USA > Illinois > Cass County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois and history of Cass County, Volume II > Part 36
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Besides those already mentioned who made this attractive place their home in an early day were : Pompious Philippi and his son, Dr. Julius Philippi, John Altman, Frederick Lang, Jacob Heinz, J. L. Cire, Omar Bowyer, Christian Lovekamp, Frederick Brauer, W. H. Houston, Frederick Lovekamp, Henry Wedeking, Isaac Drinkwater, Herman Lippert, Peter Schaaf, Charles Cooper, George Treadway, Victor Krue- ger, Henry Goodeking, Philip Yeck, George Heg- ener, Henry Lovekamp, Adam Schuman, Wil- liam Tielkmier, Herman Lovekamp, Frederick Hackman, Herman Eberwein, Henry Menke, Charles Merz, Joseph Kircher, Dr. George Engel- bach and his son, Herman Engelbach, and John Rahn. Many of the descendants of these pio- meers yet remain in and about Arenzville and are the substantial citizens who, with others who have been attracted later to the village, have the credit for the progress and permanent growth of the village of Arenzville, and the rural districts surrounding it. Seven district schools beside the high school and the grade schools in the village, are maintained in the precinct ; and the highways are kept in as good condition as the nature of the soil will permit. The old log cabins have all disappeared, and new modern farmhouses and outbuildings have taken their place. Everything shows such evi- dence of thrift and progress that could Francis Arenz, the early advocate of all these improve- ments, now look upon them, it would bring delight to the spirit of one who identified him- self with every movement for the advancement of civilization in his community.
FRANCIS A. ARENZ.
Francis A. Arenz was born in Blankenburg, Province of the Rhine, Prussia, October 31, 1800. While yet a young man, he engaged in the mercantile business in his native country, and about 1827 emigrated to America, settling first in Kentucky, where he remained for two years engaged in merchandising. Learning of the lead mines of Galena, Ill., and the prospect of successful business deals in the lead line, he went to that point in 1829, but did not find con- ditions as satisfactory as he had hoped, and after a short stay in business there, he again sought a new location. A number of persons had come up to Galena from the southern part of Illinois, and also from the vicinity of Beardstown, then just laid out, and from de- scriptions of the place and its surroundings, Mr. Arenz believed that locality destined to be at least an excellent shipping point on the Illi- nois River. Arriving at Beardstown about 1831, he was very favorably impressed with the situ- ation, and began at once to prepare for his permanent settlement. He engaged in his favor- ite pursuit of merchandising, and filled his store with everything he thought the people of the new country might need or be induced to buy. Among the goods bought in the East was a cargo of light, brass-barreled guns, which had been manufactured for a South American gov- ernment, but did not meet the requirements, and so were sent west to Mr. Arenz. He expected to dispose of them to the settlers for shooting water fowl, and like birds, but a more for- tunate condition arose in the matter of trade. The Black Hawk war broke out and many of the soldiers called to rendezvous at Beards- town, found themselves without arms, and the state had none with which to supply them. Mr. Arenz tendered his brass-barreled guns to Gov- ernor Reynolds, who was on the ground in charge of the troops, and they were immediately purchased, at a handsome profit for Mr. Arenz. He also furnished many other supplies to the soldiers.
ADDITIONAL ENTERPRISES.
