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LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
977.353 RIIh RB
Ulinols Historical Survey
5 HISTORY
OF
WOODFORD COUNTY.
GIVING A BRIEF ACCOUNT OF ITS SETTLE- MENT, ORGANIZATION, PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND PROGRESS.
BY B. J. RADFORD.
.
PEORIA, ILLS. W. T. DOWDALL, PRINTER, 117 MAIN STREET. 1877.
١٠
Illinois Historia
977. 353 R 11h
1390
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
PAGE.
DESCRIPTION, NATURAL HISTORY AND EARLY SETTLERS.
.
7
CHAPTER II.
ORGANIZATION OF COUNTY.
22
CHAPTER III.
DOMESTIC AND SOCIAL LIFE.
29
CHAPTER IV.
AGRICULTURE AND FARM PRODUCTS.
40
CHAPTER V.
MANUFACTURES, TRADE, &C.
.
50
CHAPTER VI.
POLITICS, LAW AND MEDICINE.
57
CHAPTER VII.
EDUCATIONAL AND RELIGIOUS MATTERS.
67
PREFACE.
This brief account of the settlements and early life in Woodford County has been prepared under the auspices of the Old Settlers' Association. The infor- mation has been derived from many sources, and the accounts have sometimes been vague and contradictory. but it is believed that what is here recorded is reliable. There is no doubt much left out of this work which ought to be included, but it has been impossible to come at it. It would be well for all those who are in possession of facts and incidents, which would be useful in a revision of this history, to send them to Col. B. D. Meek, Chairman of the Committee for this work. Com- pleteness and accuracy require that such a revision should be made as soon as it can be done thoroughly.
As before said, many have aided in gathering up what is here included, but especial mention should be made of Dr. Jas. S. Whitmire, John Clark, Dr. J. G. Zeller, Dr. A. Reynolds, Aaron Richardson, Peter Vance, Winton Carlock, John Summers, Jas. G. Bayne and Col. B. D. Meek, who have diligently assisted in hunting up facts and incidents.
May these pages call up pleasant reminiscences in the minds of the old, and stimulate the young to usefulness by their examples and their great successes in the face of difficulties and hardships.
B. J. RADFORD.
EUREKA, ILL., April 14, 1877.
A
HISTORY OF
WOODFORD COUNTY.
CHAPTER I.
DESCRIPTION, NATURAL HISTORY AND EARLY SETTLERS.
Woodford County is very irregular in its boundaries, and the calculation of its area is somewhat difficult, but it contains not far from five hundred and fifty square miles. I have, with much care, calculated the geomet- ric center of the county and find it to be somewhere in the northeast quarter of section twenty-two, in Roanoke township. The greater part of the county is prairie, the timber being confined chiefly to the bluffs and bot- toms along water-courses. Much of the original timber has been cut away, but compensation has partly been made for this by the planting of groves and orchards upon the prairies. The favorite trees for these groves are black walnut and maple. Black locust promised much at one time, because of its rapid growth and ex- cellent and durable wood, but about twenty years ago it was attacked by borers so vigorously that all the
8
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
groves have been destroyed or rendered useless. The timber is found chiefly in the southern and western portions, along the Mackinaw and Illinois rivers and their tributaries. The other portions of the county are not only destitute of forests, but also of any considera- ble streams. Water for stock is usually obtained from wells, and can generally be secured at a depth varying from twenty to fifty feet, and for a few years past pumping by wind power has been becoming more and more general. Many valuable sorts of timber are natives of the county. Black, white, red and burr oaks are common ; some black hickory and considerable white hickory. The black walnut and the wild cherry furnish very beautiful cabinet wood, which for beauty of marking, and fineness and richness of luster are ex- celled by nothing I have ever seen in our modern furniture warehouses ; the sugar maple also furnishes a hard, durable and beautiful cabinet wood, as well as the ash, both of which are found in our forests. Red and white elms are common. Among other varieties may be mentioned cotton-wood, sycamore, mulberry, red-bud, crab-apple, plum, willow, hack-berry, sumac, hazel, dog-wood, elder, prickly-ash, &c. But the greater part of the county is prairie, and when first settled was des- titute of trees or shrubs, and was entirely occupied by herbaceous vegetation. The chief part of this was grass, of a coarse sort, which went under the common names of prairie grass and slough grass. These were of vig- orous growths, the culms, or flowering stalks, sometimes growing as high as seven or eight feet, and afforded ex- cellent pasturage. There can be but little doubt that
dfield
Bra
9
able barbier
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
