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977.354 T21e
Early History
Washington Illinois
and Vicinity
Early History of Washington, Illinois and Vicinity
Published by the Tazewell County Reporter Washington, Illinois
IN ILONOR OF
WILLIAM HOLLAND ILUST SETTLER WASHINGTON, ILLINOIS
Bronze tablet embedded on the band stand in Commercial Square park, Washington, in memory of William Holland, Washington's first settler in 1825. Designed and made by the Brass Foundry Company of Peoria. It was through the activities of Miss Emma J. Scott that the city and township of Washington appropriated money to pay the ex- pense of installing the tablet.
P
LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF H LINOIS
971.254 +2le
1828
1926
METHODIST CHURCH WASHINGTON. ILLINOIS
1828 CIRCUIT RIDERS 1837
JESSE B. WALKER - PETER CARTWRIGHT - WILLIAM S. CRISSEY - NATHAN W. J. CURTISS
STEPHEN R. BEGGS-S. L. ROBINSON JAMES LATTA - WILLIAM SEE ZADOC HALL - J. MCHENRY - JOEL ARRINGTON - L. S. WALKER - A. E PHELPS
PASTORS
JAJ7 RICHARD BIRT
1651 H. RITCHIE.
1475-76 W E. STEVENS
1837 CHARLES ATKINSON
1652 W. C. CUMMING
1876-77 G. W. MARTIN
1834 R. H. MOFFETT
1852 H. M. P. BROWN
1877-78 G. W. MEREDITH
1836 JOHN H. WILSON
1853 A. WOLISCROFT
1878-81 U. Z. GILMER
1839 ZADOC HALL
1854 R. N. MORSE
1881-83 J. J. WALTERS
1640 J. C. FINCKARL
1855 A.M. EARLY
1983-65 WM. MCPHEETEKS
IHAL R.H. MOFFETT
1856 SUPPLIED
1885-86 RICHARD CREWES
1611 ENOCH G. FLACONER
1057 J. C. RYBOLT
1888-89
L. L. KING
1842 R. H. MOFFETT
1058 ZADOC HALL
1889-3 0.T. DWINELL
1612 J. B. HOUTS
1859 L. B. KENT
1893-97
W. A. SHOOP
1649 GEORGE WHITMAN
1560-62 K APPLEBEE
1697-97 R. W. AMES
1844 ZADOC HALL
1842-64 J. BORLAND
1899-00 D. G. MURRAY
1845 5. HALL
JA64 W. F. GRAVES
1900-02 JOHN WILKINSON
1845 C. BABCOCK
1865 A. F. HALL
1902-03 WM. WOOLLEY
1847 STEPHEN R. BEGGS
1866 J. C. EVANS
1903-06 W. R. WATSON
1848 R. H. BRENT
1867-HA E. D. HALL
106-10 J. W. PRUEN
1849 A. R. SHINN
1868-70 R. G. PEARCE
1VID-12 J. E. MERCER
1047 Z. RIACH
1870-71 C. C. KNOWLTON
1912-15 J. L. MILLER
1850 T. P. ROYAL
1471-72 L.B. KENT
1915-21 J. D. CALHOUN
150 WM. GADDIS
IR72-73 R. A. COWEN
1921-23 K.W. AMES
1651 W. C. CUMMING
IP71-75 C. W. HAVERMALE
1923 5. L. MYERS
Bronze tablet hung on the walls of the new Methodist church in Washington giving a list of circuit riders and pastors of the church for one hundred years. Designed and made by the Brass Foundry Company of Peoria. Miss Emma J. Scott raised the funds by public subscription for the tablet.
Rev. John J. Ryan, historian of the Methodist Conference, pays Miss Scott the following tribute: "The tablet is a beautiful piece of work and you are to be commended for your part in it. There are only a few who have sentiment and the historic instinct combined in one person, and to such we are indebted for the valuable phases of history. A good deal of history consists of guesses, but one who reveals the real character of action renders the substantial service. If the Wash- ington church should ever be destroyed by fire the tablet should be saved first, it for has plenty research cost of and careful discrimination."
General 1 0 Sept 40 Van!
094699
Story of the Settlement of Washington, One of the Oldest Towns.
The "History of Washington, Ill., and Its Early Set- tlers", as compiled and read by one of the city's early promi- nent citizens, John W. Dougherty, attorney at law, at the Centennial celebration held in Washington, July 4, 1876.