After the close of the Indian outbreak, and normal conditions had returned to river traffic, Mr. Arenz thought it would be an excellent idea to establish a newspaper, which he did, calling it the Beardstown Chronicle and Illinois Bounty
BREAKING THE SOIL WITH A TRACTION ENGINE ON A CASS COUNTY FARM
DISKING THE STUBBLE GROUND
WHEAT AND CORN FIELDS
FARM TEAM AT WORK IN THE FIELD
WHEAT IN THE STACK READY FOR THE THRESHER. CASS COUNTY FARM
STEAM THRESHING OUTFIT AT WORK
BALING THE THRESHED STRAW
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HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
Land Advertiser. The paper was conducted for a year under the management of John B. Fulks, then sold and the plant was moved to Rushville. The Illinois legislature had declared the Sanga- mon River a navigable stream, and Mr. Arenz thought it would be well to shorten the distance and make a more direct route to Beardstown by cutting a canal across to Miller's Ferry. He secured a charter from the state in 1836, incor- porating the Beardstown and Sangamon Canal Company, and was made its president, with Dr. O. M. Long of Beardstown, one of the earliest physicians of the county, as secretary. A brother of Mr. Arenz, John A. Arenz, was one of the chief engineers. A survey was made, but the panic of that period coming on, caused the project to fail. The majority of Mr. Arenz's many enterprises were very successful, but one that did not prove satisfactory financially, was the gristmill which he bought of Mr. Smart. In 1835 he closed his mercantile business at Beards- town, and moved to his farm about six miles southeast from Beardstown, where he con- structed a substantial house of unique design. It was built on high ground, along the upland bordering the wide Illinois River bottom, and gave a splendid view of that expanse of rich alluvial land which has since become as valu- able a tract as any farm land in the state. He remained there until 1839, when he moved to the village to which he had given the name of Arenzville, and there he lived until his death, He delighted in politics, and was an ardent Whig. A man of excellent education, he was a fairly good writer, frequently contributing to the local and state newspapers. No legislature of the state assembled without Mr. Arenz being present.
ELECTED TO THE LEGISLATURE.
In 1844, while living at Arenzville, Mr. Arenz was elected a member of the lower house of the General Assembly from Morgan County, Arenz- ville being then in the territory known as the Three Mile Strip. Mr. Arenz added his influence to that of Cass County's representatives, and secured that strip for Cass County, but he was not re-elected to the assembly. In 1852 he was sent to his native land by President Fillmore, as learer of dispatches to the American legations at Berlin and Vienna. In 1853 he assisted in organizing the State Agricultural Society, and continued a member of it during the remainder
of his life. He also helped to organize the Cass County Fair Association and became its first president. Mr. Arenz did not live to see all his hopes and ambitions fulfilled, and laid down the burdens and responsibilities of his busy life at Arenzville, April 2, 1856. Resolu- tions of respect were adopted by the executive committee of the state board of agriculture and they were published in all the Springfield, Jack- sonville and Cass County papers, and copied in many others of the state.
BUSINESS DIRECTORY OF 1860.
Arenzville did not grow fast to any great extent, but was the center of a large German settlement, many of whom were not farmers, but had been well educated to other lines of business in their native land. On coming to this country they thought it would be an easy matter to engage in agricultural pursuits, the soil and climatic conditions being so far superior for that purpose to that of their own land, but few indeed remained farmers, the most of them gathering in the villages. Some remained at Arenzville and some went elsewhere to engage in the various pursuits to which they had been trained in their youth. A business directory published in 1860, gives the following for Arenz- ville: J. B. Glass, physician and surgeon ; Charles E. Yeck and Bro., merchants and gro- cers; J. L. Cire, merchant and justice of the peace ; II. Engelbach, merchant and miller ; Charles Coerper, miller ; H. Schaeffer, boot and shoe dealer ; Charles Pilney, carpenter and cab- inet-maker; N. Brill and S. Gephardt, wagon- makers and blacksıniths; and A. Boehme, mer- chant. In 1870 the railroad was built through from Beardstown to St. Louis, and the village began to expand. It became a shipping point for all the products grown in a large area of country, and on February 13, 1893, it was incor- porated as a village under the general law, and is now quite a prosperous community. It had, for a number of years, a brewery and several saloons, but at the village election in 1914, with the assistance of the women voters, the saloons were voted out. On December 24, 1913, about midnight a disastrous fire occurred whichi destroyed a great number of the business houses, but they were rapidly rebuilt.