these natural pastures in Woodford County supported herds of bison, deer and other animals for centuries, nor are evidences lacking that our vast western prairies were inhabited by civilized people long before history began to be written. The grasses which grew in the sloughs and along the margins of the ponds were . coarser and taller than those which grew on the up- lands, and both localities were occupied by several varieties. There is very little of these native grasses now to be found in the county, and it is probable that the soil, having been cultivated, is rendered unfit for their production. The broad prairies were thickly inter- spersed with bright flowers, nodding their gay heads in the wind, as far as the eye could reach. Chief among these were those of the helianthus, or sunflower family. Flowers of this sort had a dark central head, surrounded by spreading rays of yellow or purple leaves, and were of many varieties. The ponds and sloughs were gor- geous with beautiful bright colored lilies, and many other species of wild flowers aided in ornamenting nature's broad flower garden-the prairies.
The burning of the prairies in the fall exposed the farms of the early settlers to much danger, and some- times rendered travel dangerous if the wind was high. The tall, rank grass would be killed by the sharp frosts , and in a few days become dry and combustible. In a strong wind a billow of fire would sweep over the plain and lick up this grass with the speed of a race horse Those who crossed wide prairies at such times of year usually carried some means of lighting a fire, and in case of need the grass was fired and a space soon
10
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COTNTY.
burnt, which afforded a safe retreat from the approach- ing danger. Matches would have been a great boon, but there were no matches in those days. The early settlers were compelled to keep fire, or depend upon the some- what uncertain supply of flint and tow. It was some- · times found necessary to send to a neighbor's and " borrow fire." The farmers would usually select some calm day, as soon as the grass would burn, and fire a strip about their fields, on the sides from which danger might be apprehended. Several neighbors would collect together, and all except one would be well armed with bundles of brush. The unarmed one would kindle a fire a few yards from the fence, and by means of brands conduct it in a line parallel with the fence. The men and boys with the brushes would arrange themselves close on either side of the fire line, and as soon as the burnt strip was wide enough to preclude all danger of being crossed by a fire coming in from the prairie, would whip out the flames, thus leaving a broad, black strip around the field. If this precaution was neglected the settler often paid pretty dearly for his carelessness. Many among us still remember the midnight alarm of the prairie on fire, and being hurried out of a comforta- ble nap to fight the destroying fiend. A praire-fire at night is a beautiful and fearful sight, and the roar of the flames may sometimes be heard for several miles. These are things of the past now, but it is well for our children to know the dangers and hardships through which their present comforts and conveniences have been brought to them.
The origin of our prairies has long been a puzzle and a subject for investigation and controversy among scien-
ho that bar
11
Medreek.
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
tific men. It is evident that for ages the forests and prairies have lived neighborly, side by side. without either encroaching upon the other's territory. Why such different soils and products so close together ? Many theories have been advanced to account for the treeless and shrubless character of the prairies. It has been asserted that the soil was too dry for trees ; that it was too wet; that there was too much acid ; that the prairies are the product of annual fires, which only permitted the growth of perennial grasses and annual herbs Nearly all are agreed, however, that our prai- ries were once the bottoms of extensive lakes and rivers, of which our ponds and sloughs are the lingering rem- nants, growing smaller and smaller as the country is raised. In Minnesota, among the numberless lakes, we perhaps see prairies in state of preparation, and much the same condition of affairs as prevailed in Illinois hundreds of years ago. This theory seems to carry with it the conclusion that the great lakes to the north and northeast of us once extended over a great portion of Illinois, and that Woodford County was a part of the bed of Lake Michigan. The theory also predicts that in time, if left to natural agencies, these great lake sur - faces will become prairies, and a few little ponds and muddy sloughs their only vestiges. Before dismissing the subject of the prairies, it may be said that, evidently, the best preparation of prairie land for the planting of trees, is to break the clay subsoil by digging through it and filling in with some loose material that shall afford some sort of an artificial drainage.
