for the banishment of the Jesuits and the confiscation of their property. (See Early Missionaries.) Tlie subsequent occupation of the country by the English, with tlie contemporaneous emigration of a considerable portion of the French west of the Mississippi, dissipated many congregations. Up to 1830 Illinois was included in the diocese of Missouri but at that time it was constituted a separate diocese, under the episcopal control of Rt. Rev. Joseph Rosatti. At that date there were few, if any, priests in Illinois. But Bishop Rosatti was a man of earnest purpose and rare administrative ability. New parishes were organized as rapidly as circumstances ;

457

'.it 111

.lie

population exceeding

8.')0,000.

(See also

U,l,,iiu,is I> he became an apprentice in the office of "The LanA year later he accaster Union and Sentinel." companied his employer to Auburn, N.Y.. working for two years on "The Daily Advertiser" of that city, then known as Governor Seward's "home organ." At the age of 18 he edited, published and distributed during his leisure hours small weekly paper called "The Auburnian." At the conclusion of his apprenticeship he was employed, for a year or two. in editing and publisli ing "The Cayuga Chief." a tempprancp journal

Pa., Nov.

—

—

.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. In 1851 he entered Hamilton College, but, before the completion of his junior year, consented, at the solicitation of friends of William H. Seward, to assume editorial control of "The Syracuse Daily Journal. " In July, 1856, he came to Chi-

an editorial position on "The Evening Journal" of that city, later becoming and President of the Journal Company. From 1865 to 1870 (first by executive appomtment and afterward by popular election) he was a Commissioner of the Illinois State Penicago, to accept

editor-in-chief

tentiary at Joliet, resigning the ofBce four years

before the expiration of

liis

In 1876

term.

lie

was elected Lieutenant-Governor on the Republican

ticket.

Owing

to

declining

health,

he

abandoned active journalistic work in 1888, dying in Chicago, May 5, 1890. His home during the latter years of

his

life

was

at

Evanston.

Governor Shuman was author of a romance entitled "Loves of a Lawyer,"' besides numerous addresses before literary, commercial and scientific

associations.

SHUMWAY, Dorice Dwight, merchant, was born at Williamsburg, Worcester County, Mass., Sept. 28, 1813, descended from French Huguenot ancestry;

came

to Zanesville, Ohio, in 1837,

and

Montgomery County, 111., in 1841; married a daughter of Hiram Rountree. an early resident

to

of Hillsboro, and, in 1843, located in Christian

was engaged for a time in merchandising at Taylorville, but retired in 1858, thereafter giving his attention to a large landed estate. In 1846 he was chosen Representative in the General Assembly, served in the Constitutional Convention of 1847, and four years as County Judge of Christian County. Died, May 9, 1870.— Hiram P. (Shumway), eldest son of the preceding, was born in Montgomery County, 111.. June, 1842; .spent his boyhood on a farm in Christian County and in his father's store at Taylorville took an academy course and, in 1864, engaged in mercantile business was Representative in the Twentyeighth General Assembly and Senator in the Tliirty-sixth and Thirty-seventh, afterwards removing to Springfield, where he engaged in the stone business. County

;

;

;

SHCRTLEFF located at

COLLEGE, an institution Upper Alton, and the third estabIt was originally incorporated

lished in Illinois.

as the "Alton College" in 1831, under a special charter which was not accepted, but re-incorporated in 1835, in an "omnibus bill" with Illinois and McKendree Colleges. (See Early Col-

primal origin was a school at Rock Spring in St. Clair County, founded about 1824, leges.)

Its

by Rev. John M. Peck. This became the "Rock Spring Seminary" in 1827, and, about 1831, was united with an academy at Upper Alton. This was the nucleus of "Alton" (afterward "Shurtleff") College. As far as its denominational control is concerned, it has always been dominated by Baptist influence. Dr. Peck's original idea was to found a school for teaching theology and Biblical literature, but this project was at first inhibited by the State. Hubbard Loomis and John Russell were among the first instructors. Later. Dr. Benjamin Shurtleff donated the

and the institution was named in College classes were not organized and several years elapsed before a class Its endowment in 1898 was over graduated. §126,000, in addition to §125,000 worth of real and personal property. About 255 students were in attendance. Besides preparatory and collegiate college $10,000, his honor.

until 1840,

departments, the college also maintains a theological school. It has a faculty of twenty instructors and is co-educational. SIBLEY, a village of Ford County, on the Chicago Division of the Wabash Railway, 105 miles south-southwest of Chicago; has banks and a weekly newspaper. The district is agricultural. Population (1890), 404; (1900), 444. SIBLEY, Joseph, lawyer and jurist, was born at Westfield, Mass., in 1818; learned the trade of a whip-maker and afterwards engaged in mer-

chandising.

In 1843 he began the study of law

upon admission to the west, finally settling at Nauvoo, Hancock County. He maintained a neutral attitude during the Mormon troubles, thus giving offense at Syracuse, N. Y., and, bar,

came

community. In 1847 he was an vmsuccessful candidate for the Legislature, but was elected in 1850, and re-elected in 1852. In 1853 he removed to Warsaw, and, in 1855, was elected Judge of the Circuit Court, and re-elected in 1861, '67 and '73, being assigned to the bench of the Appellate Court of the Second District, in 1877. His residence, after 1865, was at Quincy, where he died, June 18, 1897. SIDELL, a village of Vermillion County, on the Chicago & Eastern Illinois and Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton Railroads; has a bank, electric Pop. (1900), 776. light plant and a newspaper. SIDNEY, a village of Champaign County, on the main line of the Wabash Railway, at the junction of a branch to Champaign, 48 miles east-northeast of Decatur. It is in a farming district has a bank and a newspaper. Population, (1900), 564. SIM, (Dr.) William, pioneer physician, was to a section of the

;

born at Aberdeen, Scotland, in

1795,

came

to

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. manhood, and was the first phyPope County, in the Fourth and Fifth General Assemblies (182-t and '28). He married a Miss Elizabetli Jack of Philadelphia, making the journey from Golconda to Philadelphia for that purpose on horseback. He had a family of five children, one son, Dr. Francis L. Sim, rising

America

in early

sician to settle

at Golconda, in

which he represented

for a time, being President of a Medical College at Memphis, Tenn. The elder Dr. Sim died at Golconda, in

to distinction as a physician, and,

1868.

SIMS, James, early legislator and Metliodist was a native of South Carolina, but in early manhood, thence

preacher,

removed to Kentucky

111., and, in 1820, to SangaCounty, where he was elected, in 1822, as the Representative from that county in the Third General Assembly. At the succeeding session of the Legislature, he was one of those who voted against the Convention resolution designed to prepare the way for making Illinois a slave Mr. Sims resided for a time in Menard State. County, but finally removed to Morgan. SINGER, Horace M., capitalist, was born in Schnectady, N. Y.. Oct. 1. 1823; came to Chicago in 1836 and found employment on the Illinois & Michigan Canal, serving as superintendent of While thus repairs ujjon the Canal until 1853. employed he became one of the proprietors of the stone-quarries at Lemont. managed by the firm of Singer & Talcott until about 1890, when they became the property of the Western Stone Company. Originally a Democrat, he became a Republican during the Civil War, and served as a member of the Twenty-fifth General Assembly (1867) for Cook County, was elected County Commissioner in 1870, and was Chairman of the Republican County Central Committee in 1880. He was also associated with several financial institutions, being a director of the First National

to St. Clair County,

mon first

of the Auditorium Company of Chiand a member of the Union League and Calumet Clubs. Died, at Pasadena, Cal., Dec.

Bank and cago,

28, 1896.

SINGLETON, James W., Congressman, born was educated at the Winchester (Va.) Academy, and removed to

at Paxton, Va., Nov. 23, 1811;

Illinois in 1833, settling first at

Brown County, near Quincy.

and was prominent in affairs.

Moxmt

Sterling,

and, some twenty years later, profession he was a lawyer,

By

political

and commercial

In his later years he devoted consider-

He was elected Brigadier-General of the Illinois militia in 1844,

able attention to stock-raising.

481

some extent with the "Mormon War"; was a member of the Constitutional Conventions of 1847 and 1863, served six terms in the Legislature, and was elected, on the Democratic ticket, to Congress in 1878, and again in 1880. In 1882 he ran as an independent Democrat, but was defeated by the regular nominee of his party. James M. Riggs. During the War of the Rebellion he was one of the most conspicuous leaders of the "peace party." He constructed the Quincy & Toledo (now part of the Wabash) and the Quincy, Alton ct St. Louis (now part of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy) Railways, being President of both companies. His death occurred at Baltimore, Md., April 4. 1892, SIXNET, John S., pioneer, was born at Lexington, Ky. March 10, 1796 at three years of age, taken by his parents to Missouri enlisted in the War of 1812, but, soon after the war, came to Illinois, and, about 1818, settled in what is now Christian County, locating on land constituting a part of the present city of Taylorville. In 1840 he removed to Tazewell County, dying there, Jan. lieing identified to

;

,

;

13, 1872.

SKIJfJfER, Mark, ter, Vt., Sept. 13,

jurist,

was born

1813; graduated

at Manchesfrom Middle-

bury College in 1833, studied law, and, in 1836, to Chicago; was admitted to the bar in became City Attorney in 1840, later aiaster Chancery for Cook County, and finally United States District Attorney under President Tyler. As member of the House Finance Committee in the Fifteenth General Assembly (1846-48), he

came 1839,

in

aided influentially in securing the adoption of measures for refunding and paying the State debt. In 1851 he was elected Judge of the Court of Common Pleas (now Superior Court) of Cook County, but declined a reelection in 1853. Originally a Democrat, Judge Skinner was an ardent opponent of the Kansas-Nebraska Bill and a liberal supporter of the Government policy during the rebellion. He liberally aided the United States Sanitary Commission and was identified with all the leading charities of the city. Among the great business enterprises with which he was officially associated were the Galena & Chicago Union and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railways (in each of which he was a Director), the Chicago Marine & Fire Insurance Company, the Gas-Light and Coke Company and others. Died, Sept. 16, 1887. Judge Skinner's only surviving son was killed in the trenches before Petersburg, the last year of the Civil War. SKINNER, Otis Alnsworth, clergyman and author, was bom at Royalton, Vt., July 3, 1807;

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. taught for some time, became a Universalist minister, serving churches in Baltimore, Boston and New York between 1831 and 1857: then

came to Elgin, 111. was elected President of Lombard University at Galesburg, but the follovring year took charge of a church at JoUet. Died, at He wrote several volNaperville, Sept. 18, 1861. ,

umes on

religious topics, and, at different times, edited religious periodicals at Baltimore, Haverhill, Mass., and Boston.

SKINNER, Ozias C, lawyer and jurist, was born at Floyd, Oneida County, N. Y., in 1817; in removed to Illinois, settling in Peoria County, where he engaged in farming. In 1838 he began the study of law at Greenville, Ohio, and was admitted to the bar of that State in 1840. Eighteen months later he returned to Illinois, and began practice at Carthage, Hancock County, removing to Quincy in 1844. During the "Mormon War" he served as Aid-de-camp to Governor In 1848 he was elected to the lower liouse Ford.

1836,

of the Sixteenth General Assembly, and, for a short time, served as Prosecuting Attorney for

the district including Adams and Brown Counties. In 18.51 he was elected Judge of the (then) Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, and, in 1855, succeeded Judge S. H. Treat on tlie Supreme bench, resigning this position in April, 1858, two months before the expiration of his term. He was a large land owner and had extensive agricultural interests. He built, and was the first President of the Carthage & Quincy Railroad, now a part of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy system. He was a prominent member of the Constitutional Convention of 1869, serving as Chairman of the

Committee on Judiciary.

Died in

1877.

Charles, early Congressman his early and place of birth, are unknown. In 1820 he was elected Representative from Washington County in the Second General Assembly, and, in 1826, was re-elected to the same body for Clinton and Washington. In 1832

SLADE,

;

history, including date

he was elected one of the three Congressmen

from Illinois, representing the First District. After attending the first session of the Twentythird Congress, while on his way home, he was attacked with cholera, dying near Vincennes, Ind., July 11, 1834. SLADE, James P., ex-State Superintendent of Public Instruction, was born at Westerlo, Albany County, N. Y., Feb. 9, 1837, and spent his boyhood with his parents on a farm, except while absent at school in 1856 removed to Belleville, 111., where he soon became connected with tlie public schools, serving for a number of years as ;

Principal of the Belleville

High

While

School.

connected with the Belleville schools, he was Coimty Superintendent, remaining in office some ten years later had charge of Almira College at Greenville, Bond County, served six years as Superintendent of Schools at East St. Louis and, in 1878, was elected State Superintendent of Public Instruction as tlie nominee of the Republican party. On retirement from the office of State Superintendent, he resumed his elected

;

place at the liead of Almira College, but, for the past few years, has been Superintendent of Schools at East St. Louis.

SLAVERY AGITATION OF

1823-24.

(See

Slavery and Slave Laivs.)

SLATERY AND SLAVE LAWS.

African slaves were first brought into the Illinois country by a Frenchman named Pierre F. Renault, about 1723. At that time the present State formed a part of Louisiana, and the traffic in slaves was

regulated by French royal edicts. When Great Britain acquired the territory, at the close of tlie French and Indian War, the former subjects of France were guaranteed security for their persons "and effects," and no interference with slavery was attempted. Upon the conquest of Illinois by Virginia (see Clark, George Rogers), the French very generally professed allegiance to that commonwealth, and, in her deed of cession to the United States, Virginia expressly stipulated for the protection of the "rights and liberties" This was construed as of the French citizens. recognizing the right of property in negro Even the Ordinance of 1787, while proslaves. hibiting slavery in the Northwest Territory, preserved to the settlers (reference being especially

made

French and Canadians) "of the Kasand neighboring villages, their laws and customs, now (then) in force, relative to the descent and conveyance of propto the

kaskias, St. Vincents

erty. "

A

conservative construction of this clause was, that while it prohibited the extension of slavery and the importation of slaves, the status of those who were at that time in involuntary servitude, and of their descendants, was left un-

changed. There were those, however, who denied the constitutionality of the Ordinance in toto, on the ground that Congress had exceeded its powers in its passage. There was also a party which claimed that all children of slaves, born after 1787, were free from birth. In 1794 a convention was held at Vincennes, pursuant to a call from Governor Harrison, and a memorial to Congress was adopted, praying for the repeal or. at least

a modification

—of

—

the sixth clause of the

HISTOrjCAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. Ordinance of mittee,

to

The

1787.

which

this

first

Congressional Com-

petition

was

referred,

reported adversely upon it but a second committee recommended the suspension of the operation But no of the clause in question for ten years. ;

action

was taken by the National

Legislature,

in 1807, a counter petition, extensively was forwarded to that body, and Congress the matter in statu quo. It is worthy of note that some of the most earnest opponents of the measure were Representatives from Southern Slave States, John Randolph, of Virginia, being one of them. The pro-slavery party in the State then prepared what is popularly known as the "Indenture Law," which was one of the first acts

and,

signed, left

adopted by Governor Edwards and his Council, and was re-enacted by the first Territorial Legislature in

181'.3.

It

was

to the Introduction of this Territory,"

entitled,

"An Act

relating

Negroes and Mulattoes into

and gave permission

to bring

slaves above 15 years of age into the State,

when

they might be registered and kept in servitude within certain limitations. Slaves under that age might also be brought in, registered, and held in bondage until they reached the age of 35, if males, and 30, if females. The issue of registered slaves were to serve their mother's master until the age of 30 or 28, according to sex. The effect of this legislation was rapidlj' to increase the number of slaves. The Constitution of 1818 prohibited the introduction of slavery thereafter that is to say, after its adoption. In 1822 the slave-holding party, with their supporters, began to agitate the question of so amending the organic law as to make Illinois a slave State. To efifect such a cliange the calUng of a convention was necessary, and, for eighteen months, the struggle between "conventionists" and their opponents was bitter and fierce. The question was submitted to a popular vote on August 2, 1824, the result of the count showing 4,972 votes This for such convention and 6,640 against. decisive result settled the question of slave-holding in Illinois for all future time, though the existence of slavery in the State continued to be recognized by the National Census until 1840. The number, according to the census of 1810, was 168; in 1820 they had increased to 917. Then the number began to diminish, being reduced in 1830 to 747, and, in 1840 (the last census which shows any portion of the population held in bondage), it was 831. Hooper Warren who has been mentioned elsewhere as editor of "The Edwardsville Spectator, and a leading factor in securing the defeat of the

—

483

—

scheme to make Illinois a slave State in 1822 in an article in the first number of "The Genius of Liberty" (January, 1841), .speaking of that consays there were, at its beginning, only tlirec papers in the State "The Intelligencer" at VandaUa, "The Gazette" at Shawneetown, and "The Spectator" at Edwardsville. The first two of these, at the outset, favored the Convention scheme, while "Tlie Spectator" opposed it. The management of the campaign on the part of tlie pro-slavery party was assigned to Emanuel .1. West, Theophilus W. Smith and Oliver L. Kelly, and a paper was established by the name of "The Illinois Republican," with Smith as editor. Among the active opponents of the measure were test,

—

George Churchill. Thomas Lippincott, Samuel D. Lockwood, Henry Starr (afterwards of Cincinnati), Rev. John M. Peck and Rev. James Lemen, of St. Clair County. Others who contributed to the cause were Daniel P. Cook, Morris Birkbeck, Dr. Hugh Steel and Burton of Jackson County, Dr. Henry Perrine of Bond William Leggett of Edwardsville (afterwards editor of "The New York Evening Post"), Benjamin Lundy (then of Missouri), David Black well and Rev. John Dew, of St. Clair Coimty. Still others were Nathaniel Pope (Judge of the United States District Court), William B. Archer, William H. Brown and Benjamin Mills (of Vandalia). John Tillson. Dr. Horatio Newhall, George Fcir-

Thomas Mather, Thomas Ford, Jud;,'f Baker, Charles W. Hunter and Henry H. This testimony is of interest as coming from one who probably had more to do with defeating the scheme, with the exception if Gov. Edward Coles. Outside of the more elabm ate Histories of Illinois, the most accurate and detailed accounts of this particular period are to be found in "Sketch of Edward Coles" by the kite quer. Col.

David

J.

Snow

(of Alton).


e conalthough making material gains had gone. Dm-ing his professional career he was connected, as counsel, with some of the most important trials before the Chicago into effect, that

courts

;

it

was

also one of the Directors of the Chi-

cago Public Librar}-, on its organization in 1871. Died suddenly, in Chicago, Oct. G. 1898. SMITH, Theophilns Washington, Judge and ])olitician, was born in New York City, Sept. 28, 1784, served for a time in the United States navy, was a law student in the ofBce of Aaron Burr, was admitted to the bar in his native State in 1805, and, in 1816, came west, finally locating at Edwardsville, where he soon became a prominent In 1820 he was an figure in early State history.

unsuccessful candidate before the Legislature for the office of Attorney-General, being defeated by Samuel D. Lockwood, but was elected to the State Senate in 1822, serving four years. In 1823 he was one of the leaders of the "Conventionist" party, whose aim was to adopt a new Constitution which would legalize slavery in Illinois, during this period being the editor of the leading organ of the pro-slavery party. In 1825 he was elected one of the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court, but resigned, Dec. 36, 18-12. He was impeached in 1832 on charges alleging oppressive conduct, corruption, and other high misdemeanors in office, but secured a negative acquittal, a two-thirds vote being necessary to conviction. The vote in the Senate stood twelve for conviction (on a part of the charges) to ten for acquittal, four being excused from voting. During the Black Hawk War he served as QuartermasterGeneral on the Governor's staff. As a jurist, he his political opponents with being unable to divest himself of his partisan bias, and even with privately advising counsel, in political causes, of defects in the record, which they (the counsel) had not discovered. He was also a member of the first Board of Commissioners of the Illinois & Michigan Canal, appointed in 1823. Died, in Chicago, May 6, 1846.

was charged by

SMITH, William Henry,

journalist.

Associ-

ated Press Manager, was born in Columbia Coimty, N. Y., Dec. 1, 1833; at three years of age was taken by his parents to Ohio, where he enjoyed the best educational advantages that

assistant editor of a nati, still later

doing work upon "The Literary Review." His connection with a leading paper enabled him to exert a strong influence in support of the Government. This he used most faithfully in assisting to raise troops in the first years of the war, and.

and securing tlie John Brough as a Union candidate for

in 1863, in bringing forward

election of

Governor in opposition to Clement L. Vallandi gham, the Democratic candidate. In 1864 he was nominated and elected Secretary of State, being re-elected two years later. After retiring from office he returned to journalism at Cincinnati, as editor of "The Evening Chronicle," from whicli he retired in 1870 to become Agent of the Western Associated Press, with headquarters, at first at Cleveland, but later at Chicago. His success in this line was demonstrated by the final union of the New York and Western Associated Press organizations under his management, continuing until 1893, when he retired. Mr. Smith was a strong personal friend of President Hayes, by whom he was appointed Collector of the Port of Chicago in 1877. While engaged in official duties he found time to do considerable literary work, having published, several years ago, "The St. Clair Papers," in two volumes, and a life of Charles

Hammond,

besides contributions to periodicals. After retiring from the management of the Associated Press, he was engaged upon a "His-

tory of American Politics" and a "Life of Rutherford B. Hayes," which are said to have been well advanced at the time of his death, which took place at his home, at

Lake

Forest,

111.,

July

27.

1896.

SMITH, William

M., merchant, stock-breeder and politician, was born near Frankfort, Ky.,

May

23,

1827; in 1846

accompanied

his father's

family to Lexington. McLean County, 111., where they settled. A few years later he bought forty

government land, finally increasing his holdings to 800 acres, and becoming a breeder of fine stock. Still later he added to his agricultural pursuits the business of a merchant. Having early identified himself with the Republican party, he remained a firm adherent of its principles during the Civil AVar, and, while declining

acres of

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

490

a commission tendered him by Governor Yates, devoted his time and means liberally to the recruiting and organization of regiments for service in the field, and procuring supplies for the In 1866 he was elected to the sick and wounded. lower house of the Legislature, and was reelected in 1868 and '70, serving, during his last term, as Speaker. In 1877 he was appointed by Governor CuUom a member of the Railroad and Warehouse Commission, of which body he served as President He was a man of remarkably genial imtil 1883. temperament, liberal impulses, and wide popularity.

Died, March 35, 1886. Sooy, .soldier and civil engiwas born at Tarlton, Pickaway County,

SMITH, William neer,

graduated at Ohio University United States Military Acadhaving among his classmates, at the latter. Generals McPherson, Schofield and Sheridan. Coming to Chicago the following year, he first found employment as an engineer on the Illinois Central Railroad, but later became assistOhio, July

32, 1830;

iu 1849, and, at the

emy, in

1858,

ant of Lieutenant-Colonel Graham in engineer service on the lakes a year later took charge of a select school in Buffalo in 1857 made the first surveys for the International Bridge at Niagara Falls, then went into the service of extensive locomotive and bridge- works at Trenton, N. J., in their interest making a visit to Cuba, and also superintending the construction of a bridge across the Savannah River. The war intervening, he returned North and was appointed LieutenantColonel and assigned to duty as Assistant Adjutant-General at Camp Denison, Ohio, but, in June, 1863, was commissioned Colonel of the Thirteenth Ohio Volunteers, participating in the West Virginia campaigns, and later, at Shiloh and Perryville. In April, 1862, he was promoted Brigadier-General of volunteers, commanding divisions in the Army of the Ohio until the fall of 1862, when he joined Grant and took part in the Vicksburg campaign, as commander of the First Division of the Sixteenth Army Corps. Subsequently he was made Chief of the Cavalry Department, serving on the staffs of Grant and Sherman, until comjielled to resign, in 1864, on account of impaired health. During the war General Smith rendered valuable service to the Union cause in great emergencies, by his knowledge of engineering. On retiring to private life he resumed his profession at Chicago, and since has been employed by the Government on some of its most stupendous works on the lakes, and has also planned several of the most important railroad bridges across the Missouri and other ;

;

He has been much consulted in reference to municipal engineering, and his name is connected with a number of the gigantic edifices in Chicago. SMITHBORO, a village and railroad junction in Bond County, 3 miles east of Greenville. streams.

Population. 393; (1900), 314.

SNAPP, Henry, Congressman, born in Livingston County, N. Y., June 30, 1833, came to Illinois with his father when 11 years old, and, having read law at Joliet, was admitted to the bar in 1847. He practiced in Will County for twenty years before entering public life. In 1868 he was elected to the State Senate and occupied a seat in that body until his election, in 1871, to the Fortysecond Congress, by the Republicans of the (then) Sixth Illinois District, as successor to B. C. Cook, who had resigned. Died, at Joliet, Nov. 33, 1895. SNOW, Herman W., ex-Congressman, was born in La Porte County, Ind., July 3, 1836, but was reared in Kentucky, working upon a farm for five years, while yet in his minority becoming a resident of Illinois. For several years he was a school teacher, meanwhile studying law and being admitted to the bar. Early in the war he enlisted as a private in the One Himdred and Thirty-ninth Illinois Volunteers, rising to the rank of Captain. His term of service having expired, he re-enlisted in the One Hundred and Fifty-first Illinois, and was mustered out with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. After the close of the war he resumed teaching at the Chicago High School, and later served in the Genei-al Assembly (1873-74) as Representative from Woodford County. In 1890 he was elected, as a Democrat, to represent the Ninth Illinois District in Congress, but was defeated by his Republican opponent in

1893.

SNOWHOOK, William B., first Collector of Customs at Chicago, was born in Ireland in 1804 at the age of eight years was brought to New York, where he learned the printer's trade, and worked for some time in the same office with Horace Greeley. At 16 he went back to Ireland, remaining two years, but, returning to the United States, began the study of law was also employed on the Passaic Canal; in 1836, came to Chicago, and was soon after associated with William B. Ogden in a contract on the Illinois & Michigan Canal, which lasted until 1841. As early as 1840 he became prominent as a leader in the Democratic party, and, in 1846, received from President Polk an appointment as first Collector of Customs for Chicago (having previously ;

served as Special Surveyor of the Port, while

HISTOKICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. attached to the District of Detroit) iu 1853, was re-appointed to the Collectorship by President During the "Mormon Pierce, serving two years. AVar" (1844) he organized and equipped, at his own expense, the ilontgomery Guards, and was commissioned Colonel, but the disturbances were brought to an end before the order to march. From 18.56 he devoted his attention chiefly to his jiractice, but, in 1862, was one of the Democrats of Chicago wlio took part in a movement to sustain the Government by stimulating enlistments was also a member of the Convention which nominated Mr. Greeley for President in 1872. Died, in Chicago, May 5, 1882. SNYDER, Adam Wilson, pioneer lawyer, and ;

was born at Connellsville, In early life he followed the 6, 1799. occupation of wool-curling for a livelihood, attending school in the winter. In 1815, he emigrated to Columbus, Ohio, and afterwards settled in Ridge Prairie, St. Clair Coimty, 111. Being offered a situation in a wool-curling and fulling mill at Cahokia, he removed thither in 1817. He formed the friendship of Judge Je.sse B. Thomas, and, through the latter's encouragement and aid, studied law and gained a solid professional, political, social and financial position. In 1830 he was elected State Senator from St. Clair Coimty, and re-elected for two successive terms. He served through the Black Hawk War as private. Adjutant and Captain. In 1833 he removed to Belleville, and, in 1834, was defeated for Congress by Governor Reynolds, whom he, in turn, defeated in 1836. Two years later Reynolds again defeated him for the same position, and, in 1840, he was elected State Senator. In 1841 he was the Democratic nominee for Governor. The election was held in August, 1842, but, in Maj' preceding, he died at his home in Belleville. His place on the ticket was filled by Thomas Ford, who was elected.— William H. (Snyder), son of the preceding, was born in St. Clair County, IU., July 12, 1825 educated at McKendree College, studied law with Lieutenant-Governor Koerner, and was admitted to practice in 1845; also served for a time as Postmaster of the city of Belleville, and, during the Mexican War, as First-Lieutenant and Adjutant of the Fifth Illinois Volunteers. From 1850 to '54 he represented his county in the Legislature in 1855 was appointed, by Governor Matteson. State's Attorney, which position he filled for two years. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the oiHce of Secretary of State in 1856, and, iu 1857, was elected a Judge of the Twentylurth Circuit, was re-elected for the Third Cirearly Congressman, Pa.," Oct.

