USA > Illinois > McLean County > Normal > History of Bloomington and Normal, in McLean County, Illinois > Part 3
USA > Illinois > McLean County > Bloomington > History of Bloomington and Normal, in McLean County, Illinois > Part 3
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20
A tract of eighty acres was entered on the 9th of October, 1829, in the names of Seth and Isaac Baker. On the next day, October 10, it appears that no less than
16
eighteen of the pioneers of Blooming Grove entered their farms, indicating that a jolly crowd went from here to Vandalia at that time. Within a short time after this, it appears, nearly the whole settlement secured their homes.
Many of our pioneers borrowed money at the exorbitant rate of twenty-five per cent interest, in order to secure their farms. There was at that time no usury law in the State. There were very few capitalists, money being very scarce indeed. Some of the early settlers found it impossible to hold and pay for their farms at these rates, although they paid such a low price for the land.
Quite a number of our pioneers borrowed money for their farms of Dr. R. H. Peebles, of Vandalia, and his name appears frequently on our early records. He was regarded as a man of wealth, having loaned money over a large area. We have stated that this region was taken off from Fayette County, in 1826, and included in Vermilion County for a time. In 1827, Tazewell County was formed, as we have mentioned, and, in 1829, its boundaries were re-arranged, and the eastern portion of Tazewell, including Blooming Grove, was contained, nominally, within the limits of Vermilion from 1829 to 1831, but attached to Tazewell for county purposes. In the records of the County Commissioners' proceedings at Pekin, this district is often spoken of as the " attached " portion of Tazewell County. County lines were understood to be in a formative condi- tion, and it was entirely uncertain where they would eventually be permanently estab- lished, and hence one can realize that there was great interest felt in all schemes for the formation of new counties. The territory under consideration was " in the market," so to speak-ready for any project that might promise to benefit the interests of Blooming Grove. For several years, there was quite a conflict between the interests of a portion of the people living in what was then the " attached " portion of Tazewell and those in the western part of the same county. The latter were not by any means united in their interests, as Pekin was aspiring to become a county seat, while Mackinaw was striving to retain the prize then held.
One of the last acts of the Tazewell County Court affecting the interests of Blooming Grove Precinct was at the June term of 1830, when Judges of Election were appointed. They were John Benson, John Hendrix and John Cox. The election was ordered to be held at the house of William Evans. This being the year during which the project was carried out for the formation of a new county, and, having taken place after Mr. James Allin had opened his store at this point, it is altogether probable that Mr. Allin favored the holding of this election at the house of Mr. Evans, in order to enlighten the inhabitants of the Grove as to the eligibility of this locality as a site for the county seat, although the mere fact of his store being here might have been the main element of " centrality" that entered into the case. At all events, it is quite cer- tain that this election at the house of Mr. Evans was the first public meeting of any kind that was ever held in the city of Bloomington.
We are now approaching the time when the new county of McLean was organized, and it is possible some of the actors may have been interested in the manufacture of new offices, as much as others were in the location of new county seats, and the combination of these inducements no doubt contributed to the formation of the county of McLean, as well as to the location of its capital, which was to grow into the thriving city of Bloomington. It will, of course, be remembered that. Blooming Grove was in Fayette County until 1827, when the northern portion of Fayette was organized into the county
17
of Tazewell, on the plea that the increase of settlement rendered it impossible to hold this region as a dependency-one hundred miles from the county seat at Vandalia The new county. Tazewell, had its capital at Mackinawtown, only twenty miles distant, and hence our settlers had not the excuse of innecessibility, as before. Other reasons. however, existed for the organization of a new county, a careful examination of which will show good cause why a new county should be authorized. Tazewell County, as it then existed, stretched from the Ilinois River to the present line of Iroquois County, or in that neighborhood, on the east, and to the Hinois River on the west and north, an immense territory, now occupied by about seven or right counties. This district was rapidly filling with industrious settlers, and it was seen that new counties must be carved out of this territory at no distant day. The problem for those interested here at Blooming Grove was, to detach sufficient timberland from Tazewell to form a good county. Prairie was then reckoned as so much waste-little better than a desert. After considerable scheming, a petition was taken to Vandalia by Thomas Orendorff and Mr. James Latta, who secured from the Legislature a law for the formation of a new county, to be called MeLean, which was detached from Tazewell at the session of 1830 and 1831.
