USA > Illinois > Winnebago County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois and history of Winnebago County, Volume I > Part 5
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HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
family in 1831, and resided in La Salle County until 1841, meanwhile serving two or three terms as Sheriff of the county. The latter year he was appointed one of the Commissioners to locate the county-seat of the newly-organized county of Grundy, finally becoming one of the founders and the first permanent settler of the town of Grundy -later called Morris, in honor of Hon. I. N. Mor- ris, of Quincy, Ill, at that time one of the Com- missioners of the Illinois & Michigan Canal. Here Mr. Armstrong was again elected to the office of Sheriff, serving several terms. So ex- tensive was his influence in Grundy County, that he was popularly known as "The Emperor of Grundy." Died, Nov. 1, 1850 .- Joel W. (Arm- strong), a fourth brother, was born in Licking County, Ohio, Jan. 6, 1817; emigrated in boyhood to La Salle County, Ill .; served one term as County Recorder, was member of the Board of Supervisors for a number of years and the first Postmaster of his town. Died, Dec. 3, 1871 .- Perry A. (Armstrong), the seventh brother of this historic family, was born near Newark, Lick- ing County, Ohio, April 15, 1823, and came to La Salle County, Ill., in 1831. His opportunities for acquiring an education in a new country were limited, but between work on the farm and serv- ice as a clerk of his brother George, aided by a short term in an academy and as a teacher in Kendall County, he managed to prepare himself for college, entering Illinois College at Jackson- ville in 1843. Owing to failure of health, he was compelled to abandon his plan of obtaining a col- legiate education and returned home at the end of his Freshman year, but continued his studies, meanwhile teaching district schools in the winter and working on his mother's farm during the crop'season, until 1845, when he located in Mor- ris, Grundy County, opened a general store and was appointed Postmaster. He has been in pub- lic position of some sort ever since he reached lis majority, including the offices of School Trustee, Postmaster, Justice of the Peace, Supervisor, County Clerk (two terms), Delegate to the Con- stitutional Convention of 1862, and two terms as Representative in the General Assembly (1862-64 and 1872-74). During his last session in the Gen- eral Assembly he took a conspicuous part in the revision of the statutes under the Constitution of 1870, framing some of the most important laws on the statute book, while participating in the preparation of others. At an earlier date it fell to liis lot to draw up the original charters of the Chicago & Rock Island, the Illinois Central, and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroads. He
has also been prominent in Odd Fellow and Masonic circles, having been Grand Master of the first named order in the State and being the old- est 32d degree Mason in Illinois; was admitted to the State bar in 1864 and to that of the Supreme Court of the United States in 1868, and has been Master in Chancery for over twenty consecutive years. Mr. Armstrong has also found time to do some literary work, as shown by his history of "The Sauks and Black Hawk War," and a num- ber of poems. He takes much pleasure in relat- ing reminiscences of pioneer life in Illinois, one of which is the story of his first trip from Ottawa to Chicago, in December, 1831, when he accompanied his oldest brother (William E. Armstrong) to Chicago with a sled and ox- team for salt to cure their mast-fed pork, the trip requiring ten days. His recollection is, that there were but three white families in Chicago at that time, but a large number of Indians mixed with half-breeds of French and Indian origin.
ARNOLD, Isaac N., lawyer and Congressman, was born near Cooperstown, N. Y., Nov. 30, 1813, being descended from one of the companions of Roger Williams. Thrown upon his own resources at an early age, he was largely "self-made." He read law at Cooperstown, and was admitted to the bar in 1835. The next year he removed to Chicago, was elected the first City Clerk in 1837, but resigned before the close of the year and was admitted to the bar of Illinois in 1841. He soon established a reputation as a lawyer, and served for three terms (the Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Twentieth) in the lower house of tlie Legisla- ture. In 1844 he was a Presidential Elector on the Polk ticket, but the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, with the legislation regarding Kan- sas and Nebraska, logically forced lıim, as a free- soiler, into the ranks of the Republican party, by which he was sent to Congress from 1861 to 1865. While in Congress he prepared and delivered an exhaustive argument in support of the right of confiscation by the General Government. After the expiration of his last Congressional term, Mr. Arnold returned to Chicago, where he resided until his death, April 24, 1884. He was of schol- arly instincts, fond of literature and an author of repute. Among his best known works are his "Life of Abraham Lincoln" and his "Life of Benedict Arnold."