Responding to the request and recommendation of the Congress of the United States, made on the 6th day of Sep- tember, A. D. 1780, the state of Virginia did, on the 2nd day of January, A. D. 1781, yield to the Congress of the United States, for the benefit of the said states, all right, title and claim which the latter had to the territory northwest of the Ohio river, and on the 1st of March, A. D. 1784, by deed of cession, conveyed the property of Virginia in said territory to the United States-being a little more than ninety-two years tgo. On the 13th of July, A. D. 1787, the Congress of the United States passed an Act for the government of the ceded territory, known as the Ordinance of 1778; by which ordinance it was provided, among other things, that said ter- ritory should in the future be erected into not less than three nor more than five free and independent states, with all the rights, powers and immunities of the original states; in con- formity to which provision the Congress of the United States divided the territory thus ceded into the five states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin.
On the 3rd day of February, A. D. 1809, the Congress of the United States enacted a territorial government for the territory of Illinois, and provided for the first meeting of the territorial legislature at Kaskaskia, and subsequently, on the 18th day of April, A. D. 1818, passed an enabling Act, which provided for the election, by the qualified voters of said ter- ritory, of thirty-three representatives to form a convention to determine whether it be, or be not, expedient to form a constitution and state government for the people within the said territory ; which convention, on the 26th day of August, A. D. 1818, framed the first constitution of the state of Illi- nois, which constitution was adopted and remained in force until the 1st day of April, A. D. 1848; the people having in convention, on the 31st day of August, A. D. 1847, framed a new constitution, which was ratified at an election held on the 6th day of March, A. D. 1848. This continued in force until the 8th day of August, A. D. 1870, when it was super- ceded by our present constitution.
4
EARLY HISTORY OF WASHINGTON, ILL.
The county of Tazewell was organized A. D. 1827, prior to which time it was a part of Peoria county, and was not one of the original twenty-two counties that furnished dele- gates to the convention that framed the state constitution of 1818. Among the earliest settlements of the state was a French settlement at or near the present site of Wesley City, which was also one of the earliest permament settlements in Tazewell county.
The first settlement in the town of Washington, or its vicinity, of which we have any account, was made in the spring of 1825, by William Holland, Sr., who came here from Peoria-then Fort Cark. He was formerly from North Caro- lina, and was employed by the United States government as a blacksmith for the Indians, who then inhabited this part of Illinois, and for several years after settling here he con- tinued to work for the Indians. Prior to his removal here, he had built a log house near the present site of A. G. Dan- forth's residence. It was the only house and his the only family in or near Washington until 1826. At the time of his location here, Holland's nearest neighbor was Thomas Cam- lin who lived on Farm Creek, some three miles east of Peoria. Camlin was a pleasant gentleman and a good neighbor, al- ways ready to entertain his guests with spicy stories and thrilling incidents of his personal adventures with the In- dians, whom he used to shoot at a distance of one-half to three-quarters of a mile, and Holland whiled away many a pleasant evening in his society.
William Holland, Sr., was born in the county of Lincoln, North Carolina, in 1780. In the year 1815 he removed to Illinois Territory and settled at Edwardsville, in Madison county, where he remained three years; then removed Me- nard county, where he remained two years, and from thence to Peoria in 1820. During his long and eventful life he was married three times, and was the father of twenty-one chil- dren-fourteen by his first wife and seven by his second wife. He had eighty-two grandchildren, most of whom are still living, and fifty great grandchildren. He died at his late residence in this town on the 27th day of November, A. D. 1871, at the advanced age of ninety-one years. Up to within a few years of his death he was vigorous in body and in full possession of his mental faculties. His son, Lawson Holland, was born in North Carolina, and came here with his parents.
In the spring of 1826 Holland commnced improving a farm in the northwest quarter of section No. 24, town 26, range 3 west of the third principal meridian, just east of the original town of Washington, and embracing a part of Hol-
5
EARLY HISTORY OF WASHINGTON, ILL.
land, Dorsey, Walthan and Robinson's addition to the town.
In 1826 William Thompson came from Ohio and settled on the farm now occupied by John Johnson, and made some improvement on it.
The same year William Weeks came from Indiana and located on the farm now occupied by Peter Portman, and built a house on it.
The same year John Redman, also of Indiana, settled on the old Portman place, near Squire Baker's farm.
These four families were the only white inhabitants un- til 1827, when Ira Crosby of New York came and located on the place now occupied by James R. Crane, wehre he made some improvements. He left two sons, Uriah, now of Mor- ton township, and Nelson.
The same year George Burrow of Tennessee located on the Peter P. Scott farm, and commenced to improve it, and William Birkett of Lancaster, England, came and located on and improved the farm south of town, where he now resides. He is one of the few remaining old settlers.
James Holland, a brother of William Holland, Sr., also from North Carolina, located here, remained for three of four years, and then removed to Macoupin county.