At the present time there are at Arenzville, an excellent flouring mill, four grocery stores, three general stores, two dry goods stores, two
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HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
drug stores, two harness dealers, two hardware and agricultural implement stores, two butcher shops, three blacksmith and repair shops, one jewelry store, three restaurants, two hotels, two physicians, a telephone exchange, four churches, grade and high schools, one weekly newspaper, two banks, one lumber yard that handles gen- eral merchandise as well, two barber shops, one garage, a brick yard, and several masons, car- penters and painters. It has one policeman and one calaboose, neither being in great demand.
CHAPTER XXVI.
ASHLAND PRECINCT.
SITUATION-TOWN OF LANCASTER LAID OUT IN 1837 BY JOHN DUTCH-THE HALFWAY HOUSE-EARLY REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS - WHOLE DUTCH PLAT VACATED IN 1843-PRECINCT CALLED LAN- CASTER UNTIL 1876-PETERSBURG & TONICA RAIL- ROAD-TOWN OF ASHLAND LAID OUT-NAMED FOR HENRY CLAY'S KENTUCKY HOME-NEW RAILROAD BROUGHT PROSPERITY-BOUNDARIES-TOWN IN- CORPORATED - VILLAGE CHARTER GRANTED IN 1869-FIRST VILLAGE OFFICERS-BALTIMORE & OHIO SOUTHWESTERN RAILROAD-VILLAGE INCOR- PORATED IN JUNE, 1897-BY POPULATION ENTI- TLED TO ORGANIZE AS A CITY-ARISES FROM FIRE RUINS-RAPID STRIDES FORWARD-UNSURPASSED TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES.
SITUATION.
Ashland Precinct occupies the southeast cor- ner of the county, and is wholly within the prairie district of the county. It was formerly included in the old Lancaster Precinct, wherein was the town of Lancaster, laid out by John Dutch, in May, 1837. He built there the tavern known as the "Halfway House," as it was about half way between Beardstown and Springfield. Dutch sold half of his town to Erastus W. Palmer, who, in a year, sold one of the lots for a dollar and turned the rest back to Mr. Dutch and disappeared. Some say the entire plat of land or lots was conveyed to Palmer for $400. However as that may be, he received the full value of the one lot for business or town
purposes. The plat covered the greater portion of the northeast quarter of the northwest quar- ter of section 25, township 17, range 9, west. Mr. Dutch built a few other houses, besides his own residence, in which he kept the tavern, but there was so little to attract anyone to that bleak spot in the open prairie that the place was soon abandoned, so far as any attempt to make a town of it was concerned. In 1843 the plat was vacated. The precinct bore the name of Lancaster, however, until 1876. The Duling house on the north side of the public highway near the flag station Guerney, is on the site of the old Halfway House. It is said that John Dutch went back to the east from which he had emigrated after having been a sea captain, and there took up a collection to build a church. He really did build a church at Lancaster, but it was later moved away and used as a barn.
ASHLAND VILLAGE NAMED.
The village of Ashland is the youngest born of all the towns and villages in Cass County. In 1857 the Petersburg and Tonica Railroad was surveyed through that part of Cass County, and the same year a land company composed of James L. Beggs, Elmore Crow, William G. Spears, Richard Yates, the famous war governor, and others, laid out the town of Ashland upon lands owned by Beggs and Crowe. As they were all Whigs and worshipped in greater or less degree the idol of that party, Henry Clay, who had a home in Kentucky which he called Ashland, these promoters gave their new town the name of Ashland in honor of the great compromiser. Ashland proved a success to an extent that surpassed the best wishes of its friends. It did not suffer the fate of some of the other early towns. The railroad actually was built as pro- posed, and lots were soon disposed of in great numbers ; people came to it for permanent set- tlement. They could get to Jacksonville, or Bloomington, and even to Chicago by the new railroad, and it was also on the state road or public highway to Springfield, with a first class stage line running every day.