;

;

l'(

cuit in

'73, '79

and

"85.

He was also

4!tl

a

member

the Constitutional Convention of 1869-70. at Belleville, Dec. 24, 1892.

SOLDIERS' AND SAILORS' HOME,

of

Died,

a State

charitable institution, founded

Legislature

in

1885,

by act of the and located at Quincy,

Adams County. The object of its establishto provide a comfortable home for such disabled or dependent veterans of the United States land or naval forces as had honorably served during the Civil War. It was opened for the reception of veterans on ment was

Marcli 3, 1887, the first cost of site and buildings having been about §350,000. The total number of inmates admitted up to June 30. 1894, was' 2,813; the number in attendance during the two previous years 988, and the whole number present

on Nov. 10, 1894, 1,088. The value of property at that time was 8393,636.08. Considerable appropriations have been made for additions to the buildings at .subsequent sessions of the Legisla-

The General Government pays to the State §100 per year for each veteran supjiorted at the ture.

Home.

SOLDIERS' ORPHANS' HOME, ILLINOIS, an by act of 1865, for the maintenance and education of children of deceased soldiers of the Civil War. An eighty-acre tract, one mile north of Normal, was selected as the site, and the first principal building was completed and opened for the admission of beneficiaries on June 1, 1869. Its first cost was 5135,000. the site having been donated. Repairs and the construction of new buildings, from time to time, have considerably increased this sum. In 1875 the benefits of the institution were extended, by legislative enactment, to the children of soldiers who had died after the close of the war. The aggregate number of inmates, in 1894, was 572, of whom 323 were males and 249 females. institution, created

SOLDIERS' WIDOWS' HOME. Provision was made for the establishment of this institution by the Thirty-ninth General Assembly, in an act, approved, June 13, 1895, appropriating .520.000 for the purchase of a site, the erection of buildings and furnishing the same. It is designed for the reception and care of the mothers, wives, widows and daughters of such honorably discharged soldiers or sailors, in the United States service, as

may have

died, or may be physically or menunable to provide for the families natudependent on them, provided that such persons have been residents of the State for at least one year previous to admi.ssion, and are without means or ability for self-support.

tally

rally

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

492

Home are managed by a board of five trustees, of whom two are men and three women, the former to be members of the Grand Aimy of the Republu; and of different political parties, and the latter members of the Women's Relief Corps of this State. The institution was located at Wilmington, occupying a site of seventeen acres, where it was formally The

affairs

of the

opened in a house of eighteen rooms, March 11, 1890, with twenty-six applications for admittance. The plan contemplates an early enlarge-

ment by the erection of SOREjVTO, a village

additional cottages.

of Bond County, at the & St. Louis and the Toledo, St. Louis & Western Railways, 14 miles southeast of Litchfield; has a bank and a Its interests are agricultural and newspaper. mining. Pop. (1890), 538; (1900), 1,000. SOULARD, James Gaston, pioneer, born of French ancestry in St. Louis, Mo., July 15, 1798; resided there until 1821, when, having married the daughter of a soldier of the Revolution, he received an appointment at Fort Snelling, near intersection of the Jacksonville

the present city of St. Paul, then under command of Col. Snelling, who was his wife's brother-inlaw. The Fort was reached after a tedious journey by flat-boat and overland, late in the fall of Three years 1831, his wife accompanying him. later they returned to St. Louis, where, being an for several years in engineer, he was engaged surveying. In 1837 he removed with his family charge next six years had of a to Galena, for the store of the Gratiot Brothers, early business men Towards the close of this period of that locality.

he received the appointment of County Recorder, also holding the position of County Surveyor and Postmaster of Galena at the same time. His later years were devoted to farming and horticulture, his death taking place. Sept. 17, 1878. Mr. Soulard was probably the first man to engage Chicago. in freighting between Galena and "Tlie Galena Advertiser" of Sept. 14, 1839, makes mention of a wagon-load of lead sent by him to Chicago, his team taking back a load of salt, the paper remarking: "This is the first wagon that has ever passed from the Mississippi River to Chicago." Great results were predicted from the exchange of commodities between the lake Mrs. Eliza M. and the lead mine district. Hunt (Soulard), wife of the preceding, was born at Detroit, Dec. 18, 1804, her father being Col. Thomas A. Hunt, who liad taken part in the Battle of Bunker Hill and remained in the army until his death, at St. Louis, in 1807. His descendants have maintained their connection with the

—

army ever

since,

a son being a prominent artillery Gettysburg, Mrs. Soular

officer at the Battle of

was married

and survive her husband some sixteen years, dying at Galena

August

11,

at St. Louis, in 1830,

She had resided in Galen,-

1894.

nearly seventy years, and at the date of her death, in the 90th year of her age, she was that city's oldest resident.

SOUTH CHICAGO & WESTERN INDIANA RAILROAD. (See Chicago JVestern Indiana 3ns occurring on the even years between those for Governor and other State officers except State

(resigned);

;

;

;

Damon

G. Tunnicliffe (appointed, vice Walker), June 1, 1885; Simeon P. Shope,

two

Feb.

year,

1885-94; Joseph

SUPREME COURT, JUDGES OF THE. Court of

is

a

The Supreme

of Justices of the

list

Illinois

who

liave held office since the

organization of the State Government, with the Joseph period of tlieir respective incumbencies :

Phillips, 1818-22 (resigned);

Thomas

July

7,

William

Foster,

P.

Browne,

C.

1818 48 (term expired on adoption of stitution);

Oct.

new Con1818,

9,

John Reynolds,

1819 (resigned),

to

1818-25;

(vice Phillips), 1822-25; Wil-

Thomas Reynolds

liam Wilson (vice Foster) 1819-48 (term expired on adoption of new Constitution) Samuel D Lockwood, 1825-48 (term expired on adoption of new Constitution) Theophilus W. Smith, 1825-42 ;

;

(resigned);

gust

1,

Thomas

Ford, Feb.

15,

1841, to

Au-

Sidney Breese, Feb. 15, (resigned)—also (by re-elec-

1842 (resigned)

1841, to Dec. 19, 1842

;

tions), 1857-78 (died in office)

;

Walter B. Scates,

1841-47 (resigned)— also (vice Trumbull), 1854-57 (resigned); Samuel H. Treat, 1841-55 (resigned);

Stephen A. Douglas, 1841-42 (resigned) John D. Caton (vice Ford) August, 1842, to March, 1843— also (vice Robinson and by successive re-elections). May, 1843 to January, 1864 (resigned); ;

James Semple

(vice

Breese), Jan. 14, 1843, to

April 16, 1843 (resigned) Richard M. Young (vice John M. Robinson Smith), 1843-47 (resigned) (vice Ford), Jan. 14, 1843, to April 27, 1843 (died in office); Jesse B. Thomas, Jr., (vice Douglas), ;

;

1843-45

M. Bailey, 1888-95 (died in

office).

The Supreme Court, as (1899), is as follows:

at present constituted Carroll C. Boggs, elected,

1897; Jesse J. Phillips (vice Scholfield, deceased)

Treasurer.

following

15, 1885, to

(resigned)— also (vice Young), 1847-48; (vice Semple), 1843-45 (resigned) (vice Thomas), 1843-48 (retired

James Shields

Norman H. Purple

under Constitution of 1848); Gustavus Koerner (vice Shields), 184.5-48 (retired by Constitution);

William A. Denning (vice

Scates), 1847-48

(re-

elected, 1893,

and

re-elected, 1897;

kin, elected, 1888,

and

Jacob

re-elected, 1897;

W.

WilJoseph

N. Carter, elected, 1894; Alfred M. Craig, elected, 1873, and re-elected, 1882 and '91; James H. 1895, and reMagruder (vice

Cartwright (vice Bailey), elected, 1897;

elected,

Benjamin

D.

Dickey), elected, 1885, '88 and "97. The terms of Justices Boggs, Pliillips, Wilkin, Cartwright and Magruder expire in 1906 that of Justice Carter on 1903 and Justice Craig's, in 1900. Under the Constitution of 1818, the Justices of the Supreme Court were chosen by joint ballot of the Legislature, but, under the Constitutions of 1848 and 1870, b}' popular vote for terms of nine years each. (See Judicial System; also sketches of individual members of the Supreme Court under their proper names.) ;

;

SURVEYS, EARLY GOVER>MEXT. The

first

United States law passed on the subject of Government surveys was dated, 3Iay 20, 1785. After reserving certain lands to be allotted by way of pensions and to be donated for school pui-poses, it provided for the division of the remaining public

lands

among

the original

tliirteen

States.

by the Ordinance of 1788. The latter provided for a rectangular system of surveys which, with but little modification, has remained in force ever since. Briefly outlined, the system is as follows: Townships, six miles square, are laid out from principal bases, each townsliip containing thirty-six sections of one square mile, numbei'ed consecutively, the numeration to commence at the upper right hand corner of the townsliip. The first principal meridian (84' 51' west of Greenwich), coincided This, however, was, in effect, repealed

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. with the line dividing Indiana and Ohio. The second (1° 37' farther west) had direct relation to surveys in Eastern Illinois. The third (89° 10' 30" west of Greenwich) and the fourth (90° 29' 66" west) governed the remainder of Illinois surveys. The first Public Surveyor was Thomas Hutchins, who was called "the geographer." (See Hutchins, niomas.)

SWEET, (Gen.) Benjamin J., bom at Kirkland, Oneida County, came with

soldier,

was

X. Y., April

Sheboygan, Wis., studied law, was elected to the State Senate in 1859, and, in 1861, enlisted in the Sixth Wisconsin Volunteers, being commissioned Major in 1862. Later, he resigned and, returning home, 24, 1832;

his father, in 1848, to

assisted in the organization of the Twenty-first

and Twenty-second

regiments, being elected Colonel of the former; and witli it taking part in the campaign in Western Kentucky and TennesIn 18CI he was assigned to command at see. Camp Douglas, and was there on the exposure, in November, 1864, of the conspiracy to release the rebel prisoners. (See Camp Douglas ConspirThe service which he rendered in the acy.) defeat of this bold and dangerous conspiracy evinced his courage and sagacity, and was of inestimable value to the country. After the war. General Sweet located at Lombard, near Chicago, was appointed Pension Agent at Chicago, afterwards served as Supervisor of Internal Revenue, and, in 1872, became Deputy Commissioner of Internal Revenue at W^ashington. Died, Miss Ada C. in Washington, Jan. 1, 1874 (Sweet), for eight years (1874-82) the efficient Pension Agent at Chicago, is General Sweet's daughter.

—

SWEETSER, A. C, soldier and Department A. R., was born in Oxford County, Maine, in 1839; came to Bloomington, 111., in 1857 enlisted at the beginning of the Civil War in the Eighth Illinois Volunteers and, later, in the Thirty-ninth; at the battle of Wierbottom Church, Va., in June, 1864, was shot through both legs, necessitating the amputation of one of them. After the war he held several offices of trust, including those of City Collector of BloomCommander G. ;

ington and Deputy Collector of Internal Revenue for the Springfield District; in 1887 was elected

Department Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic for

March

Illinois.

Died, at Bloomington.

23, 1896.

SWETT, Leonard, lawyer, was born near Turner, Maine, August 11, 1825; was educated at Waterville College (now Colby University), but left before graduation; read law in Portland, and,

515

while seeking a location in the West, enlisted in an Indiana regiment for the Mexican War, being attacked by climatic fever, was ihscharged before completing his term of enlistment. He soon after came to Bloomington, 111., where he became the intimate friend of Abraliam Lincoln and David Davis, traveling the circuit with them for a number of years. He early became active in State politics, was a member of the Republican State Convention of 1850, was elected to the lower house of the General Assembly in 1858, and, in 1860, was a zealous supjwrter of Mr. Lincoln as a Presidential Elector for the State-atlarge. In 1862 he received the Republican nomination for Congress in his District, but was defeated. Removing to Chicago in 1865, he gained increased distinction as a lawyer, especially in the management of criminal cases. In 1872 he was a supporter of Horace Greeley for President, but later returned to the Republican party, and, in the National Republican Convention of 1888, presented the name of Judge Gresham for nomination for the Presidency.

Died, June

8,

1889.

SWIGERT,

Charles Philip, ex- Auditor of PubAccounts, was born in the Province of Baden, Germany, Nov. 27, 1843, brought by his parents to Chicago, 111., in childliood, and, in his boyhood, attended the Scammon School in that city. In 1854 his family removed to a farm in Kankakee County, where, between the ages of 12 and lic

18, he assisted his father in "breaking" between 400 and 500 acres of prairie land. On the breaking out of the war, in 1861, although scarcely 18 years of age, he enlisted as a private in the Fortysecond Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and, in April, 1862, was one of twenty heroic volunteers who ran the blockade, on the gunboat Carondelet. at Island No. 10, assisting materially in the reduc-

tion of that rebel stronghold, the capture of 7,000 prisoners.

which resulted in At the battle of

Farmington, Miss,, during the siege of Corinth, in May, 1862, he had his right arm torn from its socket by a six-pound cannon-ball, comjjelling his retirement from the army. Returning home, after

many weeks

spent in hospital at Jefferson

Barracks and Quincy,

III, he received his final discharge. Dec. 21, 1862, spent a year in school, also took a course in Bryant Stratton's Com-

&

mercial College in Chicago, and having learned to write with his left hand, taught for a time in

Kankakee County served as letter-carrier in Chicago, anil for a year as Deputy County Clerk of Kankakee County, followed by two terms (18G7;

69) as a student in the Soldiers" College at Fulton,

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

516 The

year he entered upon the duties of Treasurer of Kankakee County, serving, by successive re-elections, until 1880, when he resigned to take the position of State Auditor, to which he was elected a second time in 1884. In all these positions Mr. Swigert has proved himself an upright, capable and high-minded public official. Of late years his residence has been in Chicago. SWING, (Rev.) David, clergyman and pulpit orator, was born of German ancestry, at Cincinnati, Ohio, August 23, 1836. After 1837 (his father dying about this time), the family resided for a time at Reedsburgh, and, later, on a farm near Williamsburgh, in Clermont County, in the same State. In 1853, having graduated from the Miami (Ohio) University, he commenced the study of theology, but, in 1854, accepted the 111.

latter

position of Professor of Languages in his Alma Mater, which he continued to fill for thirteen

His first pastorate was in connection with the Westminster Presbyterian Church of Chicago, which he assumed in 1866. His church edifice was destroyed in the great Chicago fire, but was later rebuilt. As a preacher he was popular but, in April, 1874, he was placed on trial, before an ecclesiastical court of his own denomination, on charges of lieresy. He was acquitted by the trial court, but, before the appeal taken by the prosecution could be heard, he personally withdrew from affiliation with the denomination. Shortly afterward he became pastor of an independent religious organization known as the "Central Church," preaching, first at McVicker"s Theatre and. afterward, at Central Music Hall, Chicago. He was a fluent and popular speaker on all themes, a frequent and valued contributor to numerovis magazines, as well as the author of several volumes. Among his best known books are "Motives of Life," "Truths for To-day," and "Club Essays." Died, in Chicago, Oct. 3, 1894. SYCAMORE, the county-seat of De Kalb County (founded in 1836), 56 miles west of Chicago, at the intersection of the Chicago & Northwestern and the Chicago Great Western Railroads; lies in a region devoted to agricultiue, dairying and stock-raising. The city itself contains several factories, the princiijal products being agricultural implements, flour, insulated wire, brick, tile, varnish, furniture, soap and carriages and wagons. There are also works for canning vegetables and fruit, besides two creameries. The town is lighted by electricity, and has high-pressure water-works. There are eleven churches, three graded public schools and a years.

;

young

seminary.

ladies'

Population

(1880),

3,028; (1890), 2,987; (1900), 3,653.

TAFT, Lorado, sculptor, was born at Elmwood, 111., April 29, 1860; at an early age evinced a predilection for sculpture and began modeling; graduated at tlie University of Illinois in 1880, then went to Paris and studied sculjiture in the famous Ecole des Beaux Arts until 1885. The following year he settled in Chi cago, finally becoming associated with the Chicago Art Institute. He has been a lecturer on art in the Chicago University. Mr. Taft furnished the decorations of the Horticultural Building on the World's Fair Grounds, in 1893. TALCOTT, Mancel, business man, was born in Rome, N. Y., Oct. 12, 1817; attended the common schools until 17 3'ears of age, when he set out for the West, traveling on foot from Detroit to Chicago, and thence to Park Ridge, where he worked at farming until 1850. Then, having followed the occupation of a miner for some time, in California, with some success, he united with Horace M. Singer in establishing the firm of Singer & Talcott, stone-dealers, which lasted during most of his life. He served as a member of the Chicago City Council, on the Board of County Commissioners, as a member of the Police Board, and was one of the founders of the First National Bank, and President, for .several years, of the Stock Yards National Bank. Liberal and publicspirited, he contributed freely to works of

Peoria County,

charity.

Died,

June

5,

1878.

TALCOTT, (Capt.) William, War of 1812 and pioneer, was

soldier

of

the

born in Gilead,

Conn., March 6, 1774; emigrated to Rome, Oneida County, N. Y., in 1810, and engaged in farming; served as a Lieutenant in the Oneida County miUtia during the War of 1812-14, being stationed at Sackett's Harbor under the command of Gen. Winfleld Scott. In 1835, in company with his eldest son, Thomas B. Talcott, he made an extended tour through the West, finally selecting a location in Illinois at the junction of Rock River and the Pecatonica, where the town of Rockton now stands there being only two white families, at that time, within the present limits of Winnebago County. Two years later (1837), he brought his family to this point, with his sons took up a considerable body of Government land and erected two mills, to which customers came from a long distance. In 1838 Captain Talcott took part in the organization of the first Congre-

—

gational

Church

in that section of the State.

zealous anti-slavery man, he supported

A

James G.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

517

organization of the Republican party in 1856; was deeply interested in the War for the Union, but died before its conclusion, Sept. 2, 1864.— Maj. Thomas B. (Talcott). oldest son of the preApril 17, ceding, was born at Hebron, Conn i806; was taken to Rome, N. Y., by his father in nfancy, and, after reaching maturity, engaged in mercantile business with his brotlier in Chemung County; in 1835 accompanied his father in a tour througli the AVest, finally locating at Rockton, where he engaged in agriculture. On the organization of Winnebago County, in 1836, he was elected one of the first County Commis-

bago County, also served as Supervisor for a number of years and, although a farmer, became with his brother Wait, in 1854, interested, in the Manny Reaper Company at Rockford. He also followed the example of liis brother, just named, in furnishing a substitute for the War of the Rebellion, though too old for service Died, June 19, 1885 —Henry Walter himself. (Talcott), fourth son of William Talcott, was born at Rome, X. Y., Feb. 13, lbl4; came with his father to Winnebago County, 111., in 1835, and was connected with liis father and brothers in busiDied, Dec. 9, 1870.— D wight Lewis (Talness. cott), oldest son of Henry Walter Talcott, bom in Winnebago County; at the age of 17 years

sioners, and, in 1850, to the State Senate, serving

enlisted at Belvidere, in January, 1864, as a soldier

Birnej- (the Liberty candidate for President) in 1844, continuing to act with that party until the

,

four years. He also held various local offices. Died, Sept. 30. 1894.— Hon. Wait (Talcott), second son of Capt. William Talcott, was born at Hebron, Conn., Oct. IT. 1807, and taken to Rome, N. Y., where he remained until his 19th year, when he engaged in business at Booneville and, still later,

in Utica

and joined becoming a

;

in 1838,

removed

to Illinois

Rockton, finally citizen of Rockford, where, in his later years, he was extensively engaged in manufacturing, having become, in 1854, with his brother Sylvester, a partner of the firm of J. H. Manny & Co., in the manufacture of the Manny his

father

at

mower. He was an original antiman and, at one time,a Free-Soil candidate

reaper and slavery

became a zealous Republican and ardent friend of Abraham Lincoln, whom he employed as an attorney in the famous suit of for Congress, but

vs. the Manny Reaper Company for infringement of patent. In 1854 he was elected to the State Senate, succeeding his brother, Thomas B., and was the first Collector of Internal Revenue in the Second District, appointed by Mr. Lincoln in 1800. and continuing in office some

McCormick

Though too old for active service in five years. the field, during the Civil War, he voluntarily hired a substitute to take his place. Jlr. Talcott was one of the original incorporators and Trusand a founder of Rockford Female Seminary, remaining a trustee of each for many years. Died, June 7, 1890. SylTester (Talcott), third son of William Talcott, born at Rome, N. Y., Oct. 14, 1810; when of age, engaged in mercantile business in Chemung County; in 1837 removed, with other members of the family, to Winnebago County, 111., where he joined his father in the entry of Government lands and the erection of mills, as already detailed. He became one of the first Justices of the Peace in Winne-

tees of Beloit College,

—

Ninth

in the

Illinois

Volunteer Infantry

;

served

some two months at Fort PickerMemphis, and later took part in many

as provost guard ing, near

of the important battles of that year in MissisHaving been captured at sippi and Tennessee.

Campbellsville, Tenn. he ,

was taken

to

Anderson-

Ga., where he suffered all the horrors of that famous prison-pen, until March, 1865, when he was released, arriving at home a helpless skeleton, the day after Abraham Lincoln's assasville,

subsequently settled in Jlr. Talcott Muscatine County, Iowa. T.iLLl'LA, a prosperous village of Menard County, on the Jacksonville branch of tlie CliiAlton Railway. 24 miles northeast of cago is in the midst of a grain, coalJack.sonville mining, and stock-growing region; has a local bank and newspaper. Pop. (1890), 445 (1900), 639. TAMAROA, a village in Perry County, situated at the junction of the Illinois Central with the Wabash, Chester & Western Railroad. 8 miles north of Duquoin, and 57 miles east-southeast of Belleville. It has a bank, a newspaper office, a large public school, five churches and two flouring mills. Coal is mined here and exported in sination.

eV-

;

;

large quantities.

Pop. (1900),

s.53.

TAMAROA & MOUNT VERXON RAILROAD. (See n'ahash, Chester & Western Railroad.) TAXXER, Edward cator,

was born

who

of

Allen, clergyman and eduancestry, at

New England

Nov. 29, 1S37— being the first child could claim nativitj- there; was educated

Waverly, in the

111..

local

schools

and

at

Illinois

College,

graduating from the latter in 1857; spent four years teaching in his native place and at Jacksonville; then accepted the Professorship of Latin in Pacific University at Portland. Oregon, remaining four years, when he returned to his Alma Mater (1865), assuming there the chair of

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

518 Latin and

Rhetoric.

In 1881 he was appointed

financial agent of the latter institution, and, in

resulted in the unprecedented Republican successes of that year. In 1896 he received the

Oregon he had

nomination of his party for Governor, and was

been ordained a minister of the Congregational Church, and, for a considerable period during his connection with Illinois College, oflBciated as Chaplain of the Central Hospital for the Insane at Jacksonville, besides supplying local and other pulpits. He labored earnestly for the benefit of the institution under his charge, and, during his incumbency, added materially to its endowment and resources. Died, at Jackson-

John P. Altgeld, his Demoby a plurality of over 113,000, and a majority, over all, of nearly 90,000 votes. TANNER, Tazewell B., jurist, was born in Henry County, Va., and came to Jefferson County, 111., about 1846 or '47, at first taking a position as teacher and Superintendent of Public Schools. Later, he was connected with "The Jeffersonian," a Democratic paper at Mount Vernon, and, in 1849, went to the gold regions of California, meeting with reasonable success as a miner. Returning in a year or two, he was

1882,

ville,

President.

its

Feb.

8,

While

in

1893.

TANNER, John R., Governor, was born in Warrick County, Ind., April 4, 1844, and brought to Southern Illinois in boyhood, where he grew up on a farm in the vicinity of Carbondale, enjoying only such educational advantages as were afforded by the common school; in 1863, at the age of 19, enlisted in the Ninety-eighth Illinois Volunteers, serving until June, 1865, when

he was transferred to the Sixty -first, and finally mustered out in September following. All the male members of Governor Tanner's family were soldiers of the late war, his father dying in a rebel prison at Columbus, Miss., one of his brothers suffering the same fate from wounds at Nashville, Tenn., and another brother dying in hospital at Pine Bluff, Ark. Only one of this patriotic family, besides Governor Tanner, still survives Mr. J. M. Tanner of Clay Covmty, who left the service with the rank of Lieutenant of the Thirteenth Illinois Cavalry. Returning from the war, Mr. Tanner established himself in business as a farmer in Clay County, later engaging successfully in the milling and lumber business as the partner of his brother. The public positions held by him, since the war, include those of Sheriff of Clay County (1870-72), Clerk of the Circuit Court (1872-76), and State Senator (1880-83). During the latter year he received the appointof United States Marshal for the Southern District of Illinois, serving imtil after the accession of President Cleveland in 1885. In 1886, he

ment

was the Republican nominee for State Treasurer and was elected by an unusually large majority in 1891 was appointed, by Governor Fifer, a member of the Railroad and Warehouse Commission, but, in 1893, received tlie

appointment of

Assistant United States Treasurer at Chicago, continuing in the latter office until December, 1893. For ten years (1874-84) he was a member of the Republican State Central Committee, returning to that body in 1894, when he was chosen Chairman and conducted the campaign which

elected over Gov. cratic opponent,

elected Clerk of the Circuit Court, and, while in the discharge of his duties, prosecuted the study of law, finally, on admission to the bar, entering into partnership with the late Col.

Thomas

S.

Casey. In 1854 he was elected Representative in the Nineteenth General Assembly, and was instrumental in securing the appropriation for the erection of a Supreme Court building at Mount Vernon. In 1863 he served as a Delegate to the State Constitutional Convention of that year was ;

elected Circuit Judge in 1873, and, in 1877, was assigned to duty on the Appellate bench, but, at the expiration of his term, declined a re-election and resumed the practice of his profession at Mount Vernon. Died, March 25, 1880. TAXATION, in its legal sense, the mode of raising revenue. In its general sense its purposes are the support of the State and local governments, the promotion of the public good by fostering education and works of public improve-

ment, the protection of society by the preservation of order and the punishment of crime, and the support of the helpless and destitute. In practice, and as prescribed by the Constitution, the raising of revenue is required to be done "by levying a tax by valuation, so that every person and corporation shall pay a tax in proportion to the value of his, her or its property such value to be ascertained by some person or persons, to be elected or appointed in such manner as the General Assembly shall direct, and not otherwise."

