USA > Illinois > Winnebago County > Historical encyclopedia of Illinois and history of Winnebago County, Volume II > Part 22
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Leon Farmer
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HISTORY OF WINNEBAGO COUNTY
ford September 29. These debates have a his- toric interest by reason of the subsequent prom- inence of the participants. Judge Fuller becane the war adjutant of the state, and in this capac- ity he displayed great executive ability, and was the able supporter of Governor Yates, in the organization of the military forces of the state. Judge Fuller died in Belvidere in 1901. Upon the outbreak of the Civil war in 1861, Mr. Raw- lins came promptly to the support of the Union cause; he was the confidential friend and ad- viser of General Grant during his campaigns, and in 1869 he became his secretary of war.
The presidential election was held November 6, 1860. Winnebago County cast 3,985 votes for Abraham Lincoln and 817 for Judge Douglas; Richard Yates received 3,986 votes for gov- ernor, and Mr. Allen 826.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
The election of Mr. Lincoln was perhaps the most notable event in the life of the nation. The shouts of victory had scarcely died away when one southern state after another openly revolted from the authority of the Union. The election of Mr. Lincoln brought the sword, rather than peace. But the sword was drawn in a holy cause. For two hundred and fifty years the irrepressible conflict between freedom and slavery had continued. The "land of the free" had made iniquity her law. Millions of bondsmen wet the soil with tears and blood. Cause and Effect, the chancellors of God, had come to enforce the truth that there were rights that states must keep or they shall suffer for their sins. Victor Hugo says of Napoleon. at Waterloo: "For Bonaparte to be conqueror at Waterloo was not in the law of the nineteenth century. . When the earth is suffering from a surcharge there are mysterious moan- ings from the deeps that the heavens hear. Napoleon had been impeached before the In- finite and his fall was decreed. He vexed God. Waterloo is not a battle; it is the change of front of the universe." So the Slave-Power had overleaped itself, and could no longer resist the advance of a more enlightened Christian civil- ization.
Abraham Lincoln was the divinely appointed man for the hour. There seem to be certain superhuman adjustments that philosophy does not explain, that work out righteous results.
Human wisdom does not foresee them; they do not destroy human freedom, but they do achieve their results with infallible certainty. The leaders of such events are like Æneas in the fable : they are often covered with a cloud woven by divine fingers, and men do not see them. But when they are needed the cloud breaks away, and they stand before the world prepared to do their work. Such a man was Abraham Lincoln. He was called to lead in a war made holy by the quickened moral con- science of the nation. Poets, and reformers, and statesmen had cast up the highway for the King, who should visit the nation with chastening. This judgment day was at hand, because Phillips, and Garrison, and Sumner had come; because Whittier, and Lowell, and Har- riet Beecher Stowe had come; because Sumner and Seward, and Chase had come; because Grant, and Sherman, and Sheridan had come; because the great terrible day of the Lord had come !
Stephen A. Douglas died at the old Tremont House, in Chicago, June 3, 1861, at the age of forty-eight years. With the single exception of Abraham Lincoln, no personality in the history of Illinois possessed more elements of intense interest than that of Senator Douglas. His life was a notable example of the perils and possi- bilities of genius.
Rockford shared the nation's grief in the death of Senator Douglas. Memorial services were held on the courthouse square, on June 7, and thousands of people were in attendance. The orator of the day was the Rev. John P. Done- lan, priest of St. James' Roman Catholic church. Flags were at half mast, public buildings were draped in emblems of mourning, and from two o'clock until five business was suspended.
On the following Sunday a second memorial service was held, Rev. M. Schofield, rector of Emmanuel Episcopal church, preaching in the Second Congregational church, and by request of citizens his discourse was published in the city papers.