Woodford County, geologically, is situated near the northern limit of the great Illinois and Missouri coal fields, which extend into Indiana, Kentucky, Kansas, Arkansas, Iowa and Minnesota. It reaches as far south
12
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
as northern Texas, and probably covers an area of 100,000 square miles. Near the Illinois river the coal comes nearly to the surface, but on the prairies the prof- itable veins are from 300 to 600 feet from the surface, requiring deep shaft mining. Two attempts at mining of this character have been made, one at Minonk, and one near Metamora. The shaft near Metamora was sunk to the depth of 130 feet. At a little over fifty feet a seam of coal was found about one foot thick. At about 125 feet a three inch seam was met with, and at the bottom a seam about three feet and a half in thickness. Only about one-third of the thick- ness, in the middle, of this seam is good coal. A boring was made from the bottom of the shaft about 80 feet and no considerable coal found. The shaft at Mi- nonk is nearly 600 feet in depth, and coal occurs as fol- lows : at 325 feet a three-foot seam, which is evidently the one met with at the bottom of the shaft near Meta - mora. A very thin seam at about 380 feet, while at the bottom is found a seam of excellent coal nearly four feet in thickness. The uplands of the county have, eve- rywhere, just beneath the soil, beds of diluvium or drift which will average almost a hundred feet in thickness. This is a most singular deposit and extends almost to the southern limits of the state. It is composed chiefly of yellow and blue clay with some sand and gravel. Imbed- bedded in this material are rocks and boulders of all sizes and shapes, which have evidently been brought from a distance. It also abounds in fossils of plants and ani- mals unlike anything now exisiting in this region. This singular mixture has been a great puzzle to geologists. It was first called diluvium because it was believed to have been caused by Noah's deluge; but this supposition was finally abandoned. It is now generally believed by
13
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
geologists that all this material was brought, or drifted, here from some place further north. It is, therefore, now called " drift." The clays are sometimes called boulder clay because of the rocks distributed irregularly throughout them. The reasons cannot here be enumer- ated, but there are many for believing that this deposit was made by a great sea of ice, or glacier, which grad- ually crept down from the north, bringing with it these vast amounts of matter, and extending about as far south as the Ohio river.
The first comers found many sorts of animals here, which are at present nearly extinct. Among birds, there were quails, prairie hens and wild turkeys, all in great abundance, and all excellent for food. Many sorts of the feathered songsters are still with us, but their numbers have been too much thinned by useless and shameful warfare. Among our wisest laws are those for the protection of the birds. Snakes were plentiful, especially on the prairies, the largest species sometimes attaining the length of eight or ten feet. The most dreaded was the venomous rattlesnake, which was very common, but now, happily, is rarely seen. Stinging flies and mosquitoes were produced in count- less numbers by the sloughs and ponds, and at certain seasons of the year were a vexatious pest to man and beast. A large bloodthirsty fellow, known as the "Green-head fly," drove an unceasing business during the latter half of the summer, and was an object espec- iallý dreaded by horses and cattle. They are about ex- tinct now. Prairie wolves were numerous and familiar neighbors. They gave the early farmer nocturnal con-
B
14
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
,
certs, and paid themselves from his sheep pen, or his tender piglings. They seemed to be born dyspeptics and were always hungry. They would prowl in gangs, and it was unsafe for a man to be among them alone at night. One of the favorite methods of exterminating them was the circle hunt, and was conducted as follows : Upon a set day the settlers would gather at an appointed place on horseback ; a captain was appointed and orders were given. As large a territory as practicable was enclosed and the game driven towards a central point, agreed upon before hand. When the game was finally penned by riders near together the work of kill- ing begun. The wolves which escaped through the line were chased down and dispatched with clubs. Deer