—

(State Constitution, 1870

The person

—Art.

selected under the

Revenue, Sec.

law to make

1.)

this

the Assessor of the county or the township (in counties under township organization), and he is required to make a return to the County Board at its July meeting each year the latter having authority to hear complaints of taxpayers and adjust inequalities when found to It is made the duty of the Assessor to exist. valuation

is

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. include in his return, as real-estate, all lands and the buildings or other improvements erected thereon; and, under the head of personal property, all tangible effects, besides moneys, credits, bonds or stocks, shares of stock of companies or corporations, investments, annuities, franchises, Property used for school, church royalties, etc.

or cemetery purposes, as well as public buildings and other property belonging to the State and municipalities, pubUc General Government, charities, public libraries, agricultural

and

scien-

are declared exempt. Nominally, property subject to taxation is required to be assessed at its cash valuation but, in reality, the valuation, of late years, has been on a basis of twenty-five to thirty-three per cent of its estitific societies,

all

;

mated cash value. In the larger cities, however, the valuation is often much lower than this, while very large amounts escape assessment altogether. The Revenue Act, passed at the special session of the Fortieth General Assembly (1898), requires the Assessor to make a return of all property subject to taxation in his district, at its cash valuation, upon which a Board of Review fixes a tax on the basis of twenty per cent of such cash valuation. An abstract of the property assessment of each county goes before the State its annual meeting in comparison and equalAugust, izing valuations between counties, but the Board has no power to modify the assessments of indi-

Board of Equalization, at for the puqiose of

vidual tax-payers. (See State Board of Equalization.) This Board has exclusive power to fix the valuation for purposes of taxation of the capital stock or franchises of companies (except certain specified manufacturing corporations) incorporated under the State laws, togetlier with the "railroad track" and "rolling stock" of railroads, and the capital stock of railroads and telegraph lines, and to fix the distribution of the latter ,

—

which they lie. The Constitution of 1848 empowered the Legislature to between counties

in

from fines and punishment for

specific

benefit of certain specified funds.

TAYLOR,

Abncr, ex-Congressman,

&

,

1839, the

matic

next year becoming literary and dra"The Chicago Evening JournaL"

critic of

Here, in a few years, he acquired a wide reputation as a journalist and poet, and was much in demand as a lecturer on literary topics. His letters from the field during the Rebellion, as war correspondent of "The Evening Journal," won for him even a greater popularity, and were

complimented by translation into more than one European language. After the %var, he gave hia attention more unreservedly to literature, his principal works appearing after that date. His publications in book form, including both prose and poetry, comprise the following: "Attractions

Language" (1843); "January and June" in Camp and Field" (1871); "The World on Wheels" (1873); "Old Time Pictures and Sheaves of Rhyme" (1874); "Songs of of

(1853); "Pictures

Yesterday" (1877); "Summer Savory Gleaned from Rural Nooks" (1879); "Between the Gates" "Dulce —pictures of CaUfornia life— (1881) Domum, the Burden of Song" (1884), and "Theophilus Trent, or Old Times in the Oak Openings," a novel (1887). The last was in the hands of the ;

the assessments in cities, for the construction of sewers, pavements, etc., being local and in the form of benefits, cannot be said to come xmder the head of general taxation. The same is to be said of revenue derived

and

Article.

in the first section of

—Special

a native

fourth General Assembly, a delegate to the National Republican Convention of 1884, and represented the First Illinois District in the Fiftyfirst and Fifty-second Congresses, 1889 to 1893. Mr. Taylor was one of the contractors for the erection of the new State Capitol of Texas. TAYLOR, Benjamin Franklin, journalist, poet and lecturer, was born at Lowville, N. Y., July 19, 1819; graduated at Madison University ia

publishers at his death, Feb.

Revenue

is

and a resident of Chicago. He lias been in active business all his life as contractor, builder and, for .some time, a member of merchant, and the wholesale dry-goods firm of J. V. Farwell He was a member of the Thirtyof Chicago. Co. of Maine,

impose a capitation tax, of not less than fifty cents nor more than one dollar, upon each free white male citizen entitled to the right of suffrage, between the ages of 21 and 60 years, but the Constitution of 1870 grants no sucli power, though it authorizes the extension of the "objects and subjects of taxation" in accordance with the principle contained

519

which are forms of offenses, and go to the

penalties,

1887.

27,

Among

his most popular poems are "The Isle of the Long Ago," "The Old Village Choir," and "Rhymes of 'The London Times' complimented the River. Mr. Taylor witli the title of "The Oliver Goldsmith of America." '

'

'

TAYLOR, Edmund

'

Dick, early Indian-trader

was born at Fairfield C. H., Va., 1803— the son of a commissary in the army of the Revolution, under General Greene, and a cousin of General (later, President) Zachary Taylor; left his native State in his youth and, at an early day, came to Springfield, 111., where he legislator,

Oct. 18,

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

520

opened an Indian-trading post and general store was elected from Sangamon County to the lower branch of the Seventh General Assembly 1830) {

—

the latter year being a of Abraham Lincoln, whom he In 1834 he was elected to the State Senate and, at tlie next session of the Legislature, was one of the celebrated "Long Nine" who secured the removal of the State Capital to

and

re-elected in 1832

competitor defeated.

Springfield.

He

resigned before the close of his

term to accept, from President Jackson, the appointment of Receiver of Public Moneys at ChiHere he became one of the promoters of cago. the Galena & Chicago Union Railroad (1837), serving as one of the Commissioners to secure subscriptions of stock, and was also active in advocating the construction of the

Illinois

&

Michigan Canal. The title of "Colonel," by which he was known dm-ing most of his Ufe, was acquired by service, with that rank, on the staff of Gov. John Reynolds, during the Black Hawk War of 1833. After coming to Chicago, Colonel Taylor became one of the Trustees of the Chicago branch of the State Bank, and was later identified with various banking enterprises, as also a some-

what extensive operator in real estate. An active Democrat in the early part of his career in Illinois, Colonel Taylor was one of the members of his party to take ground against the Kansas-Nebraska bill in 1854, and advocated the election of General Bissell to the governorship in 18.56. In 1860 he was again in line with his party in support of Senator Douglas for the Presidency, and was an opponent of tlie war policy of the Govern-

ment

still later,

as

shown by

his participation in

the celebrated "Peace Convention" at SpringIn the latter years of his field, of June 17, 1863.

he became extensively interested in coal lands in La Salle and adjoining counties, and, for a considerable time, served as President of the Northern Illinois Coal & Mining Company, his home, during a part of this period, being at

life

Mendota.

Died, in Chicago, Dec.

4,

1891.

TAYLORVILLE,

a city and county-seat of Christian County, on the South Fork of the Sangamon River and on the Wabash Railway at its point of intersection with the Springfield Division of the Baltimore et Ohio Southwestern. It is Springfield,

and

about 27 miles ,southeast of 28 miles southwest of Decatur. It has several banks, flour mills, paper mill, electric light and gas plants, water-works, two coal mines, carriage and wagon shops, a manufactory of farming implements, two daily and weekly papers, nine churches and five graded and township high

schools.

Much

coal

is

mined

in this vicinity.

Pop. (1890), 3,839; (1900), 4,248. TAZEWELL COUNTY, a central county on the Illinois River was first settled in 1823 and organized in 1827 has an area of 650 square miles ;

;

— was named for

Governor Tazewell of Virginia. It is drained by the Illinois and Mackinaw Rivers and traversed by several lines of railway. The surface is generally level, the soil alluvial and rich, but, requiring drainage, especially on the Gravel, coal and sandstone are river bottoms. foimd, but, generally speaking, Tazewell is an

The cereals are extensively is also clipped, and there are some importance. Distilling is

agricultural county. cultivated; wool dairy interests of

extensively conducted at Pekin, the county-seat, which is also the seat of other mechanical industries. (See also Pekin.) Population of the

county

(1880), 29,666; (1890), 29,556; (1900), 33,221.

TEMPLE, John

Taylor, M.D., early Chicago

physician, born in Virginia in 1804, graduated in medicine at Middlebury College, Vt., in 1830, and,

At this time he had a contract for carrying the United States mail from Chicago to Fort Howard, near Green Bay, and the following year undertook a similar conHaving sold tract between Chicago and Ottawa. these out three years later, lie devoted his attenin 1833, arrived in Chicago.

tion to the

practice of

his profession,

though

interested, for a time, in contracts for the con-

struction of the Illinois

&

Temple was instrumental

Michigan Canal.

Dr.

in erecting the first

Walker's

missionary station at Wolf Point), for public religious worship in Chicago, and, although himself a Baptist, it was used 'in common by Protestant denominations. He was a member of the first Board of Trustees of Rush Medical College, though he later became a convert to homeopathy,

house (after

Rev.

Jesse

and finally, removing to St. Louis, assisted in founding the St. Louis School of Homeopathy, dying there, Feb. 24, 1877.

TENURE OF OFFICE. (See Elections.) TERRE HAUTE, ALTON & ST. LOUIS RAILROAD, (See St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad.)

TERRE HAUTE & ALTON RAILROAD St. Louis, Altoji

&

(See

Terre Haute Railroad.)

TERRE HAUTE & INDIANAPOLIS RAILa corporation operating no line of its own within the State, but the lessee and operator of the following lines (which see): St. Louis, Vandalia & Terre Haute, 158.3 miles; Terre Haute & Peoria, 145.12 miles; East St. Louis & Carondelet, 12.74 miles— total length of leased

ROAD,

IIISTOKK'AL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. lines in Illinois, 316.10 miles.

The Tene Haute

&

Indianapolis Riiilroad was incorporated in Indiana in 1847, as the Terre Haute & Richmond, completed a line between the i)oints named in the title, in 18.">2, and took its present name in 1866. The Pennsylvania Railroad Company purchased a controlling interest in its stock in 1S93.

TERRE HAUTE & PEORIA RAILROAD, (Vandalia Line), a line of road extending from Terre Haute, Ind., to Peoria. 111., Ur>.vi miles, with 28.78 miles of trackage, making in all 173.9 miles in operation, all being iu Illinois— operated by the Terre Haute & Indianapolis Railroad Company. The gauge is standard, and the rails are (History.) It was organized Feb. 7, 1887, steel. successor to the Illinois Midland Railroad. The latter was made up by the consolidation (Nov. 4, 1874) of three Unes: (1) The Peoria, Atlanta & Decatur Railroad, chartered in 18G9 and opened in 1874; (2) the Paris & Decatur Railroad, chartered in 1861 and opened in December, 1872 and (3) the Paris & Terre Haute Railroad, chartered in 1873 and opened in 1874 the consolidated lines assmuing the name of the Illinois Midland Railroad. In 1880 the Illinois Midland was sold under foreclosure and. in February. 1887, reorganized as the Terre Haute & Peoria Railroad. In 1893 it was leased for ninety-nine years to the Terre Haute & Indianapolis Railroad Company, and is operated as a part of the "Vandalia System.'' The capital stock (1898) was §3,764,200; funded debt, ?2,230,000,—total capital invested, $6,227,:

—

481.

TEUTOPOLIS, a village of Effingham County, on the Terre Haute & Indianapolis Railroad, 4 miles ea.st of Effingham; was originallj- settled by a colony of (Jennans from Cincinnati. Population (1900), 498.

THOMAS, Horace H., lawyer and legislator, in Vermont, Dec. 18, 1831, graduated at Middlebury College, and, after admission to the bar, removed to Chicago, where he commenced practice. At the outbreak of the rebellion he enlisted and was commissioned Assistant Adjuwas born

tant-General of the Army of the Ohio. At the close of the war he took up his residence iu Tennessee, serving as Quartermaster upon the staff of Governor Brownlow. In 1867 he returned to Chicago and resumed practice. He was elected a Representative in the Legislature in 1878 and re-elected in 1880, being chosen Speaker of the House during his latter term. In 1888 he was elected State Senator from the Sixth District, serving during the sessions of the Thirty-sixth

rm

and

Thirty-seventh General Assemblies. In 1S!)7, General Thomas was apix)inted United States Appraiser in connection with the Custom House in Chicago.

THOMAS, Jesse Burgess, jurist and United was born at Ilagerstown, JId., claiming direct descent from Lord Baltimore. Taken west in childhood, he grew to manhood and settled at Lawrenceburg, Indiana Territory, in 1803; in 180.'5 was Speaker of tlie Territorial Legislature and, later, represented the Territory as Delegate in Congress. On the organization of Illinois Territory (which he had favored), he removed to Kaskaskia, was appointed one of the first Judges for the new Territory, and, in 1818, as Delegate from St. Clair County, presided over the first State Constitutional Convention, and, on the admission of the State, became one of the first United States Senators— Governor Edwards being his colleague. Though an avowed advocate of slavery, he gained no little prominence as the author of the celebrated "Missouri Compromise," adopted in 1820. He was re-elected to the Senate in 1823, serving until 1829. He subsequently removed to Mount Vernon, Ohio, wliere he died by suicide. May 4, 1853.— Jesse Burgess (Thomas), Jr., nephew of the United States Senator of the same name, was born at Lebanon, Ohio, July 31, 1806, was educated at Transylvania University, and, being admitted to the bar, located at Edwardsville, 111. He first appeared in connection with public aflfairs as Secretary of the State Senate in 1830, being reelected in 1833 in 1834 was elected Representative in the General Assembly from Madison County, but, in February following, was appointed Attorney -General, serving only one year. He afterwards held the position of Circuit Judge (1837-39), his home being then iu Springfield; in 1843 he became Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, by appointment of the Governor, as successor to Stephen A. Douglas, and was afterwards elected to the same office by the Legislature, remaining until 1848. During a part of his professional career he was the partner of David Prickett and William L. May, at Springfield, and afterwards a member of the Galena bar, finally removing to Chicago, where he died, Feb. 21. 1850.— Jesse B. (Thomas) States Senator,

clergyman and son of the last named bom III., July 29, 1832; educated at College, Ohio, and Roche.ster (N. Y.) Theological Seminary practiced law for a time

third,

;

•at Edwardsville.

Kenyon

;

in Chicago, but finally entered the Baptist ministry, serving churches at Waukegan. 111., Brooklyn, N. Y., and San Francisco (1863-69). He

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

523

then became pastor of the Michigan Avenue Baptist Church, in Chicago, remaining until 1874, when he returned to Brooklyn. In 1887 he became Professor of Biblical History in the Theological Seminary at Newton, Mass., where he has since resided. He is the author of several volumes, and, in 1866, received the degree of D.D. from the old University of Chicago. THOMAS, John, pioneer and soldier of the Black Hawk War, was born in Wythe County, Va., Jan. 11, 1800. At the age of 18 he accompanied his parents to St. Clair County, 111., where the family located in what was then called the Alexander settlement, near the present site of Shiloh. When he was 23 he rented a farm (although he had not enough money to buy a Six years later he bought horse) and married. and stocked a farm, and, from that time forward, rapidly

accumulated real

property,

until

he

l)ecame one of the most extensive owners of farming land in St. Clair County. In early life he was fond of military exercise, holding various offices in local organizations and .serving as a Colonel in the Black Hawk War. In 1834 he was one of the- leaders of the party opposed to the amendment of tlie State Constitution to sanction slavery, was a zealous opponent of the KansasNebraska bill in 1854, and a firm supporter of the

Republican party from the date of its formation. He was elected to the lower hou.se of the General

Assembly in

1838, '63, '64, '73

and

'74;

and

to the

State Senate in 1878, serving four years in the Died, at Belleville, Dec. 16, 1894, in latter body. the 9.5th year of his age. R., ex-Congressman, was born Mount Vernon, 111., Oct. 11, 1846. He served Union Army during the War of the Rebel-

THOMAS, John at

in the

from the ranks to a captaincy. After return home he studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1869. From 1873 to 1876 he was State's Attorney, and, from 1879 to 1889, represented his District in Congress. In 1897, Mr. lion, rising liis

Thomas was appointed by President McKinley an additional United States District Judge for Indian Territory. His home is now at Vanita, in that Territory.

William, pioneer lawyer and legisin what is now Allen County, Ky., Nov. 33, 1803; received a rudimentary education, and served as deputy of his father (who was Sheriff), and afterwards of the County Clerk studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1833 in 1836 removed to Jacksonville, 111., where he

THOMAS,

lator,

was born

taught school, served as a private in the Winnebago War (1837), and at the session of 1838-39,

reported the proceedings of the General Assem-

"The Vandalia Intelligencer" was State's Attorney and School Commissioner of Morgan County; served as Quartermaster and Commissary in the Black Hawk War (1831-33), first under Gen. Joseph Dimcan and, a year later, under General Wliiteside in 1839 was appointed Circuit Judge, but legislated out of office two years later. It was as a member of the Legislature, however, that he gained the greatest prominence, first as State Senator in 1834-40, and Representative in 1846-48 and 1850-53, when he was especially influbly for

;

;

ential in the legislation which resulted in establishing the institutions for the Deaf and Dumb and the Blind, and the Hospital for the Insane

the State) at Jacksonville— serving, member of the Board of Trustees of the latter. He was also prominent in connection with many enterprises of a local character, including the establishment of the Illinois Female College, to which, although without children of (the

first in

for a time, as a

his

own, he was a

the

first

Board of

liberal contributor.

During

year of the war he was a member of the Army Auditors by appointment of Gov-

ernor Yates.

Died, at Jacksonville, August 33,

1889.

THORNTON,

Anthony,

jurist,

was

bom

—

in

Bourbon County, Ky., Nov. 9, 1814 being descended from a Virginia family. After the usual primary instruction in the common schools, he spent two years in a high school at Gallatin, Tenn., when he entered Centre College at Danville, Ky., afterwards continuing his studies at Miami University, Ohio, where he graduated in Having studied law with an uncle at 1834. Paris, Ky., he was licensed to practice in 1836, when he left his native State with a view to settUng in Missouri, but, visiting his uncle. Gen. William F. Thornton, at Shelby ville. 111., was induced to establish himself in practice there. He served as a member of the State Constitutional Conventions of 1847 and 1863, and as Representative in the Seventeenth General Assembly In 1864 he was (1850-53) for Shelby County. elected to the Thirty-ninth Congress, and, in 1870, to the Illinois Supreine Court, but served only imtil 1873, when he resigned. In 1879 Judge Thornton removed to Decatur, 111., but subsequently returned to Shelbyville, where (1898) he now resides. THORNTON, William Fitzhngh, Commissioner of the Illinois & Michigan Canal, was born in Hanover County, Va., Oct. 4, 1789; in 1806, went to Alexandria, Va., where he conducted a drug business for a time, also acting as associate

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. "The Alexandria Gazette." quently removing to Washington City.

Subsel\e conducted a paper there in the interest of John Quincy Adams for the Presidency. During the War of 1812-14 he served iis a Captain of cavalry, and, for a time, as staff -officer of General Winder. On occasion of the visit of Marquis La Fayette to America (1824-2.5) he accompanied the distinguished Frenchman from Baltimore to Richmond. In 1829 he removed to Kentucky, and, in 1833, to Shelbyville, 111., where he soon after engaged in mercantile business, to which he added a banking and brokerage business in 1859, with which he was actively associated imtil his death. In 1836, he was appointed, by Governor Duncan, one of the Commissioners of the Illinois & Michigan Canal, serving as President of the Board until 1842. In 1840, he made a visit to London, as financial agent of the State, in the interest of the Canal, and succeeded in making a sale of bonds to the amount of ?!, 000,000 on what were then considered favorable terms. General Thornton was an ardent Whig until the organieditor

of

zation of the Republican party,

a Democrat.

Died,

at

when he became Oct.

Shelby^'ille,

21,

1873.

TILLSON, John,

was born at Halifax, Mass., March 13, 1796; came to Illinois in 1819, locating at Hillsboro, Montgomery County, where he became a prominent and enterprising operator pioneer,

in real estate, doing parties;

a large business for eastern

was one of the founders of Hillsboro influential and liberal friend of

Academy and an

Illinois College, being a Trustee of the latter from its establishment until his deatli was supported in the Legislature of 1827 for State Treasurer, but defeated by Jariies Hall. Died, at Peoria, May 11, 18.53.— Christiana Holmes (Tillson), wife of the preceding, was born at Kingston, ;

10, 1798; married to John Tillson in 1823, and immediately came to Illinois to reside was a woman of rare culture and refinement, and

Mass., Oct.

benevolent enterprises. Died, in New York City, May 29, 1872.— Charles Holmes (Tillson), son of John and Christiana Holmes Tillson, was born at Hillsboro, 111. Sept. 1.5, 1823; educated at Hillsboro Academy and Illinois College, graduating from the latter in 1844; studied law in St. Louis and at Transylvania University, was admitted to the bar in St. Louis and practiced there some years also served several terms in the City Council, and was a member of the National Guard of Missouri in the War of the Rebellion. Died, Nov. 25, 1865.— John (TiUson), Jr., another son, was born at

deeply

interested

in

,

—

Hillslwro.

111.,

Oct.

12,

523

1825; educated at Hills-

Ixiro Academy and Illinois College, but did not graduate from the latter; graduated from TranLaw School. Ky,, in 1847, and was admitted to the bar at Quincy, III., the same year; practiced two years at Galena, when he returned to Quincy. In 1861 lie Milisted in the Tenth Regiment Illinois Volunteers, became its Lieutenant-Colonel, on the promotion of Col. J. D.

sylvania

Morgan

to Brigadier-General,

was advanced

to

the colonelcy, and, in July, 1865, was mustered out with the rank of brevet Brigadier-General for two years later held a commission as Captain in the regular army. During a portion of 1869-70 he was editor of "The Quincy Whig"; in 1873 was elected Representative in the Twenty-eighth General Assembly to succeed Nehemiah Bushnell, who had died in office, and, during the same year, was appointed Collector of Internal Revenue for the Quincy District, serving until 1881. Died, Augu.st 6, 1892. TILLSON, Robert, pioneer, was born in Halifax County, Mass., August 12, 1800; came to Illinois in 1822, and was employed, for several years, as a clerk in the land agency of his brother, John Tillson, at Hillsboro. In 1826 he engaged in the mercantile business with Charles Holmes, Jr., in St. Louis, but, in 1828, removed to Quincy, 111.. where he opened the first general store in tliat city; also served as Postmaster for some ten years. During this period he built the first twostory frame building erected in Quincy, up to that date. Retiring from the mercantile business in 1840 he engaged in real estate, ultimately becoming the proprietor of considerable property of this character was also a contractor for furnishing cavalry accouterments to tlie Government during the war. Soon after the war he erected one of the handsomest bu.siness blocks existing in the city at that time. Died, in Quincy, Dec. ;

27, 1893.

TINCHER, John L., banker, was born in Kentucky in 1821 brought by his parents to Vermilion County, Ind., in 1829, and left an orphan at 17; attended school in Coles County, III, and was employed as clerk in a store at Danville, 1843-53. He then became a member of the firm of Tincher & English, merchants, later establishing a bank, which became the First National Bank of Danville. In 1864 Mr. Tincher was elected Representative in the Twenty-fourth General Assembly and, two years later, to the ;

Senate, being re-elected in 1870. He was also a member of the State Constitutional Convention

of 1869-70.

Died, in Springfield, Dec.

17,

1871,

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

524

while in attendance on the adjourned session of that year.

and jurist, was born in Franklin County, Ohio, August 29. 1833 has been a resident of McLean County, 111., from

TIPTON, Thomas

F., lawyer

the age of 10 years, his present home being at Bloomington. He was admitted to the bar in 1857, and, from January, 18G7, to December, 1868, was State's Attorney for the Eighth Judicial In 1870 he was elected Judge of the Circuit.

same circuit, and under the new Constitution, was chosen Judge of the new Fourteenth Circuit.

From

1879

1877 to

he represented

the

(then)

Illinois District in Congress, but, in

Thirteenth 1878, was defeated by Adlai E. Stevenson, the Democratic nominee. In 1891 he was re-elected to a seat on the Circuit bench for the Bloomington Circuit, but resumed practice at the expiration of his

term

in 1897.

TISKILWA, a village of Bureau County, on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway, 7 miles southwest of Princeton; has creameries and cheese factories, churches, school, library, waterworks, bank and a newspaper. Pop. (1900), 965. John, soldier, was born in Montgomery County, Pa., in 1750; took part in the battle of Point Pleasant, Va., in 1774, as Adjutant-General of General Lewis; settled as a lawyer at Fincastle, Va., and, in 1775, removed to Fayette County, Ky., the next year locating near Lexington. He was one of the first two Delegates from Kentucky County to the Virginia House of Burgesses, and, in 1778, accompanied Col. George Rogers Clark on his expedition against Kaskaskia and Vincennes. In December, 1778, he was appointed by Gov. Patrick Illinois of Lieutenant -Commandant Henry, County, embracing the region northwest of the

TODD,

(Col.)

Ohio River, serving two years; in 1780, was again a member of the Virginia Legislature, where he procured grants of land for public schools and introduced a

was

killed

Licks, Ky.,

bill

for

negro-emancipation.

by Indians, at the August 19, 1782.

battle

He

of Blue

TODD, (Dr.) John, physician, born near Lexington, Ky., April 27, 1787, was one of the earliest graduates of Transylvania University, also graduating at the Medical University of Philadelphia was appointed Surgeon-General of Kentucky troops in the War of 1812, and captured at the battle of River Raisin. Returning to Lexington after his release, he practiced there and at Bardstown, removed to Edwardsville, 111., in 1817, and, in 1827, to Springfield, where he had been appointed Register of the Laud Office by ;

President John Quincy Adams, but was removed by Jackson in 1829. Dr. Todd continued to reside which occurred, Jan. 9, 1865. He was a grandson of John Todd, wlio was appointed Commandant of Illinois County by Gov. Patrick Henry in 1778, and an uncle of Mrs. Abraham Lincoln. John lilair Smith (Todd), son of the preceding, was born at at Springfield until his death,

Lexington, Ky., April

4,

1814;

came with

his

father to Illinois in 1817; graduated at the United States Military

Academy

in 1837, serving after-

in the Florida and Mexican wars and on the frontier resigned, and was an Indian-trader in Dakota, 1856-61 the latter year, took his seat as a Delegate in Congress from Dakota, then served as Brigadier-General of Volunteers, 1861-02; was again Delegate in Conga-ess in 1863-65, Speaker of the Dakota Legislature in 1867, and Governor of the Territory, 1869-71. Died, at Yankton City, Jan. 5, 1872. TOLEDO, a village and the county-seat of Cumberland County, on tlie Illinois Central Railroad founded in 1854 has five churches, a graded school, two banks, creamery, flour mill, elevator, and two weekly newspapers. There are no manufactories, the leading industry in the surrounding country being agriculture. Pop. (1890), 676;

wards

;

;

;

;

(1900), 818.

TOLEDO, CINCINNATI & ST. LOUIS RAILROAD. (See Toledo, St. Louis & Kansas Gitg Railroad.)

TOLEDO, PEORIA & (See Toledo. Peoria

&

WARSAW RAILROAD.

