USA > Illinois > Johnson County > A history of Johnson County, Illinois > Part 2
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Johnson County has its largest area covered with what is known by soil experts as Memphis silt loam. This sur- face soil is an important and extensive type ; its color varies from pale yellow to reddish yellow and it runs to an average depth of ten inches. When dry, this soil is loose and non- adhesive. Its looseness is partly due to the small percentage of clay. It is called "clay land" although it does not show
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
the heavy, sticky qualities of clay. This soil is very porous, very absorbent, and retentive of moisture. With the excep- tion of the rough, stony land, the entire surface of the up- land is covered with Memphis silt loam. This loam also occurs as low ridges along lower Cache and is often called "second bottom" being considered in these sections of great agriculture value. A variety of crops may be grown upon this type of soil : corn, wheat, oats, Irish and sweet potatoes, clover, alfalfa, cowpeas, timothy, and fruits of most every variety. The fruits grown in this county are, however, on the ridges on high ground where the climatic conditions make them less liable to the late frosts.
Waverly silt loam covers the next largest area of the county and ranges from whitish yellow to a light brown color. When dry it is loose and floury ; but is slightly sticky when wet. It absorbs rain readily. It is an alluvial soil, being made by material washed off the hills, brought down by the streams, restored and deposited by the overflow of the streams. Leaves, twigs, and other forms of organic matter have been covered by these deposits, making this soil very productive in such crops as corn, hay and alfalfa. There is still a great deal of timber in the section where this soil is found. These wooded tracts are very valuable as pasture land. This soil is found only along the streams or in places where streams have been. The principal acreage of this soil is found along Cache River, in the South West part of the county, some also along Lick, Dutchman, Little Cache, and Big Bay creeks, while smaller tracts are found along the lesser streams. Elvira, Cache, Vienna, Grantsburg and Simpson townships are the only localities in which any con- siderable area of this soil lies.
Lewis C. Beck in 1823 says : "This county of Johnson has a large proportion of level land, which is generally well wooded. Its soil is sandy, as yet, it is but thinly populated, owing perhaps to the unhealthiness caused by the overflow- ing of the Ohio River and the marshes which abound near the southern boundary. When these shall be drained and the inhabitants turn their attention to the cultivation of tobacco, cotton, and the grape, all of which would yield pro- fitable crops, it will no doubt, become flourishing and wealthy."
The smallest portion of the county's surface is covered
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
with the "Yazoo Clay." Its color is a dark brown, caused by the large amount of organic matter it contains. It is a heavy silty loam or clay, quite granular and rather sticky. This type of soil is found only along the Cache River and in the southwestern part of the county. It is just coming under cultivation, since the days of drainage and gives a very high yield of corn and hay.
Rough stony land may be found in Johnson County, also, in which the soil is so broken and the underlying rocks rise to the surface so frequently that the land is of little agriculture value. In some cases there are cliffs that are more than 150 feet high. At the foot of these cliffs are found large bowlders, weighing many tons, which have broken off from the rocks above. Between these bowlders are patches of soil which support a heavy growth of timber, giant ferns and wild flowers of every kind and color. The sections of rough, stony land are usually found in narrow strips, winding through the country or forming bluffs along the streams. They are most frequent along the southern slope of the Ozark Ridge, but they are also scattered over the entire county. These stony areas are by no means com- plete waste lands. Inexhaustible springs of water, always found among the cliffs, greatly enhance their value as pas- ture lands and they have become an everlasting supply of stone. One of the principle railroads in the state works a quarry from which it has ballasted hundreds of miles of road.
CLIMATE
The average rainfall for this county is 43.72 inches. The heaviest rainfall comes generally in March, May and June; August, September and November show the least. But with the possible exception of August or September there is seldom a month in the year that has not some rain. In the occasional deviation from this general rule the clim- ate resembles that of California as being "unusual." One conspicuous variation came in the year 1854 when no rain fell from June until December. Crops were short and many people had to haul water from neighboring wells and springs for family use and for their stock to drink. How- ever, in general, the foot hills of the Ozark Mountains which cross the northern part of the county have an appreciable
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
influence upon the amount of rainfall as compared with the counties lying to the north.