would also be often taken in the circle. Bounties were offered by the state for wolf scalps, and wolf hunting for a time became profitable. Money was scarce, and it was sometimes easier for the settler to get enough scalps to pay his taxes than enough money. The poor wolf has about succumbed to this unceasing warfare, and we have seen his lank, familiar visage for almost the last time. To his old neighbors and acquaintances this is a matter of small regret, which argues that Canis Lupus was a bad citizen. There was a few foxes and many deer which afforded sport in the way of the chase. Deer and fox hounds had then some excuse for exist- ence, but now their occupation is gone. The groves abounded in squirrels, and raccoons were common. Coon hunting was chiefly prosecuted at night, and was splendid sport for boys and dogs. A fight between a large " coon" and the dogs was an exciting and inter-
15
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
esting spectacle. A wise old cur who knew how to kill a coon, enjoyed an enviable reputation among the boys and his canine associates: A good "coon dog" was an important member of the family. Many an inexperi- enced cur got the conceit taken out of him by a short tussle with a full grown raccoon. Badgers' were occa- sionally met with, and now and then a black bear or a panther. Wild cats and skunks, and other animals common to the Mississippi Valley, were here. As be- fore said, most of these creatures, little and big, are fast becoming extinct, and it would be useful in after- time to have carefully prepared specimens of them all. It should be part of the work of our public schools to collect, classify, name and preserve all these objects. The numbers of wild animals were greatly diminished by the deep snow of the winter of 1830-1. This snow began Dec. 27, 1830, and fell to the depth of three or four feet, and lay on the ground until vast numbers of animals perished.
There were a few Indians in the county at the time of settlement by the whites, but the two races did not come into conflict to any extent. The advancing wave of civilization seemed to follow up the retreating wave of barbarism. The first settlers encountered a few Indi- ans, chiefly Pottawotomies, and in 1832 were involved to some extent in the Black Hawk war, but the active operations were further north than Woodford County. A number of the early settlers were engaged in this war, some of whom are still living among us. This war is remarkable for the fact that both Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis were engaged against Black Hawk.
16
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
The poor Sac Chief little thought that he was waging war with palefaces who would become so much greater chieftains than himself.
The first white man who settled in the limits of this county was one Bleylock, who was found in the river bottom, near Spring Bay. as early as 1819. A few years after this, pioneers began ‹ to make settlements here and there, but the number did not increase very rapidly till about 1835. I have endeavored to collect the names of settlers in the various neighborhoods up to this date, and the result will be found in the following table. It includes all those who located in the county previous to 1836, so far as could be ascertained, but no doubt there are some whose names do not appear here :
HISTORICAL TABLE.
NAMES,
DATE.
LOCALITY.
REMARKS.
Wm. Blanchard.
1822
| Near Spring Bay .
-Dillon .. . .
:
..
Farmer, erected corn mill in 1827.
Horace Crocker.
Farmer, erected flouring mill in 1828.
Phinneas Shottenkirk
1831
66
..
do 1
Joseph Belsley . . .
1831
6.
66
do
Richard Williams
1829
do
William Hunter
1835
do
John Snyder . .
1834
..
66
66
do
Isaac Snyder.
1834
do
Peter Snyder .
1834
David Snyder. .
1834
Wm. (or Geo.) Bleylock. .
1819
66
John Stephenson . .
1824
66
66
Jesse Dale. . .
1829
Joseph Crocker ..
1828
66
David Matthews.
1829
. .
Kept a ferry at the " Narrows."
Jacob Wilson. .
1828
"Widow " Donahue.
1829
66
do
George Hopkins.
1829
do
Hiram Curry . .
1829
..
..
66
Geo. Kingston. .
1833
6
Afterwards settled near Metamora.
Farmer.
Wm. Phillips.
1823
66
do
Louis Guibert. .
1833
66
do built a mill on Partridge Creek.
- Gingerich
do
Wm. Hoshor ..
1830
66
66
do and miller.
Zedick Hall .
1833
Near Germantown ..
do and Methodist pioneer preacher.
17
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
do [hunting and fiishing. Found by first settlers living Indian fashion, Miller and chair maker.
Farmer do
Farmer.
do
Austin Crocker .
1824
do
Charles Fielder.
1827
66
.
.
66
do
|Fariner, came to Peoria in 1819.