Western Railu-ay.)

TOLEDO, PEORIA & WESTERN RAILROAD. (See Toledo. Peoria the Illinois State Teachers' Association, and the State Agricultural and Horticultural Societies. His address on "The Millennium of Labor," delivered at the first State Agricultural Fair at Springfield, in 1853,

is still

remembered

as mark-

ing an era in industrial progress in Illinois. A zealous champion of free thought, in both political

and religious affairs, he long bore the reproach which attached to the radical Abolitionist, only to enjoy, in later years, the respect universally

accorded to those who had the courage and independence to avow their honest convictions. Prof. Turner was twice an unsuccessful candidate for Congress— once as a Republican and once as an "Independent" and wrote much on political, religious and educational topics. The evening of an honored and useful life was sjjent among

—

friends in Jacksonville,

more than

which was

sixt}' years, his

that city, Jan.

10, 1899,

his

home

for

death taking place in advanced age of

at the

93 years.— Mrs. Mary Turner Carrlel, at the present time (1899) one of the Trustees of the University of Illinois, is Prof. Turner's only daughter.

TURNER, Thomas J., lawyer and Congressman, born in Trumbull County, Ohio, April 5. 1815. Leaving home at the age of 18, he spent three years in Indiana and in the mining districts about Galena and in Southern Wisconsin, locating in Stephenson County, in 1836, where he was admitted to the bar in 1840, and elected Probate Judge in 1841. Soon afterwards Governor Ford appointed him Prosecuting Attorney, in which capacity he secured the conviction and punishment of the murderers of Colonel DavenIn 1846 he was elected to Congress as a Democrat, and, the following year, founded "The port.

Prairie

Democrat"

(afterward

"The Freeport

Bulletin"), the first newspaper published in the Elected to the Legislature in 1854, he

coimty.

was chosen Speaker

of the House, the next year

becoming the first Mayor of Freeport. He was a member of the Peace Conference of 1861, and, in May of that year, was commissioned, by Governor Yates, Colonel of the Fifteenth Illinoia Volunteers, but resigned in 1862. He served as a mem-

ber of the Constitutional Convention of 1869-70, and, in 1871, was again elected to the Legisla-

where he received the Democratic caucus nomination for United States Senator against General Logan. In 1871 he removed to Chicago, and was twice an unsuccessful candidate for the oflTice of State's Attorney. In February, 1874, he went to Hot Springs, Ark. for medical treatment, ture,

,

and died

there, April 3 following.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

532

TUSCOLA, a

and the county-seat of Douglas County, located at the intersection of the Central and two other trunk lines of railway, 22 miles south of Champaign, and 36 miles city

Illinois

Besides a brick court-house it has five churches, a graded school, a national bank, two weekly newspapers and two establishments for the manufacture of carriages and wagons. Population (1880), 1,457; (1890), 1,897; east of Decatur.

(1900), 2.569.

then came to Illinois, a second time, in 1845, spending a year or two in business at Peoria. About 1847 he retvirned to Belleville and entered upon a course of mathematical study, with a view to fitting himself more thoroughly for the profession In 1851 he graduated in of a civil engineer. engineering at Cambridge, Mass. after which he was employed for a time on the Sunbury & Erie Railroad, and later on certain Illinois railroads. In 1857 he was elected County Surveyor of St. ,

TUSCOLA, CHARLESTON & VINCENNES RAILROAD. (See Toledo, St. Louis & Kansas

Clair County, and, in 1861,

City Railroad.

of Belleville.

TUTHILL, Richard

Stanley, jurist, was born 111., Nov. 10, 1841.

at Vergennes, Jackson County,

After passing through the common schools of his native county, he took a preparatory course in a high school at St. Louis and in Illinois College, Jacksonville, when he entered Middlebury ColImmediately lege, Vt. graduating there in 1863. thereafter he joined the Federal army at Vicksburg, and, after serving for some time in a company of scouts attached to General Logan's command, was commissioned a Lieutenant in the First Michigan Light Artillery, with which lie served until the close of the war, meanwhile being twice promoted. During this time he was with General Sherman in the march to Meridian, and in the Atlanta campaign, also took part with General Thomas in the operations against the rebel General Hood in Tennessee, and in the Having resigned his combattle of Nashville. mission in May, 1865, he took up the study of law, which he had prosecuted as he had opportunity while in the army, and was admitted to the bar at Nashville in 1866, afterwards serving for a time as Prosecuting Attorney on the Nashville circuit. In 1873 he removed to Chicago, two years later was elected City Attorney and reelected in 1877 was a delegate to the Republican ,

;

by appointment of

President Lincoln, became Postmaster of the city He held this position until 1864, when he received the Republican nomination for

Secretary of State and was elected, remaining in He was an earnest advocate, office four years. and virtually author, of the first act for the registration of voters in Illinois, passed at the session

After retiring from office in 1869, he continued to reside in Springfield, and was employed for a time in the survey of the Gilman, Clinton & Springfield Railway now the SpringAt an early field Division of the Illinois Central. hour on the morning of April 29, 1871, while going from his home to the railroad station at Springfield, to take the train for St. Louis, he was assassinated upon the street by shooting, as supposed for the purpose of robbery his dead body being found a few hours later at the scene of the tragedy. Mr. Tyndale was a brother of Gen. Hector Tyndale of Pennsylvania, who won a high reputation by his services during the war. His second wife, who survived him, was a daughter of Shadrach Penn, an editor of considerable reputation who was the contemporary and rival of George D. Prentice at Louisville, for of 1865.

—

—

some

years.

"UNDERGROUND RAILROAD," THE. A would be incomplete without system which existed Northern States, from forty to seventy years ago, known by the somewhat myshistory of Illinois

reference

to the unique

National Convention of 1880 and, in 1884, was appointed United States District Attorney for the Northern District, serving until 1886. In 1887 he was elected Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Judge Rogers, was re-elected for a full

there, as in other

and again in 1897. term TYNDALE, Sharon, Secretary of

tive slave across the Ohio River, was so surprised by his sudden disappearance, as soon as he had

in 1891,

born in age of 17 came to Belleville, 111., and was engaged for a time in mercantile business, later being employed in a surveyor's corps under the internal improvement system of 1837. Having married in 1839, he returned soon after to Philadelphia, where he engaged in mercantile business with his father State,

Philadelphia. Pa., Jan. 19, 1816; at the

"The Underground Railroad." The origin of the term has been traced (probably

terious title of

in a spirit of facetiousness) to the expression of a Kentucky planter who, having pursued a fugi-

reached the opposite shore, that he was led to remark, "The nigger must have gone off on an underground road." From "underground road" to "underground railroad," the transition would appear to have been easy, especially in view of the increased facility with which the work was performed when railroads came into use. For

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. readers of the present generation, to explain

it

may

be well Railroad"

what "The Underground

really was.

It

may

be defined as the figurative movement in the

appellation for a s)X)ntaneous

—extending, sometimes, into the slave States themselves— to assist slaves in their free

States

from bondage to freedom. The movement dates back to a period close to the Revolutionarj- War, long before it received a definite name. Assistance given to fugitives from one State by citizens of another, became a cause of complaint almost as soon as the Governefforts to escape

ment was

organized. In fact, the first President himself lost a slave who took refuge at Portsmouth, N. H., where the public sentiment was so strong against his return, that the patriotic and philosophic "Father of his Country" chose to let him remain unmolested, rather than "excite a mob or riot, or even vmeasy sensations, in the minds of well-disposed citizens." That the matter was already one of concern in the minds of slaveholders, is shown by the fact that a provision was inserted in the Constitution for their conciliation, guaranteeing the return of fugitives from labor, as well as from justice, from one State to another.

In

179.3

Congress passed the

first

Fugitive Slave

Law, which was signed by President WashingThis law provided that the owner, his agent or attorney, might follow the slave into any State or Territory, and, upon oath or affiton.

davit before a court or magistrate, be entitled to a warrant for his return. Any person who should hinder the arrest of the fugitive, or who should harbor, aid or assist him, knowing him to be such, was subject to a fine of SoOO for each offense. In 18.50, fifty-seven years later, the first act having proved inefficacious, or conditions having changed, a second and more stringent law was enacted. This is the one usually referred to in discussions of the subject. It provided for an increased fine, not to exceed 81,000, and imprisonment not exceeding six months, ^vith liability for civil damages to the party injured. No proof of ownership was required beyond the statement of a claimant, and the accused was not permitted to testify for himself. The fee of the United States Commissioner, before whom the case was tried, was ten dollars if he found for the claimant: if not, five dollars. This seemed to manj' an indirect form of bribery clearly, it made it to the Judge's pecuniary advantage to decide in favor of the claimant. The law made it possible and easy for a white man to arrest, and carry into slavery, any free negro who could

—

;

533

not immediately prove, by other witnesses, that he was born free, or ha'd purchased his freedom. Instead of discouraging the disposition, on the part of the opponents of slavery, to aid fugitives in their efforts to reach a

region where

they would be secure in their freedom, the effect of the Fugitive Slave Law of lH.-)0 (as that of 179:! had been in a smaller degree) was the very opposite of that intended by its authors— unless, indeed, they meant to make matters worse. The provisions of the act seemed, to many people, so imfair, so onesided, that they rebelled in spirit and refused to be made parties to its enforcement. The law aroused the anti-slavery sentiment of the North, and stimulated the active friends of the fugitives to take greater risks in their behalf. New efforts on the part of the slaveholders were met by a determination to evade, hinder and nullify the law. And here a strange anomaly is presented. The slaveholder, in attempting to recover liis slave, was acting within his constitutional and legal rights. The slave was his property in law. He had purchased or inherited his bondman on the same plane with liis horse or his land, and, apart from the right to hold a human being in bondage, regarded his legal rights to the one as good as the other. From a legal standpoint his position was impregnable. The slave was his, representing so much of money value, and whoever was instrumental in the loss of that slave was, both theoretically and technically, a partner in robbery. Therefore he looked on "The Underground Railway" as the work of thieves, and entertained bitter hatred toward all concerned in its operation. On the other hand, men who were, in all other respects, good citizens often religiously devout and pillars of the church became bold and flagrant violators of the law in relation They set at nought a to this sort of property. plain provision of the Constitution and the act of Congress for its enforcement. 'Without hope of personal gain or reward, at the risk of fine and imprisonment, with the certainty of social ostracism and bitter opiX)sition, they harbored the fugitive and helped him forward on every occasion. And why? Because they saw in him a man. with the same inherent right to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" that they themselves possessed. To them this was a higher law than any Legislature, State or National, could enact. They denied that there could be truly such a thing as projierty in man. Believing that the law violated human rights, they justified themselves in rendering it null and void.

—

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OP ILLINOIS.

534

For the most part, the "Underground Railroad" operators and promoters were plain, obscure men, without hope of fame or desire for notoriety. Yet there were some whose names are conspicuous in history, such as Wendell

a large party, were made to represent a funeral procession. Occasionally the train ran on foot, for convenience of side-tracking into the woods or a cornfield, in case of pursuit by a wild loco-

Phillips, Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Theodore Parker of Massachusetts; Gerrit Smith and Thurlow Weed of Kew York; Joshua R. Giddings of Ohio, and Owen Lovejoy of Illinois. These had their followers and sympathizers in all the Northern States, and even in some portions of the South. It is a curious fact, that some of the most active spirits connected with the "Underground Railroad" were natives of the

Then, again, there were not wanting lawyers who, in case the operator, conductor or station agent got into trouble, were ready, without fee or reward, to defend either him or his human freight in the courts. These included such names of national repute as Salmon P. Chase, Thaddeus Stevens, Charles Sumner, William H. Seward, Rutherford B. Hayes, Richard H. Dana, and Isaac N. Arnold, while, taking the whole country over, their "name was legion." And there were a few men of wealth, hke Thomas Garrett of Delaware, willing to contribute money by thousands to their assistance. Although technically acting in violation of law—or, as claimed by themselves, in obedience to a "higher law" the time has already come when there is a disposition to look upon the actors as, in a certain sense, heroes, and tlieir deeds as fitly belonging to the field of romance. The most comprehensive collection of material relating to the history of this movement has been furnished in a recent volume entitled, "The Underground Railroad from Slavery to Freedom," by Prof. Wilbur H. Siebert, of Ohio State University and, while it is not wholly free from errors, both as to individual names and facts, it will i^robably remain as the best compilation of history bearing on this subject especially as the principal actors are fast passing away. One of the interesting features of Prof. Siebert's book is a map purporting to give the principal routes and stations in the States northwest of the Ohio, yet the accuracy of this, as weU as the correctness of personal names given, has been questioned by some best informed on the subject. As might be expected from its geographical position

liad resided there long enough to become thoroughly acquainted with the "instiLevi Coffin, who had the reputation of being the "President of the Underground Rail-

South, or tution."

—

road" at least so far as the region west of the Ohio was concerned was an active operator on the line in North CaroUna before his removal from that State to Indiana in 1826. Indeed, as a system, it is claimed to have had its origin at Guilford College, in the "Old North State" in 1819, though the evidence of this may not be

—

conclusive.

Owing to the peculiar nature of their business, official reports were made, no lists of officers, conductors, station agents or operators preserved, and few records kept which are now accessible. Consequently, we are dependent chiefly upon the personal recollection of individual operators for no

a history of

their transactions.

Each

station on

the road was the house of a "friend" and it is significant, in this connection, that in every settlement of Friends, or Quakers, there was sure to be a house of refuge for the slave. For this reason it was, perhaps, that one of the most frequently traveled lines extended from Virginia and Maryland through Eastern Pennsylvania, and then on towards New York or directly From the proximity of Ohio to to Canada. Virginia and Kentucky, and the fact that it offered the shortest route through free soil to Canada, it was traversed by more lines than any Indiana was pretty other State, although thoroughly "grid-ironed" by roads to freedom. In all, however, the routes were irregular, often zigzag, for purposes of security, and the "conductor" was any one who conveyed fugitives from one station to another The "train" was sometimes a farm-wagon, loaded with produce for market at some town (or depot) on the line, frequently a closed carriage, and it is related that once, in Oliio, a number of carriages conveying

motive.

—

;

—

—

between two slave States Kentucky and Mison the one hand, and the lakes offering a highway to Canada on the other, it is naturally to be assumed that Illinois would be an attractive field, both for the fugitive and his sympasouri

—

thizer.

The period of greatest activity of the system in was between 1840 and 1861— the latter being the year when the pro-slavery party in the South, by their attempt forcibly to dissolve the Union, took the business out of the hands of the secret agents of the "Underground Railroad," and in a certain sense placed it in the hands It was in 1841 that Abraof the Union armies. this State

—

—

HISTOKICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

—

ham

Lincoln then a conservative opponent of the extension of slavery on an appeal from a judgment, rendered by the Circuit Court in TazeTvell County, in favor of the holder of a note given for the service of the indentured slavegirl "Nance," obtained a decision from the Supreme Court of Illinois upholding the doctrine that the girl was free under the Ordinance of 17ST and the State Constitution, and that the note, given to the person who claimed to be her owner, was void. And it is a somewhat curious coincidence that the same Abraham Lincoln, as President of the United States, in the second year of the War of the Rebellion, issued the Proclamation of Emancipation wliioh finally resulted in striking the shackles from the limbs

—

of every slave in the Union. In the practical operation of aiding fugitives in Illinois, it was natural that the towns along the border upon the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, should have served as a sort of entrepots, or initial stations, for the reception of this class of freight especially if adjacent to some antislavery community. Tliis was the case at Chester, from which access was easy to Sparta, where a colony of Covenanters, or Seceders, was located, and whence a route extended, by way of Oakdale, Nashville and Centralia, in the direction of Chicago. Alton offered convenient access to Bond County, where there was a community of anti-slavery people at an early day, or the fugitives could be forwarded northward by way of JerseyviUe, Waverly and Jacksonville, about each of which there was a strong anti-slavery sentiment. Quincy, in spite of an intense hostility among the mass of the community to anything savoring of abolitionism, became the theater of great activity on the part of the opponents of the institution, especially after the advent there of Dr. David Nelson and Dr. Richard Eells, both of whom had rendered themselves obnoxious to the people of Missouri by extending aid to fugitives. The former was a practical abolitionist who. having freed his slaves in his native State of Virginia, removed to Missouri and attempted to establish ]Marion College, a few miles from Palmyra, but was soon driven to Illinois. Locating near Qmncy, he founded the "Mission Institute" there, at which lie continued to disseminate his anti-slavery views, while educating young men for missionary work. The "Institute" was finally burned by emissaries from Missouri, while three young men who had been connected with it, having been caught in Missouri, were condemned to twelve years' confine-

—

535

ment in the penitentiary of that State— partly on the testimony of a negro, altliough a negro was not tlien a legal witness in the courts against a white man. Dr. Eells was prosecuted before Stephen A. Douglas (then a Judge of the Circuit Court), and fined for aiding a fugitive to escape, and the judgment against him was finally confirmed by the Supreme Court after his death, in 1853, ten years after the original indictment. A map in Professor Sieberfs book, showing the routes and principal stations of the "Undergound Railroad," makes mention of the following places in Illinois, in addition to those already referred in Macoupin County; Payson in Adams; Washington, in TazeMetamora, in Woodford Slagnolia, in Putnam; Galesburg, in Knox; Princeton (the home of Owen Lovejoy and the Bryants), in Bureau; and many more. Ottawa appears to have been the meeting point of a number of lines, as well as the home of a strong colony of practical abolitionists. Cairo also became an important transfer station for fugitives arriving by river, after the completion of the Illinois Central RailCarlinville,

to:

and Mendon, well

;

;

it offered the speediest way of reaching Chicago, towards which nearly all the lines converged. It was here that the fugitives could be most safely disposed of by placing them upon vessels, which, without stopping at intermediate ports, could soon land them on Canadian

road, especially as

soil.

As to methods, these differed according to circumstances, the emergencies of the occasion, or the taste, convenience or resources of the operDeacon Levi Morse, of Woodford County, ator. near Metamora, had a route towards Magnolia, Putnam County; and his favorite "car" was a farm wagon in which there was a double bottom. The passengers were snugly placed below, and grain sacks, flUed with bran or other light material, were laid over, so that the whole presented the appearance of an ordinary load of grain on its

way

to market.

and

routes.

The same was true as to stations who was an operator, says:

One,

"Wherever an

abolitionist

happened on a fugi-

the converse, there was a station, for the to the next anti-slavery man to the east or the north. As a general rule, the agent preferred not to know anything beyond the operation of his own immediate section of the

tive, or

time,

and the route was

If he knew nothing about the operations and the other knew nothing of his, they could not be witnesses in court. We have it on the authority of Judge Harvey B. Hurd, of Chicago, that runaways were usually

road.

of another,

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

536

forwarded from that city to Canada by way of the Lakes, there being several steamers available for that purpose. On one occasion thirteen were put aboard a vessel under the eyes of a United States Marshal and his deputies. The fugitives, secreted in a woodshed, one by one took the places of colored stevedores carrying wood aboard the ship. Possibly the term, "There's a nigger in the woodpile," may have originated in Thirteen was an "unlucky numthis incident. ber" in this instance for the masters.

—

Among the notable trials for assisting runaways in violation of the Fugitive Slave Law, in addition to the case of Dr. Eells, already mentioned,

were those of Owen Lovejoy of Princeton, and Deacon Gushing of Will County, both of whom were defended by Judge James Collins of Chicago. John Hossack and Dr. Joseph Stout of Ottawa, with some half-dozen of their neighbors and friends, were tried at Ottawa, in 1859, for assisting a fugitive and acquitted on a technicality.

widely

A strong

array of attorneys, afterwards tlie northern part of the

known through

and passed down over the heads of those on the stairs, where the officers were unable to follow. In another case, tried before United States Commissioner Geo. W. Meeker, the result was made to hinge upon a point in the indictment to the effect that the fugitive was "copper-colored." The Commissioner, as the story goes, being inclined to favor public sentiment, called for a large copper cent, that he might make comparison. in with the audience,

The decision was, that the prisoner was "off color," so to speak, and he was hustled out of the room before the ofl5cers could rearrest him, as they had been instructed to do. Dr. Samuel Willard, in a review of Professor Siebert's book, published in "The Dial" of Chi cago, makes mention of Henry Irving and William Chauncey Carter as among his active aUies at Jacksonville, with Rev. Bilious Pond and Deacon Lyman of Farmington (near the present village of Farmingdale in Sangamon County), Luther Ransom of Springfield, Andrew Borders of Randolph County, Joseph Gerrish of Jersey

State, appeared for the defense, including Isaac

and William

N. Arnold, Joseph Knox, B. C. Cook,

tors in other parts of the State.

J.

V. Eus-

Edward S. Leland and E. C. Lamed. Joseph Morse, of Woodford County, was also arrested,

tace, T.

to Peoria and committed to jail, but acquitted on trial. Auotlier noteworthy case was that of Dr. Samuel Willard (now of Chicago) and liis father, Julius A. Willard, charged with assisting in the escape of a fugitive at Jacksonville, in 1843, when

taken

the Doctor was a student in Illinois College. "The National Corporation Reporter," a few years ago, gave an account of this affair, together with a letter from Dr. Willard, in which he states that, after protracted litigation, during which the case was carried to the Supreme Court, it was ended by his pleading guilty before Judge Samuel D. Lockwood,

when he was

fined one dollar

and

T.

Allan of Henry, as their coadjuOther active

agents or promoters, in the same field, included such names as Dr. Charles V. Dyer, Philo Carpenter, Calvin De Wolf, L. C. P. Freer, Zebina Eastman, James H. Collins, Harvey B. Hurd, J. Young Scammon, Col. J. F. Farnsworth and others of Chicago, whose names have already been mentioned; Rev. Asa Turner, Deacon Ballard, J. K. Van Dorn and Erastus Benton, of Quincy and Adams County; President Rufus Blanchard of Knox College, Galesburg John Leeper of Bond the late Prof. J. B. Turner and Elihu Wolcott of ;

and his four T., Levi P., Parker, Jr., and Mark Woodford County Rev. William Sloane of Randolph William Strawn of La Salle, besides a Jacksonville;

sons

Capt. Parker Morse

—Joseph

— of

;

;

host

who were

willing to aid their fellow

men

in

costs— tlie latter amounting to twenty dollars. The Doctor frankly adds: "My father, as well

their aspirations to freedom, without advertising

many fugitives afterwards." It did not always happen, however, that offenders escaped so easily. Judge Harvey B. Hurd, already referred to, and an active anti-slavery man in the days of the Fugitive Slave Law, relates the following Once, when the trial of a fugitive was going on before Justice Kercheval, in a room on the second floor of a two-story frame building on Clark Street in the city of Chicago, the crowd in attendance filled the room, the stairway and the adjoining sidewalk. In some way the prisoner got mixed

the incidents of "Underground Railroad" in Illinois is one which had some importance politically, having for its climax a dramatic scene in Congress, but of which, so far as known, no full account has ever been written. About 1855, Ephraim Lombard, a Mississippi planter, but a New Englander by birth, purchased a large body of prairie land in the northeastern part of Stark County, and, taking up his residence temporarily in the village of Bradford, began its improvement. He had brought with him from Mississippi a negro, gray-liaired and bent with age, a slave

as myself, helped

;

own Among

their

exploits.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

537

Lombard boldly favorite in the neighborhood. stated that he had brought him there as a slave Dred decision (then virtue of the Scott by that,

three-quarters of a mile east of the village, and he aids every slave that comes to his door and asks it. Thou invisible Demon of Slavery, dost thou think to cross my humble threshold and forbid me to give bread to the

of recent date), he had a constitutional right to take his slaves wherever he pleased, and that

defiance, in the

"Old Mose," as he soon came to be well known and a

of probably no great value.

was

called,

"Old Mose" was just as

much

Illinois as in Jlississippi.

It

his property in

soon became evident

to some, that bis bringing of the negro to Illinois was an experiment to test the law and the feel-

ton,

III.,

I bid you God!" amusing characmay be closed; Hon. J. Young

hungry and shelter

With

to the homeless'?

name

of

my

anotlier incident of an

ter this article

Scammon,

of Chicago, being accused of conniving

ings of the Northern people. Tliis being the case, a shrewd play would have been to let him have his way till other slaves should have been

from officers of the law, was asked by the court what he would do if summoned as one of a pos.se to pursue and capture a fugitive. "I would certainly obey the summons,"

brought to stock tlie new plantation. But this was too slow a process for the abolitionists, to

and

whom

the holding of a slave in the free State of It was Illinois appeared an unbearable outrage. feared that he might take the old negro back to Mississippi and fail to bring any others. It was reported, also, that "Old

Mose" was

ill-treated;

that he was given only the coarsest food in a back shed, as if he were a horse or a dog, instead of being permitted to eat at table with the family. The prairie citizen of that time was very parThe hired ticular upon this point of etiquette. man or woman, debarred from the table of his or

her employer, would not have remained a day. A quiet consultation with "Old Mose" revealed the fact that he would hail the gift of freedom Accordingly, one Peter Risedorf, and joyously. another equally daring, met him by tlie light of

at the escape of a slave

he replied, "but fall

down

—

I

should probably stub to

" rnderground Railroad " in lUinols further, are referred to the work of Dr. Siebert, already mentioned, and to tlie various County Histories wliich have been issued and may be found in the public libraries; also for interesting incidents, to " Kemmiseences of Levi Codin," Johnson's " From Dixie to Canada," Petifs Sketches, " Still, Under-

ground Kailroad, and a pamphlet of the same title by James H. Fairchild, ex-Presideut of Oberlin College. "

UNDERWOOD, WilUam and

jurist,

N. Y., Feb. bar,

21, 181S,

removed

practice

in

H., lawyer, legislator

was born at Schoharie Court House, and, after admission to the 111 where he began The following year he was and reelected in 1843.

to Belleville, 1840.

,

elected State's Attorney,

In 1846 he was chosen a member of the lower house of the General Assembly, and, in 1848-54,

Judge of the Second Circuit. During this period he declined a nomination to Congress, although equivalent to an election. In 1856 he sat as

in Canada.

He was

There was a great commotion in Bradford over the "stealing" of "Old Mose." Lombard and his friends denounced the act in terms bitter and profane, and threatened vengeance upon the perpetrators. The conductors were known only to a Lovejoy"s few, and they kept their secret well. part in the affair, liowever, soon leaked out. Lombard returned to Jlississippi, where he related his experiences to Mr. Singleton, the Representative in Congress from his district. During the next session of Congress. Singleton took occasion, in a speech, to sneer at Lovejoy as a "nigger-stealer," citing the case of "Old Mose." Mr. Lovejoy replied in his usual fervid and dramatic style, making a speech which ensured "Is it desired to his election to Congress for Ufe

tion of 1869-70, and, in 1870,

—

slaves?" he said.

my assisting

"Owen Lovejoy

fugitive

lives at Prince-

toe

pursue the subject of the

the stars and, before morning, he was placed in the care of Owen Lovejoy, at Princeton, twenty miles away. From there he was speedily "franked" by the member of Congress to friends

call attention to this fact of

my

before I reached him."

Note.— Those wlio wish

was elected State Senator, and a

member

re-elected in 1860.

of the Constitutional Conven-

was again elected

the Senate, retiring to private

life in 1872.

to

Died,

Sept. 23, 1875.

