Historical encyclopedia of Illinois, Part 93

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Gale, W. Shelden
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1388

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uncertain. Black Hawk claimed that his tribe originally dwelt around Quebec, but, as to the authenticity of this claim, historical authorities differ widely. Subsequent to 1670 the history of the allied tribes is tolerably well defined. Their characteristics, location and habits are described at some length by Father Allouez, who visited them in 1666-67. He says that they were numer- ous and warlike, but depicts them as "penurious, avaricious, thievish and quarrelsome." That they were cordially detested by their neighbors is certain, and Judge James IIall calls them "the Ishmaelites of the lakes." They were unfriendly to the French, who attached to themselves other tribes, and, through the aid of the latter, had well-nigh exterminated them, when the Sacs and Foxes sued for peace, which was granted on terms most humiliating to the vanquished. By 1718, however, they were virtually in possession of the region around Rock River in Illinois, and, four years later, through the aid of the Mascou- tins and Kickapoos, they had expelled the Illinois, driving the last of that ill-fated tribe across the Illinois River. They abstained from taking part in the border wars that marked the close of the Revolutionary War, and therefore did not par- ticipate in the treaty of Greenville in 1795. At that date, according to Judge Hall, they claimed the country as far west as Council Bluffs, Iowa, and as far north as Prairie du Chien. They offered to co-operate with the United States Government in the War of 1812, but this offer was declined, and a portion of the tribe, under the leadership of Black Hawk, enlisted on the side of the British. The Black Hawk War proved their political ruin. By the treaty of Rock Island they ceded vast tracts of land, including a large part of the eastern half of Iowa and a large body of land east of the Mississippi. (See Black Hawk War; Indian Treaties.) In 1842 the Government divided the nation into two bands, removing both to reservations in the farther West. One was located on the Osage River and the other on the south side of the Nee-ma-ha River, near the northwest corner of Kansas. From these reser- vations, there is little doubt, many of them have silently emigrated toward the Rocky Mountains, where the hoe might be laid aside for the rifle, the net and the spear of the hunter. A few years ago a part of these confederated tribes were located in the eastern part of Oklahoma.

SAILOR SPRINGS, a village and health resort in Clay County, 8 miles northeast of Louisville : has a bank and a local paper. Population (esti- mated), 300.

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SALEM, an incorporated city, the county-seat of Marion County, situated on the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern Railroad, 71 miles east of St. Louis, and 16 miles northeast of Centralia. The surrounding country is agricultural and rich in coal. A leading industry of Salem is the culture, evaporation and shipment of fruit. The city has flour-mills, a national bank and three weekly newspapers. Population (1880), 1,327; (1890), 1,493. (1894), 1,527.

SALINE COUNTY, a southeastern county, organized in 1847, having an area of 380 square miles. It derives its name from the salt springs which are found in every part of the county. The northern portion is rolling and yields an abundance of coal of a quality suitable for smith- ing. The bottoms are swampy, but heavily timbered, and saw-mills abound. Oak, hickory, sweet gum, mulberry, locust and sassafras are the prevailing varieties. Fruit and tobacco are extensively cultivated. The climate is mild and humid, and the vegetation varied. The soil of the low lands is rich, and, when drained, makes excellent farming lands. In some localities a good gray sandstone, soft enough to be worked, is quarried, and millstone grit is frequently found. In the southern half of the county are the Eagle Mountains, a line of hills having an altitude of some 450 to 500 feet above the level of the Mis- sissippi at Cairo, and believed by geologists to have been a part of the upheaval that gave birth to the Ozark Mountains in Missouri and Arkan- sas. The highest land in the county is 864 feet above sea-level. Tradition says that these hills are rich in silver ore, but it has not been found in paying quantities. Springs strongly impreg- nated with sulphur are found on the slopes. The county-seat was originally located at Raleigh, which was platted in 1848, but it was subse- quently removed to Harrisburg, which was laid out in 1859. Population of the county (1880), 15,940; (1890), 19,342.

SALINE RIVER, a stream formed by the con- fluence of two branches, both of which flow through portions of Saline County, uniting in Gallatin County. The North Fork rises in Hamil- ton County and runs nearly south, while the South Fork drains part of Williamson County, and runs east through Saline. The river (which is little more than a creek), thus formed, runs southeast, entering the Ohio ten miles below Shawneetown.