ARRINGTON, Alfred W., clergyman, lawyer and author, was born in Iredell County, N. C., September, 1810, being the son of a Whig mem- ber of Congress from that State. In 1829 he was
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HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
received on trial as a Methodist preacher and became a circuit-rider in Indiana; during 1832-33 . served as an itinerant in Missouri, gaining much celebrity by his eloquence. In 1834 he began the study of law, and having been admitted to the bar, practiced for several years in Arkansas, where he was sent to the Legislature, and, in 1844, was the Whig candidate for Presidential Elec- tor. Later he removed to Texas, where he served as Judge for six years. In 1856 he removed to Madison, Wis., but a year later came to Chicago, where he attained distinction as a lawyer, dying in that city Dec. 31, 1867. He was an accom- plished scholar and gifted writer, having written much for "The Democratic Review" and "The Southern Literary Messenger," over the signature of "Charles Summerfield," and was author of an "Apostrophe to Water," which he put in the mouth of an itinerant Methodist preacher, and which John B. Gough was accustomed to quete with great effect. A volume of his poems with a memoir was published in Chicago in 1869.
ARROWSMITH, a village of McLean County, on the Lake Erie & Western Railway, 20 miles east of Bloomington; is in an agricultural and stock region; has one newspaper. Population (1890), 420; (1900), 317; (1910), 366.
ARTHUR, village in Moultrie and Douglas Counties, at junction of Chicago & Eastern Illi- nois and Terre Haute & Peoria Division Vandalia Line; is center cf broom-corn belt; has two banks, a weekly newspaper. Population (1900), S58; (1910), 1,080.
ASAY, Edward G., lawyer, was born in Phila- delphia, Sept. 17, 1825; was educated in private schools and entered the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal Church; later spent some time in the South, but in 1853 retired from the ministry and began the study of law, meantime devoting a part of his time to mercantile business in New York City. He was admitted to the bar in 1856, remov- ing the same year to Chicago, where he built up a lucrative practice. He was a brilliant speaker and became eminent, especially as a criminal lawyer. Politically he was a zealous Democrat and was the chief attorney of Buckner S. Morris and others during their trial for conspiracy in connection with the Camp Douglas affair of No- vember, 1864. During 1871-72 he made an ex- tended trip to Europe, occupying some eighteen months, making a second visit in 1882. His later years were spent chiefly on a farm in Ogle County. Died in Chicago, Nov. 24, 1898.
ASBURY, Henry, lawyer, was born in Harri- son (now Robertson) County, Ky., August 10,
1810; came to Illinois in 1834, making the jour- ney on horseback and finally locating in Quincy, where he soon after began the study of law with the Hon. O. H. Bro vning; was admitted to the bar in 1837, being for a time the partner of Col. Edward D. Baker, afterwards United States Senator from Oregon and finally killed at Ball's Bluff in 1862. In 1849 Mr. Asbury was appointed by President Taylor Register of the Quincy Land Office, and, in 1864-65, served by appointment of President Lincoln (who was his close personal friend) as Provost-Marshal of the Quincy dis- trict, thereby obtaining the title of "Captain," by which he was widely known among his friends. Later he served for several years as Registrar in Bankruptcy at Quincy, which was his last official position. Originally a Kentucky Whig, Captain Asbury was one of the founders of the Republican party in Illinois, acting in co- operation with Abram Jonas, Archibald Williams, Nehemiah Bushnell, O. H. Browning and others of liis immediate neighbors, and with Abraham Lincoln, with whom lie was a frequent corre- spondent at that period. Messrs. Nicolay and Hay, in their Life of Lincoln, award him the credit of having suggested one of the famous questions propounded by Lincoln to Douglas which gave the latter so much trouble during the memorable debates of 1858. In 1886 Captain Asbury removed to Chicago, where he continued to reside until his death, Nov. 19, 1896.