UNION COUNTY, one of the fifteen counties which Illinois was divided at the time of its admission as a State having been organized, under the Territorial Government, in January, 1818. It is situated in the southern division of the State, bounded on the west by the Mississippi River, and has an area of 400 square miles. The eastern and interior portions are drained by the Cache River and Clear Creek. Tlie western part of the county comprises the broad, rich bottom lands lying along the Mississippi, but is subject to frequent overflow, wliile the eastern portion is hilly, and most of its area originally heavily timinto

—

bered.

The county

Iron-ore, lead,

is esjjecially

bituminous

rich in minerals.

coal, chalk,

alum and

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

538

clay are found in considerable abundance. Several lines of railway (the most important being the Illinois Central) either cross or tap the county. The chief occupation is agripotter's

culture, although

manufacturing

carried on to extensively cultivated. is

Fruit is Jonesboro is the county-seat, and Cobden and Anna important shipping stations. The latter is the location of the Southern Hospital for the Insane. The population of the county, in 1890, was 21,529. Being next to St. Clair, Randolph and Gallatin, one of the earliest settled counties in the State, many prominent men found their first home, on coming into the State, at Jonesboro, and this region, for a time, exerted a strong

a limited extent.

influence in public affairs.

Pop. (1900), 22,610.

UNION LEAGUE OF AMERICA, a ical

and

patriotic

order which

secret polit-

had

origin

its

War, for the avowed purpose of sustaining the cause of the Union and machinations of the secret counteracting the organizations designed to promote the success of Council of the regular the Rebellion. The first

early in the late Civil

order was organized at Pekin, Tazewell County, June 25, 1862, consisting of eleven members, as follows: Jolm W. Glasgow, Dr. D. A. Cheever, Hart Montgomery, Maj. Richard N. Cullom (father of Senator Cullom), Alexander Small, J. W. M. Vernon, George 11. Harlow (afterward Secretary of State), Charles Turner, Col. Jonathan Merriam, Henry Pi-att and L. F. Garrett. One of the number was a Union refugee from Tennessee, who dictated the first oath from memory, as administered to members of a somewhat similar order which had been organized

Rev.

among

the Unionists of his

own

It sol-

State.

emnly pledged the taker, (1) to preserve inviolate the secrets and business of the order (2) to "support, maintain, protect and defend the civU liberties of the Union of these United States ;

against

all

at all times

enemies, either domestic or foreign, and under all circumstances," even

"if necessary, to the sacrifice of Ufe"; (3) to aid in electing only true Union men to offices of

and General Government; (4) to assist, protect and defend any member of the order who might be in peril from his connection with the order, and (5) to obey all laws, rules or regulations of any Council to which the taker of the oath might be attached. The oath was taken upon the Bible, the Declaration of Independence and Constitution of the trust in the town, county, State

United States, the taker pledging his sacred honor to its fulfillment. A special reason for the organization existed in the activity, about this

time, of the "Knights of the Golden Circle," a disloyal organization which had been introduced

from the South, and which afterwards took the name, in the North, of "American Knights" and "Sons of Liberty. (See Secret Treasonable Societies.) Three months later, the organization had extended to a number of other counties of the State and, on the 25th of September following, the first State Council met at Bloomington twelve counties being represented and a State organization was efliected. At this meeting the following general officers were chosen: Grand '

'

—

—

Judge Mark Bangs, of Marshall County (now of Chicago) Grand Vice-President Daniel Wilkin, of McLean Grand Secretary George H. Harlow, of Tazewell; Grand Treasurer H. S. Austin, of Peoria, Grand Marshal— J. R. Gorin, of Macon; Grand Herald A. Gould, of Henry; Grand Sentinel John E. Rosette, of Sangamon. An Executive Committee was also appointed, consisting of Joseph Medill of "The Chicago Tribune"; Dr. A. J. McFarland, of Morgan County J. K. Warren, of Macon President

;

— Prof.

;

—

—

—

;

Rev.

J.

C.

Rybolt, of

La

Salle; the President,

Judge Bangs; Enoch Emery, of Peoria; and John E. Rosette. Under the direction of this Committee, with Mr. Medill as its Chairman, the constitution and by-laws were thoroughly revised and a new ritual adopted, which materially changed the phraseology and removed some of the crudities of the original obligation, as well as increased the beauty and impressiveness of

the initiatory ceremonies. New signs, grips and pass- words were also adopted, which were finally accepted by the various organizations of the order throughout the Union, which, by this time, included many soldiers in the army, as well as civilians. The second Grand (or State) Council was held at Springfield, January 14, 1863, with only seven counties represented. The limited representation was discouraging, but the members took heart from the inspiring words of Governor Yates, addressed to a committee of the order who waited upon him. At a special session of the Executive Committee, held at Peoria, six days later, a vigorous campaign was mapped out, under which agents were sent into nearly every county in the State. In October, 1802, the strength of the order in Illinois was estimated at three to five thousand; a few months later, the number of enrolled so rapid members had increased to 50,000 had been the growth of the order. On March 25, 1863, a Grand Council met in Chicago 404 Councils in Illinois being represented, with

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. a number from

Indiana, Michigan, WisconIowa and Minnesota. At this meeting a Committee was appointed to prepare a plan of organization for a National Grand Council, which was carried out at Cleveland, Ohio, on the 20th of Jlay following the constitution, ritual and sin,

—

signs of the Illinois organization Ijeing adopted with slight modifications. Tlie icvised obligation

—taken upon the Bible, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States — bound members of the League to "supand defend the Government of the United States and the Ra.g thereof, against all enemies, foreign and domestic," and to"beartrue faith and allegiance to the same"; to "defend port, protect

the State against invasion or insurrection"; to support only "true and reliable men" for offices defend of trust and profit; to protect and worthy members, and to preserve inviolate the

The address to new members was a model of impressiveness and a powerful appeal to their patriotism. The organization secrets of the order.

extended rapidly, not only throughout the Northwest, but in the South also, especially in the army. In 1864 the number of Councils in IlUnois was estimated at 1,300, -with a membership of 17.5.000; and it is estimated that the total membership, throughout the Union, was 2,000,000. The influence of the silent, but zealous and effective, operations of the organization, was shown, not only in the stimulus given to enlistments and support of the war policy of the Government, but in the raising of supplies for the sick and

wounded

the field. Within a few Vicksburg, over .?2.5,OO0 in were sent to Col. John Williams (then in charge of the Sanitary Bureau at Springfield), as the direct result of appeals made through circulars sent out by the officers of the "League." Large contributions of money and supplies also reached the sick and wounded in hospital through the medium of the Sanitary Commission in Chicago. Zealous efforts were made by the opposition to get at the secrets of the order, and, in one ca.se, a complete copy of the ritual was published by one of their organs but the effect was so far the reverse of what was anticipated, that this line of attack was not continued. During the stormy session of the Legislature in 1863, the League is said to have rendered effective service in protecting Governor Yates from threatened assassination. It continued its silent but effective operations until the complete overthrow of the rebellion, when it erased to exist as a political organization. soldiers in

weeks before the

fall of

cash, besides large quantities of stores,

;

UNITED STATES SEXATOKS. The

Oliio,

follow-

is a list of United States senators from Illinois, from the date of the admission of the State into the Union until 1S99, with the date and duration of the term of each: Ninian Edwards, 1818-24 Jesse B. Thomas, Sr., 1818-29; John McLean 1824-2.J and 1829-30; Elias Kent Kane, 1825-35 David Jewett Baker, Nov. 13 to Dec. 11, 1830 John M. Robinson, 1830-41; William L. D. Ewing, 1835-37 Richard M. Young, 1837-43 Samuel Me

ing

;

;

Roberts, 1841-43; Sidney Breese, 1843-49; James Semple. 1843-47; Stephen A. Douglas, 1847-61 James Shields, 1849-55 Lyman Trumbull, 1855-73 Orville H. Browning, 1861-63; William A. Richardson, 1863-65; Richard Yates, 1865-71; John A Logan, 1871-77 and 1879-86; Richard J. Oglesby 1873-79; David Davis, 1877-83; Shelby M. CuUom ;

first

and re-elected in '89 and '95, term expiring in 1901 Charles B. Far-

elected in 1883,

his third

;

well, 1887-91;

John McAuley Palmer,

1891-97

William

E. Mason, elected in 1897, for the

expiring,

March

4,

term

1903.

UMVERSITY OF CHICAGO

(The New).

One

the leading educational institutions of the country, located at Chicago. It is the outgrowth of an attempt, put forth by the American Educational Society (organized at Washington in 1888), to supply the place which the original institution of the same name had been designed to fill. (See University of Chicago— Vie Old.) The following of

John D. Rockefeller of New York tendered a contribution of $600, 000 toward the endowenterprise, conditioned upon securing additional pledges to the amount of •?400,000 by year, Mr.

ment of the

June 1, 1890. The offer was accepted, and the sum promptly raised. In addition, a site, covering four blocks of land in the city of Chicago, was secured two and one-half blocks being acquired by purchase for $282,500, and one and one-half (valued at -5125,000) donated by Mr. Marshall Field. A charter was secured and an organization effected, Sept. 10, 1890. The Presidency of the institution was tendered to, and accepted by.

—

Dr. WilUam R. Harper. Since that time the University has been the recipient of other generous benefactions by Mr. Rockefeller and others, until the aggregate donations (1898) exceed |10,000,000. Of this amount over one-half has been contributed by Mr. Rockefeller, while he has pledged himself to make additional contributions of $3,000,000, conditioned upon the raising of a like sum, from other donors, by Jan. 1, 1900. The buildings erected on the campus, prior to 1896. include a chemical laboratory costing $182,000; a lecture hall, $150,000; a physical laboratory

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLLVOIS.

540 $150,000; a

museum,

§100,000;

an academy

dor-

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS,

the leading edu-

mitory, $30,000; three dormitories for women, two dormitories for men! $100,000, to which several important additions were made

cational institution under control of the State,

The faculty embraces over

accepted a grant of 480,000 acres of land under Act of Congress, approved July 2, 1862, making an appropriation of public lands to States 30,000 acres for each Senator and each Representative in Congress— establishing colleges for teaching agriculture and the mechanic arts, though not to the

$150,000;

during 1896 and

'97.

with reference to their departments from among the most eminent scholars in America and Europe. Women are admitted as students and graduated upon an equaUty with men. The work of practical instruction began in October, 1893, with 589 registered students, coming from nearly every Northern State, and including 250 graduates from other institutions, to which accessions were made, during the year, raising the aggregate The second year the number exto over 900. ceeded 1,100; the third, it rose to 1,750, and the 150 instructors, selected

fitness

for their

respective

fourth (1895-96), to some 2,000, including representatives from every State of the Union, besides many from foreign countries. Special features of the institution include the admission of gradu-

from other institutions to a post-graduate and the University Extension Division, which is conducted largely by means of lecture courses, in other cities, or through lecture centers ates

course,

in the vicinity of the University, non-resident students having the privilege of written examiThe various libraries embrace over nations. 300,000 volumes, of which nearly 60,000 belong

to

what

are called the "Departmental Libraries," and valuable collection of maps

besides a large

and pamphlets.

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO

(The Old), an educational institution at Chicago, under the for some years denomination, Baptist care of the known as the Douglas University. Senator in oflEered, 1854, to donate ten Stephen A. Douglas acres of land, in what was then near the southern Chicago, as a site for an border of the city of institution of learning, provided buildings costwithin thereon a stipuing $100,000, be erected

The corner-stone of the main building was laid, July 4, 1857, but the financial panic of that year prevented its completion, and Mr. Douglas extended the time, and finally deeded the land to the trustees without reserve. For eighteen lated time.

years the institution led a precarious existence, struggling under a heavy debt. By 1885, mortgages to the amount of $320,000 having accumulated, the trustees abandoned further effort, and

acquiesced in the sale of the property under foreclosure proceedings. The original plan of the institution contemplated preparatory and collegiate departments, together with a college of

law and a theological school.

Urbana and adjoining the city of Champaign. The Legislature at the session of 1863 located

at

—

exclusion of classical and scientific studies. Landscrip under this grant was issued and placed in the hands of Governor Yates, and a Board of Trustees appointed under the State law was organized in March, 1867, the institution being located the same year. Departments and courses of study were established, and Dr. John M. Gregory, of Michigan, was chosen Regent (President). The

—

was sold at an early wonld bring in open market, acres, which was located in Ne-

landscrip issued to Illinois

day for what

it

except 25,000 braska and Minnesota. Jhis has recently been sold, realizing a larger sum than was received for all the scrip otherwise disposed of. The entire sum thus secured for permanent endowment aggregates $613,026. The University revenues were furtlier increased by donations from Congress to each institution organized under the Act of 1862, of $15,000 per annum for the maintenance of an Agricultural Experiment Station, and, in 1890, of a similar amount for instruction the latter to be increased $1,000 annually until it should reach $25,000.— A mechanical building was erected in 1871, and this is claimed to have been the first of its kind in America intended for strictly educaWhat was called "the main tional purposes. building" was formally opened in December, 1873. Other buildings embrace a "Science Hall,"' opened in 1892; a new "Engineering Hall," 1894; a fine Library Building, 1897. Eleven other principal structures and a number of smaller ones have been erected as conditions required. The value of property aggregates nearly $2, 500,000, and appropriations from the State, for all purposes, previous to 1904, foot up $5,133,517.90.— Since 1871 the institution has been open to women. The courses of study embrace agriculture, chemistry, polytechnics, military tactics, natural and general sciences, languages and literature, economics, household science, trade and commerce. The Graduate School dates from 1891. In 1896 the Chicago College of Pharmacy was connected with the University: a College of Law and a Library School were opened in 1897, and the same year the Chicago College of Physicians and [Sur-

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

—

geons was affilijited as the College of Medicine School of Dentistry being added to the latter in 1901. In 1885 the State Laboratory of Natural History was transferred from Normal, 111., and an Agricultural Experiment Station entablished in 1888, from which bulletins are sent to farmers throughout the State who may desire them. The

—

first

name

of

tlie

Institution

was

"Illinois Indus-

University," but, in 1885, tliis was changed to "University of Illinois." In 1887 the Trustees (of whom there are nine) were made elective by popular vote three being elected every two Dr. Gregory, years, each holding office six years. having resigned the office of Regent in 1880, was succeeded by Dr. Selim H. Peabody, who had been Professor of Meclianical and Civil EngineerDr. Peabody resigned in 1801. The duties ing. of Regent were tlien discharged by Prof. Thomas J. Burrill until August, 1S94, wlien Dr. Andrew Sloan Draper, former State Superintendent of Public Instruction of the State of New York, was The installed as President, serving until 1904. corps of instruction (1904) includes over 100 Professors, 60 Associate and Assistant Professors and trial

—

—

200 Instructors

and

Assistants,

lecturers, demonstrators

and

besides

clerks.

special

The num-

ber of students has increased rapidly in recent j-ears, as shown by the following totals for successive years from 1890-91 to 1903-04, inclusive: 519; 583; 714;

74.3;

810; 852; 1,075; 1,582; 1,824;

8,.589. Of the last numwere men and 718 women. During 1903-04 there were in all departments at Urbana, 2,547 students (256 being in the Preparatory Academy) and in the three Professional Departments in Chicago, 1,042, of whom 694 were in the College of Medicine, 185 in the School of Pharmacy, and 163 in the School of Dentistry. The University Library contains 63,700 volumes and 14,500 pamphlets, not including 5,350 volxunes and 15,850 pamphlets in the State Laboratory of Nat-

2,234; 2,505; 2,932; 3,289; ber, 2,271

;

—

.41

subsequently organized under dillerciit names, but the majority of which were never organized at all— the proposition for such organization being rejected by vote of the people within the proposed boundaries, or allowed to These unorganized counlapse by non-action. ties, with the date of the several acts authorizing them, and the territory which they were inAUen tended to include, were as follows: comprising portions of SangaCounty (1841) mon, Morgan and Macoupin Counties; Audobou (Audubon) County (1843) from portions of Montgomery, Fayette and Shelby; Benton County from Morgan, Greene and Macoupin; (1843) Coffee Countj' (1837) with substantially the siime territory now comprised within the boundaries of Stark County, authorized two years

were

—

—

—

—

—

Dane County (1839) name changed to in 1840; Harrison County (1855)— from McLean, Champaign and Vermilion, com-

later;

Christian l)rising

territory

since

partially

incorporated

Ford County; Holmes County (1S.j7) — from Champaign and Vermilion; Marquette County (1843), changed (1847) to Highland— comprising the northern portion of Adams, (this act was accepted, with Columbus as the countyin

seat,

but organization finally vacated)

;

Michi-

gan County (1837)— from a part of Cook;' Milton County (1843)— from the south part of Vermilion; Okaw County (1841) comprising substantially the same territory as Moultrie, organized under act of 1843; Oregon Coimty (1851)— from parts of Sangamon, Morgan and Macoupin Counties, and covering substantially the same terri-

—

tory as proposed to be incorporated in Allen County ten years earUer. The last act of this

character was passed in 1867, when an attempt was made to organize Lincoln County out oi parts of failed for

Champaign and Vermilion, but which want of an affirmative vote.

UPPER ALTON,

a city of Madison County, tlie Chicago & Alton Railroad, about miles northeast of Alton— laid out in 1816. It has several churches, and is the seat of Shurtleff College and the Western Military Academy, the

The University occupies a conspicuous and attractive site, embracing 220 acres adjacent to the line between Urbana and Champaign, and near the residence portion of the two

situated on

The athletic field of 11 acres, on which gymnasium and armory, is enclosed with an ornamental iron fence. The campus, otherwise, is an open and beautiful park -with

former founded about 1831, and controlled by the Baptist denomination. Beds of excellent clay are foimd in the vicinity and utilized in pottery Pop. (1890), 1,803; (1900), 2,373, manufacture. UPTOX, George Putnam, journalist, was born at Roxbury. Mass., Oct. 2.5, 18.34; graduated from Brown University in 1854, removed to Chicago in 18.)5, and began newspaper work on "The Native American," the following jear taking

ural History.

cities.

stand the

fine landscape effects.

UNORGANIZED COUMIES. In addition to the 102 counties into which Illinois is divided, acts were passed by the General Assembly, at diilerent times, providing for the organization of a number of others, a few of which

IJ

the place of city editor of "The Evening Jour-

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

542

In 1863, Mr. Upton became musical critic on "The Chicago Tribune,"" serving for a time also as its war correspondent in the field, later (about 1881) taking a place on the general editorial staff, which he still retains. He is regarded as an authority on musical and dramatic topics. Mr. Upton is also a stockholder in, and, for several years, has been Vice-President of the "Tribune" Company. Besides numerous contributions to magazines, his works include: "Letters of Peregrine Pickle" (1869) "Memories, a Story of German Love," translated from the German of Max Muller (1879) "Woman in Music" (1880) "Lives of German Composers" (3 vols. 1883-84); besides four volumes of standard operas, oratorios, nal."

;

;

—

cantatas,

and symphonies

URBANA, of

city, the

county-seat

Champaign County, on the "Big Four," the Central and the Wabash Railways: 130

Illinois

miles south of Chicago and 31 miles west of Danville; in agricultural and coal-mining region. The mechanical industries include extensive railroad shops, manufacture of brick, suspenders and

lawn-mowers. Tlie Cunningham Deaconesses' Home and Orphanage is located here. The city lias

water-works, gas and electric light plants,

electric car-lines (local schools, nine churches,

newspapers. of Illinois.

and interurban), superior three banks and three

Urbana is the

seat of the University Pop. (1890), 3,511; (1900), ,5,728.

USREY, William

J., editor

and

Jan.

20, 1894.

UTICA, (also caUed North Utica), a village of La Salle County, on the Illinois & Michigan Canal and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway, 10 miles west of Ottawa, situated on the River opposite "Starved Rock," also believed to stand on the site of the Kaskaskia village found by the French Explorer, La Salle, when he first visited Illinois. "Utica cement" is produced here; it also has several factories or Popumills, besides banks and a weekly paper. Illinois

(1885-88).

a flourishing

Editorial Convention.) After returning from the war he resumed his place as editor of "The Chronicle," but finally retired from newspaper work in 1871. He was twice Postmaster of the city of Decatur, first previous to 1850, and again under the administration of President Grant; served also as a member of the City Council and was a member of the local Post of the G. A. R., and Secretary of the Macon County Association of Mexican War Veterans. Died, at Decatur,

soldier,

was

born at Washington (nea,r Natchez), Miss., May 16, 1827; was educated at Natchez, and, before reaching manhood, came to Macon County, 111,, where he engaged in teaching until 1846, when he enlisted as a private in Company C, Fourth Illinois Volunteers, for the Me.xican War. In 1855, he joined with a Jlr. Wingate in the establishment, at Decatiu-, of "The Illinois State Chronicle," of which he soon after took sole charge, conducting the paper imtil 1861, when he enlisted in the Thirty-fifth Illinois Volvmteers and was appointed Adjutant. Although born and educated in a slave State, Mr. Usrey was an earnest opponent of slavery, as proved by the attitude of his paper in opposition to the Kansas-Nebraska Bill. He was one of the most zealous endorsers of the proposition for a conference of the AntiNebraska editors of the State of Illinois, to agree upon a line of policy in opposition to the further extension of slavery, and, when that body met at Decatujr, on Feb. 23, 1856, he served as its Secretary, thus taking a prominent part in the initial steps which resulted in the organization of the Republican party in Illinois. (See Anti-Nebraska

lation (1880), 767; (1890), 1,094; (1900), 1,150.

VAN ARNAM, John, lawyer and soldier, was born at Plattsburg, N. Y., March 3, 1830. Having lost his father at five years of age, he went to live with a farmer, but ran away in his boyhood later, began teaching, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in New York City, beginning practice at Marshall, Mich. In 1858 he removed to Chicago, and, as a member of the firm of Walker, Van Arnam & Dexter, became prominent as a criminal lawyer and railroad attorney, being for a time Solicitor of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. In 1863 he assisted in organizing the One Hundred and Twenty-seventh Illinois Volunteer Infantry and was commissioned but was compelled to resign on its Colonel, account of illness. After spending some time in California, he resumed practice in Chicago in His later years were spent in California, 1865. dying at San Diego, in that State, April 6, 1890. VANDALIA, the principal city and county -seat of Fayette County. It is situated on the Kaskaskia River, 30 miles north of Centralia, 63 miles south by west of Decatur, and 68 miles It is an intersecting east-northeast of St. Louis. point for the Illinois Central and the St. Louis, Vandalia and Terre Haute Railroads. It was the capital of the State from 1830 to 1839, the seat of government being removed to Springfield, the latter year, in accordance with act of the General Assembly passed at the session of 1837. It contains a court house (old State Capitol building), six churches, two banks, three weekly papers, a

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. graded school, flour, saw and paper mills, foundry, stave and heading mill, carriage and wagon

and brick works.

Pop. (1890), 2,144; (1900), 2,665.

YANDEVEER,

Horatio M., pioneer lawyer,

was born in Washington County, Ind., March 1, 1816 came with his family to Illinois at an early ;

on Clear Creek, now in Cliristian County; taught school and studied law, using books borrowed from the late Hon. John T. Stuart of Springfield was elected first County Recorder of Christian County and, soon after, appointed Circuit Clerk, filling both oftices three years. He also held the office of County Judge from 1848 to 1857 was twice chosen Representative in the General Assembly (1842 and 1850) and once to the State Senate (1862); in 1846, enlisted and was chosen Captain of a company for the Mexican AVar, but, having been rejected on account of the quota being full, was appointed Assistant-Quartermaster, in this capacity serving on the staff of General Taylor at the battle of Buena Vista. Among other offices held by Mr. Vandeveer, were those of Postmaster of Taylorville. Master in Chancery, Presidential Elector (1848), Delegate to tlie Constitutional Convention of 1802. and Judge of the Circuit Court (1870-79). In 1868 Judge Vandeveer established the private banking firm of H. M. Vandeveer & Co., at Taylorville, which, in conjunction with his sons, he continued successfully during the remainder of his life. age, settling

;

;

Died, March 12, 1894. TAN HORNE, William C, Railway Manager and President, was born in Will County, 111., February. 1843; began his career as a telegraph

operator on the Illinois Central Railroad in 1856, was attached to the Michigan Central and Chicago & Alton Railroads (18.58-72), later being General Manager or General Superintendent of various other lines (1872-79). He next served as General Superintendent of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul, but soon after became General Manager of the Canadian Pacific, which he assisted to construct to the Pacific Coast; was elected Vice-President of the line in 1884, and its President in 1888. His services have been recognized by conferring upon him the order of knighthood by the British Government. VASSEUR, Noel C, pioneer Indian-trader, was bom of French parentage in Canada, Dec. 25, 1799 at the age of 17 made a trip with a trading party to the West, crossing Wisconsin by way of the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers, the route pursued ;

by Joliet and Marquette in 1673

;

later,

was associ-

ated with Gurdon S. Hubbard in the service of the American Fur Company, in 1820 visiting the

5i.3

region now embraced in Iroquois County, where he and Hubbard subsequently established a tniding post among the Pottawatomie Indians, believed to have been tlie site of the present town of Iroquois. The way of reaching their station from Chicago was by the Chicago and Des Plaines Rivers to the Kankakee, and ascending the latter and the Iroquois. Here Vasseur remained in trade until the removal of the Indians west of the Mississippi, in which he served as agent of the Government. While in the Iroquois

somewhat famous Pottawatomie woman, for whom the town of who had previously Watseka was named, and teen the Indian wife of a fellow-trader. His later years were spent at Bourbonnais Grove, in Kankakee County, where he died, Dec. 12, 1879. TEMCE, a city of Madison County, on the Mississippi River opposite St. Louis and 2 miles north of East St. Louis is touched by six trunk Lines of railroad, and at the eastern approach to the new "Merchants" Bridge," with its roundregion he married Watseka, a

;

house, has

two

ferries to St. Louis, street car line,

electric lights, water-works,

some manufactures

and a newspaper.

Pop. (1890), 932; (1900), 2,450. (See Louisville, Evc.navilk' & St. Louis (Consolidated) Railroad.) VERMILION COUXTY, an eastern county, bordering on the Indiana State line, and drained

VENICE & "CAROXDELET RAILROAD.

by the Vermilion and Little Vermilion Rivers, from which it takes its name. It was originally organized in 1826, when it extended north t Lake Michigan. Its present area is 926 square The discovery of salt springs, in 1819. miles. aided in attracting immigration to this region, but the manufacture of salt was abandoned many years ago. Early settlers were Seymour Treat, James Butler, Henry Johnston, Harvey Lidington, Gurdon S. Hubbard and Daniel W. Beckwith. James Butler and Achilles Morgan were the first County Commissioners. Many found, interesting fossil remains have been

among them Fire clay

is

the skeleton of a mastodon (1868). found in large quantities, and two

coal seams cross the county.

The surface

is

level

Corn is the chief agricultural soil fertile. product, although oats, wheat, rye, and potatoes are extensively cultivated. Stock-raising and

and the

wool-growing are important industries. There are also several manufactories, chiefly at Danthe county-seat. Coal mining ville, which is is

carried on extensively, especially in the vicinDan vi He. Population ( 1880) 41 588 ( 1890

ity of

49,905; (1900), 65,635.