SALT MANUFACTURE. There is evidence going to show that the saline springs, in Gallatin County, were utilized by the aboriginal inhabit-

ants in the making of salt, long before the advent of white settlers. There have been discovered, at various points, what appear to be the remains of evaporating kettles, composed of hardened clay and pounded shells, varying in diameter from three to four feet. In 1812, with a view to en- couraging the manufacture of salt from these springs, Congress granted to Illinois the use of 36 square miles, the fee still remaining in the United States. These lands were leased by the State to private parties, but the income derived from them was comparatively small and fre- quently difficult of collection. The workmen were mostly slaves from Kentucky and Tennes- see, who are especially referred to in Article VI., Section 2, of the Constitution of 1818. The salt made brought $5 per 100 pounds, and was shipped in keel-boats to various points on the Ohio, Mis- sissippi, Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, while many purchasers came hundreds of miles on horseback and carried it away on pack animals. In 1827, the State treasury being empty and the General Assembly having decided to erect a peni- tentiary at Alton, Congress was petitioned to donate these lands to the State in fee, and per- mission was granted "to sell 30,000 acres of the Ohio Salines in Gallatin County, and apply the proceeds to such purposes as the Legislature might by law direct." The sale was made, one- half of the proceeds set apart for the building of the penitentiary, and one-half to the improve- ment of roads and rivers in the eastern part of the State. The manufacture of salt was carried on, however-for a time by lessees and subse- quently by owners-until 1873, about which time it was abandoned, chiefly because it had ceased to be profitable on account of competition with other districts possessing superior facilities. Some salt was manufactured in Vermilion County about 1824. The manufacture has been success- fully carried on in recent years, from the product of artesian wells, at St. John, in Perry County.

SANDOVAL, a village of Marion County, at the crossing of the western branch of the Illinois Central Railroad, and the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern, 6 miles north of Centralia. The town has coal mines and some manufactures, with banks and two newspapers. Population (1880), 564; (1890), 834.

SANDSTONE. The quantity of sandstone quar- ried in Illinois is comparatively insignificant, its value being less than one-fifth of one per cent of the value of the output of the entire country. In 1890 the State ranked twenty-fifth in the list of States producing this mineral, the total value

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of the stone quarried being but $17,896, repre- senting 141,605 cubic feet, taken from ten quar- ries, which employed forty-six hands, and had an aggregate capital invested of $49,400.

SANDWICH, a city in De Kalb County, incorporated in 1873, on the Chicago, Burling- ton & Quincy Railroad, 58 miles southwest of Chicago. The principal industry is the manu- facture of agricultural implements, though there are also factories of pumps and wind-mills. Sandwich has two private banks and two weekly papers. Population (1880), 2,352; (1890), 2.516.

SANGAMON COUNTY, a central county, organized under act of June 30, 1821, from parts of Bond and Madison Counties, and embracing the present counties of Sangamon, Cass, Menard, Mason, Tazewell, Logan, and parts of Morgan, McLean, Woodford, Marshall and Putnam. It was named ' for the river flowing through it. Though reduced in area somewhat, four years later, it extended to the Illinois River, but was reduced to its present limits by the setting apart of Menard, Logan and Dane (now Christian) Counties, in 1839. Henry Funderburk is believed to have been the first white settler, arriving there in 1817 and locating in what is now Cotton Hill Township, being followed, the next year, by William Drennan, Joseph Dodds, James McCoy, Robert Pulliam and others. John Kelly located on the present site of the city of Springfield in 1818, and was there at the time of the selection of that place as the temporary seat of justice in 1821. Other settlements were made at Auburn, Island Grove, and elsewhere, and population began to flow in rapidly. Remnants of the Potta- watomie and Kickapoo Indians were still there, but soon moved north or west. County organi- zation was effected in 1821, the first Board of County Commissioners being composed of Wil- liam Drennan, Zachariah Peter and Samuel Lee. John Reynolds (afterwards Governor) held the first term of Circuit Court, with John Taylor, Sheriff; Henry Starr, Prosecuting Attorney, and Charles R. Matheny, Circuit Clerk. A United States Land Office was established at Springfield in 1823, with Pascal P. Enos as Receiver, the first sale of lands taking place the same year. The soil of Sangamon County is exuberantly fer- tile, with rich underlying deposits of bituminous coal, which is mined in large quantities. The chief towns are Springfield, Auburn, Riverton, Illiopolis and Pleasant Plains. The area of the county is 860 square miles. Population (1880), 52,894; (1890), 61,195.