BOUNDARIES.
The boundaries of the village as given on the plat are as follows: Commencing at a point one-fourth of a mile due west of the southeast corner of section 29, township 17, range 8, west,
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HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
in the county of Cass, running thence due north one-half mile, thence due east one mile, thence due south one mile, thence due west one mile, thence due north one-half mile to the point of starting. It contained 144 blocks besides the public squares and commons. There was but one house on the lands platted, it being the resi- dence of Mr. Crowe, who was a farmer and had a splendid crop of corn that year. The house is still standing and it is used as a residence, although for many years it was the Douglas Tavern, or boarding house. About forty build- ings were erected in the town the first year, and the sale of lots amounted to over $100,000. W. R. Hunter became the first merchant and built a store on Main street. About the same time William Goble and Alexander Mansfield opened a store, but after a few years became embar- . rassed and retired in favor of the sheriff, who kindly disposed of their stock of goods. Crowe, Beggs and Spears, three of the original town proprietors, built the Brick Hotel which is still used for hotel purposes. Blacksmith and wagon and repair shops were built soon after the organization of the town. Schools and churches were organized, as previously related in separate chapters, and the village continued to grow. It only had one general store, how- ever, from 1863 to 1865. A post office had been established, and Mr. Hunter, the merchant, was appointed postmaster.
By 1869 the place had reached such a stage of population and business that the people thought best to have it incorporated. On Janu- ary 18 of that year a meeting was called and a vote taken on the question of incorporation, which resulted in thirty-five votes for and four against. Pursuant thereto application was made and on April 19, 1869, a village charter was granted from the state. The first village officers were Stephen Barnes, president ; W. R. Hunter, clerk; J. G. Smith, police magistrate, and James L. Beggs, A. L. Corson and J. G. Smith, while its private residences are away above trustees.
In 1871, the railroad which is now the Balti- more & Ohio Southwestern, was built from Beardstown to Springfield through Ashland, and this gave the village additional opportunity for progress. In the meantime the new state con- stitution had taken effect, and the legislature had, pursuant to its authority, provided for gen- eral incorporation of cities and villages. No provision was made for incorporating towns, so there are no towns in the state under the gen-
eral law. Ashland soon saw the advantages of being under the general law, and on December 28, 1872, took a vote upon the proposition whether it should incorporate under the new law, or not. The result of the vote was forty for the proposition, and fourteen against, and the village was incorporated as of that date, but did not see fit to have its charter granted. The legislature by an amended act in 1895, authorized the secretary of state to issue cer- tificates of incorporation upon the filing of tran- scripts of organization proceedings, and a cer- tificate was issued to Ashland, June 1, 1897. By the census of 1SS0 Asliland had a population of only 609. It now has over 1,200, and is enti- tled to organize as a city any time it sees fit to do so.
ARISES FROM FIRE RUINS.
In 1877 a fire visited the village and swept away the larger portion of the business houses, the common fate sooner or later of all cities and villages that do not have an adequate water supply and fire protection. Ashland, like all other places where there are courageous citi- zens, soon had buildings of a better character above the ashes of the old ones.
Ashland has made rapid strides in a business way and now has four churches, two banks, graded and high schools, one weekly newspaper, three dry goods stores, two drug stores, four groceries, two furniture stores, one hardware store, three grain elevators, three barber shops, two harness shops, two butcher shops, three restaurants, two hotels, two millinery stores, one book and stationery store, one lumber yard, a telephone exchange, one undertaker, several notaries public, one livery and feed barn, one garage, four physicians, and one dentist. It has Odd Fellow, Masonic and Woodmen lodges,
the average of village and small city prop- erty. The village is but twelve miles from Virginia, the county seat, twenty-one miles from Springfield, thic state capital, and sixteen miles from Jacksonville, and 200 miles from Chicago, and whenever the people desire to visit any of these places, they find excellent accom- modations at the Union depot in the northeast corner of the village, where twelve passenger trains stop daily.