The untimely death of Stephen A. Douglas awakened a popular desire to erect a suitable memorial. The Douglas Monument Association was formed, and James S. Ticknor was appointed agent for this county. The payment of one dol- lar constituted a membership, and the fund pro- vided the monument that stands in Douglas Park, on Lake Michigan, in Chicago. The prop-
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HISTORY OF WINNEBAGO COUNTY
erty was later turned over to the care of the state.
COUNTY REPUDIATES NEW CONSTITUTION.
On June 17, 1862, Winnebago County repudi- ated the new constitution which had been sub- mitted by the state convention. The vote was : for the constitution, 602; against, 3,367. Porter Sheldon was the delegate to the convention from Winnebago County. Gen. A. C. Fuller of Belvi- dere, adjutant-general of the state, was candi- date for representative in Congress in 1862. He was endorsed by the voters of Winnebago County. The delegates to the convention, how- ever, were uninstructed, and they betrayed Fuller and assisted in the nomination of Gen. John F. Farnsworth of St. Charles. Some of them were rewarded by federal patronage when Farnsworth went to Washington.
POLITICAL ACTIVITIES OF 1864.
The political activities of 1864 began early. A mass convention was held at the courthouse April 23. Five delegates were selected for the judicial convention to be held in Chicago, April 27, to nominate a justice of the Supreme court for the Third Division. Charles B. Lawrence, of Knox County, a brother of the late Mrs. E. W. Blaisdell, was nominated. The judicial election was held June 6. The county conven- tion also endorsed President Lincoln for a sec- ond term, and Andrew Johnson for vice-presi- dent. General Allen C. Fuller, of Belvidere, was supported for governor. Ten delegates were chosen to the state convention in May. All the counties in Northern Illinois, which return the large Republican majorities, in- structed for General Fuller. The counties of Central and Southern Illinois, however, which were almost certain to be Democratic, supported General Oglesby, and he' was nominated.
At the presidential election in November, 1868, General Grant received 4,567 votes in Winnebago County ; Horatio Seymour received 951. John M. Palmer carried the county for governor by a majority of 3,611 over John R. Eden, Democrat. The presidential vote of Win- nebago County in 1872 was considerably less than in 1868. General Grant received 3,809 votes; Horace Greeley, 1,051. Seymour G. Bronson, then mayor of Rockford, was the Dem-
ocratic candidate for congressman in the Fourth district. He was defeated by General Stephen A. Hurlbut, of Belvidere, who carried Winnebago County by a majority of 2,212. Winnebago County registered the following vote at the presidential election in 1876: Hayes, 4,505; Tilden, 1,568; for governor: Cullom, 4,514; Steward, 1,623.
GENERAL GRANT VISITS ROCKFORD.
The presidential campaign of 1880 was one of unusual historic interest, by reason of the « fame of its leaders. Illinois was one of the battlegrounds between General Grant and James G. Blaine. An incident of the local can- vass was General Grant's visit to Rockford. With his wife he arrived from the West and they were driven about the city. Dinner was served at the Holland House. Early in the afternoon there was a demonstration on the courthouse square. William Lathrop introduced the distinguished guest, and the general in re- sponse made one of his characteristic brief addresses. He said: "Ladies and gentlemen : A friend had just whispered in my ear that there was to be no speech-making, and I am a good hand at not making speeches. I am greatly pleased to be able to meet the people of Rockford. It is strange that I should have lived so near you as long as I have and never paid you a visit. This morning I spent an hour riding through your beautiful city, admir- ing the fine residences and the splendid manu- facturing and agricultural resources. You have manufacturing interests enough in your city to warrant the increase in population to three times its present size. I trust in the next dec- ade that I may again visit you, and may find that augmentation of population has actually occurred."
The primaries were held May 1, and General Grant carried every district in the city. The county convention, which was held May 8, elected delegates to the state convention in- structed for Grant. General Hurlbut, of Belvi- dere, with Joseph Medill and Charles B. Far- well, had been intrusted with Mr. Blaine's in- terests in Illinois. Hurlbut visited Rockford before the primaries. Abraham E. Smith, who had a falling-out with Hurlbut, once remarked to the writer that had "Steve" remained at home the county would have gone for Blaine.