The name MeLean was given in honor of John Mcbean, who had been a Repre- tentative in Congress, and was greatly respected. He had also been twice a member of the United States Senate, and died in that office in 1830 ; and his death being a recent event. it was natural that a new county should be named for the magnanimous, noble man, who never had an enemy in his life. The law provided that a Commission should meet in the new county and proceed to locate its county seat, which was accomplished. as we shall briefly relate ; but we will first take a view of what was evident to those who were actors in the events of the times.
We should also mention that by this time there were a number of families along the Mackinaw, a good many at White Oak and Stout's Grove, while Dry and Twin Groves, Randolph's Grove, Old Town Timber, Buckles', Cheney's, and in fact all the groves were peopled with settlers; and in some places there was still left good tim- ber-land unclaimed, which. in a short time, as was well understood, would be as fully occupied with families as were the other tracts of timber in the county. In all this dis- triet the only trading-place was the store of James Allin, removed from the house of William Walker to what is now Bloomington, and situated at what is now the southeast corner of Grove and East streets. Of course, Mr. Allin did not supply all the goods that were used, as Mackinawtown contained stores, while many goods were purchased at Springfield, at Peoria, and at towns on the Wabash and other places. But it was foreseen that the new county seat would be a place of considerable importance, even to supply the trade already existing, while with the increase of settlement expected, busi- ness would become at some future time, extensive enough to sustain considerable of a town.
Mr. James Allin had opened his store at his new location in 1830, and made a purchase of land where the city of Bloomington now stands. Before the law organizing MeLean County was passed, Mr. Allin formed his plans to secure the county seat. though we cannot say just how much mention he made of his designs. The famous doop snow came in the winter of 1:30 and 1531, and was the means of preventing the assembling of the county seat Commission on the " second Monday of February, or in five 11
18
days thereafter ; " but as soon as possible, as they say in their report, they made their selection of the site for the permanent county seat of McLean County.
A location was shown the Commission in the Orendorff neighborhood. At this time, in fact from 1823, William and Thomas Orendorff were the most substantial set- tlers, or very nearly so, were very influential, and they were men who could, no doubt, have secured the county seat near them, in what was then the oldest and best settled part of the Grove, had they made the attempt. Mr. William Orendorff remarked that he would not have his farm cut up by a little town, and made no effort, though impor- tuned by some of his neighbors. Mr. James Allin was always grateful to Mr. Oren- dorff for the stand he took. It was agreed by all parties that the name of the new county seat should be Bloomington, and it was thus named in the act incorporating McLean County.
Mrs. William Orendorff, a lady of more than ordinary talent, better educated than the majority of the early settlers, and, withal, a person of fine personal appearance, ap- pears to be entitled to the honor of changing the name of Keg Grove to Blooming Grove, in 1824. From this, the transition to Bloomington seemed very natural and proper, and the name met with very general approval all over the county.
The county seat of Monroe County, Ind., was named Bloomington April 10, 1818, over twelve years before our town was laid out; so we cannot claim to have originated the name. There are now no less than thirteen Bloomingtons in as many different States, but our city is much the largest and most important of all.
A post office was established here, named Blooming Grove, with Rev. William See, Postmaster, on the 29th of January, 1829. Mr. See was the Methodist minister of this circuit for several years. He lived in this settlement much of the time after 1824, though in 1831, at the time of the location of Bloomington, he was living in Randolph Grove. Mr. Sec improved the Price farm on the east side of the Grove, and here the first post office was kept for a little over one year.