ASHLAND, in Cass County, at the inter- section of the Chicago & Alton and the Baltimore & Ohio South-Western Railroad, 21 miles west- northwest of Springfield and 200 miles southwest of Chicago. It is in the midst of a rich agri- cultural region, and is an important shipping point for grain and stock. It has three banks, four churches, a weekly newspaper, and a high school. Coal is mined in the vicinity. Population (1910), 1,096.
ASHLEY, a city of Washington County, at intersection of Illinois Central and Louisville & Nashville Railways, 62 miles east by southeast of St. Louis; is in an agricultural and fruit growing region ; has some manufactures, electric light plant and excellent granitoi.l sidewalks. Popu- lation (1890), 1,035; (1900), 953; (1910), 913.
ASHMORE, a village of Coles County, on the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Rail- way, 9 miles east of Charleston; has a newspaper and considerable local trade. Population (1890), 446; (1900), 487; (1910), 511.
ASHTON, a village of Lee County, on the Chi- cago & North-Western Railroad, 84 miles west of
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HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
Chicago; has one newspaper. Population (1880), 646; (1890), 680; (1900), 756; (1910), 779.
ASPINWALL, Homer F., farmer and legisla- tor, was born in Stephenson County, Ill., Nov. 15, 1846, educated in the Freeport high school, and, in early life, spent two years in a wholesale notion store, later resuming the occupation of a farmer. After holding various local offices, in- cluding that of member of the Board of Supervis- ors of Stephenson County, in 1892 Mr. Aspinwall was elected to the State Senate and re-elected in 1896. Soon after the beginning of the Spanish- American War in 1898, he was appointed by President Mckinley Captain and Assistant Quartermaster in the Volunteer Army, but before being assigned to duty accepted the Lieu- tenant-Colonelcy of the Twelfth Illinois Pro- visional Regiment. When it became evident that the regiment would not be called into the service, he was assigned to the command of the "Mani- toba," a large transport steamer, which carried some 12,000 soldiers to Cuba and Porto Rico with- out a single accident. In view of the approach- ing session of the Forty-first General Assembly, it being apparent that the war was over, Mr. Aspinwall applied for a discharge, which was refused, a 20-days' leave of absence being granted instead. A discharge was finally granted about the middle of February, when he resumed his seat in the Senate. Mr. Aspinwall owns and operates a large farm near Freeport.
ASSUMPTION, a town in Christian County, on the Illinois Central Railroad, 23 miles south by west from Decatur and 9 miles north of Pana. It is situated in a rich agricultural and coal min- ing district, and has two banks, five churches, two public schools and a high school, two weekly papers, and coal mines. Pop. (1910), 1,918.
ASTORIA, town in Fulton County, on Rock Island & St. Louis Division C., B. & Q. R. R .; has city waterworks, electric light plant, tele- phone exchange, three large grain elevators, pressed brick works; six churches, two banks, one weekly paper, city hall and park, and good schools; is in a coal region; has some manufacturing. Pop. (1890), 1,357; (1900), 1,684; (1910), 1,357.