18
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
HISTORICAL TABLE -- CONTINUED.
NAMES.
DATE.
LOCALITY.
REMARKS.
Samuel Beck ...
1834
| Near Germantown. .
Farmer.
Thomas Sunderland
1834
66
66
do
John Sharp.
1830
66
do
Charles Molitor.
1835
66
do
Peter Muler.
1832
66
66
do
John F. Smith.
1830
16
do
Joseph Dillon.
1824
In Walnut Grove.
do
Charles Moore.
1826
66
66
66
do
Daniel Meek ..
1826
66
do
Wm. Atteberry.
1829
66
do
Join Davidson .
1829
66
66
do
John Dawdy ..
1829 1830
66
66
66
do
Henry Meek
1830
66
66
do
John Bird ..
1827
do
- Wathen .
1827
66
do
Joshua Woosley .
1831
66
66
do
Jonathan Baker.
1826
66
do
Wm. Bird ...
1830
66
66
do
Joseph Martin ..
1829
66
do
Mathew Bracken ..
1829
66
do
James and Robert Bird ..
1829
66
66
do
Francis Willis ....
1831
66
66
66
and miller.
Wm. R. Willis ...
1834
do
James Mitchell ..
1833
66
66
do
Daniel Travis.
1831
66
66
do
Solomon Tucker.
1835
66
66
do
Wm. Davenport ..
1835
66
66
do
practiced-dentistry some. Christian preacher, practiced law some.
.
.
[of Jos. Meek, 1825. broke first land ın neighborhood on farm
.
do
Joseph Meek.
66
·
.
do
66
.
practiced medicine some.
66
school teacher and Christian preacher.
HISTORICAL TABLE-CONTINUED.
NAMES.
DATE,
LOCALITY.
REMARKS.
Caleb Davidson.
1831
In Walnut Grove.
Farmer.
David Deweese ..
1830
6 .
66
do
Thomas Deweese
1830
John Oatman ...
1830
66
66
do
John Butcher ..
1831
do
Cooley Curtis ..
1831
66
66
do
Benj. J. Radford .
1834
..
do
Mathew Blair ..
1830
.6
66
do
Ben Major .....
1833
66
do
preacher and practiced medicine some.
Elijah Dickinson.
1835
66
do
M. R. Bullock ..
1834
66
do
Jas. Harlan ...
1832
South of Walnut Grove ..
do.
Daniel Allison.
1831
66
..
do
Isaac Black ...
1831
Walnut Grove.
do
Thomas Bullock
1835
66
do
Nathan Owen ...
1829
66
do
Thos. Deweese ..
1833
do
Thomas Kircade.
1833
66
do
Josiah Moore ...
1830
Panther Creek.
Farmer and miller.
Campbell Moore.
1830
Farmer and miller.
Amos Watkins ..
1830
do
and Christian preacher.
Warren Watkins
1830
66
do
Amasa Stout ..
1828
..
66
do
Eli Patrick ...
1829
66
do
Allen Patrick.
1829
66
do
Jas. S. McCord ...
1830
:
do
Thos. A. McCord.
1830
66
do
Aaron Richardson ...
1831
66
66
do
·
·
·
·
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
19
do
HISTORICAL TABLE-CONTINUED.
NAMES.
DATE,
LOCALITY.
REMARKS.
James M. Richardson . .
1831 |Panther Creek.
Farmer
Joseph Wilkerson ...
do
Noel Meek ...
1832
do
school teacher.
Basil Meek ..
1832
66
do
John Armstrong.
. . ..
:
66
do
- - Bilberry ...
1828
66
66
do
Adam Henthorne ..
do
James Robeson ..
1835
:
66
do
and Christian preacher.
James Rayburn.
do
Wm. McCord ..
1831
66
do
E. Dixon ....
1835
On the Mackinaw.
Miller.
Gershom Harvey.
1825
..
Farmer.
Robert Phillips ..
1828
White Oak Grove
do
Samuel Phillips ..
1828
do
66
66
do
Jas. V. Phillips ...
do
Samuel Kirkpatrick
1831
66
-
·
Jonah Brown ...