,

,

;

1

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

544

VERMILION RIVER,

a tributary of the

Illi-

Ford and the northern part of and, running northwestward through Livingston and the southern part of La Salle Counties, enters the Illinois River nearly opposite the city of La Salle has a length of about 80 miles. VERMILION RIVER, an affluent of the Wabash, formed by the union of the North, Middle and South Forks, which rise in Illinois, and nois; rises

in

McLean County,

;

come together near Danv'lle in this State. and enters the Wabash

flows southeastward,

It

in

Vermilion County, Ind. The main stream is about 28 miles long. The South Fork, however, which rises in Champaign County and runs eastward, has a length of nearly 75 miles. The Little Vermilion River enters the Wabash about 7 or 8 miles below the Vermilion, which is sometimes called the Big Vermilion, by way of

by the confiscation policy

$20,000. This, followed

of the British Colonel Hamilton, at Vincennes,

where Vigo had considerable property, reduced him to extreme penury. H. W. Beckwith says towards the close of his life, he lived on his homestead near Vincennes, in great poverty but cheerful to the last He was never recompensed during his life for his sacrifices in behalf of the American cause, though a tardy restitution was attempted, after his death, by the United States Government, for the benefit of his heirs. He died, at a ripe old age, at Vincennes, Ind., that,

little

March

22, 1835.

VILLA RIDGE, on the

a village of Pulaski County,

Central Railway, 10 miles north of Population, 500. VINCENNES, Jean Baptiste Bissot, a Canadian explorer, born at Quebec, January, 1688, of aristocratic and wealthy ancestry. He was closely Illinois

Cairo.

—

with Louis Joliet probably his brother-in-law, although some historians say that he was the latter's nephew. He entered the Canadian army as ensign in 1701, and had a long and varied experience as an Indian fighter. About 1725 he took up his residence on what is now the site of the present city of Vincennes, Ind., which is named in his honor. Here he erected an earth fort and established a tradingpost. In 1726, under orders, he co-operated with D'Artaguiette (then the French Governor of Illinois) in an expedition against the Chickasaws. The expedition resulted disastrously. Vincennes and D'Artaguiette were captured and burned at the stake, together with Father Senat (a connected

distinction.

VERMONT, a village in Fulton County, at junction of Galesburg and St. Louis Division of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, 34 miles north of Beardstown has a carriage manufactory, flour and saw-mills, brick and tile works, electric light plant, besides two banks, four churches, tvi-o graded schools, and one weekly newspaper. An artesian well has been sunk here Pop. (1900), 1,195. to the depth of 3.600 feet. VERSAILLES, a town of Brown County, on the Wabash Railwaj', 48 miles east of Quincy; is in a timber and agricultural district has a bank and weekly newspaper. Population (1900), 524. VIENNA, the county-seat of Johnson County, situated on the Cairo and Vincennes branch of the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad, 36 miles north-northwest of Cairo. It has a court house, several churches, a graded school, banks and two weekly newspapers. Population (1880), 494; (1890), 828; (1900), 1,217. VIGO, Francois, pioneer and early Indiantrader, was born at Mondovi, Sardinia (Western Italy), in 1747, served as a private soldier, first at Havana and afterwards at New Orleans. When he left the Spanish army he came to St. Louis, then the military headquarters of Spain for Upper Louisiana, where he became a partner of Commandant de Leba, and was extensively engaged in the fur-trade among the Indians on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. On the occupation of Kaskaskia by Col. George Rogers Clatk in 1778, he rendered valuable aid to the Americans, turning out supplies to feed Clark's destitute soldiers, and accepting Virginia Continental money, at par, in payment, incurring liabilities in excess of ;

;

Jesuit

and others of the command. D'Artaguiette: French Governors of

priest)

(See also nihioif^.)

VIRDEN, a city of Macoupin County, on the Chicago & Alton and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroads, 21 miles south by west from and 31 miles east-southeast of JackIt has five churches, two banks, two newspapers, telephone service, electric lights, grain elevators, machine shop, and extensive coal mines. Pop. (1900), 2, 280 (school census 1903), 3, 651. VIRGINIA, an incorporated city, the countyseat of Cass County, situated at the intersection of the Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis, with the Springfield Division of the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern Railroad, 15 miles north of Jacksonville, and 33 miles west-northwest of Springfield. It lies in the heart of a rich agricultural region. There is a flouring mill here, besides manuThe city has two factories of wagons and cigars. National and one State bank, five churches, a Springfield, sonville.

;

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. hijrh school,

and two weekly papers.

1,G0'3; (1900). 1.600.

modeled the city, having

YOCKE, William, lawyer, was born at Mindeu. Westphalia (Germany), in 1839, the son of a

life-size

Pop. (1890),

Government Secretary in the Prussian service. Having lost his father at an early age, he emigi-ated to America in 1850, and, after a short stay in New York, came to Chicago, where he found employment as a paper-carrier for "The Staats-Zeitung." meanwhile giving liis attention Later, be became associated to the study of law. with a real-estate firm; on the commencement of tlie Civil War, enlisted as a private in a three months' regiment, and, iinally, in the Twenty-fourth Illinois (the first Hecker regiment), in which he rose to the rank of Captain. Returning from the army, he was employed as city

editor

of

"The

Staats-Zeitung,""

but,

in

186."), became Clerk of the Chicago Police Court, until 1869. Meanwhile he had been admitted to the bar, and, on retirement from office, began practice, but, in 1870, was elected Representative in the Twenty-seventli General Assembly, in which lie bore a leading part in framing "the burnt record act"" made necessary by the fire of 1871. He has since been engaged in the practice of his profession, having been, for a number of years, attorney for the German Consulate at Chicago, also serving, for several Mr. years, on the Chicago Board of Education.

serving

^'ocke

is

a

man

of liigh literary tastes, as

shown

volume of poems German, which has been highly commended, besides a legal work on "The Administration of Justice in the United States, and a Synopsis of the Mode of Procedure in om- Federal and State Courts and All Federal and State Laws relating to Subjects of Interest to Aliens,"" which has been published in the German Language, and is highly valued bj' German lawyers and business men. !Mr. Vocke was a member of the Republican National Convention of 1872 at Philadelphia, which nominated General Grant for the Presidency a second time. VOLK, Leonard Wells, a distinguished Illinois sculptor, born at Wellstown (afterwards Wells), N. Y., Nov. 7, 1828. Later, his father, who was a marble cutter, removed to Pittsfield. Mass., and, at the age of 16, Leonard began work in his shop. In 1848 he came west and began modeling in clay and drawing at St. Louis, being only self-taught. He married a cousin of Stephen A. Douglas, and the latter, in 185.5, aided him in

by

his publication, in 1809, of a

translated from the

Two tlie prosecution of his art studies in Italy. years afterward he settled in Chicago, where he

first

545

portrait bust ever

made

in the

for his subject his first patron

—the

The next year (US58) he made a marble statue of Douglas. In 1860 he

"Little Giant.'"

a portrait bust of Abraham Lincoln, which passed into the possession of the Chicago Hisand was destroyed in the great fire

made

torical Society

of

1871.

In 1808-69, and again in

revisited Italy for purposes of study.

1871-72,

he

In 1867 he

was elected academician of the Chicago Academy, and was its President for eight years. He was genial, companionable and charitable, and always ready to assist his younger and less fortunate professional brethren. His best known works are the Douglas Monument, in Chicago, several soldiers'

monuments in different parts of the country, the statuary for the Henry Keep mausoleum at Watertown, N. Y., life-size statues of Lincoln and Douglas, in the State House at Springfield, and numerous portrait busts of men eminent in

and commercial life. August 18, 1895. lawyer and soldier,

political, ecclesiastical

Died, at Osceola, Wis.,

TOSS, Arno,

journalist,

born in Prussia, April 16, 1821 emigrated to the United States and was admitted to the bar in Chicago, in 1848, the same j-ear becoming editor of "The Staats-Zeitung""; was elected City Attorney in 18.52, and again in 1853; in 1861 became Major of the Sixth Illinois Cavalry, but afterwards assisted in organizing the Twelfth Cavalry, of which he was commissioned Colonel, still later serving with his command in Virginia. He was at Harper's Ferry at the time of the capture of that place in September, 1862, but succeeded in cutting his way, with his command, tlu-ough the rebel lines, escaping into Pennsylvania. Compelled by ill-health to leave the service in 1863, he retired to a farm in Will County, but, in 1869, returned to Chicago, where he served as Master in Chancery and was elected to the lower branch of the General Assembly in 1876, but declined a re-election in 1878. Died, in Chi;

cago, IHarch 23, 1888.

WABASH, CHESTER & WESTERN RAILrailway nmning from Chester to Moimt 63. 33 miles, with a branch extend111. ing from Chester to Menard. 1.5 miles; total mileage, 64.83. It is of standard gauge, and almost entirely laid \\-ith 60-pound steel rails. (History.) It was organized. Feb. 20, 1878, as successor to the Iron Mountain, Chester & Eastern Railroad. During the fiscal year 1893-94 the Company purchased the Tamaroa & Jlount Ver-

ROAD, a

"Vernon,

,

non Railroad, extending from Mount Vernon

to

HISTOEICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. Tamaroa,

22.5

miles.

Capital stock (1898), $1,§690,000; total

bonded indebtedness,

250,000;

capitalization, $2,028,573.

WABASH COUNTY, corner of the State

;

situated in the southeast area 230 square miles. The

county was carved out from Edwards in 1824, and the first court house built at Centerville, in May, 182C. Later, Mount Carmel was made the county-seat. (See Moinit Carmel.) The Wabash River drains the coimty on the east; other streams are the Bon Pas, Coffee and Crawfish Creeks. The surface is undulating with a fair growth of timber. The chief industries are the raising of live-stock and the cultivation of cereals. The wool-crop is likewise valuable. The county is crossed by the Louisville, Evansville & St. Louis and the Cairo and Vincennes Division of the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railroads. Population (1880), 4,945; (1890), 11,866; (1900), 12,583.

WABASH RAILROAD, an extensive raih-oad system connecting the cities of Detroit and Toledo, on the east, with Kansas City and Council Bluffs, on the west, with branches to Chicago, St. Louis, Quincy and Altamont, 111., and to Keokuk and Des Moines, Iowa. The total mileage (1898) is

which 677.4 miles are in Illithe latter being the property of the

1,874.96 miles, of

nois

—all of

company, besides 176.7 miles of yard -tracks, sidings and spurs. The company has trackage privileges over the Toledo, Peoria & Western (6.5 miles) between Elvaston and Keokuk bridge, and over the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy (21.8 miles) between Camp Point and Quincy. (His-

A

considerable portion of this road in constructed on the Une upon which the Northern Cross Railroad was projected, in the "internal improvement" scheme adopted in 1837, and embraces the only section of road completed imder that scheme that between the Illinois River and Springfield. (1) The construction of this section was begun by the State, May 11, 1837, the first rail laid. May 9, 1888, the road completed to Jacksonville, Jan. 1, 1840, and to Springfield, May 13, 1842. It was operated for a time by "mule power," but the income was insufficient to keep the line in repair and it was finally abandoned. In 1847 the line was sold for $21,100 to N. II. Ridgely and Thomas Mather of Springfield, and by them transferred to New York capitalists, who organized the Sangamon & Morgan Railroad Company, reconstructed the road from Springfield to Naples and opened it for business in 1849. (2) In 1853 two corporations were organized in Ohio and Indiana, respectively.

tory.)

Illinois is

—

under the name of the Toledo & Illinois Railroad and the Lake Erie, Wabash & St. Louis Railroad, which were consolidated as the Toledo, Wabash & Western Railroad, June 25, 1856. In 1858 these lines were sold separately under foreclosure, and finally reorganized, imder a special charter granted by the Illinois Legislatmre, under the name of the Great Western Railroad Company. (3) The Quincy & Toledo Railroad, extending from Camp Point to the Illinois River opposite Meredosia, was constructed in 1858-59, and that, with the IlUnois & Southern Iowa (from Clayton to Keokuk), was united, July 1, 1865, with the eastern divisions extending to Toledo, the new organization taking the name of the main line, (Toledo, Wabash & Western). The (4) Hannibal & Naples Division (49.6 miles), from Bluffs to Hannibal, Mo., was chartered in 1863, opened for business in 1870 and leased to the Toledo, Wabash & Western. The latter defaulted on its interest in 1875, was placed in the hands of a receiver and, in 1877, was turned over to a new company under the name of the Wabash Railway Company. (5) In 1868 the company, as it then existed, promoted and secured the construction, and afterwards acquired the ownership, of a line extending from Decatur to East St. Louis (110.5 miles) under the name of the Decatur & East St. Louis Railroad. (6) The Eel River Railroad, from Butler to Logansport, Ind., was acquired in 1877, and afterwards extended to Detroit under the name of the Detroit, Butler & St. Louis Railroad, completing the connection from Logansport to Detroit. In November, 1879, the Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific Railway Company was organized, took the property and consoUdated it with certain lines west of the Mississippi, of which the chief was the St. Louis, Kansas City & Northern. A line had been projected from Decatur to Chicago as early as 1870, but, not having been constructed in 1881, the Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific purchased what was known as the Chicago & Paducah Railroad, uniting with the main line at Bement, and (by way of the Decatur and St. Louis Division) giving a direct hne between Chicago and St. Louis. At this time the Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific was operating the following additional leased lines: Pekin, Lincoln & Decatur (67.2 miles); Hannibal & Central Missouri (70.3 miles); Lafayette, Muncie & Bloomington (36.7 miles), and the Lafayette Bloomington & Muncie (80 miles). A connection between Chicago on the west and Toledo and Detroit on the east was established over the Grand Trunk road in 1882, but, in 1890, the com-

—

IIISTOnrCAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OE ILLINOl!' from

Slontpelier, Ohio, to

St.

Clark, Imi. (149.7 miles), thence by track lease to Chicago (17.5 miles), giving an independent

year, visited

pany constructed a

line

line

between Chicago and Detroit by what is to investors as the Detroit & Chicago

known

Division.

The

Wabash, St. Louis & amounted to over 3,000

total mileage of the

Pacific system, in 1884,

miles; but, in

May

of that year, default having

been made in the payment of interest, the work of disintegration began. The main line east of the Mississippi and that on the west were separated, the latter taking the name of the "Wabash

Western." The Eastern Division was placed in the hands of a receiver, so remaining until May, 1889, when the two divisions, having been bought in by a purchasing committee, were consolidated under the present name. The total earnings and income of the road in Illinois, for the fiscal year 1898, were .§4,402,031, and the expenses §4,830,110. (1898)

was

The

total capital invested

§139,889,643, including capital stock

of §53,000,000

and bonds

to the

amount

of §81.-

534,000.

WABASH RIVER, rises in

northwestern Ohio, passes into Indiana, and runs northwest to Huntington. It then flows nearly due west to Logansport, thence southwest to Covington, finally turning southward to Terre Haute, a few luiles below which it strikes the western boundaiy of Indiana. It forms the boundary between Illinois and Indiana (taking into account its numerous windings) for some 200 miles. Below Vincennes it runs in a south-southwesterly direction, and enters the Ohio at the south-west extremity of Indiana, near latitude 37' 49' north. Its length is estimated at 557 miles.

WABASH

&

MISSISSIPPI

RAILROAD.

(See nilnois Central Railroad.)

WABASH, ROAD.

(See

WABASH Wabash

ST.

LOUIS

TT'aba.s/,

i

A.

PACIFIC RAIL-

Railnjad.)

WESTERN RAILROAD.

(See

Railroad.)

WAIT, William Smith,

pioneer, r.nd original

suggestor of the Illinois Central Railroad, was born in Portland, Maine, March 5, 1789, and educated in the public schools of his native place. In his youth he entered a book-publishing house in wliich his father was a partner, and was for a

time associated with the publication of a weekly paper. Later the business was conducted at Boston, and extended over the Eastern, Middle, and Southern States, the subject of this sketch

making extensive firm.

In

1817

tours in the interest of

he made a tour to

tlie

the

West,

547

Louis, and, early in the following

Bond County,

111.,

where he made

land from the (Jovermnent. Returning to Boston a few months later, he continued in the service of the publishing firm until 1820, when he again came to Illinois, and, in 1821, began farming in Ripley Township, Bond County. Returning East in 1824, he spent th*next ten years in the employment of the publishing firm, with occasional visits to Illinois. In 1835 he located permanently near Greenville. Bond County, and engaged extensively in farming and fruit-raising, planting one of the largest apple orchards in the State at that early day. In 1845 he presided as chairman over the National Indu.strial Convention in New York, and, in 1848, was nominated as the candidate of the National Reform Association for Vice-President on the ticket with Gerrit Smith of New York, but declined. He was also prominent in County and State Agricultural Societies. Mr Wait has been credited with being one of the first (if not the very first) to suggest the construction of the Illinois Central Railroad, which he did as early

his first entry of

was also one of the prime construction of the Mississippi & road now the "Vandalia Line" time to the latter enterprise from

as 1835;

—

movers in the Atlantic Rail-

—giving 1846 for

much many

and was one of the original incorporators of the St. Louis & Illinois Bridge Company. years,

Died, July

17, 1805.

WALKER, Cyrns, pioneer, lawyer, bom in Rockbridge County, Va., May 14, 1791; was taken while an infant to Adair County, Ky., and came to Macomb, III., in 1833, being the second lawyer to locate in McDonough County. He had a wide reputation as a successful advocate, especially in criminal cases, and practiced extensively in the courts of Western Illinois andalso in Iowa. Died Dec. 1, 1875. Mr. Walker was uncle of the late Pinkney H. Walker of the Supreme Court, who studied law with him. He was Whig candidate for Presidential Elector for the State-at-large in 1840.

WALKER, in

James Barr, clergyman, was born

Philadelpliia,

July

29,

1805;

in

his

youth

served as errand-boy in a country store near Pittsburg and spent four years in a printing office then became clerk in the office of Mordecai M. Noah, in New York, studied law and graduated from Western Reserve College, Ohio; edited various religious papers, including "The Watchman of the Prairies" (now "The Advance") of Chicago, was licensed to preach by the Presbytery ;

of Chicago, and for some time

was

lecturer on

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

548

"Harmony between Science and Revealed

Reli-

gion" at Oberlin College and Chicago Theological Seminary. He was author of several volumes, one of which— "The Philosophy of the Plan of Salvation," published anonymously under the editorship of Prof. Calvin E. Stowe (1855)— ran through several editions and was translated into five different languages, including Hindustanee. Died, at Wheaton, 111., March 6, 1887. WALKER, James Monroe, corporation lawyer and Railway President, was born at Claremont, N. H., Feb. 14, 1830. At fifteen he removed with his parents to a farm in Michigan was educated at Oberlin, Ohio, and at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, graduating from the latter in 1849. He then entered a law office as clerk and student, was admitted to the bar the next year, and soon after elected Prosecuting Attorney of Washtenaw County was also local attorney for the Michigan Central Railway, for which, after his removal to Chicago in 1853, he became Gen;

;

Two years later the firm of Sedg& Walker, which Iiad been organized in Michigan, became attorneys for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, and, until his death, Mr. Walker was associated with this company, either as General Solicitor, General Counsel or President, filling the latter position from 1870 Mr. Walker organized both the Chicago to 1875. and Kansas City stock-yards, and was President of these corporations, as also of the Wilmington Coal Company, down to the time of his death, which occurred on Jan. 23, 1881, as a result of

eral Solicitor.

wick

heart disease.

WALKER,

(ReT.) Jesse, Methodist Episcopal

was born in Rockingham County, June 9, 1766; in 1800 removed to Tennessee, became a traveling preacher in 1802, and, in missionary, Va.,

1806,

came

ship of

to Illinois under the presiding-elderRev. William McKendree (afterwards

Bishop), locating

County.

first

at

Turkey

In 1807 he held a

Edwardsville— the

first

on

Hill, St.

Clair

camp meeting near Illinois

soil.

Later,

he transferred his labors to Northern Illinois; was at Peoria in 1824; at Ottawa in 1825, and devoted much time to missionary work among the Pottawatomies, maintaining a school among them for a time. He visited Chicago in 1826, and there is evidence that he was a prominent resident there for several years, occupying a log house, which he used as a church and living-room, on "Wolf Point" at the junction of the North and South Branches of the Chicago River. While acting as superintendent of the Fox River mission, his residence appears to have been at Plain-

field,

in the northern part of Will County.

Oct.

5,

Died,

1835.

WALKER,

Pinkney H., lawyer and jurist, was born in Adair County, Ky., June 18, 1815. His boyhood was chiefly passed in farm work and as clerk in a general store in 1834 he came to Illinois, settling at Rushville, where he worked in a store for four years. In 1838 he removed to ;

Macomb, where he began attendance

at an acadthe study of law with his uncle, Cyrus Walker, a leading lawyer of his time. He was admitted to the bar in 1839, practicing at Macomb until 1848, when he returned to Rushville. In 1853 he was elected Judge of the Fifth Judicial Circuit, to fill a vacancy, and re-elected in 1855. This position he resigned in 1858, having been appointed, by Governor Bissell, to fill the vacancy on the bench of the Supreme Court occasioned by

emy and

the resignation of Judge Skinner. Two months later he was elected to the same position, and re-elected in 1807 and '76. He presided as Chief Justice from January, 1864, to June, '67, and again from June, 1874, to June, '75. Before the expiration of his last term he died, Feb. 7, 1885. WALL, George Willard, lawyer, politician and Judge, was born at Chillicothe, Ohio, April 22, 1839; brought to Perry County, 111., in infancy, and received his preparatory education at McKen. dree College, finally graduating from the University of Michigan in 1858, and from the Cincinnati Law School in 1859, when he began 111. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1862, and, from 1864 to '68, served as State's Attorney for the Third Judicial District was also a Delegate to the State Constitutional Convention of 1869-70. In 1872 he was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Congress, although running ahead of his ticket. In 1877 he was elected to the bench of the Third Circuit, and reelected in '79, '85 and '91, much of the time since 1877 being on duty upon the Appellate bench. His home is at Duquoin. WALLACE, (Rev.) Peter, D.D., clergyman and soldier; was born in Mason County, Ky., April 11, 1813; taken in infancy to Brown Coimty, Ohio, where he grew up on a farm until 15 years of age, when he was apprenticed to a carpenter; at the age of 20 came to Illinois, where he became a contractor and builder, following this occupation for a number of years. He was converted in 1835 at Springfield, 111., and, some years later, having decided to enter the ministry, was admitted to the Illinois Conference as a deacon by Bishop E. S. Janes in 1855, and

practice at Duquoin,

;

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. placed in charge of the Danville Circuit. Two years later he was ordained by Bishop Scott, and, in the next few years, held pastorates at various places in the central and eastern parts of the From 1867 to 1874 he was Presiding Elder State. of the Mattoon

and Quincy

Districts, and, for six

years, held the position of President of the

Board

of Trustees of Chaddock College at Quincy, from which he received the degree of D.D. in 1881. In the second year of the Civil War he raised a

County, was chosen in Sangamon Captain and assigned to the Seventy-third known as the "preachers' regiment" all of its officers being ministers. In 1864 he was compelled by ill-health to resign his commission. While pastor of the church at Saybrook, 111., he was offered the position of Postmaster of that place, which he decided to accept, and was allowed to retire from the active minisOn retirement from office, in 1884, he try. removed to Chicago. In 1889 he was appointed by Governor Fifer the first Chaplain of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Home at Quincy, but retired some four years afterward, when he returned to Chicago. Dr. Wallace was an eloquent and effective preacher and continued to preach, at intervals, until within a short time of his decease, which occurred in Chicago, Feb. 21, 1897, in his 84th year. A zealous patriot, he frequently sjwke very effectively upon the political rostrum. Originally a Whig, lie became a Republican on the organization of that party, and took pride in the fact that the first vote he ever cast was for Abraham Lincoln, for Representative in the LegisHe was a Knight Templar, Vicelature, in 1834. President of the Tippecanoe Club of Chicago, and, at his death, Chaplain of America Post, No.

company

its

Illinois Volunteers,

—

708, G. A. R.

WALLACE, WllUam Henry Lamb, lawyer and was born at Urbana. Ohio, July 8, 1821 brought to Illinois in 1833, his father settling near La Salle and, afterwards, at Mount Morris, Ogle Coimty, where young Wallace attended the Rock River Seminary was admitted to the bar in

soldier,

;

1845

;

in 1846 enlisted as a private in the First

Illi-

John J. Hardin's regiment), for the Mexican War, rising to the rank of Adjutant and participting in the battle of Buena Vista (where his commander was killed), and in other nois Volunteers (Col.

engagements. Returning to his profession at Ottawa, he served as District Attorney (18.52-56), then became partner of his father-in-law. Col. T. Lyle Dickey, afterwards of the Supreme Court. In April, 1861, he was one of the first to answer the call for troops by enlisting, and became Colo-

549

nel of the Eleventh Illinois (three-months' men), afterwards re-enlisting for three years. As commander of a brigade he participated in

the capture of Forts Henry and Donelson, in February, 1862, receiving promotion as BrigadierGeneral for gallantry. At Pittsburg Landing (Shiloh), as commander of Gen. C. F. Smith's Division, devolving on him on account of the illness of his superior officer, he showed great courage, but fell mortally wounded, dying at Charleston, Tenn., April 10, 1862. His career

promised gi-eat brilliancy and his lo.ss was greatly deplored. —Martin R. M. ( Wallace), brother of the preceding, was born at Urbana, Ohio, Sept. 29, 1829, came to La Salle County, 111., with his father's family and was educated in the local schools and at Rock River Seminary studied law at Ottawa, and was admitted to the bar in 1856, soon after locating in Chicago. In 1861 he assisted in organizing the Fourth Regiment Illinois Cavalry, of which he became LieutenantColonel, and was complimented, in 1865, with the rank of brevet Brigadier-General. After the war he served as Assessor of Internal Revenue (1866-69); County Judge (1869-77) Prosecuting Attorney (1884); and, for many years past, has been one of the Justices of the Peace of the city of Chicago. WALNUT, a town of Bureau County, on the Mendota and Fulton branch of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, 26 miles west of Mendota; is in a farming and stock-raising district; has two banks and two newspapers. Popu;

;

lation (1890). 605; (1900), 791.

WAR OF

1812.

Upon the

declaration of

war

by Congress, in June, 1812, the Pottawatomies. and most of the other tribes of Indians in the Territory of Illinois, .strongly sympathized with the British. The savages had been hostile and restless for some time previous, and blockhouses and family forts had been erected at a number of points, especially in the settlements most exposed to the incursions of the savages. Governor Edwards, becoming apprehensive of an outbreak, constructed Fort Ru.ssell, a few miles from Edwardsville. Taking the field in person, he made this his headquarters, and collected a force of 2.50 mounted volunteers, who were later reinforced by two companies of rangers, under Col. William Russell, numbering about 100 men. An independent company of twenty -one spies, of which John Reynolds afterwards Governor was a member, was also formed and led by Capt. Samuel Judy. The Governor organized his little army into two regiments under Colonels Rector

—

550

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

Stephenson, Colonel Russell serving as second to the commander-in-chief, other members of his staff being Secretary Nathaniel Pope

and

and Robert K. McLaughlin. On Oct. 18, 1812, Governor Edvrards, with his men, set out for Peoria, where it was expected that their force would meet that of General Hopkins, who had been sent from Kentucky with a force of 2,000 men. En route, two Kickapoo villages were burned, and a number of Indians unnecessarily Hopkins had orders to slain by Edwards' party. disperse the Indians on the Illinois and Wabash He deterRivers, and destroy their villages. mined, however, on reaching the headwaters of the Vermilion to proceed no farther. Governor Edwards reached the head of Peoria Lake, but, failing to meet Hopkins, returned to Fort Russell.