ATCHISON, TOPEKA & SANTA FE RAIL- WAY COMPANY. This Company operates three subsidiary lines in Illinois-the Chicago, Santa Fé & California, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fé in Chicago, and the Mississippi River Rail- road & Toll Bridge, which are operated as a through line between Chicago and Kansas City, with a branch from Ancona to Pekin, Ill., hav- ing an aggregate operated mileage of 515 miles, of
which 295 are in Illinois. The total earnings and income for the year ending June 30, 1895, were $1,298,600, while the operating expenses and fixed charges amounted to $2,360,706. The accumu- lated deficit on the whole line amounted, June 30, 1894, to more than: $4,500,000. The total capitali- zation of the whole line in 1895 was $52, 775,251. The parent road was chartered in 1859 under the name of the Atchison & Topeka Railroad; but in 1863 was changed to the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fé Railroad. The construction of the main line was begun in 1859 and completed in 1873. The largest number of miles operated was in 1893, being 7,481.65. January 1, 1896, the road was reorganized under the name of The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fé Railway Company (its present name), which succeeded by purchase under fore- closure (Dec. 10, 1895) to the property and fran- chises of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fé Railroad Company. Its mileage, in 1895, was 6,481.65 miles. The executive and general officers of the system (1898) are:
Aldace F. Walker, Chairman of the Board, New York; E. P. Ripley, President, Chicago; C. M. Higginson, Ass't to the President, Chicago; E. D. Kenna, 1st Vice-President and General Solicitor, Chicago; Paul Morton, 2d Vice-Presi- dent, Chicago; E. Wilder, Secretary and Treas- urer, Topeka; L. C. Deming, Assistant Secretary, New York; H. W. Gardner, Assistant Treasurer, New York; Victor Morawetz, General Counsel, New York; Jno. P. Whitehead, Comptroller, New York; H. C. Whitehead, General Auditor, Chicago; W. B. Biddle, Freight Traffic Manager, Chicago; J. J. Frey, General Manager, Topeka; H. W. Mudge, General Superintendent, Topeka; W. A. Bissell, Assistant Freight Traffic Manager, Chicago; W. F. White, Passenger Traffic Manager, Chicago; Geo. T. Nicholson, Assistant Passenger Traffic Manager, Chicago; W. E. Hodges, General Purchasing Agent, Chicago; James A. Davis, Industrial Commissioner, Chi- cago; James Dun, Chief Engineer, Topeka, Kan. ; John Player, Superintendent of Machinery, Topeka, Kan .; C. W. Kouns, Superintendent Car Service, Topeka, Kan .; J. S. Hobson, Signal Engineer, Topeka; C. G. Sholes, Superintendent of Telegraph, Topeka, Kan .; C. W. Ryus, General Claim Agent, Topeka; F. C. Gay, General Freight Agent, Topeka; C. R. Hudson, Assistant General Freight Agent, Topeka; W. J. Black, General Passenger Agent, Chicago; P. Walsh, General Baggage Agent, Chicago.
ATHENS, an incorporated city and coal-mining town in Menard County, on the Chicago, Peoria
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HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
& St. Louis R. R., north by northwest of Spring- field. It is also the center of a prosperous agri- cultural and stock-raising district, and large numbers of cattle are shipped there for the Chi- cago market. The place has an electric lighting plant, brickyards, two machine shops, two grain elevators, five churches, one newspaper, and good schools. Athens is one of the oldest towns in Central Illinois. Pop. (1900), 1,535; (1910), 1,340.
ATKINS, Smith D., soldier and journalist, was born near Elmira, N. Y., June 9, 1836; came with his father to Illinois in 1846, and lived on a farm till 1850; was educated at Rock River Seminary, Mount Morris, meanwhile learning the printer's trade, and afterwards established "The Savanna Register" in Carroll County. In 1854 he began the study of law, and in 1860, while practicing at Freeport, was elected Prosecuting Attorney, but resigned in 1861, being the first man to enlist as a private soldier in Stephenson County. He served as a Captain of the Eleventh Illinois Volunteers (three-months' men), re-enlisted with the same rank for three years and took part in the capture of Fort Donelson and the battle of Shiloh, serv- ing at the latter on the staff of General Hurlbut. Forced to retire temporarily on account of his health, he next engaged in raising volunteers in Northern Illinois, was finally commissioned Col- onel of the Ninety-second Illinois, and, in June, 1863, was assigned to command of a brigade in the Army of Kentucky, later serving in the Army of the Cumberland. On the organization of Sher- man's great "March to the Sea," he efficiently cooperated in it, was brevetted Brigadier-General for gallantry at Savannah, and at the close of the war, by special order of President Lincoln, was brevetted Major-General. Since the war, Gen- eral Atkins' chief occupation has been that of editor of "The Freeport Journal," though, for nearly twenty-four years, he served as Post- master of that city. He took a prominent part in the erection of the Stephenson County Sol- diers' Monument at Freeport, has been President of the Freeport Public Library since its organiza- tion, member of the Board of Education, and since 1895, by appointment of the Governor of Illinois, one of the Illinois Commissioners of the Chicka- mauga and Chattanooga Military Park.