The temperature varies somewhat, rarely going below zero and then for not more than a few hours at a time. In the hotest months, June, July and August the theremometer hovers between 75 and 85, on the warmest days rarely going as high as above 90. Ordinarily the winters are not extreme and while there is always some snow and ice, it is for short periods only. The winter of 1917-18 will long be remem- bered as the one of the deep snow. The snow began to fall about December 8, 1917 and continued to fall at intervals for three or four weeks. The ground was not visible for almost two months and the drifts were so deep in many places as to make the roads impassable. While our poor boys were digging trenches before the Germans, many peo- ple in the county were digging roadway trenches in the snow to get from house to barn, to the neighbors or to the nearby market.
Winds are, of course, prevalent during March and April though they are not strong enough to be called storms. The strongest winds come with the rain which is almost always accompanied 'by heavy thunder and vivid lightning in the spring and hot months.
During the spring of 1866 Johnson county was visited by a terrible cyclone. It entered the county near what is now the present site of West Vienna and crossed the county to the northeast. It seemed to rise and fall in its course and where it touched, it swept houses, barns and fences from their foundation. It also took its toll of human life. Two members of the family of Jesse Davis who lived where Newton Murrie now lives were badly injured. In the fam- ily of Hirman Worley, who lived on what is now known as the Coleman place, one boy was killed outright, two other members died from injuries, and one son was left a cripple for life. This was in Blomfield Township. The cyclone lifted here for a few miles, then struck the homes of Joseph Har- per and John Jones who lived in Ozark township. It killed a babe and injured others of Mr. Jones' family and seriously injured some members of Mr. Harper's family. It not only took lives and laid waste homes, but giant forest trees were taken up by the roots; articles were carried for miles in its
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
whirling fury. Although its path was not wide, it left death and desolation in its wake.
Frosts come with a good deal of regularity. The aver- age date of the last killing frost in the spring is the middle of April, the latest one occuring not later than the middle of May. For fall the average date is about the middle of October. The Ozark Ridge renders fruits less liable to killing frosts than in the lower parts of the county. Slight frosts sufficient to tinge the leaves on the trees often come earlier. With the first turning of the leaves there is pre- sented a scene of almost surpassing beauty. First there is a tinge of yellow, then the reds appear. One tree will be an immense bouquet of green, yellow, and red of every con- ceivable shade. Looking out from some elevation of our winding roads to a forest of these trees all painted 'by the hand of nature forming a back ground for a green meadow, one will have a picture never to be forgotten.
HEALTH
For some time in the early history of the county, the health of the inhabitants was menaced by a mild form of malarial fever. The heavy growth of timber which con- stantly decayed on the swamp land and the pools of stagnant water were the breeding places for myriads of mosquitoes that transmitted the malaria to all adjoining districts. In fact, it seemed for many years that Johnson County was the home of malaria as well as the wine-sap apple. Every fall the ague "chills" was the local name, appeared in due time with their "shakes" and fever. The ague though very annoying was not necessarily a fatal disease. But the drain- ing of the swamps and the consequent elimination of rotting timber have made this section as healthy a place as will be found in the state.
The winter of 1918-19 is more indelibly fixed on our minds than the deep snow through the terrible ravages of the Spanish Influenza. This peculiar and unfamiliar dis- ease began its drive on the United States about October, 1918. At first it was thought it only thrived in the cities and towns where people came together in crowds. It was a little late reaching Johnson County and we thought, from our isolation we might be exempt, but in November it fell upon us in all its fury and seemed to grow more fatal in its
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
progress. The situation in this county was desperate, in many places a whole family was all in bed at the same time. The fact that many thought it contagious kept those who were well from giving their attention to their neighbors. In some cases there were none able to care for the dead. In one known case the sick and the dead were in the same 'bed, and there were many cases in which nurses could not be had. In some families as many as four would die in a day or two of each other. It seemed to be particularly fatal to those appearing to be the most healthful and strong look- ing. It took many of our best, physically speaking, and many old people. This terrible scourge has returned each winter for three years but has not proved so fatal.