1833
do
Jacob Ellis ...
1835
66
66
čo
Abner Pre'er. . .
..
Reuben Carlock.
1833
Winton Carlock.
1833
66
Lewis Stover. .
1832
66
66
66
- Saudifer.
do
John Harbert ..
1829
do
John Benson . .
1831
·
do
20
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
do school teacher and Christian preacher. Settled in Dry Grove in 1827, farmer. Farmer.
do and Christian preacher.
36
.
.
66
.
.
do
James Vance ..
66
66
66
do
Lewis Stephens.
1830
66
C
do
Wm. C. Moore.
66
.
66
.
.
HISTORICAL TABLE -- CONCLUDED.
NAMES.
DATE.
LOCALITY.
REMARKS.
Wm. Benson.
1831
White Oak Grove ..
ĮFarmer
Jas. Benson ..
1831
66
..
do
Wm. Sowards ...
1823
Near Metamora
.
66
do
George Kingston .
1825
66
do
David Banta. .
1831
do
Cornelius Banta.
1831
6
66
do
John Page. .
1834
.6
do
Peter Engle ..
1833
66
do
John Verkler. .
1833
66
do
Humprey Leighton
1835
66
66
do
C. P. Mason ..
1835
do
Benj. Williams.
1827
Near Partridge Creek ... 36 66 66
do
Christian Smith ...
1833
1 do
Morgan Buckingham
Near Low Point ..
do
Thomas Jones .. .
1834
66
do
Jas. Owen .. .
1834
66
66
66
do
Isaac Moulton.
1835
do
Parker Morse ..
1835
..
do
·
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
and Christian preacher.
21
-
0
do
Solomon Sowards
1823
.
.
.
.
·
.
1
CHAPTER II.
ORGANIZATION OF COUNTY.,
For about fifteen years after their first settlement the localities, mentioned in the first chapter, were included in the boundaries of McLean and Tazewell counties, the dividing line between the two running north and south through the present town of Eureka. Up to this time settlements had been made near the timber and along the water-courses in all parts of the present territory of the county, but the prairies were unoccupied. Some places acquired considerable importance, in the early times, which are at present almost abandoned. Bowling Green was a thriving village, where goods were sold, and shops were established ; she also possessed her share of professional men. Her streets were named in honor of the then chief cities of Illinois : Chicago, Peoria, Springfield, Danville and Bloomington. Ver- sailles was laid out with much care. The streets at the four boundaries were called, respectively, North, West, South and East, whilst the intermediate ones had such appropriate titles as Peoria, Chestnut, Bloomington, Walnut, State and Locust. The settlement at Metamora was called the settlement of Partridge Point. It was afterward called Hanover, and finally Metamora. EI- Paso, Eureka, Minonk, Secor and Roanoke were un-
23
HISTORY OF WOODFORD COUNTY.
born, and there was little to indicate that these would ever be centers of population and trade. Not many of the younger portion of our people would know where to locate Ross's Point or Travis's Bridge. Yet these were formerly places of great note, and I find Travis's Bridge now near Mt. Zion church, in Cruger township, men- tioned in the legislature of 1840 as one of the impor- tant and well known places in the state.
By the year 1840 settlers had become numerous, and it began to appear that new counties must be formed for the convenience of the people. Both McLean and Tazewell counties were very large and many of the set- tlers remote from the places of holding courts. A few men about Versailles, under the leadership of Thomas Bullock, Sr., made an effort in 1840 to secure the forma- tion of a new county, with Versailles as the seat of justice. A petition to the legislature was prepared and circulated. There was a movement at Washington about the same time to form a new county with Wash- ington as the county seat. Most of the settlers on the west side of Walnut Grove, then Tazewell county, fa- vored the latter project. Uncle Tom Bullock got infor- mation of the plans of the Washington men, and with great energy pushed the circulation of his petition and as soon as possible laid it before the legislature. The other party, finding themselves too slow, were compelled to take the defensive, and soon appeared with a remon- strance. Excitement ran pretty high, and the journals of the two houses show that the bill for the formation of Woodford County had a long and doubtful embry- onic period. It was frequently called up and advocated
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