During the years between 1822 and 1831, all of Blooming Grove was either bought or " claimed" by settlers, and it was occupied by a class of hard-working, intelligent farmers, who were bent on clearing their land, making good homes for their families, with little thought of the glorious future in store for their settlement. Let us take a clear, unobstructed view of the condition of Blooming Grove Settlement as it existed in 1830, before McLean County was organized, when Bloomington had no existence, and in so doing we shall prepare our way for a better understanding of what followed. We have seen that the whole grove was occupied at the date we have selected. We find there were fifty families of whom we have learned the names, and it is likely there may have been a few others. The names of the heads of families are John Hendrix, Rev. E. Rhodes, Jeremiah Rhodes, William Orendorff, Thomas Orendorff, Rev. James Latta, Henry Little, John H. S. Rhodes; William Goodheart, William H. Hodge, William Lind- ley, Mrs. Benjamin Cox, David Simmons, John Benson, James Benson, George Hinshaw, Sr., William Chatham, Moses Dunlap, William Waldron, Anthony Alberry, William Thomas, John Canady, James Canady, Oman Olney, Joseph Walker, Sr., William Michaels, John Lindley, Joseph Bailey Harbord, Achilles Deatherage, William Walker, Timothy M. Gates, William Lucas, John Cox, Dr. Isaac Baker, Maj. Seth Baker, H. M. Harbord, Parr Rathbone, John Mullen, Michael Allington, Nathan Low, John Benson, Jr. and Benjamin Depew.
19
Of single young men living in Blooming Grove in 1830 and ISII, we have the names of David Cox, Aaron Rhodes, Samuel Rhodes, Joseph Walker, Jr., Wilson Lindley, Cheney Thomas, Solomon Walker, Hiram Harbord, Moses Baker, Elliott Baker William T. T. Benson, Jesse Benson, William Olney, Sylvanus Olney, Franklin Gates, Timothy Gates, William Canady, John Walker, Johnson Lucas, John D. Baker, James Rhodes, James K. Orendorff.
It is possible some of the above may have been rather young to be called men at the time indicated ; while it is likely there were a number of young men living in the settlement whose names are not mentioned in the foregoing list
The following heads of families were living within what are now the city limits of Bloomington before the town was laid out, in 1830, while it is probable a few others- among them Dr. Baker and Rev. Mr. Latta-should also be included in this list ; but we have placed them in the list of those living in the Grove. In the whole settlement, there were fifty funilies : Henry Miller, James Tolliver, James Allin, John Greenman, Will- iam Evans, John Maxwell, John Kimler and James Mason lived in what is now the city of Bloomington.
Of young men then living in what is now the city of Bloomington, we find Will- iam Dimmitt, William Evans, Jr., Frank Evans, William Durley, Merritt L. Covell, W. H. Allen, William Greenman, Esek Greenman, Samuel Durley, John Durley and Sam- uel Evans.
A few of the latter were hardly grown men. The Guthries were not living here till just after the sale of lots, in 1831, after which time, we find them in Bloomington settlement, though living at first in what is now Major's Grove. Adam Guthrie and his brother Robert E. were among the most active of our early residents.
We have taken a great deal of pains to ascertain the names of all heads of fami- lies who were here in 1830 and 1831, before the sale of lots, and believe we have obtained nearly a full list. Of the names given as single men we do not feel quite as certain, though it probably includes the most of those living here at the time. We have men- tioned but few of those who were boys at that day, though it is evident there were a large number of children in the fifty families here at Blooming Grove. It is probable that the population of the settlement on the 4th of July, 1831, was between two hundred and fifty and three hundred-indicating a solid basis for the new town of Bloomington, which was about to start upon its career of fame and prosperity. By this time, many of the farmers at the Grove were in quite comfortable circumstances, and their growing ability to purchase comforts and luxuries for their families formed a much better basis for the establishment of a town than was dreamed of by the most of the pioneers of the day.
We have thus sketched, briefly, the outline of the carly history of Blooming Grove, and have tried to make it perfectly clear that it was a thrifty, well-ordered, sub- stantial farming neighborhood, of itself ahnost sufficiently important to found and build a village of considerable future importance ; while its location was such that the sur- runding settlements were tributary to Blooming Grove, as a natural center. Taking this view of the matter, we see satisfactory reasons for the locating here of the county seat of the new county, and can proceed from this point with the history of Blooming ton, remarking that Blooming Grove, as a part of the precinct, afterward township, of Bloomington, has an equal interest in whatever we relate of historical events after the years 1830 and 1931.
20
JAMES ALLIN.
While we cannot pretend, in a work of this kind, to give much personal history, we will mention that the Hon. James Allin was born January 13, 1788, in North Car- olina. After several emigrations, he found himself, in 1821, at Vandalia, then the county seat of Fayette County, which included a portion of the territory now in McLean County. Mr. Allin was one of those far-seeing, shrewd business men, who plainly saw that the rapid increase of population in the new State of Illinois would result in the formation of new counties and the location of new towns, and he early conceived the idea of being interested in some one or more of the future towns or cities of Central Illinois.