RESOURCES
Johnson County is not a county of wealth, yet there are many farmers that are well to do, really prosperous. Most all of them live well and the majority of them live in a frame or brick dwelling, have fine barns, the best breed of stock, good driving horses, buggy, surrey, or automobile ; many have heat, light, and modern plumbing in their homes. Of course, every farmer does not have all these conveniences but he can have them if he wants them. In fact, any of the modern improvements are ours at will, except the good roads and we see them coming. Some farmers do not want anything modern, not even hard roads. One farmer gave as an excuse for being against the $60,000,000 bond issue, that it would make his farm worth so much more and his taxes would be higher. But on the whole, this class of farmers is small, most of them are progressive, anxious to know the best methods and have the best equipment in all lines. The value of the farm buildings in the county accord- ing to the last census was $1,869,960. The value of the land and improvements excluding building from the same source was $6,263,009. Implements, machines, $325,545 ; live stock $1,698,224; average price of land per acre, $32.44. The average size of a farm in this county in 1840 was 15 acres, in 1900, 92 acres. It has now increased to 110.8 in 1920. The number of farms in county, 1920, 1742, land in farms, 193,077 acres. Of course, much of this land is not improved. There is a large acreage of land in the county not under cultivation and very few farms that do not have their acre- age of wooded land for pasture and fire wood. One writer
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
said of Southern Illinois in 1883, "If by magic Southern Illinois could be transfered just as it is to the northern or central part of the state the land that now sells for $10.00 and $15.00 per acre could not be bought for $500.00 an acre." He further says the reason land is cheap here is because its value is not known as people do not travel across this section of the state as they do in Central and Northern Illinois. County farm lands sold in county in 1896 for $25.00 per acre.
This is a community in which the farmers own and cultivate their own land, at least 75 per cent of the farms are run by the owners. They have learned to rotate and plant the crops most suited to the soils and by fertilizing, keep their farms up to the highest state of productiveness. An experiment station has been maintained in this county by the Agricultural Department of the University of Illinois for many years which has been a great advantage to our farmers. There are only 16 farms operated by managers and 363 operated by tenants as against 7 by managers and 506 by tenants in 1900. There is practically one system of renting here, the share system; very few farms are rented for cash.
Farming was at first confined almost entirely to the ridges and high lands. What is now the most productive land we have, since it has been cleared, ditched and drained, was till after the sixties, swamps and pools of stagnant water during the spring and early summer. This trans formation has been accomplished through the drainage system which is explained under drainage. Dennis Dwyer, who came to this county from Ohio in 1857 was the first to ditch, the 'bottom land on a small scale, and bring it under cultivation for grasses which would thrive in low places. He also introduced the raising of Timothy hay in this sec- tion. His wife, Aunt Eliza, as she was known and who was for many years a resident here, brought the seed from their home state. when she made a visit to her mother.
The principal products of the county are corn, wheat, oats, hay, fruit, and vegetables. The upland is not well adapted to corn and the yield is not very high. Corn does much better on the bottoms and as more of this section is being brought under cultivation, the corn yield increases. Some land will grow as much as ninety bushels to the acre
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
while the upland would not yield 25, and in a dry season much less. Wheat is grown less than in former years, but a great deal more is grown than is used in the county. The average yield is about 15 to 18 bushels to the acre. Timothy and clover are the main hay crops; alfalfa is grown to some extent ; cowpeas are cut for home use as hay ; oats are pro- duced for home use only. The principal agricultural ex- ports from the county are wheat, corn, hay, vegetables, and fruit.
Being entirely an agricultural county and our resources all coming from agricultural pursuits, cattle raising is na- turally a business. Hereford, Angus and Shorthorn are raised for beef. N. J. Mozley was a pioneer in the raising of Herefords; his herd having been the best in this section of country for many years. It has furnished the beginning of many herds, over all the west and south; has always brought a fancy price because of their care and breeding. He has probably taken more blue ribbons at county fairs, with his herd than any one in Southern Illinois. J. K. Elkins, D. W. Whittenberg, Elijah Ragsdale, Geo. Mozley, Chas. Trulove, and Chas. Nobles also have raised this breed. Henry Cover who lived at Tunnel Hill owned about the first herd of Angus cattle in this county. J. M. Brown, A. M. Webb, and Dr. A. E. Mckenzie also raise the Angus. The late D. F. Beau- man, also of Tunnel Hill Township introduced the breed of Shorthorn cattle and this was likely the first herd of good cattle in the county. Holstein and Jersey are dairy breeds of this locality. Wm. Moore, J. C. Chapman, A. Veach and numbers of other dairy farmers have one or the other of these kinds of cattle. Many car loads of beef cattle are col- lected and sent into market from this county each year. In fact this has been a paying enterprise until the decline in the price of cattle and other farm products which has caused many to slacken their efforts along this line. The raising of hogs is, one might say, necessarily a part of cattle raising. The principal breeds are Chester Whites, Berkshires, Hampshires, Duroc Jersey and Poland China. From 200 to 300 car loads of hogs, possibly more, are shipped to market from this county in a year. The raising, buying, and feeding of mules for sale to the southern cotton planter has been a paying business in this section for several years till within the last few years when the price of mules suddenly dropped, likewise the castles of the mule dealer.