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HISTORY OF WINNEBAGO COUNTY
General Grant made a second visit to Rock- ford September 15, 18SO, when he was a guest of Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Talcott, who opened their home to the public for an informal recep- tion to the general. Early in the evening there was a rally at Republican headquarters on South Main street. On the platform were seated General Grant, Governor Cullom, Judge Tatt and local speakers. Governor Cullom de- livered the principal speech and was followed by Judge Taft. On the following day these distinguished guests made brief addresses at the county fair.
One of the greatest political events in the history of Rockford was the speech of Colonel Robert G. Ingersoll at the fairground Septem- ber 28. The gifted orator was then in the floodtide of his superb power and the zenith of his fame. Special trains brought visitors from all directions, and an audience estimated at ten thousand grected the speaker, who was introduced by R. F. Crawford. Colonel Inger- soll charmed his vast throng with more than two hours of wit and eloquence, and the pro- found impression was expressed a few hours later by William Lathrop, who said: "I have heard more Republicanism this afternoon than in all the rest of my life, and you can't get me between that recollection and a night's sleep." In the evening another demonstration was held at Republican headquarters. Speeches were made by Colonel Ingersoll and John C. Garver. Beside the colonel on the platform were Mrs. Ingersoll, Miss Ada Sweet, for many years pen- sion agent at Chicago, and Frank Lombard, the famous campaign singer. At the presidential election in November, 1880, James A. Garfield carried Winnebago County by a three to one plurality. The returns were : Garfield, 4,629 ; Hancock, 1,510; Weaver, 242. The returns for governor were : Cullom, 4,512; Trumbull, 1,500; Streeter, 370.
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN OF 1884.
The political events of 1884 were of unusual interest. The county convention was held April 12, and the delegates to the state convention were instructed for General John A. Logan for president, and General Richard J. Oglesby for governor. However, when Mr. Blaine was nomi- nated at Chicago, Rockford enthusiastically sup- ported the "Plumed Knight." There was a de-
fection in the party, not large in numbers, but strong in influence. Some supported Mr. Cleve- land, and were known as "Mugwumps ;" and others gave their allegiance to John P. St. John, the candidate of the Prohibitionists. It was a campaign of speeches, parades and red fire, in which all parties participated.
On August 27 Rockford was honored with the presence of General Logan and General Oglesby, both of whom made speeches on the fair ground. General Logan, by reason of his position on the ticket, was less impassioned than was his wont. Colonel Clark E. Carr, of Galesburg, made a speech on the evening of September 4 at the East Side Park. September 13 Carl Schurz made a specch at the fair ground before what was regarded at the time as the greatest Demo- cratic mass meeting ever held in Rockford. Car- ter Harrison, mayor of Chicago, and Democratic candidate for governor, addressed a Democratic mass meeting at the fair ground October 25. There were 4,074 voters registered in the city of Rockford for the November election. The official vote of Winnebago county for president was as follows : Blaine, 4,944; Cleveland, 1,791; St. John, 545; for governor : Oglesby, 4,959 ; Harrison, 1,821; Hobbs, 51.
The most notable incident of ISSS was the presidential campaign. General Benjamin Har- rison was nominated by the national Republican convention June 25, and in the evening of the same day the nomination was ratified in Rock- ford. Three days later a Tippecanoe club was organized. The re-nomination of Grover Cleve- land by the Democrats was a mere formality, as he had proved himself the most commanding figure in his party. With General Clinton B. Fisk as the standard bearer of the Prohibition- ists, the campaign was one of intense interest.
POLITICAL DEMONSTRATIONS.