In November, 1829, he came to Blooming Grove with a stock of goods which he commenced selling at the house of William Walker, near Mr. Orendorff's, in the south part of the Grove. During the following winter and spring, he was forming plans for future action. Ile learned before coming here from Vandalia that schemes were being matured for the formation of a new county from the eastern part of Tazewell, and on his arrival, he was of great assistance to the Orendorff's, Mr. W. H. Hodge, Mr. James Latta and others, who were in the movement.
Mr. William Lindley, who is now living on the south side of Blooming Grove, states that early in 1830 Mr. Allin offered to buy his claim, which covered Mr. Lindley's pres- ent farm, stating that he wished to start a town. Mr. L. told him his land was too flat and wet for that purpose, but if he would come with him to the north side of the Grove, he would show him the best town site in the country. Mr. Allin came, and they found that Mr. William Evans, who had a "claim " on 160 acres, wished to sell, and a bargain was soon arranged. This Mr. Evans was not related to the other William Evans who built the first house in Bloomington. He soon moved away to Missouri, or some- where else, and disappeared from our history. Mr. Allin built a house, which is still standing as a part of the family residence of Dr. Stipp, where he opened a store in one end of the building in March, 1830; and during this year he went forward with his plans for the formation of the county and the location of the county seat. David Sim- mons came here in November, 1830, and at that time Mr. Allin told him there would be a town where we now see Bloomington. The Legislature had not passed the aet for the incorporation of McLean County; but Mr. Allin was confident of the outcome of the plans which were being matured. During the following session of the Legislature, Mr. Thomas Orendorff and Rev. James Latta went to Vandalia with a petition for a new county. Before they started, Mr. Allin rendered them valuable assistance by sug- gestions as to how they should operate for the passage of the bill for the new county. He had lived several years at the capital, and understood how these matters were man- aged in legislative halls. When the act passed, it named three men to locate the county seat, who were the parties Mr. Allin desired ; and when they met here they approved of the site, and reported in favor of locating the county seat " at the north side of the Blooming Grove."
Mr. James Allin donated twenty-two and one-half acres of land, to be divided into lots and sold for the benefit of MeLean County. Of course he owned land adjoining that would be advanced in value, and he also intended to go on with his store and gon- eral business. In advancing his own interests he also benefited the public, and he has always justly taken rank as a benefactor of the community, having been very popular to
21
the day of his death. Mr. Allin was a far-seeing, shrewd business man, and was, in fact, a model speculator. He selected the prettiest location for a town that could possi- bly be found in the county. Blooming Grove and the prairie were adjoining each other ; his donated land, or the " original town," was just on the northern edge of the grove, bounded by North, East and West streets, with Front street on its southern bor- der. Three streets, Main, Center and Madison, ran through from north to south ; while Front, Washington and Jefferson crossed from east to west. Front street was near the edge of the timber, a few noble trees of which are standing to-day in the front yards of the residences owned by Dr. Stipp, Mrs. W. H. Hanna, Gen. Gridley and Absalom Funk. The Court House square is in the center of the " original town," as Mr. Allin's donation is called. It is a remarkable fact that in Dr. Stipp's front yard, the place where trade was first carried on in Bloomington, where our carly pioncers must have often tied their horses to young trees which are now of moderate size, may still be seen the nearest approach to our virgin forest of any to be found near the heart of the city, and that here the natural sod or turf has never been disturbed by the march of improvement, as is proved by the annual blooming of the little "Spring Beauty," which is found nowhere else in the vicinity except in Gen. Gridley's grounds.
With the noble trees of Blooming Grove in its rear, and the rolling prairie in the front on the north, the " original town " was a remarkable tract of land. From the square, the natural surface fell off in every direction, giving the best of drainage, while for quite a distance outside of the town the ground still continued to slope nicely, form- ing the best natural grades that could possibly be desired.