SANGAMON RIVER, formed by the union of the North and South Forks, of which the former is the longer, or main branch. The North Fork rises in the northern part of Champaign County, whence it runs southwest to the city of Decatur. thence westward through Sangamon County, forming the north boundary of Christian County, and emptying into the Illinois River about 9 miles above Beardstown. The Sangamon is nearly 240 miles long, including the North Fork. The South Fork flows through Christian County, and joins the North Fork about 6 miles east of Springfield. In the early history of the State the Sangamon was regarded as a navigable stream, and its improvement was one of the measures advocated by Abraham Lincoln in 1832, when he was for the first time a candidate (though unsuc- cessfully) for the Legislature. In the spring of 1832 a small steamer from Cincinnati, called the "Talisman," ascended the river to a point near Springfield. The event was celebrated with great rejoicing by the people, but the vessel encountered so much difficulty in getting out of the river that the experiment was never repeated.

SANGAMON & MORGAN RAILROAD. (See Wabash Railroad.)

SANGER, Lorenzo P., railway and canal con- tractor, was born at Littleton, N. H., March 2, 1809; brought in childhood to Livingston County, N. Y., where his father became a contractor on the Erie Canal, the son also being employed upon the same work. The latter subsequently became a contractor on the Pennsylvania Canal on his own account, being known as "the boy contract- or." Then, after a brief experience in mercantile business, and a year spent in the construction of a canal in Indiana, in 1836 he came to Illinois, and soon after became an extensive contractor on the Illinois & Michigan Canal, having charge of rock excavation at Lockport. He was also connected with the Rock River improvement scheme, and interested in a line of stages between Chicago and Galena, which, having been consolidated with the line managed by the firm of Fink & Walker, finally became the Northwestern Stage Company, extending its operations throughout Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and Missouri-Mr. Sanger having charge of the Western Division, for a time, with headquarters at St. Louis. In 1851 he became the head of the firm of Sanger, Camp & Co., contractors for the construction of the Western (or Illinois) Division of the Ohio & Mississippi (now the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern) Railway, upon which he

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was employed for several years. Other works with which he was connected were the North Missouri Railroad and the construction of the State Penitentiary at Joliet, as member of the firm of Sanger & Casey, for a time, also lessees of convict lahor. In 1862 Mr. Sanger received from Governor Yates, by request of President Lincoln, a commission as Colonel, and was assigned to staff duty in Kentucky and Tennessee. After the war he became largely interested in stone quarries adjacent to Joliet; also had an extensive contract, from the City of Chicago, for deepening the Illinois & Michigan Canal. Died, at Oakland, Cal., March 23, 1875, whither he had gone for the benefit of his health .- James Young (Sanger), brother of the preceding, was born at Sutton, Vt., March 14, 1814; in boyhood spent some time in a large mercantile establishment at Pittsburg, Pa., later being associated with his father and elder brother in contracts on the Erie Canal and similar works in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indi- ana. At the age of 22 he came with his father's family to St. Joseph, Mich., where they estab- lished a large supply store, and engaged in bridge-building and similar enterprises. At a later period, in connection with his father and his brother, L. P. Sanger, he was prominently connected with the construction of the Illinois & Michigan Canal-the aqueduct at Ottawa and the locks at Peru being constructed by them. About 1850 the Construction Company, of which he and his brother, L. P. Sanger, were leading members, undertook the construction of the Ohio & Mississippi (now Baltimore & Ohio Southwest- ern) Railroad, from St. Louis to Vincennes, Ind., and were prominently identified with other rail- road enterprises in Southern Illinois, Missouri and California. Died, July 3, 1867, when consum- mating arrangements for the performance of a large contract on the Union Pacific Railroad.

SANITARY COMMISSION. (See Illinois San- itary Commission.)

SANITARY DISTRICT OF CHICAGO. (See Chicago Drainage Canal.)

SAUGANASH, the Indian name of a half-breed known as Capt. Billy Caldwell, the son of a British officer and a Pottawatomie woman, horn in Canada about 1780; received an education from the Jesuits at Detroit, and was able to speak and write English and French, besides several Indian dialects; was a friend of Tecum- seh's and, during the latter part of his life, a devoted friend of the whites. He took up his residence in Chicago about 1820, and, in 1826, was a Justice of the Peace, while nominally a

subject of Great Britain and a Chief of the Otta- was and Pottawatomies. In 1828 the Govern- ment, in consideration of his services, built for him the first frame house ever erected in Chicago, which he occupied until his departure with his tribe for Council Bluffs in 1836. By a treaty, made Jan. 2, 1830, reservations were granted by the Government to Sauganash, Shabona and other friendly Indians (see Shabona), and 1,240 acres on the North Branch of Chicago River set apart for Caldwell, which he sold before leaving the country. Died, at Council Bluffs, Iowa, Sept. 28, 1841.