The little community now numbered eight families.
In 1828 James Harvey came from Ohio and located on what is known as the Benjamin Kindig farm, one and a-half miles northwest. of town. He made some improvements on the land and remained there until 1834, when he removed to Deer Creek and improved a farm there, and afterwards removed to Groveland, where he died in 1859. He left a large family, of whom only Wesley B. remains here.
In 1829 Peter P. Scott came from Ohio and bought out the claim of George Burrow, and setted and remained there until his death in June, 1869. He left a large family, few, if any, of whom remain in the county. Scott was the only addition to the little community in that year.
Some time in 1830 William Heath came from Ohio and located in Wrenn's grove, near the present site of Wade T. Wrenn's residence. He left a family of daughters, of whom Mrs. Adam M. Switzer only resides here.
The same year Henson Thomas, a son-in-law of Heath's, came from Ohio and located on the farm now occupied by Mrs. George W. Woodcock, formerly Thomas' wife. He left two sons, William and Simon H., who still reside in Wash- ington township.
The same year James McClure, from Indiana, came and located, and made improvements upon the farm now occu-
6
EARLY HISTORY OF WASHINGTON, ILL.
pied by Orin Castle. He remained in the neighborhood until his death. His son, Hamilton, and perhaps others of his family, still reside in this vicinity.
There were now thirteen families besides those stopping temporarily. There were several other settlements in the county at this time, the nearest being in Deer Creek and Morton townships. Settlements were made in Deer Creek as early as 1828.
The winter of 1830 and 1831 is memorable on account of its great snow storm. The snow fell to the depth of three feet, and was drifted and banked up in many places to the height of six or eight feet. Most of the wild game perished, either by being smothered under the snow, or by being cut off from their base of supplies; and many of the inhabitants, scattered over this sparsely settled country, suffered in con- sequence of this loss of game, upon which they confidently relied for the animal element of their food-many of them not having made other provision for this part of their sus- tenance. But energetic, determined men cannot be foiled, even by great difficulties. They overcame the obstruction by the use of snowshoes, which carried them safely over the top of the drifts to the homes of their more fortunate neighbors who had a small supply, which they glady divided with the unfortunates. This exercise of benevolence and sympathy prevented any great or protracted suffering.
Reuben Bandy came from Kentucky in 1831, and bought out the claim of Ira Crosby, and settled there. One of the early marriages in Washington was celebrated at his home in October, 1833, between Lawson Holland and Elizabeth Bandy, both still living. The knot matrimonial was tied by the Rev. Nathan Curtiss, and must have been exceedingly well done, seeing it has held fast for almost forty-three years. while many recently tied matrimonial knots have slipped in a few months, from which we infer they were not well tied. There may have been other causes, but if so they are too deep for our comprehension. Be that, as it may, seven more years will entitle Lawson and Elizabeth to a golden wedding, when and where Lawson will be prepared to entertain his guests with a much fuller history of the early times of Washington that we can give, and also to accept such golden tokens of appreciation as his numerous friends may feel dis- posed to contribute.
In 1831 Abraham Van Meter came from Kentucky, and located on the farm now occupied by Adam M. Switzer. He remained here until his death, in 1868. He left a large fam- ily, some of whom still live in this vicinity.
7
EARLY HISTORY OF WASHINGTON, ILL.
During this year the Rev. Nathan Curtiss, a Methodist minister, located on the farm now occupied by W. T. Higgins, biult a house, and made other improvements. He lived here for several years. Three of his daughters, Mrs. Peter Fifer, Mrs. Charles Kern and Mrs. Wheaton, still live in this vicinity.
In the fall of 1831 Col. Benjamin Mitchell came from Louden county, Virginia, and built a house on the farm now occupied by Wade T. Wrenn, near the south ine of Wrenn's grove. He was an active, energetic citizen. He was elected to the legislature in 1834, where he served with distinction, and was elected to the state senate in 1836. He died in 1840. He was succeeded in the senate by Major R. N. Cullom.
The next year added quite a number of immigrants, among who was John Durham from Baltimore, Maryland. He occupied the dwelling in which William Witte now resides, and was, for a long time, proprietor of the first saw mill operated here. He now lives in Peoria.
About this time Philip Varble and Elias Slaughter from Hardin county, Kentucky, and Jonathan and Thomas Reed from Indiana, and Walter and Thomas Birkett from Lanca- shire, England, located here and improved farms south of town.
John Johnson also came in this year. He came here from Schuyler county, in this state, to which place he had emi- grated from Ohio while Illinois was yet a territory. He is one of the oldest settlers of Illinois now living here. He located upon the farm on which he now resides.