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HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
CHAPTER XXVII.
BEARDSTOWN PRECINCT.
LARGEST MUNICIPALITY IN COUNTY-ELI COX THE EARLIEST SETTLER-LANDS ENTERED BY THOMAS BEARD AND ENOCH C. MARCH-A CLAIM MADE OF EARLIER OWNERSHIP - DOWNING'S LANDING - QUARTER SECTIONS MADE NECESSARY BY RIVER'S COURSE-ORIGINAL TOWN OF BEARDSTOWN PLAT- TED - DESCRIPTION - SUBSEQUENT ADDITIONS - SCHOOL LANDS DONATED BY CONGRESS-FIRST TOWN ORGANIZATION-FIRST BOARD OF TRUS- TEES-REORGANIZATION AS A TOWN-LIST OF TOWN OFFICIALS-LEGISLATURE OF 1857 FIXES CORPORATE LIMITS OF TOWN-OAKWOODS' CEM- ETERY ASSOCIATION-OFFICIALS OF SAME-THE GERMAN LITERARY ASSOCIATION - OBJECT AND OFFICIALS-GASLIGHT AND COKE COMPANY-IN- CORPORATORS - BEARDSTOWN HISTORICALLY IM- PORTANT-OLD LANDMARKS RECALLED - FIRST .
SCHOOLHOUSE STILL STANDING-PARK HOTEL- OLD OPERA HOUSE-TWO MODERN THEATERS- BUSINESS MEN AND FIRMS FIFTY YEARS AGO- CITY ADOPTS GENERAL CHARTER IN 1897-LIST OF CITY OFFICIALS-A FINE PUBLIC UTILITY -- BEARDSTOWN WATER COMPANY - ARTESIAN WELL-POSTAL FACILITIES-STREET PAVING-PUB- LIC LIBRARY-FISHING INTERESTS-MANY VARI- ETIES OF FISH-BLACK BASS PLENTIFUL-GERMAN CARP MARKETED IN. NEW YORK-PEARL FISH- ERIES - A RECENT INDUSTRY-REAL PEARLS FOUND-A PARIS MARKET-BEARDSTOWN AN IN- DUSTRIAL CENTER-RAILROAD DIVISION POINT- LUMBER MILLS-PRESENT PRINCIPAL BUSINESS CONCERNS-STEEL WAGON AND FOOT BRIDGE- BRIGHT FUTURE.
LARGEST MUNICIPALITY IN COUNTY.
Beardstown is the largest municipality within the county limits, and its history has been almost completely told throughout the foregoing pages, in fact the beginning of the history of . the territory now comprised in Cass County was at Beardstown, although there was a set- tler. Eli Cox, who came to the east end of the county a few years before Thomas Beard located at the Mound Village. The lands upon which Beardstown is built were entered by
Thomas Beard and Enoch C. March, although it is frequently stated, following no doubt upon the undisputed statement made by some early settler, that the lands were originally owned by a man named Downing. The records do not show the title to any part of these lands to have been at any time in any one named Down- ing. Some of the early settlers spoke of a Downing's Landing being the site of Beards- town, but even this cannot be verified. The records of the land office show that Thomas Beard and Enoch C. March entered the north- east fractional quarter of section 15, township 18, range 12, west, on September 23, 1826, and on October S, 1827, the same parties entered the northwest fractional quarter of the same section containing fifty and a fraction acres. These quarters of the section were made frac- tional by reason of the Illinois River running in a southwesterly course and cutting off the northwest portion of the section.
ORIGINAL TOWN OF BEARDSTOWN PLATTED.