August 30 was Republican day at the Winne- bago County fair. Isaac Clements, one of the wheel-horses of Republicanism in Illinois, made a speech in the afternoon. In the evening Stephen A. Douglas, Jr., a son of the famous Illinois senator, discussed the issues of the day from a Republican standpoint, at the courthouse. The next speaker of distinction was General John M. Palmer, Democratic candidate for gov- ernor, who addressed a mass meeting from the balcony of the Holland House September 13. On
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HISTORY OF WINNEBAGO COUNTY
the following day Joseph W. Fifer, the Repub- lican nominee for governor, made a strong plea for the principles of his party at the courthouse. The greatest demonstration of the year was on September 25, when Senator Will Cumback, ot Indiana, urged the support of the Republican nominee in a speech at the East Side Park. The procession was one of unparalleled magnitude in the history of Rockford, and fully 2,000 men were in the line of march. The campaign was signalized throughout by marching clubs and torchlight processions, in which all parties par- ticipated. The year marked the passing of these demonstrations, and they have never been re- vived.
Winnebago County registered the following vote at the November election : Harrison, 5,087 ; Cleveland, 2,176 ; Fisk, 621 ; for governor : Fifer, 5,083 ; Palmer, 2,322; Harts, 507.
On July 20, 1889, President Harrison nomi- nated Evans Blake as consul to Crefeld, in Rhenish Prussia. Mr, Blake served several years.
REVULSION OF 1890.
One of those periodical political revulsions swept over the country in 1890, when many of the most prominent Republican leaders were temporarily retired to private life. The cam- paign in Winnebago County was one of unusual interest for an off year. On October 25 Thomas B. Reed, speaker of the national house of repre- sentatives, addressed a mass meeting on the fair grounds. Winnebago County has always been a stronghold of Republicanism. Notwith- standing this fact, also that Congressman Hitt was one of the recognized leaders in the house, he carried the county by only 70 votes against Andrew Ashton, of Rockford, who ran as an independent. The vote of Winnebago was divided as follows : Hitt, 3,473; Ashton, 3,413.
LATER PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS.
Not since the organization of the Republican party in 1854, has a Democratic candidate for president or governor carried Winnebago County. It has ever been regarded as a party stronghold. The vote of 1892 for the two lead- ing parties was as follows : Harrison, 5,854 ; Cleveland, 2,634. For governor the county cast 5,856 votes for Joseph W. Fifer and 2,632 for
Jolmn P. Altgeld. The manner in which the voters voted the "straight ticket" is indicated by the fact that Fifer received two more votes than Harrison and Altgeld received two votes less than Cleveland.
The election of 1896 showed the phenomenal popularity of William McKinley ; while William J. Bryan, who had a few months before leaped into fame at a single bound by his brilliant "cross of gold" speech in Chicago, failed to maintain the party status. Mckinley received 8,242 votes ; Bryan, 2,438; Palmer, independent Democrat, 51. For governor Tanner received 8,010 votes ; Altgeld, 2,504; Forman, independent Democrat, 63.
In the election of 1900 Winnebago County cast practically the same vote for the same leading candidates as in 1896. Mckinley re- ceived 8,103 votes ; Bryan, 2,498. For governor Richard Yates fell slightly behind the head of the ticket. The vote: Yates, 7,979; Alschuler, 2,555.
In 1904 the Roosevelt and Fairbanks electors received 8,143 votes ; Parker and Davis, 1,177. For governor, Charles S. Deneen received 7,987 votes ; Lawrence B. Stringer, 1,310.
In 1908 the Republican party for the fourth consecutive tinie, polled over eight thousand votes at the presidential election. The results were : Taft, 8,919; Bryan, 2,163; for governor, Deneen, 7,301; Stevenson, 3,919.