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
There is not any thing that will grow in a temperate climate that can not be grown in Johnson County. Our soils are, of course, better adapted to some crops than others and will produce them in more paying quantities. Flax was raised in small quantities in our very earliest history. Cotton and tobacco were grown extensively for some years before and after the Civil War. The price of these commodities during the war made them a very profitable crop. In 1875 there were 3,000,000 pounds of tobacco grown in this county and this was after the decline in price which finally resulted in the exclusion of tobacco and cotton from our crops. A very small quantity of tobacco is still grown for market and a little for home use. From an old contract between Bridges & Chapman D. Y. Bridges, father of the late Mrs. Bratton, and F. J. Chapman, son of S. J. Chapman, the pioneer of Vienna, dated 1852-53, and J. H. Russell, who was buying tobacco for Hendenburg of St. Louis, Russell agreed to pay Bridges & Chapman $4.50 per hundred for all tobacco prized by them and $4.371/2 per hundred for what he took without prizing. He agreed to take 75,000 pounds more or less. This gives an idea of the value of this weed as a crop and shows that it was a staple product of the county. Some good cotton was grown here in 1923 as an experiment. There are prospects for it to be again a staple crop of this county.
There is quite an industry which has grown up among us in the last fifteen years, especially along the Chicago and Eastern Illinois railroad, called truck farming. This in- cludes the growing and the shipping of such vegetables as tomatoes, asparagus, rhubarb, sweet potatoes, cucumbers and cantaloupes. Another comparatively new resource in this section during the last ten years, is the keeping of dairy cattle and the shipping of their products. A number of cows of the Holstein breed have been brought from Wiscon- sin and New York states and with the Jerseys already well established here, there is sent out about 5,000 pounds of butter fat per week, even at the present price which is not nearly so high as during the world war, makes this a profit- able business in more ways than one. It brings a weekly or monthly income of cash to the farmer, enriches the pastures, and is adapted to lands that would not produce grain. The total receipes from sale of dairy products for 1920 were $156,653. Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and a
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
few cherries are grown here. The first named are among the by-products of the county and are produced quite ex- tensively. Our berry crops follow those just south of us and ripen before the northern berry, making it a very profitable crop which seldom fails. The markets for the vegetables and small fruit crops are Chicago, Cleveland and Indian- apolis. In 1897, there were 1234 cases of strawberries shipped from Vienna, although this was not the main ship- ping station for that crop. As much as $500,00 has been realized in one season from three acres of ground planted in strawberries.
The raising of poultry for the production of eggs is also rather a new industry for this community. While all farmers have always kept chickens for home use and to produce enough eggs to buy the sugar and coffee, no one has heretofore made a specialty of it. But now during the winter when the farmer does not have so many duties in the field and the price of eggs is high he devotes his time to the care of "biddy" which usually pays him well. The value of chickens and eggs in 1920 was $1,240,981. Receipts from sale of these two products $130,359. The leading strains are Plymouth Rock, Rhode Island Red, Leghorn, Buff, Orphington and Langsham.
Many people do not appreciate the 'bird family and look on them as pests, instead of an asset, although some of them do as much harm as good, others are very helpful to farmers and horticulturists as insect destroyers. We are very fortunate in this county in having so many kinds. Some are prized for their beauty, others for their music. Aside from their economic value, the esthetic phase of the bird family must not be overlooked. Most everyone enjoys watching birds as they typify life in its most active state and the songs and calls of many of them are a source of pleasure. Their presence in great number means an increase of these forms of enjoyment.