The Rev. Richard B. McCorkle, from North Carolina, was one of the immigrants of this year. He located on the Huguet farm, northwst of town.
The country now began to fill up rapidly by immigration from the older states and other parts of this state, but the addition of their names would unnecessarily prolong this narrative.
As already stated, William Holland, Sr., built the first house and improved the first farm in the vicinity of Wash- ington.
The second house in the town was build by William Weeks, on the farm now occupied by Peter Portman. It was built in the southeast corner of the orchard.
The third house was built by Charles S. Dorsey, who emigrated here from Kentucky in 1831, on the site of the Corwin place, south of Peoria street. It was occupied by Dorsey as a dwelling and store. In it was exhibited the first stock of goods offered for sale in Washington, consisting of
8
EARLY HISTORY OF WASHINGTON, ILL.
dry goods, groceries, boots and shoes, etc., etc. The goods were purchased by Dorsey in St. Louis.
The above were all log houses.
The fourth house was also built by Dorsey, on the pres- ent site of Dr. Allen's block. It was a one story frame house, the first frame house ever erected in Washington. It was covered and sided with clap-boards, and occupied 16 by 36 or 40 feet of ground. It was doubtless a marvel of architec- ture in its time, and was used as a dwelling, tavern and bar.
The fifth building erected was built by Jehu Linley, and used by him as a store room, he having purchased the stock of goods brought to town by Dorsey. That building still stands and is now used by Thomas Handsaker as the office of the Washington Herald. The carpenter work was done by Robert Smith, one of Washington's first carpenters.
The sixth building was a log house, built by Mr. Straight, near the present site of Kingsbury & Snyder's grocery store.
The seventh building was a one and a-half story log house, built by Samuel Hawkins, on the north end of H. L. Price's lot, used as a dwelling.
The eighth building was a two story frame, built by Dorsey, on the present site of Anthony & Denhart's bank. It was used by August Whipple as a dry goods store. This was the second store opened in Washington.
Dorsey was one of the active business men connected with Washington's early history. We find his name figuring in all its earlier enterprises, and connected with one of its largest additions.
All of the above mentioned buildings were erected prior to 1835.
In 1834 William Holland, Sr., laid out the original town of Washington-being a part of that part of town lying east of Main street.
The first building erected in the original town plat was put up by Joseph Kelso, Sr., in April, 1834, shortly after his arrival here from Indiana. It was built upon the lot now occupied by Mrs. Catherine McGinnis. Kelso and a Mr. Wagoner had purchased three lots of Holland for one dollar and fifty cents each, upon a year's credit. That part of the town was heavily timbered, and much valuable timber grew in the street in front of those lots, which, by agreement, the person building the first house would be entitled to use, so Kelso and Wagoner settled the question of who should build first, by lot. Fortune, as usual, favored Uncle Joe, and he built first.
9
EARLY HISTORY OF WASHINGTON, ILL.
Kelso not only built the first house in the original town, but also opened one of the first farms wholly in the prairie, the other settlers having clung to the timber. No doubt they regarded him as a radical innovator, if not a hero. Present experience, however, approves his judgment.
The same season, Styles and Titus Hungerford built the house now occupied by Elias Benford, known as the Sherman House.
This brings our narrative down to 1835, where we will leave this branch of it for the present.
We have already shown that William Holland, Sr., was the first settler, the first to build a house and improve a farm, and we find him also the first mechanic. As such he carried on a blacksmith shop from his first induction into the coun- try for several years. He did a general blacksmith business, and also repaired guns not only for the white inhabitants, but also for the Indians, who were then numerous in this part of the state. His was the only shop in town prior to 1835, when Brazilla Allee built the large two-story frame building on Main street, in which his widow, Mrs. Sarah Allee, resides. Allee used part of the building for a black- smith shop, and William Spencer used a part of it as a wagon shop. This was the first shop in town in which wagons were manufactured. Prior to this time, the few wagons used here were imported. In those early days wagons were a luxury not enjoyed by every one, and the owner of a wagon was considered particularly fortunate. Traveling was done on foot or on horseback, and hauling principally on sleds. Some, however, of the more ingenious citizens, constructed a home- made substitute for a wagon by sawing wheels out of a log of wood and adjusting them to a rude gearing made with an ordinary chopping ax.
Shortly after his arrival here Peter P. Scott opened a blacksmith shop near his residence, which he carried on for several years.
The manufacture of tinware was first commenced here in 1848, by Charles S. N. Anthony. Before that time tin- ware, stoves and stove pipe were brought here and sold by the merchants.