The presidential campaign of 1912 was sig- nalized by the first primary held for president and United States senator, which was held April 9. Theodore Roosevelt carried Winnebago County over William H. Taft by a vote of 5,888 to 1,399. Robert M. LaFollette received 1,503. On the Democratic ticket Woodrow Wilson car- ried the county over Champ Clark by 346 to 315. For governor, Charles S. Deneen, Repub- lican, had a plurality of 948, with eight candi- dates in the field ; C. F. Dunne, Democrat, had a plurality of 27, with four candidates. For United States senator Lawrence Y. Sherman led Shelby M. Cullom by 4,000 to 1,257. At the presidential election Winnebago County, for the only time in its history, repudiated the Repub- lican nominee. Tbe vote was divided as fol- lows : Roosevelt, 7,089; Wilson 2,276; Taft, 2,537. The returns for governor were: Funk, 5,420 ; Deneen, 3,667; Dunne, 2,993.
Lawrence Y. Sherman carried Winnebago County for United States senator in 1914. Mr.
3
Oscar Fravor
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HISTORY OF WINNEBAGO COUNTY
Sherman has the distinction of being the last senator elected by the legislature of Illinois, to · succeed William Lorimer, and the first to be chosen by a direct vote of the people.
WINNEBAGO IN CONGRESS.
The several congressional districts, of which Winnebago County has successively formed a part, have been represented in Congress by able men. Several were leaders and statesmen of national and even international reputation. In order to make the record complete a paragraph must be devoted to the territorial organization of Illinois.
Previous to 1818, when Illinois became a state, the territory was represented in Congress suc- cessively by three delegates. Shadrach Bond served from December 3, 1812, until October 3, 1814. Benjamin Stephenson succeeded Bond and served from November 14, 1814, until April 29, 1816. Nathaniel Pope entered Congress Decen- ber 2, 1816, as the last territorial delegate and remained until Illinois was admitted as a state, in March, 1818. From 1818 until 1832, the state of Illinois constituted one congressional district. Danicl P. Cook was the first representative in Congress, and served from 1818 until 1827. Joseph Duncan succeeded.
APPORTIONMENT INTO DISTRICTS.
The first apportionment proper was made in 1831. The state was divided into three districts. The Third included the northern half of the state, and was represented successively by three congressmen. Joseph Duncan was elected in 1832, but resigned and William L. May, of Springfield, was elected to complete the term. May was re-elected as a Democrat in 1834 and 1836. The latter year was the first in which Winnebago County voted at a congressional election. John T. Stuart, subsequently a law partner of Abraham Lincoln, was elected in 1838 over Stephen A. Douglas, and was re-elected in 1840. Under the new apportionment of 1843, Joseph P. Hogue of Galena was elected as a Democrat for the new Rockford district, and re-elected in 1844, defeating Martin P. Sweet of Freeport. In 1846 Thomas J. Turner of Freeport was elected and served one term, as a Democrat. By the year 1848 the Whigs had again come into power, and the famous Col. Edward D. Baker
was elected to Congress. Colonel Baker was born in London, England, February 24, 1811. He came to the United States at the age of five years, with his father, who died in Philadelphia. The son removed to Springfield, Ill. He served his adopted country with signal ability in the Mexican war. Upon his return to Illinois he settled in Galena, where he lived when he was sent to Congress. Colonel Baker was subsequently elected a United States senator from Oregon. His debate with Breckenridge in the senate, in 1861, attracted national attention. "In the his- tory of the senate," says Mr. Blaine, "no more thrilling speech was ever delivered. The strik- ing appearance of the speaker, in the uniform of a soldier, his superb voice, his graceful manner, all united to give to the occasion an extraordi- nary interest and attraction." On the outbreak of the Civil war, Colonel Baker left his seat in the senate and entered military service. He was killed while commanding a brigade at the battle of Ball's Bluff, October 21, 1861.
Colonel Baker was succeeded in 1850 by Thompson Campbell, of Galena, as a Democrat, who served one term.