Mr. Allin had noticed that the roads of that day, which were many of them on the lines of the old Indian trails-the most natural modes of communication to be found in a new country-all centered at Bloomington. He remarked that the route from Chicago to St. Louis, here crossed the road from Columbus, Ohio, to Iowa and the West. Prob- ably, he was thinking of the day when railroads would traverse these lines, and Bloom- ington be the railroad center it has since become through efforts inaugurated partly by Mr. Allin himself within two or three years of the founding of the new town. Inas- much as railroads were at that date pushing on through Pennsylvania and Maryland, and the people already began to talk of turning the great national road, then building through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, into a railroad to be built and owned by the Govern- ment, it is highly probable, indeed almost certain, that Mr. Allin had formed plans for railroad lines that should have their crossings, if not their termini, here. We find that during the Internal Improvement craze in 1836, only five years after the location of Bloomington, railroads were projected from Chicago to Alton, from Cairo to Galena, which have since been constructed and passed through here; while there was still another projected road to run from Bloomington to Pekin ; and, as Mr. Allin was one of the best thinkers of this part of the country, he may have thought of these lines when he first conceived of the location of the county scat at the north side of Blooming Grove.
In all the vicissitudes through which the new town passed, Mr. Allin never lost his faith in Bloomington. He seemed aware of the possibilities of the town, and was buoyed by an undoubting faith in its future destiny. He was assisted by such men as Messrs. Gridley, Fell and Davis, men of deep, broad views, who are entitled to rank with the foremost thinkers of the West-who are referred to as men of the greatest foresight ; but of these men, he was, at least, the peer, their equal in enterprise and
22
activity, and their superior in faith and hope. In the mind of Mr. James Allin, Bloomington was to grow into one of the prettiest and most thriving cities of the State ; and no temporary discouragement could shake his belief in its glorious future.
To show that Mr. Allin's early efforts have been appreciated by those who have reaped some of the rewards of his labors, we will refer to June 30, 1854, at the open- ing of the Pike House. This hotel was then thought to be a most magnificent struct- ure, and which, built of wood, on the exact site of the present Phoenix Hotel, costing $25,000, was really a creditable institution. There was a gathering of our leading cit- izens on this occasion, when Mr. James Allin gave this toast : " My favorite daughter -- Bloomington-a puny child and the object of intense parental solicitude, now spring- ing up into a blooming and vigorous womanhood ; the idol of her father and the belle of the commonwealth."
In response to this, Mr. William Wallace gave. " The venerable founder of Bloom- ington-James Allin-a man never appalled by difficulty, and who never lost sight of the splendid future of our flourishing city in the dark hour of her trial." We are thus enabled to perceive that Mr. Allin was appreciated fully by those who lived and labored with him in the great work of founding and building the city.
He left no scheme untried that promised to benefit Bloomington, and in most of his projects he received the active and efficient aid of A. Gridley, Jesse W. Fell, J. E. McClun, M. L. Covell, David Davis, and others, who soon became citizens of Bloomington. There was built up a public spirit-a sort of buoyant hopefulness and cheerfulness-that is characteristic of Bloomington, and a willingness to work for one common object, that has been the means of securing our city many very important advantages, among which may be mentioned the railroad-shops, five railroads, and the Normal and Soldiers' Home in our sister-town of Normal, all of which were the direct outgrowth of the far-sighted, harmonious working of our leading prominent citizens of the past and present. Long may their successors follow in the footsteps of their illus- trious predecessors, ever showing a vigorous harmony in laboring for the public good. Mr. Allin's efforts ceased not until late in life when he gently passed over the dark river May 5, 1869. He attended an Old Settlers' meeting in 1866, at which time the Bloom- ington Pantagraph, then edited by the author of this sketch, spoke of him as follows :
"Mr. Allin's health is poor, and he has never recovered from a fall on the ice which severely injured him about four years ago. He walks on crutches, and was assisted up-stairs by two men. He was complimented by the speakers as the man whose superior foresight pointed out Bloomington as the site of a future city when all around was an uncultivated wilderness. According to what Gov. Moore and Mr. Grid- ley said, Mr. Allin in his younger days was very much such a man as we occasionally hear of now in frontier places. He used every honorable endeavor to induce emigrants to locate in this county. If they wished to settle in the new town, Mr. Allen would sell them lots at a low price if they had money, and would sell them at a lower figure if they had a little money, or would give lots outright if they had no money, always stipulating that improvements should be made.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.