SAVAGE, George S. F., D.D., clergyman, was born at Cromwell, Conn., Jan. 29, 1817; gradu- ated at Yale College in 1844; studied theology at Andover and New Haven, graduating in 1847; was ordained a home missionary the same year and spent twelve years as pastor at St. Charles, Ill., for four years being corresponding editor of . "The Prairie Herald" and "The Congregational Herald." For ten years he was in the service of the American Tract Society, and, during the Civil War, was engaged in sanitary and religious work in the army. In 1870 he was appointed Western Secretary of the Congregational Publishing Society, remaining two years, after which he be- came Financial Secretary of the Chicago Theo- logical Seminary. He has also been a Director of the institution since 1854, a Trustee of Beloit College since 1850, aud, for several years, editor and publisher of "The Congregational Review."

SAVANNA, a city in Carroll County, situated on the Mississippi River and the Chicago, Bur- lington & Northern and the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railways; is 10 miles west of Mount Carroll, and about 20 miles north of Clinton, Iowa. It is an important shipping point and contains several manufactories of machinery, lumber, flour, etc. It has a State bank, several churches, two graded schools and two daily and weekly newspapers. Population (1880), 1,000; (1890), 3,097.

SAYBROOK, a village of McLean County, on the Lake Erie & Western Railroad, 16 miles east of Bloomington. The district is agricultural; the town has a bank and two newspapers. Population (1880), 734; (1890), 851.

SCATES, Walter Bennett, jurist and soldier, was born at South Boston, Halifax County, Va., Jan. 18, 1808; was taken in infancy to Hopkins- ville, Ky., where he resided until 1831, having meanwhile learned the printer's trade at Nash- ville and studied law at Louisville. In 1831 he removed to Frankfort, Franklin County, Ill.,

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where, for a time, he was County Surveyor. In 1836, having been appointed Attorney-General, he removed to Vandalia, then the seat of govern- ment, but resigned at the close of the same year to accept the judgeship of the Third Judicial Circuit, and took up his residence at Shawnee- town. In 1841 he was one of five new Judges added to the Supreme Court bench. the others being Sidney Breese, Stephen A. Douglas, Thomas Ford and Samuel H. Treat. In that year he removed to Mount Vernon, Jefferson County, and, in January, 1847, resigned his seat upon the bench to resume practice. The same year he was a member of the Constitutional Con- vention and Chairman of the Committee on Judiciary. In June, 1854, he again took a seat upon the Supreme Court bench, being chosen to succeed Lyman Trumbull, but resigned in May, 1857, and resumed practice in Chicago. In 1862 he volunteered in defense of the Union, received a Major's commission and was assigned to duty on the staff of General McClernand; was made, Assistant Adjutant-General and mustered out in January, 1866. In July, 1866, President Johnson appointed him Collector of Customs at Chicago, which position he filled until July 1, 1869, when he was removed by President Grant, during the same period, being ex-officio custodian of United States funds, the office of Assistant Treasurer not having been then created. Died, at Evanston, Oct. 26, 1886.

SCAMMON, Jonathan Young, lawyer and banker, was born at Whitefield, Maine, July 27, 1812; after graduating at Waterville (now Colby) University in 1831, he studied law and was admitted to the bar at Hallowell, in 1835 remov- ing to Chicago, where he spent the remainder of his life. After a year spent as deputy in the office of the Circuit Clerk of Cook County, during which he prepared a revision of the Illinois stat- utes, he was appointed attorney for the State Bank of Illinois in 1837, and, in 1839, became reporter of the Supreme Court, which office he held until 1845. In the meantime, he was associ- ated with several prominent lawyers, his first legal firm being that of Scammon, McCagg & Fuller, which was continued up to the fire of 1871. A large operator in real estate and identi- fied with many enterprises of a public or benevo- lent character, his most important financial venture was in connection with the Chicago Marine & Fire Insurance Company, which con- ducted an extensive banking business for many years, and of which he was the President and leading spirit. As a citizen he was progressive,