The first grist mill was built by William Holland, Sr., in 1827. It was on the Holland homestead, west of his dwelling. It was run by horse-power, and was called a band mill. It was the only one in the neighborhood-its nearest competitor being located at Elkhart Grove, 60 miles distant. It consisted of one run of burrs; they were procured in Peo- ria for $60, and our informant thinks they were manufac-
10
EARLY HISTORY OF WASHINGTON, ILL.
tured there. These band mills were an institution in "those days." They were a cheap, simple contrivance in fact, but stil quite expensive when we consider the small amount of money possessed by those pioneers. The mill consisted of one large wheel, the hub or nave of which was a log of wood eight or ten feet long, hewed eight square, set in a perpen- dicular position, and supported with numerous arms or spokes. The lower end was secured by a pivot, on which it turned, to another timber fastened in the ground, the upper end being secured in like manner to a timber above. The arms or spokes were each supplied with several movable pins and constituted an adjustabe rim upon which the band, made of untanned cow hides cut into strips one and a-half to two inches wide and rolled into a rope, was stretched. The band was attached directly to the trundle-head by being wound three times around it-this latter precaution was taken to prevent loss of power by the slipping of the band. The numerous pins in the arms were used to take up the slack caused by the stretching quality of the band. The horse or horses used were attached to levers framed into the hub. They worked under the arms, which were several feet from the ground. The wheel, when ready for use, resembled an enormous clothes reel about forty feet in diameter. The bolting was done by hand. The flour produced by this pro- cess was a cross betwen the Extra-Quadruple X flour of to- day and ordinary graham flour, and no doubt was healthy and nutritious. The owner of the mill did not supply the power-the person using it had to furnish the horses. Many persons came fifty miles to this mill, and sometimes had to wait two weeks for their grinding.
The first flour, however, made in Washington was made by Lawson Holland, Esq., in 1826 or 1827. It was produced by breaking the wheat with a pestle in a mortar and sifting through a hand sieve. The mortar was made by excavating or hollowing out one end of a log of wood, resembling a butcher's block, the other end of which rested firmly on the ground. The pestle was a heavy piece of round timber, the lower end of which was shaped to fit the excavation in the mortar, the upper end being fastened to a spring-pole, which aided in raising the weight of the pestle. Near the lower end of this pestle were four cross pins or handles for the use of the operators. This pestle seems to have been designed on the principle of a perpendicular battering ram. The idea was, perhaps, borrowed from the ancients. The hand seive spoken of was not the ordinary wire seive of these times. It was peculiar to those early days. It was made by draw-
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EARLY HISTORY OF WASHINGTON, ILL.
ing a fawn skin tightly across a wooden hoop like a drum head, and perforating the skin with a hot iron rod the size desired. Through these holes in the skin the finer particles of the broken grain escaped during the shaking process. What remained in the seive was returned to the mortar and repounded, and then sifted again until all the flour was sepa- rated from the bran. By this tedious process Lawson pro- duced the flour mentioned.
The band mill spoken of was the only kind of mill in this part of the country until 1836 or 1837, when William Kern built a flouring mill near the site of Jacquin's brewery. As a financial venture this first mill proved a failure.
The next flouring mill was built by A. H. Danforth & Co. in 1845. It was the first brick building erected in Washing- ton. The bricks used in its structure were made by Danforth, near the site of the mill. The building still stands and is operated by Wells and John Asa Andrews. This mill, unlike its immediate predecessor, seems to have been a financial success.
Although this was the first brick building in the town, bricks had been manufactured here by Hamilton Riddle as early as 1837. They were used for building chimneys, cel- lars, etc.
The first school taught in Washington was a subscription school. It was taught by George H. Shaw, now of Shaw's Grove, who was traveling through the country prospecting and stopped for the night with William Holland, Sr., where, owing to the severity of the weather-it being winter-he remained till spring. Holland soon discovered Shaw's fitness to teach, and engaged him to teach, and gave him, as com- pensation, his board, washing, and horse feed. Rather slen- der compensation, as it made no provision for clothing. Af- ter engaging the teacher, the next thing was a school house, which was built by Holland and his few neighbors in a day or two. It was a log house, such as was called in those days a single cabin, 16x18 feet. They seated it with split logs, the writing desks being constructed of similar material, and lighted it by sawing out part of one log at each end and pasting greased paper over the aperture or opening. This greased paper, while not highly transparent, admitted some light, and kept the wind out. This school was taught in the winter of 1827 and 1828. The house was afterwards used by Lawson Holland as a dwelling. Holland subsequently em- ployed Shaw as surveyor whe nhe laid out the original town.
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