On October 10, 1827, Mr. Beard alone entered the east half of the southwest quarter of section 15, township 18, north, range 12, west. The original town of Beardstown was platted and laid out in September, 1829. The certifi- cate bears date of September 9, 1829, and was recorded the same day, and states that the plat is on the north fractional half of section 15, township 18, north, range 12. west. in Morgan County, Ill. The original town contained 175 lots lying adjacent to the river, extending south- ward. The explanation states that Main street's course is north 52 degrees east, and vice versa. March and Beard made an addition to the town, March 6, 1833, containing 26S lots, one of the blocks being on the easterly side, and the remainder south and west. On May 9, 1836, Thomas Beard and Nolte A. Ware made another addition, Ware certifies by his attorney in fact, Francis A. Arenz. John Ayers made a small addition on July 19, 1836, and in July, 1837, Beard and Arenz made an addition. Havekluft & Ehrhardt, Clendennin and Denison, Ravens- wood and several others made small additions.
Section 16. which, by act of Congress, was donated to each township for school purposes. had but a very small portion in the county. Under the terms of the same act, other land might be donated in lieu of section 16, or por- tions of it, that had been sold or disposed of or
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Harrison Nincs
Annetta Hier
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HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
was not in existence, and pursuant to that pro- vision of the law, Congress donated portions of section 15 in township 18 north, range 12 west. These lands were, by the school commissioners of Morgan County, platted and sold for the benefit of the schools of township 18, range 12.
The first town organization was in 1834, when a board of trustees was elected, consisting of Haywood Reed, president ; John B. Fulks, then the manager of the first newspaper in the county, clerk; Edward Tull, assessor; Martin S. Trent, collector ; Isaac Spence, treasurer ; and William Nelms, supervisor. In September of that year the first ordinances for the govern- ment of the town were enacted. This organiza- tion existed until under an act of the legis- lature passed February 10, 1849, there was a re- organization as a town; on February 4, 1850, the proposition was adopted, and the following per- sons elected as officers : mayor, John A. Arenz ; aldermen : First Ward, Thomas Eyre, father of William Eyre, who has had charge of the court- house at Virginia as janitor for several years, and Jesse Riggins; Second Ward, James Hope and Joseph Stehlin; Third Ward, George Guen- ther and Jacob Ritcher. Sylvester Emmons was appointed clerk, Dr. T. A. Hoffman treasurer, and Eli S. Houghton was appointed marshal. Some doubts having arisen concerning the legal- ity of organization, the legislature of 1857, by an act approved February 16 of that year, legal- ized the incorporation, and all official acts of its officers, and, by section 4 of the act, fixed the corporate limits of the town as follows : "That hereafter the corporate limits of the city of Beardstown shall embrace a territory of one and one-halt miles square, extending three- fourths of a mile from the center of the public square, east, west, north and south, unless where said line interteres with the Illinois River, and there the boundary of said city shall run to the middle of the channel of said river ; provided, that where the new territory included by this act shall not be laid off into lots or out-lots, said territory so annexed shall not be subject to taxation for city purposes without the con- sent of the owners of the land not laid off into lots or out-lots."
On the same day the above act was approved, another act was passed and approved, establish- ing the "Beardstown Oakwoods' Cemetery Asso- ciation" near Beardstown. Dr. Charles Sprague, Christopher H. C. Havekluft, Horace Billings, Henry E. Dummer, Ebenezer Fish, William
Chase, Edward Parker, Charles Norbury and Thomas Eyre, and their associates and suc- cessors were created a body corporate and poli- tic, under said name.
On February 11, 1857, the legislature granted a charter incorporating "The German Literary Association of the City of Beardstown," and constituted C. H. C. Havekluft, Frederick Ehr- hardt, Frederick Krohe, Ferdinand Gibbers, Alex- ander Lammers, Emil Lippert, and Joseph Streh- lin, and their associates and successors, a body corporate and politic by that name. The object of the corporation was stated to be "to unite Germans of all creeds and classes in a literary bond of brotherhood and mutual friendship, in the pursuits of science and literature."
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