When the first settlers came here, they found the entire surface of the country covered with a heavy growth of tim- ber, the finest in the Mississippi valley. Black walnut, hick- ory, white oak, poplar and maple, now so rare and highly prized, were used for fence rails and fire wood. Beside those mentioned there was found in abundance elm, locust, syca- more, mulberry, cottonwood, pecan, sassafras, persimmon,
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
gum, cedar, black oak and along the low swampy areas the tall straight cypress abounded. As fine logs of walnut, ash, oak and poplar as ever grew were rolled into huge heaps and burned. In fact, the farmer looked upon the timber as an incumbrance where he wanted a field. That it would be valuable later on never occurred to him. Of course, in later years much fine timber of this county was made into lumber. The cutting and floating of these logs down the streams to mills situated near the Illinois Central railroad was a very lucrative business for many years. Only within the last ten years has the timber 'become so scarce as to make this source of revenue prohibitive.
We have no factories or mines like some of our neighboring counties. While there is surface coal in many sections of the county which is worked for local use, there has never been any mined for commercial purposes except at Burnside. There has been a number of attempts since 1910 to discover oil in this county but the wells sunk never reached the fountain; although experts contend there is oil here. Near the village of Belknap there are some tile ovens as the clay in that locality is suitable for this business. The ovens are operated only part of the year. Charcoal is also manufactured in shipping quantities at this plant.
Goreville, a prosperous village in the northern part of our county, has a cannery. It is owned and operated by John Terry and while it does not boast of its capacity, it is said to store up in tin the very best quality of tomatoes and beans that can be found. The Charles Stone Quarry is situated in the southwest part of the county on the farm orginally owned by Pleasant Axley at the village of White Hill. This community is made up of the employees of the Quarry which is owned by the Charles Stone Company, most of whom live in Marion, Illinois. This industry was estab- lished in 1913 and has a capacity of 7,000 tons a day. They manufacture lime stone, for farms, chat for road dressing and railroad ballast. This plant has been recently sold for $225,000 to the Robert Youtzsee Sand Company, of Chester, Illinois.
The largest farm of the county in one body is owned 'by Charles Marshall of Belknap township and contains 2,810 acres. Mrs. Charles Mason of the same township has a farm of 1,400 acres. The late A. M. Webb of Tunnell Hill
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A HISTORY OF JOHNSON COUNTY
owned about 1,500 acres; Chestnut Hill farm, four miles west of Vienna, was developed by James Brown. It con- tains 1,050 acres, is owned by P. T. Chapman and operated by E. Mathis.
Twenty-five cents a day was considered a good price for a farm hand in the early history of this section, but when it gradually increased to 75 cents before the Civil War, the farmer thought it was extortion, almost as much so as the income tax in this year of 1925. Wages for farm hands in 1900 were $15.00 a month, for a single man, including board. A man with a family was paid $20.00 and furnished a house; during the World War wages reached the height of $2.50 a day and board, from that to $5.00 during harvest. These prices have receded till the present farm hands receive on an average of $1.00 per day and board.
The first organization that was instituted for the bene- fit of the farmer was the Grange. For some reason it did not accomplish the purpose for which is was organized and soon was a thing of the past. The F. M. B. A., organized 1888, took up the cause of the farmer and flourished here for ten years or more. Some prominent in the order were T. J. Muray, J. W. Damron, G. N. Thacker, T. H. Verhines, R. R. Ridenhower, S. B. Robertson and Henry Anderson. There were about 20 lodges in the county and it appeared on the surface to be fulfilling its mission to the farmer but sud- denly it terminated in a political institution and thus ended its usefulness. There have been other and various associa- tions in our midst for the benefit of the farmer: "Fruit Growers," "Dairy," "Horticulture," "Shippers and Grow- ers," "Breeder," and perhaps others. The one that has lived the longest and accomplished the most for the farmer is the "Farmers Institute," organized in 1900 with J. F. Buckner as president and William Grissom, secretary. The next important step was to organize a Farm Bureau. This was done in 1918 with J. C. B. Heaton, president; J. C. Chap- man, vice-president; J. V. Carter, secretary; J. L. Veach, treasurer. L. M. Smith was special on fruit; Guy Beau- man on soils; Charles Marshal, live stock; William Moore, dairy; Charles Truelove, crops. O. M. McGee was secured as Farm Adviser for the county and the main in- dustries of our county have been on the up grade ever since its organization. James McCall, a native of this county,
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