ATKINSON, village of Henry County, on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway, 39 miles east of Rock Island; has an electric light plant, a bank and a newspaper. Pop. (1900), 762; (1910), 805.
ATLANTA, a city of Logan County, on the Chicago & Alton Railroad, 20 miles southwest of Bloomington. It stands on a high, fertile prairie
and the surrounding region is rich in coal, as well as a productive agricultural and stock-rais- ing district. It has a water-works system, elec- tric light plant, five churches, a graded school, a weekly paper, two banks, a flouring mill, and is the headquarters of the Union Agricultural Society established 1860. Pop. (1900), 1,270; (1910), 1,367.
ATLAS, a hamlet in the southwestern part of Pike County, 10 miles southwest of Pittsfield and three miles from Rockport, the nearest station on the Quincy & Louisiana Division of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. Atlas has an in- teresting history. It was settled by Col. William Ross and four brothers, who came here from Pittsfield, Mass., in the latter part of 1819, or early in 1820, making there the first settlement within the present limits of Pike County. The town was laid out by the Rosses in 1823, and the next year the county-seat was removed thither from Coles Grove-now in Calhoun County-but which had been the first county-seat of Pike County, when it comprised all the territory lying north and west of the Illinois River to the Mis- sissippi River and the Wisconsin State line. Atlas remained the county-seat until 1833, when the seat of justice was removed to Pittsfield. During a part of that time it was one of the most important points in the western part of the State, and was, for a time, a rival of Quincy. It now has only a postoffice and general store. The population, according to the census of 1890, was 52.
ATTORNEYS-GENERAL. The following is a list of the Attorneys-General of Illinois under the Territorial and State Governments, down to the present time (1899), with the date and duration of the term of each incumbent:
TERRITORIAL-Benjamin H. Doyle, July to De- cember, 1809; John J. Crittenden, Dec. 30 to April, 1810; Thomas T. Crittenden, April to October, 1810; Benj. M. Piatt, October, 1810-13; William Mears, 1813-18.
STATE-Daniel Pope Cook, March 5 to Dec. 14, 1819; William Mears, 1819-21; Samuel D. Lock- wood, 1821-23; James Turney, 1823-29; George Forquer, 1829-33; James Semple, 1833-34; Ninian W. Edwards, 1834-35; Jesse B. Thomas, Jr., 1835-36; Walter B. Scates, 1836-37; Usher F. Linder, 1837-38; George W. Olney, 1838-39; Wick- liffe Kitchell, 1839-40; Josiah Lamborn, 1840-43; James Allen McDougal, 1843-46; David B. Camp- bell, 1846-48.
The Constitution of 1848 made no provision for the continuance of the office, and for nineteen years it remained vacant. It was re-created,
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HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
however, by legislative enactment in 1867, and on Feb. 28 of that year Governor Oglesby appointed Robert G. Ingersoll, of Peoria, to dis- charge the duties of the position, which he con- tinued to do until 1869. Subsequent incumbents of the office have been: Washington Bushnell, 1869-73; James K. Edsall, 1873-81; James McCart- ney, 1881-85; George Hunt, 1885-93; M. T. Moloney, 1893-97; Edward C. Akin, 1897-1901; Howland J. Hamlin, 1901-05; Wm. H. Stead, 1905 -. Under the Constitution of 1818 the office was filled by appointment by the Legislature; under that of 1848, it ceased to exist until re-created by act of the Legislature of 1867, but, in 1870, it was made a constitutional office to be filled by popular election for a term of four years.