public-spirited and liberal. He was one of the main promoters and organizers of the old Galena & Chicago Union Railway, the first railroad to run west from Lake Michigan; was also promi- nently identified with the founding of the Chi- cago public school system, a Trustee of the (old) Chicago University, and one of the founders of the Chicago Historical Society, of the Chicago Academy of Sciences and the Chicago Astro- nomical Society - being the first President of the latter body. He erected, at a cost of $30,000, the Fort Dearborn Observatory, in which he caused to be placed the most power- ful telescope which had at that time been brought to the West. Healso maintained the observatory at his own expense. He was the pioneer of Swedenborgianism in Chicago, and, in politics, a staunch Whig, and, later, an ardent Republican. In 1844 he was one of the founders of "The Chi- cago American," a paper designed to advance the candidacy of Henry Clay for the Presidency ; and, in 1872, when "The Chicago Tribune" espoused the Liberal Republican cause, he started "The Inter-Ocean" as a Republican organ, being, for some time, its sole proprietor and editor-in- chief. He was one of the first to encourage the adoption of the homeopathic system of medicine in Chicago, and was prominently connected with the founding of the Hahnemann Medical College and the Hahnemann Hospital, being a Trustee in both for many years. As a member of the Gen- eral Assembly he secured the passage of many important measures, among them being legisla- tion looking toward the bettering of the currency and the banking system. He accumulated a large fortune, but lost most of it by the fire of 1871 and the panic of 1873. Died, in Chicago, March 17, 1890.

SCARRITT, Nathan, pioneer, was born in Con- necticut, came to Edwardsville, Ill., in 1820, and, in 1821, located in Scarritt's Prairie, Madison County. His sons afterward became influential in business and Methodist church circles. Died, Dec. 12, 1847.

SCENERY, NATURAL. Notwithstanding the uniformity of surface which characterizes a country containing no mountain ranges, but which is made up largely of natural prairies, there are a number of localities in Illinois where scenery of a picturesque, and even bold and rugged character, may be found. One of the most striking of these features is produced by a spur or low range of hills from the Ozark Moun- tains of Missouri, projected across the southern part of the State from the vicinity of Grand

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Tower in Jackson County, through the northern part of Union, and through portions of William- son, Johnson, Saline, Pope and Hardin Counties. Grand Tower, the initial point in the western part of the State, is an isolated cliff of limestone, standing out in the channel of the Mississippi, and forming an island nearly 100 feet above low- water level. It has been a conspicuous landmark for navigators ever since the discovery of the Mississippi. "Fountain Bluff," a few miles above Grand Tower, is another conspicuous point immediately on the river bank, formed by some isolated hills about three miles long by a mile and a half wide, which have withstood the forces that excavated the valley now occupied hy the Mississippi. About half a mile from the lower end of this hill, with a low valley between them, is a smaller eminence known as the "Devil's Bake Oven." The main chain of bluffs, known as the "Back Bone," is about five miles from the river, and rises to a height of nearly 700 feet above low-tide in the Gulf of Mexico, or more than 400 feet above the level of the river at Cairo. "Bald Knob" is a very prominent inland bluff promontory near Alta Pass on the line of the Mobile & Ohio Railroad, in the northern part of Union County, with an elevation above tide- water of 985 feet. The highest point in this range of hills is reached in the northeastern part of Pope County-the elevation at that point (as ascertained by Prof. Rolfe of the State University at Champaign) being 1,046 feet .- There is some striking scenery in the neighborhood of Grafton between Alton and the mouth of the Illinois, as well as some distance up the latter stream- though the landscape along the middle section of the Illinois is generally monotonous or only gently undulating, except at Peoria and a few other points, where bluffs rise to a considerable height. On the Upper Illinois, beginning at Peru, the scenery again becomes picturesque, including the celebrated "Starved Rock," the site of La Salle's Fort St. Louis (which see). This rock rises to a perpendicular height of about 125 feet from the surface of the river at the ordinary stage. On the opposite side of the river, about four miles below Ottawa, is "Buffalo Rock," an isolated ridge of rock about two miles long by forty to sixty rods wide, evidently once an island at a period when the Illinois River occupied the whole valley. Additional interest is given to both these localities by their associ- ation with early history. Deer Park, on the Ver- milion River-some two miles from where it empties into the Illinois, just below "Starved

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Historical encyclopedia of Illinois, Part 93

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Gale, W. Shelden Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1388

Author: Bateman, Newton, 1822-1897. cn; Selby, Paul, 1825-1913; Gale, W. Shelden
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chicago : Munsell Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1388