About the same time Capt. Thomas E. Craig led a party, in two boats, up the Illinois River to Peoria. His boats, as he alleged, having been fired upon in the night by Indians, who were harbored and protected by the French citizens of Peoria, he burned the greater part of the village, and capturing the population, carried them down the river, putting them on shore, in the early part of the winter, just below Alton. Other desultory expeditions marked the campaigns of 1813 and 1814. The Indians meanwhile gaining courage, remote settlements were continually harassed by marauding bands. Later in 1814, an expedition, led by Major (afterwards President) Zachary Taylor, ascended the Mississippi as far as Rock Island, where he found a large force of Indians, supported by British regulars with artillery. Finding himself unable to cope with so formidable a foe. Major Taylor retreated down the river. On the site -of the present town of Warsaw he threw up fortifications, which he named Fort Edwards, from which point he was subsequently compelled to retreat. The same year the British, with their Indian allies, descended from Mackinac, captured Prairie du Chien, and burned Forts Madison and Johnston, after which they retired The treaty of Ghent, signed to Cap au Gris. Dec. 24, 1814, closed the war, although no formal treaties were made with the tribes until tlie year following.

WAR OF THE REBELLION. of the Civil

War, the executive

At the outbreak chair, in Illinois,

was occupied by Gov. Richard Yates. Immediately upon the issuance of President Lincoln's call for troops (April 15, 1861), the Governor issued his proclamation summoning the Legislature together in special session and, the same day, issued a call for "six regiments of militia," fir-st

the quota assigned to the State under call of the President. Public excitement was at fever heat, and dormant patriotism in both sexes was aroused as never before. Party lines were broken down and, with comparatively few exceptions, the mass of the people were actuated by a common sentiment of patriotism. On April 19, Governor Yates was instructed, by the Secretary of War, to take possession of Cairo as an important strategic point. At that time, the State militia organizations were few in number and poorly equipped, consisting chiefly of independent companies in the larger cities. The Governor acted with great promptitude, and, on April 21, seven companies, numbering 595 men, commanded by Gen. Richard K. Swift of Chicago, were en route to Cairo. The first volunteer company to tender its services, in response to Governor Yates' proclamation, on April 16, was the Zouave Grays of Springfield. Eleven other companies were tendered the same day, and, by the evening of the 18th, the number liad been increased to fifty. Simultaneously with these proceedings, Chicago bankers tendered to the Governor a war loan of 6500,000, and those of Springfield, §100,000. The Legislature, at

its special session, passed acts increasing the efficiency of the militia law, and provided for the creation of a war fund of §2,000,000. Besides the six regiments already called for, the raising of ten additional volunteer regiments and one battery of light artillery was authorized. The last of the six regiments, apportioned to Illinois under the first presidential call, was dispatched to Cairo early in May. The six regiments were numbered the Seventh to Twelfth, inclusive the earlier numbers. First to Sixth, being conceded to the six regiments which had served in the war with Mexico. The regiments were commanded, respectively, by Colonels John Cook, Richard J. Oglesby, Eleazer A. Paine, James D. Morgan, William H. L. Wallace, and John McArthur, constituting the "First Brigade of Illinois Volunteers." Benjamin M. Prentiss, having been chosen Brigadier-General on arrival

—

at Cairo,

assumed command, relieving General

The quota under the second call, consisting of ten regiments, was mustered into service within sixty days, 200 companies being tendered immediately. Many more volunteered than could be accepted, and large numbers crossed to Missouri and enlisted in regiments forming in that During June and July the Secretary of State. Swift.

War authorized Governor Yates to recruit twentytwo additional regiments (seventeen infantry and On five cavalry), which were promptly raised.

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. the day following the defeat of the Union army at Bull Run. President Lincoln called for 500,000 more volunteers. Governor Yates immediately responded with an offer to the War Department of sixteen more regiments (thirteen of infantrj' and three of cavalry), and a battalion of artillery, adding, that the State claimed it as her right, to do her full share toward the preservation of the Union. Under supplemental authority, received from the Secretary of War in August, 1861, twelve additional regiments of infantry and five of cavalry were raised, and, by December, 1861, the State had 43.000 volunteers in the field and 17,000 in camps of instruction. Other calls were made in July and August, 1862, each for 300,000 men. Illinois' quota, under both calls, was over 52,000 men. no regard being paid to the fact that the State had already furnished 16.000 troops in excess of its quotas under previous calls. Unless this number of volunteers was raised by September 1, a draft would be ordered. The tax was a severe one, inasmuch as it would fall chiefly upon the prosperous citizens, the floating population, the idle and the extremely poor having already followed the army's march, either But recruiting as soldiers or as camp-followers. was actively carried on, and, aided by liberal bounties in many of the counties, in less than a fortnight the 52,000 new troops were secured, the volunteers coming largely from the substantial classes agricultural, mercantile, artisan and professional. By the end of December, fifty-nine regiments and four batteries had been dispatched

July

23,

—

to the front, besides a considerable

number

to

fill

up regiments already in ihe field, which had suffered severely from battle, exposure and disease. At this time, Illinois had an aggregate of over

The issue of 135,000 enlisted men in the field. President Lincoln's preliminarj- proclamation of emancipation, in September, 1862. was met by a of hostile criticism from his political opponents, who aided by the absence of so large a proportion of the loyal population of the

storm

—

State in the field— were able to carry the elections of that year. Consequently, when the

Twenty-third

General

Assembly convened

in

regular session at Springfield, on Jan. 5, 1863, a large majority of that body was not onlj- opposed to both the National and State administrations, but avowedly opposed to the further prosecution of the

war under the existing

reconvened by Governor Yates islature

July 87.000

1,

1864,

new

policy.

in June, but

16,000

Between veterans

The Leg-

was prorogued 1, 1863, and and

Oct.

re-enlisted

volunteers were enrolled; and, by the

551

date last mentioned, Illinois had furnished to the Union army 244,4!I6 men, being 14, .596 in excess of the allotted quotas, constituting fifteen per cent of the entire population. These were comprised in 151 regiments of infantry, 17 of cavalry and two complete regiments of artillery, besides twelve independent batteries. The total during the war, has been reported at 34,834, of which 5,874 were killed in battle, 4,020 died from wounds, 23,786 from disease and 2,154 from other cau.ses being a total of thirteen per cent of the entire force of the State in the service. The part which Illinois played in the contest was conspicuous for patriotism, promptness in response to every call, and the bravery and efliciency of its troops in the field— reflecting honor upon the State and its liistory. Nor were its loyal citizens— who, while staying at home, furnished moral and material support to the men at tlie front less worthy of praise than those who volunteered. By upholding the Government National and State— and by their zeal and energy in collecting and sending forward immense quantities of supplies— surgical, medical and other often at no little sacrifice, thej- contributed much to the success of the Union arms. (See also Camp Douglas; Camp Dour/las Consjnracy: Secret Treasonable Socilosses of Illinois organizations,

—

—

—

—

eties.

)

W.4R OF THE REBELLION (History of Illinois Regiments). The following is a list of the various military organizations mustered into the service during the Civil War (1861-65), with the terms of service and a summary of the more important events in the history of each, while in the field: Seventh Inf.\ntry. IllinoLs having sent six regiments to the Mexican War, by courtesy the numbering of the regiments which took part in the war for the LTnion began with number Seven. A number of regiments which responded to the first call of the President, claimed the right to be recognized as the first regiment in the field, but the honor was finally accorded to that organized at Springfield by Col. John Cook, and

hence his regiment was numbered Seventh. It was mustered into the service, April 25, 1861. and remained at Mound City during the three months' service, the period of its first enli-stment.

It

was

subsequently reorganized and mustered for the three years' service. July 25, 1861, and was engaged in the battles of Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth, Cherokee, AlLatoona Pass, Salkahatchie Swamp, Bentonville and Columbia. The regiment re-enlisted as veterans at Pulaski, Tenn.,

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

552 Dec. July

22, 9,

1863; 1865,

was mustered out at Louisville, and paid off and discharged at

Springfield, July 11.

Eighth Infantry. Organized at Springfield, and mustered in for three months' service, April 26, 1861, Richard J. Oglesby of Decatur, being appointed Colonel. It remained at Cairo during its term of service, when it was mustered out. July 25, 1861, it was reorganized and mustered in It participated in the for three years' service. battles of Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Port Gibson, Thompson Hill, Raymond, Champion Hill, Vicksburg, Brownsville, and Spanish Fort re-enlisted as veterans, March 24, 1864; was mustered out at Baton Rouge, May 4, 1866, paid off and discharged, May 13, having served five years. Ninth Infantry. Mustered into the service at Springfield, April 26, 1861. for the term of three months, under Col. Eleazer A. Paine. It was reorganized at Cairo, in August, for three years, being composed of companies from St. Clair, Madison, Montgomery, Pulaski, Alexander and Mercer Counties was engaged at Fort Donel(Tenn.), Meed Creek son, Shiloh, Jackson Swamps, Salem, Wyatt, Florence, Montezuma, Athens and Grenada. The regiment was mounted, March 15, 1863, and so continued during the remainder of its service. Mustered out at Louisville, July 9, 1865. Tenth Infantry. Organized and mustered into the service for three months, on April 29, 1861, at Cairo, and on July 29, 1861, was mustered into the service for three years, with Col. James ;

;

D. Morgan in Sykeston, New

command.

It

was engaged

at

Madrid, Corinth, Missionary Ridge, Buzzard's Roost, Resaca, Rome, Kenesaw, Chattahoochie, Savannali and Bentonville. Reenlisted as veterans, Jan. 1, 1864, and mustered out of service, July 4, 1865, at Louisville, and received final discharge and pay, July 11, 1865, at Chicago. Eleventh Infantry. Organized at Springfield and mustered into service, April 30, 1861,

July 30, the regiment was mustered out, and re-enlisted for three years' service. It was engaged at Fort Donelson, for three months.

Shiloh, Corinth, Tallahatcliie, Vicksburg, Liver-

Heights, Yazoo City, Spanish Fort and Fort Blakely. W. H. L. Wallace, afterwards Brigadier-General and killed at Shiloh, was its first Colonel. Mustered out of service, at Baton Rouge, July 14, 1865 paid off and discharged at pool

;

Springfield.

Twelfth Infantry. for three years,

August

Mustered into service 1861 was engaged at

1,

;

Columbus, Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth, Lay's Rome Cross Roads, Dallas, Kenesaw, Nickajack Creek, Bald Knob, •Decatur, Ezra Church, Atlanta, AUatoona and Goldsboro. On Jan. 16, 1864, the regiment re-enlisted as veterFerry,

John McArthur was its first Colonel, sucby Augustus L. Chetlain, both being promoted to Brigadier-Generalships. Mustered

ans.

ceeded

out of service at Louisville, Ky., July

and received field,

July

final

10, 1865,

pay and discharge, at Spring-

18.

One of the regiments known as the "Ten Regiinto service on May 24,

Thirteenth Infantry. organized under the act

ment

Bill"

;

was mustered

1861, for three years, at Dixon, with John B. as Colonel; was engaged at Chickasaw Bayou, Arkansas Post, Vicksburg, Jackson, Missionary Ridge, Rossville and Ringgold Gap. Mustered out at Springfield, June 18, 1864, having served three years and two months. Fourteenth Infantry. One of the regiments raised under the "Ten Regiment Bill," which anticipated the requirements of the General Government by organizing, equipping and drilling a regiment in each Congressional District in

Wyman

the State for thirty days, unless sooner required for service by the United States. It was mustered in at Jacksonville for three years. May 25, 1861, under command of John M. Palmer as its first Colonel; was engaged at Shiloh, Corinth, Metamora, Vicksburg, Jackson, Fort Beauregard and Meridian consolidated with the Fifteenth Infantry, as a veteran battalion (both regiments having enlisted as veterans), on July 1, 1864. In October, 1864, the major part of the battalion was captured by General Hood and sent to Andersonville. The remainder participated in the "March to the Sea," and through the campaign in the Carolinas. In the spring of 1865 the battalion organization was discontinued, both regiments having been filled up by recruits. The regiment was mustered out at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., Sept. 16, 1865; and arrived at Springfield, 111. Sept. 22, 2865, where it received The aggregate final payment and discharge. number of men who belonged to this organization was 1,980, and the aggregate mustered out at Fort Leavenworth, 480. During its four years and four months of service, the regiment marched 4,490 miles, traveled by rail, 2,330 miles, and, by river, 4,490 miles making an aggregate ;

,

—

of 11,670 miles.

Fifteenth Infantry. Raised under the "Ten Regiment Act," in the (then) First Congressional District; was organized at Freeport, and mus-

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. May

was engaged at Sedalia, Shiloli, Corinth, Metamora Hill, Vicksburg, Fort Beauregard, Champion Hill, Allatoona and Bentonville. In March. 1804, the tered into service,

2J. 1861.

regiment re-enlisted as veterans, and, in July, 1864, was consolidated with the Fourteenth Infantry as a Veteran Battalion. At Big Shanty and Ackworth a large portion of the battalion was captured by General Hood. At Raleigh the Veteran Battalion was discontinued and the Fifteenth reorganized. From July 1, to Sept. 1, 1865, the regiment was stationed at Forts Leavenworth and Kearney. Having been mustered out at Fort Leavenworth, it was sent to Springfield for final payment and discharge having served four years and four months. Miles marched, 4,299; miles by rail. 2,403, miles by steamer, 4,310; men enlisted from date of organization,

—

1,963; strength at date of muster-out, 640.

Sixteenth Lnfantry. Organized and mustered into service at Quincy under the "Ten-Regiment Act," May 24, 1861. The regiment was engaged at New Madrid, Tiptonville, Corinth, Buzzards' Roost, Resaca, Rome, Kenesaw Mountain, Chattahoocliie River, Peach Tree Creek, .Savannah, Columbia, Fayetteville, Averysboro and Bentonville. In December, 1864, the regiment re-enlisted as veterans; was mu-stered out at Louisville, Ky. July 8, 1865, after a term of service of four years and three months, and, a week later, arrived at Springfield, where it received its final pay and discharge Atlanta,

,

papers.

Seventeenth Inf.^ntry.

Mustered into the was 111., on May 24, 1861; Fredericktown (Mo. ), Greenfield (Ark.), Shiloh, Corinth, Hatchie and Vicksburg. In May, 1864, the term of enlistment having expired, the regiment was ordered to Springfield for pay and discharge. Those men and officers who re-enlisted, and those whose term had not expired, were consolidated with the Eighth Infantry, which was mustered out in the spring of 1866. Eighteenth Infantry. Organized under the provLsions of the "Ten Regiment Bill," at Anna, and mustered into the service on May 28, 1861, the term of enlistment being for three years. The regiment participated in the capture of Fort McHenry, and was actively engaged at Fort Donelson, Shiloh and Corinth. It was mustered out at Little Rock, Dec. 16, 1865, and Dec. 31, service

at

engaged

Peoria.

at

thereafter, arrived at Springfield,

ment and

111.,

for pay-

The aggregate enlistments from its organization to date of discharge (rank and file), numbered 2,043. discharge.

in the regiment,

Nineteenth

It

Infantry.

553 Mastered into the

United States service for three years, June 17. 1861, at Chicago, embracing four companies which had been accepted under the call for three months' men; participated in the battle of Stone River and in tlie Tullahoma and Chattanooga campaigns; was also eng;iged at Davis' Cross Roads, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge and Resaca. It was mustered out of service on July 1864, at Chicago. Originally consisting of nearly 1,000 men, besides a large number of recruits received during the war, its strength at the final muster-out was less than 350. Twentieth Infantry. Organized, May 14, 1861, at Joliet, and June 13, 1861, and mustered into the service for a term of three years. It participated in tlie following engagements, bat9,

Fredericktown (Mo.), Fort sieges, etc.: Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth, Tliompson's PlantaChampion Hills, Big Black River, Vicksburg, Kenesaw Mountain and Atlanta. After marching through the Carolinas, the regiment was finally ordered to Louisville, where it was mustered out, July 16, 1865, receiving its final discharge at Chicago, on July 24. tles,

tion,

Twenty-first

Infantry.

Organized under

the "Ten Regiment Bill," from the (then) Seventh Congressional District, at Mattoon, and mustered into service for three years, June 28, 1861. Its first Colonel was U. S. Grant, who was in command until August 7, when he was commissioned Brigadier-General. It was engaged at Fredericktown (Mo.), Corinth, Perry ville, Murfreesboro, Liberty Gap, Chickamauga, Jonesboro, Franklin and Nashville. The regiment re-enlisted as veterans, at Cliattanooga, in February, 1864. From June, 1864, to December, 1865, it was on duty in Texas. Mustered out at San Antonio, Dec. 16, 1865, and paid off and discharged at Springfield, Jan. 18, 1866.

Twenty-second Infantry. Organized at and mustered into service, for three Casey ville, 111., June 25, 1861; was

Belleville,

years, at

engaged at Belmont, Charleston (Mo), Sikestown, Tiptonville, Farmington, Corinth, Stone River, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Resaca, New Hope Church, and all the battles of the Atlanta campaign, except Rocky Face Ridge. It was mustered out at Springfield, July 7, 1864, the veterans and recruits, whose term of service had not expired, being consolidated with the Forty-second Regiment Illinois Infantry Volunteers. Twenty-third Infantry. The organization of the Twenty-third Infantry Volunteers commenced, .at Chicago, under the popular name of

HISTOEICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

55-t

immediatelj' upon the opening of hostilities at Sumter. The formal muster of the regiment, under the command of Col. James A. Mulligan, was made, June 15, 1861, at Chicago, when it was occupying barracks known as Kane's brewery near the river on West Polk Street. It was early ordered to Northem Missouri, and was doing garrison duty at Lexington, when, in September, 1861, it surrendered with the rest of the garrison, to the forces under the rebel General Price, and was paroled.

the

"Irish

Brigade,"

8, 1861, to June 14, 1863, it was detailed to guard prisoners at Camp Douglas. Thereafter it participated in engagements in the Virginias, as follows: at South Fork, Greenland Gap, Phi-

From

Oct.

lippi, Hedgeville, Leetown, Maryland Heights, Snicker's Gap, Kernstown, Cedar Creek. Winchester, Charlestown, Berryville, Opequan Creek,

Fisher's Hill, Harrisonburg, Hatcher's Run and Petersburg. It also took part in the siege of

Richmond and the pursuit of Lee, being present at the surrender at Appomattox. In January and February, 1864, the regiment re-enUsted as veterans, at Greenland Gap, W. Va. In August, 1864, the ten companies of the Regiment, then

numbering 440, were consolidated into five companies and designated, "Battalion, Twenty-third Regiment, Illinois Veteran Volunteer Infantry.

The regiment was thanked by Congress for its part at Lexington, and was authorized to inscribe Lexington upon its colors. (See also Mulligan, James A.) TwENTY-FOUKTH INFANTRY, (known as the Organized at Chicago, First Hecker Regiment). with two companies to-wit: the Union Cadets and the Lincoln Rifles— from the three months' service, in June, 1861, and mustered in, July 8,

—

1861.

It participated in

the battles of Perryville,

Chickamauga, Resaca, Kenesaw Mountain and other engagements in the Atlanta campaign. It was mustered out of service at

Murfreesboro,

Chicago, Augvist

A

6, 1864.

fraction of the regi-

ment, which had been recruited in the field, and whose term of service had not expired at the date of muster-out, was organized into one company and attached to the Third Brigade, First Division, Fourteenth Army Corps, and mustered out at

Camp

Butler,

August

1,

1865.

Organized from the counties of Kankakee, Iroquois, Ford, Vermilion, Douglas, Coles, Champaign and Edgar, and

Twenty-fifth

Inf.^ntry.

mustered into service at St. Louis, August

4,

1861.

participated in the battles of Pea Ridge, Stone River. Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, in the It

siege of Corinth, the battle of

Kenesaw Moun-

and innumerable skirwas mustered out at Springfield, Sept. 5, During its three years' service the regiment traveled 4,963 miles, of which 3,253 were on foot, the remainder by steamboat and railroad. Twenty-sixth Infantry. Miistered into serv-

tain, the siege of Atlanta,

mishes

;

1864.

ice,

consisting of seven companies, at Springfield,

August

On

31, 1861.

Jan.

re-enlisted as veterans.

commanding General

It

1,

1864,

the regiment

was authorized by the upon its ban-

to inscribe

"New Madrid" "Island No. 10;" "Farmington;" "Siege of Corinth;" "luka;" "Corinth 3d and 4th, 1863;" "Resaca;" "Kenesaw;" "Ezra Church;" "Atlanta;" "Jonesboro;" "Griswoldville;" "McAllister;" "Savannah;" "Columbia," and " Benton ville." It was mustered out at Louisville, July 30, 1865, and paid off and discharged, at Springfield, July 28— the regiment having marched, during its four years of service, 6,931 miles, and fought twenty -eight hard battles, besides innumerable skirmishes. Twenty-seventh Infantry. First organized, ners

with

;

only

August

seven

10, 1861,

the addition of

companies,

at

Springfield,

and organization completed by three more companies, at Cairo,

on September 1. It took part in the battle of Belmont, the siege of Island No. 10, and the battles of Farmington, Nashville, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Rocky Face Ridge, Resaca, Calhoun, Adairsville, Dallas, Pine Top Mountain and Kenesaw Mountain, as well as in the investment of Atlanta; was relieved from duty, August 35, 1864, while at the front, and mustered out at Springfield, September 20. Its veterans, with the recruits whose term of service had not expired, were consolidated with the Ninth Infantry. of Infantry. Composed Twenty-eighth companies from Pike, Fulton, Schuyler, Mason, Scott and Menard Counties; was organized at Springfield, August 15, 1861, and mustered into service for three years.

It participated in

the

Shiloh and Metamora, the siege of Vicksburg and the battles of Jackson, Mississippi, and Fort Beauregard, and in the capture of Spanish Fort, Fort Blakely and Mobile. From battles of

June, 1864, to Marcli, 1866, it was stationed in Texas, and was mustered out at Brownsville, in that State, March 15, 1866, having served four years and seven months. It was discharged, at Springfield,

May

13,

1866.

Twenty-ninth Infantry. Mustered into servat Springfield, August 19, 1861, and was engaged at Fort Donelson and Shiloh, and in the sieges of Corinth, Vicksburg and Mobile. Eight ice

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. companies were detailed for dutj* at Holly Springs, and were there captured by General Van Dorn. in December. 1862. but were exchanged, six months later. In January, 18G4, the regiment re-enlisted as veteran.s, and, from June, 1864, to November, 186.3, was on duty in Texas. It was mustered out of service in that State, Nov. 6, 1860, and received final discharge on November 28. Thirtieth Infantry. Organized at Springfield, August 38, 1861 was engaged at Belmont, ;

Fort

Donelson,

the

siege

of

Corinth,

Raymond, Champion HilLs. the Vicksburg and Jackson. Big .Slianty.

Station,

Medan

sieges of .\tlanta.

Savannah. Pocotaligo. Orangeburg. Columbia, Cheraw, and Fayetteville mustered out, July 17, 1865, and received final payment and discharge at Springfield, July 27, 1865." Thirty-first Infantry. Organized at Cairo, and there mustered into service on Sept. 18, 1861 was engaged at Belmont. Fort Donelson. ;

:

in the

Shiloh,

two expeditions against Vicks-

Thompson's Hill, Ingram Heights, Raymond, Jackson, Champion Hill, Big Shanty, Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanta, Lovejoy Station and burg, at

Jonesboro; also participated in the "March to the Sea" and took part in the battles and skirmishes at Columbia, Cheraw, Fayetteville and Bentonville. A majority of the regiment reenlisted as veterans in March, 1864. It was mustered out at Louisville, July 19, 1865, and finally discharged at Springfield, July 23.

Thirty-second

Infantry.

Organized

Springfield and mustered into service. Dec.

at 31,

the War Department, it originally consisted of ten companies of infantry, one of cavalry, and a battery. It was engaged at Fort Donelson, Shiloh, in the sieges of Corinth and Vicksburg, and in the battles of

By special authority from

1861.

La Grange. Grand Junction, Metamora, Harrison-

Kenesaw Mountain,

burg,

AUatoona, Bentonville.

Nickajack Creek, Savannah, Columbia, Cheraw and In January, 1864, the regiment

re-enlisted as veterans, and, in June, 1865,

ordered

to

Fort

there, Sept.

16,

Leavenworth.

1865,

and

was

Mustered out

finally discharged at

Springfield.

Thirty-third Infantry.

Organized and mus-

tered into service at Springfield in September,

was engaged at Fredericktown (Mo.), Port Gibson, Champion Hills, Black River Bridge, the assault and siege of Vicksburg. siege of Jackson, Fort Esperanza. and in the expedition against 1861:

Mobile.

Jan.

Nov.

1,

Tlie

24,

regiment veteranized at Vicksburg.

was mustered out, at the same point, 1865, and finally discharged at Spring-

1864;

i,.Kl,

!)nd volunteers

men — the

volunteers being under the command of General Henry. They reached the outlet of the Lake July 3, but found no Indians, being joined two days later by General Alexander's brigade, and

on the 6th by Gen. Posey's.