ATWOOD, a village lying partly in Piatt and partly in Douglas County, on the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton R. R., 27 miles east of Deca- tur. The region is agricultural and fruit-grow- ing; has one bank, churches, an excellent school and a newspaper. Pop. (1900), 698; (1910), 659.
ATWOOD, Charles B., architect, was born at Millbury, Mass., May 18, 1849; at 17 began a full course in architecture at Harvard Scientific School, and, after graduation, received prizes for public buildings at San Francisco, Hartford and a number of other cities, besides furnishing designs for some of the finest private residences in the country. He was associated with D. H. Burnham in preparing plans for the Columbian Exposition buildings, at Chicago, for the World's Fair of 1893, and distinguished himself by pro- ducing plans for the "Art Building," the "Peri- style," the "Terminal Station" and other prominent structures. Died, in the midst of his highest successes as an architect, at Chicago, Dec. 19, 1895.
AUBURN, a village of Sangamon County, on the Chicago & Alton Railroad, 15 miles south of Springfield; has some manufactories of flour and farm implements, besides tile and brick works, two coal mines, electric light plant, two banks, several churches, a graded school and a weekly newspaper. Pop. (1900), 1,281; (1910), 1,814.
AUDITORS OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS. The Auditors of Public Accounts under the Terri- torial Government were II. H. Maxwell, 1812-16; Daniel P. Cook, 1816-17; Robert Blackwell, (April to August), 1817; Elijah C. Berry, 1817-18. Under the Constitution of 1818 the Auditor of Public Accounts was made appointive by the legislature, without limitation of term; but by the Constitu- tions of 1848 and 1870 the office was made elective by the people for a term of four years.
The following is a list of the State Auditors from the date of the admission of the State into the Union down to the present time (1899), with the date and duration of the term of each: Elijah C. Berry, 1818-31; James T. B. Stapp, 1831-35; Levi Davis, 1835-41; James Shields, 1841-43; William Lee D. Ewing, 1843-46; Thomas H. Campbell, 1846-57; Jesse K. Dubois, 1857-64; Orlin H. Miner, 1864-69; Charles E. Lippincott, 1869-77; Thomas B. Needles, 1877-81; Charles P. Swigert, 1881-89; C. W. Pavey, 1889-93; David Gore, 1893-97; James S. Mccullough, 1897 -.
AUGUSTA, a village in Augusta township, Hancock County, on the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, 36 miles northeast of Quincy. Wagons and brick are the principal manufac- tures. The town has one newspaper, two banks, three churches and a graded school. The sur rounding country is a fertile agricultural region and abounds in a good quality of bituminous coal. Fine qualities of potter's clay and mineral paint are obtained here. Population (1890), 1,077; (1900), 1,149; (1910), 1,146.
AUGUSTANA COLLEGE, an educational insti- tution controlled by the Evangelical Lutheran denomination, located at Rock Island and founded in 1863. Besides preparatory and collegiate de- partments, a theological school is connected with the institution. To the two first named, young women are admitted on an equality with men. More than 500 students were reported in attendance in 1896, about, one-fourth being women. A majority of the latter were in the preparatory (or academic) department. The col- lege is not endowed, but owns property (real and personal) to the value of $250,000. It has a library of 12,000 volumes.
AURORA, a city and important railroad cen- ter, Kane County, on Fox River, 39 miles south- west of Chicago; is location of principal shops of Chicago, Burlington & Quincy R. R., has fine water-power and many successful manufactories, including extensive boiler works, iron foundries, cotton and woolen mills, flour mills, silver-plat- ing works, corset, sash and door and carriage factories, stove and smelting works, establislı- ments for turning out road-scrapers, buggy tops, and wood-working machinery. The city owns water-works and electric light plant; has six banks, three daily and several weekly papers, some twenty-five churches, excellent schools and handsome public library building; is connected by interurban electric lines with the principal towns and villages in the Fox River valley. Pop. (1890), 19,688; (1900), 24,147; (1910), 29,807.
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