Under the apportionment of 1852 the state was divided into nine districts. Elihu B. Wash- burne served the entire period of ten years, dur- ing which this apportionment continued. Mr. Washburne was first elected as a Whig ; his sub- sequent elections were as a Republican. Elihu Benjamin Washburne was a member of the cele- brated Washburne family. He was born in Livermore, Me., September 23, 1816. In 1839 he entered the Harvard law school, and among his schoolmates were Richard Dana and William M. Evarts. He was admitted to the bar in 1840, and at once settled at Galena, Ill., and entered into partnership in the practice of the law with Charles S. Hempstead, one of the incorporators of Rockford Female Seminary. Mr. Washburne remained in Congress until March 6, 1869. From this long and honorable service he was familiarly known as the "Father of the House." When General Grant became president, he hon- ored his old friend with the appointment of secretary of state, and later made him minister to France, which latter position he held during the Franco-Prussian war. At the request of Prince Bismarck, and with the permission of the French minister of foreign affairs, Mr. Wash- burne exercised his official influence for the pro- tection of the Germans in Paris. When the
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HISTORY OF WINNEBAGO COUNTY
empire was overthrown, Mr. Washburne was the first foreign representative to recognize the new republic. He remained in Paris during the siege, and was at his post when the commune ruled the city. The German emperor recognized his serv- ices by conferring upon him the Order of the Red Eagle, but he was forced to decline this honor because a law of the United States prohibited it. Upon Mr. Washburne's resignation in 1877, the emperor sent him his life-size portrait; and he was similarly honored by Bismarck, and by Thiers and Gambetta. Mr. Washburne died in Chicago, October 22, 1SS7.
The apportionment of 1861 divided the state into thirteen districts. Winnebago County formed a part of the Second district, and Gen. John F. Farnsworth represented the district during the full ten years.
In 1872 the state was divided into nineteen districts, and Winnebago County formed a part of the Fourth. Gen. Stephen A. Hurlbut of Belvidere was elected over Hon. S. G. Bronson, then of Rockford. General Hurlbut was re- elected over General Farnsworth in 1874. Stephen A. Hurlbut was born in Charleston, S. C., in 1815, and settled in Belvidere in 1845. He was the son of a Unitarian clergyman, and a brother of William Henry Hurlbut, for many years editor-in-chief of the New York World. He was commissioned a brigadier-general in 1861, in the Civil war, commanding the fourth division at the battle of Shiloh, and for that service he was promoted to the rank of major- general, and assigned to the command of the Department of the Gulf. General Hurlbut was the first commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic; was appointed minister resi- dent to the United States of Colombia by Presi- dent Grant, and in 1881 was appointed United States minister to Peru, and died at Lima in the spring of the following year. Abraham Lin- coln once said that Stephen A. Hurlbut was the ablest orator on the stump that Illinois had ever produced.
Hon. William Lathrop was elected in 1876, and is the only citizen of Rockford who held a seat in Congress. He served one term. John C. Sherwin of Aurora was elected in 187S, and re- elected in 1880.
By the apportionment of 1SS2 Winnebago County was attached to the Sixth district, and Hon. Robert R. Hitt was its representative for ten years. In 1893 Winnebago County became
a part of the Ninth district and Mr. Hitt also served this district ten years. Robert R. Hitt was born at Urbana, Ohio, January 16, 1834, and moved to Ogle County, Ill., in 1837. His first public work of note was the stenographic report of the famous Lincoln and Douglas de- bates in 1S5S. He was first United States sec- retary of legation and charge d'affaires ad interim, at Paris from 1874 to 1881. Mr. Hitt was assistant secretary of state of the United States in 1SS1, when James G. Blaine was at the head of the state department. Mr. Hitt's continuous service of twenty-four years in the House of Representatives gave him a national reputation. He was for several years chairman of the committee on foreign affairs and was considered one of the best authorities in this country on international law. In July, 1SOS, he was appointed by President Mckinley a mem- ber of the commission to establish a government for Hawaii, upon its annexation to the United States. Mr. Hitt died September 20, 1906.
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