From here

the com-

organized into three brigades, each consisting of three regiments and a spy battalion. The First Brigade (915 strong) was i^laced imder command Alexander Posey, the Second of Brig. -Gen. under Gen. Milton K. Alexander, and the third under Gen. James D. Henry. Others who served

mands of Generals Henry and Alexander were sent for supplies to Fort Winnebago, at the Portage of the Wisconsin Colonel Ewing, with the

some of these several organizations, and afterwards became prominent in State history, were Lieut.-Col. Gurdon S. Hubbard of the Vermilion County regiment John A. McClernand, on the staff of General Posey; Maj. John Dement then State Treasurer Stinson H. Ander-

settlers in the

as officers in

;

;

;

afterwards Lieutenant-Governor; Lieut. Gov. Zadoo Casey; Maj., William McHenry; Sidney Breese (afterwards Judge of the State W. Supreme Court and United States Senator) L. D. Ewirig (as Major of a spy battalion, afterAuditor) wards United States Senator and State Alexander W. Jenkins (afterwards LieutenantGovernor) James W. Semple (afterwards United son,

;

;

States Senator) and William Weatherford (afterwards a Colonel in the Mexican War), and many Of the Illinois troops, Posey's brigade dQore. ;

was assigned to the duty of dispersing the Indians between Galetia and Rock River, Alexander's sent to intercept Black

Hawk up

the Rock River,

;

Second Regiment of Posey's brigade descending Rock River to Dixon, Posey with the remainder, going to Fort Hamilton for the protection of lead-mining region, while Atkinadvancing with the regulars up Lake Koshkonong, began the erection of temporary fortifications on Bark River near the site of the present At Fort Winnebago village of Fort Atkinson. Alexander and Henry obtained evidence of the actual location of Black Hawk's camp through Pierre Poquette, a half-breed scout and trader in the employ of the American Fur Company, whom they employed with a number of Winne= bagos to act as guides. From this point Alexander's command returned to General Atkinson's headquarters, carrying with tbem twelve day's provisions for the main army, while General Henry's (600 strong), with Major Dodge's battalion numbering 150, with an equal quantity of supiilies for themselves, started under the guidance of Poquette and his Winnebago aids to find Black Hawk's camp. Arriving on the IStli at the Winnebago village on Rock River where Black son,

HISTOEICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. Hawk

and

his

band

liad

been located, their camp

was found deserted, the Winuebagos insisting that they had gone to Cranberry ( now Horicon) Lake, a lialf -day's niarcli iiji the river. Messengers were immediately dispatched to Atkinson's headquarters, thirty live miles di.stant, to apprise him of this fact. AVhen they had proceeded about half the distance, they struck a broad, proved to be that of Black fresh trail, which Hawk's band headed westward toward the MisThe guide having deserted them in sissippi. order to warn his tribesmen that further disdeceive the whites as sembling to to the Sacs was usethe whereabouts of messengers were compelled to follow less, the

him to General Henry's camp. The discover}- produced the wildest enthusiasm among the volunand from this time-events followed in rapid Leaving as far as possible all incumsuccession. brances behind, the pursuit of the fii^nives was begun without delay, the troops wadiug through swamps sometimes in water to their armpits. Soon evidence of the character of the flight the Indians were making, in the shape of exhausted horses, blankets, and camp equipage cast aside along the trail, began to appear, and straggling bands of "Winnebagos, who had now begun to desert Black Hawk, gave information that the Indians were only a few miles in advance. On the evening of the 20th of July Henry's forces encamped at "The Four Lakes," the present Black Hawk's site of the city of Madison, Wi.s. force lying in ambush the same niglit seven or eight miles distant. During the next afternoon the rear-guard of the Indians under Neapope was overtaken and skirmishing continued until the bluffs of the Wisconsin were reached. Black teers,

,

Hawk's avowed object was to protect the passage main body of his people across the stream.

of the

The

loss of the Indians in these skirmishes has been estimated at 40 to 68. while Black Hawk claimed that it was only six killed, the loss of the whites being one killed and eight wounded. During the night Black Hawk succeeded in placing a considerable number of the women and children and old men on a raft and in canoes obtained from the Winnebagos, and sent them down the river, believing that, as non-combatants, they would be permitted by the regulars to pass Fort Crawford, at the mouth of the WisIn this he was mistaken. consin, undi.sturbed. A force sent from the fort under Colonel Ritner to intercept them, fired mercilessly upon the helpless

fugitives,

while about

number, were drowned and thirty-two

killing fifteen of their

fifty

613

women and children made prisimers. The remainder, escaping into the woods, with few exceptions died from starvation and exposure, or were massacred by tlieir enemies, the MenomiDuring the nees, acting under white ofTicers. night after the battle of Wisconsin Heights, a loud, shrill voice of

some one speaking

known tongue was heard

in

an un-

in the direction

where

Black Hawk's band was supposed to be. This caused something of a panic in Henry's camp, as it was supposed to come from some one giving orders for an attack. It was afterwards learned that the speaker was Neapope speaking in the Winnebago language in the hope that he might be heard by Poquette and the AVinnebago guides-

He was

describing the helpless condition of his

war had been forced upon them, that their women and children were starving, and that, if permitted peacefully to recross the Mississippi, they would give no further trouble. Unfortunately Poquette and the other guides had left for Fort Winnebago, so that no one was there to translate Neapope's appeal and people, claiming that the

it

failed of its object.

General Henry 's force ha ving discovered that the Indians had escaped Black Hawk heading with the bulk of his warriors towards the Mississippi spent the next and day night on the field, but on the following day (July 23) started to meet General Atkinson, who had, in the meantime, been notified of the pursuit. The head of their columns met at Blue Mounds, the same evening, a complete junction between the regulars and the volunteers being effected at Helena, a deserted village on the Wisconsin. Here by using the logs of the deserted cabins for rafts, the army crossed the river on the 27th and the 28th and the pursuit of black Hawk's fugitive band was renewed. Evidence of their famishing condition was found in the trees stripped of bark for food, the carcasses of dead ponies, with here and there the dead body of an Indian. On August 1, Black Hawk's depleted and famishing band reached the Mississippi two miles below the mouth of the Bad Ax, an insignificant stream, and immediately began trying to cross the river; but having only two or three canoes, the work was slow. About the middle of the afternoon the steam transport, "Warrior," appeared on the scene, liaving on board a score of regulars and volunteers, returning from a visit to the village of the Sioux Chief, Wabasha, to notify him that his old enemies, the Sacs, were headed in that direction. Black Hawk raised the white flag in token of surrender bnt the oflSoer

—

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

614

command claiming

that he feared treachery or an ambush, demanded that Black Hawk should come on board. This he was unable to do, as he had no canoe. After waiting a few minutes a murderous fire of canister and musketry was opened from the steamer on the few Indians on shore, who made such feeble resistance as they were able. The result was the killing of one white man and twenty -three Indians. After this exploit the "Warrior" proceeded to Prairie du Chien, twelve or fifteen miles distant, for fuel. During the night a few more of the Indians crossed the river, biit Black Hawk, seeing the hopelessness of further resistance, accompanied by the Prophet, and taking with him a party of ten warriors and thirty-five squaws and children, fled in the direction of "the dells" of the Wisconsin. On the morningof the 2d General Atkinson arrived within four or five miles of the Sao position. Disposing his forces with the regulars and Colonel Dodge's rangersin the center.the brigades of Posey and Alexander on the right and Henry's on the left, he began the pursuit, but was drawn by the Indian decoys up the river from the place where the main body of the in

Indians were trying to cross the stream. This had the effect of leaving General Henry in the rear practically without orders, but it became the means of making his command the prime factors in the climax which followed. Some of the spies attached to Henry's command having accidentally discovered the trail of the main body of the fugitives, he began the pursuit without waiting for orders and soon found himself engaged with some 300 savages, a force nearly equal to his own. It was here that the only thing like a regular battle occurred. The savages fought with the fury of despair, while Henry's force was no doubt nerved to greater deeds of courage by the insult which they conceived had been put upon them by General Atkinson. Atkinson, hearing the battle in progress and discovering that he was being led off on a false scent, soon joined Henry's force with his main army, and the steamer " Warrior," arriving from Prairie du Chien, opened a fire of canister upon the pent-up Indians. The battle .soon degenerated into a massacre. In the course of the three hours through which it lasted, it is estimated that 150 Indians were killed by fire from the troops, an equal number of both sexes and all ages drowned while attempting to cross the river or by being driven into it, while about 50 (chiefly ers.

women and

The

wounded.

loss of

children)

were made prison-

the whites was 20 killed and 13 the "battle" was nearing its

When

close it is said that Black Hawk, having repented the abandonment of his people, returned within sight of the battle-ground, but seeing the slaughter in progress which he was powerless to avert, he turned and, with a howl of rage and horror, fled into the forest. About 300 Indians (mostly noncombatants) succeeded in crossing the river in a condition of exhaustion from hunger and fatigue, but these were set upon by the Sioux imder Chief Wabasha, through the suggestion and agency of General Atkinson, and nearly one-half their number exterminated. Of the remainder many died from wounds and exhaustion, while still others perished while attempting to reach Keokuk's band who had refused to join in Black Hawk's desperate venture. Of one thousand who crossed to the east side of the river with Black Hawk in April, it is estimated that not more than 150 survived the tragic events of the next four months. General Scott, having arrived at Prairie du Chien early in August, assumed command and, on August 15, mustered out the volunteers at Dixon, 111. After witnessing the bloody climax at the

Bad Axe

of his ill-starred invasion, Black

Hawk

the Wisconsin, where he and the Prophet surrendered themselves to the Win. nebagos, by whom they were delivered to the Indian Agent at Prairie du Chien. Having been taken to Fort Armstrong on September 21, he there signed a treaty of peace. Later he was taken to Jefferson Barracks (near St. Louis) in the custody of Jefferson Davis, then a Lieutenant in the regular army, where he was held a captive during the following winter. The connection of Davis with the Black Hawk War, mentioned by many historians, seems to have been confined to In April, 1833, with the Prophet and this act. Neapope, he was taken to Washington and then to Fortress Monroe, where they were detained as prisoners of war until June 4, when they were Black Ha w k, after being taken to many released. principal cities in order to impress him with the strength of the American nation, was brought to Fort Armstrong, and there committed to the giiardianship of his rival, Keokuk, but survived this humiliation only a few years, dying on a small reservation set apart for him in Davis County, Iowa, October 3, 1838. Such is the story of the Black Hawk War, the most notable struggle with the aborigines in IlliAt its beginning both the State nois history. and national authorities were grossly misled bj' an exaggerated estimate of the strength of Black Hawk's force as to numbers and his plans for recovering the site of his old village, while fled to the dells of

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS. Black

Hawk had

conceived a low estimate of the numbers and courage of his white enemies, especially after the Stillman defeat. The cost of the war to the State and nation in money has been estimated at §2,000,000, and in sacrifice of life on both sides at not less than 1,200. The loss of life by the troops in irregular skirmishes, and in massacres of settlers by the Indians, aggregated about 250, while an equal number of regulars perished from a visitation of cholera at the various stations within tlie district affected by the war, especially at Detroit, Chicago, Fort Armstrong and Galena. Yet it is the judgment of later historians that nearly all this sacrifice of life and treasure might have been avoided, but for a series of blunders due to the blind or unscrupulous policy of ofiicials or interloping squatters upon lands which the Indians had occupied under the treaty of 1804. A conspicious blunder was call it by no harsher name to the violation by Stillman's command of the rules of civilized warfare in the attack made upon Black Hawk's messengers, sent under flag of truce to request a conference to settle terms under which he might return to the west side of the Mississippi an act which resulted in a humiliating and disgraceful defeat for its authors and proved the first step in actual war. Another misfortune was the failirre to understand Neapope's appeal for peace and permission for his people to pass beyond the Mississippi the night after the battle of Wisconsin Heights; and the third and most inexcusable blunder of all, was the refusal of the officer in command of the " Warrior " to respect Black Hawk's flag of truce and request for a conference just before the bloody massacre which has gone into history under the name of the " battle of the Bad Axe." Either of these events, properly availed of, would have prevented much of the butchery of that bloody episode which has left a stain upon the page of history, although this statement impUes no disposition to detract from the patriotism and courage of some of the leading actors upon whom the responsibiUty was placed of protecting the One frontier settler from outrage and massacre. of the features of the war was the bitter jealousy policy unwise pursued by engendered by the General Atkinson towards some of the volunteers especially the treatment of General James D. Henry, who, although subjected to repeated slights and insults, is regarded by Governor Ford and others as the real hero of the war. Too brave a soldier to shirk any responsibility and

—

—

—

too

modest to exploit his own deeds, he

felt

615

deeply the studied purpose of his sujierior to ignore him in the conduct of the campaign— purpose which, as in the affair at tlie Bad Aie, was defeated by accident or by General Henry's soldierly sagacity and attention to duty, although he gave out to the public no utterance of complaint. Broken in health by tlie hardships and exposures of the ctimpaign, he went South soon after the war and died of consumption, unknown and almost alone, in the city of New Orleans, less two years later. Aside from contemporaneous newspaper accounts, in

monographs, and

pubhc

manuscripts on file epoch in State most comprehensive records of the

libraries relating to this

history, the

Black Hawk War are to be found in the " Life of Black Hawk," dictated by himself (1834) Wakefield's "History of the War between the United States and the Sac and Fox Nations" (1834); Drake's " Life of Black Hawk" (1854); Ford's "History of Ilhnois" (1854); Reynolds' "Pioneer History of Ilhnois; and "My Own Times"; ;

David.son

&

Stuve's and Moses' Histories of

Illi-

"The Northwest and Chicago"; Armstrong's "The Sauks and the Black Hawk War," and Reuben G. Thwaite's "Story of the Black Hawk War" (1893.) CHICAGO HEIGHTS, a village in the southern part of Cook County, twenty-eight miles south of the central part of Chicago, on the Chicago & nois; Blanchard's

Eastern Illinois, the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern and the Michigan Central Railroads is located in an agricultural region, but has some manufactures as well as good schools also has one newspaper. Population (1900), 5,100. ;

—

GRANITE,

a city of Madison Couuty, located Louis on the lines of the & Alton; Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis; Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis (Illinois), and the Wabash Itailways. It is adjacent to the Merchants' Terminal Bridge across the Mississippi and has considerable manufacturing and grain-storage business; has two newspapers. Population (1900), 3,122. H.iRLEM, a village of Proviso Township, Cook County, and suburb of Chicago, on the line of the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad, nine miles west of the terminal station at Chicago. Harlem five miles north of St.

Burlington;

the Chicago

embraced the village of Oak Park, now a part of the city of Chicago, but, in 1884, was set off and incorporated as a village. Considerable manufacturing is done here. Population (1900), originally

4,085.

HARVEY, a city of Cook County, and an important manufacturing suburb of the city of Chi-

HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.

616

cago, three miles southwest of the southern city It is on the line of the Illinois Central limits. and the Chicago & Grand Trunk Railways, and

has extensive manufactures of harvesting, street and steam railway machinery, gasoline stoves, enameled ware, etc. also has one newspaper and ample school facilities. Population (1900), 5,395. ;

IOWA CENTRAL RAILWAY,

a railway line

having its principal termini at Peoria, 111., and Manly Junction, nine miles north of Mason City, Iowa, with several lateral branches making connections with Centerville, Newton, State Center, Story City, Algona and Northwood in the latter The total length of hne owned, leased State. and operated by the Company, ofScially reported in 1899, was 508.98 miles, of which 89.76 milesincluding 3.5 miles trackage facihties on the Peoria & Pekin Union between Iowa Junction and Peoria were in Illinois. The Illinois division extends from Keithsburg where it enters

—

—

—

the State at the crossing of the Mississippi to Peoria. (History.) The Iowa Central Railway Company was originally chartered as the Central Railroad Company of Iowa and the road completed in October, 1871. In 1873 it passed into the hands of a receiver and, on June 4, 1879, was reorganized under the name of the Central Iowa Railway Company. In May, 1883, this company purchased the Peoria & Farmington Raili-oad, which was incorporated into the main line, but defaulted and passed into the hands of a receiver December 1, 1886; the line was sold under foreclosure in 1887 and 1888, to the Iowa Central Railway Company, which had effected a new organization on the basis of §11,000,000 common stock, 16,000,000 preferred stock and $1,379,625 temporary debt certificates convertible into pre-

—

ferred stock, and $7,500,000 first mortgage bonds. The transaction was completed, the receiver discharged and the road turned over to the new company. May 15, 1889.— (FINANCIAL). The total capitalization of the road in 1899 was 521,337,558, of which §14,159,180 was in stock, §6,650,095 in bonds and §538,283 in other forms of indebtedness. The total earnings and income of the line in Illinois for the same year were §532,568, and the ex-

penditures §566,333. SPARTA, a city of Randolph County, situated on the Ceutralia & Chester and the Mobile & Ohio Railroads, twenty miles northwest of ChesIt has ter and fifty miles southeast of St. Louis.

a number of manufacturing establishments, including plow factories, a woolen mill, a cannery and creameries also has natural gas. The first settler was James McClurken, from South Carolina, who .settled here in 1818. He was joined by James Armour a few years later, who bought land of McClurken, and together they laid out ;

village, which first received the name of Columbus. About the same time Robert G. Shannon, who had been conducting a mercantile business in the vicinity, located in the town and became the first Postmaster. In 1839 the name of the town was changed to Sparta. Mr. McClurken, its earliest settler, appears to have been a man of considerable enterprise, as he is credited with having built the first cotton gin in this vicinity, besides still later, erecting saw and flour mills and a woolen mill. Sparta was incorporated as a village in 1837 and in 1859 as a city. A colony of members of the Reformed Presbyterian Church (Covenanters or "Seceders") established at Eden, a beautiful site about a mile from Sparta, about 1833, cut an important figure in the history of the latter place, as it became the means of attracting here an industrious and thriving population. At a later period it became one of the most important stations of the "Underground Railroad" (so called) in Illinois (which The population of Sparta (1890) was 1,979; see).

a

(1900), 3,041.

TOLUCA, on the

a city of Marshall County situated Topeka & Santa Fe

line of the Atchison,

Railroad, 18 miles southwest of Streator.

It is in

the center of a rich agricultural district has the usual chm-ch and educational facilities of cities Population of its rank, and two newspapers. ;

(1900), 2,629.

WEST HAMMOND, a village situated in the northeast corner of Thornton Township, Cook County, adjacent to Hammond, Ind., from which It is on it is separated by the Indiana State line. the Michigan Central Railroad, one mile south of the Chicago City limits, and has convenient access to several other lines, including the Chicago & Erie; New York, Chicago & St. Louis, and Western Indiana Railroads. Like its Indiana neighbor, it is a manufacturing center of mucli importance, was incorporated as a village in 1892, and has grown rapidly within the last few years, having a population, according to the census of 1900, of 2,935.

COLES COUNTY

S I

'--m^

I

History of Coles County

CHAPTER

About 1880, after preliminary borings had been made, a shaft was sunk at Mattoon to a depth of nine hundred feet, and mining operations begun at that depth upon a vein about four or five feet thick. It was found to be a good free burning

I.

PRIMITIVE CONDITIONS.

quality of effort to

— —

THE COUNTY BEFORE SETTLEMENT PHYSICAL FEATURES AND CHARACTERISTICS GEOLOGY WATER COURSES— FLORA— INDIGENOUS PLANTS AND FRUITS SOME HISTORIC GROVES— THE PRAIRIE SOIL AND ITS PRODUCTS WILD ANIMALS, BIRDS AND OTHER GAME—REPTILES AND INSECTS—A PIONEEr's RECREATION AND A BACKWOODS TWILIGHT SCENE CLIMATE AND EARLY DISEASES CHANGES PRODUCED BY CULTIVATION AND DRAINAGE.

—

—

—

—

When

the

now known

first

white

men came

as

Coles

County,

to the territory

found

they

no

great mountains or splendid scenery, but a coun-

water courses, and They found a country whose rivers and creeks were not generally attractive, with gravelly banks and sandy bottoms, and surrounded by picturesque views, as in many other places, but streams bordered with black soil along the smaller creeks, and generally with clay banks along the larger ones, except in a few places along the Embarras, where there are rocky bluffs and somewhat rugged very level except near near them only moderately try

hilly.

shores.

Geology.

— No

systematic and

scientific

in-

vestigation of the formation of the strata below

the

surface

of

the

land

in

Coles

County has

Beneath the soil is yellow clay, below that a hard blue clay, and still lower, in many parts, is a layer of gravel and sand, which is full of water, and is the source of the water

ever been made.

was

some of

be mined profitably.

in

the

about

west

part

mine was closed of

the

A

shaft

city

of

same time, but before also was abandoned. Thin

the

it

was taken out and used by

the early

At an early day stone was quarried along the Embarras to some extent for building purposes, and for the use of the railroads; but for many years that has been abandoned. The LeBaron History states that the "quality of the stone was

and of but little value for building purSince then, however, other beds have been opened up and a stone of light brown color has been found and tested, which has proven of such superior quality that the Court House, the poor,

poses."

Christian Church and other buildings at Charleston have been constructed of

it.

Some thirty or thirty-five years ago gas was found near the north line of the county in Seven Hickory Township, and also in the town of Paradise, at a depth varying from seventy to one hundred feet, which had fairly good illuminating Several residences in the and heating qualities. latter township have, for many years, been lighted It has also been and heated by this natural gas. found recently in the west part of Mattoon at The pressure of the gas about the same depth. so far found is small, and it therefore cannot be

below,

sufficiently thick to

but after several years of

at a profit, the

settlers.

depth are strata of stone, sand, slate and coal. Salt water is found in abundance at various in

coal, it

reaching the coal, it veins of coal cropped out at an early day along the high bluffs upon the Embarras River, and

made

Coal has not been found

started

Charleston

supply obtained for the City of Mattoon at a depth of sixty to seventy-five feet. Below that is a whitish shale and, at intervals at a greater

depths.

soft

mine

about 1885 and the project abandoned.

is it

available for general use.

Whether

this

gas

generated at about the depth found, or whether is a leak through some crevice in the rock far which,

if

abundant supply,

penetrated, is

a

would produce an

much mooted

question.

Oil has, within the past year or two, been found

deposits in

Clark County near the southeastern part of

HISTORY OF COLES COUNTY Coles and land in that vicinity in this county has been leased for the purpose of putting down test wells. Parties have also executed leases recently in other parts of Coles County for the

ing into the

which overlies

of stone

known

as

Trenton Rock,

and gas in other States, is estimated to lie from twenty-five hundred to three thousand feet below the surface in this county, and

oil

some enterprising

individuals or sooner or later penetrate that rock

will

and settle the question whether oil or gas can be found here in paying quantities. Up to this time the "bowels of the earth" in this county have never been penetrated beyond a depth of si.xteen to seventeen hundred feet. Water Courses. The principal water course in the county is the Embarras River, so named by the early French explorers, and their pronuncia-

—

Embarras

Edgar County,

northwest corner of

at the

Ashmore Township.

A

The stratum

in

flows through the town of East Oakland, empty-

same purpose.

company

and Brush Creek, heading

29;

small

starting

creek,

near

the

village

of

Ashmore, flows northwest and empties into Brush Creek just above its mouth. Another creek, heading in Ashmore Township, which flows north and pours into the Embarras just below the mouth of Brush Creek, is called "Devil's Run." Pole Cat Creek starts in Edgar County, flows through the town of Ashmore into the Embarras about at Section

N. R. 10 E. west through the north and into the Embarras. several heads in the as East Branch, West

8 in T. 13

Whetstone Creek flows Township Hurricane Creek has town of Hutton known

part of Ilutton

Branch, Lizard Creek, Miller's Branch and Clear All flow southward, forming junctions

Creek.

name has been corrupted into "Ambraw," which is the spelling now very commonly

at various points until they reach the

This stream often overi^owed its banks in early days, and, for several miles above its mouth, its waters sometimes united with those of the Wabash in high freshets; and, even when the waters of both were within their banks, the country between Fort Vincennes and the Embarras River was swampy. A large tract between those places was then called "Purgatory

Streams on the west side of the Embarras, in Coles County, are Greasy Creek, which heads in Seven Hickory Township and flows northeast through the north part of Morgan Township into the Embarras, and Dry Branch, which, heading about in the central part of Morgan, flows northeast into the Embarras. Kickapoo Creek, heading near Mattoon and having two principal branches on the north; Riley Creek, which has heads in LaFayette, Humboldt and Seven Hickory Townships, and Cossell Creek, heading in Seven Hickory Township all form a junction just before they reach the Kick-

tion of the

used.

Swamp," or

"Devil's Holes,"

and sometimes men, were

in

lost,

which animals,

so that the serv-

an e.xperienced guide were required at certain seasons in going over that swampy country by the early travelers, when they desired to journey from or to Kaskaskia over the obices

of

scure path known as the "Vincennes Trace," which stretched between those settlements. These troublesome conditions caused the French settlers to give the name "Embarras" to this stream. The French word having a similar meaning to that our word "embarrass." The Embarras heads in Champaign County and enters Coles County near the northwest corner of East Oakland Township, and continuing west of south, emerges from the county near the

southwest corner of Section 23 T. 11 N. R. 9 E., thence it flows south and east to the Wabash. The principal tributary streams flowing into the Embarras River in Coles County are Hogue's :

Branch which, heading

Douglas County, flows of Oakland, thence northwest into the Embarras Donica's Branch, heading in Ashmore Township, flows north, forming a junction with Brush Creek about Section

down near

to

the

in

village

;

in

Embarras

Cumberland County.

:

—

The

empties into the Embarras in the southeast corner of Charleston Township. apoo.

latter

Indian Creek, having two branches (North and South), heads in Pleasant Grove Township and flows east into the Embarras.

In the southeast part of Pleasant Grove Townare the headwaters of Cottonwood Creek, which flows south into Cumberland County, forming a junction there with Muddy Creek, which heads still farther north, and Clear Creek, which heads in the extreme northwestern part ship

same township,

of the

all

reaching the Embarras

near the south line of Cumberland County. A smaller river is the Kaskaskia, generally called

"Okaw." The derivation of this name is not quite so obvious as in the Ambraw. The French settlers who the name Kaskaskia, early began to

the

shorter

case of the

gave

it

shorten

it

by referring to

only as the "Kas."

it

by the

first

syllable

Prefixing the article

"Au"

HISTORY OF COLES COUNTY common

became "Au Kas." wliicli was easily and naturally changed by the later This stream American settlers into "Okaw." heads in Champaign County and enters Coles at the dividing line between the towns of Humboldt and North Okaw, and flowing southwest goes out of the county at Section 19 T. 13 X. R. 7 E. Thence continuing south and west, it empties into the Mississippi near the place where stood tlie old trading post of Kaskaskia in Randolph County, which was taken from the English, July 4, 177S, by Col. George Rogers Clark. A coincidence is, that the Embarras enters the Wabash River but a little way below Vincennes, where stood that other fort and trading post, which was captured the following spring from the English and Indians by Colonel Clark. These victories of George Rogers Clark^the one near the mouth of the Kaskaskia on the western border of Illinois, and the other near the mouth of the Embarras at the eastern border of the State— settled forever the fact that Illinois and all the vast Northwest Territory should, (a

practice),

it

thenceforward, be a part of the United and not belong to some foreign country.

The

tributaries

Kaskaskia

the

to

in

States

County are few and rather small creeks. Flat Branch heads in Seven Hickory, and flows west across Humboldt Township, emptying into the Kaskaskia near the northwest corner of Section 1 T. 14 N. R. 7 E. Crab Apple Creek starts in the town of Humboldt, and flows west through the south part of North Okaw, reaching the Kaskaskia in Moultrie County. Whitley's Creek begins

in the

town of Mattoon

and flows west into the Okaw. The streams just mentioned are the most important. Butter Milk Creek is a small stream starting in the northeast part of the town of Paradise and, flowing south and west into Cumberland County,

Muddy

empties into

The

Little

Wabash

Creek.

Wabash,

which becomes quite a pours its waters into the has one head near the city of

large stream before

River,

it

Mattoon and another in Shelby County. The Coles County branch runs south through Paradise into Cumberland County, where it joins the Shelby County branch and flows south and east, reaching the Big of

Gallatin

Wabash

at the northeast corner

County.

These were the streams which the pioneers found here and along whose borders the first settlements were made. They carried larger

con-

which was due not so much, perhaps, to a greater rainfall (although that was somewhat larger then), as to the vast quantities of water stored and retained in the sloughs and ponds upon the prairies, and which fed their waters gradually and constantly to the streams, thus keeping up the flow during the dry season and augmenting it in times of heavy rains. The Embarras, Kaskaskia and Little Wabash in early days were all navigable streams for small craft for a consider.ible distance above tlieir mouths, and both state and national appropriations were made for their improvement dition in those early